Hello friends! I hope
you all have been having a great week!
Currently, I am sitting in the middle of the Rome Fiumicino airport,
waiting with my friends in between layovers as we embark on our spring break
trip to Greece. Oh yeah, I forgot to
mention, we are going to Greece for spring break! Great.
You know now. It’s finally been
brought out in the open. Phew. Anyways, we got here about 10:00 PM from
Madrid, and it is about 6 AM now. I
haven’t slept a wink, but it’s ok, because now I’m getting in contact with you
all! HOW EXCITING! This is so much better than sleep on an
uncomfortable couch outside of the food court McDonald’s. Productivity for the win.
So, you’re
probably wondering how my last week has been.
Since last we last met, I updated you on all of the cool things that
happened when our lovely little group of AHA students spent a weekend together
soaking up sun, warm temperatures, and lots of history in Southern Spain
(Granada and Córdoba). Since then, a lot
has happened (as usual). Six weeks have
now come and gone, and it feels like it’s been the blink of an eye. I think I need to stop blinking, the days are
going too fast! Some days I think to
myself that I am actually starting to feel okay with leaving, but there are
other days where I feel like I never want to leave. It really is the eternal struggle within the
heart of a world traveler. It amazes me
that most times when I start to think, “ok. I’m ready to head back to the
States now,” I am always reeled back in with some crazy amazing experience that
brings a positive energy that causes an extreme addiction to the very culture
to which I have been acclimating this last month and a half. More details on that soon.
This week
has been very much a normal one, in a lot of respects. As I mentioned before, we are getting closer
to spring break. With that looming of
said break, of course, also comes a lot of things to do before that time
actually comes. What do you mean by
that, you may be wondering to yourself.
Well, as any college student that has ever walked this earth would know,
that means midterms. And in my case,
that’s four of them to be exact. Along
with that, I also have to continue working with my two internships and also my
volunteer activities in English. It’s
quite the ride, but it’s continuing to be a very uplifting and eye-opening
experience. And that’s really one of the
best parts about being in Spain. I may
be busy with different things, but each one gives me a new fresh perspective of
the culture I’m learning and living first-hand.
My
internship with the students at the Military Academy has taken a step
up. This week, not only was I working
with the military officers during the afternoon, I started also going in the
morning to have informational conversation exchanges with the cadets (the
students in the academy). It’s been
really interesting for a lot of reasons.
The main reason is that all of the classes are all on very different
levels, literally. There are four levels
of English in the academy: fourth level being the lowest, and one being the
highest and most fluent. During the
week, I spend an hour each day with a different class, so I have been able to
see just how very different they all are.
The other interesting thing is that with no plan, the conversations
(probably also based on their comfort with speaking the English language) have
all been extremely different without planning it. For example, I simply started with a brief
intro of myself and then they asked questions.
In on class, we talked customs and traditions, another education
systems, and another health care. It was
intriguing. And I get to have coffee
with the professors I work with every day, so it’s nice that I get to continue
exercising my language ability with people who are so much wiser than I. It’s great.
The classes with the officers in the afternoon continue progressing well
also. We have been working with the past
tense the last couple of weeks, seeing as for Spaniards, it’s the hardest thing
for them to learn and apply in their language ability. I’ve also been told that I’ve speaking slower
and the students can more successfully understand me! Hallelujah!
My
internship at Kudos continues to be a smooth progression as well. After being there for about 5 weeks, I have
definitely formed my routine, and it’s nice that the students all recognize me
regularly and can remember my name! And something I have been continuously
learning is that when asked about my culture, I actually have to be
introspective into my life to really find the answers they seek. The same happens with the cadets. They ask me questions (very intriguing and
very challenging sometimes) that require thought and even processing to
execute. It’s been a really helpful
thing for me, because I have consistently surprised myself in how much I
actually DO know about my culture, even though at one point I felt like I had
no culture before. I’m gaining so much
appreciation for my own culture, and especially my own language, by being in
another. How cool is that?! I love how humbling it all is.
My real
highlight this week came in the form of something very cool. And it was all God, so that made it even
better. This week, I decided that I
wanted to get in contact with the pastor that worked in Pamplona with Great
Commission Europe. Fun fact: Great
Commission Ministries is the mission organization in which my church at Ball
State is a part of. So, during the
Ignite conference that I attended before I left, I had a chance to hear a lot
more about this mission organization in Europe and see all that the Lord has
been doing there. And, I happened to
have a connection to the GCM headquarters in Florida that allowed me to get in
contact with the pastor here in Spain that is involved with this very
interesting organization that, in many ways, changed my life and ultimately
lead me to this very point in time, in Spain.
So, I sent him an email Wednesday
night. He responded almost instantly
with a response and also his contact information on Facebook and cell
phone. The next night, we FaceTimed for
an hour, sharing life and getting to know each other. That same night, he invited me to a
leadership summit that was going to be going on in Madrid that weekend
(Saturday). Basically, it is a meeting
of all the GCE church pastors in one place to have a time of fellowship and
note-sharing of what the Lord is doing in each place. I hopped on a train early Saturday, rode the
metro right after that through downtown Madrid, and ended with a bus ride to
the outskirts to the conference. After
spending an hour walking about the city trying to locate the church (I had no
internet to iMessage) I got to experience all kinds of awesome fellowship, two
awesome meals with great people, and share life with the local community that
gave me a chance to see the Lord’s heart in a real new way, and of course
practice my Spanish. It was
special. I was able to leave the weekend
with a new perspective of just what it means to be united in the church, but to
be united in love. I also left with a
new group of great connections with people from all over the world (Italy,
Germany, and Spain) and a new fire for the Lord and his purpose in my
life. I’m also really excited to
continue learning about what God is doing in this part of Europe, and maybe
even experience it again first-hand later this semester!
Alright
everyone! That’s it! I know there aren’t as many pictures to post
for this week, but the post is also a little bit shorter. As always, I will leave you with a verse that
I experienced while I was at the pastor’s summit this weekend. It really spoke to my heart, because it’s
something that I have always had a lot of struggles believing in my life. It’s the idea that it doesn’t matter who you
are, no matter how old or young you are, you are an example. And, for some that you meet in your life, you
may be the only version of the Bible they may ever read. Have a good rest of your week folks! May it continue to be a bright and sunny
one! Later kids!
No comments:
Post a Comment