Clemson People Are AWESOME!! / Clemson Leute sind ausgeziechnet!!

Ok, so we've been here now for 3 months, and we've met some really great people. Well, we'd been here only for about 2 weeks when we decided to go hiking on a mountain here in Reutlingen. Danny and I both wore Clemson hats, and I think Danny was also wearing a Clemson t-shirt. When we finally hiked to the top, we were looking out on the beautiful landscape when someone shouted, "Go Tigers!!" Of course, we were like "no way," but sure enough, someone in Germany recognized the Clemson logo. We started talking, and we've become pretty good friends over the last few months.

Then, last week, we were at the Weihnactsmarkt in Esslingen. Of course, Danny wore his brightly colored orange Clemson hat. Again, someone shouted, "GO TIGERS!!" This time we were really taken aback. Ok, so it's a fluke when you meet one person who has heard of Clemson, but now we've met two families!!! Crazy!! The second group of people that we met actually live in Anderson. One is a professor at AU, and had graduated from Clemson in 1968. It really is a small world.

German:

Ok, wir sind heir jetzt seit 3 Monate, und wir haben wirklich nette leute kennen gelernt. Als wir 2 Wochen hier waren, sind wir auf der Achalm gewandert. Danny und ich haben Clemson Hüte getragen, und Danny hat auch ein Clemson T-shirt getragen. Als wir auf der Spitze waren, und uns die schöne Landschaft angeschaut haben, hat jemand "Go Tigers!!" geruft. Natürlich haben wir uns gedacht, dass darf doch nicht war sein. Wir haben uns unterhaltet, und seit dem haben wir uns öfters mal wieder gesehen.

Letzte Woche haben wir den Weihnachtsmarkt in Esslingling besucht. Danny hat seine helle orange Clemson Mütze getragen. Noch mal ruft jemand, "Go Tigers!!" Dieses mal waren wir wirklich erstaunt. Diese Leute wohne in Anderson, und ein Mann arbeitet bei Anderson Universität als Professor. Er hat von Clemson in 1968 graduiert. Es ist eine kleine Welt!!

My Dad

The other day, I was in a really dark place. I turned on my I tunes and just started singing, praying, and listening. I heard nothing; no words of encouragement; no peace. My husband arrived home a few minutes later, and I vented my frustration to him, but still no peace. Later that night, after we'd gone to bed, this song just filled my heart, suddenly, yet quietly.

Your laughter it echoes like a joyous thunder
Your whisper it warms me like a summer breeze
Your anger is fiercer than the sun in its splendour
You’re close and yet full of mystery
Ever since the day that I saw Your face
Try as I may, I cannot look away, I cannot look away…

Captivated by You
I am captivated by You
May my life be one unbroken gaze
Fixed upon the beauty of Your face

Beholding is becoming, so as You fill my gaze
I become more like You and my heart is changed
Beholding is becoming, so as You fill my view
Transform me into the likeness of You

This is what I ask, for all my days
That I may, never look away, never look away…
No other could ever be as beautiful
No other could ever steal my heart away
I just can’t look away…

Lyrics by Vicky Beeching

The crazy thing is that it wasn't me singing this to the Father. It was the Father singing this to me!! It was the thing I didn't know I needed; to hear from my one and only Father how He feels about me. I felt so happy, yet so unworthy at the same time. Now when I am here in the apartment alone, I can sing this song, and just feel my Dad's warm arms around me. I can sing it knowing that I feel the same exact way about Him.

Jesus, let every aspect of my life worship you; to be worthy of being called Your daughter; to make you, and only you, proud of me.

This verse has really been on my mind, and I also want to share it with you:

Jesus declared, "Believe me, woman, a time is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem. You Samaritans worship what you do not know; we worship what we do know, for salvation is from the Jews. Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." John 4:21-24

It's a reminder that no matter where we are, we must worship Him in spirit and in truth; with our entire lives; all that we have. I want to be the type of worshiper my Dad seeks; proclaiming Him in every aspect of my life. I want to be someone who makes Him smile and laugh.

*German translation to follow. Ich bin in eile jetzt. Ich müss eine Deutsche Bibel kaufen, so ich kann genau übersetzen. Tschüß.

My Goal

My goal for all upcoming posts is to write them in German and English, so everyone can easily understand them. We'll see how that goes. lol!!

Ich habe ein Ziel für die Zukunft. Ich möchte gern alle "Blogs" auf Englisch und Deutsch schreiben. Wenn jemand einen Fehler findet, bitte sagen Sie. Ich muss mehr Deutsch lernen, und ich denke das ist eine gute Übung. Was denken Sie?

New Job!!

So most likely, my job will start in March. I know that's a long time away, but we need to prepare for it. I have looked through the text book, and it's pretty intensive. That will be an awesome challenge for me!!

Job Possibility

Whoo hooo! I may have a job!! The manager of the language institute that I go to came to me today and asked if I'd be interested in teaching medical terminology to students learning English. This is a wonderful opportunity to use the knowledge that I have to teach others, which is what I've always wanted to do. So please pray that everything will work out according to His plan. If all goes well, I'll start in the beginning of the year.

Kinda Funny

I've learned to rely on Danny a lot here in Germany. He speaks fluent German with no difficulty. Yesterday, we went to the town of Esslingen with an American friend (who speaks NO German). There were so many people!! We all kept getting a little separated. I saw Ryan, our American friend, looking at some items, and I walked over to him. Danny was wearing his brightly colored orange Clemson stocking cap, so I knew I'd find him pretty easily. As Ryan is looking at things on this vendors table, he says to me, "Ask him how much this is." Without thinking, I ask the man how much the trinket cost, and then I translate the price into English. I had to translate the entire transaction. It was so cool!! We found Danny a minute later, and just as quickly we lost him again. So we went through the same thing a few more times. It was really interesting to see someone relying on me to translate, because I've been relying on Danny so much.

I am so happy that I can now understand and speak so much. Danny and I speak to each other for several hours per day in German. It's great to see that it's all paying off!!