Back to school!

The first week of our language classes is officially in the books. The classes are going really good and we both feel we are gaining a lot from them. Our classes start at 8:30 A.M. and finish at 12:00. Typically we have about an hour of homework. I must say it feels a little odd to be sitting in a class setting again at 42. I have to admit that the thought of, God, if you have me back in school learning a new language at 42 what else do you have in store for me? I try not to let my mind wonder down this path to far and just take things one moment at a time.

Carmen has started going to a school in Arequipa for the month that we are here. She was real nervous to start this school. Not only did she not know any one; this also was her first experience going to an all-Spanish speaking school. On the first day we stopped by at lunchtime to see how she was doing. Well in true Carmen spirit, she was all smiles, had a circle of kids gathered around her desk, and she was playing a card game with them. She saw us, came out real quick to tell us she was fine, and told us to go on. Her school starts at 7:50 and gets out at 2:30. We are able to walk her to school on our way to school then Amy and I have a couple hours to spend by ourselves before picking her up.

The cooler temperatures of Arequipa have been a nice change from the hot, humid jungle. It is nice to wake up in the morning, spend some time with God, and watch the sunrise over some snow capped mountains! The city is also a much more modern city than what we have in the jungle. It has been real nice to be able to get to go to school but also it is nice to get a little break from the rigors of life in the jungle. It is nice the way the schedules are set up. Amy and I feel like we have gotten some much needed time to focus on our relationship, which has been hard to do while living in the jungle. The family we are renting the apartment from took Carmen to a kids club so Amy and I took advantage of this and spent some time exploring the city. We all feel extremely blessed to have this opportunity to focus on learning more of the language. Thanks for all the prayers and support.