Of late, I've been in my scribing zen! CAUTION: watch out world, extreme creativity is imminent!
So a common thread that has been holding together several WOW moments of my stay here has been this whole concept of time! On days like this, I would evoke a whirlwind of thought to blow into perspective everything that has happened thus far.
17 minutes is the average time it takes for me to leave Littenweiler, the name of my town where the school is to reach to downtown Freiburg (where all the cool canals are). I enjoy tramming it there because you see the uninterrupted livelihood of German folks! The clothes that wear them, the buildings they inhabit, the innocence of their children, or even the love between older couples who I've realized travel much more often than their peers in my home country.
1 & 3/4 weeks is the total time that I have been here. Prior to my departure from Toronto, the sappy person that I am, I, like an expert fish catcher, reeled in several goals that I wanted to take out of this experience and one of them being to amass as much German as I can. Truthfully, I failed my German course last year, because I dropped it! However, now that I'm here, I'm being given a second chance to redeem myself. Shout out to my dad, who, one day encouraged me to pick up more languages! [DAD I would never forget what you said]
40 minutes is the time I took on Sunday morning to simply spend quality time with my Maker. Pressed play on some of my best soul calming music, meditated on some key lines from the latter part of Ephesians 1, and made a list of things I wanted to pray about. It's not surprising that merely 4 hours later, one of them was answered. I implore you, with your time, to spend more, on God! :)
Last summer was the time when,not having a US visa in time or not having a good enough resume,a teaching internship at Columbia Uni slipped right through my fingers and my chance at an internship to Greece was averted. It's OK, I accepted that it wasn't my turn then. Only if back then, I could have seen a glimpse of my now, having a blast in this wonderful place and on a prestigious scholarship studying the subject that launched me into the international scene, I would have been less disappointed. I echo my own words: our disappointment is God's divine appointment.
Weeks (I refuse to be precise for this one) I've been trying to finish 2 outstanding essays for a French class that I took prior to coming here. Between, planting my navel string in Freiburg, course selections, absorbing the German language, marathon-ing (yup i just coined a word)around to organize my student card, registration, contract signing and the like, I've had no time to actually concentrate on writing something, I quite frankly 1) don't care about and 2)is so arduous to grasp. Have I resigned myself to failing a course, so that I can for a long time spend a half hour at the Titisee lake on a lazy Sunday afternoon or take a walk with newly made friends in the Black Forest, or have a meal prepared for me by a funny, Finnish friend, or enjoy a glass of champagne with some Brie and honey to celebrate the good times a friend's mom had while reconnecting with her daughter, or simply enjoying a 80cent ice cream cone beckoning summer to arrive? I don't know but we will see...
21 years ago, my grandmother succumbed to cancer (well more like to the train over to heaven to finally behold her Love), but before she did, wrote upon my life that I would be hardworking. As much, as I may try to deny it, I overwork myself! I cannot do things halfheartedly,( hence my prolonged time in trying to draft the insipid papers). While in a back to earth, feet in air, face to sky moment on the edge of a lake, I promised to myself that I would have more down time moments! A summer resolution it was indeed! Thinking about it, I spend 15 hours working my 3 jobs per week, 21 hours a week in classes or teaching and the other couple thousands of seconds dedicated to volunteering. If Christ rested after wording into being the world, then who am I?
And finally,(no pun intended! Did you get it? let me know in a comment if you did LOL) it's been 12 going on 13 years that I've been attempting to master the French language. And as I scribe this, my heart is smiling because of the excitement bubbling within me! Today, I, with a dozen others are heading over to Strassbourg, France for a day packed with sightseeing goodness, fun museums, Alsatian cuisine and French speaking wonderment! A dream fulfilled is about to occur as I've never really spent quality time on the soil of the people and language that I've come to call my own! Words cannot even describe how I feel! Can't wait to share my experiences with yall!
So I leave with this thought for you to nibble on! No matter how long it may take, or how much years it will take to repay your student debt, or how far-fetched your dreams may be, sucker punch doubt, depression, fear in the face, take back your dignity and with chin up, an ear to ear smile, and a heart of gratitude, walk into your destiny.
Heart smiling,
B
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