¿Quién eres tú?

I realize it’s been almost 2 months now that I’ve been home in Wisconsin and this post is long overdue. However, the truths that I have written about are still as true today as they were 2 months ago.

“Hola, eso es Kelsey, una americana.” or “Hi, this is Kelsey, an American.” Every person that I met, Carmen Gaston introduced me that way. Kelsey, the American. After I noticed this, I began to watch people’s faces after she said that. Most of the time their eyes got a little bigger and they would smile at me. Some people would be interested and want to talk and others would just do the kisses and move on. It didn’t bother me that she said that, but I think sometimes “Hey! I’m more than just an American. There is more to me than that.”

Throughout my time in Spain, I’ve discovered more of who Kelsey TeBeest is. I think being in a foreign place with people you aren’t commonly around forces you to define yourself more, and God reveals things to you that you may not have seen back home. From being immersed in another culture, you experience so many new things, and if I were here only a couple weeks or so that’s all it would be, experiences.

However, since it’s been much longer than that, I’ve had to choose, “yes I like that and I think I’ll take that with me” or “nope, that’s not really for me.” This process was hard at first as I struggled with the ideas like “well, if I don’t like this and don’t want to do it, then I’m not really immersing myself in the culture,” but over time, God washed away those lies. Being put in situations like trying to figure out living with people I didn’t know, trying to learn the language and understand the culture, being without a real cell phone and without my true family and best buds, revealed things to me about myself that I never knew before. Often times it grew patience in me and taught me that just going with the flow and taking what comes my way was best for me. By the end of my study abroad, I had learned so much more about myself and now would encourage everyone to study abroad.

Then, the internship began, and I remember talking with Paula, and I said, “Well, I know that my identity lies in Christ.” She replied, “What does that mean to you? Who are you in Christ?” I hadn’t really thought specifically about that and what it means in my heart and how that affects who I am. I knew the basics in my head, but were they in my heart? I wasn’t sure if everything had made that difficult transfer, so I asked God to reveal to me who I was and to reveal to me His love as I was struggling with that a lot.

I hated to admit it to God and to other people, but I was struggling accepting the truth that God loves me. I was reading a lot about God’s compassion and redemption of the Israelites and how they would see His glory as He restored them. I began to think that God did everything just for His glory and not because He really loved me. Yes, I know, kind of crazy. God’s love is so essential to the foundation of our faith. I was ashamed to have these thoughts. I knew in my head that God loves us and had read it and been told it multiple times, but my heart couldn’t grasp it.

Throughout the internship, God revealed to me His love and who I am in Him. God showed me His love through other people as I saw them continually love on others in ways I know are not humanly possible. I experienced God’s love as people loved me. Through scripture, God continued to tell me of His love.

Paula had lent me the book, Abba’s Child, and it talked a lot about what it means to be God’s Child. It brought up the fact that sometimes people think of God as human. This hit me so hard even though I’d heard it before because that’s exactly what I was doing. I was putting God inside a box and not understanding how He could possibly love us and be glorified. I’m such a selfish person that I can’t really fathom how someone can love people so much AND do things for their own self.

“…For I am God, and not man.” Hosea 11:9

God just hit me with it over and over again. He is GOD. It seems like such an easy concept and silly that I didn’t get it, but I honestly didn’t. Realizing He is God and what that means allowed me to see even more of His love and understand more how He loves us. It’s so overwhelming how much He loves us, and I know that my heart can’t even grasp it all.

As I was walking down the street in Paris, I was thinking about how much God loves me and how incredible it is that He loves me SO incredibly much. Then, I began to focus on each person that walked past, so unique and beautiful, and I thought about how God loves each and every person on that street and in this world THAT much. Wow! It blows my mind to think about how much love God has.

With Christ as my Savior and my identity in Him, I know that I am loved. I am loved beyond my understanding.

I also know that I am wickedly sinful. That is part of who I am.

I realize that I don’t want to be seen as sinful. I want to be seen as a good person and cover up any sin that I may have so others don’t see it. Yet, my sin is part of who I am and part of who we all are. That’s the reason that we’re all in need of Jesus. Rather than cover up my sin and pretend it’s not there, I’ve got to acknowledge it and allow it to lead me to the cross. In Christ, I am adopted as God’s daughter. I am an heir.

“So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has also made you an heir.” Galations 4:7

“Now if we are children, then we are heirs –heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ….” Romans 8:17

I know that I will continue to discover who I am throughout my life as I continue to experience new things, as God reveals Himself to me, and as the gospel continues to makes the stretch from my head to my heart.


For now, I know that while I am Kelsey, the American, I am also Kelsey the sinner, and Kelsey the beloved, and Kelsey the daughter of God, and Kelsey an heir of God and co-heir with Christ.

It’s been an incredible journey to dig deeper into who I really am, and I know that I’ll continue to find out more about myself throughout my lifetime. If you haven’t dug deeper, I encourage you to do so, and I ask, Who are you?

Internship

Leaving Sevilla was difficult and I really didn’t like saying goodbye to Concha and Nacho, but I am thankful for the incredible experience that I had there and the blessings that God gave me. It was a blessing to have my grandparents and Carrie visiting me during that time. It was great to see them and really helped me transition. I had a great time with them and enjoyed the last of Sevilla, exploring Barcelona, and seeing Madrid again. It was hard to say goodbye to Cole in Sevilla, Carrie in Barcelona, and to my grandparents in Madrid, but there was no time for sadness as the next adventure awaited me.

When I left my grandparents to meet the other interns at the Madrid airport, I didn’t know where I would be staying that night, what I would be doing that week, who I would be meeting, what time the interns flight came in to the airport, when the next time I would be moving locations would be, when I would have internet again, what I would be eating or how I would get it, basically I didn’t know anything. All I knew was that God had given me an opportunity to serve Him in Spain, and I was thankful for it and looking forward to seeing what He had in store.

I met Jacob Ginter at the airport and waited for the other interns to come in. 8 other interns flew in from Philadelphia and were quite exhausted from the flight. 5 of the interns were staying in Spain and 3 of them were here for a week of training. The 5 Spain interns include: Cyndi and Audra from Iowa State, Ashley from Northwestern, and Ryan and Lea from Cal Baptist; they all finished their junior year of college. Susan also finished her junior year of college and goes to school in North Carolina and Erin and Ryan, who are in their 3rd year of marriage are originally from Ohio, and make up the France intern team. After getting some drinks from the airport, Tim Tjernagel and Jacob drive us to the World Team chalet in Las Colinas, a pueblo outside of Madrid.

We all spent the week at the chalet with World Team staff looking at the gospel in new ways using Sonship material. We spent time in sessions, in worship, in prayer, in small groups, and in mentor time. We also had teams that shared duties for lunch and dinner set up and clean up and bathroom cleaning. We spent an afternoon in Madrid and nights playing Bananagrams, talking, or watching a movie. I got matched up with Paula Tjernagel for my mentor and really enjoyed this aspect of the week. We keep up with our mentors with phone calls once a week. Along with the full time WT (World Team) staff, Kami, an apprentice with World Team, joined us for the week as well. On Friday, the French interns took off and the Spain interns split up for a night.
I spent the night in Bejar where all the interns and Kami and some staff were coming on Saturday. Bejar was the first location for the Prayer Conference in Spain. Craig Cook, WT staff, hosted us in Bejar. We spent Saturday until Wednesday morning in Bejar. We went to church and different pueblos near Bejar and learned about the people, the needs in their area, and how to pray for them. There was a family of believers in a town of 7,000 that really left an impression on my mind that I can’t really explain. It was a mom and dad and their 3 boys. They hosted us for a time of worship and a lesson, and then they served us all dinner. They were so hospitable and joyful. The boys were the only believers in their group of friends, and their mom was so excited and hopeful about sharing the gospel in their town. Please pray for this family that the Lord will protect them and provide them with fellowship.

On Wednesday morning, we took off for Madrid. We stopped on the side of a mountain that overlooked Escorial, the town where Jacob is serving, and prayed for the town and Jacob and his family. We got lunch in Madrid and had a little free time. I went shopping with Cindy and Kami : ) From Madrid, we went to Mejorada del Campo and visited Jorge and Elizabeth, WT staff from Germany, and their church. We stayed in Mejorada from Wednesday night until Saturday morning. In this time, we learned about Students for Christ, Young Life, and another ministry in Spain and also prayed for them. We spent time with the church’s youth group and also time alone in prayer. One night, we went to Madrid and participated in kilometro cero, an organization that shares the gospel in the busiest plaza in Madrid. They have volunteers get up on a red box and share their testimony while others hand out postcards or the gospel of John and ask people about what they heard. It was an interesting experience to see how many people stopped and listened. I had a conversation with a Muslim man that turned into him telling me how his faith was the right and Jacob telling him we just had to go. I enjoyed learning about the youth ministries in Spain and also running in the mornings with Kami.
On Saturday morning, Cyndi, Ryan, and I took the train to Calatayud. We joined Jorge here and went to the church that Juan Carlos pastors. There was a festival in Calatayud from the medieval times where they all dressed up so we went around the village and saw a parade and their markets. We went to church on Sunday morning, and then after lunch Jorge drove us to Madrid to catch a bus.

