Salut!

So I’m back from a mamoth trip round the South of England and Wales.  If you’re sitting comfortably, I’ll begin…

Tuesday morning I arrived into Luton and Graham met me and took be over to the ECM offices in Northampton.  Had a good chat with Richard, the British Director and lots of things were decided on about my future and the next few months.  Some things are not 100% certain yet - but watch this space!  In the afternoon I managed to get over to Clarkes and Next  - the essential British shops!!

Wednesday - Friday I was at the HIgh Leigh conference centre for the ECM british workers retreat.  It was great to meet up again with my friends and collegues.  We had a good laugh and learnt lots too.  It felt like a watershed to me; the start of the new path I’m heading off on.

Friday afternoon I headed over to Reading to meet my one of my best friends, Cath.  We did lots of wedding talking - for her, not me! -shopping and ate pizza.  A good weekend on all fronts!

Sunday I was with Laura and Tom and the church in Porthcawl.  This community started supporting me about a year ago and I have never had chance to meet them in person.  It was lovely to put faces to names and I swear I have never laughed so much in a youth group!  What great kids!!

Monday I headed over to Cardiff.  Back in the day when I was at uni in Aber, I lived with Peck, Bec and Hanna.  Only now they have multipilied and 2 husbands, 1 fiance, 4 kids and one bump have been added to the equation!  We had a great day just catching up and walking round cardiff bay.

Tuesday I flew back to Paris and arrived around 7pm.  Phew.  What a very full but very fun week!  

in the past 8 days I have spent 12hrs on French trains, not counting all the time I’ve spent on the metro!  And with all this time spent sitting next to people it was almost inevitable that I catch a rotten cold - which is what I did!  (Although french trains are SOOOOO much better than the ones in the UK!)

So I spent wednesday and much of Thursday in bed.    Feeling a bit better now - you know when I’m ill, when I can’t drink tea!  I’ve had my first cup this morning, things are on the up!

I’m off to the UK on Tuesday morning for meetings with ECM, supporters and churches.  So don’t expect anything on here for a while…

A bientot!

I went to visit a church where I may be working next year.  I was very surprized and encouraged by it.  It has been a long time since I have been moved emotionally in a church service, but today, the celebration of the ressurection touched me anew  - Something I really needed!

But it was surprizing as well becuase I saw people I know but they were completly out of context!  Micheal and Margret, supporters from the UK, were there!  I was totally flumoxed at first!  It’s funny when you see people who are in one ‘box’ in your mind, suddenly appear in another ‘box’!  So after the happy surprize of seeing friends from the UK, I sat down and suddenly I saw a couple who are good friends of mine in Paris and go to the church in Arcueil!!!  Is it them?  No, it can’t be…??  But it looks a lot like them…  You know how it goes!  But it was them!!  Isn’t the world a very small place?!

I’m teaching literacy and French in a centre run by voluteers in a church in Paris.  The kids are sent by social services.  They’re usually between 18-30, and their stories break your heart. 

One guy was 2 hours late today and it was only his second lesson.  The teacher got very mad at him and he couldn’t explain why he was late.  (He is from Bangladesh and he speaks a very small amount of English.)  It was clear that he had got lost because the nearest metro station had been closed.  I invited him to walk back with me to the next station and I made sure he got on the right train.  He is about 18 years old, his dad is dead and he has left his sister and mum in Bangladesh.  I asked him about his life.  He said he is very cold here in France.  That he hasn’t really spoken to anyone for 3 months, the time he’s been in France.  He has been given a TV by the social worker but he doesn’t understand.  He said, ‘I am lonely all the time.’  I nearly cried there on the spot!

Anyway, at the metro station it became obvious that he couldn’t read our alphabet - which means he had been going round in circles on the metro this morning and explains why he was so late.  The poor kid.

I wondering about doing something one evening a week for these kids.  Like a meal and games evening.  I think they are all so lonely and they just need to be ‘normal’ for a few hours.  Of course I need to talk to the pastor about this, but if you’re the praying sort, you can already start praying into this situation for wisdom and open doors.  Thanks!

I’ve done it!!  My 1st scarf is finished! 

I must admit to being very proud of myself.  And I enjoyed making it!  I’m converted to knitting! 

On Sunday afternoon, all the girls from our dance class get together to make our costumes for the show in June.  It was a fun afternoon of cutting out, pinning, sewing, and tea drinking!  It was the first real oppertunity I had to speak with them on a more personal basis.  Of course, people ask what I do and then react.  It was a great time to be able to say what I believed and have a little ‘debate’ about the Bible.  One girl started going off about how the Bible was rubbish and not true etc.  I asked if she had ever read it, and she said no!  That became the running joke of the afternoon!

  This is us during our ‘tea time’. 

  This is the finished product, minus the celtic decoration which I need to stick on.  (Sorry - over the top of black trousers it’s not that clear!)  Hmmm, lovely.  A nice short, shiny skirt.  I’ve always wanted one…

P.S.  After all the cutting out for 2hrs the tip of my finger has gone numb.  It’s been 48hrs now and I can’t feel a thing.  Is anyone medically minded?  Will it go back to normal?  Will my hand drop off?

Dear me!  it was all go in the French lessons today.  A Tibetan and an Afgan got into a fight in the kitchen over a scarf.  It’s a little room with a big square table so it caused quite a to-do.  The other boys ran to separate them and it was all quite scary.  Then the Afgan ran to the kitchen drawer and got a big knife!  Arghh!  My first instinct was to call the police but the teacher didn’t seem to think so.  Anyway, the Afgan was surrounded by about 4 boys who were struggling with him to get him to put the knife down, while the teacher went out to the Tibetan to tell him to leave or he would get stabbed!

Crazy!

All this while lots of the kids who had fled terrible situations were getting quite agitated…  It wasn’t very nice.

Anyway, the Tibetan left and the Afgan mooched around outside waiting for his friends.  I still don’t know why the teacher didn’t call the police…

On the way home I was speaking to one of my students who is 20.  He told me he had been in the Afgan army for the past 4 years becuase he was forced to.  His dad managed to get him out of his country.  A girl in the class fled Ethiopia becuase of a conflict and ended up in an Arab county, which she also had to flee for some reason.  There is a Ukranian who’s father is in governement and recieved death threats.  It’s all quite heart wrenching.  Pray with me for these kids.