Flamenco Show

June 22nd, 2010

flamenco-showDarkness. A man on center stage, four women dancers on each side. Man shouts out. Lights flash on stage. Audience stares at his face, twisted in agony and tension as he sings with his entire being. Suddenly two guitars enter the background. Everyone on stage dances spectacularly. Clickety-clack. Snappety-snap. Ole. Abada. Ole. The first song and dance ends. Lights out. Stage empties.

A duet of guitarists, playing quickly and skillfully. They keep looking at each other as if they are competing and answering each other with their guitars. Faster, faster. Really gooflamenco-show-2d.

A new male singer on stage. Sad song. Love song. Woman sings with her entire being. She’s good. She dances. Man and woman dance. Man seems sad. The woman dumped him apparently. He sings sadly and is dancing alone. It becomes happier as they become reunited and begin to dance together again.

The songs have a flamenco-show-3story to them. It’s like the opera, except for the style of the music. The dresses are gorgeous. The dancers are all experts – every muscle is in the correct position. Confident and dramatic postures. Looks beautiful on stage.

One male dancer is looking straight at me. He sings with extreme intensity, then looks at me for a response. I snap a picture, and he seems pleased.

The final act is a line-up. Each dancer has a solo dance. The couple dances in a romantic way. Suddenly we were all clapping loudly as the central main dancer dances faster and faster and faster. His feet are a blur. The dancing stops, and loud applause thunders the room.

I return to camp and breathe a final “Ole” as I fall asleep.

Paris at Midnight

June 21st, 2010

ParisI woke up in the middle of the night, freezing. I unzipped my sleeping bag, shoved my tennis shoes onto my feet, and exited the tent. My shoes sank into the deep mud. It was raining in Paris, and it was six degrees below zero.

I quickly ran to the camp bathroom and returned to re-enter my tent. I realized that my sleeping bag was not insulated. This was supposed to be spring. I put on all of the clothing in my backpack. I was still cold. My feet and hands felt like ice. I crossed my legs so that my feet were warmed by the back part of my knees. I felt so bundled up that I could hardly move. I felt claustrophobia for the first time in my life.Paris-2

The next morning a few people from my tour bus (all 18 and 19, while I was 21) had frostbite. When they moved their fingers, blood came out. Indeed, it was not an exaggeration that we were freezing to death. My nose was running, and I had a cold. Not surprising.

At least we were on our way to the Eiffel Tower. It seemed surreal as I stood there, looking at it. We rode on an elevator to the top, and we looked out over Paris. It was a dreary, overcast day, but it was still magical, because I was in Paris.Paris-3

I saw the Arc de Triomphe up close, and the sculptures were intricate. Cars drove past it all the time without even noticing it. The Notre Dame Cathedral was magnificent with its stained glass windows and its imposing structure.

I went to a small cafe and ordered coffee. The Frenchman behind the counter was rude to me and gave me a teeParis-4nsy weensy cup with a shot of the strongest coffee I’ve ever tasted. I looked around and wished I had an easel so I could paint. Except that I had no energy, so it was just as well.

The Louvre Museum had so many famous works of art, including the Mona Lisa. After waiting a long time to see it, it was encased in glass and was far smaller than I thought. I wish I had had more time to see the wonderful artwork; it seemed almost like I was jogging through the entire museum just to see it all before the tour guide told us we had to go back to camp.

Communion

June 17th, 2010

communionA couple of years ago, the snow was so thick that our Sunday church service was actually canceled. Unfazed, my husband headed to another church, where a roommate from college was a pastor. I had never heard him preach before, and knowing he was a goofball, I wondered what his sermons would be like.

As I walked into the church with eager anticipation, I corralled the four children into a pew. It was a family-integrated church with no children’s classes, similar to ours in that respect.

At that moment, I spotted the communion table. I glanced at my two oldest boys (ages 8 and 7 at the time) who usually took communion, because they had committed their lives to Christ. I turned to my husband in a mild panic, saying, “It’s communion. You realize it’s real wine. What do we do about the kids? Is it even legal?”

My husband calmed me down and said everything was fine; let them take it.

The practical implications appeared in my imagination, and I pictured both my boys spitting out the wine onto the heads of the people in front of us. My children were not used to bitter food, and my dramatic, hyper son would undoubtedly act out this scene if I did not intervene in some way. I paused for a moment, then looked at my two sons with all seriousness and said, “The communion juice will taste bitter like dandelion leaves. It is real wine. I do not want you to spit it out. When you drink it, remember the bitter suffering that Christ had to endure because of your sin. Okay?”

They both nodded their heads with large eyes and deep seriousness. I knew they would do it right.

The sermon was unusually good, coming from a blunt and humorous preacher. As our family got up to leave at the end of the service, I thought about the fact that I was glad for the circumstances surrounding my children’s first taste of alcohol. My husband was right. Their first sip would never be out of rebellion, but out of obedience. I had a lump in my throat as I looked at my husband and smiled.

Princess Tea Party

June 15th, 2010

princess-tea-party

I took my daughter to her first tea party, and she absolutely loved it! It was a mother-daughter princess tea party put on by a friend of mine for the homeschool mothers in the area. My daughter liked getting all dolled up, with ringlets in her hair. We both wore blue dresses. She knew that she looked beautiful.

princess-tea-party-2

Normally she runs around the house like a pack of elephants. (She does have three brothers.) I didn’t know if her boundless energy would contain itself long enough to be calm, quiet, and polite for a couple of hours. But she did it! My husband pointed out that she was playing the part. Basically, her energy was re-directed to act like a princess. She enjoyed all the many yummy treats that were displayed in such a pretty fashion on gorgeous little China sets. On the way home, I asked her if she liked the tea party, and she exclaimed, “Yes!” quite enthusiastically.