IT WAS THE FIRST TIME I HAD EVER BEEN INSIDE A MOSLEM MOSQUE. I'M NOT SURE HOW TO EXPLAIN THE SENSATION. KINDA WEIRD, REALLY. COLYA AND I WERE ALONE AT THE TIME BECAUSE LEONID WAS BUSY DOING SOME WORK AT HIS HOUSE, SO WE WANDERED TO THIS MOSQUE. WE ACTUALLY WENT IN THE WRONG DOOR. WE WENT IN THE BACK DOOR AND THE FIRST THING I NOTICED WAS ROWS OF SHOES. YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO TAKE OFF YOUR SHOES WHEN YOU GO IN.
WELL, WE DIDN'T SEE ANYONE SO WE JUST WALKED ON IN. THERE WERE SOME OFFICE TYPE PLACES. WE WENT UP SOME STAIRS AND SAW A SIGN THAT SAID "MUFTI". EVIDENTLY THAT'S KINDA LIKE "PASTOR". WE TURNED AROUND AND WENT BACK DOWNSTAIRS. WE HAD STUMBLED INTO THE MINISTRY OFFICES OF THE BIGGEST SUNNI MUSLIM MOSQUE IN ADYGEA! IF THEY'D ONLY KNOWN! 
WE SCAMPERED OUT AND INTO ANOTHER DOOR THAT TOOK US INTO THE FRONT OF THE TEMPLE. IT, OF COURSE, IS NOT SET UP LIKE ANY CHURCH WE KNOW, IT'S RATHER JUST A BIG OPEN ROOM WHERE PEOPLE COME TO PRAY. WHEN WE CAME IN THERE WERE THREE MEN ON THERE KNEES DOING THE PRAYER TYPE THING THAT WE'VE BECOME USED TO SEEING ON TV. I NOTICED THAT THERE WAS A SIGN ON THE WALL POINTING TO A PLACE UPSTAIRS WHERE THE WOMEN WERE TO GO TO PRAY. 
THE WOMEN AND THE MEN ARE NOT ALLOWED TO PRAY TOGETHER. THE DOORS ARE ALWAYS OPEN AND THE MUSLIM PEOPLE COME HERE TO PRAY AT ANY TIME. I BELIEVE THAT THERE ARE CERTAIN TIMES DURING THE DAY IN WHICH THEY ARE REQUIRED TO PRAY, BUT THEY ALSO CAN COME WHEN THEY WANT TO.
THE SUNNI MUSLIMS ARE THE LARGEST DIVISION OF ISLAM. ISLAM HAS PROBABLY DIVIDED OVER THE YEARS MUCH LIKE THE BAPTIST, METHODISTS, LUTERANS, ETC., HAVE. ONE GROUP DIDN'T LIKE THE WAY THE LADIES WORE THEIR OUTFITS SO THEY STARTED ANOTHER GROUP. ANOTHER DIDN'T LIKE THE WAY THE MOSQUES WERE BEING LAID OUT, SO THEY SPLIT OFF AND MADE ANOTHER GROUP. YOU KNOW HOW IT GOES. PEOPLE ARE PEOPLE EVERYWHERE. THE ADYGEAN PEOPLE ARE 99.9% MUSLIM, BUT THEY ARE NOT SERIOUS MUSLIM AS WE THINK OF IT. THEY ARE LIKE THE RUSSIANS ARE ORTHODOX, OR LIKE SOUTHERN BAPTISTS ARE SOUTHERN BAPTIST FOR THE MOST PART. THEY DON'T TAKE IT THAT SERIOUSLY. THEY BASICALLY FEEL LIKE THEY ARE BORN INTO THEIR RELIGION.
IT IS A GOOD PLACE FOR US TO START WORKING WITHIN THE 10/40 WINDOW OF THE WORLD, I BELIEVE. WE CAN BEGIN TO LEARN ABOUT ISLAM THROUGH A RELATIVELY BENIGN GROUP OR MUSLIMS AND BUILD ON THAT KNOWLEDGE TO GO FURTHER SOMEDAY DEEPER INTO UNREACHED PEOPLES. WHAT DO YOU THINK? IDEAS ARE COMING AT ME IN FLOODS RIGHT NOW. I CAN'T STOP THEM AND IT'S HARD TO CATAGORIZE THEM. SOME MOMENTS I HAVE TO STOP AND RIGHT STUFF DOWN SO I DON'T FORGET. I FEEL LIKE A 25 YEAR OLD IN A 52 YEAR OLD BODY!
SPEAKING OF BODY, I'VE ABSOLUTELY BLOWN MY HALF MARATHON TRAINING. HAVEN'T RUN IN A WEEK!!!! WILL RUN TODAY, BUT HAVE TO TOTALLY START OVER. LOOKING FOR ANOTHER HALF LATER ON. MAYBE JANUARY. FORGIVE ME GWOF RUNNER GIRLS!! KEEP RUNNING. DON'T STOP.
TOMORROW, I WANT TO INTRODUCE YOU TO SOPHIA, AN ADYGEAN BELIEVER WE'VE MET. I'M GOING TO GET HER TO SING A SONG IN ADYGEAN FOR US AND YOU'LL BE ABLE TO HERE IT HEAR.(I DID THAT FOR OUR GRAMMAR POLICEMAN)
HOW ARE YA'LL DOING?
LOVE YA'LL, YA'LL LOVE EACH OTHER.
