The Art of Stretching

Well…the Lord sure is stretching me this semester. I have only to trust in him. I literally feel like I'm always just clinging to my Bible. I've never experienced such dependence on the Lord before. I just always feel like a little girl lost in a big crowd struggling to cling to her father's hand, looking up with teary eyes begging, "Please don't leave me..."

This house is the COMPLETE opposite of the other. I'm living in a tiny little apartment off the back of the house. It smells like dirty water and the bed is extremely narrow and feels like I'm just sleeping on the ground. There's no fan, and the stuffy heat and the ticking of the clock might drive me insane. Again...this is not like what I expected, but this time it's worse than what I expected. I like having the space to myself...but talk about lonely.

I’m selfish.
I’m a spoiled princess.
I need to learn contentedness.
I need to learn that you can still LIVE without some “necessities.”
I need to learn that I can do things on my own, like ride the bus. Even in another country. I need to learn that the Lord will take care of me and I have nothing to fear. I’m tired of being scared.
I need to learn to just let go.
I need to learn to be still and know the He is Lord.

This is much more like I thought this trip would be like I guess...it’s still just so weird. This family is so UN family. I don’t like that. I want to eat together, get to know them, etc. I like having my own apartment…but I don't like feeling so disconnected. I just don't know what to do when I'm at home. I wish I had some books to read or something. I have to wait another week and a half for the package from my parents...it has books in it. And whenever the other girl, Lalis, comes back...I'll be sharing the tiny apartment with her until Marisela's daughter leaves and goes back to Denver. And then I'll probably move to the tiny room inside the house next to Marisela's...and then I'll be sharing a bathroom with she and her husband. Greg says that a student stays at that house every semester...but I don't see why. So far I don't like it. A guy from JBU stayed there during the summer, so I'm trying to talk to him to see what he thought....

It's only my second day there...hang in.

Now I feel like I’m living in Mexico. I hope I keep hanging out with Judit and her brother and friends. I liked hanging out with them tonight. We went to a Jazz cafe downtown for dinner and coffee. It was nice. I just need to keep busy on the weekends. Weekends kill me...that's when I get the most lonely...because I have nothing to do and it's not like I have a car and can just drive around and explore by myself like I would in the state.

Tomorrow I’m going to take the bus to the school to use the internet. And then maybe even take it all the way to Yazmin’s house.

In other news, I found Diet Dr. Pepper this morning. It was a glorious reunion.

I’m tired…there’s too much going on in my head. I’m going to bed.

Updates

1. I got my computer to work at the school. Who knows how I did it, but thankfully it works.

2. About the addresses. Ok. Once and for all- all packages go to the El Paso address, and everything else goes to the Chihuahua address (letters, I'm assuming). P.S. I'd really love letters.

3. Call me! I have a US phone number and it's free from your very own cell phone! 1-203-270-3860. Or you can call me at my new house. 011-52-614-421-0406. Fantastic. I expect to hear all your voices soon.

Adios! More to come about the last two weeks soon...it's been a really busy day as you can imagine. My new house is MUCH different from the last...seriously. More to come. I promise.

Real Mexico, here I come...

Well I know I promised to try…and I did…we had a power outage during a storm last night and the internet was down. But I wrote this on Word last night:

So here I am, a month into this journey, and it’s my last night at the Portillo’s. I’ve been strangely at peace about it all day since Greg told me this morning. It feels so weird, surprisingly. I just all the sudden, in the past week or so, got really comfortable here. Not just in this house, but in Mexico. Like…it took about 3 weeks, but this finally kinda feels like home? It’s weird to say it. It’s funny because Craig’s experiencing the same thing in Merida too. I mean, I know I don’t really have friends yet…besides JB and Yazmin and her sisters (whom I absolutely adore), but I’m comfortable here. I like this house. And this bed. And the wireless internet. And the shower. And all the family. But I guess this was bound to happen anywhere.

