Happy Thanksgiving, Friends.

We had our first weather cancellation. As a reminder, when Carmel Clay Schools have a two hour delay or are closed, we cancel classes. I typically post on our site and on our Facebook pages as well as send an email as soon as I find out. You may get a delayed email from our International Friends pages because they batch process the subscription, so don't wait to check.

This week is full of excitement and great deals! For those of you new to the United States and our holidays, Thanksgiving kicks off our holiday shopping season:

• Thursday: Thanksgiving. Feast with your family and friends. The days leading up to this holiday is one of the most traveled days of the year. Interestingly enough, you can usually get great fares on Thanksgiving day.
• Friday: Black Friday. Black refers to the balance sheets of retail businesses. This sales for Christmas begin and bring "red" or losses on accounting books into the "black" or profits. Sales begin with great deals to get shoppers out and in the doors. Look for outrageous pricing to get you in the door.
• Monday: Cyber Monday. Not to be outdone, online stores take the stage with deals and pricing to keep your credit card busy at your keyboard. Don't forget about PayPal!

International Friends: Tuesdays, 10:00-11:30, room 100
We took a little field trip to see the "Who's a Hoosier" traveling exhibit in the Irwin library at Butler University. We learned that the United States and Indiana has a rich history of immigrants. People have come from all corners of the earth to join the Miami Indians in calling this area of land home.

The Irwin Library, itself is a great piece of architecture with an interesting history. The building was designed by Minoru Yamasaki who also designed the World Trade Center which was destroyed by the infamous attack on 9/11.

November 20: Let's talk about cooking for Thanksgiving and leftovers and casseroles. Join us as we talk about those classic, easy to make American dishes: casseroles. And so many other things...

International Bible Study: Tuesdays, 9:00-10:00, room 100
The man whom Jesus found lying near the Pool of Bethesda had been an invalid for 38 years. Therefore, it is rather surprising that Jesus asked him, “Do you want to get well?”  If you had been sick for such a long time, you would definitely want to get well, wouldn’t you? Or maybe not. Sometimes we refuse help from others. Maybe we are secretly afraid that getting well would require more responsibility from us. Maybe we’ve become comfortable in our situation and simply fear change. Maybe getting well would solve our physical problems, but we would still need to deal with emotional and spiritual weakness. Jesus did heal this man. Then he warned him to stop sinning, implying that the consequences of sin are much more serious than a physical illness or infirmity. Jesus then went on to explain in the fifth chapter of John that he had been sent to do the Father’s will. God works 24/7 on our behalf, every day of every year of our lives. The religious leaders did not believe that Jesus was the Messiah, even though his miracles and John the Baptist had testified that he was. Jesus warns them that unless they accept and believe in him, they will not have eternal life with God. That is a fate much more serious than being physically weak or ill!~Jan Heimann

November 20: Please join us as we read about another of Jesus’s famous miracles, the Feeding of the Five Thousand, in the sixth chapter of John.

Conversation: Wednesdays, 4:30-6:00, room 100.
We chatted about the elections, correcting our pronunciation when we don't have people to practice our English on, the wildfires in California and shopping. We talked about how it is important to sit and listen to conversations (even when we don't feel like we can participate) because that helps expand our vocabulary and learn language patterns. We talked about how it is hard to carry on a conversation because you never know which why it will turn, so you can't plan ahead!

November 21: NO CLASS! Happy Thanksgiving!

English Classes: Thursdays, 9:00-11:30, upstairs classrooms.
What a surprise! Classes were cancelled because of the weather.

November 22: NO CLASS! Happy Thanksgiving!

Parents with Children: Thursdays, 9:00-9:20, 9:50-10:10, 10:50-10:35, or 10:10-11:30, children's classroom
Join us with your children to sing holiday songs and carols that celebrate the season (so you can sing along) and talk about customs. Your children spend the rest of the period playing with us and making holiday crafts. Over the next few weeks we will perfect our fine motor skills by using stamps to create holiday cards, string cereal and popcorn to make garland for our trees or the birds and ice and decorate cookies. Come and find out what this is all about.

Sign up for your slot.

most traveled: when many people vacation or travel

rich history: high quality or abundant
great piece: a good example
infamous: (IN-fu-mus) well known for a bad quality or deed (the prefix IN means bad)

invalid: (IN-va-lid) a person who is too sick or weak to care for himself or herself (this word is spelled like in-VAL-id meaning not relevant)

consequence:  the effect, result, or outcome of something occurring earlier
testify: to witness; give evidence

practice...on: doing something to and not necessarily with someone
participate: join in
what this is all about: what this means