Having a time away many years ago when our kids were all still living at home, we decided to take them on holiday to Tunisia. None of them had flown before, so we thought this would be a good opportunity for them to experience that, and so we booked to go around about March time, which although not quite summer here would still give us good weather out there.

When we arrived at the hotel, we were stunned to see how much the doorman, resplendent in his red jacket and black trousers, was an absolute young Elvis Presley look-alike.

We were shown to our rooms, and the lady who came in to make up the beds and clean was so nice and friendly. Although she only spoke a little English, we were able to explain our son Matthew’s learning difficulties (which did include some incontinence at night) and she was very understanding said “not to worry.”

That evening when we went down to the hotel restaurant to have our first meal, we were also able to explain to the waiter that was allocated to our table, about Matthew and how he sometimes got a little noisy and a little impatient and he also was so understanding. He must have had a word with the staff because at every meal we sat at the same table and it seems that they had made arrangements for Matthew to always be served first. Matthew and the rest of the family were treated very well.

We all enjoyed that holiday sitting outside around the pool Matthew enjoyed the sunbathing. We generally tended to eat a hearty breakfast and then look forward to our evening meal but not Matt. He is a three-square-meals-a-day man – always has been.  So, he would sit and eagerly await the lunchtime and the staff came around with Pizzas. Matthew loves pizzas. We thoroughly enjoyed that holiday – as we took in the sunshine and smiled a lot.

One evening the hotel arranged for us all to go to a Bedouin Feast in a massive tent way out in the middle of nowhere. Matt enjoyed a ride on a donkey, although I am not sure the donkey enjoyed it too much with all the excited hollering and shouting from Matt but we all enjoyed the evening’s entertainment - the music and the dancers dressed up in their national costumes.

A day trip out which we enjoyed was when we all took a little train down to the Medina – a kind of undercover market area. We did have some slight uneasy feelings (not helped by a couple of traders asking Malc how much he would take to sell me and our daughter to them! (not sure if they were serious or not!)

But as we went around dodging almost every stallholder as they can be quite pushy in their attempt to sell to you, we spotted a pleasant-looking young man outside his shoe shop. He beckoned us into his shop and he allowed us to relax a bit without anyone trying to sell to us – not even him. He was clearly a Tunisian, but we were taken by surprise at how good his English was, and then even more when, as we chatted about where we were from a place near Southend in Essex, he said “Oh, I used to work in Romford Market!” Romford is close to where Malc and I grew up.

It just shows you that you could be anywhere in the world and just a few people away from someone or somewhere you know.

On the final full day of our holiday (before we were flying home the following day around midday) Malc and Darryl decided that they should go for a ride on a camel. Malc had seen the sign near the entrance road to into the hotel site several times, so off they went to find the man organising the rides. And were gone for several hours, so me, Emma, and Matt enjoyed the sun and the pool.

When Malc and Darryl came back Malc said “Never again.” He explained the way the camel walks, and how it is so ungainly, and three hours perched up on the top of one of those things with little to hang on to, and having both gone for their ride without their shirts on (silly idea) they got burnt to a crisp and very saddle-sore. Actually, Malc explained they had no saddles, just a rough woven rug between them and the camel. Ouch!

“A bit like Lawrence of Arabia,” I said to Malc.

“More like Malc of the sore backside,” he replied.

Still, it was an experience, that’s for sure.

It was certainly a holiday to remember, and we experienced the hand of God upon us the whole time. He kept us safe, met our needs, and made special provision for Matt and all of us.

It reminds me of the scripture in James 4:8 which says: “Draw near to God and He will draw near to you.”

Do you know the closeness of God in your life?  You can.  Go HERE to find out how.

 

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