Je Parle Francais mais Je Suis American

CAUTION: YOU ARE ABOUT TO READ A VERY LONG WONDERFUL STORY, BUT BEFORE YOU DO I ASK THAT YOU PLEASE SILENCE YOUR CELLPHONES AND DO NOT DISTRACT YOURSELF FROM THIS AWESOME TALE OF MY LIFE....
THANK YOU AND ENJOY THE ...er.......NOVEL :)


Well, right now i'm writing to you on day 5 of my journey, the last three days i have been in France and the 2 days before that we've covered. ;) Anywho, let me finish up quickly my last sentence from the post before when i said i was then waiting for my "fateful" plane to arrive. Well, to sum up, God was amazing and put me on that flight from Minn. to CDG and i happened to be the last standby to take the last seat! Favorrrrrr! (can i get an "AMEN"?!) especially since i had 9 standbys ahead of me and only 12 seats. (Hallelujerrrr!) After my flight on the "767 AirFrance" airplane, and sitting nice to a promising retired couple (Pat and Warren, with 2 daughter and 1 son with 6 grandchildren) who were stopping in Paris to meet a few other couples and travel all over France staying in Villas. She also told me they were stopping in Normandy, it might be funny if we ran into each other then! Anyways, after that i came to CDG and waited for 15 minutes through customs...so here's the awesome thing (and almost scary thing if you really think about it): So i get to customs right? waiting for a booth to open and then two policemen open a booth specifically for US passports. 
(I'd just like to add that i now really do believe in American stereotypes now because i witnessed them first hand, for example the large couple in front of me with their "I <3 Texas" hats, their crocks on their feet and the most affirmative part... their American Flag T-shirts) 


So i walk up to the police man I said, "Bonjour", his glazed-over eyes fluttered up at me as he took my passport from my hand and said in a raspy, French-y voice "erm, Bonjour". Then (this is my favorite part) he looked down at my passport (didn't even look up to see if the picture matched cause you know how i change my hair a lot) flipped a page stamped it quickly handed it to me and his harsh face turned back up towards me, i smiled daintily trying to not seem suspicious or have any reason for him to question an innocent American teen. He handed me my passport slowly and i snatched it out of his hand, he said "au revoir", i said "au revoir" and bam i was done. Literally, going through customs to a different country took about 30 seconds (at most). Once i passed through, i immediately phoned my mum and said i got through customs (i was talking to her before, while i was in line waiting) she replied, "already?" It felt pretty awesome not gonna lie. 


But what didn't feel to awesome was after collecting my baggage (which was right there on the baggage claim conveyor belt as i came down the stairs) was waiting 5 hours to be picked up, by the sweetest French couple you will ever meet in your entire life! Lisa and Rene, bless their hearts were over at the baggage claim 40 and i was at 32...all of us disoriented it took a while for us to find each other but i was dead tired. 


After that Lisa, Rene, and I went for a little pit stop at a small cafe (thinking we're just getting a snack instead we got a full meal). So of course, everything on the menu is French and at this point i'm not in a mood to think French, so i sort of closed my eyes and chose. maybe i should have opened my eyes, cause a disaster of ordering came to my table. First on the table was what they call "the entree" which for you Americanos is "the appetizer" or the "food before food",  which for me was a "terrentine de campagne" ( i probably butchered that name cause i'm going off memory) but basically it's a mixed meat "pie" although it wasn't a pie at all... no it was a slice of meat with lost of herbs and mixes of meat inside it... interesting not too bad but nothing i eat at home.
Then, came my "plat principal" or in other words in America "the entree" or "the food after the food before that". And that was "Saumonette (salmon) en sauce a la creme avec brocoli", i know what you're thinking:"Salmon in cream sauce, right? What's wrong with that, that sounds kind of nice, a little heavy for fish but okay." Erm, yeah no it didn't really work that way, i know that's what i was thinking too. What i did end up getting though was a white-fleshed fish, cooked with its skin and bone still in tact, with brown mushy broccoli in at least a pound of assorted melted cheeses. It was a little heavy for just getting off a 8 hr flight and a long wait with only a few granola bars. But they were so wonderful to make conversations with (Lisa and Rene, not my food). They instantly took me under their care and i did the same. Sweet, marvelous on fire for God people. 


