arrêt!

"...avec l'accent américain"

Tonight I have taken it upon myself to tell you a few of my most recent going-ons. It's approximately 12:25 am here, and I'm not particularly tired, though I am fully dressed for bed.

This evening I had a most unfortunate accident that involved a toilet. Françoise and I went to a movie at 9 (Séraphine) after having a fish and potato dinner, which was great, with the exception of the fish bones stabbing my cheeks. The problem that arose, I think, was the combination of it with a stomach full of hot milk (as I had just come from the Gorrells's where I was served hot chocolate with actual milk). Fast-forward thirty minutes and you find me frantically searching for the exit. After much confusion, as I actually exited the building and had to explain (very poorly in french to the ticket-person) that I had already paid and would like to be let back in free-of-charge, I arrived at the restroom.

I will spare you all those details, save one. As I walked in I searched for the light switch and found none. I thought, "Ahh, another weird European thing. No light switch. Whatever". Two minutes passed, and I was suddenly in total darkness; I then realized that the bathroom light in fact was activated by a motion sensor. Not a huge problem if you're in the bathroom for two minutes or less, but considering my, err, condition, one can imagine the nuisance the flickering light became...

All that to say, I eventually came home, not finishing the movie, and leaving poor Françoise to wonder where I was and what I was up to. I called her daughter once I got back to the apartment to let someone know that I was alive (Françoise had not taken her key or cellphone..oh la). When Françoise returned she was sympathetic to my plight and politely informed me that her daughter was in Copenhagen...As she would say, ahh messe!

So yeah. Classes are going well despite my "game of hookie" this Thursday. Did I spell that right? Hookie? Hookey? I don't know if I've ever read that word. It was one of those mornings that I chose to be courteous to others by not showing up forty-five minutes late. At least that's the way I'm choosing to look at it :) Josette, my prof, was even particularly friendly to me today. She asked me if I was ok and answered all of my questions without her usual edge of disdain. Worry not readers; I have discovered through careful objective observation that Josette is casually rude to everyone in my class.

I went to my first CILEC party this Wednesday night. Discovered that I haven't been missing much. I just don't really enjoy staying up until 2 am, dancing to The Jackson Five while downing cheap beer. Am I the only person who feels that way? ;) In fact, that's not all entirely true: I do love dancing to The Jackson Five, or any music, in my kitchen at 405 Glade St. wh09p!

Though I desperately wanted to leave, and was detained from doing so by my very protective Bosnian 'big brother', some good things came of the evening. I met an Italian gal named Pamela, haha, and I think she's pretty swell. Thus far I have yet to meet a Pamela I haven't liked :) Srdan also told me that he thinks I'm less timid since he first met me, which led into a better conversation about how I appreciate him as a friend. He also gave me a little more insight into his past. That, I think, will be important information for the future.

I just realized I've been recounting my week to you backwards. I like this; let's continue shall we?

So Tuesday Françoise invited me to a birthday party for her friend, Odile, whom I was already acquainted with. Odile was turning 51, so her gal pals from the junior high they all work(ed) at showed up at Odile's house to celebrate. We had an apéro for ohh, four hours. Was I tired? You bet. Did I want to be there past 7? Not at all. Knowing this will help you understand what the Lord has been teaching me these past few weeks: dying to myself. And gosh, it's hard. After finishing-ish the apératif, the young people reconvened in a back bedroom to talk about the states and attempt conversation in English. Found out after the fact, that one of the ladies' sons who wanted to chat in English with me, is a pathological liar. "C'est une maladie" as Françoise would say, and I think I would say, "Je suis d'accord avec toi". Didn't get his email address because he doesn't have one, allegedly. At the time I just dismissed it as an archaic French thing, but after discovering the truth (haha), I think I may reconsider his hesitancy to give me any form of contact of information. Hmmm. Odile's daughter, Caroline, however, was very charming, and her hair framed her face like a lion's mane. Seriously, she has the wildest look about her. She loves Johnny Depp and Chuck Norris, so obviously we got along smashingly. I'm hoping to meet up with her again before I leave.