Where I’m staying now, we’re with Oscar and Maria. They have a ministry working with immigrants. Their association is open from 11-2 and then from 5-8. We teach English in the morning and talk with the people who come to the association. In the afternoon, the children come to the association and we play cards or board games and just talk. Thanks Matt and Krystal DeBruine for the cards from your wedding! I’ve now used them to teach kids in Sevilla and now kids here: ) Thursday, today, is the last day the association is open so we’re having a fiesta this afternoon. Cyndi and I made dirt cups! Friday is the last day of their Bible study so we’re having a fiesta then too. Saturday we head to the North of Spain to work at a house along the Camino de Santiago for a week. Please pray for Oscar as he’ll begin treatment for Hepatitis C the following Sunday. Pray for their ministry that God protects them and continues to strengthen them.

I’m sorry for not being able to respond to emails. I don’t have internet access very often. I do appreciate them and hearing updates from home. It means a lot to me! I promise to respond when I get the time. Thank you for all of your continued support and prayers. I am constantly reminded how blessed I am to have such loving family and friends back home. You’re in my prayers and thoughts. Mucho amor!

peluca=wig

Morocco!

Friday: Woke up at 3:45 and got on the bus to head to the ferry. It was a 2.5 hour bus ride and I slept almost the whole way. We had to wait an hour or so for the ferry and then I slept on that too until I woke up feeling sick. We exchanged money to dirhem and got on a bus to Rabat. They watched Forest Gump, but I was knocked out from the Dramamine and slept all the way till the break. I met Kalee and Tim from Platteville and Kelsey from Stout and Robby from South Carolina at the rest stop. We got back on the bus and stopped in Rabat for lunch. Cole and I sat with 5 girls from UNC. They were nice and funny at times. The girls said that I have a strong accent. We had this special food that was fried dough with chicken inside and cinnamon and sugar on top. It was really good. After lunch, we had a tour of Rabat, which is the political capital of Morocco. I liked seeing the ocean and people surfing. Seeing the Muslim cemetery broke my heart though. It almost put me into tears everyone time we saw one. All the coffins are above ground and facing east. It's so sad. In the US, when I see a cemetery that never comes to mind, but with theirs it's obvious that they don't have a relationship with Jesus. It's so incredibly sad. After lunch, we got back on the bus and headed to Fez, the real capital of Morocco. I read a bit and slept most of the way. We were on the bus A LOT! We had dinner at the hotel and sat with two girls who were studying in Cordoba. One had been there the whole year and the other studied in Ireland first semester and went home for Christmas break. I had fun meeting so many new people.


Saturday: We had breakfast in the hotel and checked out of the hotel and got on the bus. We watched The Office and Family Guy. I liked watching The Office but not Family Guy. I felt a little sick and wanted a break. One girl was sick and puking in the front of the bus every 15 min. or so. I felt really bad for her. We watched I Love You Man after the stop until lunch. We stopped at a Kasbah in Midelt for lunch. Cole and I sat with people from TCU. They all had Texan accents..hehe. One girl asked if Cole and I were brother and sister...pah! A Moroccan man came in singing and playing these instruments during lunch.. After lunch, we played a game with Toba, one of the leaders from Discover Sevilla, and he made us all fall on the ground and laughed. It was a pretty good trick. We got back on the bus and watched The Hangover, but I slept because I didn't want to watch it. After the stop, we watched more of The Office until we stopped at a hotel to get into the 4x4 Jeeps to take into the desert. Cole and I rode with the girls from Cordoba and two girls from CEA that we never met before. It was fun to go off-roading but after 1.5 hours of bumps, I was ready to get out. They drove us into the desert to get on our camels! We rode the camels for 30 min to the desert oasis. It was so cool to ride them through the sand dunes. It reminded me of Aladdin..haha. Once we got to the desert oasis, we had dinner with the berbers. They played music for us after dinner and then Cole and I climbed part of the big dune to look at the stars. It was really cool to see so many stars. God is in conrtol of so much from the expanse of the stars to the endless grains of sand and all of our lives. It was incredible to see! We pulled our mattresses out from under the tents and slept under the stars. It got quite cold but still a neat experience.


Sunday: The berbers woke us up with their drums and we climbed the large sand dune to watch the sunrise. It was really beautiful and so cool! Cole and I got sand from the dessert and put it in our water bottles to take home and got on our camels to ride back to the hotel. We ended up on a line with Kelsey, Kalee, Tim, Robby, and Molly. Meeting these people and Alexis too was incredible! Seriously, possibly the best thing. I mean the desert and stars and camels and tours and all that I saw was really amazing and so unique and cool but I love people and these people are great. I loved spending time with them and getting to know them. They are so fun and kind. I really really loved getting to know them. So we had breakfast at the hotel after our 2.5hr camel ride. I talked to a berber man on the ride and he was saying how he never leaves his town. It made me realize to an even greater extent how blessed I am. God has given me so incredibly much! I mean I was in Africa and he's never left the dessert. What a blessing to even travel within Wisconsin! How easily I took that for granted. Since I was last in line, I spent a lot of the time on my camel realizing the blessings and talking to God. It was neat. After breakfast, we took quick showers and headed to the pool. I was so excited there was a pool!! We got to soak up the sun for 3 hours or so and I even went swimming with our new friends. The water was pretty cold and green but it was so hot. We had lunch and then got a tour of a desert village. We saw their water system and how the women go to the well and pour water into their jugs each day. They had houses built of straw and mud and other materials and when it rains hard, their houses collapse and they have to build them all over again. They had an oven that made bread for the village. I don't know where they get their other food from. They showed us their rugs that they make and different things that are original to Morocco that people could buy. It was eye-opening to see how they live. We are so privileged to just get water from the faucet and have all that we do. Even coming back to Sevilla and not having to use bottled water to drink and brush my teeth is incredible. After the tour, I took a little nap in the room and then Cole and I went out to the desert to see the sunset. We missed the whole group going out there but caught the end of it. We came back to the pool and talked with Kelsey and Tim and the others joined. Then we had dinner and listened to the berber men play drums. Some people danced but most didn't because there were a lot of teens from Casablanca there that were dancing. Cole went to bed early and Kelsey and I went outside to star gaze. We had really good conversation and saw shooting stars!
Ok..I'm going to make this a little more brief now. I've written too much and the desert was the best part anyway!

Monday: We took the Jeeps back to the hotel where we first were dropped off and hung out by the pool for awhile until lunch. It was so hot that I sat in the shade by the pool. I got to tell Molly and Alexis more about my internship and how I hope God uses it, which was neat. Molly wants the link for World Team so that's really cool! She said she'd be interested in an internship. After lunch, we got back on the bus and headed to Fez. We stopped at the largest Oasis in the Sahara to take pictures but it was over 7 hours in the bus. We arrived around 10pm and had dinner and went to bed.

Tuesday: We had a tour of Fez. We went to see the Royal Palace and then headed to the old Medina. We got a tour of the tannery, which smelt awful but was really neat to see. It was like a whole different community with all the dyes and working men and drying skins. Then we got a visit of the pharmacy where they showed us different spices and lotions and things for the body. I bought a couple gifts for people there. Then we had lunch and after went to a rug place and then a scarf place. After those tours, we got free time in the medina to barter with people for gifts. We went back to the hotel and had dinner. After dinner, we had a little party with Discover Sevilla people. It was a girl's 21st so everyone got free beer or a soda. It was my first Fanta here..haha. They also got birthday cake for her. It was nice. I miss real birthday cake though, like with Mrs. LeClaire’s frosting..mmm. They had live music for us too and also brought in a belly dancer. They first had Toba come in and belly dance and then brought the real girl in. Once she left, they began the talent show where anybody could perform if they wanted to. This one girl rapped and beat boxed and was so good and another girl did step dancing. The other ones aren't really worth talking about. .haha. The girl who rapped won.

Wednesday: We checked out of our hotel and went to Assilah where we had our picnic lunches and free time. We sat by the ocean for awhile and Cole and I went and bought gifts in the Medina. We rode the bus to the ferry, took the ferry across, and took the bus back to Sevilla. I got home around 3:30am and crashed.

FERIA!!!!!! (I LOVE Feria!)

