Check out the blogs from...
2005,
December, November, October, September,
August, July, June, May,
April, March, February, January,
or 2003!

Return to the Dog House!

Quote of the Blog:
"Aujourd'hui je me suis arrêté, un moment pour regarder toutes les choses que mon voisin a eues, toutes les choses que j'ai jamais eues...Mais...aujourd'hui je me suis arrêté, un moment pour regarder toutes les choses que mon voisin a pu, toutes les choses que j'ai toujours eues." - Aujourd'hui, Luc Tardif

Saturday, July 31, 2004 10:49pm So...it's my first time back online since getting back to good ol' Mississauga yesterday afternoon, my first (and probably last) update for the month of July. And well...I think the lyrics above from one of the French CDs I bought in Nova Scotia sums up in general what I experienced every day during these past 5 weeks. "Today I stopped myself, a moment to look at all the things that my neighbor had, all the things that I never had...But...today I stopped myself, a moment to look at all the things that my neighbor could have, all the things that I always had." - Today, Luc Tardif

For those who don't know, I've been away in li'l Church Point, Nova Scotia, for the past 5 weeks in a French immersion program at Université Sainte-Anne. And yes - French immersion meant all French, except for communication back home with family and friends and written English in your room with the door closed.

It was quite the experience - in all aspects: Psychological - just being away from home for the first time all by myself, in a totally different province, speaking a totally different language Emotionally - summed up in just one word: homesickness Physically - hehe...all the extra food I was intaking and all the extra exercise I was getting from all the walking on campus and stairs Spiritually - learning to trust and rely on God when there was no one else to rely on, learning how to worship alone, when the chance for Christian fellowship was rare It was a time to learn - not just French communication skills and how to be independent, but also about people, life in general, and well, myself.

It was a time of many realizations.

One of the first things I realized was (of course) how much of a role support from church, family, and friends played - and still plays - in my life. How homesickness during the first 2 weeks made me realize that I had more than a few good reasons to miss home: loving parents, a crazy sister, great fellowship, wise "aunties" and "uncles", my own bed with a soft mattress, a bathroom shared with only 1 other person rather than 5 others...and well, just the comforts of home.

It made me realize the importance of belonging to a community of Christians. Even though I was able to go to Emmanuel Baptist Church (a small, English-speaking, and extremely friendly church) for Sunday services, I still didn't quite "belong"...cuz no matter how one looked at it, I was only a visitor.

It made me realize that I am nothing, but just one terrified girl in one big, materialistic world...and that this world is a scary place - with people I've never met, with beliefs that I don't understand, with values that I don't agree with.

But it also reassured me above all that God's will is good and God's timing is perfect. And that through my life, through the lives of others, through the history of Acadia, one can see that what doesn't kill you does makes you stronger, and that after the storm comes the rainbow.

But as for now...I should really be heading off to bed - it's already 12:47am...and I've gotta go to church early tomorrow morning. But I'll be sure to write more about my trip these next few days...

Still digesting all I've experienced...
     Angela

-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~-