Monday was perhaps the most exciting day of this week. One of Françoise's friends is an English professor at the junior high Françoise used to teach at, so they arranged for me to give a short presentation to the students about the US. I was really nervous before getting there because I hadn't really prepared anything, not for lack of desire or laziness, but because Marie-Claude (the English prof) insisted that I didn't need anything. So I waltzed in, charmed one little boy before I even opened my mouth, and awaited my instructions. Marie-Claude had each student introduce themselves and raise their hands to pose questions. The questions were on the whole pretty terrific and I marveled at their intelligence (these kids were 11-13 years old). They asked me things like, "Is the climate the same in Texas as it is in Morocco?" (due to the latitude) "Do people drive on the left or the right side of the road?" "How old do you have to be to bear arms?" (which I think I answered incorrectly; 10 years old?) "Are people in America really obese?" "Do you know any famous people?" "Do you like to skate-board?" "What do people do for fun at night?" They were very receptive and seemed to want to know what I had to say. I felt a little lousy for not being more prepared, but I've been invited back. That's a good sign, right?

Oh Mom, Bryan Adams is playing...the only thing I want, the only thing I need, the only thing I choose...the only thing that looks good on me... :)

Excuse me.
So, I'm hoping to go back to the junior high, even if that involves skipping class. How often do foreign students get insight into real French school rooms? Not very, I think. Poor Françoise, she thought I was terribly ill and here I am listening to Bryan Adams and typing noisily.

Monday evening, in true Brooke fashion, I was late to a dinner date with a friend from church. In truth the dinner was scheduled for 6, but my friend thought it is was scheduled for 5...thus making me an hour late. It was terrible, but I think I've been forgiven. When I told Srdan and Julian about this, they said that the only reason my friend waited was because of that "church love". Hmm, that's pretty close, I guess to Christ's love :)

The weekend was splendid. I met a French family who had lived in the states for six years on Sunday, so I had a great time chatting it up with them in English. They were conspicuous admirers of America, if you know what I mean. They are relatives of Françoise, and she knew they would enjoy Coke. So she bought 4, 2L bottles of Coke zero. They drank two of them, often passing over the delicious red wine, for a glass of Coke. Their youngest son, Juan, asked me at least three times if I had an "amour" (= boyfriend). Every time I had to mask my giggling while responding 'no, not yet'.

I also had the pleasure of meeting Françoise's son, Clement. He showed me around town Saturday evening and we met up with some of his friends later that night. They were gamers, if that means anything to you. Maybe to give you a better idea, I might need to describe Thierry's bedroom: eastern wall-Dragon tapestry, bedroom door-animé, various cartoons on the walls. They loved talking in English and talking about politics. I was only slightly uncomfortable when Thierry began to smoke something quite illegal... eek! That led to an interesting conversation; they smoke pot, but they don't talk about it with their parents. I asked them how they would react if their kids started smoking pot. They said they would never encourage it and tell their kids that they should do it in moderation. I thought that was extremely fascinating: here they are saying it's no big deal to smoke pot, yet saying it's dangerous.

Saturday i also had the chance to attend a ladies' seminar in a little town west of Lyon, Marrennes. It's so pretty! I hope to find other French villages like it before I leave. Anyway, the topic of the seminar was the power of our words and letting go of words that have hurt us in the past. We read a ton of proverbs and the passage in James about the tongue being like a rudder to a ship. The passages were excellent, bien sur, but I cherished most the time I got to spend with the ladies from the church. They're all my parents' age, so I really felt like I was with three pseudo-moms rather than with friends. There's just so much one can glean from the experiences of older women.

A very agreeable weekend. Had a great convo about the Lord with Srdan last Thursday. It mainly centered around my life being so different from his. I'm hoping that he won't just accept that as something natural; that each life is just different and that the differences are purely cultural. I was able to tell him a lot about my convictions as a believer and how much more satisfying it has been to live by the spirit...Maybe it was a bit lofty, but he seemed entirely engrossed and kept telling me that he "really wants to understand why I am the way I am".

