Hello from Angouleme-Another real blustery, winter's day we are experiencing here today. If you all were to get the moisture we've been getting for the past 10 days, you'd be slogging through waist high snow for sure! So much for being in the south of France! But, we go out and take our chances, because the sun does peek out at the odd moment here and there.
Our apartment is a dream come true for us. It has lovely, old fashioned wall paper everywhere, tile throughout each room (which is pretty standard) on the floors, and shutters on the three windows and the heavy glass house door. We can close out the world when we close the shutters at night. I have a gas range with oven, smaller than mine at home, but not tiny. I can take out my pyro-maniac urges every time I cook, and am trying to be careful and not go up in smoke over a pan of lemon bars! (Which by the way is the way to many a French heart!) The fact that the apt. came furnished was such a blessing. The mission usually shells out quite a bit to make a place habitable for their missionaries, but they only helped with our mattress and washing machine here, and that made things so much easier for us all. We have a real W C (water closet) . . . a walk-in broom closet with toilet, with just room enough to turn around and face front! Then, off our little bedroom is the shower stall and sink area, closed in by a curtain. The stall can't be any bigger than 24 by 24 inches. It was hilarious when Jack took his first shower; he got in OK, and got himself all wet OK, but he just couldn't get the arm movements going that he needed to lather up. So he turned off the water, opened the two little doors and hung his upper body out to wash himself. He came out later to warn me what it was going to be like, and I thought, "well, that sounds like a lot of fun." But, I had no problems at all with showering, other than how to keep the hot water coming steadily from the water heater that fires up on demand over the kitchen sink.
The differences from here to home are what make things interesting. Like when we first bought fruit and vegetables at the Giant Casino and didn't realize we were to weigh and label your own produce. The check-out lady looked at our naked bags and said, "Where are the tags?" She sent Jack running back for them with his arms full, while holding up the whole line of shoppers behind us. I was sure we'd have a riot on our hands, but French people are strangely placid when in lines--as if that is their lot in life. After 3 or 4 minutes of me, trying to look innocent of the crime, he got back, and we were happy, the checker was happy, the customers in line were happy, (about ready to break into applause) and Jack sang out as we paid, "Merci, bo-coup, pour votre patience!" Everyone smiled.
We had a fun Family Home Eve. last night . . . our inactive family came; the Elders gave a good, short lesson, and we had the activity which was charades of scriptural events, and some fun was had by all. Hope all of you are happy and well, that's all for now from me . . . sure do enjoy hearing from you, write when you can.
Love, Sister Mom Metcalfe
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