CR language training, week 5

This was our last week at the seminary with 3 days of classes – it’s SO hard to believe that we’ve been in Costa Rica for more than 4 weeks already!

Monday, we had our regular classes of 2 hours each in the morning. While Dan had an afternoon class, I baked a Gooey Butter Cake so, when Pam Tooley stopped by while walking their dog Gryffy and invited us to come over for dinner, I said that I’d bring dessert! It would be our last chance to visit with Joel for a while, as he’ll get on a plane Tuesday morning to do some speaking at Northwest Nazarene University in Nampa, ID, for the rest of the week. The kids were excited that the family was doing Taco Night (especially when they didn’t have to wait for a Friday), and they all loved the cake! We always thoroughly enjoy any time with them. They’ll be back Florida after the end of November; it will be a bittersweet time for them, as they’ve become very close to the other missionaries and ministry leaders here.

Tuesday morning, even before class, our profesora Gaby stopped by with tangerines and avocados from her back yard (to help us get through the week without having to grocery shop!), along with some Britt cookies and peanut nougat bars.  She’s a peach!  We had our morning classes, and my afternoon class.  I dressed for my last aqua-aerobics class and SO enjoyed the exercise and the time in the pool. I’ve missed taking a class like this (and so has my body!).

Wednesday, our last day of Spanish classes, we were told to be ready for a surprise at 9:15, at the end of Dan’s lesson. We were excited when we found out that Shelley was driving us and Gaby to a coffee shop that we had wanted to try, since it was a favorite of several of the missionaries. 
When we arrived, I noticed Stephen and Anne’s truck, then Pam’s car… all our friends were there to help celebrate our successes in learning Spanish! Pam had brought her daughter Allie and Darin and Tonya Kucey and their daughter Carissa.  So, eleven of us ordered delicious coffee, with some desserts and some breakfasts… Dan and I shared apple pie and chocolate cake and, after the visiting and eating, we were presented with certificates of completion of our classes.  What a treat, and an honor, to be cared for in this way! 

Back at the seminary, Gaby and I worked on my last verb tense until it was time to stop. She said she couldn’t say goodbye, so we said, “Hasta luego” (see you later) and determined that she’d visit us (and Ted and Lori Bruce, other former students) at a church service at our Work and Witness site in a few days.  

Thursday, Shelley checked on us in the morning, asking as always if we needed anything that she could help with! She’s a fabulous leader, so caring, and enough of a reason to use the CALL program to learn Spanish! I started some laundry so we’d have clean clothes to start our next adventure; we packed suitcases and used up food. (The last week anywhere, we always have unusual meals as we clean out the fridge!)  We asked the Kuceys, the Canadian Nazarene missionaries, if they’d like to potluck with us for dinner, to help us use and share our remaining foodstuffs. We took our turkey and gravy and the last of the Gooey Butter Cake to their apartment, since they have more room and more chairs and more dishes… We shared our food and they shared theirs and we had a great dinner, with time to have some meaningful conversation too. They’re volunteers like we are, and have been in Costa Rica since February.

Back at Casa #23, we continued to pack and redistribute things in suitcases.  And, surprisingly, we slept well until that early sunrise woke us… 

Friday morning, it was time to go!!  Showers, breakfast, remaining food to Kuceys… We’re ready to ride with Stephen and Anne Sickel to the airport to meet our friends from Missouri before we ride to our work site  in San Pedro de Poas, about an hour away. We’re ready for the next part of this journey!