It's A Small World After All

First off, let me apologize for taking so long to post, 12 days...but who's counting (*cough* John Evans *cough*). In all honesty, it always seemed like there just wasn't a whole lot going on that you might find interesting. (Something like, "Well, today we had class, chilled in the flat with the guys when we got back, wasted a bunch of time watching TV and on the Internet, and then went to bed. Keep us in your prayers!" See what I mean?) All that's not to say we aren't making the most of our time here or going on frequent adventures in our new world, it's just that since school started, they've been a little more spaced out.

So to make it up to you, I've compiled a list of 12 things (one for each of those missed days) that have been going on in the land of the Scots. Sorry there aren't any pictures here. Check Facebook.

1) Aaron's last entry was 100% correct. Scottish is not English. It's like saying dogs and cats can talk to each other: they're both pets, they both make noise, so they should be able to understand what each other is saying, right? No. Barring the obvious differences in dialect, there are also a few little quirks that have been stumbling blocks in our communication. It took me a few days to pick up that they use the word "wee" for any time we would say "little" in American English. Example: I went to the wee shop around the corner to pick up my wee brother from school. I'm from the South and everything, but they sure do say "folk" a lot over here. It's they're word for "people". Examples: A lot of folk don't understand me; maybe more folk should buy hearing aides. You might think we're whining, but if the most serious Scottish accent you've ever heard came from Mel Gibson, you got another thing coming.

2) We have been trying out various churches over here. A few weeks ago we were invited by a couple of teenagers in a sports shop to their local baptist church the coming Sunday, so we decided we'd give it a shot, especially since it was a 15 minute walk from our flat. It was also just a huge blessing/surprise to be invited to a church around here. So much so, that we had to get them to repeat the invitation for us (half because of the surprise and half because, well, look back at #1). We had a great time at the service worshiping and meeting people, including the American pastor and his wife, but there were still a couple of other churches we wanted to visit before we settled on an adopted house of worship.

3) This past week we decided we'd check out a little hole-in-the-wall church that we pass on our way to campus every day called New Life Gospel Church that originally caught our eye because of the bright yellow signage out front. It's a very small (25 members, tops), very tight-knit church with members who obviously have their hearts set on Christ. The most contemporary out of all of our church visits (maybe despite the average age of the congregation), the service still had a very old-school revival feel to it, which was a nice change for us.

4) Class is going well for Aaron and I. Classes here are bigger than we're used to at Mercer, but it's been good for us to see how higher education works at a larger university. Aaron and I are both taking Business Research Methods on Tuesday morning and Operations Management on Wednesdays. I have e-Marketing on Monday afternoons while Aaron has Personal and Interpersonal Skills (which he definitely needed a class to help improve) at the dreaded Monday morning spot. Business Research Methods is by far the largest class. So large, in fact, that they had to split the course up, and since Aaron and I are on opposite ends of the alphabet spectrum, that means we're in different locations.

5) He's in the state-of-the-art auditorium, while I'm in a church basement. Yeah, a church basement. "But Matt, I bet it's probably some really old, cool-looking church with some nice stained glass and buttresses and stuff." Yeah, it's like that on the outside. But in the basement, it's not that spectacular. And it's freezing cold all the time. A minority of people take off their jackets once they get inside and even fewer take off their scarves or head wear. And the class is pretty boring. Before you call the waaahmbulance on me, I just had to vent on that for a second because Aaron surely isn't sympathizing for me.

6) During the tutorial session after BRM the other day, my class was split into groups of four where we had to discuss an assignment and then have a spokesperson talk for our group. Well, I was the only one not shaking my head when it was my group's turn, so I was it. It was pretty funny because I could notice people making an effort around the room to turn and look at me while I was talking. Must've been my irresistible Southern accent. Anyway, during a break a little later, an Indian guy walks up to me and goes, "Matt!?" And I just kinda nodded my head and said, "Yeah?..." And he said, "It's Sam!" Instantly, I recognized/remembered who this guy was. His name is Sam Arora, and he was an exchange student at Mercer last Spring. Aaron and I had met him during his time there, and we were able to get to know him pretty well and get kinda personal. We had totally forgotten he was in Paisley and he didn't realize we were here, either. It's been great to see him and hang out again. And the same day that we met him, it just so happened he was heading over to our dorm to cook Indian food for some friends, so we partook as well. It was great. And yes, Aaron sweated.

7) We play football (soccer, that is) pretty much every other day out here on the fieldturf pitches next to our dorm. We've met a lot of guys who like to play (of course), so we've usually got some good games going. As far as how we stack up, Aaron is actually among the best players out here (that's not really a surprise to some of you). And I am not. While I don't look like a three-legged giraffe out there or anything, I just don't have the footwork on the ball like these dudes. We have both discovered that we are getting older, so the aches that we get playing out in this cold weather linger a little longer than they might've in the past. As our French friends might say, C'est la vie.

8) Man, there sure are a lot of French people out here. If you hung out with the right people, you could fool yourself into thinking that you were studying in Marseilles or Lyon instead of Scotland. It's been cool, though. They like talking to us because they can understand us better than the locals, and we enjoy meeting more European people, so it works out well.

9) I'm gong to fulfill my dream of playing college football. After meeting some of the guys on the university's team, I'm going to start practicing with them next week and hopefully get some playing time soon. They recruited me pretty hard, and they were all really nice guys, so I couldn't pass up on the chance to put the pads on and hit somebody again. Check back here for injury reports.

10) We love cereal. A lot. If we don't eat at least two bowls a day, we're hungry. It's cheap, it's delicious, and the milk mixed in with the sugary bits of cereal tastes like angel dust.

11) As far as watching soccer, we've been to the pub to watch England get outclassed by Spain 2-0, Celtic and Rangers fight out a 0-0 draw in an exciting edition of the Old Firm derby (this rivalry is HUGE over here...WIKIPEDIA it...the pub was packed), and Manchester United outclass Derby County in the FA Cup 4-1. We're going to watch the local team, St. Mirren, play in a Scottish Cup match in a few hours in the first night match at their new stadium.

12) Our tickets to the Manchester United game on Saturday came in yesterday. We'll just say I was excited and leave it at that. Check back early next week for Aaron's analysis of my spontaneous combustion at Old Trafford.

13) (BONUS!) Some people have asked for our mailing addresses over here, so here they are.

Matthew Suits (or) Aaron Gray
Villa 15A2 (or) 15A5
Thornly Park Campus
Caplethill Road
Paisley, Scotland, UK
PA2 7TR

Pray that we will eventually settle on a church home over here. While we have enjoyed all of the services and simply being with fellow believers, we still want a consistent church body we can worship with every week. Pray for safety as we do a little traveling this weekend. Most of all, pray for the people we come in contact with, like Sam and our flatmates. Pray that we can make an impact on them in some way to help them see Christ and his desires for their lives more clearly.

Thanks for sticking through this extensive list. I'm sure by now you've had a full dose of your Matt-and-Aaron fix. We love and miss you all. Thanks for your support, and check back soon for more updates.