Nature seems to speak to me as often as people do. As seemingly romanticized as you may think it is, the every day happenings of nature may be just as biblical as the man speaking from the pulpit. The rocks will cry out, the trees will clap their hands, the hills rejoice, the heavens display his wonder…we are spoken to in every day parables but don’t often have the ears to hear what is being said.

I’ve been going on walks…a lot. It seems that when life doesn’t made sense to me, the only thing I want to do is walk…maybe it’s a coping mechanism like at least I can create the illusion of going somewhere for about an hour before life goes back to normal again. Walking uphill isn’t easy and I live in a very hilly area. Running uphill is harder. Strangely enough, I’m developing an appreciation for it even though my lungs kill during this self inflicted punishment and let me just say my knees make me feel like I’m 67 instead of 27. I recently was talking with a friend and said I feel like I’ve been going uphill for the past two and half years.  Do you know what I mean? Like you’re pushing a 80 pound refrigerator up a gravel hill and getting absolutely no where. I mean, yes we do have to make it up the hill and there will probably be a lot of larger hills once this one is over with but sometimes we make things a lot harder for ourselves. My particular useless burden happens to be worry or fear…they are heavy. Sometimes bitterness, resentment or discontentment gets thrown in for good measure.

I’ll walk on sunny days, rainy, or what has been a common occurrence, on foggy days. Last winter was the first time I encountered Kandern fog. My usual path is one that goes up into the hills a bit and has a really beautiful view on a clear day. On this particular day, I started walking uphill and quickly found that I could only see about a few feet in front of me. Kind of a strange feeling, slightly disconcerting. I kept walking and absorbing what I saw around me…not very much except for the faint outline of the bare trees. Their lines stood out against the fog and it was perhaps one of the most beautiful things I’d seen in a while. Their up-stretched arms unlocked my own sentiments of vulnerability and a silent plea to the heavens to make sense of this life.  I question God. Not something I am particularly proud of. Who am I to question the God of the universe? It does not seem like a smart thing to do. Unfortunately, I am not always governed by reason. I’ve been reading “Letters to a young poet” by Rainer Maria Rilke and he urges his friend “to be patient towards all that is unresolved in your heart and to try to love the questions themselves like locked rooms, like books written in a foreign tongue. Do not now strive to uncover answers: they cannot be given you because you have not been able to live them. And what matters is to live everything. Live the questions for now.”  I’ve hated the questions and all that is unresolved in my life, fighting against them and trying, quite aimlessly to “figure them out”. I imagine the easiest way to live so that my life stays preserved and comfortable. But this is not the way of God. I must give it up, denying the right to live my own life the way I think it should be. This is a hard one. I don’t want to die, to loose my life but amazingly enough it seems that is the only way to keep it. One of the many mysteries of this life on earth. Though it may be difficult, little by little allowing God to speak and to direct so that His plans are worked out in my life is the safest and most life preserving thing to do.  I’m reminded by a passage that says “I am the light of the world. Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.” (John 8:12)  I know that I have the light of life already in me but I often do not live like I do. I have to remember that am not walking in darkness though it may be foggy. I don’t really know where my life is leading, nor am I holding the reigns but there is light where ever the Master is and I am with Him.

So this fall,  I’m once again walking along my old path, only seeing what is immediately before me because of this incredible fog, a sign of God’s grace because I most likely can’t handle seeing more. The leaves are shedding their glory but there is just enough golden flecks tenaciously holding on to tell me that it’s not over yet or more over, when those last few leaves do give up it’s not over then either. There is life after death. If you loose your life for Christ, you will find it. And lastly, when the sun starts making its way up towards the sky, the fog parts just long enough to send the most breathtaking shimmer through the trees. It stays long enough for me to say Thank You. Thank You God for roads that go uphill, for golden trees and the naked ones too, for the blinding fog  and the light that in its own timing will chase it away.

The summer quickly ended as I spent time with my family down in Marseille for a few days, picked up my little brother in the Alps  and then drove up to Germany. They were able to stay for a bit and it was a good time to try and relax a bit before the craziness began again.