Tomorrow everything will be different. It’s weird to think I won’t get ready and immediately go next door to see JB and co. in the morning. It’s weird to think that this is my last night in this house. After tonight, I’ll be sleeping in a new bed and taking the bus (or walking) to school. I’ll live on the other side of the city, without an American best friend living next door. I’ll be eating different food (I’m guessing probably more authentically Mexican), and doing different things on the weekends (Greg’s trying to get me hooked up with friends/churches/orphanages now since JB and Tommy are leaving and I’ll have nothing to do…). It’s like I’m starting all over. But still in Chihuahua. It’ll be better I guess because I’ll be doing what I actually came here to do. This month has been a really good transition month—a nice soft cushioning for my landing here in this foreign country. It was safe—an American-ish house and English-speaking family, with my American friends next door as my English “safe-haven.” Now that I’m comfortable in the city and with my teachers, classes, etc…And now that I know some people (Yazmin and all her family, and Claudia, the 19-year-old nanny for Ben and Whitlee, and Judit, my 25-year-old teacher and her friends), I can do what I came to do. I can learn Spanish more fully (my new host family doesn’t speak English—and neither does the other young girl who lives there), and I’ll have the time and confidence to start serving in orphanages and such or join the church choir (I’m seriously thinking about it—this is the first semester I haven’t been in a choir since 5^th grade).

So here’s to a new chapter—the Lord is faithful and I knew he’d carry me through. I’m comfortable here now—and now I can start actually living. Instead of worrying, missing, keeping inside myself. Here’s where the real experience begins. I praise the Lord for that soft cushioning to land on when I first arrived here, but I think I’m ready. I am living in another country and I intend for it to look like it. Here I go. I’m feeling a little uneasy—that feeling like you don’t want to go to sleep because you know everything will be different the next day—but I’ve accepted that change is coming. I’m going to embrace the change with open arms. (Unlike when I first moved here—I feel like I just shut off.)

(Some time later):
I don’t want to stop writing. I don’t want to go to bed. It’s so hard to turn the page when it’s right here in front on me.

Change is Coming

I'm sorry it's been so long since I've written...the last 2 weeks have been a roller coaster.
Turns out I'm moving tomorrow afternoon...so that means tonight is my last night of in-home internet. So I will definitely try to update.

Tomorrow is gonna be a big day for change. Jenny Beth and Co. are going home to Arkansas at 5:30 in the morning, and in the afternoon, I will move to another host home on the other side of the city--where everything is different (if you remember me describing this house as FloMo-esque, my new house will most likely be the opposite).

It will be so different after today, but I'm accepting it. This month has been completely different that I'd expected, so what's to come will probably be different than what I'm expecting now too. It should be interesting. I have to walk 20 minutes to school or take the bus each day...and like I said...it's in a very different part of town. More "Mexican" if you will...

Anyway...right now I'm off to help JB and co. clean up and pack their house, and then we're going to see a Vietnamese Water Puppet show downtown.

I promise I will try to update everything from the last 2 weeks tonight.

thought of 2 more things...

-Raspberry Mint Orbit gum
-Blistex. Regular type.

Care Packages

If you'd like to send me a care package, I would forever love you and be very grateful.
Here are some things I'm really missing:

-Diet Dr. Pepper
-Cheezits
-black and brown headbands (they don't have headbands here!)
-Reese's
-fruit snacks (wal-mart Fruit Smiles are my favorites)
-cracker packs (I love the wheat crackers with cheese!)
-pudding packs (vanilla and chocolate mix is my fave)
-I really need a sweet Barnes and Noble journal...they don't have good old B & N here of course...and I have no idea where else I could buy a journal.
-If anyone can find ball point pens in black or blue that are FINE POINT I would love you forever. Make sure they're fine point. I don't like the medium point. Too fat. That would be so amazing.
-Any CD you think I'd like...I'm craving some new music.
-On that note...shoot. Any books you'd think I'd like. Lately I'm really into those Christian inspirational/study books (aka Beth Moore, Paula Rinehart, etc.).
-A picture of us! I wish I had brought more pictures with me. I'm getting tired of the same ones...

This is all a lot to ask. I'm sorry. By no means do you have to send me all of that. Or even any of it. I just sure would love a little piece of home. :) I would greatly appreciate it.

Oh. And you can send it to this address:
Heather Davis
Republica de Cuba 516
Col. Panamericana, CP 31200
Chihuahua, Chihuahua, Mexico

If you don't want to spend money on a package, letters would be great too! You can send them to that address also. Oh...I guess I should say this too. If you're going to be sending anything of value (this really would only apply to my parents I guess), send it to this US address:
Heather Davis
c/o Greg Tarrant
2220 Bassett #38-46
El Paso, TX 79901
It will probably take another week or two longer, but it's guaranteed to get here that way.

Thanks. Seriously. I'd really love some stuff from home right now.

Really??

I have ridiculous amounts of time for the internet in Mexico.
Again...not what I expected.

