Bits From Belgium - Week 9

~ Psalm 63:3-8 ~

Bonjour les amis et la famille!

Ca va? Como Estas? How are you?

Week 9 is here and passing quickly! 3 more weeks and my dear friend Jessica H. will be arriving for "the changing of the guard". 3 1/2 more weeks and I will be returning to Ohio. Jessica H. and I will be here together for about 5 days before I leave and she remains to be Rebecca's next caregiver and share in the beauty, adventure, challenges, growth, and everything else the Lord has planned for her time here! It will be so special and neat to have such a very close friend share in this experience, and it is even more exciting to know we will get to be here together for a few days! I am very much looking forward to seeing her again... even 4,000 miles from our usual "hang out" spot! :-)

The days here continue to pass by quickly, and I can hardly believe another day is over when I lay my head back down on my pillow each night! As I look at my last 3 1/2 weeks here, I find myself reviewing some [I would love to review all, but there are implications from this experience that I think I will discover throughout the rest of my life!] of the things I've seen, learned, been challenged with, and ways I have changed. I think about life back in Ohio and how it has changed since I left. In the weeks and months preceding my arrival here, I spent a lot of time thinking, praying, and trying to prepare myself mentally for all the things I would see, do, and be faced with. Now, as I prepare to come home 3 months later, I realize I am faced with this again, only this time I am trying to prepare myself for "re-entry" into the world I knew and grew up in. I am excited and very eager to see you all again! I look forward to returning to all the activities and friendships I left when I came here, but also realize that I'm bringing home with me 3 months worth of speechless, indescribable experiences, lessons, growth, and change. I pray and desire that these changes and the things I've learned will remain with me upon my return and throughout the rest of my life. I pray that "He who began a good work in me will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus."

This week has been pretty quiet as far as outside "adventures" go, but very busy, as usual, in the Petrie household! Every day here brings something new and good, whether it be a lovely discussion with Rebecca, some fascinating insights in my reading, a wonderful e-mail, package, or letter from the U.S., a challenging task or experience, or just some time to think, pray, journal, etc... I don't know about all of Belgium, but at least in this household, there is no such thing as a boring day! :-)

On to this week's bits...
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Jeudi - 6 Septembre , 2007 - Mostly cloudy, some drizzle. Warm and humid. Had a quiet morning and was able to get in a short walk/jog around the block. Rough day, but we all got through it okay together and with Help.

Vendredi - 7 Septembre, 2007 - Happy Birthday Dear Mother! More clouds, more warm. A busy, tiring day with lots of people coming and going. (A "normal" weekday involves a minimum of 2 nurse visits and a kine (kee-nay) (Physical therapist), not to mention friends and other people coming and going...). Dr. V.H., Rebecca's doctor made a house call today. House calls are much more common here in a variety of businesses, not just because of Rebecca's special situation. Dog groomers, hair stylists, etc. are much more likely to make house calls here than they are in the U.S. Apparently a lot of it has to do with them using your utilities and therefore not having to pay for them themselves. (Taxes here are incredibly high I hear!)

Samedi - 8 Septembre, 2007 - 2 months in Belgium... only 1 month to go. Wow! Time flies when you're having fun?! :-) A quiet day here. I was tired and had a minorly sore, scratchy throat and was worried that I might becoming down with a cold or something. I drank 3 cups of tea (citrus, chai, and British), and prayed that it would not get worse because I couldn't imagine being able to do everything I needed to do and be sick at the same time. I took a nap in the afternoon and actually slept as well. In the evening I had a chance to take a lovely bath... I haven't taken a bath in what must be years! :-) It was very relaxing. I also took part in another mission of the "Slug War" in the garden. I spread the "delicious" slug food/poison and rounded up all visible slugs to be bagged and trashed. It was a successful attack, with evidence posted on my blog website. :-) In the evening we watched the movie Oliver Twist, since it was yet another classic I hadn't seen. (I amaze a lot of people by the long list of great movies I've never seen... :-) I also got a phone call from a girl in nearby Waterloo. She met the girl, Megan, who was helping out last week while Paul was gone, and Megan knew I was interested in possibly going back into Brussels or going to Brugge with someone (rather than alone), and though this girl and I might hit it off. I enjoyed chatting with her for a few minutes and we exchanged e-mail addresses. The girl is from Wisconsin... we're practically neighbors! :-) Funny how the world suddenly seems smaller at times like this! I don't know that we'll have a chance to get together or go into Brussels together, but it was neat getting to "meet" another person from the U.S. who is here, and I am hopeful that we will get to meet in person at least once before I leave!

Dimanche - 9 Septembre, 2007 - Sundays here are so quiet and peaceful. Even when the day isn't much different from others, it just feels more quiet somehow. Perhaps it's because the town itself is so very quiet on Sundays. Amazingly (thank you God!), I felt a bit better today. My sore throat was gone and I was not as tired. What a blessing! Paul arrives home from the states tomorrow, so I think all of us were eagerly waiting for the day to pass by! We watched Father of the Bride 2 and A Walk to Remember. (Both were new movies for me, and I REALLY enjoyed them both!) I gave Maddie a bath before bed. She was great and is soooo soft and clean (for a few hours anyhow!) Speaking of Maddie, the little circus dog now can Shake, Roll, Wait, Down, Stay, sit up on her hind legs, and stand on her hind legs and twirl. She doesn't always do them on command or when wanted, but she sure is a smart little dog! Several of the tricks she did on her own and we just added a word and hand motion to them. She is quite a riot! Molly, one of the other dogs, has also learned to Shake. Hopy, the 18 year old, has yet to learn them. I think it's harder to learn physical tricks when you're somewhat blind, mostly deaf, and over 100 years old in human years?
The weather today was very nice. Partly sunny with temperatures in the 50's or low 60's. Another strange happenstance that occured in the town of Genval today was the arrival of 9 storks on the church roof! Unfortunately they were gone by the time I went out to see them, but apparently 9 storks had taken a rest on the roof of the church in Genval. Storks are not entirely uncommon here (Annie was telling me about how people build platforms on their roofs to help the storks nest... anybody read the book The Wheel on the School? ;-), but to have 9 in one place in day is pretty unusual, and it seems everybody was talking about it and gawking at them. We wonder if perhaps the members of the church congregation are going to blessed with many children this year? :-)

