Little updates...

I am currently (well I was) eating Chicken Paprika. It is a typical Hungarian dish composed of chicken, paprika, and pasta. It's very good!

Yesterday we had our central administration retreat. We (8 field area leaders) met most of the day at my flat, then we went to the baths to relax a little, then we went to dinner at a nice little restaurant/pub called For Sale Pub. Today I'm having my leftovers for dinner, trying to do some Hungarian homework and watching a movie. It's a good day to be in Hungary.

I've been back in Hungary for less than two weeks. In some ways it feels like it's been over a month. It was so easy for me to jump back into things. . . and then start running. Things have been very busy here. I have gone to the immigration office twice only to find out that I still have a temporary visa. The last I heard, it should be ready in about 30 days.

School started this past Monday. It has been so nice to see my students again. When I see their faces and talk with them in class, I remember why I am here. In spite of the difficulties of culture shock and language barriers, I know that God has a plan for my life in Hungary.

I'm home!!! . . . in Hungary again!!

It is so nice to be back! I had a wonderful summer, visiting with friends and family and attending Teach Overseas training. But I must say, I'm glad to be home. I'm excited to see what the Lord has in store for this new year.

But the plans of the LORD stand firm forever, the purposes of his heart through all generations. Blessed is the nation whose God is the LORD, the people he chose for his inheritance. (Psalm 33:11-12)

May Hungary's God be the LORD! I pray that this nation would be grafted into the the vine that the Lord speaks of in John 15.

Home again. . .

I've been back in California for about two weeks. And though it is my home state it feels much more temporary than it used to.

Right now I'm staying with my mom and step-dad. My mom has the summer off because she is an elementary school teacher. It has been really nice to be able to visit with her and do mother/daughter things. I have also been spending a lot of time with friends and other family members. I love being home! I value the relationships that I have here; I treasure every minute I have with everyone in CA. I know that this is not permanent, the Lord is calling me forward to another place. I will be in Hungary for another school year, and then we will see after that.

Needed: Small tub full of cold water . . .

It is so hot today! (Over 90 plus humidity!!) And unfortunately we have no air conditioning in our flat. I had my window open for a little bit, but since it is so windy, my curtains end up flying out the window. And since my window is west facing, I would be sitting in the sun. I could always work on my tan. . . :-)

Receiving Teachings...

The Lord is constantly teaching me things... if I am willing to stop and listen, then hopefully I learn. But when I am too busy, I sometimes miss the JOY that he has in me. God is so good!

This morning I was watering some plants we have in pots outside our front door. Two of the plants are herbs, rosemary and mint. I'm not sure how long we have had them, but long enough for them to really grow and produce fruit so to speak. As I have had plants over the past couple of years, I have learned to really enjoy them. I love it that I can see how my care for them allows them to grow and to be healthy. I love running my hand over the mint and the rosemary and then smelling my hand, the scent transfers onto my hands and it smells so good, so fresh.

What came to mind in that this morning is that as the Lord pours himself into me... as I am open to being in his word and in prayer and growing in him that I am a pleasing aroma to him.

God is so good... and I know that as I find joy in my herbs and seeing them growing and thriving I know that God finds joy in seeing me growing and thriving.

I'm done! No more teaching until September 3.

I had my last classes on Thursday. Then on Friday we had a staff lunch. It was very nice. They gave us little espresso cups and coffee as gifts.

It is so hard for me to believe that the year is over. I did spend some time with my students last night. One of my friends let me host a small handful of students at his house. We had snacks and pizza and watched a movie and talked a little. It really still hasn't hit me that I won't see them again until September. I feel like I should be seeing them again on Monday or Tuesday.

As things come to a close... I know that some are wondering how the school year went for me. It was good. I am so glad that I took this opportunity to move to Hungary to teach English. There are (of course) things that could have been better, things I could have done better. But I'm looking forward to next year. I will be going into the next school year with more understanding and being better prepared.

I am very much looking forward to seeing people back home this summer! I'll be home in less than a week!! I love you all!!

I am loving where I'm at right now! Things are going so well. I met with my students at the YWAM coffee house again yesterday. It is so much fun! They are so sweet, and they are really opening up to me. Some of them have been bringing their boyfriends and one girl has been bringing her sister. I realized last night that I'm going to miss them while I'm back in the states. I thank the Lord for allowing me to be a part of their lives and for allowing me to have relationship with them for at least another year. I miss everyone at home, but I'm so glad that I'll be back next year!

This week I had the opportunity to go with some visiting French students and a couple of my students on two day trips.

On Monday, we went to Statue Park http://www.szoborpark.hu/index.php?Lang=en. It is a park full of statues from the communism era. Looking at all the statues really made me wonder about the lives of some older Hungarians. I wish I could sit down with some of them and listen to their stories. Maybe in the future, once I understand the culture a little more, I could have my students interview their grandparents. (Just a thought.)

After visiting Statue Park, we went to a Classic American Car Show. It was fun, reminded me of home. I took some pictures feel free to look at http://www.flickr.com/photos/hungaryteacher/tags/carshow/.

On Wednesday we went to Visegrad. It is a small town north of Budapest. It was so beautiful. It is right next to the river. There is a castle up on a hill overlooking the river. I took some pictures there as well, but haven't added them to flickr.com yet. Here's a couple for you to see. I'll add more to flikr soon.

