There are many different facets to my daily life here, and each one sparkles in its own way and together they make most of my days interesting.
I love the outdoor food markets - the colours and textures and variety appeal to my artistic side. Produce is so fresh and lots of people buy here daily. And I can hardly pass in front of a bakery without going in! The windows are filled with so many different shapes and kinds of breads, croissants, brioches, fruit tarts, little cakes and sandwiches, and the aroma of fresh baking fills my nostrils every time the door opens.
To walk along the streets of Brussels is an adventure in itself. Be careful where you walk or you'll knock over the little paper cup of the beggar who is kneeling in the middle of the sidewalk, holding a sign that says: "S'il vous plaît, aidez-moi, j'ai faim". Coming towards you is a group of school girls, one black, one Asian, one white and one North African and they're laughing and talking French together. An older lady is walking along with her dog; the latter stops and poops right in front of you and the lady just waits and then walks on. The store windows take your breath away: the window-dressing is artsy and the clothes are so fashionable. Even in cold weather, there are people having coffee or a glass of wine on the outdoor restaurant terraces - people from many countries speaking many languages.
Get into a tram or a bus and in a few minutes, you'll hear an accordion or a guitar playing and a voice singing a well-known song. It's a Rom (gypsy) who earns his living this way. When he's finished, he'll come around to you (or send his child) with his little cup, then get off at the next stop. The driver starts and brakes jerkily (haven't found one yet that doesn't!) so you have to hang on to something or you'll fall over or into the person beside you! Happens all the time ... And you discover, if you look closely at the outside of the tram, that it is made by Bombardier, a Quebec firm!
I love my friends. Each one is special. Some are Belgian, a lot are Scottish, two are American, one is Japanese, two are Canadian, three are French, two are Spanish, several are African .... most are my age, some are beautifully young and full of life, some are men, most are women ... and we speak either English or French or Dutch together. Do you get the picture? I move around in a multi-cultural world and revel in it.
Look in my apartment window during my "kick back and relax" times and you'll see me emailing home, skyping with family or friends, reading, making albums of my photos on my computer or watching TV. Or I might be planning my next day out in Brussels or a trip somewhere I haven't been. I try to go out one day a week to discover something new in Brussels. As for a trip, I have just come home from Armenia - which will be the subject of my next post. I am singing in the Brussels Christmas Choir and am the only female tenor! And I am so grateful for friends who call up and say: Want to go to a show? Want to go for a walk? Want to take in a concert? Want to eat out or have coffee?
And my workplace. Do you love your workplace as much as I love mine? It is always a joy (but hard, regular work too) to gather the children around my knees on Sunday morning and give the children's talk, or lead the congregation in prayer for others, or open the service in prayer. It's a privilege to sit over coffee and listen to someone tell me their needs, their joys or their pain. It's heartbreaking to hear two friends tell you they have cancer but I can encourage them with prayer and my presence. It's a challenge but exciting to prepare a Bible study for 12 eager women. To encourage my 94-year friend Alf to enjoy life, and to take my 91-year-old friend Edith out to tea in a pretty place are monthly goals of mine. And to see a new group come to life called Caring For One Another is one of my biggest thrills this year.
Andrew and the elders asked me if I would stay .... a third year. After considerable reflexion and prayer, I said I would compromise and stay until the end of June 2014. It will be hard to leave but the time has come for me to return to Canada.
But lots can happen in 6 months and I'm looking forward to the challenge and the fun!
I think this post will serve as my Christmas letter to you all this year. I will be here in St. Andrew's for Christmas, and will spend the day itself at the family service in the morning (what Brits do) and the rest of the day with the Gardner family at the manse, with other "waifs" they will have gathered in, who will be alone that day. Always fun and great food and wine.
