** I wrote this post on Wednesday, July 18th**
Hi Everyone!
I hope you are doing well, and all is good chez-vous, with
your home. I am happy to say my host
brother seems to be doing fine. It seems like it was a one off sickness last
night. If I hadn’t seen that he was sick last night, I never would have
suspected it today.
After that happy news, there is some less than happy news.
My fellow trainee and french classmate Bethany has had some family trouble back
home and she isn’t in class right now while that is being sorted out. Heidi and
I are missing her in class and hoping she will be able to jump back in and not
have to go home while we are covering so much ground. It’s a very unfortunate
situation and she is missed.
Other than those two events life is settling into a normal
pattern. I get up and have breakfast (bread with peanut butter, fruit, and
instant coffee) and go to class. We do some grammar and vocabulary and some
more casual conversational practice. Today when we were walking around we met a
local pastor and he was really excited to talk with Heidi and I about our
church background and why we chose the Peace Corps. He also talked a lot about
his work here in Porto Novo. It was exciting to talk with someone who is so
excited about the Gospel. It was energizing.
For lunch Heidi and I ate at a local roadside spot and
chatted briefly with some of the students who hang around there. In the
afternoon we covered some common idioms, practiced utilizing different tenses,
and talked about celebrities. After class I rested for a while and actually tried
to read the French copy of the 7th Harry Potter book that I bought
in the Brussels airport. It was definitely easier to read now than when I first
bought it, which is encouraging, but it was still a bit of a chore, so I only
read a little bit.
For dinner we had tilapia, and afterwards I reviewed my
notes a bit and watched the regular soap operas with the family. Gustavo is out
of jail, but his brother is in the hospital, and Shree is expecting twins and
had a baby shower!
Oh! I also finished the hat I have been knitting! It’s on
the big side, but it came out really well. I’m very proud of it. Now I just
need some cold weather! It actually has been very reasonable here. Today we
actually had some cool breezes that probably brought the temp down into the
high 70s. I guess I will have to carry the hat around in case I get the chance
to wear it!
I also cut my bangs the other morning (first thing in the
morning) and I think I was feeling a little hostile towards them, because I cut
them very short. I’ve been cutting my own bangs for years and this is a record
breaker. They will be perfectly fine in a week and could be artsy right now,
but I’ve just been opting to pin them back for the time being.
Biking to Songhai tomorrow, wish me luck!
Love,
Lauren
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