A place to play

Last Sunday I drove together with a friend from the International Women's Club of Moldova to visit the opening of a playground for which the women's club had given a grant. The interesting thing is that the playground was built in partnership with the organization with whom I work. Partnering also with the local church, one of our visiting summer teams had built this playground for the benefit of the children of the community. The church in this village also run a day centre for the poorest children of the village so I had been here before to visit the day centre and to encourage this tiny church in their care for the children here.
It was a beautiful sunny day, with a few clouds threatening from time to time but never opening up to dampen the event. Driving down a long dirt road through beautiful gently rolling hills of rural Moldova, we arrived to find the children and guests waiting and ready to begin. The pastor of the church had prepared a program, in which some of our workers participated. The woman I travelled with, Kyra, is head of the Grants Committee for the Women's Club and she made a short speech. The children who come to the day centre also contributed some songs and recitations. There were probably about 30 children there, and at the end of the program they all received treats and balloons and stickers which had been sent from a Sunday School class in Canada. (Thanks, Kate!!) Snejana brought a map to show the children where Canada is. :-)
Following the ceremonies it was a joy just to watch the children playing on this new playground equipment. Hopefully, this safe place to play will also be a reminder to them that there are people who care about them, and a God who loves them.

A small quiz

What is the answer to prayer that is indicated by these photos? First 3 people that make a comment with the correct response will receive a prize. (if I have your e-mail address, that is!)

a day with Barb

  So today why don't you join me as I climb out of the rutiera and walk the last leg of the journey to the office? The road's not bad today as the sun has almost dried it up.
  Around the corner it's still a bit muddy but in some ways better to be walking than driving.
  There's some partial roads across this last field, where new houses are being built all the time. As you can see, our building is near the power lines. We climb over a small hill to get to the Centre. There is good reason why we don't drive closer to the building and park in our nice gravelled parking area...
 

You see - this is the road not taken. It's not too bad today but when it rains.... only Matthew comes this way in his jeep.
On this day, the Challenge into Missions students are back from their outreach in the villages and are giving reports. Later on, it's my turn to teach. The topic for my two sessions with them this week is 'The Father Heart of God'. Victor is translating for me. It was a good idea to wear my shawl today - besides to keep me warm. I'm sharing the story of the eagle and how she stirs up her nest to teach the baby eaglets to fly. Victor does a good job of translating and together, we teach the class how to fly!! :-)
In the evening I invite some of our international students to my home for a break from the stress of language and cultural adaptation. Katrin (Austria), Naomi (England), and Thomas (Germany) seem to enjoy their evening. Thomas has us in gales of laugher as he recounts the story of how he celebrated his 20th birthday in our lovely country. He was detained by soldiers in a small village because he neglected to take his identity papers with him when jogging near the border. Some things we only learn the hard way!

Rosie doesn't like the Rain

You would think that on a rainy day you should be able to count on a friend. But a friend who lets you down and leaves you stranded in the rain - well, I guess that's a fairweather friend. Not much help when you have places to go and things to do on a rainy day. And today, Rosie, my car, was just being ornery. I drove through a puddle and just because she got a little bit wet (the sook) she refused to continue. So there I sat.... played some nice music for her and prayed a bit and eventually she started again. Later on, went through another puddle and Rosie stalled on me again. That's it! Rosie stays home on rainy days. And I think we're going to have to find Rosie another friend and find me a better friend - one who I can depend on in foul weather as well as fair. Sorry, Rosie.

Orthodox Easter video

After the procession the people stood with their candles at the door of the church as the priests and choir sang a beautiful liturgy - Christ is risen! He is risen indeed!

