My Dad

Robert David Wieder

April 21, 1945-2011

         The end of last November Angela and I received devastating news that my dad was in the hospital, the cancer returned.   We first learned of the disease seventeen months prior, it was supposedly the worst you could get, but he took it all in stride.  During chemo he was still able to make laps around the neighborhood.  July 2010 we stopped everything and took time to enjoy our family.  There was a trip to the coast, meal after meal, and just days together with time for fun. The following year was great, nothing was too bad, it was a miracle and we felt he was in the clear. It's a wonderful thing, my dad is an encourager, an eternal optimist. 

       We continued to have hope during the beginning of October 2011 when my mom told us he was taking on radiation for a few tumors in his head. We prayed often and had a restlessness while we continued to work abroad two months until the next unforgettable phone call.  That call put us on a long overdue journey home and just in time.  When we arrived in the hospital Dad was laid up in bed from the cells that spread to his spine. But he smiled and only talked about the future possibilities.  No complaints.
       The next week everyone stayed close and fought alongside my dad.  The doctors worked hard to keep the aggressive cells at bay.  My dad continued to fight until his body refused. December 8th he passed.  But he didn't die, he just left. The faith we received through it all was astounding,  a lesson learned while we remember what it is we're here for.  Of all the blessings we can find hidden in the wake we always have optimism, the faith that the Jesus we know is the Jesus we'll continue to know.  Just as my dad has already discovered.
       The night we arrived in the hospital room, Dad had planned a toast, complete with wine Mom snuck in with a thermos and syrofoam cups, courtesy of the break room.  He was encouraging with the little bit of energy he couldn't afford, we all smiled and really lived.  That was the last memory I hold.  My dad was pleasantly waiting for us, just like the heavenly One.  Before long we'll be there again.

España Nov. 2011 -Cordoba, Seville & Ronda

       The pictures below are from the last weekend in Spain before returning to Texas to be with our family and Dad in the hospital. We did a last minute trip to Cordoba, Seville, and Ronda. I love traveling Spain. I am always so amazed at the beauty that surrounds us. Here are some pictures from our trip.

Jose, one of our private lesson students, along with his 
girlfriend, Bea, and friend showing us around Cordoba.

                                    

We ate a traditional Spanish lunch, tortillas 
de patatas, queso, y salmoreja. Absolutely delicioso.

                      

Cordoba

                                                            

 Cordoba

Cool building in Seville.

Seville- decorated recycling bins!

Plaza de Espana

We rented bikes to tour the city. It was so fun!

Seville

Ronda- beautiful lookout

The bridge in Ronda

An amazing sight!

More pictures from this trip can be seen in our slide show above.

Halloween in Martos

Well, it may be closer to New Years, but I had to share some of my pictures from Halloween here in my classes in Martos. The kids love to hear about Halloween in America and Halloween has become much more Americanized here. Chris, another auxiliary, and myself spent 1 day going to every class and telling them about Halloween in America and the kids loved it! Check out the fun below!

Our students with their pumpkin masks on!

Chris and I about to celebrate Halloween with typical Spanish desserts.

I made a PowerPoint about Halloween.

The students lovely art work.

Some of the teachers at my school.

A class.

The faculty at my school enjoying some Halloween treats during the break.

Oranges turned into pumpkins.

A typical day in my life in Spain. Helping the students with their English!

Love these kids!

Granada

A couple of weekends ago, David and I had the opportunity to visit the beautiful town of Granada. We have been a little busy the last few weeks so I am a little behind on blogging. Granada is a great town and we spent the majority of the time walking around and enjoying the sights. One of my favorite memories is grabbing a picnic lunch and enjoying it by the river. Here are a few pictures!

El Fin de Semana

Fridays are typically my favorite day of the week. For one, I only work ½ day from 12-2pm. David and I also have no afternoon lessons so we get to enjoy the Spanish tradition of the siesta. This Friday started the same. Woke up, went for a run, than attempted to clean the apartment. Big surprise, no water. No mopping.  No shower. No explanation. Even if there were, would I understand?  Three hours later and a partially clean place, no water, and one stinky teacher on the way to school.

 That’s life in Spain. You just roll with it and you go on the best you can!

This weekend we stayed in Martos. On Friday evening David’s co-worker, Sergio, invited us over to his parents’ house to make home-made, all-natural soap. We experienced Spain’s hospitality with great tea and cake after we finished our project. His parents didn’t speak much English, but they were so happy to have us over. His father spent a good 30 minutes with me trying to teach me the sounds of the letters and showing me how they teach the kids to pronounce them right by using motions. It was fun.

Saturday we met up with several co-workers to have dinner at a nice Italian restaurant. (Nice=Caro=Expensive) In Spain, it is typical to order several dishes and split the bill at the end. It’s a nice tradition and we enjoyed some great Italian food. Most of the people knew English so that was a plus!

Sunday we were invited to another co-worker’s house for a proper lunch. She asked if we could bring an American Pumpkin Pie. No problem, right? Not quite as easy as I originally thought. For one, there is no canned pumpkin and no pre-made dough! What to do….. This may be the first time I have made a pie from scratch! I enlisted David to help and we used a couple of recipes and made up the rest to produce a great pumpkin pie. Right as we were going to put our perfect pumpkin pie into our oven, oversized toaster oven, the shelf in the oven collapsed with our pie on it! Thankfully it stayed intact and we only had to do a little clean up around the edges. We had a great lunch and the pie tasted great!

David making pumpkin bread with our left over pumpkin

Our "oven"

Taa da

This is life here. We are constantly learning new things and having new experiences. Tonight we make fish- a whole fish. I’ve never done this so David is in charge. We wish you all a great Thanksgiving week. Enjoy the food and most of all enjoy your time with friends and family.

Madrid

 David and I had the opportunity to travel to Madrid for our 4 day holiday a couple of weekends ago.  I love random holidays in Spain!  Life here is going well, but we are much busier than expected.  It seems like each week we are being asked to add something new to our schedule.  We currently are working in the schools and teaching private English lessons in the afternoons. This week a private school has asked us to come and teach English during our "free time".  Not sure how this is going to work, but we are thankful for having an abundance of work here as opposed to no work!

Madrid was a great time to get away and meet up with our friends Ed and Becca. They are doing this same program in the northern part of Spain, about 6-7 hours away from us in Vigo.  It was great for us to see familiar faces.  Ed had studied in Spain so he was able to show us around and take us to some cool spots. We enjoyed the normal tourist sites including Parque Retiro, the Prado Museum, Palacio Real, and all of the wonderful plazas.  Madrid is an amazing city, we enjoyed seeing the awesome architecture, statues, and fountains.  Enjoy some of our pictures from this trip.  The slide show is also being updated with pictures from Madrid.

La Grana

David and I have been enjoying our time learning about this new place we are living in and exploring the mountains close by.  We took a hike a couple of weekends ago and enjoyed the view from the top of a 1,252 meter (4,100 ft) mountain.  It is so nice to have mountains and hiking trails so close to our house.  I am taking in the beauty of looking out our balcony and seeing a moutain so close to our house. Here are a few pictures from our hike.