da beach and stuff

Husband and I took a trip to Lagos, Portugal this past weekend! I rarely get to see the ocean, and its blue vastness takes my breath away every time. The Atlantic is freezing cold! Nevertheless, we warmed up to it on Saturday and really, it’s not so bad once you make yourself stay in for about 10 minutes. Even more than swimming we enjoyed exploring the colorful coast. Along all the yellows and reds and browns of the rocky cliffs above the water were many little trails consisting of all kinds of beautiful plant life. Seagulls cawing overhead. The sound of waves hitting the shore beneath us. Little sailboats dotting the huge sea. Perfectly round and white snail shells at our feet along  the sandy paths. We felt like modern day Christopher Columbuses, especially on Saturday evening when we got to see the sun go down over the ocean in Sagres, the location that was once thought to be “The End of the World.” I would watch the day end in that spot every day for the rest of my life if I could. God is really brilliant with those sunsets…

This weekend was really good for us. Solid quality time and lots of good conversation. We got to and from Lagos on a big bus full of other American students studying in Sevilla/Madrid, but we mostly kept to ourselves, as it was quite a loud and obnoxious partying bunch. Oh, Americanos… ;) Zach and I felt like slackers because we didn’t really use Spanish at all over the weekend. But being in Portugal, we were told that the Portuguese don’t appreciate when everyone comes over from  Spain and speaks Spanish, thinking Spanish is almost just like Portuguese, which it is not. Portugal wants to keep its individuality as a country with its own language, which is very understandable. The Portuguese countryside we experienced only in passing-through on the bus was sooo dreamy. Lots of green, hilly, ponies, little white homes with the Spanish-style roofs, orange groves, rivers. In and out of sleep I would look out the window and imagine myself galloping on a cream-colored horse through the fields. Ayyy I just HAVE to ride a horse while I’m here in Europe! It's happening, people.

All weekend we were inspired by God’s hand in creation as well as the memories of a very precious woman who went to be with Jesus this past weekend. Zachary’s Grandma Borchardt died peacefully surrounded by family early Friday morning, September 21, the day we left for Lagos. I had the privilege of getting to know Ruth these past couple of years; she was always wonderful to talk to and a most creative gift-giver! Of course, Zach has many many more memories with her, his whole lifetime of memories of his Grandma, so we celebrated Ruth’s life by remembering her a lot over the weekend. Was hard to accept that we wouldn’t be able to attend the funeral, which is today, so we got up early on Sunday morning to hike to the top of a cliff and have our own little service for her.

                          Psalm 23, Isaiah 40, the sunrise, and a little memorial site Zach made.

She and Grandpa Frank used to travel a whole lot. So Ruth was an explorer, just like us. She's even been to Spain a couple of times! Grandma Borchardt, we love you and know what you are experiencing now is even more astounding than the sights we experienced at the world's end this weekend. Can’t wait to see you again, someday soon. Your leaving us reminds me how our time on earth is but a breath; what am I doing with the moments that make up my short life? This is a good question to ask. 

Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal. 2 Corinthians 4:16-18.