Thank you to all of you have been praying for Srdan. I think his heart is most fertile to the things of the Lord, so keep praying! I have a new friend you can keep in mind too. Her name is Juzelena, and she has just arrived here from Sao Tome. She's 17 and has really attached to me. I think she's Catholic, but I'm not really sure. Anyway, if you can remember think to pray for her protection and peace of mind while she's here; she's really homesick and she misses her twin sister.

I love you all, and if I remember, I'll dig up some old pictures for you :)


Most of my love, i send to you :))))))))

mais, quand même!

"les montagnes sont incroyables"

Oh gosh I'm full. I've eaten so much within in the last three days that my stomach wants to explode. It's been awhile, eh friends? Well...within the last two weeks I've had quite a few adventures and some of them are worth recounting to you now. Allez-y!

I went to my first professional soccer match a week and a half ago. Truly I was reminded of a drunker, rowdier, smellier twelfth man.

The guy standing on the top of the fence led cheers all night. They call the cheers 'songs' which I'm guessing is more masculine(the crowd was 98.7 % male)...?

The best part of the night: some rando offered me a swig of alcohol from a re-used two liter coke bottle while teetering left and right with a cig hanging off his bottom lip. I politely declined and turned my head to gag. The alcohol had colorful things floating in it...This moment was supreme because it reminded me of a really terrible movie. A terrible movie that you laugh about with your friends, that is. Worst part of the evening: discovering that Turkish baths do still exist in France. Again, I gagged, but in plain view of all those around me. Seriously, this is the 21st century!!

Classes are in full-swing and twice already I've been called out for my tardiness. I thought I was in France, where the people lay around until noon and then take a two-hour lunch break. Despite my character flaws, things are going well with my classmates. I really like the size of my class (8 students) and the people in class with me. Everyone is usually in good spirits and everyone knows how to handle criticism. I was kind of afraid that the Russian Muslim in my class might be a bit testy, but he's turned out to be great! There's also a Chinese girl, a Polish lady, a Brazilian fellow, an Indonesian guy, the Guatamerican chica, Srdan, and myself. Even Josette, the French teach, has turned out to be all right. I think she likes to correct me in english more for the sake of showing off rather than trying to insult me. At least I hope that's why she switches to english, haha.

Question: do my facial expressions convey non-comprehension? I feel like of all the other students in my class, my professors slow down their words when they direct their attention towards me. En fait, i think they make concerted efforts to simplify the language for me...

Srdan and I've been having a grand time. He's dubbed me his "little sister", pronouncing every syllable and letter, mind you. Srdan, Sigo (his french wife), Julian, and I went to a classmate's (Romûlo, the Brazilian fellow) house for a soirée last weekend. We had a blasty hanging out with all the Korean and Japanese kids.



L-R: Srdan, Julian, Sigo

As far as my electives go, I've chosen the following: French Lit, Lexical Enrichment, and GrammAr. Blah. The lit class (I hope) will be interesting. We're reading only autobiograhies and the summaries of each of the novels appealed to me.

Ps. I'm listening to the radio right now and I think there's a new song out by Alanis Morisette...Am I right?

Our first exercise in the Lexical class was to describe each of the Zodiaque/Astrological signs, ahaha! I laugh because the night before I left, Bre, Julie, Bill, Brian and I all sat around reading what our astrological traits were from a French workbook I have. Remember that time guys? It was special.

I met another American on my way to church last weekend. I actually knew she would be going to church because Ruth Ann showed me her picture and told me she was coming. Naturally, I walked up to her on the bus and asked her who she was because I had just seen a picture of her...I've maintained my creepiness. Her name is Christie and she is here as an English professor. She graduated from Ohio State in 2006 and she was a Chi-O. How's that for an exposé? Anyway, Srdan and I ran into Christie later on Sunday afternoon at a Hip-Hop competition. Speaking of Hip-Hop, Chris Brown just came on. I think I'll have to break it down for a minute. Excuse me.

After my week of auditing modules, I traveled to a little town south of Grenoble. I was informed by my professor this morning that I visited a region called Oisans. My purpose in visiting the area? To hike in the ALPS!! Yes, I hiked (or rather walked for a long time) in the Alps this weekend. Sooooo beautiful and indescribable. Even the pictures I took cannot capture the magnificence of the mountains. Think of that and then compare it to our God...

