-1July 27th
I am in my room right now, it’s past my bedtime and I am being a naughty girl and staying awake. Helen and I have a candle lit and soft piano music playing, and it is thunder storming outside. I love the sound of the rain. It’s so cozy in here! I am so glad I have my room again. And Helen is such a great roomie. We like the same things, like leaving the windows and door wide open, and going to sleep with music. (Sometimes we sneak out onto our balcony and watch and eavesdrop on trivial things.) :] I get along with her great. It occurred to me this past week that I always am hanging out with the 18 year olds. I just had someone ask me tonight if I am under 20. :]
After I posted some pictures just now I went to the kitchen to get a schnitteli, and there was Helen and Herr Gehrig with 2 new volunteers from Germany. Helen and Herr Gehrig are a favorite combo, we have such fun times there late at night. While we talked (in German) Herr Gehrig ate his whole lunch for tomorrow. :] He is hysterical. :] The two girls are names Ina and Evelina and come from the same church as two of my other friends I met here last year.
I broke a cup the other day. I was stacking dishes, and suddenly in Anne Shirley’s words, “It slipped from my fingers, and fell beneath the rippling waves”. On SUNDAY when the room was full of guests. Surprisingly, I was not embarrassed. Those things happen, you know. I smashed my toe, too! One of their huge glass doors has a sharp bottom which fit nicely under my toenail. Anita Widmer made me soak it for 30 minutes in iodine! :] It is better now.
July 29th
You know, each week can be so exhausting, because every Saturday we often get 30 or so new guests, tired from work and life, and ready for a holiday. It is a real challenge to the staff here to remain fresh and happy, remembering that although WE are tired, they are new and this is a special time for them. I have been so impressed as the coworkers share around our breakfast time some new verse or insight to encourage the others, or a testimony of how God provided help when they felt they simply could not handle the work. The other day Inge told how she and her 2 helpers had to clean 30 rooms between 9am and 1pm. Never had she been so shorthanded, and felt so stressed out. She prayed about it, and suddenly others volunteered to help her that day, and in the end she had more help than she needed! I decided to try it because I have had a lot of pain, tired from the past weeks, and here those two girls from Germany arrived, one to help me set tables! Not only that, but now I can go out to the greenhouse/garden in the afternoons! :] I am so happy about that. Setting tables alone gets old after a while.
Another thing about the guests. We make up white linen napkins with their names on them when they arrive. At the end of the week, we tear off the names, wash them, and make new ones. The other day I was changing the napkins and Zita told me, “You know, when I do that, I always pray for these guests, that God would bless them, and go with them, and that they received encouragement from their stay. I do not want to look at them and be like, Ah, they are gone, now for new ones!” That really touched me. She and Ruedi show such love and care for the guests, and are always happily spending time with them.
I am really wanting an English/German parallel Bible these days. I had looked into it before I left, but all I found were paperback ones with an English translation I do not like. I am hoping to look into getting one in Germany when I visit Mirjam in Badsackinghan.
We just had a weeding party in the garden, about 20 or so people went out to weed and thin the beets. Today it is cloudy and cooler, we have had a lot of sun this past week, I have been swimming every day! Last night we had what they call a “Praticant Abend” which means “Volunteer night”. They try to have one every Wednesday evening because sometimes the practicants only stay two weeks. This is something they did not do last time I was here. About 15 of us loaded up in their new red van and drove down to the Vierwaldsettersee area. There is a little town there called Küssnacht (Kiss Night) where we went swimming.
Don’t freak out over this, but they change right on the shores here. No one thinks anything of this, people will just bring their swimsuit along and start changing right in front of people. Of course the Guetli people are modest about it, and they even have the boys swim in a different area, but I was floored the first time I saw that. They wondered why I had my suit on already! I told them that we really wouldn’t do that, unless we had a private beach somewhere. :] Cultural differences…
After swimming, we drove up a mountain to the foot of one of the tallest mountains in this region named Rigi. Then we gathered together food and hiked back for a while to a lovely panoramic view! You could see 4 lakes from up there, and many towns, including Luzern. Luzern is one of my favorites towns in Switzerland. There we roasted sausages and melted cheese, and then sang and had a short devotion. We stayed until long after the sun set, it was fun to see all the hills light up in the darkness. It was a short hike back, but we didn’t get to bed until well after 11pm. I was exhausted!
August 2nd
Can you believe I have been here for 4 weeks already?! I am sorry I have not written. The schedule is always so full you see, and if I am invited to go swimming or driving, I usually take the offer, instead of typing. :]
