the ideas of living

"travel is more than the seeing of sights; it is a change that goes on, deep and permanent, in the ideas of living" -- Miriam Beard

I sat down to write this blog a few weeks ago, unsure what I could possibly share that might be of worth. It feels like not much has happened since my last entry, and yet I know that each day has been filled to the brim with different experiences. I thought about telling just one story - there must have been something big that had happened, but I couldn't think of any one event that deserved being told over another. It seemed that I had lost the excitement of everything being new and different. I no longer saw things through the eyes of a tourist, or even those of a traveler. 

So I looked through some pictures I had taken during the past couple of months to see if anything jumped out at me. As the memories came sweeping back, I realized that I had not been focused on seeing the sights as much as I had been on the ideas of living. On the daily experiences that make up this life I live. So I thought, rather than show pictures of Spanish architecture (albeit amazing), I'd share some stories & pictures of the experiences I've had in the past few months.

Holsby Brunn, Sweden (where I had been a student 8 years ago)

February: I went to visit the motherland (Sweden) for the first time in 8 years. It was incredible! Loved visiting with family & friends, hearing the beautiful Swedish language, and exploring my favorite country. :)

Life Compass crew on our first day of training

March: Along with six friends here in Málaga, I went through Life Compass, a training that helped us gain a framework for navigating life, a perspective on our past journey to now, a better understanding of our unique wiring and gifting, an increased awareness of our spiritual gifts and personality, and practical steps for moving forward. The final result was creating my personal vision statement.

Whitney & me in Sevilla, Spain

April: My best friend, Whitney, came to visit and we explored so many different parts of Spain! We visited Sevilla, Cadiz, and Madrid; drove along the Southern Spain coastline, from which we could see Gibraltar (and even Morocco, off in the distance!); and got some quality sun & beach time in. 

The volunteer kitchen crew/my new wonderful friends

May: For a week, I served as part of the kitchen (volunteer) staff for a conference that some friends put on here in Málaga. I met some truly amazing people with beautiful hearts for serving and loving others.

There you are. Some bits and pieces of life (from my perspective) here in Málaga. It's been an eventful few months! There were indeed a lot of sights to be seen, but I most enjoyed the rhythms and routines I've started to develop here.

Spain is starting to feel like home.

Spanish sunrise
(view from the conference in Alhaurín de la Torre)

♥ mk