Licey al Medio 2026

I've been eating up the Olympics all month. Case in point: I went to a Superbowl party...and watched figure skating and speed skating. Walking past me on the couch, covered in a blanket with his iPad on my lap, Josh told me he'd never seen me so engrossed in a screen. 

The competitive dramatics aren't limited to Milan and Cortina, though. Josh invited me to help support the "Foreign Language Olympics" at the public school adjacent to my church in Licey al Medio, DR, where he teaches catechism twice per week. Said event was just the latest in a lineup of observations that take the place of regular classes (at least for selected students). I figured the morning would go somewhat like October's spelling bee, and I wasn't wrong. 

Josh & I sat at a table in the back and off to one side, with wine glasses (for the water & juice we were later served?!) at each place setting, as well as agendas. A Ministry of Education (MINERD) official sat to my left, evaluating various aspects of the morning. 

Twenty-four minutes behind schedule according to MINERD's official notes, English teacher Meigan launched into her opening remarks. 

Josh got to give an opening prayer, asking God to help us use the gift of language to share the Good News of Christ with others. He'd practiced it with me in the car...in Spanish...and was pleasantly surprised when Meigan requested English. 

The evaluation consisted of 3 parts: 1) listening; 2) a written test; and 3) an oral interview (enter us!). Josh asked each participant the same list of simple questions (full name, # of siblings, address, and favorite fruit, to name a few), while I scored them in 3 categories. We then added the interview scores to parts (1) and (2) to arrive at ___/100 total points. 

The school generously provided us with a delicious sancocho lunch, which we enjoyed while observing the same group of students go through the motions a second time...in French!

Until next time, blessings in Christ!