Later i got home to my little apartment where Diane and Francis greeted me for the first time  ! It was so exciting to finally see their faces (the one time we skyped their microphone worked but their camera did not). She had decorated my room with pink things from Ikea :) 
After that they sort of let me alone to settle down and sleep for a few hours before i go to the home of Tim and Fiona Fung and meet them (well not Tim he was out of town) and their 3 daughters; Danielle, Jasmine, and Caroni. So then i woke up and went to their house for supper, she served mashed potatoes, steamed-buttered cabbage, parsnips and pork loin. it was really good, nice homey meal. Meeting the girls was interesting, making small talk here and there but all the while the room was filled with awkward silence. Fiona and i hit it off really well as the girls left the room to watch TV. They were super sweet by all means, and i also understand what it would be like for them to have a stranger appear out of no where and eat their food. Totally understandable. Any who, that was might first night/day in France. Not too shabby but i was ready for bed. 
The first sleep in my apartment could have got on a lot better for sure...a stick on mirror placed on my wall crashed down onto the floor at exactly 3:00 am and woke me up, scared half to death i thought it came from the attic or something cause looking all over i had seen nothing changed (apparently it fell behind my clothes rack). Then at 4:00 am the mirror that was next to the first one on the wall fell off and woke me up again... this time i was REALLY scared. But i finally found that the mirrors were gone and i felt much better that it was a ghost. Unfortunately, after that i couldn't go back to bed so i stayed up grabbed a "how to speak and write French" book off the fridge and read till 7:30 am. From there i skyped my mom and my friend, Sam and i was good to go. 
To be honest i can't really remember what i did the two days after that ( Thursday and Friday, Sept. 15th & 16th) so...i'll skip that for now. 


OH! i remember now (can you tell by now i just continue to write whatever is going through my head, bear with me, you're doing just fine only a few paragraphs more i think), on Friday i wandered around the town taking pictures of all the old, rotting yet beautiful houses, the churches that surround Lisieux, and everything else architectural. I spent about an hour just circulating around the little back alleys and large streets and dodging in and out of crowds of smoking teenagers and outside diners. 


Saturday and today, Sunday the 18th i spent in the country side in the town of Bethanie, i was surrounded by green, lush fields, creamy white and brown spotted Normandy cows and old cottages that shone in the delicate sunlight in all their prideful and retired glory. I met the people of the organization L'Eglise works with, Bless. They are wonderful people indeed.
So on Saturday all the people from the church were gathered here to fellowship and worship all day long. I love how in France the church has a 30 minutes coffee break in between sermons. :) I have a new found love for Breakfast Tea with a dash of milk and 2 cubes of sugar. (Yes! The French use CUBES of SUGAR! brilliant! I love it!) 
During the main sermon i went in with outside with the youth group and played a game sort of like capture the flag with a mix of soccer and other things. I don't have the brain power to explain further on how the game operates. But anyways, after that we all came in for lunch and i had a sandwich with ham, salami, and a cute but sad little piece of lettuce (which they call "Salade") on this MASSIVE baguette.... FRENCH BREAD IS AMAZING! I mean people always said that France was known for their cheese, wine, and bread...and pastries. BUT MAN, are they really know for their bread!! Fresh crunchy outside and white fluffy yummy-ness on the inside. 


The whole day Saturday was wonderful by all means, everyone really took to me well and made my feel at home. The youth group boys are quite fun to be around and the girls are especially sweet. I still have to get used to the "faire de bise" the cheek kisses. (which FYI, don't actually kiss their cheek, just touch cheeks and kiss the air, you know what i mean jelly bean?) anyways, i usually just waited till they kissed me cause it's awkward you are trying to go one way and the other person is going the same way. 
I'm especially stoked to work with the youth and help bring some vivaciousness into the mix of learning about God and finding themselves in Him, cause honestly, i think right now a lot of teenagers don't really get into the deep levels of God because the church can sometimes bore them right out of it and/or scare them right out of getting to that place. So i've got some ideas floating around in my head just to get to know each of them and see where their hearts are at and understand a little bit more how things are for a French teenager (especially since our cultures are different). 


Anyways, now i have caught up with myself on updates, after pouring all that i have left in my brain out on this post about my 5 days in Lisieux (which is pronounced: Leez-you). Finally i will quickly tell you about my second and last day (today) at L'Eglise de la Source: it was FWEEZING! pouring down rain all day, it was a bit of a downer but we still celebrated and worshiped and fellowshiped and ate really amazing bread and pastries (oh the pastries!). I made a few new friends and got to know them a little better and today in youth group we began to watch a little bit of the movie "Fireproof" in English with French subtitles. The party or "fete" (pronounced: fet so say fetch without the -ch). 
Finally i came home and watched "Adjustment Bureau", ate a pizza, and recounted all about my week in France so far. 
I hope you all stayed awake and i didn't bore you too much with the information. I'm really glad i'm doing this though, cause if i told every single one of you all this individually i don't think i'd have a voice anymore! 
You're all so wonderful and i love being here and feel absolutely honored to be working with this amazing church. I miss my home though, i about cried for 2 hours straight just thinking about missing my mummy and daddy (i'm starting to pick up my pastor's wife's accent, who is like my host/adopted mother, because she's got a thick British accent). 




Mom or Dad if you're reading this...or if you made it this far reading, i just want you to know that i appreciate you so much for letting me do this and i thank you for trusting me in my place with God and soaring to greater heights across seas. Already by being here things are stirring and changing in everyone and i'm so stoked where the rest of this journey goes. I LOVE YOU SO!


and for the rest of you, thanks for keeping up with me and keeping me in your thoughts and prayers. you are definitely in my thoughts and i love you all! 


BON SOIR TOUT LE MONDE! 
(good evening everyone)