Visit with friends

Today, after church, Marta and I went into the Bethlehem market to visit the grandparents of Yusif. (I wrote about Yusif a few months ago; he is a friend of ours who is studying in Atlanta and we were invited to his home to meet his family). We have visited them only about 3 times, but they receive us each time as if we are family. His grandfather was sitting in the market selling kitchen items from his store, and when he saw us, he warmly welcomed us into his home just down the stairs. So we went down and greeted Yusif's grandmother, who kissed us on the cheek and called us "habibati"(her dear ones). Although our communication is always limited, I never cease to be amazed by her kindness and affection. We smiled at eachother and laughed, and that seemed to be enough. Just our presence seemed to make her content. She showed us her bag of medications and told us that these were very expensive but that she needed them. She also told us that her family works all the time in their store, and that they only eat bread. Despite the obvious financial burden, she insisted on serving us tea and cucumbers. Even though they barely have enough for themselves, they give to us anyways. Their home is simple but cozy and in it live three generations of their family. What else really matters if you have your family with you?
After leaving, I realized I do not even know their names. I am embarrassed by this, but I also know that names do not really matter. We know eachother in a way that does not require names, only a friendly smile and a kiss on the cheek. I hope that we will see much more of them in the future. And hopefully my Arabic will improve so we can communicate better :)