Easter in Italia!!

Erin and I, along with two other friends went to Italy for Easter. We spent five beautiful days there. The weather was wonderful, the food was wonderful and the men were FLIRTATIOUS!! All those rumors you hear about Italian men are true!!

We stayed in a cute little bungalow. It was fun...we did feel the other tenants move around when they were in their room, but it was fun, quite an adventure!! Here's a picture of where we stayed:

I actually had a little bit of culture shock coming back to Hungary. It's funny that two cultures can be so close to each other and yet so different. From what I saw of Italy, they still have a strong influence by the church. I didn't see any advertisements for dirty magazines, which are all over the streets in Hungary. I didn't see young couples making out on public transportation, another common sight in Hungary. I guess it is kind of like the difference between Nevada and Colorado.

We had such a good time!! Here are some more pictures for your viewing pleasure:

Let me start by being completely honest . . . I am tired. But, I've been meaning to get an update out for a week. So here it goes . . .

I had a wonderful birthday! A friend, Doini decided to have a small dinner party for me at her flat. It was very nice of her. Here's a link to some photos http://www.flickr.com/photos/hungaryteacher/tags/birthday/.

March 15 is a national holiday in Hungary, so many of my friends went away for the 4 day weekend. I decided that I wanted to stay for my birthday, but the next day I took a train to Bratislava, Slovakia. I went to visit some other American teachers. We had a nice time together. Then I came back home on Saturday night. Then on Sunday I went to church and spent the afternoon with some friends.

I'll just say the weekend was too much for me . . . because I ended up getting sick. The following week, I stayed home from work three days. I either had a bad cold or the flu. I am feeling better now, but trying to make sure I have enough rest and vitamins!!

I'm going to start language school this week. It is two nights a week for ten weeks. I'm pretty excited about it. Hopefully it won't be too much for me on top of teaching. I think it will be good for me to be back in the students role again . . . so I can improve my own teaching skills! ;-)

Time for a hair cut.....
So, I've been in Hungary now for four and a half months. The last time my hair was cut was in October. So I finally decided that I better go get it cut. I have been procrastinating... It's difficult when you speak the same language to communicate to the hairdresser what you want...oh my gosh, it is so much more difficult when you speak a different language. I bought a magazine so I could at least point to a picture, but even with that there were questions. I'm happy with my hair cut...but I'll be happy to go back to Sherlyn in June!! Here's a before and after picture for you...

Erin and I had people over for lunch after church again today. We made chicken soup. I think it turned out pretty good. It was the first time for me to work with a whole chicken. I guess you can say I over estimated how much we would need. I think Erin and I will be eating soup for lunch and dinner all week.

Since the snow was so pretty at home today. . . I decided to take my camera to school. I hope you enjoy the pictures!!

http://www.flickr.com/slideShow/index.gne?nsid=70257130@N00&set_id=&text=&tags=school&tag_mode=&user_id=70257130@N00&favorites=&group_id=&contacts=&frifam=&single=&firstIndex=&firstId=&sort=&v=1.6&code

SNOW . . .

I never know what to expect being that in California we don't get "real" winters. Today it snowed a good part of the day, pretty nice considering it's almost March. And of course I took some pictures so you all could see. . . :-)

For all of those Americans who miss me. . . I'll be back in California on June 22, 2007!! I changed my flight this weekend. I was originally supposed to be flying back on July 5. But since I will be doing some schooling and training this summer, I thought it would be better to get home earlier. It will be so good to see all my family and friends again! I love you all!!

Numbers 21:4-9:
4 They traveled from Mount Hor along the route to the Red Sea, to go around Edom. But the people grew impatient on the way; 5 they spoke against God and against Moses, and said, "Why have you brought us up out of Egypt to die in the desert? There is no bread! There is no water! And we detest this miserable food!"
6 Then the LORD sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. 7 The people came to Moses and said, "We sinned when we spoke against the LORD and against you. Pray that the LORD will take the snakes away from us." So Moses prayed for the people.
8 The LORD said to Moses, "Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live." 9 So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, he lived.

How many times do I grow impatient with God's timing. . . Reading this passage made me think about the things I'm missing out on because I'm not looking at the greater picture of what God is doing. We all know that the Israelites wandered in the desert for 40 years because they kept complaining about what they didn't have. They didn't receive his promise because they were looking at their difficult circumstances. We all have difficult circumstances, but do we see what God is trying to teach us in them? Do we see the light at the end of the tunnel, do we see the promises that God has ahead for us? Today I'm making a choice to not look at the difficult circumstances, but to trust in God and remember the promises that he has for me. Have a blessed day!!

Decision time. . .

TeachOverseas needs to know by March 15 if the current teachers would like to come back next year.

I have made my decision. . . I let them know on February 9 that I will be back next year. I hope to have the same school, flat, and flatmate. Right now it's looking like that will happen, but things can change.

It's the little things that do my heart good. . .

Erin and I had 11 people over for brunch after church today. She made her famous waffles. It was so nice, we just hung out and talked and ate lunch. I just love having people over...oh, and I finally bought a coffee maker with some gift certificates the school gave me for Christmas. So I was able to brew coffee for those who wanted some.

. . .what can I say. . . I'm easy to please.

It's a beautiful day to live in Budapest!!! I thought you would enjoy some pictures of a warm winter day in Hungary... :-)