At last, I'm back!

It's been awhile, I know. But, I guarantee you, I have not been sitting around doing nothing. I arrived Tuesday back in Chile, after 6 flights in 6 days! It is hard for me to think that only a week ago, I was at the conference hotel still.

I did not write from there, as I did not want to identify where I was, although I do have some cool pictures of things I did there, in the free time we had. It was a tremendous experience and I'm grateful for what I've learned there.

Let's see, what to say about being back in Chile...
I'm definitely wearing more clothes again! My bed is keeping me very warm again, for which I'm so grateful.

I love my job, and am praying much differently about it and where we're headed as a team here. I went back to work today.

Tomorrow evening, I'm invited to a birthday party for my "little sister" Ellie. She's turning 18. I've never had a little sister before, so it's kind of fun. The whole family is anxious to see me, and I am anxious to see them as well. We always have so much fun together.

This isn't very exciting. I'll try better next time.

A Place of Rest

I was awakened this morning by my alarm at 4:30 AM, to leave by 5, to catch my flight out of KL. It was a fairly easy journey with 2 short flights, but a layover in between of a couple hours.

Two nights ago, while I was showering in the dorm room, I said out loud, “Oh, to take a bath!” And then, asked God, “But I only ask that there be a real shower in the hotel room.” The shower in the dorm was simply a head that sprayed over the entire bathroom, no rim, no curtain, just the drain on the floor. The sink was wet, the toilet, all the floor, every time.

As I arrived at the hotel for the conference, I was a little concerned that I am not sharing a room, as that could make the costs go up, if it’s not figured out how come that reservation got messed up, but once I saw the room, I was so grateful to God’s goodness to me. It was symbolic of my life with Him…he has taken me from the pit, and will bring me into His heavenly place one day!

Lo and behold, a bathtub!

A sparkling CLEAN one too! Hardwood floors (no cement!), A GIANT bed, with two sheets (a top and bottom one!), fluffy towels, and a TV channel with Kenny G music, to put on while I soaked in the suds (or scuz?). It is nice to be clean, to really feel clean for the first time in a month! This is my face after seeing the bathtub!

So, I’ve decided to enjoy it, come what may with the increased rate. If it’s just for these first three days (pre-conference), and then I move to another one, so be it. If it’s for the whole 13 days, I will say thanks to those of you who have made this possible. God has blessed me so abundantly.

There was a lot of introductory reading passed to me, and through it all, the detailed attention and purpose of each of the plans, the behind the scenes stuff taken care of and explained…I am so grateful for the organization of which I am a part. I hope these weeks will open my eyes and heart to many new things. I’m asking God to help me evaluate, see His vision, and move with Him ahead in this next year.

Day of Recognition

Today was the final day at the University. There were no classes, just an evaluation of the program, and a recognition ceremony at a hotel in downtown KL. It was a “dressed up” event, to the hilt in my baju kurong and tudong (dress and headscarf). You like it? It takes away the few curves I have unfortunately, but at least the color is ok.

Each student had to say a few words, and then the directors gave a short speech, and then the department head there at the U, who has an interesting sense of humor, gave an educational monologue for about 15 minutes.

I am grateful for the time at the University. It was a tremendous learning experience and the involvement with the students was perhaps the most beneficial of all. Life is meant to be shared and I’m grateful that people are designed to share it! It was hard being alone for the month, but at the same time, I received a welcome from the Malay people beyond my expectations. They are friendly people, who smile often, and although have their opinions, are ready to share life with you.

Exam Day

Our final exam in Bahasa Melayu (Malay language) was today. Well, we thought it was! We had regular class in the morning, during which we reviewed feverishly, then ate a quick lunch and got back for our exam (with a different professor, we’ve had 5 throughout the month!)

We were under the impression the exam would be listening for understanding, and not speaking, as the method we used did not include speaking (simply listening) for the first 3 weeks! Our professor made us speak almost the entire time! We were shocked, but I think we did pretty well under the circumstances.

At the end of the 2 hours, he said to us, “Ok, good luck on your exam tomorrow.” To which we simply rolled our eyes and remembered, “Oh yes, this has been the way of communication the entire time we’ve been here!” Our professor did not understand that he was supposed to give the exam today. It had not been clearly communicated to him. So, what will be will be? None of us were in it for the grades, and we had a great time learning.

This evening, I took some of the girls out for dinner. We ate off campus, and it was delicious! I had my second ride on the motorcycle, but this time off campus, and a little more scary…I did wear a helmet though, which is a reminder to me another reason the tudong comes in handy. You’ll never have helmet hair!

When I arrived back at the campus, the girl who had taken me on her bike gave me a small gift and shared a serious concern with me about her life. It was a touching moment and made me wish the time was not yet ending. I hope it will be possible to stay in touch with her.