Sorry the blog's been so quiet
Times are good, rich and full, varied and challenging here in Bordeaux.
The good weather means that we can often get out and do surveys. (Mind you, when it does rain, it CHUCKS it down). I have been meeting a lot of black muslim guys and I have some follow-up to do.
The summer promises to be happily full of preaching - in July I'll be preaching morning (French) and evening (English) and for the first two Sundays of August, too. Then we can take some holiday. We have Pat's family coming over for the last week of August but we don't yet know quite what to do with the middle two weeks.
Tomorrow we have an International Church barbecue and then on Sunday morning our first international candidate for baptism.
Next weekend is a big weekend, too, because it is the last Sunday for the Foucachons and the cérémonie de passation to Dik Briennen who is beginning to preach in August.
Meanwhile last night was the final concert this year for the orchestra of the music school - we went on a bus out beyond Le Pian Medoc to play for the annual conference of the national association of puericulteurs and puericultrices. I think the nearest equivalent in English would be nursery teachers. It was a fine evening.
I slept on the bus going out - after all it was 1/2 hour in the bus and it was very hot and there was lots of percussion to carry down the stairs ! But on the way back nobody could have slept as we were regaled with viola player jokes (des blagues d'altiste) and loud songs including "Chauffeur, chauffeur, tu es champion, appuie, appuie sur le champignon" (Driver, driver, you are a champion, press, press on the accelerator) and another that was a contest to see which half of the bus could sing loudest. Too loud to make out the words...
Why is a viola player's finger like lightning ?
It never strikes twice in the same place...
A viola player and a conductor in the road. You'll run them both over. Which do you squash first ?
The conductor. Business before pleasure.
There is a little challenge ahead of us, however. Gwilym's class council met yesterday and advised that he redo this year in school. Essentially his problems centre on French and Maths, though his French average this term has risen to 9.5 out of 20, (47.5%). I went to meet his form teacher today. He doesn't agree with the decision and had already made the appointments for me to appeal against it. So on Monday I meet with the deputy head of the school (who also thinks Gwilym should go up to the next year) and then on Thursday I go to the offices of the management of the education group in Bordeaux.
I used to hate things like this, until I started to have to do them for other people. I suppose that gave me a bit more confidence or something. Now I enjoy finding out how the system works and I look forward to meeting the people of good will who will help me. There's normally someone (though not always...)
We'd still value your prayers, though !
The good weather means that we can often get out and do surveys. (Mind you, when it does rain, it CHUCKS it down). I have been meeting a lot of black muslim guys and I have some follow-up to do.
The summer promises to be happily full of preaching - in July I'll be preaching morning (French) and evening (English) and for the first two Sundays of August, too. Then we can take some holiday. We have Pat's family coming over for the last week of August but we don't yet know quite what to do with the middle two weeks.
Tomorrow we have an International Church barbecue and then on Sunday morning our first international candidate for baptism.
Next weekend is a big weekend, too, because it is the last Sunday for the Foucachons and the cérémonie de passation to Dik Briennen who is beginning to preach in August.
Meanwhile last night was the final concert this year for the orchestra of the music school - we went on a bus out beyond Le Pian Medoc to play for the annual conference of the national association of puericulteurs and puericultrices. I think the nearest equivalent in English would be nursery teachers. It was a fine evening.
I slept on the bus going out - after all it was 1/2 hour in the bus and it was very hot and there was lots of percussion to carry down the stairs ! But on the way back nobody could have slept as we were regaled with viola player jokes (des blagues d'altiste) and loud songs including "Chauffeur, chauffeur, tu es champion, appuie, appuie sur le champignon" (Driver, driver, you are a champion, press, press on the accelerator) and another that was a contest to see which half of the bus could sing loudest. Too loud to make out the words...
Why is a viola player's finger like lightning ?
It never strikes twice in the same place...
A viola player and a conductor in the road. You'll run them both over. Which do you squash first ?
The conductor. Business before pleasure.
There is a little challenge ahead of us, however. Gwilym's class council met yesterday and advised that he redo this year in school. Essentially his problems centre on French and Maths, though his French average this term has risen to 9.5 out of 20, (47.5%). I went to meet his form teacher today. He doesn't agree with the decision and had already made the appointments for me to appeal against it. So on Monday I meet with the deputy head of the school (who also thinks Gwilym should go up to the next year) and then on Thursday I go to the offices of the management of the education group in Bordeaux.
I used to hate things like this, until I started to have to do them for other people. I suppose that gave me a bit more confidence or something. Now I enjoy finding out how the system works and I look forward to meeting the people of good will who will help me. There's normally someone (though not always...)
We'd still value your prayers, though !
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