Dare to Say
Nathan and I were in the school's big, gray van yesterday turning left onto a street when out of the corner of our eyes, we saw a woman and her daughter trying to cross the road on our right. They were about half way across when a car came speeding through and either failed to notice them or refused to stop. Here in Italy, that's a big deal! Most everyone, if they see you standing on the side walk waiting to cross in a crosswalk will stop, it's the law after all! I'm not going to lie, we got a little angry at this man who almost ran over a child! We talked about how different driving in Italy is, in many ways. Deciding not the focus on the negatives, I asked Nathan, what are qualities in Italians/Italian lifestyle that you appreciate? We came up with a pretty lengthy list! Nathan mentioned that he likes that Italians don't mind if an event starts an hour late. (Which is funny because this just happened to us the other day!) I said, "I thought you didn't like when events start late?" He said, "I don't!!! But I appreciate that Italians just let it go. It doesn't matter to them." I realized then that the things that get our panties in a wad living in a different culture, can be the exact same qualities we appreciate! I dare to say, even be more like them. I mentioned that I like how they value time around the table with family and friends. I love how dinner becomes an event and less like a task. Once, we were going to meet up with our Italian friends on a Sunday night. But we never got to! Six hours after Sunday lunch, they were still enjoying family time around the table. I like that. I could go on about many other qualities, but I'll leave it at this for now. Maybe next time!
Update
At the beginning of the month, or really the last day of May, was our anniversary. Four years you guys! I feel like time just flies by! I'm so thankful for Nathan and all the adventures we've been on over the last four years. We spent the first one in school and the second just having graduated. And now the last two here in Italy. What next year holds, we will see!
On June 10th, Nathan and I visited our friends at the Prato Church of Christ. We love visiting them and we just happened to be there on Agape Sunday! They have a potluck every second Sunday of the month, which is fantastic! Their church has such a wide range of cultures that makes the food amazing. We love getting to know them better! After Agape, James and Meredith organized a beach volleyball game at the local outside gym. I didn't play, but Nathan did. I'll post some pictures that show how many people came. The youngest person was 14 maybe and the oldest being in his 70s!
Nathan and I had the opportunity to return to Catania, Sicily again! If you remember, we went there over Christmas break to visit our missionary friends and visit the church. Our friends are still there and usually help organize the Vacation Bible School during the summer. We decided to hop on a cheap budget airline and head down to the island to help! Boy was it worth it! We had sooo much fun and learned sooo much from helping with their space-themed VBS that had almost 40 children in attendance! The Catania church is one of the only churches in Italy to have a VBS consistently and organized by members of the church. I think the fact that they do this themselves is AMAZING. I really love how much this church invests in teaching their children and youth about the Bible. We also saw how closely knit they are in each others lives, which is how Jesus intended it. I helped out with crafts! If you know me at all, you know that is where I belong!!! I helped a woman named Sara and wow is she crafty. I couldn't believe all the cool things she had these 3 year olds doing and on the flip side, the 13 year olds! It was amazing. I was so happy to help her (and clean up ALOT of glitter.) Nathan played as Rachel's (our missionary friend) go to fixer. He ran to the store (several times). He glued the broken rocket ship back together. He fixed the jet packs for the games. He cut out a million stars and badges for the kids. He laminated certificates for the last day. He did it all! What a guy. To end my description of Vacation Bible School, I'd just like you to pray for their church. They are wonderful and walking in the faith of our Jesus.
Nathan's band life has definitely sped up, again. (I think I said this last June too! He's had four concerts this month and has at least two more coming up! If you remember from last year, Nathan had the chance to play in Piazza della Signoria in Florence. This is an open area that is surrounded by hotels, shops, and restaurants, but most importantly has the government building from the time of the Medici. This is the place where the David by Michelangelo was commissioned to stand. All this to say, this is THE coolest place to perform a concert. I'll post some pictures! The Scandicci band joined a school band and theater class performing Grease, in English! I think Nathan would say this would be the most interesting concert he's played in, in a theater behind a cafe! He's also played in the jazz band for a fundraiser dinner outside the old Scandicci City Hall. The next night, same place, just for Scandicci summer entertainment! Nathan is enjoying every moment, I think.
I believe that is all the highlights for this month. Please be praying for our team, our church, and our community. We have many other things planned this summer too! Be on the look out at the end of July for our next blog. Ciao for now!
-Ashley
