Daydreaming....

Today. was a good day. I worked only with the Albers kids Zach and Dani (6/7th), Lyssie (1st) and Aasia (pre). It was fun actually- The middle schoolers are focusing on writing currently so we made up a bunch of stories today to go with a certain tone- like "scary" or "hopeful" or "dreadful" or "overjoyed". Kinda like charades but for writing stories. Then Lyssie amazed me with her top notch writing for a kid who just learned how. And Aasia- well Aasia has some mad coloring skills : )

I took my afternoon off to venture into the city and people watch, eat lunch at St. Paul's cultural center (also my church), drink coffee, study some Turkish on my own and just take in more of this beautiful city that I live in (or at least close to). I rounded the bend of a busy street where they just finished some ongoing construction on a new tram line, and took in the view. Busy streets, winter haze in the air, people bundled up, the mountains capped with beautiful snow, the clock tower, the fountain, the cliffs overlooking the sea... I found myself sitting down on a bench- drinking my coffee- still in my daydream. And then, in a snap, I woke up and realized that I wasn't daydreaming like I so often do back home... that I was actually here- seeing this stuff right before my eyes- I was taking part in the busy street, and the turks out enjoying the view and afternoon. It was an incredible moment for me. And I felt a little nudge from the Lord saying- yes, you're really here and I love you! It was awesome. I mean it was a moment of pure beauty... and it's not like that all the time here : ) So here's to not daydreaming every once in awhile... but actually being in the thick of it and enjoying it while you're there.