Easter in Moldova

So I decided that I should go to an Orthodox Easter service just to see what it is like. I had been told that the Orthodox faithful usually gather before midnight on the Saturday night. So at 11 pm I headed out to a nearby Orthodox church. When I arrived I was surprised at a very heavy police presence. This is not the main Orthodox church in Chisinau but maybe someone important is coming. This church actually also has a monastery associated with it and I had recently read an article about all their renovations and a new building for the monastery (a yellow building which you may see in one of the photos). On the outside of the church there is a plaque that says 'Cathedral of the Ministry of Interior Affairs'. Hmmmm... I wonder what that means... so different to be in a country where there is a state church. Especially curious considering the current elected government is the communist party. Aren't they atheists?
Anyway, I put my headscarf on go into the church and stand among all the other worshippers. In the Orthodox church there are no pews, just a bench or two along the outside and back for the elderly who may need to sit. There is a priest at the front of the church chanting and occasionally another priest comes through the iconostasis (I am told this is the correct word, not iconoclast, for the big ornate screen at the front, which has doors on either side that are part of the ornateness). The choir is in the balcony at the back of the church with responses to the chanting of the priest. One of the things I must say is that any time I have been in or near an Orthodox church I have been impressed with the beautiful choir music.
So this goes on for awhile and more and more people are arriving all the time. It's getting closer to midnight and there is a sense of anticipation. I notice everyone has candles and they are getting them ready. Then at midnight all the lights are turned off. The people stand in darkness and silence for a few minutes - long enough to reflect on the darkness of the tomb and the fact that Jesus died and was buried. Then at midnight the priest starts chanting 'Hristos a inviat!' (Christ is risen!) and the people all respond 'Adevarat a inviat!' (He is risen indeed!) The liturgy is repeated with another phrase that I didn't quite catch and then the priest holds up a candle from which the people can light theirs. There is a real scrum to get close to the front and have your candle lit by the priest's candle. I wasn't surprised when I smelled singed hair and a woman went past me with her friend batting at her head to put out the sparks. People were crowded together and candles were at all levels, including those held by children. I was surprised there weren't more accidents than that.
So once everyone's candles were lit, the priests headed through the crowd and led the procession outside the church. Fortunately it was a mild, clear, beautiful night. I followed the procession outside as they circled the church once, twice, three times. I was curious about the baskets that a lot of people had brought with them. Looked like picnic baskets to me. Being a good Baptist I figured maybe they were going to have a potluck supper after the service. I found out later that people bring their Easter food with them to have it sprinkled with holy water and blessed by the priest.
After three times the priests stopped at the entrance and there was more chanting and beautiful music from the choir. But not only the choir, the priest themselves formed a male choir that was deep and rich in their choral liturgy in concert with the mostly/all? female choir. (I have posted a video of this on the next post.) Eventually the priests led the people back inside. I followed and stood in there for a while but it was pretty tiring standing and stuffy after being out in the beautiful clear air. I wandered outside and sat on a bench next to a woman with a basket. I asked her about the baskets and she explained to me about the holy water and the blessing. She also told me that the service would continue until 5 a.m. Then everyone goes home and has a big feast and then they sleep all day.
I didn't stay. I left around 1 a.m. so that I could get up on Easter Sunday morning.
and go to my own church. On the way to my church I picked up one of our newest team members, Katrin. Nobody had told me that they changed the service to 9 a.m. instead of the usual 10 a.m. service. So we missed the children's program but we did get to see the Easter drama presented by the youth. In the afternoon we were invited to Sora Maria's for Easter dinner, along with the Brazilian family. Maria and her daughter, Antonella, served us lamb and mashed potatoes and salad. Lamb is the traditional Easter dinner here in Moldova. So tender... mmmm. I told them about the baskets at the Orthodox service. This food hadn't been blessed with holy water, but it was blessed by the Lord as we remembered the sacrifice of the Lamb of God for our salvation and celebrated together with thankful hearts the resurrection of our Saviour.

Friendship and Prayer

Last Sunday in church this little girl, who has a beautiful voice, sang a couple of songs for the Lord. Accompaniment by an accordion is typical in Moldova, where few churches have pianos although some have small organs or electric keyboards. This week at the mission base was busy as usual. Our missions students are out of town on outreach projects and so the mission centre was used for a football conference. (Remember, North American people, football means soccer in Europe.) Here in Moldova sports ministries are developing more and more as a form of outreach. This conference was attended by coaches or people hoping to start a team in their village. At the conference they learned soccer skills along with how to share the gospel through sports. They received training in leading Bible studies and in mentoring and discipling young people. All who attended were guys, outside of our own team members, and all seemed very enthusiastic about keeping in touch with one another and encouraging each other in their new project. One of the things they learned, which we emphasize in our mission, is the importance of prayer.
How can we be part of the work God is doing if we never stop to consult the Master about the part that He has for us to play in His work? It was an encouragement and a joy to see these young men praying fervently as they launch out to share the gospel with young people who want distraction and fun but who desperately need a reason to hope, and a reason to live.
It always seems to me that prayer is one of those things that we must constantly struggle with. It's so easy to tell someone you will pray for them, but so hard to be faithful in that. I know that I don't pray nearly enough, although I intend to. But if we get together with other believers and spend time sharing and praying about the concerns of our lives, it is easier and makes us stronger. The hard part is that it also means we have to be vulnerable to truly benefit from praying for one another.


