Back to school...

In Hungary, Christmas break ended on January 2. We were all back in school on Thursday January 3. It was a nice way to ease back into school for me, having only two days before the weekend. I ended up staying home from work for almost two weeks before the break. So it has been about four weeks since I've seen many of my students.

Yesterday, the graduating or leaving students had their Szalagavato. I enjoy going because it gives me a chance to see the students in a different setting as well as learn more about the culture. The students receive a pin from their form teacher as a symbol that they are becoming adults. There are a couple of fun dances; one group of students danced to Grease, another did the Charleston. Then there is the big waltz. They are all choreographed and the students look beautiful.

Joey was able to go with me. It gave him the opportunity to see a little bit of my work life. He was able to meet some of my colleagues as well as see some students. I really enjoyed having him there.

Semi Housebound

I have had an infection for about six weeks now. I have gone to the doctor a bunch of times. They aren't sure what's wrong with me.

I ended up staying home from work most of last week. I need to stay close to home with this bug.

Being home has given me a chance to catch up on some things that I haven't had the time to do. But still I would like to be better. I have a small Christmas gathering planned for some of my students. I don't want to cancel it... may have to change the location to my home.

Please pray for me.

Oh my... I can't believe it's been over a month since I've posted anything on here. You may be wondering what has been going on in this part of the world...

Well I went to Bratislava, Slovakia twice in October, once for a meeting, the other time for fun, to visit friends. I was also able to hop on a train and be in Vienna in an hour while I was saying in Bratislava.

I also had to work two Saturdays in October. They were both to make up for a Monday before or a Friday after a holiday so that we would have a few days off in a row.

We had our Fall Break during the week of October 29. I pretended like I was a tourist and visited some cities around the country that week. It was really nice. Everything was so beautiful with the leaves changing colors with the season.

This past weekend, Teach Overseas Central Europe had our annual Thanksgiving get together. We met in the Czech Republic. I had a good time there. It even snowed on Saturday before we left.

Please remember to keep me in your prayers as living and working in a different culture can be quite a challenge.

A Pleasant Shopping Experience...

Today on my way home from school I decided to stop at a Vegetable/Fruit Store. I pass this store everyday that I go to school, but this was the first time for me to stop. As I walked in, the man working there said, "Tessek" (How can I help you?). I responded, "Beszelsz angolul?" (Do you speak English?). And to my surprise, he spoke English fluently!! Then he asked me where I'm from, what I'm doing here and told me that his neighbor lives half the year here in Hungary and half in Los Angeles. I could have communicated what I needed to him without English. But it is nice to be able to speak English sometimes outside of the home and classroom.

Psalm 84

How lovely is your dwelling place, O LORD Almighty!
My soul yearns, even faints, for the courts of the LORD; my heart and my flesh cry out for the living God.
Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young—a place near your altar, O LORD Almighty, my King and my God.
Blessed are those who dwell in your house; they are ever praising you.
Blessed are those whose strength is in you, who have set their hearts on pilgrimage.
As they pass through the Valley of Baca, they make it a place of springs; the autumn rains also cover it with pools.
They go from strength to strength, till each appears before God in Zion.
Hear my prayer, O LORD God Almighty; listen to me, O God of Jacob.
Look upon our shield, O God; look with favor on your anointed one.
Better is one day in your courts than a thousand elsewhere; I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my God than dwell in the tents of the wicked.
For the LORD God is a sun and shield; the LORD bestows favor and honor; no good thing does he withhold from those whose walk is blameless.
O LORD Almighty, blessed is the man who trusts in you.

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. . . :-)