LOVE WELL

Should I stay or should I go?

Thus brings me to the topic on everyone's mind. You have no idea how many times per day I get asked how long I will be here in Italy, if I have made up my mind about staying, where I've decided to go to school, etc. Those of you that know me best know that I hate making decisions...especially big life decisions that shape my entire future. It is very difficult for me and these topics are a source of major stress in my life right now. This is partly why I have not been blogging nearly as much as usual, because every moment of my free time is taken over by online research on various topics and schools, as well as getting some much needed counsel from loved ones. Ironic that I'm the one wanting to go to school to become a counselor.

Anyway, I haven't quite made up my mind yet as my opinions on the matter change daily. There are far too many details and pros/cons that go into this for me to even begin to describe. It's funny because during the first 3 or 4 months that I was in Italy, I completely ignored all of these decisions and was just wanting to enjoy my time here. I commented that I felt like I was watching a movie of my life and just waiting to see what would happen next. I played a very inactive role in actually making any decisions. I guess that finally caught up with me and I realized that I need to be getting some things done myself and taking the initiative to plan my future. Now, that has completely taken over and often I feel like I can't just live my life here in Italy and enjoy it in the moment.

I am working on a compromise between the two ideas.

A decision will have to be made very very soon, so I will be sure to keep you posted. However, if you want more info than what I am willing to post on my blog for the entire world to see, you will have to give me a call or an email/message and I would love to chat more. I miss all of you back home...you mean the world to me. Keep praying that our all-knowing God will continue to cradle me in His mighty hands and never let me go.

On a more light-hearted note... Halloween here was a blast. We had a great party at a bed and breakfast in a vineyard overlooking the entire countryside. The costumes were great, the food delicious and full of pumpkin, the dancing was classic, and there was a wonderful international guest list including a few other Americans that I hadn't met yet! For my costume, I decided to fully embrace my Americana in all its glory. The only downside to the night was the rain outside which put a damper on our adventure to the discoteca after the party. But when I say adventure... I mean it. We were 3 full sized adults, dressed ridiculously, and piled into a little clown car (aka SMART car). Needless to say, Steve and I got very close very quickly. Good times!

posted under Adventure, Spiritual | 0 Comments

What would Italy be without wine...?

Ok, I must apologize for the lack of blogging lately. It's a long story, but I've been very focused and caught up in the mess of trying to plan my entire future. It has taken up the majority of the little bit of free time that I leave myself here. However, that is all another story for another day.

Our prized white truffle

For now, I wanted to update everyone on how the truffle tasting went! I know the suspense has been killing you. We had quite the feast, as typical here in Italy. 'If you're not going to do something the BEST, don't do it at all'. There were many courses to our meal as well as very expensive drinks. Although, the main event was the truffle. First it was brushed off and examined, then passed around the table for each person to individually examine and smell (as if the odor wasn't strong enough for our neighbors down the hill to pick up). Finally it was carefully sliced over everyone's egg pasta noodles, and next thing you know...it's gone. Just like that. Devoured. Verdict: I thought it was actually quite good. Better than I expected based on the smell. I was told that it is a bit of an acquired taste, but the taste is not very strong. From what I understand, you are mainly paying for the 'aroma'. Anyway, I would eat it again anytime that it was served to me, but I don't know that it's worth it to me to spend that kind of money on something. You guys know me...practical and cheap.

Fishing for wine

Meanwhile, the White Truffle festival here in Alba is still going on in full force. Sunday (the 17th) was a day full of truffles, games, parades, and of course wine. Vino flows like water through the streets here in Alba...literally. I walked right through a river of red wine on accident and almost ruined some of my new shoes. Everyone in town that was working the festival was dressed in their full renaissance garments. The town center was divided into different sections for each 'borg' to decorate and show off their traditional foods, wines, and other gift items. They also had all kinds of games and competitions such as archery, dart throwing (where the target was a hanging piece of salami), ringing a wine bottle with a fishing pole, and guessing which house a guinea pig would go into. Each of these cost €1 to participate in and guess what you win?!? A bottle of wine. Needless to say, throughout the morning/afternoon/evening you couldn't walk through the streets without seeing groups of families and friends passing around their winnings and then going back for more. I actually saw one big group hanging out by the salami darts game while their chosen competitors were winning bottle after bottle and giving them each to the mother who was using the bottom shelf her sleeping baby's stroller to stack and transport all of them home. All in all, it was a great day of being with friends and making new ones!