Thursday: I woke up feeling really groggy and gross but went for a run. I was craving a run after not being able to for a week. I came home and showered and then Concha came home and was like get ready, let's go, we're going to my caseta for lunch, hurry up. So I quickly changed and went with her and Pablo and Kelsey (my roommate). I met her sister and niece and her child. Her family is very beautiful. We had lunch in her caseta. Nacho came and had lunch with us too. It was a really neat experience. Most of the casetas are private so you can't get in unless you know someone. I'm so blessed to have a senora who has one and took me there. It was way cool to be a part of. After dinner, I met up with Cole and our friends that we made in Morocco. It was fun to see them again and hang out. I love that our friendships didn't end in Morocco!

Friday : I went to Concha's friends house to try on her flamenco dresses! One of them ended up fitting me and she sewed the hole in it. I played with her granddaugher while I waited. She was so sweet and had the cutest laugh. Concha's friend was so nice to me. She gave me so much and helped me a ton with everything. She said if I ever wanted to come back to Sevilla and Concha couldn't have me at her house, then I could stay at her place. What?! This was honestly the 2nd time I spent time with this woman. Why do I keep getting offers to stay here? They are so welcoming and open. Is it because I'm an American? I don't understand. I don't have her phone number or email or anything to contact her after I leave, but still, she offered. It's crazy to me how easily she offered it to me. I mean I know Concha says nice things about me, but still I hardly know this woman. wow! They are all so open and welcoming.
Kelsey (my roommate) and I went to Feria around 5pm and met up with her friends from Sevilla. We went into 4 of their casetas and enjoying rebujito, apple wine and sprite mix, and dancing. I hadn’t really learned sevillana yet but could dance a little bit. Around 2am, we met up with Nacho and his friends. We went to one of their casetas and danced sevillana and rumba. His friends and Kelsey taught me the steps. It was really really fun! Kelsey and I got pretty tired but Nacho said sitting was forbidden so we danced a lot. We left their caseta around 5am and called it a night. It was one of the best nights I’ve had here. Feria is such a cool tradition! I was trying to soak it all up while I could as it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Soo neat! I’m so thankful for all that God has given me and allowed me to experience. Wearing the dress and hanging out with Kelsey’s friends and Nacho and learning to dance, was great.

I can’t really explain Feria very well. It’s something that you have to experience to really understand and appreciate. My best try atdescribing it quickly is that Feria is their fair that begins at Midnight on Monday night and lasts until Sunday night when they have fireworks. They have hundreds of tents (casetas) where families pay for them together. Most of them are private and you need to know someone to get in, but there are a few public tents. The public tents don’t compare or give you the real feel of a private caseta though. Each caseta is different from the next. Each one is a different size and has its own decorations and food and style and people. They play sevillana music and people dance all night long. There is also a section with rides and games that would be more like our fair. The streets are lined with lights and filled with people. It’s incredible! Everyone dresses up nice and most women wear a flamenco dress. I love seeing everyone dress up and all the men with their suits on. It’s really cool, and I wish that everyone could experience it.

I was able to meet up with my friends from Morocco again last night. We rode the ferris wheel and danced a little bit in the public casetas. I’m heading back today to enjoy the last bit of it that I can. I LOVE it!

la cesta = basket

Time with my parents in Sevilla, Italy, and Madrid…
Friday afternoon, Cole came with me to get the bus schedule for Italica, and then we went to try and check into the hotel, but they wouldn’t let me. Cole went home for dinner and I went to meet my parents at the train station.

I was really excited to see them and they were excited too! Both of them had tears in their eyes when we hugged. They were pretty wiped from the extensive traveling. We walked to our hotel and checked in. They didn’t have much time to gather themselves as it was so late and Concha was leaving for a day and Nacho was leaving the next day until Tuesday, so we went to my house right away to meet them.

Nacho went out for the night by the time we got there so they didn’t get to meet him. He left a hand-written note in English for us though! We sat in the living room and talked with Concha. Kristen came out of her room too and sat with us for awhile. It was fun having my two worlds combine for a bit. We took the metro back to the hotel and crashed.

On Saturday, we went to a café to get breakfast. I told my parents before we went out that they should drop any expectations they have of what Spain should be like. We had a few things go wrong in the morning and things yesterday didn’t go well for them. I told them that was one of the biggest things I learned is to not have expectations. You just have to go with the flow. Some things don’t work out or aren’t what you think they’ll be like, and you just have to roll with it and not let it affect you. At breakfast, my dad looked at the menu and said, I can’t read this, where are the eggs? I just laughed and said you have to drop your expectations..haha. They don’t serve eggs for breakfast.

After breakfast, we went to Carmen’s house to meet her and the family. We sat in their living room with Carmen and her husband, Fernando, Manuel, Lucia, Carmencita, and Lucia,their cousin. The maid/nanny rolled in some appetizers and drinks. It was fun talking with them. Lucia, the cousin, knows English pretty well and helped translate as there were often more than one conversation going on. Carmen got me a lot of tourist information about Sevilla and Semana Santa that was really helpful. They were really kind and invited us to Ecija, the city they have another house in and where I’ll be for the summer. We had to agree to go on Sunday because Monday wouldn’t be enough time.

We met up with Cole and decided to cancel the trip to Italica so we could go to Ecija with them. We spent the afternoon touring Sevilla and bought our bus tickets for Ecija. Carmen called and said that Carmencita was sick so they wouldn’t be able to meet us. She said she would call if Monday worked. I was pretty bummed because my parents and Cole were going to be able to see where I’d be living this summer and get to know the family a bit better too, but we were able to go to church then so that was great. We bought cereal for our next two breakfasts, and Cole went home. We went back to the bus station and returned our tickets. Then my parents and I got dinner and went back to the hotel.

Sunday morning we met Cole and went to church. My parents of course didn’t understand anything, but they got to experience it, which I was really grateful for. They recognized some American worship songs in Spanish and just sang the English..haha. Cole went home for lunch, and my parents and I got paella at a restaurant near the river. It was beautiful outside again and so nice to sit in the sun. It was fun realizing what a blessing it was to be doing what we were doing. I am still so blown away by God’s blessings in my life! Cole met up with us and we went to see a procession for Semana Santa. We didn’t really understand the routes but saw the people lining up for it. The city was packed with people like I’ve never seen it before. The metro was so busy too. It was nuts! Everyone was dressed up really nice too in their suits and dresses. I loved that part. I took a little nap in the room and then we went back out. We had to walk back to the center of the city because the metro was too full. Mom and Cole got Starbucks and we waited for a procession. I can’t believe how much goes into that. It is quite the site to see. It makes me sad that so much of it has become tradition and culture and not for Jesus.

After we saw enough of the procession, we went to get dinner. We played cards together in the hotel room. It was fun and relaxing. After carsd, I said goodbye to Cole for the week, and we went to bed.

Monday, we got up a little later and checked out of the hotel. We brought our bags to my house and then went to buy my bus ticket back from Madrid. I showed my parents this market on our walk back, and they seemed to like that. I brought them to this place that has good churros, but it was closed. I felt bad that we walked all the way there because my dad’s feet were hurting from all the walking and his blisters and then they wouldn’t be able to try churros : ( We got lunch and then headed to the airport. It started to rain and my dad was worried we wouldn’t make it on time so that was kind of a damper. We ended up being way early for our flight, like I said we would be :), but at least we didn’t miss it.

We flew to Madrid and then to Venice. We checked into the hotel and watched a little of the news. I ate the rest of the cookie dough that my parents had brought me because we didn’t have a fridge, and of course because it was delicious : ) I was shocked that they brought it for me but so happy! I love cookie dough : )

Tuesday morning we had breakfast in the hotel consisting of little pastries and croissants, typical European breakfast. We took the bus into the city of Venice, and we stopped at the tourist information center. I recommended we do this as it was really helpful in Paris, and she gave us good information. We took the boat to San Marco Plaza to begin our adventure. I loved seeing all the boats, different canals, gondolas, little streets, cute shops and buildings, and being surrounded by water. We walked around the city, trying to see some not so touristy parts and stopped at some bigger sites too. We had lunch at a little bar they refer to as a bacaro, which is said to be a great Venetian tradition that for centuries locals have gathered there to chat and have a glass of wine with cicchetti, savory snacks kind of like tapas. It was fun and a really quaint place that felt very traditional. I tried canolis and had my share of gelato too, as I found it’s cheaper there! After dinner, we took the boat back to the bus station and battled the rain getting back to our hotel.

We had breakfast at the hotel again and packed up to leave Wednesday morning. My dad rented a car that we took to our hotel in the countryside outside of Florence. The drive to Florence was pretty cool with the mountains in the background going through tunnels and over bridges. When we got into Florence, it was time for lunch. Then we did our site-seeing until dinner. Florence was much less touristy than Venice and quite peaceful looking over the city from the gardens. After dinner, we drove out to our countryside hotel, about an hour outside the city, which was a charming little room with wood-beamed ceilings, brick overhangs, and wood shutters over the windows, very cute.

