Count the blessings!

I have a cold... the third time in less than 2 months... personal record!! This time was/is the worst one though. I could feel it on Tuesday, that it would be a "real cold", so I skipped my last two classes and headed to the market to get oranges, onions, lemons, pears, kiwifruits, apples, tomatoes and all that good stuff before I wasn't able to walk out of the dorm anymore. I was happy I made it back without tipping over... Today, I'm already feeling pretty good again. My voice is still fighting not to die completely and I'm still using mountains of tissue for my nose, but my head is feeling ok and the fever is gone. What amazed me - the deans just asked once if I had everything I needed and didn't even ask me if I wanted the doctor to see me. They allowed me to do my thing although this time I was actually really sick. They are improving... =)

In general, I have to say that my situation has improved a lot. There are still a lot of things I could complain about but I can see how God is giving me the things I need so I can grow and enjoy my semester here at the same time.

First, there are the things I couldn't really influence since I din't know enough about the situation. It's a real blessing for me that I am in "1st semester educational siences" and not in theology nor a teacher carreer. At first, I wanted to do one semester of theology but I feared, I would be a part of the female minority, having to keep the guys off... Now I'm really happy, I'm not doing theology...

Since I'll actually be a teacher, it would have been the most obvious choice to put me together with the teachers (who have their own institution that doesn't directly belong to the university UAB and is called INSA), but somehow I landed in "Educación" and since it was the easiest thing to put me in 1st semester (although I kind of belong into 9th or at least 7th semester), I didn't complain and was happy I would be an official student with just a visitors visa. What are the advantages of belonging to UAB intead of INSA? Well, I don't have to wear a uniform (blue skirt, white blouse) and I belong to the nicest church on campus with a sound system that doesnt't give me a headache (if the right people are in charge of it). Last Sabbath, we had the inauguration (see pic). It's a really nice building and since we use it for Wednesday and Friday night worship, Sabbath morning and Sabbath afternoon, it's a major improvement in my eyes. I never liked "the coliseo" - now "Church of INSA" - and the church for the highschoolers wasn't any better either (I attended it during my first 2 week here). The "University Church" is the best thing that could have happened to me! They don't have a real piano (..non of the churches here has one), but I can play the electric gran piano once in a while when I'm early for church and worship.
Being in 1st semester also has the advantage that the majority of my (male) classmates are significantly younger than me. They like me and I like them, but I don't have to "fear" them like the theology students...

What else?
It's a blessing that I'm living in the part for the high school students. Never thought it would be, but it is! My classes are in the afternoon, they have classes in the morning. This means that I have my peace in the morning and they can scream as much as they want in the afternoon. In the night, they cut down the electricity for the high school students at about 10.30pm, a time I really want to sleep if I have to get up at 5am. When I already enjoy a dark room, I can see all the rooms on the other side of the dorm bright and shining. Furthermore, my room has internet by accident...(at the head end of my bed)!!! I discovered it at Easter Weekend. It's not always working properly though, but I already can't imagine how I survived without it before.

The deans are trusting me more and more. They sign me my permissions for leaving campus in advance (like 3 permissions) and I can fill in the when, where and why when I need it. I can live with that because it means that I can kind of leave campus whenever I want without having to track one of the two deans down. Right now, I'm about to leave for the weekend (I'll spend it with Cira, Eufronio and family in Quillacollo) and for "over night absence" you need a special permission. Well, I told my dean where I wanted to go, she signed and stamped one of these papers and told me to fill it out myself. (Normally you need the person you want to visit to call or pick you up and all these official procedure steps.)

So I could actually go on and on, counting the blessings. They only thing that is missing is that they give me the keys to the dorm.... =) but I guess that won't happen. Even without keys though, I'm feeling more and more like a responsible person again and that's all I want.

Alright. I guess I'll hurry up packing my bag and heading into complete freedom :) Eufronio already payed me a visit to check if everything is alright or if I needed somebody to pick me up...
I wish you a blessed weekend and I'll be back on Monday!

And don't forget to count the blessings and thank God for each single one of them!
maria