The craziness came to due time in the form of meetings, getting the classroom ready, lesson plans, and finally starting to work at the Art Factory. The Art Factory was bought back in 2006 by the Holladays and they are progressively renovating the whole building which is quite a feat. Right now there are three appartments on the left side of the factory and then the Holladay’s appartment as well as a large kitchen/dinning/common room, and a gallery space on the first level. The other two upper levels have been used for various things, parties, weddings and storage space for missionaries being among some of the those things. Three weeks ago my friend Jen and I set out to start clearing some space on the second level for me to have an artist studio (!!!). It was exciting to slowly see it emerge from the piles of boxes, furniture and books.

Classes are now in full swing and we are all getting to know eachother. I can always tell once the students start feeling more comfortable around each other and around me. My students make me laugh…sometimes at them and sometimes with them but always in good fun I have students who have grown up all over the place, Turkey, Italy, Korea…each comes with a different set of experiences. Some students have been drawn to God while their parents have worked on the mission field and some have pulled away from God. We each have our own journeys and I’m praying I can be an encouragment in these student’s lives.

I unexpectedly agreed to lead a high school girl’s small group. Small groups had already started and they still didn’t have a leader so there you go. I was a bit aprehensive about it at first…wasn’t sure I would have such a great connection with the girls because most of them are new but…the Lord has been in this. Last week was our first day meeting with each other and things were going fine though I felt a bit of a veil between us…like their eyes were a bit glazed. So we are talking and I finally come around to telling them a bit about myself…I’m a french MK, came to BFA … I looked up and they all had big eyes. “YOU went to BFA???!!” I responded that yes, in fact, I had and just like them had arrived my Junior year. They felt much more comfortable after that and I think sensed more of a connection.  Three out of the six are also French MKs. Go figure. You’re kind of crazy, God…in the best way.

Along with leading a small group and taking part in a women’s single small group, I’m also a junior class sponsor this year. I don’t know how these things happen sometimes. They are pretty much the best class ever though and I’m excited to get to know them more. I’ll be accompanying my 65 Juniors along with the other 5 sponsors (plus a couple more chaperones) on a 3/4 day class trip to Normandy in two weeks. Every year the history department organizes this trip for them to experience some of WWII history first hand. It’s an amazing experiences, to be sure. Minor note, we sleep on the bus two of the nights. Yeah. That’s going to be interesting.

Soooo, prayer requests are…

• Continueing work at the Art Factory and discovering more of what direction the Lord wants me to go in my art work and in the community (i.e. maybe teaching an adult art class etc)
• For the students in my classes and my relationships with them
• My girl’s small group and good connection with them as we start out the year
• Planning and getting ready for Normandy

Love and Peace to you!

From Connecticut, I made my way to Birmingham, Alabama and saw some very dear friends. Jonas is a fellow Taylor grad and Delicianna and I met at an MK ski retreat in France in middle school and then ended up roommates not too long after I arrived in Germany three years ago. It was a much needed reunion and I also got to meet the new addition to their family. How sweet!

I headed to Chicago and picked up a car that Becky’s (my roommate) brother and sister in law let me borrow.  Katie made me up a mix CD which probably ended up saving my sanity through hundreds of miles in the car. In Wheaton, I met up with two favorite alumni art students from BFA. They are such talented people and  am so proud to have been their teacher.

Following my itinerary, I made my way to past green and golden fields to Indiana. Indianapolis and Upland were the main stops where I got to catch up with such wonderfully inspiring people.  Friends from my Taylor days, fellow artists…such beautiful lives and hearts!

The view from the car looked like this most of the time….

I’ve realized that I really enjoy driving in the middle of no-where…now obviously once you’ve been driving for 9 hours, this isn’t always the case. In general, however, I find it a great time to think and just soak in the scenery. Next stop Ohio to see my Aunt, Uncle and Cousins! Again…no pictures. I don’t know what I was thinking. Such a fun time, experimenting with recipes with Aunt Dee, hiking in the forest, getting wet under a waterfall, the most giant pancakes you ever saw, launching rockets and catching fireflies. That sounds pretty epic, if you ask me.

My journey took me back up through Chicago and then to Milwaukee where I spent a week catching up with amazing friends and supporters. I’ve found that the Lord has given me family wherever I go and it is truly a blessing. I was also able to do an artist evening where I showed/sold some of my work and was able to share a bit about my ministry in Germany. It was a wonderful evening and I’ll be writing more about that hopefully in another post.

