During the middle of the month, we were able to send the container with our household goods that was still being stored in the US. We had packed our container in several steps as we were moving and preparing to leave 18 months ago. As a result things were not optimally packed, and our space was limited. Bryce's dad and a church in southern Illinois, Nine Mile Baptist Church, took on the huge task of unpacking and repacking everything. There was even help from some football players from Bryce's home town. As a result, everything that we desired to have with us in Togo was strategically packed in the container. The container was picked up, and it is currently enroute to Togo. The last word we heard, it's waiting to set sail on the Atlantic to Togo.
The last two weeks of the month we had a break from school. The first week we spent just south of Barcelona, Spain. It wasn't as warm as we had hoped, but it was a good time of relaxation and rejuvenation. At the end of our time away, we all loaded into our van ready to head back home and found our van would not start. We had experienced problems with our battery before and knew we probably would need to replace it at some point. However, we were hopeful a jump would work once again as we were far from the mechanic we have grown to trust here in France, and we have both forgotten all our high school/college Spanish. We were able to play charades with our Airbnb hosts enough to indicate that we were in need of a jump. As the men were connecting the vehicles, a women came out from the apartment building across the street, and very animatedly delivered a message to our host. I didn't understand a word she was saying, that is, until I did. Suddenly, the foreign words she was speaking made sense to me and I clearly understood her message but my brain had not yet processed that she was now speaking French. I (Natasha) must have looked at her with confusion on my face because she then pointed to our license plate from France, and said she assumed we spoke French. She was right, and it changed everything to be able to communicate. She conveyed that she knew a reliable mechanic just down the road, who was open on Saturdays and also spoke French. After 20 mins of trying, our car still would not start, so our friendly bystander volunteered to take us to her mechanic. He was able to come back to the car with us and quickly put in a temporary battery. The car started, confirming this was the problem. We were able to drive to his shop where he ordered the right sized battery and replaced it, all for a very reasonable price. We had several chances to talk with him in French. He was originally from Morocco, and had worked in Marseille, France for 4 years. He was now in Spain but hoping to return to France. It made the 4 hour delay to our trip home much less stressful and a pleasant memory. It was one of those things that some might chalk up to coincidence, but we know that God displays His faithfulness in many different ways. We may never know what He was doing in this man's life and ours, but we know He weaves our lives in such a way as to work in and through us to show His love to us all. It is in this same way that we have come to know many of you who read this blog and support us in this journey. We thank Him for this, and we are thankful for all of you as well.
In other news, we have also had several occasions to experience the French medical system these past few months. From accidents like sprained ankles, to persistent abdominal pain, and even wellness visits and vaccines in preparation for our departure to Togo, we have been very pleased with the care we have received here in France. This has given us some opportunities to learn and practice our french medical vocabulary, and we have been amazed by the low price of only 23 euros for doctors office or even ER visits! Thankfully, we are all healthy now.
These past few weeks have been full of preparation for the celebration of the 50th Anniversary of our language school, and this past weekend was the culmination of this preparation in several events. Saturday and Sunday included events open to the public. On Saturday, Bryce served as a tour guide during the open house, and our chorale performed a song we had been preparing. For the celebration with our student body each class prepared something to share, a song, a skit, an elaborate poster, to celebrate this incredible event. We enjoyed much laughter and encouragement as we reflect on God's faithfulness in the life of our school. We are so thankful this school exists and for all the faculty and staff who have invested in the lives of 2, 603 students coming from 31 countries, going to 36 francophone countries to date. The impact this school has had in the french speaking world is far reaching- Only God knows how many lives have been changed.
Here are a few pictures from the festivities, including our classes skit.
Praise/Prayer
Family
Natasha will soon be done with formal coursework. Please pray for her to find some good speaking opportunities to continue practicing French. The rest of the family has just under 2 months of school work left here in France. Please pray for us all to finish well. We have begun the packing process once again. This might be one of our least favorite things about all of our moving and transitions. Please pray for wisdom and unity in our decision making.
Team
Our team is very short on medical providers. Please pray for those who are currently serving and that God would provide more workers to meet the great needs that exist in this part of West Africa.
We are also looking for teachers for the upcoming school year. Right now there is only 1 for over 20 students.
They continue to make good progress building our home. We are so thankful for those working hard to finish so it will be ready when we arrive. Here are the latest pictures showing the inside is being finished and paint is starting to go up on some of the walls!
