she said H A L L O

It's a great day today. The sun is shining here in Deutschland- something I no longer take for granted. This morning, there was a ring on our doorbell. Holding a young toddler, the lady introduced herself as Miranda- one of our American neighbors. Having new tenants who are in the process of moving in next door, I assumed this was her. Not so, she's in the next unit over. We are in D, she's in B.

Bad morning for her- she was locked out of her house and needed help. She had that same stressed-out look on her face I had just a couple months ago as I found myself in the same predicament.

I asked if she was new to Germany and she responded they have been here four years. Four years and still getting locked out- I felt a whole lot better.  Not because she was locked out, but because it wasn't me and it felt so good to be on the other side- able to help her out. She needed Johannes' phone number so he could come unlock her house.

I was able to call him and speak enough German so he knew what happened and was on his way to help her. When I hung up, I let her know he'd be here in 30 minutes. She said, "Wow- your German is good." Little does she know, it's pretty broken but it was so comforting to not only understand but be understood.

a garden just down the road...

A little bit later, as I was returning inside after hanging out laundry {have to take advantage of the sunny days} my German neighbor {the wife} actually said Hallo first. I couldn't believe it! Maybe it's because I planted flowers by our front door. Maybe it's because we swept our front porch or even the laundry hanging outside. Whatever the reason, it was nice.

Yesterday, I broke down and bought some potting soil, a pot and flowers to plant out by the front door. Seeing the gardens going in, flowers planted and manicured yards has been really tough for me. I love playing in the dirt. I tend to go overboard and usually can't get enough yardwork. We've gone from a huge yard and mowing hours and hours each weekend, flowerbeds and a huge garden to no yard at all. It felt good to put at least a few pansys out front for a little splash of color.

Yesterday, I was also invited by my yoga-teaching neighbor to go for a hike. I jumped at the opportunity- right in our backyard. In spite of almost dying on the uphill trek, it was the most amazing view from the top. Breathtaking. I plan to take Jim back up today, I'll have my camera with me this time. Things are starting to look a little brighter.