Bastille Day Celebrations!

July 14^th (Bastille Day) is a national holiday here in France and commemorates the 1789 storming of the Bastille prison, which is an event that holds a significant place in the French Revolution.  Each year, this day is filled with friends, family, food & fireworks.  Most villages have their own fireworks display to help celebrate the day and our tiny village is no exception. 

Each year, we have invited our church family to enjoy the evening with us, as we serve a plethora of ice cream with every topping imaginable & then take the opportunity to sit and watch the fireworks together.  It's always a wonderful night enjoying the beautiful fireworks display and just being together!

The first year we began this church event tradition, I went out and bought a French flag banner to help get everyone in the mood of the occasion.  (Which I have begun to realize, is a thought that I have taken from my own culture!  As I have looked around throughout the years, I have not seen many following suit with this tradition. =)  But be that as it may, I was excited to help celebrate the day with my church family.  That evening as our guests were beginning to enjoy the ice cream sundaes, a young French guy approached me & very politely stated, “Mrs. Coules, did you realize that you have the colors on the flag banner backwards?” What??? Oh, no!! I was horrified!  Here I was so excited to put up this banner to express national pride in France, that I totally forgot that I was looking at the colors as an American!  I grew up reciting the colors of the flag in the following order: “red, white and blue.”  The French on the other hand, grow up saying, “blue, white and red!” 

Needless to say, you do not have to tell me twice!  The following year, you can bet that the banner was again hung in celebration of the day, BUT it was hung with great thought, so as not to once again commit another “faux pas!” 

(This small story has brought much laughter to our family throughout the years, but it expresses in a small way how people from all over the world look at things differently, right down to how colors on a flag are recited.  Just a little tidbit to think about ... =) 

A favorite treat for horses in France ...

Having grown up owning several horses of my own, I was quite interested to find that horses play an important part in the lives of the people here in southern France.  As we have said before, horses are used for the yearly “running of the bulls” as people race through the narrow streets and other various games that are done in the local arenas.  Also native to our area are the white Camargue horses, which used to roam wild along the Mediterranean coastline.  These specific horses are still raised today & are just stunning to watch.  

But as we have come to do life here, it didn’t take much coaxing on our part to want to provide these horses with some special treats, now and again.  However, as I began to take some sugar cubes over, I found that the horses would just not know what to do with this treat.  In fact, they often refused the offer and spit it on the ground!  My reaction was “no problem” … they will love an apple.  To my surprise it took some time for them to realize what to do with that even! 

But then, as we began to watch what other people did around us as they stopped to greet the horses in their pens, we realized that they brought something totally different than what we considered a delicacy.  Instead of giving the horses the delicious treats that I thought were universal, can you guess what the local Frenchman or woman would give to their horses?  You got it! …. Baguettes! 

The baguette is still an everyday necessity (or at least a desire) for people here in France.  Because of French history, the price of bread is actually regulated nationally so that everyone can at least afford to buy bread.  And once you taste a warm loaf of fresh bread, … trust me, you will never go back to anything else! 

But the dilemma then arises on what to do with the leftovers?  One can only make so many croutons or bruschettas with the dry bread.  So instead of throwing the remaining bread away, the people will collect them in bags and take them to the horses for a very special treat! 

So we have decided that “when in Rome….” (or France, even), do as they do!  So each day, you will see John taking his walk to the horses.  The horses recognize him straight away and come running to have “first dibs” on their special baguette treat.  No longer do we try and convince them that sugar cubes really are delicious.  We now know from experience that there really is no better treat than French bread … even if it is a little old!  

John on his daily "treat" run! 

Celebrate Good Times ... Come on!

I must admit that most of life is lived in the mundane - in the "day in and day out" tasks that just need to be done.  Sometimes it seems as if you just tend to put your head down and press forward to accomplish what the Lord has put before you.  But then, there are times in life when you have the opportunity to stop, to lift up your head, and to just shout with joy at what the Lord has helped you to accomplish.  For us, graduation from university is one of those times.   

