La vida es...: ...Generosa.

What a wonderful past few days it's been! Apart from the barbacoa with the youth group, we made our first successful tortilla española! And we got a coconut. And yesterday we was delightful. We went to the Spanish church in the morning, and then Rafael agreed to take us to the new church in Torrevieja! (Not before the Spaniards could make sure we got our fill of food from the Mother's Day lunch.) It was such a blessing to be able to go to Torrevieja with Rafael. The Restrepo family by far has been one of the greatest influences on my life this semester. Their faith and hospitality never cease to blow me away. They have captured my heart. And I can't imagine what this semester would have been like without the church and the friends we've made there. God has provided for us in so many ways. We went with Rafa to an adorable British church. We couldn't stay for the service but we got to enjoy a “Faith Tea” to celebrate Mother's Day (yes, yesterday was Mother's Day here) and to welcome Mike and Alice from South Carolina, an awesome couple who will be here for the summer. I loved that church from the moment we walked in the door and a sweet old British man in a purple bow tie asked us if we would care for some tea. How could we refuse?? We still stuck out at that church even though they spoke English because we were a lot younger than the rest of them. We met Paula from Finland who speaks many languages and spent 10 years as a missionary in Uganda. She's a remarkable woman. It was a good time all around. The ride was fun too - I like the Spanish countryside, driving through the lemon orchards and seeing the mountains...it's all very beautiful. And it was good to be with Rafael for what may have been the last time.

I will briefly comment on our classes as well. Our history presentation today went really well. And yes, Jose is awesome. Just one more presentation to go! That will be for politics and society. My professor is Juanjo (Juan José). We like him a lot. And what a wealth of knowledge he has! It certainly has come down to crunch time. I've got three papers to write (music, politics, art), and exams to study for. I really enjoy my grammar class as well. I've been getting to know the guys from China, and I get to walk most of the way home with Edda from Germany. Our class is small and very chill.