I expected something a little more like Elizabeth's situation in Ireland. She has to walk 4 miles to the next town's library to get internet access. Now that's dedication.

I on the other hand...am getting tired of looking the same websites over and over again and stalking through people's pictures on facebook...

Americans!

So something really exciting happened this morning. I arrived at the school and entered to find 3 English-speaking men in the foyer with Greg, Laura, and Ana. Two of them were American and one was Mexican, but very fluent in English (he's the owner of the house next door where Jenny Beth and Tommy are living). We were in the middle of meeting everyone when 4 American STUDENTS, my age walked in! Two guys and two girls. It was the most glorious thing that's happened yet. It was so funny because almost immediately after they walked in, I had to go to class, but I was sooo anxious to stay and talk to them. 4 English-speaking gringos MY AGE! It really is strange how excited I was. The first 30 minutes of class I was so distracted because I was so excited that there were American kids there and all I wanted to do was meet them and talk to them!! I was so anxious. They left shortly after they arrived and I soon found out that they are students up at Eduventure (where Hector-the Mexican, English-speaking man, also Paloma's brother, who actually went to JBU with Greg back in the day- is teaching with his wife and kids for the semester--the other 2 men were also teachers) about 6 hours away from here up in the mountains. Very remote, very rugged. It's a semester program (that they also have in places like Fiji) with the idea of taking you away from the world. They have many classes including rock climbing, kayaking, backpacking, etc. As well as an intensive spiritual emphasis theme running. It sounds amazing to me. The 4 students have come down to Chihuahua for the weekend with Hector and crew for Independence day (which is on Sunday, but actually celebrated on this Saturday). That was the most exciting part that I found out because they'll be going with us to the Grito (a big, crowded party downtown) on Saturday--so I'll actually get to meet and chat with them. Yay! I'm really excited! It really makes me want to do Eduventure for a semester too! There's too many places I want to study abroad. Elizabeth's blog from Ireland is making me really jealous, so honestly I'd love to spend a semester there too. Haha..yeah right.

Ok so I realize that sometimes I can be a little bipolar...big deal!

In an effort to make myself look less psychotic, I'm giving the credit to the Lord for giving me a refreshed outlook on things here in Mexico. Although I've been doing a lot of fun things, truthfully my time here has progressively gotten harder, and this weekend was it for me. I was extremely frustrated and lonely...and ok maybe even a little depressed. Such is life! It's a roller coaster here in Mexico, and now that I've hit "rock bottom," things are looking up. I prayed for a more optimistic view of the past and of the future and now I've got it. No, this journey hasn't been ANYTHING like what I expected, but none the less, it has been an adventure. Although parts of it are still very hard, it has been fun. I mean...I'm going to school in Mexico! That's pretty cool, right?! Not everybody goes to another country for a semester solely to learn another language. And truth is, I'd rather be here for a semester than at home in Flower Mound, or back at JBU when most of my friends are overseas this fall. I'm very slowly getting used to the culture, and my family, and the weirdness of it all. I miss my friends and family a lot, but I have to remind myself that the most comfort I can get comes from the Lord, and I'm only going to be here for 3 more months. I know the hardships will be way worth it when I come out speaking fluent Spanish. And learning to depend solely on the Lord is reward enough in itself...and I'm really having to do that a lot right now...because this really is hard. Things I wouldn't have thought would be hard to get used to about this culture are like nails on a chalkboard for me. I've only been here for 2 weeks, and I'll get used to them eventually. It's bittersweet I guess...I mean, I'm having fun, but at the same time the whole process is really challenging. I look forward to seeing how I grow from my experiences here. I look forward to becoming more and more fluent so that language barriers don't hinder my experiences (I've heard from 2 independent people that 4 weeks in another country studying the language is how long it takes for you to stop thinking in English).

On another note, Greg wants to move me to another house. He thinks the chaos and "familiness" of this one is too much for me, since I'm so independent. I'm really apprehensive. At least until Jenny Beth and Tommy leave in 2 weeks. But even then. The "what if's" scare me. We'll see how the next 2 weeks go I guess. I'm really not unhappy here. I just have to learn to say no, and explain to them that I'm not trying to be rude, I'm just used to a LOT more alone time.

Thanks for your prayers; I feel the Lord's hand in this.

My first futbol game in Mexico

If I don't stick out like a sore thumb...I don't know what does.

