08 Septembre, 2008
First day of language school, first day on campus
Today was our first day of language school, and also marked the first day we spent initiating on campus. It is incredible (c’est incroyable) that only seven days ago we were sitting in the Paris airport, still just on our way here. It has been a full and busy week with several visits to apartments for Greg and myself, lots of sitting on la Comedie, lots of time spent in staff meetings talking through team norms and covenant, mapping out the year, praying and dreaming together of what we are hoping to ask the Lord for this year and beyond. We’ve had a surprisingly successful visit to the Prefecture to apply for our carte de sejours (our long-stay residency cards), an unsuccessful but informative visit to try to get cell phones, a lengthy appointment at the bank to get bank accounts, our first experience at church in France (and a highly enjoyable one at that, though the French was hard to follow), and two visits to IKEA/a little taste of America-Sweden.
This morning we went to the Alliance Francaise, which is the language school we are attending for the next four weeks. We were greeted by an over-exuberant French woman who initially shuffled me into a room full of complete strangers, all trying to suffer through a placement exam designed to determine exactly how little French we all knew. After some time Erin was able to explain to her that I was with them and was a friend of Laura’s (our teammate who took the language class last year). Once this was sorted out I was whisked from the dour-looking test takers and placed in the woman’s office with Erin and Katie for proper interrogation. After discovering that my hair was “très jolie!” and finding my Black Hills gold ring to be perhaps the most interessant jewelry she had ever seen, she promptly confiscated the unfortunate attempt I had made on my placement test with grand exclamations of “Oh! Très bien!” She later returned to tell me that while I was not a beginner, I was very close to it. Katie and I were placed in the “almost beginners” class, and Erin was in the intermediate.
Our class began with virtually no introduction, just strict rules that we were not to speak in English or Spanish (the two common languages of the students who were in the class), only in French (which, of course, we were all there to learn, making initial communication quite rudimentary). We ended up with a very young and stiff teacher who fully employed what is apparently a very French way of teaching, that which is best exemplified by what we would call a “weeding out” class. No practicing or “repeat after the teacher” was suggested, we just started speaking French. By the end of the class we knew basically where everyone was from, what year they were born, and what their profession was. We also discovered that there is not really a word in French for missionary, so we settled for aumonier protestant, or protestant chaplain. Close enough, right?
From there, after praying as a team for a while, we headed to campus for the first time, ready to begin what we really came here to do – share with students. We found the students pleasantly easy to engage with, and the two pairs of guys that Darrin and I talked to were quite conversational. They were all freshman, so they were starting their very first day of school as well. They were quick to share the realities that we had expected, that very few French students would say they are religious whatsoever. They have passed the church by, not seeing any need for it anymore. They said that most French people do not ever talk about God or religion, so it’s sort of a strange topic to bring up to people, one they do not often think about. We are praying for hearts more ready to hear…
Tonight, we mark one week of ministry in Montpellier. May the Lord continue to work abundantly!
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