Dear friend,

I’ve been living in Greece. I wake up in an apartment with 12 girls. I retreat to the roof for quiet. There I am learning to pray. I sit and talk to God out loud, and often I talk to Him about you. 

The espresso here is wonderful. Everywhere I go, the coffee is good. One man even let me make coffee in his shop, the machines were even fancier than ours. I think you would like it here, they know what a true macchiato is. 

There’s so much graffiti, on almost every wall, and a lot of shops have murals that are beautiful. The desserts are also fantastic. I unexpectedly loved the pistachio gelato. 

Our budget is tight for food, so there’s not much to eat sometimes, but don’t worry, I eat breakfast every day, even if it’s just a spoonful of peanut butter. 

There are a lot of hills, but the ground is so uneven. I haven’t seen any skaters. I haven’t played Spikeball in a while, so fair warning: I’ll be quite rusty this summer. 

The drivers here are pretty bad, but they drive stick, so they have an excuse. There are a lot of stay cats which I’m not a huge fan of.

We can’t flush toilet paper, and we hang our clothes to dry. There are so many little things that are different, when I notice them and it makes me laugh.

I’ve been eating a lot of peaches. The fruit here is so delicious and none of it makes my tongue itchy. I wish I could bring some home for you. 

I’ve been reading a lot of Scripture, and asking questions I didn’t think I would need to ask again. I can’t wait to sit down with you to tell you about the ways God’s been changing my mind. 

In the evening sometimes I’ll watch a movie before bed. I watched Little Women the other night cause I don’t have the book with me to read it. I’ve also been listening to a lot of music. I think being away has made me realize how often I fill silence without even noticing. Despite being in a city, there is somehow more of it here. So I’ve been learning to sit and listen. 

I have good people around me, they love God and others so well. We already share clothes and do each other’s hair. We are still getting to know each other, yet in some ways, I think they might know me better than you. 

The sea here is clear like glass and surrounded by hills, but I love my beach the most. Maybe it’s because it’s mine, or because of all the memories, or because of you. Either way, I think I’ll always love it more. I think I’ve officially taken Europe off the list of places I would live. America really is beautiful. 

It’s been hard to put my thoughts into words, so I’ve been writing a lot of haikus. That’s the best way I know how to say things right now, small pieces of thought.

Even though I am halfway across the world, it still feels like I could just drive to you if I wanted. 

I can’t see the stars because of the city lights, but the moon is bright and full tonight. 

And I miss you.

Love, 

Ellie 

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