Chris arrived on June 29 without a hitch. He had a wonderful send-off in the U.S. with two going away parties in his home town at his mom's home and in Washington D.C. at the home of a good friend. With no regrets he came with his three bags of luggage to his home here in Barcelona. He will be returning to the U.S. for a few days at the end of July for his nephew's wedding and then will be flying to Kiev on Aug 3 with his other 5 bags. I'll be meeting him in Kiev from Aug 6 - 15 to help him settle into his new apartment.
The first couple of days were a whirlwind because just a day and a half later I was leaving for France
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Chris took this pic as we met up with
friends who would be learning
Spanish at Chris' language school. |
for a week-long retreat. I wanted to get Chris settled into our home, set up his gym membership, get his phone working, ensure he was ready to start his Spanish intensive class on July 1, and meet a couple of other North American friends that were going to the same school. All that on June 29, the day he arrived. We didn't even have a chance to take a picture of us! On June 30, Chris asked me to leave that day open for us to celebrate my birthday which was on June 26. On that day, he gave me a fantastic relaxing gift at a luxurious spa and massage, where I floated in 7 various kinds of arab-like pools with a steam room after getting my massage. I felt totally pampered. We then had a very nice lunch and early dinner so I could finish up packing before my trip the next day.
Shambhala Meditation Retreat
On July 1, I left Chris back in Barcelona and rode in a car with three Spaniards for 8 hours to the mid-western part of France at
Dechen Choling, one of Shambhala's land centers, for a week long retreat. It was designed to train those who had the interest and demonstrated skills and knowledge to be meditation instructors. There were 60 of us from all over Europe. We were asked to study and prepare for this week, which I had done. We received talks, extended times of group meditation, excellent food, as well as times working in small groups to practice and demonstrate the skills of working one-on-one with a meditation student.
Given that we were in Europe, where multiple languages are spoken, I requested that I could be assigned to an English-speaking group, so that I could express myself more easily and from the heart. But it was not meant to be. They needed a fourth person for the Spanish-speaking group. However, it actually turned out to be the best thing for me. I discovered that although I still need to continue to learn more vocabulary, expressions, etc, I am fully capable to converse in Spanish with a meditation student about meditation practice and how that is experienced in one's life. The experience gave me the confidence to take this next step in my involvement with the Shambhala group in Barcelona and with Shambhala Europe in general.
Back on the Home Front
During my week in France, I had occasional contact with Chris, although internet communications are not readily available from there. Some issues came up for him, including the changing of the front door of the building and receiving a new key, which Chris did not get immediately and was stuck outside for a little while.
When I got home, I realized that he was having a really difficult week in the intensive Spanish class. Their pace was very fast and although he was starting at the first level, there were others in the class that had some prior experience and skills. It was not a level playing field and I could see that Chris was somewhat discouraged. We spent that evening going over his homework and I encouraged him to get out of the class what he could in the remaining few weeks. I think he has regained his motivation and is diligently applying himself and at the same time taking time to relax some and enjoy his time here in Barcelona.
Over the last few days we went to a dinner party at a friend's home with a beautiful terrace overlooking the city and yesterday we spent the day at the beach with friends.
When I got home, I realized that he was having a really difficult week in the intensive Spanish class. Their pace was very fast and although he was starting at the first level, there were others in the class that had some prior experience and skills. It was not a level playing field and I could see that Chris was somewhat discouraged. We spent that evening going over his homework and I encouraged him to get out of the class what he could in the remaining few weeks. I think he has regained his motivation and is diligently applying himself and at the same time taking time to relax some and enjoy his time here in Barcelona.