I ended my trip in Traverse City with my sisters, brother in law, niece and nephew. So good to be with my own family! Levi turned one and is just about the most adorable one year old you’ll ever see.

More pics and stories to come!

I participated in an artist workshop called The Glen East Workshop put on by IMAGE (http://imagejournal.org/page/events/the-glen-workshop/2011/east/). The class was taught by Ed Knippers who was a great teacher. The whole experience was challenging but absolutely fantastic. I got to be there with a good friend Jennifer Goss which made it just that much better.

Jen and me in the studio

Painting on the sixth day

]]> http://alyssasmith.wordpress.com/2011/08/05/summer-part-i/feed/ 1 alyssasmith 16180007 jen and me 2 http://alyssasmith.wordpress.com/2008/10/15/fall-party-the-joys-of-teaching-and-pumpkin-pancakes/ http://alyssasmith.wordpress.com/2008/10/15/fall-party-the-joys-of-teaching-and-pumpkin-pancakes/#comments Wed, 15 Oct 2008 21:14:00 +0000 alyssasmith http://alyssasmith.wordpress.com/?p=46 ]]> One of the student’s hightlights of this season is the Fall Party. Each year, the party takes on a different theme and this years was Black and White. As you can imagine, this theme was so broad, the costumes ranged from students dressed up as Black Tea to Oreos and Milk (they won the most creative costume). Some of the other hightlights included Black and White Chess pieces and things sold on the black market…so funny. Here are some pictures…

Two of my collegues dressed up as a Kidney and um...not quite sure. It's a bit sketchy.

My clown friend and I...a picasso portrait. I was the most expensive thing there.

So this semester has been easier than the last in some ways and a bit more crazy in others. BFA is going through the reaccreditation process with ACSI (Association of Christian Schools International). You have to reapply every 10 years so here we are. It has involved more work on our (teachers) parts which has been challenging on top of other school duties…not to mention remembering to go to meetings at 8am in the morning. I realize that isn’t very early but man, I must have no memory because I’m always forgetting! I’d appreciate prayers for patience, diligence in doing what needs to get done and maybe a better memory? Let’s start with the first two things at least.

So far as my feisty class goes, there are still days when I think I’m going to loose my mind. They are very talkative and although sometimes their conversations are interesting (anyone interested in learning about the slovenian school system?), it’s getting harder to get some of the students motivated to complete their work. Please pray that I can channel their willingness to talk into something constructive!

These past couple of weeks Becky’s Uncle and Aunt were here visiting us. It was fun to be able to take them around and have them meet people here. We took a trip to Frieiburg on the regional train this past weekend. The hour car ride is only supposed to take 20 minutes on the train…but about 10 minutes into the trip, the train stopped. Apparently, there were children playing on the track and something must have happened because about 5 minutes later, the conductor announced that everyone was to get off the train because they were heading back to Basel! So strange. We got off along with everyone and spent the next hour in Heitersheim talking with a nice German couple, eating chocolate and reading James and the Giant Peach. Kind of funny and wonderful.

A pretty view of Freiburg. Becky and I took her Aunt and Uncle here this past weekend. Such a pretty town about an hour away.

Today Becky and I had our small group over for dinner before small group time. The dorm girls are always really excited to have a home cooked meal and everyone was glad to have the time to get to know eachother better. We made a bunch of different kinds of pancakes and I have to say they were really good…blueberry, chocolate and pumpkin. If you’ve never had pumpkind pancakes, you’ve got to try them. The recipe is a bit involved but quite amazing. Here’s the link to the recipe if anyone wants to try it:

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/SPICED-PUMPKIN-PANCAKES-104198

They don’t have canned pumpkin in Germany so we bought a pumpkin and made puree ourselves…it was an adventure (just imagine pumpkin flying out of a blender) but we finally got the hang of it and mastered pumpkin puree

That’s it for now!

much love

Becky and I are leading a girl’s small group again this year and it has been so rewarding even in these first three weeks. We have six Junior girls in our group and they are so precious! It’s exciting to see their desire to know God and I’m praying that we will be able to grow together this year.

