After a week of unseasonal storms and torrential rain, very unusual for May, the weather's beginning to return to normal this weekend. Friends of mine took this amazing photo from their home last night - of a huge double rainbow spread across the expanse of Alhaurín de la Torre. Other friends also took photos from within the town, but I think this one taken from up on the hill, looking out to sea, is the most stunning.
Today dawned sunny for a change: time to wash laundry, walk the dog, and do some gardening. After such a rainy week, a lot of washing had piled up in the laundry basket, so I washed and hung out two loads before even leaving the house this morning. What a pile of ironing that's going to be later this weekend!
Soon it was time to set our for my morning walk with Buba. We've had to forego our morning circuit on the mountain this month because I leave the house so early every morning for LDC…. and last weekend's torrential downpours were not conducive to traipsing through the fields with a dog. Buba's the sweetest pup, half English Setter and half terrier (unknown father!!), she's lively, gentle and affectionate. As someone used to years of being a border collie owner, though, it feels a little strange to walk a dog who doesn't quite know what to do with a frisbee.
Our walk took us on one of our favourite circuits - on the mountain behind my house. Now that I'm finally emerging from nine weeks of pleurisy, it's good to feel strong enough to walk a little further and not to be in so much pain. We discovered that one of the local shepherds had put up a low fence, so that he could leave his sheep and goats on the mountain at night, and he had left two sheepdogs, Spanish mastiffs to watch over them. As the flock was waking up for the day, it seemed as if one of their faithful night-time guardians was contemplating taking time for a nap.
Next on my agenda was a quick drive to Aldi, Lidl and Mercadona to pick up some bits and pieces for the weekend and the coming days. I decided to buy a little hand-held steam cleaner that was on display with this week's special offers. Buying the equipment was the easy part; the more energetic part is still to come, as I want to use it to spring clean the shower doors, and all the recently-rained-on windows in my house. As I stood in line at the check out, the man in front of me asked what it was, and I explained how it was used to deep clean things, wash windows, etc. His response was so typical of Spanish macho-ism: "My wife wouldn't clean the windows, even if I were to buy one of those things," he said. His face was a study of shock and confusion when he heard my reply: "But it makes the job much easier; you could do it yourself." He was left speechless as he contemplated this rather incredible idea!
Back home again, it was time for some gardening. I wanted to prune the jasmine in front of my house and also do some transplanting of flowers. Last week, for my birthday, a friend had given me a beautiful basket with six different plants in it. My neighbour, who's quite knowledgable about things to do with flowers, pointed out that the various plants had different watering needs and that it would be wisest to transplant them all into six different pots, so that they would last longer. So she gave me a hand to do that, as you see here in the picture.
Friday night is sometimes games night at my house. Last weekend, a group of staff and delegates came to play the game Saboteur, and last night a group of staff came to help me bring my Taboo game back into use. It had been in storage at my parents' place and I dug it out when I was in Scotland for Christmas. I hadn't played Taboo for more than twenty years, and so it was kind of fun to try it out again, and even to end up being part of the winning team. Tomorrow night, I've been invited to Villa Eden. The delegates who live there have invited me for dinner, and to learn how to play Mexican Train dominoes, a game that they'd been playing there in recent weekends.
This afternoon I'll take a little time to clean the house (I need to try out my new steam cleaner and tackle the bathroom) before I head out in the afternoon for my second walk of the day with Buba. I'll probably also take a little time to gather my thoughts and look over my teaching notes for next week in the LDC. It's "self-leadership" week, and I'll be sharing on topics such as sabbath rest, financial integrity, and goals for growth. I'll also be MC-ing the week, together with Sasha from the Ukraine. He and his wife, regional leaders of YWAM in Eastern Europe, attended LDC last year, and have come back again this year to work with us as staff.
No one's coming to visit this evening, so I'll probably just read a book or watch a movie. Tomorrow will be for church, for rest, and then for my dinner with the delegates. So there you have a snapshot of a May weekend, a break from the classroom and workshop schedule of typical LDC weeks here in Malaga. It's nice to feel in better health, and more able to enjoy this (finally) sunny Spanish weekend.
Today dawned sunny for a change: time to wash laundry, walk the dog, and do some gardening. After such a rainy week, a lot of washing had piled up in the laundry basket, so I washed and hung out two loads before even leaving the house this morning. What a pile of ironing that's going to be later this weekend!
This afternoon I'll take a little time to clean the house (I need to try out my new steam cleaner and tackle the bathroom) before I head out in the afternoon for my second walk of the day with Buba. I'll probably also take a little time to gather my thoughts and look over my teaching notes for next week in the LDC. It's "self-leadership" week, and I'll be sharing on topics such as sabbath rest, financial integrity, and goals for growth. I'll also be MC-ing the week, together with Sasha from the Ukraine. He and his wife, regional leaders of YWAM in Eastern Europe, attended LDC last year, and have come back again this year to work with us as staff.
No one's coming to visit this evening, so I'll probably just read a book or watch a movie. Tomorrow will be for church, for rest, and then for my dinner with the delegates. So there you have a snapshot of a May weekend, a break from the classroom and workshop schedule of typical LDC weeks here in Malaga. It's nice to feel in better health, and more able to enjoy this (finally) sunny Spanish weekend.