Next topic...Halloween! We have been very deliberate about getting people together to celebrate and dress up for Halloween (because it's not really a big thing over here), but I haven't thought once about a costume. Now I've got a party to attend on Sunday night and I have no ideas. Any help? I have to find something that is easy to make or buy here in Italy, and something that Italians would know and understand. My 'host mom' has offered me her red devil horns, tail, and cape that she used while she was in D.C. a while ago. However, that's just not quite me. I mean really, we all know I'm an angel. :) I would also love to hear back from you guys on what you are going as this year!! Let me know and feel free to share any ideas with me.

posted under Culture, Friends and Family, Humor | 0 Comments

Truffles...everywhere!

Sunday, October 3rd marked the start of the 80th Annual Fiera Internazionale del Tartufo Bianco d'Alba (International Festival of the White Truffle of Alba). For those of you that don't know anything about what a truffle is, and it's not a candy, please go to the link and check out the info. It's basically a type of underground funghi that 'truffle hunters' use dogs to sniff out in the woods. My town, Alba, is obsessed with them. This festival is well-known throughout Europe and people have come here from everywhere. Every Sunday in October (and into November) there are events, markets, parades, shows, and all kinds of food. The town is packed to the brim with tourists from all over the world. It's quite crazy, but I'm loving hearing some more English speakers come to town. :)

The first Sunday, I ventured out on my bicycle into town and, after navigating through an entire main street that was shut down due to the market, I ran straight into the Renaissance Parade. This was no ordinary parade. It was everywhere. Various parades through all the different streets in the main center of town hosted by different 'borgs'. There are 9 borgs here in Alba (which are like different neighborhoods or sections of town) and they each have their own names, traditions, colors, foods, etc. So the whole day was a competition between the borgs - who had the best costumes...who gave the best parade...who showed the most entertaining exhibition...and lastly, whose donkey won the race. That's right, at the end of the afternoon was the 'Palio degli Asini' (aka...the donkey race). It was one of the most ridiculous things I've seen the Italian people do. A bunch of men dressed as jockeys and riding these extremely slow and stubborn animals who proceed to stop and go the opposite direction, or better yet to jump over the hay bail barriers or buck their riders off. Yet, this is what the people of Alba live for each year. The winner of the Palio degli Asini is a very big deal.

Most importantly...how to eat the truffle. I am not an expert on this yet, but I have just been informed that Sara and Luca have purchased a white truffle so I will finally get to taste this famed food. The festival does not give out any kind of free samples because they are so expensive, in fact you have to pay just to get into the certified 'truffle market' to make a purchase. One truffle, about the size of my fist, can cost several hundred euro. You do not wash the truffle and you keep in enclosed at all times in order to preserve the very pungent odor (because that's what you're paying for). After brushing it off, you use a very special truffle slicing contraption measured for just the right thickness of slice you desire. Generally the shavings are very thin and eaten over egg noodles, eggs, or raw meat also from this region. I think our big dinner is tomorrow night, so I'll let you guys know how it goes. I hear they are an acquired taste!

posted under Culture | 0 Comments

Humorous tidbits

1. I heard a statistic this week that the average age for Italian 'children' to move out of their parent's house is now 31 years old. I think the average marriage age is about 30 years old, so this corresponds well.

2. I weighed myself for the first time since I've been in Italy (4 months)...Verdict: I have gained 7 lbs. :( I was really hoping that all the walking, hiking, biking, swimming, and playing I have been doing was counteracting the Italian food. Guess not.