Thursday we got up and had breakfast at the hotel, which was the best breakfast I’ve had in a long time. Then we drove to Siena, stopping along the way to take pictures of the incredible rolling hills of Tuscany and in two little towns. They were so cute and I think I’m in love : ) I really really like Italy. We drove back from Siena a new way, but I didn’t stay awake. I had to take Dramamine to knock the motion sickness and it put me right to sleep. We had dinner at our hotel and enjoyed more time in the room.

Friday morning we got up and had breakfast in the hotel again. Then we drove to Milan. I slept almost the whole way there. I don’t know why I was so tired, but at least I didn’t get sick. We flew out of Milan and arrived in Madrid around 5:45. We took the metro to our hotel and dropped our bags off before heading to the center of the city. We bought grapes on the way there! I didn’t have grapes since the U.S; it was a treat! I showed my parents the area that Carmen showed me the first day I visited her. We had a delicious dinner downtown and then continued to walk for a bit. We got churros! I wanted my parents to try them in Sevilla and am glad they got to before they left. Then we took the metro back to the hotel.

Saturday morning, we got up and had Starbucks breakfast : ) Then it was time to say goodbye to my parents. I was comparing how long it had been since I’d seen them with my previous semester at La Crosse when I didn’t go home until the weekend before Thanksgiving break. I think this was sooner than that time, and so I thought well I did it last semester, I can do it again since they’ll be back in June. It wasn’t too hard saying goodbye initially, but when they were gone and I couldn’t see them walking down the street anymore, it hit me. However, it was such a blessing to have them come and visit and be able to spend a week with them. Praise God for time with family and the blessing of a loving family. I am so thankful that they came.

I met Carmen at the futbol stadium and we went to her house. We hung out and then had lunch with her family. After lunch, I took a little nap and Carmen did stuff on the computer. Then we met her friends and rented a movie and bought groceries to make a pastry. We went to Pedro’s house and made the same pastry that Carmen and I made last time. It was fun to bake again! We looked at Carmen and Pedro’s pictures from their week in Italy while it baked. Irene forgot the egg so it took a little longer to bake..haha. It was still very good though. We watched La guerra de novias (Bride Wars), got dinner, and hung out at Pedro’s house. I had a lot of fun, and it reminded me of being back home with friends. I got pretty tired later in the night, but it was a really good night.

We slept in on Sunday morning and then looked at pictures of Carmen and her family from when Carmen was younger. It was fun to see them and learn more about her family. I showed her pictures from my week with my parents, and then we went for a walk. We had lunch with the whole family again. Carmen’s mom is a great cook; it was delicious again! After lunch, Carmen and I watched an episode from a TV series that she watches before I had to go to the bus station. Carmen’s dad was really nice and drove us there. Carmen showed me where to be and then left. Praise God for the friendship I have with Carmen! I am so blessed to be able to spend time with her and her family and friends.

I took the 6 hour bus back to Sevilla, which wasn’t as bad as I thought it would be.

LAGOS!
Portugal was great. We took the bus Friday and saw the "End of the World" or what people used to think was the end of the world, which was really pretty. Then we went to the hotel and got changed for the beach. We took the bus to the beach and a group of us walked down a ways and laid down. It was so incredible to finally be on a beach again and just lay in silence and soak up the sun. I just wanted to praise God the entire time! Seriously, I felt so blessed. Kate and I went body surfing in the ocean which was a lot of fun. The waves were so powerful. We got tossed around and honestly, in a foot of water, couldn't stop. I got some scratches on my back from it. Then we sat in the edge of the water and let the waves come in and just talked. We marvelled at how God has blessed us and how far we've come since last semester. We had to go back to the hotel around 6:30, which is early here.

We got ready and went to dinner. I had asked the front desk for a recommendation for fish earlier in the day and we headed there. It looked kind of iffy but we trusted their recommendation, and I'm so glad we did! It was so good! The cook came out and showed us the fresh fish that he recommended for us and then grilled it. We got bread and sardines for appetizers too. We got veggies with the fish too. That fish was the best I've had. I was soo happy we got it! It was perfect. It was a very non-touristy place and excellent, fresh fish. I'm going to miss that for sure being back home. After dinner, we tried to get into a supermarket for dessert but they were all closed. We got a little ice cream from some little shop instead, which was a perfect way to top off an incredible meal. Then we all sat out by the pool and talked before going to bed.

Saturday, we got up and had a great breakfast at the hotel. Portugal is an hour behind us and I ended up getting up early, but it was great because then I had a quiet time. I read Psalm 23 in my SV bible that Jackie gave me and it's in the NLT translation. I loved the end! "...My cup of blessing overflows. Surely, your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life. And I will live in the house of the Lord forever." How great is that?! I was just thinking the day before about how much God has blessed me and that maybe He's preparing me for tough times and the blessings will end. What lies from Satan. I love how God showed me truth so immediately! I memorized it and kept running it through my head all day. Seriously though, how cool? goodness, unfailing love, PURSUE, ALL the days of my life. wow! We serve an incredible God!

After checking out of the hotel, we went to some point and saw incredible views of the cliffs and the water. It was beautiful. I was once again blown away by God. Then we headed back to the beach. It was windy and the sand was pelting us on the soft sand so we moved to the harder sand and enjoyed that better.. We left around 5 and got back into Sevilla around 9:45. I felt like I was hardly there because we spent so much time on the bus, but it was really beautiful on the coast.

God's love!

I know I haven’t updated my blog in awhile and will get to the updates about what I’ve been up to in a bit, but first I just have to say what’s on my heart. I am so overwhelmed by God’s blessings and love right now. I don’t even know what to do. I don’t deserve anything, and God keeps pouring blessing upon blessing down into my life. I wish I could explain this feeling better. God loves his children so much!!!! Have you ever thought about how much God loves you? I mean really sat down and thought about it? If you haven’t, do it. Start with the fact that He sent his son to die for us on the cross that we might have eternal life. “For God so loved the world that he sent his one and only Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life.” John 3:16. He loves you and me that much! Then think about who God is and the eternal blessings that He gives us like peace, forgiveness, grace, mercy, joy, and love. These things that never run out, that God constantly is pouring down into our lives, which last forever. God could stop there and it would be enough. Doesn’t that blow you away?

If your socks aren’t knocked off yet, think about what God has given you today. Are you breathing? Can you walk? Did you eat and drink today? Did you sleep last night? Do you have a family and friends? Did you hear I love you lately? I mean, I could go on forever with the little things that God has blessed us with that I can often take for granted. Go bigger picture, what has God given you in the past month, 6 months,1 year, 5 years. How have you seen God move in your life and in the lives of others? Are you blown away yet?! Seriously, God is so real and alive and full of love! Can you feel it yet?! God’s love is so unfathomable!

I know that God has blessed me in incredible ways. Since coming abroad, He has given me new experience after new experience. He’s shown me His beauty in four different countries, in countless ways each day, and in new people I continue to meet. I am so blessed to be here in Sevilla, to see God at work here and elsewhere in Europe, to have so many opportunities to travel, to have worship and fellowship, to realize my family and friend’s love for me from home, to make new friends, to strengthen old relationships. I don’t deserve any of it. All I can do is offer my life to God, to obey Him, to allow Him to work in and through me, to strive to glorify Him in all that I do. I had some apprehension about coming to Spain and not knowing what it would be like, but God has shown me what He can do when I trust Him with every moment and decision of my life. His love is just so incredible!

My intention in writing this is not to brag about how God has blessed me. Instead, I pray that reading this would help you also realize how God has blessed you, that you would feel His all-encompassing love around you. That you would seek to glorify God, trust Him, let Him lead your life, allow Him to show you His love and goodness and pour out His heavenly storehouses of blessings on your life.

“… My cup overflows with blessings. Surely your goodness and unfailing love will pursue me all the days of my life, and I will live in the house of the Lord forever.” Psalm 23:5&6 (NLT)

calabacera=squash

I got an update this week that all of my support came in for the internship! I am fully funded. Praise God! Thank you all so much for your prayers and support! I am so blessed to have such loving people supporting me. It’s overwhelming! My words cannot describe how thankful I am.

I got a package from my Grandma T last week! Kelsey (my roommate) told me she signed a package for me that was pretty heavy when we were in History class. I wanted to leave right then to see who it was from and what it was. I opened it right after lunch. It was filled with candy and gum and popcorn and hot chocolate and little snacks and my favorite granola bar and 2 books!!! I was overwhelmed and surprised! I felt so so very loved! I loved it so much and am so thankful for my grandma!
I also got a package from Carrie today! It had a cute little journal, travel bag, rolling pin and stickers to remind me of my love of baking, flashcards for teaching, a sucker and my favorite candy..Reese’s eggs..yum! I was so surprised and feel so loved! I am so blessed to have her in my life and the friendship we have!
God just keeps pouring blessing after blessing into my life. I don't know why and I'm not going to try to figure it out. All I can do is praise Him and thank Him!

