Coincidence?
I taught my first class today as an elective to students from the English Club that wanted to attend. There was no charge to the students and there will be no grading. I had about 35 students show up, only one female. I talked about syllables, the basic unit of our words. If English learners get that, they're probably going to be understood. I focused on the difference in sounds between words like care/careful/carefully. Although it seems so natural to us English speakers, it is not easy for French speakers to hear the stress on the first syllable in words like these. They naturally pronounce them with the stress on the last syllable which throws us off in understanding. Unfortunately, we have lazy listening skills. I'm using a favorite text of mine: No.1 Ladies' Detective Agency as a resource. If you haven't read the series by Alexander McCall Smith, I highly recommend it for fun reading. This class will meet just once a week for 4 weeks. Then I'll start teaching at the medical school.
Abbey (from Bloomington, IN) and I share an office at UPC. She's working for an NGO, teaching a service-learning course to a couple of Congolese students. You may know that I did my master's thesis on service-learning.
Carole (from NW Iowa) leaves Saturday for Lubambashi, Congo, where she's going to set up a Congo American Language Institute (CALI) based on the model here in Kinshasa. She's been a great housemate for me and I'll miss having her company, but I just got word yesterday that there are two Embassy workers needing a place to live for awhile. The Public Affiars Officer (PAO) asked me if I'd consider letting them share my space. I'm sure it could be coincidence, but I believe God is the orchestrator of even this detail.
I was given a "Courtesy Call" to meet the Chargee--the interim ambassador for Congo--on Tuesday. The official U.S. ambassador arrives in a few weeks. He is from Holland, Michigan, about 20 minutes away from my home town of Grand Haven. He graduated from Calvin College, Grand Rapids. Although I didn't graduate from there, I attended there the same years he was there. Coincidence again? Not a chance.
posted by MeJane @ 4:50 PM
3 Comments
3 Comments:
Thanks for the recent update. Tonight my computer brought news of even more turmoil in Congo - it did talk of Kinsasha sending troops to assist in the Eastern Congo. Unfortunately I haven't taken the time to check my maps (but you can be sure I will). We pray you will be safe & secure! I just returned from 2 days at Marco Is. with my sister & 2 sisters-in-law (one of whom owns a condo there). 91 degrees & humid but lovely view (dolphin cavorting out front) & good fellowship. Love your providential :) blog! As always, take care & God bless - Pete & Carolyn
Hi Pete and Carolyn: How thoughtful of you to write on the eve of Sadie's baptism--that is not coincidence either! Glad you are watching the news, but Kinshasa is as far west as you can go before landing in the "other" Congo. Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo is just across the Congo River from us here--the two closest capitals of countries in the world. Most of the fighting, etc. is in the east, near Goma, where son David spent his summer several years ago.
So glad you and "the sisters" could have a great time on Marco Is. I look forward to having a sister's weekend when I get back! Love to you, JHD
Hi Pete and Carolyn: How thoughtful of you to write on the eve of Sadie's baptism--that is not coincidence either! Glad you are watching the news, but Kinshasa is as far west as you can go before landing in the "other" Congo. Brazzaville, the capital of the Republic of Congo is just across the Congo River from us here--the two closest capitals of countries in the world. Most of the fighting, etc. is in the east, near Goma, where son David spent his summer several years ago.
So glad you and "the sisters" could have a great time on Marco Is. I look forward to having a sister's weekend when I get back! Love to you, JHD
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