Jerrash

Today I went to Jerrash. It is a site with extensive Roman ruins. As it turns out, it was the day for all the teenage girls to have a field trip there. Literally there were hundreds of them, all laughing and crying out, just being teens. (I think teens are the same all over the world). They were very friendly, vivacious, and fun. They loved to ask me where I was from, what was my name, was I married, etc. One girl asked me why everyone in the west thinks that Arabs are terrorists...I told her I thought it was because of the media. Then I asked her what she thought of the hijab, because I noticed some girls were wearing it and others were not. She said that she would wear it when she got older, because otherwise God would send her to Hell. Wow! I did not expect that answer. I wish I could have asked some other girls the same question and heard some of their answers. Basically, most of them thought I was the coolest thing around, being from America and all. With their basic English skills and outgoing personalities, they would say things like, "You are so beautiful! We love you! Do you love to the Jordan people? Can we see your eyes?" (I was wearing sunglasses.) After I took the glasses off, they all cheered. "Ohh, you have such beautiful eyes!" they said. Some of them had drums that they would play, and the whole group would sing an Arabic song. Of course, they wanted ME to sing, and dance. I finally agreed to sing a Justin Bieber song with them, the same one that was so popular with my teenage students in Nepal ("Baby, baby"). After finishing the chorus, a security guard and the girls' teacher asked us to stop. Adults here don't like women and girls getting too excited or singing/dancing too much in public. What a shame. All I could think was that these girls are SO lovely and energetic, with such free spirits. They were so curious about me too. I felt sad that they were growing up in a society where they will be so held back in their creative expression and freedom.