La Vida Loca

A simple yet full life here continues. We visited a beautiful town called Ronda week before last (and even saw the King of Spain up close!). We went to Cordoba last weekend and had a fantastic visit to the mosque. It is an unbelievable preservation of the Roman, Arab, and Christian beginnings of Spain. We still have difficulty absorbing the incredible antiquity of these structures that can date back as early as the first century.
We came back to a festive long weekend in Sevilla. All of the universities in Spain have traditional musical groups called La Tuna. They serenade senoritas and they stroll the streets singing about each region they represent. Once a year, many of the groups congregate in Sevilla for a long night of song and it all happens right around the corner from our apartment. Craziness in the streets until the early hours of the morning!

Also, Monday was a holiday celebrating the Immaculate Conception (our Mary asked how the birth happened only three weeks later . . . these are small details in the big scheme of things, huh?). There was a mass in the main Cathedral and a special dance performed by a group of boys called Los Seises. The fun never ends!!

One more serendipitous event was given to us . . . when returning to our flat yesterday I noticed a woman looking up at the balcony of another apartment where there was a “For Rent” sign. I passed her, but decided to turn around and ask if she was looking for a place to live. When our eyes met, she said “I know you!” And it turns out that we studied in Madrid at the same time during our junior year in college. She is here on a mission similar to mine a month & a half ago – looking for a place for her family to live when they come to Seville in January. I brought her back to our flat and we called the owner to see if they could rent it when we leave and she said ‘Si’! Carol spent the afternoon with our family and it was such a joy to hear our kids share their enthusiasm for the life that awaits her children. She told us that she was on the verge of losing all hope that things would work out when we bumped into each other. Isn’t God good? The difficult task I had He used for good! We don’t go through trials for nothing.

Serving breakfast in the elementary school has grown to be more rewarding than I’d thought possible, mainly due to the fact that, again, we have established relationships with the children. Charlie is quite the entertainer when he is refilling cups and mopping up spilled milk. (Have you noticed how long his hair is? Not one trim since July 28th!)

Jane’s friend, Avery, is coming to visit us for ten days and she arrives on Saturday. We can’t wait!