Last week, I saw Carmen, Lucia, and Cristobal when I was in the park running. I stopped to say hello and she said Lucia would be my only student for the day because the other boys were in the Sierra Navadas. I asked Lucia if she wanted to go to the grocery store to learn food words since she would be my only student when I got to there house, and she said yes and ran to ask her mom. I was afraid her mom might say no. I didn't know if she trusted me enough to let me take her 7 year-old outside the house, but she said yes and how lucky Lucia was. Lucia was beaming and so excited. It was a lot of fun!! She is the sweetest thing. We picked out a yogurt and chocolate crunch treat when we were done and went to her house. I had brought a bag of Starburst jelly beans that my grandma had sent me to give to their family. The boys were home and everyone loved them! I told them sometimes my friends and I try to guess what color we eat, and they liked that game. It was fun watching them play. They didn't have a formal dinner because the boys weren't hungry. Carmen invited me to stay and watch the soccer game and practice my Spanish with them. It was a lot of fun. Carmen asked me a lot of questions and really seems interested in who I am. I loved being able to talk with her and experience more of their regular lifestyle. I already love them and have a soft spot in my heart for Lucia, Carmen, and Manuel. I'm excited to grow closer to them and see what God has in store for this summer. I'm praying that God uses me in their lives.

Here’s a little blurb about my incredible weekend that was filled with fun and laughter in Paris:
We got to our hostel on Thursday night and that was all we did. It took quite awhile to get there. It was not that great of a place, but not awful either. We couldn't help but laugh at it. I’m thankful that Heather booked it for us though. So nice to have a place to stay!

Friday we went to the tourist office in the morning to get maps and information. We circled the places we wanted to see and bought out 3 day transportation passes for the weekend. First stop..Eiffel Tower. I took a digger and fell flat on my face in front of it. I was taking a picture and ran to catch up and tripped on a rock in the process..haha. I wish it were on tape so I could see how silly I looked. Anywho, it was really incredible. It seemed so surreal. It hasn't really hit me that I went there. We climbed the stairs to the top and had an incredible view of the city. Wow! Then we got lunch and headed to the Arc de Triomph which was really cool and much bigger than I realized. We walked down the busy shopping street and saw the Grand Palace and National Army Museum. There were really cool looking trees there that seemed to be begging to be played in. I continued my kid day and ran by them : ) We walked back towards the Eiffel Tower and bought ice cream for dinner and watched the light show on the Eiffel Tower and sat there for 2 hours or so. Then we went home to our lovely hostel.

Saturday we made French toast for breakfast! I loved it!!!! More cooking : ) Then we went to Notre Dame and the Louvre which was cool to see Mona Lisa but I'm just not that interested in art. I feel bad that I don't have a deeper appreciation for it, but I just get bored. We walked around and then went to the grocery store and bought stuff to make dinner. It was a lot of fun! I loved picking out the groceries and cooking it. I love to cook! I hope that joy continues when I have to do it all the time. Then we headed out to the Arc de Triomph to go up it at night to see the city lit up. It was raining but still cool to see it. We walked around on the busy street again and bought fries and ice cream from McDonald's to have 'French' fries...haha.

Sunday we went to this old church that I forget the name of, which was really beautiful. Then Cole and I split to meet Diddy. We had lunch with him and his wife, Heidi at their apartment. It was really great. They were so good to us. Diddy has a good sense of humor and Heidi is the sweetest thing. They showed us around their neighborhood after lunch. I got to talk to Heidi about ministry and she asked if I could see myself coming back. She studied abroad in France in college so we had some things in common. I really liked talking to her. Then Cole and I had an hour or so before we had to meet the girls. We walked around and just stumbled across some neat sites and a market. We met the girls and went to get crepes at a little restaurant, which was really cute and had good food too : ) Then we went to get food for dinner and had pasta in the hostel. We went back out at night towards the Eiffel Tower. Cole and I wanted to spend some time together and the girls went to get dessert. Cole and I sat in front of the Eiffel Tower and watched the light show again that happens every hour. It was really great! It still all seems so surreal to me. The 4 of us had fun on the metro to the Tower and on the way home too. It was a great last night in Paris.

We made it home around 2:25 on Monday and Kate and I raced home to get our school stuff and grab a sandwich before rushing to class at 3:00.
I’m still in disbelief that I was really there. I feel so incredibly blessed. God keeps pouring out blessing after blessing. Praise Him!

At Encuentro we sang a song called ‘Our Savior Lives’ by New Life Worship. I can’t stop listening to it! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4ZWQBdcQSQ8&feature=related

I had the start of midterms this week. It was pretty overwhelming after not studying the weekend before because of Paris, but God got me through and now I’m looking forward to welcoming my parents to Sevilla!

I'm so excited to see my parents today and can hardly focus on anything! Carmen, the mother of the family I teach for, invited me and my parents to have lunch with them today at 3. I was so excited to have that opportunity! It was be such a good experience for my parents to have a real Spanish meal and see what my life with them is like and know who will be my family for 10 days this summer. It's not working out though. My parents were supposed to arrive in Madrid at 7:45, then it got delayed to 9:15, and then to 10:00am. I was hoping they'd still make the 12:00 train, but there weren't any open trains until 7:00 tonight so they won't be here until 9:35pm. It stinks that it doesn't work out for lunch, but everything happens for a reason. I'm praying that it still works out for them to meet the family and also Concha and Nacho. Carmen's family is going to their country home, Nacho is leaving tomorrow and Concha said she might not be home so I hope it all still comes together somehow. I’m so thankful that my parents are coming! What a blessing to be able to have time with them and show them my life here! We’ll be in Sevilla until Monday and then flight to Italy until Friday. They’ll fly out of Madrid on Saturday morning, and I’m going to stay with Carmen for a day or so.

torpe = clumsy

Tuesday night before I went to visit Carmen two weekends ago, Kelsey (my roommate) and I made cookies! It was a lot of fun. I bought some cookies and put peanut butter in the middle and then dipped them in chocolate to bring them as a gift for Carmen’s family. Carmen said her brothers friends usually bring food, and this was my best idea without having to use the oven. I loved baking and it was fun with Kelsey. Praise God for the joy I get from baking and fun time with my roommate.

It was such a blessing to visit Carmen and so good to see her. I skipped 2 classes on Thursday to make sure I was at the train station on time. I had never taken the bus in Sevilla before and was thankful I had been to the train station before because I was able to recognize buildings around it and know when I needed to get off. I read my devotional on the bus, and it was right on. It was “The Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.” John 14:26 and about how we’re never alone and the Spirit is always with us, guiding us.

Carmen and Pedro, her boyfriend, were at the train station waiting for me. I was greeted with a hug and kiss from Carmen and immediate Spanish. I was a little lost in conversation with her and Pedro because they talked so fast, but I got most of it. We took the train to Tres Cantos, a smaller town outside of Madrid where they live. We dropped Pedro off, and I got a tour of the house and met her family. Then we were off to mass. After mass, they had a service where you could pray and confess your sins to the priest. I didn’t understand much during mass because it was difficult to understand the priest with the microphone and different acoustics, but Carmen was able to explain it to me. It was nice to be able to spend time praying.

Friday morning we woke up early and went to the center of Madrid. Carmen showed me different monuments, buildings, and good places to shop. We had fun walking around and seeing all the different things. It was rainy and a little cold but not too bad. We came home and had lunch with her parents. Carmen’s dad is learning English and practiced with me while we waited for lunch. He’s pretty good and liked to ask me questions about different words too. His phrase is “little by little, step by step, slowly but surely.” It’s a good reminder for me because sometimes I can get frustrated with my Spanish. Praise God for reminders like that.

That afternoon, we went to Corte Ingles to get Carmen's computer and walked around for awhile. The store is huge! You can buy everything from groceries to shoes to wedding dresses. It's crazy. We bought Ben and Jerry's cookie dough ice cream on the way home. Pedro came over and we shared it; what a treat! Then us 3 sat in her room talking and looking at pictures and youtube. Her mom made torrijas and made Pedro and I eat one. She said I was going back to Sevilla 4kg heavier and I probably did. We went out to dinner with her friends at Wagaboo in Madrid. It was a unique place and pretty modern. I didn't understand much of the conversation because there were 8 of them and all talking at once, or so it seemed. I got frustrated but then just stopped trying for a bit and looked around and thought about how many people probably don't know God. It made me sad to think about that, but it was a good reminder. We left the restaurant around 1am and just went home because the it was raining and cold.

Saturday, we walked around Tres Cantos and Carmen showed me where she went to school and stuff. We talked in Spanish all morning and that was so great! We went to pick up her brother from Decathlon where he works, it's a big sporting goods store like Dick's or Scheels. I really liked doing that and felt very much at home. It reminded me of something I would do with my family. We went shopping in the afternoon, and I found exactly what I wanted for souvenirs! I wanted spoons like they use here for dessert and found some with ice cream on top. They're great! I'm waiting to buy more until later. If I open my own bakery/cafe, then I will definitely want to have more. We went bowling with 5 of her friends and I loved it! I could actually talk with them and have conversation and did well too. They were so nice! We got little sandwiches after for dinner, and that was fun too.

