Picking up where I left off... When Isabel finished her test on Wednesday (8/14) she was so relieved and happy, and actually told me she wanted to attend the Jefferson School. My heart felt lighter, but to be honest I still had serious doubts if this was going to be a good fit for her. (Perhaps this was due to the fact that in 2008 she cried every day when I dropped her off and three staff people had to physically pull her away from me!) Still, I decided that I would turn over my doubts and anxiety to God and prayed that we would get clarity in the coming days. They told us they'd have the results of the exam in 5 days, so I decided to simply not worry (easier said than done, of course). More on that later...
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday of our first week were filled with more errands and meetings: with Gabi (to go over schedules), with Héctor (to fix house stuff), with the cable people (to get our Dish TV, which we have never used even once!), and with the host moms. I'd arrive home at night exhilarated and exhausted, and the three of us would spend the evenings playing cards (Caitlin loves games!), laughing, and going to bed way too late.
Saturday was our big day: the students arrived! At 10:30 a.m. sixteen Westmont students landed in Querétaro, then shuttled off to Gabi's school in the centro (historic center of town) where I met with them for an hour—speaking only in Spanish—before they were whisked away by their new families.
Saturday was our big day: the students arrived! At 10:30 a.m. sixteen Westmont students landed in Querétaro, then shuttled off to Gabi's school in the centro (historic center of town) where I met with them for an hour—speaking only in Spanish—before they were whisked away by their new families.
On Sunday we enjoyed our traditional welcome comida with the students and their host families. Monday morning we had orientation at the university, and then that evening we had a dessert at my house where students could relax and share how things were going (in English). I'm putting up a Westmont webpage with all of the students' news and tons of photos, so you might want to check out that link for more updates. I'll send it along as soon as I finish it!