Life is a Hamburger

St. Paul's Basilica, from one of the other towers

Hello dear ones. I'm sitting at my desk with my rain spattered window slightly ajar, the sound of chatter and accordion music wafting up from the street below. The Holzen handicrafts market is going on this weekend, literally in our yard! The whole dorm is surrounded by booths selling things from jewelry to candles to pottery and everything in between. Down the street a ways, over by the park, there is a big “tent” where we went as a dorm for lunch after church today. I had a delicious bowl of pumpkin soup and a cup of freshly made apple cider. Ahhh...I love Fall!! And it's awesome to experience it for the first time in Germany. The leaves are starting to turn, the temperatures are cool, and apples and pumpkins are plentiful.

Sardines in the phone booth! 12 girls inc. RA's!

Life has become a little more like real life here in the dorm. In other words, the “honeymoon period” is over. Classes and extracurricular activities are in full swing, the girls know what is expected of them and how things work around here (for the most part), and things get messy at times. Living with as many people as we do, coming from as many different backgrounds and cultures as we do, with all the different personalities and preferences...things are bound to get difficult once in a while. But that's what life is like, right? It's all the mess that makes life meaty, not just fluffy. Puts me in mind of a big juicy hamburger with all the fixins that ends up running down your hands and chin. Those are the best ones! Might take a little cleaning up, and you have to work to get it all where you want it, but boy does it taste good! That's kind of how things are here. Frustrations arise, tears flow, people don't do what they are supposed to all the time, the van breaks down, etc etc. But it's so sweet when we are able to work through these issues, to encourage one another, to pray together, to offer hugs, and share together in the juiciness of life. And there are some really great times of joy and fun, too! Last night we played a couple games of Sardines (this big old building is great for hiding places!) and then Telephone Pictionary. Lots of laughter to be had! Some of us also were able to go cheer on one of the Freshman girls in our dorm as she played at BFA's only home volleyball game. It was great to watch her play, and I love to see how the girls support one another.

Frank, Me, and Ethan at the soccer game!

The high schoolers here at BFA get some pretty great opportunities for field trips, living in Europe and all. Our seniors took a 10 day trip to Italy, visiting Rome, Florence, and Venice. What?! So awesome. The Juniors are currently on their 4 day trip to France, visiting Normandy and Paris. The Sophomores took a day trip to a concentration camp in Strasbourg, and the Freshman took a day trip to see the French trenches from the wars. They don't just read about these things in books, they get to actually go see where it all happened! I'll admit, I'm a mite jealous of these incredible excursions, but I actually got to take a little trip myself this past weekend. I had my weekend off, so I traveled to Munich with a couple other RA's via train. We stayed with a German couple in their 70s, which was great because I love to see what the culture is really like! They were very kind and showed us around Munich, took us out to eat traditional Bavarian foods, and taught us new German words and phrases. There were times when we Americans would just look at each other and shrug or grin at the awkwardness of the situation, or the miscommunication, or the many corrections that we were given on how to do things. It was great. :) We went to a soccer game and cheered on 1860 München, learning some of the chants as the game progressed. We climbed the tower in St. Paul's Basilica, we got lost on the U-Bahn (subway), and rode one of the theme park rides at Oktoberfest. I saw more lederhosen and dirndls (traditional German clothing) than I ever thought I would see in my life. All in all it was a lovely weekend adventure, and I'm so grateful for the opportunity to get out and see some of this great country that God has placed me in.

View from St. Paul's Basilica

I would like to ask for prayer for the girls in our dorm, that they would grow in love for God and their dorm family, that they would know a deep love themselves, and that they would allow the Lord to help guide them through all the ups and downs of life. I also ask for prayer for myself, as I have been dealing with a lot of fatigue, and this week I've been having cold symptoms. It's harder to be positive and gracious when you're tired and not feeling well, so I'd be grateful for your prayers! Thank you so much for your faithfulness in this. You are loved!!

The following verse is a favorite of one of the Sophomore girls here at Storch. She shared it with me during a precious conversation about how she turned her life over to Christ at a hard time in her life.

Isaiah 41:10

So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.