Sunday morning we went back into Madrid to do more site seeing. It was nice to be able to walk around and talk. In the afternoon, we baked a banana and chocolate chip dessert! It was so great! I wish I were joking when I say that I want to have my own bakery/cafe because I sound kind of crazy, but I'm not kidding. I'm really praying about it. Her mom taught us how to bake torrijas and that was really fun too. I loved it! Her mom is so great. We went to mass and then stayed for this thing with other people her age in the church and her priest. We read a text and the priest explained it and then they all commented on it. After that, Carmen’s priest played the guitar and sang a song for us in English about the prodigal son. It was really neat.

On our walk back home, Carmen shared about her priest and things with the church. We got into a really good conversation that carried on until we went to bed about our relationships with God and different beliefs. We both shared what God was doing in our lives and I was able to ask her about her Catholic faith. Pray that God would provide good Christian friends for Carmen. Praise God that for such good conversation and encouragement.

On Monday, I went with her to school because she had one class she had to go to. I sat in the library and had a quiet time so it worked out well. We walked around in the afternoon and took had fun in the park. I'm so glad that God brought us closer together and opened doors. I feel like we've been good friends for a while and we both agreed it felt like no time had passed. I am so thankful God provided such an incredible weekend! I felt so spoiled in her home and loved getting to know her better and her family and friends too. I learned more language skills and my need to practice more and more about their culture. Her family is much more like the typical Spanish family I was told about before coming here. I'm so thankful God has blessed me with a friendship with her. She's so great. Praise God for an amazing weekend!

I have decided to stay for a little bit longer this summer. Here is a little bit of the process…
This past Tuesday, Carmen, the woman I work for, told me that I can for sure stay with them in between the internship and being with Carmen in Santander. It was such an answer to prayer. It’s cool to look back on my prayer journal and see God answer my prayers. Here are parts of two entries…
February 1: “Thank you that Carmen is so willing to share her life with me. What a blessing! If it be in your will Lord, please provide a way for me to be able to stay with her in July. Please provide the funds and housing to make it possible.”
February 8: “Thank you for the opportunity to stay with Carmen in July and be in Spain longer. Please help me know what to do. Provide a place for me to stay between the internship and Santander and the money to stay longer.”
What an incredible God we serve! Thank Him for always hearing our prayers and answering them.

This past Wednesday, I really felt that God was leading me to stay, but I was afraid. There are still so many uncertainties with everything. However, Kate and I went to Encuentro, the worship service with Trinity, and it was really great. A man from a church in Sevilla talked. He's originally from Mexico but grew up in Los Angeles and is a missionary in Sevilla. It was so cool to hear about how God has used him and his ministry now. He djs where kids botellon and then preaches the gospel! He brings the gospel to people in ways that fit them. He was on fire for Jesus. He told us the history of Spain and how historians think a spiritual rival is coming in the next few years. My eyes were opened again to how dead this country really is. A lot of the songs were about following God's will and not being of ourselves. It confirmed my thoughts with staying this summer and I got teary eyed. I was afraid to commit to stay, but I really feel it is God's will for me. I really felt God leading me to stay here and at that point I decided to stay. I was still uncertain about many things, including a job for the month of August when I return. However, today Ken and Lynne confirmed that I could work for them again. What an answer to prayer! I got teary eyed as I thought about how everything is working out so perfectly and seeing God put things together. I’m overwhelmed by His love. He continues to blow me away!

So I'm done with the internship July 7 and then will go to live with the family I'm working for. They have 7 different houses so I'm not sure where I'll be but probably somewhere in Andalucia, maybe Sevilla, maybe not. I will meet up with Carmen around July 17 or 19 or close to that in Madrid and head to Santander until July 26 or so. Nothing is really set in stone yet as it's a pretty recent decision. Praise God for leading me to make the decision. I’m excited to see what God has in store! Pray that God would be preparing me for the longer duration and bless it.
This past Tuesday night, Cole had skyped me and said he wanted to see me for 5 minutes and would come over. I didn't know why but I said of course. I went downstairs to meet him after talking to my mom on skype. He gave me an encouraging note, a little cookies n' cream ice cream cup, a cooking magazine with all the corners of the pages with desserts folded for me for inspiration in my future bakery, and fake flowers because he knows I don't like real flowers. It was so sweet of him and such a surprise! I’m not sure how I’m so blessed to have such a great boyfriend that makes me feel so special, but I thank God for the blessing he is in my life. Friday night, I went out with Kelsey (my roommate) and met her friend Maddy from NYU who's studying in London but on spring break in Spain. Maddy had 4 guy friends with her. We went with them while they ate dinner and hung out after. 2 of the guys were a lot of fun to hang out with. Kelsey and I laughed for probably 5 minutes straight at one point when we were dancing. The one guy was so fun to watch dance because he just had the perfect body type for the funk music to be hilarious. We walked by the river and joked around for awhile before heading home. I enjoyed meeting new people and laughing with them. Isn’t laughter wonderful?

Friday, we went to Ronda with the CEA group. We had a 3 hour time and then free time to have lunch and explore a bit. Ronda was not my favorite city but walking down to this one point was pretty neat, and I got some pictures that I really like.

Saturday night, a big group of us went out for tapas and a movie. The bar we went to had really bad service, which isn’t unusual here, but the tapas were really good. Our group ended up getting split because we were going to be late for the movie so Kate, Heather, Leah, and Kelly left once they paid and said they'd buy us our tickets. Kelsey, Cole, and I had to wait to pay with Jenny and her boyfriend and his sister. We got there a little after the movie started and I got a text from Kate that said they couldn't buy out tickets. We decided to see Shutter Island instead. It was an interesting movie but glad I could understand the gist of it.

Yesterday, I got to meet Concha’s boyfriend and her mom. It was really neat. Her mom is so beautiful! Concha had a test today for her back. Pray that the doctors find what’s wrong. I haven’t seen Concha as much now that she’s back together with her boyfriend, which makes me kind of sad. However, I’m happy for her because she’s happy.

Kate and I had the opportunity to share some of our struggles and pray together yesterday. It’s such a blessing to have a sister in Christ here in Sevilla that I feel so comfortable sharing with. Praise God for friendship. She has been such a blessing to me. We’ve committed our time together to only Spanish this week until we head to Paris. Paris! I’m excited!

I’m thinking about changing my English minor to a TESOL minor. I’ve really enjoyed teaching the kids English. While I love to read and write, I don’t know that digging into the literature and history of it is something that I want to continue doing in my classes or in my own future classrooms. I love the opportunities another language provides for you and really like the idea of helping someone have access to those. Many of the people I’ve talked to here express the need for good English teachers. They start learning English so early in school but so few people retain anything. I would like to help people really grasp the language. I’ve contacted some advisors at La Crosse and am praying about the decision. Please pray that God gives me wisdom to make this decision. During my flamenco class today, I also thought about how it’d be cool to have my bakery/café during the day, and then hold little English classes at night in it. I like to daydream about my bakery/café : )

Thank you all for your continued support and prayers!

Anhelar = to long for

Sevilla

I had a big envelope on the table for me when I came home for lunch on Monday. It was from Steve and Kay Veldhorst. It was this little girl called Olivia like Flat Stanley. It's from a 2nd grader in West Allis, WI. It's sent around between people to learn more about the cultures and different areas. I have to write in the journal and include a post card or something to help the students learn about the city. It's a pretty cool idea. Then I just send it on to the next person and it ends up back to their classroom in May. I'm the 3rd person to get it. It was fun to get it in the mail.

Teaching on Tuesday was great! I got to talk to Antonio and Fernando for most of it. Antonio is definitely in the teenager stage and not very willing to talk. I got him talking about soccer for awhile so that was good. Fernando is a lot more open and got back from Ireland not long ago so is more confident with his English. I found out they have 7 different houses in Spain! I cannot believe that. It makes me kind of sick. Then I got to teach Lucia more numbers. She has a writing test soon with them. I really really like her. She comes running into the room with the biggest smile and is so eager to learn all the time. She sits by me at dinner too and asks her brothers how to say things in English and then asks me. She's the cutest thing! Praise God for children and smiles and my opportunity to spend time with them!

I came home from teaching on Tuesday and Nacho had ordered Chinese. I planned to meet Cole, and when I was leaving, I saw Nacho on the couch with his shirt pulled up to his chest with his belly sticking out. He said it really good and he was super full. He said I could have some now or later if I wanted. I couldn't stop laughing at him. He looked so funny with his belly like that!

