#4, 5, and 6 - It is all about FOOD

Where has the month gone?  It is flying by and life is so full I am at times not sure which way is up.  I guess it is appropriate that I am too busy to blog (I didn't move to Spain to sit at home), but I miss time for writing.  Still dream of writing a book - but when in the world would I have to write?

#4 - Smell of fresh baked bread

Today I walked around the corner to buy a loaf of bread for lunch (yes, we buy fresh bread everyday - a loaf of bread is 0.45€, about $0.56.  When I got there today the owner told me that the type of bread I wanted wasn't ready and I could wait 5 minutes or buy a different type.  5 minutes?  Oh my, definitely worth the wait for hot, fresh out of the oven bread.  So, yes I bought two loaves - one to snack on while walking home and one to actually have at lunch. 

#5 - Gifts that Keep On Giving

Within the first six months of our arrival in Spain, a couple of friends sent us a care package.  Inside the care package were two 9" cake pans.  Spaniards don't bake cakes the same size or shape that Americans do and thus my recipes just weren't turning out.  Saturday is Alex's 16th birthday and I pulled out the pans today to make him a cake to take to a youth retreat this weekend.  Every time I bake a cake I breathe a thank you to those gals that sent me the pans.

#6 - Adaptability

When we first arrived (more than 3 years ago - who can believe that?) I was face a recipe or a craving with the thought "can I get that in Spain?"  now I face those same recipes/cravings with "how can I do that here?"  Yes, there are still things that I want sent in care packages and brought along with every friend or team - JIF peanut butter, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Miracle Whip, Italian Salad dressing mix, and a few other things.  It used to be stressful to approach a recipe with questions of how do I do that.  Now it is fun and brings lots of contentment to decide how to make a taste of home with ingredients I can find here!  Love that God is changing is me!

#3 - Siestas & Sobremesa

Last night we hosted a couple from Guatemala for dinner.  We met him in 2011, right after we moved to Spain.  He was here for a about six months, was single, and was learning the culture and serving in churches.  He has now returned to Spain for two months with his wife to study the different ministry sites and to allow his wife to experience Spain as they pray about moving to Spain long term.
 
We laughed, shared, ate homemade pizza and chocolate chip pie, told our stories and heard theirs, and then all of a sudden looked at the time - and he proclaims "es casi el Martes."  In other words, it is almost Tuesday (very near midnight).  We were still at the dining room table!

Today, as the alarm went off I was very grateful to be here and realize that I didn't have to make it to 9:00 tonight before I can stop (after English clubs).  It is perfectly acceptable to stop in the middle of the day for a siesta!

Ahh - I love the schedule of Spain and the slow time spent around the table.  There is a cultural expectation of "sobremesa."  Which means, over the table.  My Spanish friend defined it as "time you spend surrounded by good friends at the same table or seat where you have had coffee, lunch, dinner or merienda with the single purpose to enjoy the company and the chat."  Meals here are not just for getting your nutrition, but instead are for relationship building.  Very rarely do people eat and run from the table.  This is a custom we have come to love and will definitely miss when we are not here.  I wonder if we can convince our friends and family in the states that lunch and dinner should last 2 hours?

#2 - New Perspective

A New Perspective

I realized yesterday that God has given me the ability to see life from a new perspective.  Things in Spain (and probably everywhere else) never go as planned.  No matter how hard you try to plan and consider the possibilities of change, in Spain it is impossible.  In fact, yesterday, a friend said she wakes up every morning wondering how today's plans will change.

When we first arrived here I found these constant unexpected changes to be obstacles and frustrations.  I found myself constantly judging the Spanish culture and people for their lack of ability to be as organized as I was or as efficient as I desired.  Yesterday, I realized that God had changed that perspective.

We had a rare Saturday with no commitments.  The weather was warm and sunny (especially for November 1).  We have learned to seize the moments and decided to use the day to head to the mountains for hike in an area we had recently heard of.  After a leisurely morning, we packed a picnic and headed out.  The trip should have been about an hour and fifteen minutes, but we hit some traffic and it took longer.   We then of course stopped for second breakfast - our favorite tradition of family days out.  Finally we were ready to head up the mountain - we were less than 8 km away from our destination.  Then all changed.

Apparently all of Spain thought it was a great day for walk in the mountains.  The park was closed due to being at capacity.  You could not drive up to the park nor could you take the public buses.  It was 1:00 and we were told we were welcome to come back after lunch and see if the crowds had gone down.




