"Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, submit your requests to God." He does a work in you that changes your heart and refreshes your mind. When you're feeling down one night and wake up feeling at peace and calm about the topic that you prayed about, it's God working on your heart. It almost like night and day.
My feelings today weren't the only things that were held in stark contrast for me today, but I'll start with them to kind of dovetail off of my last post. Yes, I removed myself from the stress of planning Spring Break and will plan that at another time. And today was the first day that we had freedom to explore some of Rome on our own. No boundaries, no large groups, no agenda. It felt good. Closer to Romans. We were more like "Rome-ing" today. There is something freeing about the spontaneity when you just walk and see quaint areas and catch a few major sites along the way. I guess you can say we saw a major site...
Humbled in the shadow of the Colosseum
An Italian lady understood our sign language and "per favore" enough to help us out.
To say that it was overwhelming or imposing or magnificent would be understatement. Right when I walked out of the Metro stop, it hit me smack in the face. My whole body couldn't really do anything but stand in awe. I felt so small and overpowered by something that was a site of impressive architecture and showed the progress of humanity, but to know that such brutality happened here too was unreal. One of my friends said to try and picture what it would feel like to hear it when it was filled. Louder and more raucous with more brutality than any football game is as close I could get. We walked around the neighborhood, kind of just wandering and circled back towards the Colosseum and checked out a 5 star restaurant just for because we could. Not quite in my price range :), but still cool!
Our first stop before the Colosseum off the Metro was Eataly, which I can best describe as: Wegman's for Italian food that is bulked up on protein shakes and a heavy lifting program (or a lysing program if you live in Geneva Arms North 401 ;)). It's kinda like a mall, but just food from all regions of Italy. There's nothing that is technically called "Italian" because each region is different. The olives each provide a unique flavor, the grapes make distinct wine, and the tomatoes make a variety of sauces. Or so I'm told by people who can read Italian and by the maps I could read. I need to go back when I know the language better and have a phrase book to help me along in the store, but here's a view from the top:
From the FOURTH floor!
I had my first espresso, which was strong and invigorating. There also was a whole section dedicated to chocolate from all over Italy. Mmmm....Then we went for the metro which is pretty straightforward. 2 lines is considerably easier than NYC, so getting around will be a breeze, but just wait, I'm sure I'll eat my words when we get lost somewhere.
We also visited the Spanish Steps, which was cool and is a great place to people watch, but just beware of the guys who try to give you flowers or bracelets. We walked down what seemed to be a fashion strip at the base of the steps that had any and every designer brand that you can name. Amid the hustle and bustle of this vogue area, we stumbled across two Catholic churches. We weren't allow to take pictures inside, but talk about beauty and contrast. The churches were both dark, quiet, and full of power. It was great to be still before God, and I felt detached from the world and was surprised when we left that there were still people outside. Along the walls, there were frescoes dedicated to saints, and altars that almost force you to your knees by their grandeur. How could they do this sort of awesome stuff in the 1500s and earlier? (I'll get better with my Italian history specifics in class, don't worry). How did they build such high domes and structures, and how did they move and work with all of that marble? These two churches weren't even pictured on a map that I was using, so I don't know how I'm going to react when we go to St. Peter's Basilica.
I know it may sound feigned and unbelievable based on my awkward-feeling post yesterday, but this is how today felt. It really was a dramatic shift inside me. I have no anxiety about traveling or the bus or Metro. Night and day. I felt uncertainty last night, and assurance this morning. Night and day. I write when it's nighttime, and it's posted in the daytime back home. I was condemned to death before I knew Christ, and now I'm redeemed with eternal life. Night and day.
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