Our son, JD, just graduated from university this past weekend and we had the privilege to attend the ceremonies.  One could feel all the excitement in the air, as well as, all the anxiety that goes with desiring to finish the day without tripping headlong in your graduation gown!  You could see the pride on the parent’s faces as they waited in line for over an hour outside in the drizzle just to be able to get the best seats in the house.  Then the final moment came when the procession of graduates filed in, ready to receive that thin piece of paper that they had been sacrificing so much for these past years.  I am sure that all those sleepless nights, filled with those caffeine-loaded drinks and project-laden desks, were not even on their minds that day.  You see, I think, that the struggle to graduate is a lot like delivering a child.  The pain can be extremely intense for a while, but after that precious one is in your hands, you really find it hard to remember the pain.  Well… either you choose not to remember OR over time you are eventually able to laugh over your “war stories.”  And I have a feeling that most of those graduates that day had plenty of “war stories” to cling to in which they will be able to recite again and again to their children one day. 

Celebrating … it sure feels good after the long haul of working toward one goal.  But in reality, if there had been no struggle to attain the goal, then there would be no reason to truly celebrate! ...  I think I will need to remember this point when I too, need to sometimes struggle through some harder days. 

But for now, our family … we are just pretty much “jumping up and down in our field” today celebrating JD’s accomplishment of graduating and graduating with honors.  Way to go, son!

Simple Treasures in Life

Do you ever find it funny how the Lord takes the little things in your life and somehow, years later, you look back & see how He has woven something beautiful from them?  I began thinking about this truth this past week when I decided to take an old cast iron pan handed down from my late uncle and clean off the years of grime and grease to see if it could actually be usable again.

 

When I was young, I remember going over to my uncle’s home and making a Danish pancake, called an Æbleskiver, using this special cast iron “monk pan.”  I loved being able to spend the time with Uncle Ed and enjoyed becoming an “expert” at making these unique pancakes.  I remember the pride I felt at being able to successfully make a perfect sphere of the pancake batter, not to mention the joy in tasting the delicious product!

As I was reflecting on those years so long ago, I began to think how this tiny pan & the making of these “foreign” cakes had begun to stir within me a love for international people.  When I was ten, I had no idea that the Lord was beginning to cultivate within my heart a desire to reach out to people who were from a different culture and country than my own.  At the time, I just enjoyed learning a recipe passed down from generations from another culture other than mine.  But today, I look at this grimy cast iron pan and think … thank you, Lord for the simple things in life that you use to change us and direct us to be useful for you. 

The story of this little grimy pan continues!  It has been the center of many family celebrations as the kids have grown and they have developed a love for Æbleskivers, as well.  In fact, they have each expressed their desire to have their own pan one day to carry on the tradition that my uncle began with me so many years ago.  As I was thinking today though, I have a feeling that they will be carrying on something much more important than a delicious, old recipe from Denmark.  My hope is that the Lord has sparked within them, just as He had within me, a desire to share the love of Christ with people from all around the world.    

Call me too reflective, I know.  Tell me I am getting older … it’s true!  But maybe, I am just beginning to look back on life and see the simple ways in which God moved in my life to bring me to where I am now - living in France & interacting with internationals on a daily basis. 

Thank you, Lord for a silly old cast iron pan that has grime from “who knows when” on it.  It’s a lot like me … covered in the filth of my own making, but with Your help, Lord, I am ready to be used to communicate your love to people from every tribe & nation. 

Winter has arrived!

Winter has arrived here in France and continues to blast the rest of the continent, as well!  It’s time for some delicious hot chocolate or strong hot coffee to help warm up the bones! 

