Happiness is...

...a little bit of rain, Ella Fitzgerald singing "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," a Peppermint Mocha, and laughter with good friends.
Have you ever experienced anything you wish you could just bottle up and keep forever? I have had the privilege of experiencing many times like that: long chats with good friends at Campus Coffee Bean, walking across Cottey Campus on a fall morning, road trips to Denny's with Sara Groves in the background, worship at sunset up at the peaks. Moments like that help put life back into perspective. Life can be chaotic, stressful and even painful at times, but praise God that he provides moments of complete contentment. This afternoon was one of those moments.
I have been done with student teaching for about a week now. My days have been filled with various odd jobs around the school. I have sat in on the ESL classes, getting a taste of what next semester holds. I visited third grade yesterday, spent some time in the high school Spanish class this morning and helped with the first grade Ancient Egypt play this afternoon. Tomorrow and Friday I am helping with the Christmas program. Although the odd jobs have been fun, it has been hard phasing out of the fifth grade. That's been my place for the past three months, and now I have to work on moving out of there. On top of the transition with that, the homesickness and stress with the return home fast approaching has resulted in a rather worn out Molly in need of some chill time.
Some of the elementary teachers have made it a weekly ritual to go to Starbucks after the staff meeting on Wednesdays. The plan is to go and work, but it usually ends up with all of us chatting. With all of the stress that the end of a semester can bring the Starbucks crew has dwindled to two or three. I have only gone a couple times, but this afternoon I knew that I was in desperate need of some new scenery and a Peppermint Mocha. In fact, I don't think I have ever looked forward to a Peppermint Mocha more (oh the joys of culture stress) :) Lindsey and I had to ride through the rain and some crazy traffic to get there, but the end result was well worth it. We splurged and got a cheese bagel and a piece of Oreo cheesecake to share along with a peppermint mocha and a hot chocolate. The other teachers who had come were Becky and Donna (Kindergarten and Preschool teachers). We had all brought something to work on, but ended up chatting for about two hours. We laughed about the funny things our kids had said that week, spoke with excitement about our plans for Christmas break, and soaked up the festive atmosphere that this Indonesian Starbucks provided. It was a little slice of heaven:) The combination of the air conditioning inside and the rain outside made it feel a little like winter time. The Christmas music and Peppermint Mocha made me feel for a second like I was back in the states. I have traveled to some pretty spectacular places and been rendered speechless by God's creation, but nothing compares to a good cup of coffee and good conversation with people you love.
Christmas is my favorite time of year. I love the music, I love the traditions, I love the Peppermint Mocha, and I love the memories, stories and laughs that I associate with this holiday season. As I look forward to returning home in two weeks to add some more memories to this time of year that I cherish so much, I am also thankful for the people God has placed in my life here in Indonesia.