A near miss and a wedding

We live around some amazing, interesting and guenuinely caring people. Most are post doctoral students and they are from all over the middle east, southeast Asia, and Europe. Our immediate neighbors are from Bulgaria and India. Upstairs, there is a couple from Malaysia. Recently we tried to obtain our driver's license and were accompanied by a young man from Egypt. His name is Ahmed. He lived clear accross Doha from us and was desparately wanting to move to our area so he could have easy access to the university. This week, J. has met him each morning as he waited for the university driver. He is now our neighbor! Last evening, we met him at the grocery store. We walk to the local grocery store just about every evening. He was with a Lebanese friend (WaEl), also a neighbor of ours. They offered us a ride. At first we refused since we don't mind walking at all. However, on the way home, they stopped again and offered us a ride and also offered to take us to the local mall to pick up tickets we had been wanting to get. On the way home, a cement truck pulled out directly in front of WaEl. A remarkably quick reaction, no oncoming traffic, and by the grace of God, an accident was avoided. Afterwards there was a great deal of talk and WaEl translated the arabic for us after we dropped off Ahmed. Basically, both young men discussed the fact that problems often seem insurmountable until something like this happens ---- and by God's grace we are reminded how insignificant are our problems and how great the power of God. And together we all thanked God for averting this near disaster. It was an amazing and touching moment. I know I will never forget it. It is times like this that I wonder why we continue to believe that such differences separate us. No doubt, it is often our misunderstanding and our unwillingness to make friends of those that seem so different. Within a couple hours after our near disaster, I was on my way to my first (and probably only) Qatari wedding. It is a women's only affair. I believe you would call me a wedding crasher, but it was amazing and wonderful! Two of the women I met at the law school let me go with them. They are both Americans and know the groom. He is a professor in the law school. It was spectacular! We arrived at the Sheraton on the Gulf at about 8:30PM. After being checked (all cell phones with cameras and cameras were taken away), we were allowed into a back huge ballroom filled with about 400 women. Tables of 10 were set up with flowers everywhere with a stage in the middle. A live instrumental musician was performing and professional cameras on moving swing appendages were videoing the entire evening. I was told this musian is paid 15,000 riyals for the evening. On top of that, women were throwing money on the stage which is an expression of happiness with the music. A maid was picking up the money to give to the musician. Women in spectacular dresses (not black abiyas!) were dancing on the stage and some older women were watching from seats set up along the stage. The younger girls were being observed and watched closely. These are the prospective daughter in laws! Along one end and in the corner of the ballroom, the maids sat in a row. From the moment we arrived until we left after 11PM, we were waited on by asian black suited waitresses or by lovely dark skinned young women dressed in white dresses and beautiful white head scarves. The women in black served food and the women in white served drinks. The food was delicious. After appetizers, we had chocolates. After salads and dips, we had chocolates. After dinner, we had chocolates. After dessert, we had chocolates. I thought I was in heaven. The bride arrived around 10PM and very slowly walked down the center stage to a large white couch where she was greeted by family and friends. She wore a long white dress and long white veil. Glamorous! Money was also thrown on the bride's head. Again, this money was for the musician and showed how happy the giver was. I watched and ate and wished I had a camera. The woman sitting next to me explained what was going on. The couple had actually been married a couple months before, but had to live separately until tonight. There was a men's only party the night before as well as a henna party for the women the night before. This meal and extravaganza was the finale! We did not stay until the groom arrived. That was still a good hour off! The lovely dresses worn in the evening are only worn once. They are given to charity afterwards. No one wears the dress they wore to a wedding a second time. I am thinking I should adopt that practice too. But, I would have to be rich. Perhaps in my second life! Luckily, I had a long black dress to wear - the one I will be wearing to my nieces' weddings in April. Yes, I will be wearing the same dress to both weddings. I got home and couldn't sleep for hours. I had too much caffeine. Serves me right!