Sandals and Sunshine...Oh Wait, I Was Taking Exams Instead

Take it from me, it is way easier to concentrate on exams when it's not 80 degrees and sunny.
I always take my notes to the beach, thinking that I'll be able to read through them and study while I lay out.

HA.

Anyway, I've survived two of them (Literature and History), Conversation and a composition for the department tomorrow, and Contemporary Spanish Civilization (lovely, eh?) on Friday. To me, it seems to be a fairly downhill journey from here. We'll have a lovely farewell banquet for all the families, students, professors, and directors on Saturday, a party with just us on Sunday, and then three days of relaxation, shopping, and the beach before we hop a flight home. Sounds pretty great, right?

Oh wait, I'm missing something...yup, the OPI.

The Oral Proficiency Interview is an exam that I have to pass at a certain level (in this case, Advanced Low) in order to be able to continue in the Education program and student teach next semester. It has literally been a weight on my shoulders since arriving here in January because we knew we had to practice all semester in order to pass it. I'm taking mine on Thursday at noon and I could not be more nervous. So far, 5 girls have taken it and only 2 have passed. If all 5 had passed, I'd be fine. But knowing that they didn't makes me more nervous.

If I don't pass, it won't be the end of the world. There will be two more opportunities in the fall, but that's it. Student Teaching is the following semester. Plus, they've told us that our Spanish is at its best at the end of a semester abroad because we have been immersed in the language for 4.5 months. It will be harder to pass it the second time around and I don't even want to think about that. At the very least, living in the Spanish House will help me practice if things turn out badly.

Whenever I think about taking this OPI, my heart starts to beat really fast and it gets hard to breathe. I just want to pass it and be done and not have it weighing on my shoulders all summer too. That would be the worst. This is where one of my worst fears surfaces: failure. I have failed very few things in my life and I fear being less than adequate. Which brings me to my request....

To those of you that read this, will you pray for me? I normally don't like asking for prayer for myself, but I really need some this week. Please pray that God would help me to stay calm these next few days and not completely freak out, that during the test I would be able to speak clearly and think on my feet, and that I can be content with the results if they turn out badly.
Thank you all so much. It really means a lot to me. :)

I'll end with something fun. There are exactly 444 days until the Summer Olympics in London. I absolutely love the Olympics, summer more than winter really, but I love them a LOT. I love having a huge group of people together with food and drinks and everyone shouting and cheering and talking. Summers that have the Olympics are just better.
:)