September 1, 2014

So much to write! I had a wonderful picnic with Sophie, her mom, and brother, Augustin. We laughed a lot together and I tried French coffee for the first time. It's not very rich, or strong: it's just right.

Sophie and I explored the castle of Rambouillet and there was a room made of shells with a secret door in the wall. The guide said in French, "Americans adore this." We laughed at that-it's true! I made Sophie laugh sometimes and that felt wonderful. French is getting easier each day. Sophie and I help each other with English and French. We also visited the cathedral St. Lubin together. We talked about our favorite books from the Bible and sat for a moment taking the space in. The French live amidst walls of history and they are very aware and proud of it. They understand the significance of the past and the lessons it has to offer.

Not long after, her mom, Marie Charlotte, took us to the cathedral of Chartres, which is over 800 years old! It is one of the most magnificent cathedrals I have seen in France. At dinner we had crêpes; Marie-Charlotte helped me with my French and our waiter was German. I had a chance to tell him how much I liked his country too. There was a woman in a bookshop earlier that day who gave me a book for free in French, for easy practice. I even found an Italian-French dictionary that I bought: my two favorite languages put together! We explored Chartres en Lumière, which is like the Grotto at Christmas. The cathedral is lit up, music plays, and other old buildings are lit too, including the small bridges in town. It was magical and calm with the familiar music of "Moonlight Sonata." We watched the lights from the cathedral, which told a story and transitioned into many different colors. It was beautiful, hard to put into words.

I slept a little bit in the car on the way home. Sophie read a few of my poems and asked me, "What is twilight?" I tried to explain something so beautiful and fleeting in nature. Basically I tried to say, "It's when the sky is rather dark and just before all the sun falls." We watched a little of the film, Belle, a favorite of mine. We couldn't watch it in French, so we had to go with English. I did some translating for her and she liked the film. I am very blessed to have Sophie as a friend.