Psa 76:4
Glorious are you, more majestic than the mountains of prey.
Psa 97:5
The mountains melt like wax before the Lord , before the Lord of all the earth.

Mmm


I forgot to mention who I went to the Alps with...my church! The church is pretty small (about 40 regular members) so we were able to enjoy ourselves without feeling like everyone needed to meet at least 20 new people. The members of the church were all acquainted with each other and most of them were pretty good friends. There were also quite a few young people, at least 10, who hang out together outside of church. I watched Alvin and the Chipmunks one evening in the boys' cabin and I laughed my head off. There's just something so hilarious about watching Alvin and the Chipmunks in French.

The English girls in the church, Rebecca and Charlotte, are really sweet. I told them that I would love to have lunch one day with them, but the high-school kids here are extraordinarily busy. With academics. I immediately felt homesick after discovering how difficult it would be to coordinate a meal with them. At home, I have a car. At home, I know where everything is: every restaurant/coffee shop, every shopping center, every free wi-fi connection, every one of my friends' houses, nearly every street that's important. And if I don't know where something is, usually someone else can give me directions, or google maps in tandem with my knowledge of the city will get me where I need to go. Ahhhh, but I digress.


School is keeping me busy, but keeping with my new friends as well as those I've left behind is getting to be tricky! Perhaps this is a lesson...a lesson in humility. I've always been so proud of my ability to keep up with people. This is good for me.

Updates on my lost friends: Julian has a N.T. in French. Some evangelistic group gave it to him, and he asked me the other day if I would like it. After reading him one of my favorite verses, which i more or less ripped off of Christy Nockels, he and Srdan asked me if I thought God has time for anyone. I said yes, God has time for everyone, and they replied that I must be everyone... All that to say Julian has a N.T. and what an opportunity that presents :)

I hope you all are well! I miss everyone everyday, but I know that we'll see each other again soon :) Send me some mails if you have time...

une étrangère

"...the US? Texas? ...Ah."

So, it's mid-week (did I hear a holler from my fellow students?) and I've decided to free-verse you a lil' somethin', somethin' about the goings-on here in France:

Françoise, Françoise you crazy cat,
I don't know how you get around like that!
You got one ankle twisted and the other old,
what you gonna do when the weather get cold?

i said "uh-oh"....I said "uh-oh"

Now listen up all you 'merican hateuhs
you don't know my life so i check you latuhs
i like tea and like coffee (sometimes)
make me a croissant and don't be snobby

i said "oh lala lala la", "oh lalalalalala"

the kids from eastern europe do it right
they wanna buy me lunches and stay real tight
bosnia, albania, turkey, and sudan (africuuuuh)
call me on my portable which is never in my hand

cuzzzzz myyyyyy lipglosssssss is Poppin'. It's Poppin'. It's Poppin'. It's Poppin'.


Alors, est-ce tu comprends? I get asked that ...tout le temps! My professor, for four days a week, three hours a day, announced her overwhelming dislike for the United States the first day of class without knowing my origins. Awkward. What do you say to that, right? Literally five minutes after she made this grandiose proclamation, it was my turn to say who I was and where I came from. My new Bosnian friend and I exchanged glances and raised eyebrows during her tirade. Oh lala. C'est la vie, oui?

Aside from that awkwardness in class, as my professor regularly points out the failings of the US to me in her asides, things are going well! Ha ha, yes they are. Françoise and I are getting along smashingly, albeit she's very sacrilegious and enjoys crude humor. I guess I hadn't caught on to the humor yet because a) I parlez english and b) her friend, Claire, had to explain it to me once while Françoise was doubled over laughing at one of her own jokes. Now laughing at your own jokes, there I can definitely identify with Françoise, haha! ...

Back to my country. Back to the discussion of the US. Now, for those of you who have studied abroad or lived in another country for longer than a period of three days, were you regularly told the politics, economics, and history of your country? It seems to me that everyone who is not a citizen of the US thinks that their understanding of the United States is superior to mine, and they must therefore explain to me 'what the united states is all about'. I've just observed this recently as my french has been improving (yay) and i've met more people (yay). C'est bizarre, non?