Lundi - 10 Septembre, 2007 - Happy Birthday Dear Daddy! Feel MUCH better today! My energy level is back up and I don't have even a hint of a sore throat. Paul arrived home this morning as well! It's SO nice to have him back after his 12 day trip! He brought back with him several notes and gifts from a few of my family and friends he saw during his visit! THANK YOU!!! I went for a nice long walk in the evening and took a different route down some new neighborhoods for a change of scenery and some excitement. :-) It was a rainy day and cooled off quite a bit by evening! I was wearing a long-sleeved jacket while I walked and was quite chilly!

Mardi - 11 Septembre, 2007 - Beautiful weather. Still cool, but not too bad. Partly sunny for most of the day. How nice to see the sun again! We had had a lot of cloudy days in a row! Annie left today to visit her family in France. She doesn't get much time off, and it seemed to work out for all of us here for her to go now, so while it means a little more work for all of us here, we're glad she gets a chance to visit her friends and family. She'll return Sunday night I believe. I made dinner tonight... 2 baked chickens, potato slices, and.... steamed Brussels sprouts!!! I'm not a big fan of Brussels sprouts, actually, but I had been told by one particular friend that I simply HAD to have Brussels sprouts while I was in Brussels. So, I am very happy to say I have not only had a couple Brussels sprouts in Brussels... I've also made them! Not only that... I also have visible proof, as I managed to [minorly] burn my finger while removing the lid of the Brussels sprouts! :-) The only other thing I "need" to do before I leave is make Belgian waffles. Don't count on it happening though! That may be something that will have to wait until I get home. :-) At least I have the waffle iron now though!

Mercredi - 12 Septembre, 2007 -
Because Annie is gone this week, I won't have a "usual" day off today, but that's okay. :-) I was able to sleep in this morning and have a quiet morning catching up on e-mails, taking a shower, reading, etc. I also had a quiet early afternoon and was able to take a walk to and around Lake Genval again. I've missed that lake! I find it a bit amusing that I go to an amazing, historical, world-reknown city like Brussels and am completely awed, love, and inspired by the city, and then also walk to a small lake 10 minutes from here that nobody outside of central Belgium has probably EVER heard of, and be just as awed, inspired, and in love with it! :-) Guess it's that beauty of simplicity! :-) I enjoy walking around the lake and being on the French side for half and the Dutch side for the other half. Prety fascinating! I don't know if any of you have seen or studied Dutch at all, but it's one COOL language! The words are so fun to say and so interestingly spelled! The rest of the afternoon and evening were busy with "the usual"... and here I am nearing 8 p.m. and getting ready to e-mail out the Bits from Belgium, Week 9!

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Blessings in Belgium:
* The amazing people I'm getting to meet and learn about!
* The giving of time and self from other people, which has allowed me to see and do what I have!
* The knowledge and experiences I am gaining here in areas so different from those I had at home
* The ability to communicate with "all ya'll" at home and throughout the U.S.!
* The beauty of this place and the world we live in!
* The amazing privilige it is to be here in this place, doing what I'm doing, with the people I'm with!
* The surprising enjoyment I have found in the challenge of learning and practicing a bit of the French language!
* God's faithfulness and grace each and every day...
* The abatement of the "mystery itches"! (I actually got several more itchy red spots over the next two days after last week's post, but since then they have all started to heal and disappear and no longer itch... yeah! :-)

Prayer Requests:
* That I can be humble and serve the way Jesus has taught and demonstrated
* That I might decrease so that He might increase
* That I can love, be a light, and bless those I interact with
* That I will be in tune with and always seeking and listening for His guidance throughout each moment and day
* That I will be able to begin mentally preparing myself for my "re-entry" to life with my wonderful family in Ohio
* That I will be able to, "treasure up all these things and ponder them in my heart": that I can take home with me the lessons, changes, and experiences I've had here and use them throughout the rest of the life God has given me...

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Thank you for another week of prayers, encouragement, updates, support, and friendship! I pray that God will bless you all as much as you have blessed me!

~ MB

P.s. Several people have asked about the song that I put with the photo slideshow from last week. The song is called "Fearfully and Wonderfully Made", by Matt Redman from his album "Beautiful News".

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"You're blessed when you're at the end of your rope. With less of you there is more of God and his rule.
You're blessed when you feel you've lost what is most dear to you. Only then can you be embraced by the One most dear to you.
You're blessed when you're content with just who you are - no more, no less. That's the moment you find yourselves proud owners of everything that can't be bought.
You're blessed when you've worked up a good appetite for God. He's food and drink in the best meal you'll ever eat.
You're blessed when you care. At the moment of being 'care-full,' you find yourselves cared for.
You're blessed when you get your inside world - your mind and heart - put right. Then you can see God in the outside world..."
Section from Matthew 5 - The Message
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