Spring is in the air! Yet another reminder of just how fast the semester has been moving.
It's all so surreal. And each day brings a different reaction. Some days I think to myself going home is so great. Other days I feel the complete opposite: like I never want to leave! Before, it was hard to imagine being gone from home for so long. Now, it's hard to imagine returning there! This week, for me personally, everything really has started to set in.
We as students have become divided: those who are dying to go home, those (like me) who fluctuate between both each and every day, and those who never want to leave. A lot of times between classes we will catch ourselves talking more about what it will be like to be home, what the traveling back will be like (if we will sleep or have become temporary insomniacs), and the feeling we're going to get when we land back in the states...how it will feel to walk through customs and hear the "welcome home!" from the officers. And the funny thing is, we talk more about in our free time than we do about our school stuff it seems like!
Speaking of school stuff, we took some time out to learn a little bit of the traditional waltz during a talk about cultural differences within the different countries in the European Union. Ya know, because we like to keep it classy. [Fun fact: the waltz originated in Austria.] ;)
But that school stuff continues to move on. We've received the final instructions, we've been told what we need to finish, and lectures and things continue to progress. But not without an excursion of course! This past thursday, we had the opportunity to travel to the archive of the Catholic bishops of Spain to see old (and I mean OLD) documents written by past kings and queens, their nobles, and their clergy. Some things we viewed were as far back as 1000 years ago! It was quite something, and a lot more intriguing than I expected. Here are a couple of photos.
En route to the Catholic Bishop archive!
The culture and civilization professor, Edu, giving the class a bit of backstory on the historic documents found in the archive.
This document was written by Queen Isabel herself! Qué guay (how cool!).
These documents were a lot more fun to read than you think. :) So historic, but trying to guess the modern Spanish words from the medieval Spanish written was a challenge.
These books date back to the 17th century. And they are still in such good condition!
Internships continue to teach me so many things. One thing I have started to learn more and more is that there is an overwhelming sense of grace within all of it. Many times, whether at the military academy or at the English school I work at, I have learned countless times that people are extremely forgiving. If I talk fast, they ask me (very courteously) to slow down. When I don't explain something well, they kindly ask me to go back and re-explain it. If I repeat the same thing over and over again because I have no idea how to explain it to them in English OR Spanish, they understand (in fact, they find it a tad funny, even though sometimes [most times] I don't).
Here it is! My second home this semester. This is the military academy I spend almost every weekday morning and afternoon teaching English. It's really quite a spectacular place. The interior is beautiful (I would take pictures, but it's kind of prohibited).
This is a classic example of the unforgiving attitude I tend to not have for myself. Even though this semester has been all about learning and experimenting, I still have trouble forgiving myself for the things that don't well. But, as time as gone on this past three months I have started to see that even in very real-world tasks God still shows himself through them, uttering those sweet reminders of just how much he loves and cares, and he uses people so well! I mentioned last week just how much I feel like I've experienced, even though I could never deserve such abundant grace. However, that's just it. It's not about me! Now matter what I think or how I feel about myself or what I do, God "continues to do work for the good of those who love him" (Romans 8:28).
I feel like for me, that's the biggest lesson I could have learned this week. I have always had trouble laughing at myself. But sometimes, it's hard to avoid, and even good to do! And the relationships I've formed here in Spain have rocked my world in that respect. Through the grace and forgiveness I have experienced in my personal and work relationships, I have seen that grace and love can transcend so many other things: stress, anxiety, worry, and perfectionism. And for me, I really hope the "no pasa nada" mentality that I have learned here in Spain is something I can take back home with me. :)
The Lord works in very mysterious ways. He uses everything in our life to bring the focus back to him: every experience, every person, every place, every action, and every word. That is something I don't think we can ever really see coming.
"And to him who could give more than we could ever possibly ask for or imagine, through the great power at work within us, to Him be the power and the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus and throughout all generations for ever and ever! Amen!" -Ephesians 3:20-21
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