Towards the end of the evening there were at least three girls that shared their concern for friends of theirs who need encouragement and prayer. I have been realizing more and more how many students here are broken, lonely and hurting. Just because students grow up in a Christian home or in a Missionary home doesn’t mean that all is well with their souls. Many students have been turned away by the hypocrisy they have seen in the Church and need to refocus their attention on the only one who has and will always follow through on His Word. Please, Please pray with me for the MKs here at BFA. Pray that those who seek Truth would find it in the Lord and be blown away at what is gained when all is lost in Him. Pray for me as well as I continue to learn what it means to make God the King over my life.

Last week, my two roommates and I got to relax a bit and went out to eat with one of our friends Ramona. Becky and I got to know Ramona at the end of the summer as we started attending a german church and it has been such a blessing to hang out with her.

My Roommates!

Ramona und mich

The view from outside my window

Summer officially finished August 27th. The summer was full of wonderful memories and seeing much loved family and friends. I’ll be sending out a news letter soon (hopefully) about all that but just want to update on the more recent news. The biggest news of the summer was the move to “The Harris House”. One of my friends Delice (a french MK that I met back in middle school) and her family live here in Kandern. Her family went back to the States for a year of home assignment so Becky and I moved in with her! They live in one of the oldest buildings in Kandern (more than 600 years old) and it’s definitely been an adventure so far.

Typical grill out? I think not. My roommates and I along with a couple friends grilled out with one of those new fangled gas grills and all of a sudden, fire started consuming the nobs controling the gas and quickly began spreading. Really kind of funny in a "I can't believe this is actually happening" way...I ran for the baking soda only to realize that there was no way to put it out without first turning off the gas. Yeah, so we got a guy to risk his life doing that and then I put the rest of the fire out with my B.S. haha..

Before the fire

The first day students were back, energy was high on the Black Forest Academy campus. Students who had been separated for the whole summer were reunited. As they live here most of the year and share life together it’s almost like watching siblings reunite….such a wonderful sight. It is also heart breaking to watch parents letting go and seeing students struggle with home sickness.

I’m teaching Foundations of Art and Drawing and Painting I this semester (two classes of each). This past week was the third week teaching and everything is going relatively smoothly. Both of my Drawing and Painting classes are going extremely well and students have really commited to the class and the work I’m having them do which is exciting to see. One of my Foundations classes has been more of a struggle as it is much larger than any of my other classes. They are also extrememly CHATTY…classroom management here we come Other than that I love my students and am stoked about developing relationships with old students/getting to know new students.

One of my Drawing and Painting classes on the first day of school

On the first day of school, I set up pictures of art all over the room. I had all the students get up and pick two pictures off the wall. One piece that reminded them of where they grew up and one piece that they thought represented their personality or character is some way. It was a great time to get to know them a bit through their explanations. The answers ranged from “The women in the drawing remind me of my aunts back in Kenya” to “This painting reminds me of where I grew up in the Czech Republic”.  I love hearing a bit of their story and hope that more will surface as the semester goes on.

This last week, High School small groups started up. Becky and I are excited about our group. Three of the girls are from last year and then we have four news girls. They all really want to be learning more deeply in their faith and growing closer to God which is so beautiful and refreshing to see. These next pics are just a couple of the collages I did for our small group girls.

So the last part of this post is that yes, I joined a german aerobics class. Pretty great. It’s a free class that uses the school’s gym every Tuesday and Thursday night. An american woman leads it as a ministry to the german community. It’s been fun and I’m slowly getting to know some of the women there.

Ok, this is all for now…I’m seriously going to try updating this maybe once every couple of weeks. The hardest part is getting caught up

Got to go Lesson plan…yay yay

i have found what you are like
        the rain,

                (Who feathers frightened fields
        with the superior dust-of-sleep. wields

        easily the pale club of the wind
        and swirled justly souls of flower strike

        the air in utterable coolness

        deeds of green thrilling light
                                      with thinned

        newfragile yellows

                          lurch and.press

        -in the woods
                     which
                          stutter
                                 and

                                    sing

These past few days I’ve had some time to spend outside and it has been wonderfully refreshing to delight in the wind, colors and sounds of the trees. What a creative God…I’m in wonder.

There is an art show, graduation, summer plans, etc to catch you up on but that will have to wait. More to come…