Everyone deals with winter & its falling temperatures in different ways.  Some go around bundled up throughout the day & remain inside where there is at least some heat.  Others delight in the “freshness” of the season and enjoy getting outside for these months of the year.  Being from Chicago, one would think that we would fall into the second group and enjoy taking in all of the beauty that the winter brings.  However, the older we get, the less we look forward to this annual invasion into our lives. =)

7 ft wall our neighbor just constructed

Here where we live, the style of home is a bit different than what we were used to in Chicago.  The homes here are mainly built with cement blocks, which are really wonderful in the summer months when the temperatures can soar around 100°F for a number of days.  Because air conditioning is not often found in homes, including our own, the coolness that the cement block provides can be very welcoming during the times of scorching heat.  However, in the winter, … it continues to do a wonderful job in keeping the cooler temperatures inside the house!  In our particular home, there is no central heating, so we find ourselves heating only the room in which we are in & then quickly passing through the frigid halls to our next “room designation” – which we quickly heat! =) 

We laugh at each other as we often see one another standing in front of the portable heater warming ourselves.  But even with saying this, we remain so thankful that we do have a home in which to lay our heads every night, a portable heater that is our “new” best friend, & the promise of spring arriving at some point in time!  We pray for those less fortunate, that the Lord will be gracious and provide for their needs during these days of the current frigid Siberian air mass which continues to hold Europe in it’s firm grip.  Time for some more hot chocolate! 

The Camargue Bull

We wanted to continue to welcome you to our new blog and introduce you a little bit more to the culture here in France.  We thought we would begin by introducing you to our neighbor down the street. 

Living in the south of France brings to the forefront a totally different culture than what we grew up with in the US.  Growing up in NY, our neighbor’s cows were raised for one purpose alone & that was to give milk.  They were the traditional black & white version that lazily chewed its cud in the pasture & provided milk to the vendor. 

However, here in our area, one will find primarily only black bulls or “les taureaux de Camargue” which are used for bullfighting, various games in the local arenas & yes, the “running of the bulls” through the street each year.  Each summer, the area villages are filled with banditos, white Camargue horses being ridden by ranch cowboys, local young men desiring to run in the streets with the bulls, as well as, plenty of tourists to watch the festivities.  The air is always filled with excitement as the bulls and the mounted riders race through the streets.  It takes quite a lot of convincing sometimes to hold John back from participating in some of these “manly” pursuits! 

The first summer we were here, we attended the bull games in our village arena.  We watched as the young men challenged the bulls & the bulls proceeded to challenge them.  After my first initial quiet rant of “where is this kid’s mother, that she would allow her 14 year old in the ring with a 1,000 pound bull,” I settled back into the realization that this was part of the culture.  This is what they have done for centuries … and it works.  They do not need someone to remind them of all the statistics for serious bodily harm! 

So, now each summer we attend the festivities along with the other villagers.  I still wince and stifle a yelp of concern for possible victims, but in the end, we enjoy watching & cheering these age-old traditions still found here in the south. 

(If you would like to check this tradition out further, you can search the Internet for sites on the Camargue cattle and the Camargue horse.  Sorry, guys ... once a teacher ... always a teacher!)

Welcome - Bienvenue!

Thursday, December 2, 2004 was the day we first arrived on French soil to begin our journey living & serving in another culture.  Seven years have come and gone since then.  The children, then 15 years, 12 years, and 8 years have grown up enjoying the blessings of living in another land & culture.  John and I have grown older too!  We have a few more grey hairs than when we first arrived, but we also know that we are a little wiser & spiritually deeper with our Lord - for which we are thankful.

This blog is one way in which we hope to be able to give you a view of what it is like to live in another culture – the ups & downs and the wonderful joy of discovering God’s world from another “field.”  Because our ministry here touches the lives of internationals living & working abroad, we have had the joy of not only viewing God’s world through our lens, but also being able to see God’s world through the lens’ of many different countries as we intersect with people from all over the world.  We hope to be able to clearly communicate these discoveries to you, so that you will be encouraged as you see and hear of what God’s world is like outside of the “field” where you live.

When we began our journey seven years ago, we resonated with the lines from a song written by Wayne Watson -   “We work the field of souls … Together you and I”.  Today we still believe more than ever in these words.  God has placed each of us in various “fields” around the world, in order share & live out His Good News to those around us.  Today we invite you to come along with us, to spend a “day in the fields” with us and see what God is doing & has done here in France & around His world!