THE SKY TURNED PALE YELLOW TO PINK as Walter and I walk the block to the classroom building.  A cool November chill is in the air.  I cram my hands into my vest pocket and Walter draws up the hood of his jacket over his bare head.  Brrrr!
We bustle inside the building with a group of students.  The fluorescent lights glare unnaturally above the long rows of tables and folding chairs.  Some students are seated, opening their laptops in preparation for the 8 am class.  Others students linger in the hall, chatting.  Still others are standing by the coffee machine, hoping caffeine will help to kickstart their morning!
I take my seat in the back of the room, arranging my travel mug of coffee, bookbag and vest around my corner.  Today marks the halfway point for the module on "Ministering Cross-Culturally" that Walter is teaching this week at Millar College of the Bible.  I introduce myself as "Cindy Selke, heckler and prayer supporter"!  The last of the students trickles in and the door is closed just as the buzzer signals the hour.
I glance longingly out the window at a few leaves blowing along the yellowed grass.  I wish I was out walking this morning, instead of sitting for a third day in a row.  The fall day is calling me.
Now don't get me wrong.  I am enjoying the classroom environment and Walter is doing a tremendous job, as usual, in conveying information in a captivating and interactive way.  But I long to be moving and doing.
At one of the breaks, a mature student in the class is munching on a muffin and I comment that I had run out of good snacks for the week.  Breakfast is early and we're starving by 12:30 pm lunchtime! Dan mentions the neighbouring town of Ponteix, about 20 minutes down the gravel road, has a wonderful bakery.  So I tuck that information away and go on with the morning.
I am proud of Walter as he manages to cover all three of the areas of "culture" in his morning sessions.  There had been great interaction and seeming student comprehension of the material.  And the week is over half over now.  We finish lunch in the noisy dining hall, leaving when the students are wiping our table and running a vacuum under our chairs!  The sun felt warm as we walk down the sidewalk towards our suite.  And suddenly we see a couple walking very quickly...
They stop suddenly and grin at us.  It is Dan and his wife, Sharon, whom we have not met.
"Hey, we were hoping to find you!"
Introductions are made.
"I am going to Ponteix this afternoon if you would like to come with me.  I heard you were interested in checking out the bakery."
I didn't need to think long about that decision.
We enjoyed a lovely drive down the gravel road that curved once on the way to Ponteix.  Golden fields of stubble, remaining after harvest, rolled gently in all directions.  Few trees blocked our view of the prairie.  I felt like I'd known Sharon for years as we chatted.  Her son sat quietly in the backseat but neither of us let him say much!
I see the spires long before the rest of the town but Sharon drives straight to the library so she and her son could return some books.  I wander in with them and perused a couple tables of old books for sale.  I pick out three and pay a whole toonie for them!  Then we drive two blocks over to the bakery and restaurant.  I admire the murals on some of the buildings and the variety of old and new architecture.  
It takes me mere minutes to pick out goodies to share with the class for coffee break tomorrow.
Then Sharon drives towards the imposing spires that belong to a grand Roman Catholic church.  From the outside, it rivals any European cathedral I've ever seen picture of...with a huge brick hall and former convent all within the complete block of grass and trees on the property.
We weren't able to stick around long enough for the office hours this afternoon.  A tour would have been absolutely amazing.  Another time.
We drive the same road back and I am very thankful for the outing.
I can handle the rest of the week in a classroom, I think!