On Wednesday morning, Kate and I went to Nadine’s house, the woman with Students For Christ. We made banana pancakes and bacon for breakfast. We had leftover mushed bananas on top and real maple syrup from Michigan that 2 girls had left her from last semester. It was so good to have a real breakfast! Kate and I were able to share our testimonies with her, and Nadine shared some of her wisdom and past experiences. I’m so thankful God blessed us with that opportunity to have a little taste of home and use Nadine’s wisdom.

After class on Wednesday, Kate and I went to Encuentro which is worship with Trinity. We focused on, “All of you, clothe yourselves with humility toward one another, because God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Humble yourselves, therefore, under God’s mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make you strong, firm and steadfast.” 1 Peter 5:5-10. It was really great to be able to spend so much time focusing on just a few verses and allow it to become alive. Two parts that hit me were with clothing yourself to become humble and casting all anxiety on God. With the clothing part, I saw it’s relation to choosing what you wear. Most nights, I choose what I’m going to wear the next day and set it out so I don’t wake Kelsey up in the morning. In the same way, I can choose humility the night before, put in on the next day, and let others see the clothing of humility that I’ve chosen to wear. I was also reminded that God wants all my worries. I often fail and try to take care of the small stuff on my own. I forget that God wants the big things and the small things. I cannot do anything without Christ, and it was good to be reminded that God does care and wants it all.

I taught Miguel and Manuel on Thursday, but it was one on one this time. We reviewed the past simple tense, and I taught them different ways to say the time using quarter after, five to, midnight, etc. It went by pretty quickly. Then I had little snack dinners with Carmen, the mom. She said they always have that kind of dinner on Wednesdays. It was nice to be able to practice my Spanish with her. She said that I can stay with them this summer between the internship and Carmen's! At least I'm pretty sure she said that...haha. I hate that I don't know for sure. I think she said if I couldn't find something else to do, then I could live with them. I could practice my Spanish with her and English with the kids. She said Lucia really wants to learn more and Miguel was really glad to be working one on one with me. It was good to receive encouragement like that. Please continue to pray for me and my interaction with the family and with the decision of whether or not to stay longer in July.

On Thursday, I was able to meet up with a girl named Val who interned with World Team last summer in Italy. She was able to tell me a little about her experience and different things she did. She told me the one thing she could guarantee was that I would be meeting a lot of people. She’s a really sweet girl, and we hope to meet up again.

While I was having a quiet time in my room, Nacho came in and started talking to me. He asked me what I was doing, and I said I was reading the Bible. He asked what I was writing, and I said it was prayers and things that I learn. He said he started reading the Bible at one point, but it was too big. I told him it wasn’t meant to be read all at once. He asked me more questions about it, and I was able to share James 1:2-4 with him with my bilingual Bible. He was really stressed about his final exam, and things with his girlfriend weren’t going well. Praise God for opening the door with him! Pray that I would continue to be able to share with him and have the right words.
He passed his final exam on Friday and was extremely happy! Now, he’s done with college. I told him now he’s an adult now, and he just laughed. Concha has been doing a lot better lately. She no longer tells us about her headaches, and her backaches are getting better. She’s still very busy but much happier. Thank you for your prayers for her.

Thursday night, I was able to do a prayer walk with about 20 students. We split into 2 groups of Los Remedios and Triana. Since I live in Los Remedios, I went with that group. We walked and prayed at the river, the University, the busy intersection by a bridge, the church, and a park. Praise God for the freedom to do that and the fellowship too! I was able to talk to Rachel Jonker, who is from Brandon and knew Tom and Angi and now is here with the Trinity program. It was neat to be able to see another familiar face.

Friday before dinner, Kelsey and I went to a cafe together. It was really relaxing. We came home and had dinner just us because everyone else was gone. We got talking about her high school and what it was like. It sounded awful! We also got on the topic of the Catholic faith. It was really interesting to learn more about it and hear her views on it. I hope to continue to learn more as it is important to her and most people in Spain are Catholic too. Then around 12 we went out to meet her friend Lucia, who she knew when she lived in Turkey and now lives in Sevilla. We met up with Lucia's brother and his friends. It was way more fun to go out with them than the American students. It was nice to be able to use my Spanish too! It was 3:30 and we were going to another bar, but I said I couldn't. They tried really hard to convince me, but then luckily Kelsey didn't have her id so Lucia and her walked me home and got her id. The rest of the group ended up leaving and Kelsey came back home. We stayed up talking and thinking of games we could play like teacher, store, and airplane because we played office the other night and had a lot of fun…haha. So I last saw the clock at a little after 4:30 and got up at 7:00 for the next day. Oh boy! I thank God for a fun night, the opportunity to meet new people, and the chance to learn more about my roomie.

God really provided energy for me for the next day as Cole and I were supposed to go on our day trip. We bought our tickets but missed the bus. The tickets said bus 1 so we thought it left from spot 1, but then 20 minutes after it was supposed to leave, we asked someone, and they said it left from 12 or 13. I was so confused! I asked how we're supposed to know, and he said we're supposed to ask when we buy the ticket. Wow! No way we would have known. So we switched our tickets to Sunday, and then walked around Sevilla and just relaxed and took pictures. It was really nice to be able to relax. In the afternoon, Kelsey, Cole, and I got ice cream from a place called Raya; it was so good! Praise God for a relaxing day in Sevilla.

Sunday morning, Cole and I made the bus to Aracena. I got a little motion sick on the way there, but I was alright after I got some fresh air when we got off. The bus drivers go so fast around the curves. It felt like my dad was driving again…haha, you know I love you Dad! We didn't have a map or anything at first and just wandered around. We eventually got one and saw lots of different things. The city has these nice little signs by their buildings that are important, and it’s super helpful. The customer service that we experienced there was great! People actually smiled and were happy to help us. I haven’t experienced that since I’ve been in Spain. We went to la Gruta de las Maravillas, a cave. I was amazed with God's creation. It was so beautiful. We weren’t allowed to take pictures, but I would highly recommend looking up pictures online. Then we went to the Ham Museum. We had to watch a video that wasn't even about pigs before we could look at stuff. It was comical. Then we went up this hill to an old church and castle ruins. It was so beautiful and the view was incredible! We sat on the wall overlooking the hills and had our packed bocadillos; it was great. We saw sheep on the side of the hill and a real shepherd too. It was really nice to see grass and trees and hills and just be in God's creation. I loved it! It was a really fun day together, and I'm so thankful God has blessed us with being here together. Praise God for a great day!

Kelsey and I had dinner alone again Sunday night and I found out she didn't know what cheese curds were. She never heard of them. She hadn't heard of the cold or the fried ones! I'm going to have to send her some when we get back to the states!

I’ve been reading the book Seizing Your Divine Moment by Erwin Raphael McManus and have been learning a lot of really neat things that I want to share. I’m going to share the quotes with you from the book that really hit me.
“You cannot follow God in neutral. God has created you to do something. It is not enough to stop the wrong and then by paralyzed when it comes to the right. God has created you to do good” (35).
This is from the author’s conversation with another man. “I asked him if he thought that Hitler and Stalin had been capable of thwarting the sovereignty of God. He said, ‘Of course not.’ I pointed out that if men and women who gave their lives for a purpose counter to the will of God could not stop God’s purpose in history, how could someone who longs to do God’s will and chooses to do something in line with God’s character? I told him I had too much respect for the sovereignty of God to think that he or I could mess it up” (42).
“What God makes clear is that when we’re committed to seizing His divine moments, He’ll make sure He gets us to the right place at the right time. What God can do through a person who’s willing to act is limitless” (43).
“Here’s where the dilemma lies: this can actually be paralyzing for a sincere follower of Jesus Christ. You don’t want to passionately do the wrong thing. You desperately want to do what’s on God’s heart, not just on your heart. Here’s the liberating reality: when you are passionate about God, you can trust your passions. God uses our passions as a compass to guide us” ( 47).
This last quote is probably the one that really spoke to me the most. I think I can often be too preoccupied with worrying about whether or not something is in God’s will, that I don’t even do anything. I was too fearful to go against God’s will, but what a reminder that when we walk with God, we can trust that He’s guiding us. Praise God for using other people like this author to speak truth into my life.

Today is El día de Andalucía so we don’t have class today. It’s sunny and beautiful so I hope to be outside after lunch. This week, I’m going to visit Carmen after class on Thursday and will be coming home after midnight on Monday. I’m really excited to see her and meet her family and friends!

Crujiente = Crunchy

View from the Alhambra

I’m glad to have a regular schedule with classes. I have class from 3-7 on Monday and Wednesday, which I really like. I like to get up in the morning, get things done, and run. On Tuesday and Thursday, I have class from 9-3, which I don’t really like as much. By the time 3:00 comes around, I’m pretty sick of sitting in class and am also pretty hungry. All the teachers have chalkboards and never use technology, except for an occasional movie. Listening to 2 hours of lecture on one subject gets to be too long. In a couple of my classes, we have to keep moving classrooms. We all meet in the classroom where we were originally supposed to have class, and then we all follow the professor to a different room. Both days in my history class, we moved to 3 different classrooms. In my flamenco class this week, we watched a movie with different flamenco styles and performances. During parts of the video, they zoomed in on the singer’s mouths. I couldn’t stand it. I don’t think some of them were even using real words, and it was gross seeing their saliva and lip movement. I like flamenco a lot better when they focus on the dancers. Overall, I haven’t been given a lot of homework, which is nice. It’s good to actually be taking classes again.

