Feliz Navidad!

Post by J

Noche de paz, noche de amor, 

Todo duerme en derredor. 

Entre sus astros que esparcen su luz 

Bella anunciando al niñito Jesús 

Brilla la estrella de paz 

Brilla la estrella de paz

~Silent Night in Spanish

Night of peace, night of love,

All around are asleep.

Among the stars that spread their light,
Beautifully announcing the baby Jesus,

Shines the star of peace,

Shines the star of peace.

Last night, R and I attended the Candlelight Christmas Carols service at the National Cathedral in Washington. The choir sang beautifully, the purity of their voices washing over us and seeming to linger in the rafters and the corners of the church. I closed my eyes a few times and sat with my hand in R's, his fingers warm against mine, marveling at this unexpected blessing, this feeling of peace.

We hadn't planned to attend the service; originally I had thought that we might go to a performance of Handel's Messiah at the Cathedral earlier in December. After searching for tickets, however, I realized that the December 23 Candlelight Service would fit into our schedules better. Ticket prices were nominal ($4 each), so I purchased two in early December, knowing that if our plans changed we wouldn't sacrifice too much if we weren't able to go. But I'm so glad we went.

We joined the other congregants and sang five traditional carols, the last of which by candlelight: O Come, All Ye Faithful; O Little Town of Bethlehem; Joy to the World; Once in David's Royal City; and Silent Night. The choir sang additional carols in between readings, and the Reverend Canon Gina Gilland Campbell delivered the homily, the main message of which was "deliver the love of Christ every day - not just at Christmas." Although I don't consider myself a religious person, I love tradition and the service was beautiful. We all need reminding of the possibility of fellowship and peace.

What could be a better Christmas gift (or gift at any time of the year) than peace? With so much craziness in the world, so much violence, sadness, and loss, peace almost seems like magical thinking. 

But Christmastime makes me believe it's possible.

Angel by Abbott Thayer, National Art Gallery Washington DC

Dreaming in Spanish

Post by J

I am overwhelmed by my resources!

I'm about to begin week 8 of Spanish school, which means I'll be one third of the way through my course by the end of the week. I go to sleep thinking of Spanish phrases and wake up conjugating verbs. 

I had my six-week evaluation on Monday of last week, and am exactly where I'm supposed to be: 1+/1+ (read more about what this level means here). This is a real relief to me, since F.S.I.'s approach to teaching a language is very different from what I had all those years ago at the Defense Language Institute, and I wasn't sure I was progressing at an adequate rate. It appears that I am - hurray!

It does seem that all R and I do is go to school and come home to study. We go to the grocery store on Saturday or Sunday, but really, we don't do much but study the Español. We've worked ourselves into a rut and honestly, it's getting a bit monotonous. So yesterday we trekked out to the National Portrait Gallery and enjoyed a few hours gazing at the art and reading about amazing Americans like John Eliot. Fortunately for us, the Italian Embassy here in D.C. was having a celebration at the museum while we were there, so we were exposed to a little culture from a foreign land, too.

Christmas is fast approaching and R and I are looking forward to celebrating a week late when H and L arrive for New Year's. It will be nice to take a break and get out into the real world again!