3. Even though technology here is sometimes very behind, in my opinion, there are still many places with high-tech, systematic processes, and I often do not know how to carry out simple functions...like paying for food. Here are two examples from last week:

Coppa Gelato

At the Bowling Alley: As you are bowling you receive tickets (much like at Chuck E. Cheese) based on your score. I tried to simply take these to the case of prizes and tell them what I wanted. But no. First, you must enter the tickets into the counting machine to get a printed receipt. Take that to the counter, and you then must register all of your life info in order to receive a membership card. Take that card to another machine, scan the barcode, search online until you find the prize you desire, enter that code number, and get yet another receipt. Take this to the main counter and the man will go to the back room and bring you your prize. Mine was a gelato dish. :) However, they also had everything else you could think of... kitchen appliances, hair straighteners, alcohol detectors, watches, skates and skateboards, flasks, helmets/bikes, and much more.

At a Turin Discoteca: When we walked in we received a punchcard because apparently you HAVE to drink something before leaving. They stamp your card as you order drinks. Then you must take that to the cash register hub (across the room) and pay for everything. This is when we discovered in dismay that getting just a coke was going to cost 18 euros! We just wanted to dance! Anyway, they then print you another special receipt which you must present to the bouncers in order to exit. The coat check is a whole other story...

posted under Culture, Humor | 0 Comments

Our greatest commission

What am I doing here? What am I doing anywhere? Am I loving people? Am I showing God's love? Am I a disciple?

Matthew 28:16-20

This is God's call to ALL of us as Christians...not only the foreign missionaries. Thanks to a tip from a good friend of mine, I decided to download and listen to Michael Easley's message on the Great Commission at Fellowship Bible Church. It was very straightforward in showing how God has commanded us to lead our lives. It's not just a favor that He's asking politely for. It is an order from the Highest Authority.

This message came at a great time for me. I have been given the opportunity to share deep parts of my faith with three very key people in my life right now. There is, of course, much more to all of this story than what I will write in my blog, but this week has been such a great challenge and eye-opener for me regarding how I want to live my life. We are always commissioned to be His disciples. We, as Christians, are all very much sinners - saved by His grace. However, we can't let that (our imperfection) keep us from sharing what God did for each of us on the cross and the unconditional love that He has for us!

Through this, I have also been forced to back up my beliefs in many ways. Sometimes, I wish I could go back to my 11th grade Apologetics class. The witnessing of the Catholic system here has been part of what has allowed me to open up and pose questions to some people. We took Isabella (6 years old) to sign up for Catechism classes on Saturday. These will be held every other week throughout this school year to prepare her for her first communion. On Sunday, I attended mass with the family. I was able to understand a bit more than when I first moved here, but most of it was still over my head. This was mainly due not to the fact that I can't speak Italian, but that I'm not a part of the Catholic faith and don't know any of the movements, sayings/repetitions, songs, etc. For reasons I don't know, I was forced to sit in the very front row, right on the center isle. I was about eight feet from the priest (whom I have met several times), and it seemed like he was glaring at me the entire time for being there and not participating in anything. I'm sure this feeling was just because I felt so out of place. The only thing I did participate in was at the end when everyone shook hands and said 'Pace', which means Peace. The whole experience opened up many doors for me to learn about others and ask/receive stirring questions.

People here are born into Catholicism. However, many people that I've encountered so far (Catholics included) do not actually believe in a God. When I ask why they are Catholic, they respond something like "because my parents raised me this way", or better yet, "because I'm Italian". I have also been asked recently "and what about you? Are your parents also protestant Christian?" To which I respond, "Yes, my parents raised me in the Christian faith", but I hope that we all have better answers than that. I believe that I was fortunate enough to grow up in a family that also believes the Truth! It was my decision to believe what I do, and I want to share this faith with everyone. I want to be the disciple that God has called me to be.

Many people here can tell that I am very different. I stand out for sure. My prayer is that this won't be just because I'm American, but because I'm a follower of God. I hope this has been the case so far, but I want to make it clear. I have to pour out God's love.

posted under Spiritual | 2 Comments