Teaching has also been really great. I am so thankful that God has provided this incredible opportunity! I’m so blown away by it! Tuesday night was my first time, and I got to meet all the children. Carmen is 2. Cristobal is 5. Lucia is 7. Manuel is 10. Miguel is 12. Fernando is 13. Antonio is 14. I started off teaching Lucia, and Cristobal sat in to listen and repeat words. She already knew how to count to 11 and most of the colors. We did more numbers, days of the week, and months. Cristobal wasn’t really having it though. He preferred to draw on the table and not pay attention, which was distracting for Lucia. Manuel and Miguel said they wanted help with verb tenses and vocabulary. Miguel had a book from school, and I helped him with some exercises. It was hard to explain why the correct answer was “something” not “anything” in a sentence. I don’t know why that’s right; I just know that it is. It’s even harder to try and explain that using Spanish. Also, in the paragraph it said in print, “I learnt how to swim that summer.” Unless my Oostburg education is failing me, that isn’t correct. They are learning Britain style English so hopefully I don’t cause him to have mistakes. I felt like I was in way over my head. Then, they showed me some things from their teacher last year, who was 30. It was nice to have some examples of what they worked on. Then, Antonio and I had conversation time. It was kind of hard thinking of things to talk about. He’s a 14 year-old boy. He probably doesn’t really want to talk to me, but he’s very sweet.

Then, the 6 oldest children, Mom, Dad, and I had dinner together. We sat around their big dining room table and were allowed to speak only English. The mom and dad don’t know much Spanish, only the two oldest boys feel confident enough to speak it, and I don’t talk that much to begin with so it was kind of awkward. All the kids kept breaking into Spanish, and then Mom would tell them, “No, no, solo Ingles.” Their maid served us all our food. She walked around with the food on a platter and served the mom, then the dad, then me, and then all the children. If anybody wanted more food, she would have to come around again with the platter and serve it. It’s very different from what I’m used to, but I like being able to have diverse experiences. For dessert, we all got smaller plates and spoons, and the maid walked around with a platter of different yogurt mousses and fruit. Everyone got the yogurt mousse except the dad and then placed the yogurt container on their smaller plate. Again, it’s different, but I like being exposed to it. I thank God that I am living with Concha and Nacho in a home similar to mine in Oostburg, and that I have this experience too, but that it’s not my permanent home in Sevilla.

Teaching on Thursday was much better and less overwhelming than Tuesday. It was helpful that I knew what to prepare. I spent over two hours preparing before I went. I think part of what took so long is that I don’t know the different verb tenses in English. I know the present, preterite, imperfect, subjunctive, pluscuamperfecto, conditional, etc. in Spanish, but I don’t know them in English. I know what verb should be used in each situation, but I can’t tell you the tense. It will be good for me to learn again. I think I’ll probably learn more from them than they will from me. I’m beginning to realize more what a teaching job all entails and am looking forward to learning more as the weeks go on. Praise God for this opportunity to learn so much!

I had more words and little phrases prepared for Lucia, and Cristobal didn’t have a pencil to draw with. He was still distracting but left part way through because the dad asked if it was better without him, and Lucia answered yes. I prepared a lesson on the simple past tense for Manuel and Miguel that included irregular verb exercises. It was pretty challenging for them but not too hard. It felt really rewarding to have that work out for them. Praise God for giving me the knowledge and ability to plan according to their level. Also pray that God will continue to guide me in my plans. I am given a lot of time with those children during the week and have the potential to impact them. Pray that God would use me in this time I have with them.

For dinner, we had lasagna. My second favorite meal! It was sooo good. The cheese they used was incredible. We had strawberries for dessert. I felt so spoiled. All the children were going to run down the street after dinner. I thought it was just a joke until they all ran to their rooms to change. Carmen said I can bring my shoes next time if I want to join them. I am definitely going to at some point. Picturing the 6 of them running down the street in Sevilla after 10pm is quite comical, and I would love to be part of that experience. It makes me giggle thinking about it.
Encuentro is the program on Wednesday nights with the Trinity program here. Kate, Cole, and I went it after our class was done at 7:00. It was a more liturgical service than normal because of Ash Wednesday. It was good to be reminded of the time of year that we’re entering and what Christ did for us. It was also nice to have fellowship and see familiar faces from the intercambio fiesta. We went to church in Triana this week again, and I liked it a lot again. It was a different service today where they had a skit with people from different countries coming to Spain. Then, people from different countries sang or spoke. I didn’t catch some of the humor throughout the skit and other parts, but overall, it was really neat.

Kelsey moved in on Tuesday night around 10:30pm. It’s been nice getting to know her better throughout this week. She’s really nice and knows a lot about the culture here from last semester. Praise God that things are going well. Kristen hasn’t been feeling well this week. She’s been having sinus pain, aches, and is really tired. Pray for her health.

I went to Granada with my CEA group on Friday. We got dropped off by the buses around 12:00 in Granada. We followed Inma, a CEA staff, down to our hotel. She walked soo slow. Cole and I joked about how we could probably crab walk faster than she walked. It was rainy and cold so her pace just wasn’t cutting it. On the way, she led us to a place where we got a pretty good view of the Alhambra, which is an expansive castle which was constructed over many centuries consisting of gardens and luxurious palaces. According the the CEA handout, it receives 8,000 visitors/day and is now Spain's most visited monument. After checking into the hotel, we got some free time to grab lunch and walk around. Then, we had a tour with CEA of parts of the city. It wasn’t a very good tour but thankfully short. Kate, Cole, Heather, Leah, Kelly, and I walked around and shopped then. I really enjoy walking around a city and taking in all the sites and people. We went to Café Futbol for dessert. Cole and I shared this incredible ice cream sundae and a crepe with whipped cream and chocolate. I highly recommend Café Futbol if you ever travel to Granada. It was SO good! Praise God for new adventures and yummy treats : )

On Saturday, we had a lot of free time before the tour of the Alhambra. We did a lot more walking around and some shopping. I didn’t buy anything either day (Mom, aren’t you proud of me? haha) but enjoyed taking pictures and walking around. It was actually sunny and warmer, so Granada appeared much more beautiful. Cole and I joked about how our photo albums would be something like “Granada- a must miss” because it was so ugly, but it proved itself worthy of a visit on Saturday. The tour of the Alhambra was neat, but I didn’t like it that much. It was talked up a lot so I think my expectations were too high. I’m kind of sick of seeing buildings and want to see more of God’s beauty in nature. The gardens there weren’t that pretty either. Kelsey said they were a lot prettier last semester when the flowers were in bloom. After the tour, we took buses back to Sevilla. Praise God for warmer weather and the sun!

Saturday night, Nacho asked us if we wanted to watch a movie so Kelsey and I went to the movie rental and picked one out. Kristen wasn’t feeling well so she didn’t come. It took us awhile to get there, but we figured it out. We didn’t really understand their system because some DVDs needed another one behind it, but some of them didn’t. I tried to rent Public Enemies, but it needed a case behind it so we couldn’t get it. It worked when we tried for Billy Elliot though. I don’t like not knowing what I’m doing, but it doesn’t bother me that much. I can’t learn if I don’t try it, and now, I’ll know for next time. After dinner, Kelsey, Nacho, and I watched the movie. It didn’t have any Spanish or English subtitles, but the dialogue was basic enough that I understood most of it. I popped the bag of popcorn that my parents sent in my package. Nacho loved it! He said they don’t make popcorn with that much butter on it in Spain. I’m so glad he enjoyed it so much. It’s fun being able to share things like that. Praise God for a relaxing evening at home with the “fam.”

I’m still trying to decide whether or not I should stay longer in July and am in the process of making some travel plans. Pray that God will guide me in this process and give me wisdom and discernment to make decisions.

I’m also still working on boundaries and realize that it will be a long process. This week proved to be challenging. One week, I’m too responsible for another person, and the next week, I’m not responsible enough to the person. I’m really working on finding this balance. Honestly, at times, I just want to throw my hands in the air and give up. Pray that God will guide me in this process as well and help me to be loving and patient.

This past week, I was reminded of how blessed I am to have loving family and friends at home. I’ve received various emails and encouragement from home. Thank you so much! God has blessed me in incredible ways, and I’m so thankful. I’ve really been reminded of the blessing of friendship and want to thank all of you who are so dear to my heart. Thank you for loving me. I love you too!