Ok. I'm done with that. I've made a few new friends within the past three days. Some of the girls from the church who are in the youth group have added me as friends on facebook and texted me. I'm not sure how they got my number, but I was glad for the texts. Since going to the youth group and meeting the youth minister, I've had this urge to be a part of some kind og discipleship ministry for the girls in the group. The group is in fact mostly comprised of young ladies. Anyway, they're charming gals and they love to chat it up.

My new friends from school are the ones I mentioned above in my free-verse rap. A guy from Bosnia, Srdan, who is married to a French gal. A guy from Albania, Julian, who is 32 and just finished studying in Italy. A guy from Sudan, Makewo, who is playing semi-professional sports for a St. Etienne basketball team. Enfin, a girl from Turkey, Cemile (pronounced "Jay-muh-lay"), who is super sweet and speaks close to zero French. Her english is better, but barely. None of these new friends know the Lord. In fact, they all come from countries where Islam and Atheism are highly prevalent.

I've met most of the Americans who have come to St. Etienne through the exchange program ISEP, but I am trying to stay away from them. They're all really nice, but we always speak English and I think aside from one girl, they're all beginners in French. C'est dommage.

Tomorrow, I'm getting my sportspass which is not the same thing as a sportspass at TAMU. It will allow me to take aerobics classes and stretching classes, otherwise known as Yoga. Très cool, yeah? Sorry mom, there are no football teams at Université Jean Monnet.


In keeping with my tradition of making a fool of myself (je suis bete), I've got a couple little stories for you ags & friends:

-today i went to the university bible study and noticed that one of the young men was wearing what appeared to be a gold clarinet around his neck. i began the conversation nicely enough by asking what he played, to which he responded "clarinet". i said, thinking very highly of my intelligence, 'yeah we call them clarinets in english'. to which he said in english, 'they're called saxophones in english'. ...oh lala!

-situation: brooke is on a tram texting furiously. leering person is getting closer and closer. and conversation commences. leering guy:"blahblahblah (en francais)", brooke:"je suis americaine. (en francais:) i don't speak french very well". leering guy: "blahblah je peux avoir votre numero?" brooke: "ok. hold on", reaches in bag and proceeds to tell leering guy her number. oh lala.
one may be wondering at this point why brooke gave her number to someone who she didn't know, met on a tram, and was leering...the answer is clear! because she is a fool. leering guy was harmless, but really, that's like breaking the first rule of international travel and the first rule of making friends.
was he cute enough to merit the number? ... je suis bete.


and now for the most important aspect of my life, the spiritual. I had my first conversation about the Lord with Julian the Albanian and Srdan, the Bosnian over coffee after the first day of school. I was surprised by their looks of shock when they found out i believed in God and that I regularly attended church. now, for them, it is merely something to do. i didn't explain to them why i think people exist, as that was the question we were tossing around. the albanian guy, Julian, was very passionate about believing that the world was created by the big bang and he attempted to justify every reason why science had disproven God. up until that point he had been a very calm, happy-go-lucky guy. over coffee, he was flagrantly opposed to any notion of God and wanted us to be quick to understand that. Srdan on the other hand said that he believes something greater than us exists, though he's not sure what. his wife is a practicing Catholic, but his parents are atheists. i can imagine the difficulty in reconciling the two life patterns. Today we were talking about getting drunk and what our reasons were for being wise about how much alcohol we consume. after a few laughs about americans getting totally smashed when they travel abroad, i mentioned that scripture tells us to be filled with the holy spirit rather than with alcohol. it came up pretty naturally as Srdan had just been talking about the importance of being wise even when you're drinking something that removes your inhibitions. of course he said it a less eloquently than that but that was the general gist.

Please think of my new friends when you pray this week. Pray that they will be able to see Christ in my life, and the Lord would give me His words to share with them.


So things are progressing in many areas of my life. I know that the Lord has brought me here to share my life with new people and thereby share Christ's love.

I love you all and I hope you are encouraged this week! Please let me know if I can be praying for you in any way :)