Aren't Sundays Wonderful?!

I love Sundays. I really do. It's as if they are inherently Sabbath as they arise and exist, no work necessary to make it so. Absolutely magnificent. Last Sunday I visited a church in Senlis with an Slovakian couple who now make their home in France (and speak a gazillion languages) and with Heather, an American student at UTC. Alexandra et Pavol invited us to join them when they heard our church was having a "week-end d'eglise" 2 hours away for the weekend. Basically it was a church retreat. So after church we returned to Compiegne for a gloriously long lunch and then a drive to nearby Pierrefonds to see the chateau there, as previously mentioned in last week's blog. After a pleasant Sunday ramble, I headed home about 6pm.

Today I commenced the day's activities by preparing a salad this morning for a meeting of young adults after church. As much as I dig French food, I'm really into more ethnic varieties. Thus my choice of couscous salad with raisins, apples, cinnamon, and sugar explained--a Moroccan recipe. After a great sermon on Jesus and Zachee (Zachaeus), which I will hopefully recap at some point this week because it's worth sharing, the young adults headed to the simple annex (not to be confused with America's gargantuan church annexes that could house a small country suffering from hunger and war) for the lunch and meeting. It passed as I'm learning most French meetings pass. Eventually we reach a point...eventually. The meal seems quite sacred here, as I'm disposed to believe it is already, and the intent of our gathering--to discuss what it is that the young adults at the church are to do together, a regrouping of sorts--wound its way to the surface towards dessert time. We will be gathering one Sunday a month for such a meal accompanied by an activity afterwards, whether it be fun, film, discussion, Bible study, etc. There will also be a Thanksgiving party, actually not suggested by me but another American, which we'll plan and prepare at the end of November. I'm still learning how to be a part of something like a French church with all of my American ideas and baggage and training (not that these are bad; but I'm in France now) so I stayed rather silent and would offer comments as solicited but did not try to be my usually not-so-timid self. While some young adults headed out for an afternoon ramble, I headed back to my place to meet Mahina.

Mahina is a student I met at UTC who wants to practice English. This afternoon we had decided to hang out, and as it turns out we share an enjoyment of cooking AND she has an oven (I do not) and suggested we get together and I could teach her how to bake. Um, okay, that's only my passion. We talked in Franglais about gardening, cooking, her studies, a newspaper she recommends, and I met her boyfriend who lives in the apartment above her. She had to return to studies but not before she invited me back for dinner this evening with her and a random 62 year-old retired professor she met on the train. As Mahina said, "She's retired but very energetic, still going." So I'm headed back for that and have promised to return the hostessing favor. I think Mahina has a sincere gift of hospitality and she's also interested in going to the market together on Saturdays. It was just such a great interaction, the day is beautiful here, it's Sunday, and man, everyone should be as blessed as I to get to serve in Compiegne. Struggles, yes. I've made that clear before. But so good.

Editorial note: In last week's Week in Review, mention was made about an upcoming What is L'Arche? article as well as Op-ed. At this time, the What is piece is being drafted and as the writer has time throughout this week, plans to publish it soon. As for the Op-ed, the Editorial Board has decided it will not run as aforementioned. For any inconveniences we apologize.