Oh the irony

 

Italy has a big election coming up on Friday. There have been political posters going up for weeks and there is a march or rally occuring almost daily now. It doesn't begin to touch the hoopla surrounding elections in the States, but it does get your attention.

I took a picture of a poster that is up across the street from our apartment. It probably doesn't take much interpreting to realize it is saying, "Vote Communist!" Could there be a more ironic sign? It cracked us up.

One of the identifying distinctives of Bologna is that is has always had a strong communist leaning. That is one of the reasons it is called "Bologna the Red." Many still claim the communist affiliation. We've begun to realize, however, that what they mean by communism is different than what we picture. It's more of a socialist idea than true communism. Still, it's a recognized political party, and as the sign communicates, the party is looking for the support of the people. A little taste of our world. . .

In other news, the Summer Project arrived last week from the States, and it has been so much fun to have them here! There are 10 students and three staff. It is a great group! They have really teachable hearts and have taken cultural-learning very seriously. We feel like what they are going to learn this summer is going to be incredibly valuable for our effectiveness heading into launching the ministry officially in the Fall.

As our schedule has begun to fill up, we are learning a lot about our capacity (as in how much we can handle) as a family of five. We're learning it's not as much as we thought it was. Partly because our family has grown and Ben is requiring more energy, and partly because of the added energy needed to do life in Italy. What our family was able to do in the States, we are learning, is not what we're able to do here. It's taken us a while to get that.

And so the learning continues! Every day seems to bring a new revelation, a new insight, a new way of doing things. All of which, we really do believe, are going to make us more effective in living and sharing the gospel.