In our unusual celebration of Christmas this year - in Europe, away from family - we are reminded and comforted especially that Christ is with all of us, near and far.
There was a Christmas party with a nice dinner out followed by a raucous Secret Santa gift exchange, original artwork revealed, poetry read, and a lighting of the Advent wreath candles and a time of liturgy and prayer together.
There was a semester end open house held for each of our service-learning partners at one of our favorite cafes, which brought stories and reports of very positive effects of (and on) our students serving and learning within multiple Hungarian contexts and alongside many many competent and phenomenal change agents and teachers in Budapest.
For me, there was reading over 300 journal entries, final papers, and other semester-end writing, along with two full days of individual meetings with students to go over lessons learned, goals for back home, reflections and challenges. Grades are now in, and the lessons continue for all of us.
There was a service of Lessons and Carols at St. Columba's Scottish Presbyterian Church, and then on the fourth Sunday of Advent, (this week), the Paradise Singers, the singing group directed this fall by one of our students, Aemelia Tripp, (and in which Julie sang, along with several of our students) participated in and led worship after a semester of weekly practice.
There was an evening of games, and a dinner out with our new friends Zoltan and Andrea, and their son Peter. We enjoyed playing Ticket to Ride, Europe, and being able to walk from our home just a few blocks with them to a wonderful dinner at Okay Italia.
We have enjoyed multiple trips to the various Christmas markets all around the city, but mostly at our favorite St. Stephen's Plaza, and the main market at Vorosmarty Square. Lights and Advent wreaths occupy most public spaces, and the city is vibrant in this anticipatory time. We had snow on the ground for a day, and have continued to enjoy walks across the wonderful bridges across the Danube.
Today we pack up and fly away temporarily as we begin our two-week whirlwind of western Europe. To Paris today and over Christmas. We hope to see and worship in the Cathedral at Notre Dame, visit the Scottish Presbyterian mission congregation on Christmas, summit the Eiffel Tower, wander the streets of Paris, maybe see the Louvre and Versailles, but we are fairly loose with our planning. It's all bonus after this fall. Then on Tuesday we train to Amsterdam for a few days of enjoying Holland. Then an overnight train will take us to Berlin for New Year's eve and the first few days of 2012. We will connect with our friends Mary Buteyn and her daughter Abigail, as Mary directs a Calvin German Interim group there. Then we finish with two days in Vienna with our friends Jeffrey and Lisa Schra and their kids Willem and Xander. After that our final weekend will be in Budapest before we leave for home ourselves on January 9th.
As our students arrive home, literally as I am writing this, I am struck again with a powerful sense of gratitude. Our regular practice as a group this semester has been to observe the liturgy as presented in the book Common Prayer: A Liturgy for Ordinary Radicals, and each time the worship would end with this blessing, which I'll offer now to you:
May the peace of the Lord Christ go with you,
Wherever He may send you.
May He guide you through the wilderness,
Protect you through the storm.
May He bring you home rejoicing
at the wonders He has shown you.
May He bring you home rejoicing
once again into our doors.
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| A few more reminders of how spoiled we've been on our morning walks around the city... |
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| Majestic Parliament. |
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