Lovin' me some Elotes

playing in the front yard before going downtown for dinner.

chihuahua's getting some action from that hurricane over on the west coast.

storms are coming!

the cathedral downtown.

el centro.

dinner at Elotes Alex. probably my favorite restaurant here. all they serve is corn. in cups. with cream, butter, chile, lime, and finely grated cheese. amazing.

whitters and i enjoying are Elotes on the cob. she was chowin' down!


Well...tomorrow's Friday. And I would normally have no class. But tomorrow we're having a field trip to downtown to do a trolley tour in the morning. So I'll have to get up even earlier than usual, but it'll be well worth it to spend the morning downtown with Greg, the other 3 students, and our 2 teachers. It'll be really fun. Then at 11 I'm supposed to meet little Sara and a group of kids from her pre-school at a museum downtown. She single-handedly got permission from the principal of her school to let me go with them on the field trip, with this warning of course (in Spanish) "But you must remember, you have to talk very slow or else she won't understand you." She's 5 by the way. Tomorrow night I'm going with one of my teachers and her friends to a futbol game. My very first in Mexico. She's 25 and single. Greg tells me I should become friends with her and her other friends from her youth group (young adults). I think this is a good idea. Judit speaks no English. And I'm bankin' on the assumption that none of her friends do either. I've gotten to the point where I can communicate pretty easily with Judit, so I think I'll be alright.

Saturday will be a day full of shopping, with the open air market here in town in the morning (I'm really looking forward to buying some authentic Mexican stuff---by the way, I purchased my first series of Mexican paraphernalia today--a flag and a bracelet--for about 35 pesos.), and hitting up one of the big malls here with Jenny Beth and Yazmin in the afternoon. Yazmin has the cutest clothes. She's promised to take me to find some of my own.

On Sunday Jenny Beth, Tommy, Ben, Whitlee, Greg, Paloma and I are road tripping out to La Junta for the day. I'm really excited to get out into "real" Mexico. It's about 2 1/2 hours west of here up in the mountains...definitely a lot more rugged than posh Chihuahua. It should be really fun.

Busy weekend ahead! Keep a look out for more pictures! Thanks for your prayers, I'm getting more comfortable here!

oh my gosh

Before: a little over a year ago...notice how loved he looks.


Before: this summer. after 14 years of love.


After: we are sad about being clean. look how white he is!


After: he looks so new. i can't handle it.


The maid washed Raja and I think I might cry. He's never been washed in the entire 14 years I've had him...

I'm devastated...he smells like clean laundry. :(

I came home from my morning class to find my room smelling fresh and clean. A pleasant surprise. What was not a pleasant surprise was to then find a sparkling clean, still warm from the dryer Raja under the covers. He's been washed. Along with my blankets and pillows and everything else that was on my bed. The funniest part of the entire situation was my reaction. I pulled back the covers and actually gasped very dramatically and exclaimed, "Oh no!!" I then immediately began laughing as I pulled him from the pile of cleanness that is now my bed...but more of a I-can't-believe-I'm-actually-really-sad-about-this kind of pitiful laugh than an outright this-is-really-funny laugh. I really actually felt like I was going to cry for a while. Until I realized how funny the entire situation is. The maid that speaks no English washed my beloved tiger for the first time in 14 years. Seriously though...this is a big deal, ok?

Mas Fotos

My pictures don't want to upload.


Go here:
http://jbu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012420&l=5a1e8&id=157000247

and here:
http://jbu.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2012422&l=fcf0e&id=157000247


2 different albums, and you don't have to have facebook to look! Yay!
Enjoy!

Foreign Country?

Well I suppose I should post again. I'm really having a hard time pin-pointing how I feel about this whole experience thus far. I really don't feel anything. I will say this. This trip is so far NOTHING like I thought it would be.

I'm living in a house probably worth close to as much as my house in Flower Mound. I have wireless internet and a phone. I have a Mexican cell phone to use. There's nothing weird or different about the toilets or showers (except of course, for the extremely low pressure). There's a Wal-Mart, a Sonic, a Dairy Queen, a Burger King, a Carl's Jr., and of course a McDonald's. Everyone here drives cars. And nice ones too. There's no dust, no dirt, no desert (at least not in Chihuahua), just neat, clean city. There's a huge mall. A huge FloMo-esque gated community. You can walk down the street alone at night without fear. I'm sleeping in a bed bigger than the one I have at my parents' house. I eat close to 5 full meals a day, all different and tasty (no beans and rice for me). I'm actually dressing up kind of each day (I've only worn a t-shirt once--strange). I get up and shower AND straighten my hair almost every morning. I go DAYS without showering in the states. And Lord knows I never straighten my hair. I go to bed before midnight every night. I hang out with 2 women (almost 30 and 30) in my spare time and mainly talk about their marriages and their young kids. There are even nice restaurants. In fact, I've yet to go to a crappy one (as far as looks go...well for that matter...food quality too). Everyone drinks purified water and there's virtually no risk of drinking the bad stuff.