Here we were - 120 km from home, picnic packed, plans all made, and instead of moving forward, we were at a roadblock.  It was then that I realized God had done a work in me.  The old Cindy would have been frustrated and irritated that we had done all this work and now we couldn't enjoy our plans.  I would have pouted and sulked.  Instead all 3 of us said, "so what's next?"

We wandered the town, seeing another beautiful church.  Then we headed toward home.  We saw a brown sign (these are historic markers) and decided to check it out.  Turned out it was a famous pre-historic site.  We later walked through a garden where plans have been sculpted into a variety of shapes and finally stopped for a picnic.  We ended the day with popcorn for dinner and watching a movie together as a family. 

What fun it is to see life change before your eyes without it increasing your blood pressure!

November - Another 30 days of Thankfulness

As I realize how little I have written over the past months I have begun to wonder is there a need to even have a blog any more.  Then I think of all that is ahead of us and behind us and I can't imagine not sharing it.  So, here I am, November staring me in the face and challenging me to once again express my thankfulness.  Hopefully this month as I express my thankfulness I will also open the window to our life a little wider. 

The Privilege to Life in Spain

Sometimes I just complain about how hard things are or I dream of another life, and yet I have been given one incredible privilege - the opportunity to live and work in Spain.  Spain is a gorgeous country with a deep history.  The people value relationships more than anything else, and thus, after the passing of time, I have a group of friends that stop life just to chat with me.  

In October we have seen mountains, castles, churches (from the days before anyone was even dreaming of traveling to America), gardens, and more that proclaim the beauty of God!  We have laughed and cried with friends.  We have tasted new Spanish cuisine (some that I liked and some that go in the "interesting" list).  

The world is a huge place and I am thankful that God has allowed me to be here in Spain.  I cannot imagine another country where I would have rather that God sent me.
 

3 YEARS!

Friends and family at the airport as we headed to Spain

I cannot believe that 3 years ago we stepped off an airplane at the Madrid airport, teary eyed, full of hope and expectations, and scared to death.  We thought we knew what was ahead, but in reality we could not have imagined the highs and the lows that would occur. There have been days if I had an airplane ticket back to the states I would have run all the way to the airport.  There have been other days that if I had been given a ticket, you would have had to drag me there.  Roller Coaster ride is about the only way I can describe these years.

The highs (in no particular order):

• I passed the language exam - who knew that it was possible?  I think I was more proud of that passing grade than I was with either of my college degrees (which were awarded with honors).
• The relationships - oh what dear friends I have made here.  The fun thing about making friends with other cultures is that not only do you get to learn about their likes and dislikes, but relationships are filled with questions and you really get to understand what makes them tick.  And when you live an ocean away from family or friends, you place a new value on friends - both old and new.
• The country - if you need a vacation spot where heaven meets earth, come to Spain.  This is an incredibly beautiful country.  Where else can you visit both the Mediterranean and the Atlantic?  Where can you see the starched brown land of a desert and then a few hours later be in a plush, green forest?  The castles and the churches and the rivers and the pueblos and ....  It is all here.
• The church - after 3 years we are finally settled in a ministry site and are partnering with a small Spanish church while also hoping to start a point of mission here in our pueblo.  We walk into this church and we feel at home.  We fell in love with this church when we were first here and God has allowed us to return "home."  I wish everyone of you could come worship with us just one Sunday.  
• Our teammates - we all have different callings, different strengths, different life styles, different theologies or philosophies, but we all have a love for God and a desire for the world to know Him better.  
• ECA (the school where Alex attends and I work one day a week) - Alex did two years in the public schools and did fantastic, but a time came when he needed to be in an English speaking school that would prepare him for college in the states.  Without ECA we would have had some hard decisions. ECA allowed Hannah to spend her senior year in Spain making lifetime memories.  If you are a teacher (new, retired, looking for a sabatical), consider coming to ECA.  We need teachers.  
• Our partners - it seems like every time we are having a rough day one of our partners sends us a note of encouragement.  We literally could not be here without their support - prayer and financially.  We thank God for them everyday.
• Family - the ocean is really big and there are times when it feels even bigger, but our families have been great.  Sisters, and cousins and aunts and uncles have filled in for me when I felt as if I should have been there for my parents.  My parents have encouraged us to be here, even knowing how much they would prefer to see their grandkids more often (they have not seen Alex in 2 years).  Scott's sister has taken on the role of caregiver for his mom.  Zach and Hannah have had to navigate adulthood a lot faster, but have done so with cheerful hearts.  
• Teams and Visitors - Every visitor, whether on a short term trip or just passing through, have brought joy with them.  We have gotten to share our friends and land with them and they have filled us up with energy and love to keep going forward.
• Peanut Butter (well, care packages in general) - amazing what a care package can do for you!
• God - do you know that He is exactly who He claims to be?  He says that He will never leave you nor forsake you.  He says His strength is sufficient.  He says that the same Holy Spirit that lives in Him lives in us and will give us the strength to get through whatever may face us.  He says He loves me.  He says that He desires good for me and not evil.  He has proven to be everything He says He is.  Life has been hard; it has been filled with some incredibly difficult challenges, and yet, God has been who He says He is.  

