Friends For The Journey

Bom Dia! (Good day!)
Yesterday was rainy and cold (68 degrees and the waves are gigantic!) all day and Joseph woke up with fever and chills. He went to class, but came home early.
I, too, am lying low, reading, resting and checking my email occasionally and with the help of Instant Messenger and a web cam getting to see and talk to my grandchildren about once a week. Tuesday, Joseph went downtown with a few members of his class. He saw a few new places he would like to take me to, so we may try to go downtown this weekend if he is feeling better.

Wednesday, we did something fun…we learned the steps to dance Samba (a lovely Brazilian dance). All we need to do now is practice…it will take a while to learn the rhythm but it sure is fun. I finally had to drop out of the circle of students because I couldn’t keep up, but I still kept practicing the steps without the pressure of going around with the circle. I lasted about 2 hours,

and then we headed home for a rest. We are seriously considering taking some dance lessons (ball room type) when we return to the states. It is definitely good exercise and a great way to have fun! I love to watch older couples (like our son-in-law’s parents) who have danced together most of their lives…they look so graceful and so at ease with each other. When they hear the music, they simply look at each other and begin to dance.
By the way, have you seen the movie, “Shall We Dance” (the one with Jennifer Lopez and Richard Gear). It’s one of my favorites.

I am in the process of reading through some books about Amish life and realized this morning that some of the things I am doing here are not so different…such as lighting the small propane heater each morning to warm the water in the shower…buying fresh fruits and vegetables at an outdoor market…drying the clothes on a line and then ironing them to soften them and remove the wrinkles and walking everywhere instead of jumping in a car to go places. We’ve watched a few minutes of TV once. There are a lot of conveniences that we take for granted until we are without them.

Joseph told me he is amazed at the way I am able to understand the Portuguese. We went to see Shrek 3 a couple of nights ago and I was nearly rolling on the floor laughing (Rofl for my kids generation!) I even caught some of the things in Portuguese that Joseph didn’t…ha! Hmmmm…maybe I should study the language too! When we go to a restaurant, I tell him what the waiter is saying and he places the order…lol!

No, really we help each other out…there is no way I could do this without him…I wouldn’t even be here without him!

We are officially half way through the program as of today. The time is moving by so quickly. This weekend should be restful. We will probably attend a church service (in Portuguese) Saturday night
and maybe visit the beach on Sunday. I hope you have a wonderful weekend too!

On a personal note, my doctor’s office is setting up an MRI to be done as soon as I return home to check out some new lumps and tender places. Please keep me in your prayers!

Much love, Debbie