Other than crazy driving, road-side Mexico paraphernalia vendors and Tarahumara indians in the streets at big intersections during the day, this place is just like any other American city. It's really throwing me off. Apparently (according to a local), Chihuahua really is the most "American" city in Mexico. I won't lie. I'm slightly disappointed. I hoped for a real foreign experience. Nothing really feels foreign here. Except for the lax sense of time and commitment and the lack of fruit snacks and cracker packs in all grocery stores (including Wal-Mart).

What were my expectations, you ask? Granted, I went into this thinking I had none (I wrote in my journal the day I flew out here, "I honestly just have no idea what to expect..."). But I've come to find that I definitely had expectations. And lots of them. I expected fewer cars, or at least crappier ones, and no air conditioning. I imagined dry heat, and dust. I imagined loud city buses as being the most common way to get around. I imagined a small, modest, traditionally Mexican house I'd be living in with no nice tile floors and definitely no wireless internet. I imagined a quiet, cozy environment to rest and do my homework in. I imagined having time to read in the evenings. I imagined no TV in the house (although we never watch it...), and rustic showers and toilets. I imagined rice and beans and tortillas, not Honey Bunches of Oats, Lucky Charms, and chicken salads. I imagined things spaced out more, with dirt roads, not all brick and mortar, asphalt and cement. I imagined open air markets for food and for clothing and other goods. Not mile after mile of different grocery stores, department stores, and familiar fast food joints. I imagined meeting people my age from a church right away, and hanging out with them, having girls' nights with them. (No offense Jenny Beth, I'm so blessed to have ya'll!) I imagined having seen more of the city by now; I imagined getting more of a feel for Mexican culture by now.

That's not my Mexico. This feels American. I really don't feel like I'm studying in a different country. I don't feel like there's really anything to be jealous of. There's nothing different and cool about this. Yet. I'm bankin' on the yet.

Praise the Lord!

Well...the miracle happened. I don't really know what I did...but somehow I messed with the encryption settings for my wireless connection and my computer is up and running. Thanks for your prayers! It really paid off. Here are my pictures from the last week!

to the left and bottom: one of our morning break excursions to Gorditas Ricas, a restaurant around the corner from the school. From left to right, clockwise. Greg, Tommy, Perla (my teacher), me, Jenny Beth, Dwayne, and Laura (Tommy, Dwayne, and Jenny Beth's teacher).







































































The far left about this is my house, with the tile roof. The house to the right of it is Jenny Beth and Tommy's house next door.












To the far left is my classroom where I spend up to 7 hours a day by myself with a teacher.



These 3 pictures are from Greg's house, where I stayed my first night here. It's really nice. ^^The "backyard" through the window.




















The front door and bookcase.





















The kitchen. I really love the green wall with the little windows in it.
















Me and Whitlee (Jenny Beth's daughter) at their house next door.

Ok but seriously...

Let´s all pray that the Lord would put his healing hands on my computer. I have faith that it can just start working again. I need this. Pray for a miracle.

Answered prayers

So it´s friday and no tengo clases hoy! (I don´t have class today!) But my friends Jenny Beth and Tommy do, because they´ll only be here until the end of September. So I took the liberty of sleeping in today, as Yazmin was at work, so it was just me and Lucy (the maid) in the house. I slept til about 10:30. It was glorious. The last two nights it has stormed really heavily...I love waking up to a storm and then going back to sleep listening to it. And with the windows open at night, it was amplified even more.

Anyway, the wireless radio in my laptop is broken...and the external one I bought yesterday for 350 pesos isn´t working. I´m praying that something will work soon, because I really want to post my pictures. :( In the meantime, I will write word documents, and then copy them from my laptop onto the Portillos´ computer or at the school´s computer.

So it takes me 20 minutes to take a shower here, because the water pressure is almost non existent. It literally takes me 5 minutes to rinse the shampoo out of my hair.