Maybe another day I will come back and share the lows of the three years - but for today I will celebrate the highs.  I can't wait to see what year 4 has in store for us!

Language Laughs

So we have lived here in Spain for nearly 3 years.  We have both passed the language exam.  We can communicate fairly accurate and understand most - albeit it at times grammatically incorrect.  So you would think by now we have a Spanish filter in our brains when we read signs in Spain.

But, oh so not true!

We were up north last week seeing the work of our teammates.  We wandered around a beautiful town named Gijón.  It is on the norther coast of Spain.  It has fresh seafood, as well as other great delicacies.

We saw a sign listing the menu of the day and it said "Tacos de Bonito."  Bonito is a type of fish and Scott proclaimed Fish Tacos.  We knew that was where we were eating lunch.  We even waited on a table, because our mouths were watering with the idea of fish tacos.  We knew they wouldn't be like California, but fish tacos - oh what a great taste from the USA.

We imagined:

We ate our first plate of fabadas - large white beans cooked with chorizo and other meats.  Very typical for the north.  We stopped before we finished the bowls because we wanted to be sure we had room for the fish tacos.  Our mouths were watering as the waiter cleared our bean bowls and prepared to bring our 2nd plate - Tacos de Bonito.

As soon as I saw the waiter heading our way I knew what had happened.  Our brains had malfunctioned.  Our filters were confused.  We translated one word, but not the other.  Tacos de Bonito does not translate to Fish Tacos.  It translated to this:

In Spanish, a taco is a cube, a plug, a wedge.  It is not a Mexican food. 

Scott and I laughed all day long about wanting Fish Tacos.  We enjoyed our "tacos" of fish, but boy were we surprised.  I just wonder, will the day ever come when the two languages don't cross in my brain?  Oh well, guess it is a good thing we can still laugh.

Back to School

No, the summer is not over quite yet - but the end is coming very quickly!  But for me, I begin my "job" at ECA (Evangelical Christian Academy) today.

ECA

ECA is a small Christian school that is based on the American school system.  It is located outside of Madrid and serves about 90 students, with the majority being MKs (missionary kids).  Almost all the teachers are missionaries and do not receive a salary from the school, but instead live off of faith partnerships just like we do.  Without this school, many missionaries would not be able to remain in Spain.  The Spain school system has many positives, but it is very different from the US system.  Graduates who want to return to the states for college would have a very hard time without a lot of extra supplement in the home.  Plus, if you arrive in your teen days, there is the whole language problem.

Last year I ended up teaching one class (12th grade English) to help in an emergency situation (a teacher had to leave the field suddenly due to a family crisis).  I was invited back this year, but in a totally different role.

Our primary role here in Spain remains church planting, but I will devote about 20% of my time to the school.  I will not be in the classroom this year, but instead working with new teachers in a coaching/mentoring atmosphere as well as planning professional development for the whole staff.   I love the process of education and the excitement of watching teachers become better teachers.   I believe in the power of education and its ability to change the world.  I also remember those first years in the classroom when I wondered what in the world I was thinking when I decided to become a teacher.  

John F Kennedy said "Our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education. The human mind is our fundamental resource."  I believe that quote.  I believe that education will be what transforms our nations and our world.  It is a great responsibility to teach, but it is also a fabulous privilege. 

My new role is excited because it is completely flexible.  I can come and go as I need and as things work around our primary ministry responsibilities.  I have no set schedule (I might drive the admin crazy at the school as they try to figure out when I will be there) and no deadlines.  This is beginning to feel like heaven!

The majority of my time will be with new teachers - teachers who are either new to teaching or new to teaching TCKs (Third Culture Kids - kids who have a home culture - for us America - living in another culture - for us Spanish - and create in reality a 3rd culture from the two - another blog post about this coming soon).  I get to serve as a coach/mentor to them.  I get to serve as a sounding board for questions, ideas, and frustrations.  I get to lead and direct conversations and discussions.  I get to encourage and comfort.  I get to celebrate and rejoice.  I get to have them all over to my house once a month.  Doesn't this job sound perfect for me?

Today is my first coaching session.  I can't wait!