It’s about time I give another update on my life, since my recent posts have been on more specific topics… On the academic front, I am slowly but surely narrowing down my list of possible classes, and I’ve also decided not to take the Grammar Block. It’s still a frustrating process, but the end is in sight! My advisor has been really great throughout, so I’m thankful for that.
In other news, I’ve been able to visit some neat places near Strasbourg...
The Sunday before last I went on a hike with a group called “Les amies de nature” – “the friends of nature” :) It was all older people (except for me and another BCA student), which made things a little awkward, but they were all very nice. We hiked through the forest which was really beautiful, and I took a ridiculous amount of pictures :)
This past Sunday BCA went on an excursion to la Foret Noire (Black Forest) …which is in Germany! Our destination was a carnival in a small town, which was a blast! Afterwards we went to a spa – I had never been to one before, and it was SO relaxing… :) The part we went in was outdoors, so we were completely submerged in hot, bubbling water while surrounded by trees and looking up at the stars!
The past few weeks I’ve been encouraged by some good conversations and time spent getting to know people – both American and French! :)
I’ve continued to go to the Bible study on Wednesday nights – the Bible study itself isn’t outstanding and I don’t always agree with their theology, but I really like the group of people. Two weeks ago it was a small group, but I enjoyed the discussion that we had. I had invited Seo Jin, this girl from my class who’s a Christian and studying poli sci, and she came, so that was cool. We’ve ran into eachother pretty often, and having been trying to figure out the IEP’s system together – a good bonding experience! Last week it was a much larger group, so I got to talk to a lot of new people.
I’ve also gotten to know some of the French people who live in the BCA building…
Last Friday one of them was having his 21st birthday party, so some of us went. It was pretty awkward in the beginning, but then I started talking to the sister of the guy whose birthday it was. It turns out that she’s studying at the IEP too, so we found plenty to talk about. I didn’t understand everything she said, but carried on a fairly good conversation.
This past Thursday I went to the community meal they have here every week. I didn’t really know what to do with myself in the beginning as people were mingling, but throughout the evening I met a lot of nice people, and had conversations with several of them. Although I was definitely out of my comfort zone, I’m really glad I went :)
After the meal there was a prayer/worship service at a local church. This week a group of Catholics had come to worship with the regular group of Protestants, and so on the walk over I talked to several of them. One, it turns out, is also studying at the IEP! It’ll be nice to see some familiar faces in the halls now :)
I’ve connected with the other BCA students through some good conversations…
Last Saturday my host family was away, so I had one friend, Charlie, over for dinner. It was a really nice evening – we made dinner together, and then just talked for a couple of hours! It was mostly her talking, but that was ok – she had experienced a lot of social drama last semester and needed to get it off her chest. I was happy to listen :) Although our personalities are very different (she’s much more extraverted than me) I think we’re going to be good friends.
Last Friday afternoon I watched Bush’s (last!!!) State of the Union address with my friend, Tim. After watching Bush speak (a painful experience, to be sure!) we had a long discussion about terrorism, which is where my last post came from. We also debated presidential politics – I’m for Hillary and he’s for Obama, so that’s always fun :) I think I would go crazy if he wasn’t here – he’s the only person here who is as passionate about politics as I am, and informed enough to carry on an intelligent conversation about it. Politics is so much in my blood that I think I’d explode if I didn’t have an outlet for it… We’ve had so many great discussions and debates, it’s awesome!
Last night was the most fun I’ve had in a while – Tim, Charlie, me, and two of our other friends went to the Democrats Abroad Global Presidential Primary! It was a whole evening of discussing and debating Democratic presidential politics and being surrounded by other Dems – I was in heaven! We also got to vote, which was really exciting – I proudly cast my ballot for Hillary! Afterwards we had a blast playing in a kids playground, then wandered around a bit, and ended up at BCA to chill and watch a good movie. It was such a great evening – we had so much fun, and no one was drunk!
So these are some things that have been encouraging to me, and I wanted to share them with you. Although logistics and stuff related to classes continue to be challenging, God has richly provided for my social needs. I should never doubt Him. Before I came I was so worried about making friends, but I am reminded that wherever life has taken me God has provided people to love and support me. He is awesome! I want to learn to trust Him more…
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2 comments:
First of all- PROPS to William for "UBL" FINALLY! Someone gets the guy's friggin name right.
Second- Amanda, you can't let the world get you down and I'll tell you why. Did Bartlet let conflict between India and Pakistan get him down? No. he immediately got the ambassadors in the white house and tried to dissipate the situation. One man. and the guy has MS.
What did Josh and Toby do when they met Matt Kelly at that little bar? Did they despair at the poor conditions of the economy? Or did they do something about it? No one thought that they could, not even the President of the United States, but they had an idea and they ran with it. That, my friend, is going to be you (or us?!) some years from now.
Just remember from 20 Hours in America, part 2:
JOSH: Campaigns aren't about the candidates.
TOBY: No?
JOSH: They're about the voters. How-how are we going to create jobs? how-how are we going to get healthcare? How are we going to make the lights go on? How are we going to protect ourselves?
The point is that it's not about the state of affairs, it's not about what has, could, or will happen, it's about YOU. It's about the future of politics. It's what we are going to do to fix the world. And you can't lose hope for change, because Faith that you can change it is the only thing that will ever change the world. And a little bit of cynicism can be good. It's what allows us to not simply accept the status quo, but to effect change. To demand change. The key is to stay just critical enough to force a change, but not too much that you lose the faith that you can.
JOSH: Learn things. Be good to each other. Read the newspapers, go the movies, go to a party. Read a book. In the meantime, remember pluralism. You want to get these people? I mean, you really want to reach in and kill them where they live? Keep accepting more than one idea. Makes 'em absolutely crazy.
Josh then, of course, reminds the students to refrain from stealing anything before they leave :) I leave you with that my dear. That and the promise to send you a special present!!
maybe i'll save your present for a coming home gift.
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