And who thought I´d gain weight here?? Everyone knows I don´t like Mexican food...well...apparently that´s just American Mexican food. The food here is outstanding. Not saucy, not mushy, it doesn´t give you the worst indigestion ever. It´s only spicy. But good spicy. With chili powder...not tons of saucy crap. It´s so good....and clean. Real Mexican food is very clean. Amazing tacos, amazing gorditas, amazing elotes, amazing everything. So good. And did I mention there are 5 meals a day?? So...about that losing weight thing...not gonna happen.

Also: I´ve realized that the US is a very huggy country. Nobody hugs here. And sadly....I feel deprived. You kiss on the cheek everytime you meet somebody, come into the house, or leave....but no hugs. It´s very strange how bad I want to hug somebody...

I´m still struggling with the language. Last night at church, the pastor talked so fast (and apparently he has a speech impediment too) that I could only catch the words at the end of the sentences. And it took a LOT of energy to pay THAT close attention. The service was about 2 hours long, and I had a huge headache afterward. It frustrated me because everyone seemed extremely moved by the message he delivered. I wanted to feel the same thing.

God really is a faithful God. When I felt my most discouraged on Thursday afternoon about not having anyone to talk to and feeling really lonely already, I prayed for peace and for contentment as well as a friend here. That afternoon Greg took me to get a part for my computer and on the way talked to me in ENGLISH and asked me how I was feeling about things and what I think so far. Man what a huge sigh of relief I took as I let it all out. It was really nice to know that he is concerned enough about my wellbeing to speak to me in English. It sounds silly...but seriously. He told me he was really impressed with the progress I´d made in the first 4 days, and that he is completely confident that within a month or so, I should be pretty nearly fluent. He even told me it´s ok if I talk in English with my family every once and a while, since I am much farther ahead than the other students. It was exactly what I needed to hear.

And then last night the Lord gave me a friend. My age. Of course I have Jenny Beth and Jazmin, but it´s different with them because they´re both older with kids. Sonia was exactly what I needed. She honestly was really interested in hearing what I had to say, not like she was just talking to me out of pity since I have no other friends. It was really good to hang out with her last night. Praise the Lord for answered prayers! And thank you everyone who has been praying for me; it´s so good to know that I have people who love me and are praying for my best interest.

Oh. I´m sure many of you are wondering when I will be starting my ministry with orphanages and the transition home I always talked about. Greg has suggested that I wait a couple weeks til I get more comfortable with the culture and with the language. I think that´s a good idea. I think it´d be way too much for me right now. But I really can´t wait for God to use me in that ministry. :)

Well...I better go. We´re going to the park now, and I have to help make our picnic lunch. Adios!

My first Mexican friend

So it´s reallllllly late. And I have to get up early to go to the park with the kids and Yazmin and Jenny Beth, but I´m going to post anyway. Tonight I went out with Yazmin´s sister Sonia, who´s 21. We went to her youth group (in Mexico youth groups are for anyone who is single) at the church and then at like 10:45 (sooo late) we went out to dinner. She took me downtown to this place called Elotes Alex. They serve this Mexican favorite called Elotes. It´s corn and butter and cream and lime juice and chile powder and cheese all mixed up in a cup. I´ve heard lots about it and according to Sonia, Alex´s is the best place to get it. It was amazing. VERY different, but very good. We got our cups to go and she took me on a tour of downtown. We parked the car and walked around the plaza, where everything is already decorated for Independence Day (Sep. 16), we went to these big fountains and there are all these huge statues. If you go to any website about Chihuahua, you will always see pictures of a big cathedral. Well...we went there, and it too was fantastic. We walked around for a long time and she told me all different things about the Mexican culture and about the holidays like el Dia de la Independencia, and Dia de los Muertos (the Mexican halloween). She told me all the things we would have to do together this semester, and all the things she´ll have to show me. I´m so excited. She´s like the sweetest girl ever and might I add quite possibly the prettiest human being I´ve ever seen. No lie...she is the most beautiful Hispanic person I´ve ever seen. Tonight she told me, "Talk with me." "About what?" "Anything....I like to talk with you about whatever you want. I love to talk. I also love to take pictures. Do you like to take pictures?" Oh boy...if only she knew. So...I´m pretty sure we´re gonna become really good friends, and I´m so excited. Mainly because she´s my age. And all her friends are my age. We´re going to go the movies tomorrow night...I can´t wait. :) Yay for new Mexican friends!!