It's been a really good weekend for me. It's Monday night and it's just now coming to an end. Sad. Well, Saturday was not terribly encouraging because I was still kind of getting over the last bit of my cold. Now, I hope to be back, more or less, to abnormal. :) As usual, I have very much been looking forward to church because it's such a great opportunity to not only worship, but to also just see people I know and meet other new people. It's super encouraging. I'm really starting to feel like I really belong here. I feel very embraced and "taken care of" by the members of the church. So many have told me they are praying for me to find a job and not have to go back to the states. That means so much to me, you can't even imagine.
Friday night we had a devotional at Connections which is always super encouraging. There was probably about 30 people there which pretty much fills up their back room. Afterward, I was planning on just heading home, but as we were passing "Doree" Steak House, some of the sisters invited us over to their table as we were walking by the restaurant. So Steffen and I sat down with them and we had Anka, Christina Channell, Christiana, Cynthia and one other as well there (can't for the life of me remember now), but we sat around and ate pizza and laughed and had a good time. The weather was amazing and even at 10:30 at night, it was really pleasant.
After service on Sunday, I was going to hang out with Steffen and some others to see Carnival of Cultures, which is a huge celebration with parades and food where all of the cultures in Berlin come out to show their stuff and offer their foods and sell stuff from their lands. Sounds amazing, but with me just getting over a cold, felt like it might be too much for me on Sunday. The day before, I had asked on facebook for anyone I know in Berlin if they are selling a bicycle or if they know of anyone who is. One brother offered a bike he has but needs some work. I am totally happy to do that kind of stuff and he said that he would like to work on it together. Sounds great! So he and his wife invited me over to lunch after church and we sat out on his balcony in the amazing warmth of the May sun, ate lunch and just chatted for hours. It was great! Then we looked at the bike and I was surprised how nice it was. It needed a couple things but honestly it didn't look too bad. He is going to order some parts and hopefully in the next couple weeks I will have a bike to ride. Thanks, God!
Also at church, I was invited to dinner by another brother who wanted to help me with my employment stuff. His wife made a yummy tuna dish and we ate and he showed me some more hints on how to make my resume/CV exceptional. We also went over how I should introduce myself and what I should say to people when I go into hotels to "market" myself. I think I should be able to find work relatively quickly doing it this way. That would seriously encourage my heart right now! (Not that it isn't already). Anyway, I was very proud of myself because with free lunch and dinner, I only spent about $1.70 the entire day!!! Thanks again God for helping me watch my budget!
On Friday, the H.O.P.E. Senior Center in Berlin had their open house. I had let them know that I would be interested in helping them, but when we got there, they didn't need help, per se. It was really great to see some older folks have some place to go for fellowship, games, a cup of coffee and great volunteers to just share their lives with. For the seniors that weren't able to go to the Open House, they have volunteers go to retirement homes to meet people there and to spend time with them. I am very excited to start that in the next couple weeks sometime too.
I remember when I was still living in Seattle in 1999, we, as H.O.P.E. volunteers went to a retirement home in Juanita (right next to where I used to live) and I remember talking to this very sweet 86 year old woman who was from Cashmere. I remember she didn't have much, but there was a small bowl of hard candies on her table. I'm not much of a fan of hard candies, but I wasn't about to refuse this woman's offer. It meant a lot to her to be able to share those with me and another sister. She told us this story: It was sometime in the 1920's and living in Cashmere, which is near the mountains and very cold in the winter, her "bus driver" would heat large rocks on his wood stove at night and when they got into what is essentially a horse-drawn covered sleigh, he would put the hot rocks at their feet to keep them warm on the way to school. That story has stayed with me over the last 14 years. I don't think I'll ever forget that sweet lady or her amazing story. I do believe that is also the reason it has been on my heart to work with seniors ever since then, though I say to my shame that I didn't do anything about it in Spokane, even though a large retirement home was just a few blocks from my house.
Also at the Senior Center, I met this older man, Hans. Hans looks to be about 75-80 or so and in exceptionally good shape for his age. Very sharp mind and it actually looked like he might work out. Anyway, images of Jack Lalanne came to mind when I saw him. Anyway, I told him that I applied for a job where the only thing in their requirements I lacked was experience using PowerPoint. He said he could show me, so I will go there tomorrow and he's going to teach me how to use it! Super cool! It feels weird to go to a senior center to do it, but the H.O.P.E. people said it was totally fine. And it's a free service, too! Yay! By the way, this guy totally reminded me of my good friend, Don C back in Spokane. Now, Hans is significantly older than Don, but the likeness is pretty striking! I sent Don an email about it, I hope it's not too weird to share what with him what he might look like in 40 years.... LOL.
For the rest of the week, I have so much to do. Spending the mornings marketing myself to hotels in tourist areas, re-writing my resume' and cover letters, getting a haircut, dressing up every day, etc. Also, on Thursday, I will be going to a school here to see what the chance is for me to start classes in the Fall (as a possible option. I would prefer to work, but would also really like to get my Bachelor's Degree, too) We'll see what God has in store for me in work/school.
This coming Saturday we will be doing a "hike" in NW Berlin (Spandau) which I'm very excited about. I hope that lots of disciples are able to come. Also, Saturday is the final game of the European finals, Bayern München vs. Dortmund (two German teams!!) and I'm super excited to see that! Also, my friend Ken will be here from Zürich! I can't wait for this weekend! It seems weird that I'm starting to feel busy now. That's a really good thing! I'm excited to start ramping things up in my daily life and in my personal ministry.
Well, I think that needs to be it for tonight. Thanks for looking in on me!
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