One of the joys for me of returning to Moldova was to see again some of the people I have been praying for and missing. One of them is my 'adopted son', Lilian. We had a chance this week to spend some time together and it is always a blessing to hear how God is working in his life. Mentoring young men and women like this is one of the privileges of my ministry here.
Our team is fairly close-knit and some have real servant hearts. Our friend V. is back from North Africa for a short while and we have learned that V. knows how to cut hair. He served Ivanir this week by cutting her hair for her, as she supervised as closely as she could. He did a great job! Before he leaves Moldova again, I may just ask him to cut my hair too!
On Friday evening of this week, I took one of our newest team members out for supper at a Moldovan 'fast food' called "La Placinte". What you see on the plate is placinta (pronounced pla-chin-ta) - a pastry that can have various types of filling: cabbage, potato, soft cheese (brinza) or sweet filling: cherry, apple or pumpkin. Alida has come to us from Holland and her main responsibility is teaching the children of the Dutch family who are here with us. They will be returning to Holland later in the year and they need their children to be sure to be prepared for entering the Dutch school system. I had a nice evening with Alida, who helped me shop and carry my groceries up to my apartment. Then we watched a movie together, and just enjoyed getting to know one another. It's been a good week, one hemmed in prayer and refreshed with friendships - new and old. I hope you have a great week this week!

Virtual Tour of my New Apartment!

Welcome to my new home! Come through the narrow entrance hall - but hang your jacket on the hook there, and leave your shoes by the door, as is the custom in Moldova. I bought fresh flowers at the market across the street today, and here is my guest book. Please be sure to sign it before you leave!
My friends just went home from my house-warming party so I haven't tidied up the living room, yet. After you and I have had a visit I will put the extra chairs back in the kitchen, blow out the candle and put the puzzle away. This evening our Brazilian family were here with their two children and they enjoyed working on this puzzle. When the British family return with their five children, I'll have to find more forms of entertainment than that!
Come on in and see my lovely little kitchen. Everything is clean and well-built and I love sitting at my little table looking out at the leaves and the birds as I eat my meals. I am getting organized - was really glad to find my electric kettle so that I can prepare tea more easily.
I was really surprised about this great stove/oven. It is gas AND electric, whereas most stoves are just gas for the burners and for the oven. And it has an automatic flint so I don't have to use matches to light the gas burners! Small things but they do make a difference.
Last night for my housewarming party I served individual pizzas, which I prepared easily in my oven. I had also baked oatmeal cookies and apple coffee cake to serve. There's still a bit of the coffee cake left - would you like a piece? I also had a huge vegie tray but that totally disappeared, along with the dip I made from sour cream and onion soup mix. (Inga, these details are for you!) Oh, by the way, to the right of the stove you can see a tall cupboard with a bottom door and a top door. The fridge is in the top part of that! Just a little one but adequate for my needs. In Moldova people generally just have small fridges, not the huge things we have in Canada,crammed with more food than you'll ever eat. Here in Moldova groceries are bought either daily or occasionally a week at a time, depending on one's situation. If you don't have a car, you buy your food at the market on the way home from work. Even if you have a car, as I do, you don't buy too many groceries. You have to remember that every bag of groceries has to be carried up 4 flights of stairs (60 steps) to my 4th floor apartment. That's right - no lift! (Lift is the word we use here for elevator.)
I won't include a photo of the bathroom - it's just tiny, with a shower, sink and toilet. But most important, there is a washing machine. And I can hang out my clothes on the lines on the balcony. So here's my bedroom/office. The apartment is basically a big rectangle, with the bedroom on one end and the living room on the other.
As you can see, there is a wonderful desk and cupboards for me to work at. There is storage space for everything! And there is a cozy chair that I can curl up in to read in the morning on days off or to watch movies on my computer in the evening. Shelves for books and a bed that I have made comfy with my single mattress and magic foamie (it's a double bed, but oh well). As you can see, once again the Lord has blessed me far beyond my hopes and expectations. So here's the photo of the outside of my building. My balcony is on the right, second from the top. You can see how perfect this location is, especially for those evenings when I am too tired to cook supper. Hope you enjoyed your tour! If you ever come to Moldova, I would love to give you the tour of my apartment and lots more in person.
Now, if you were here, I would ask you to sign my guest book. Since you're not, please sign my virtual guestbook by leaving a comment! Thanks!

Housewarming

 
Last night I had a group of friends over to help me 'warm up' my new apartment. It was great to have time together and to share with people I have missed being with over the last months. Silas & Mihaela were there, with news of a new place that God has provided for them as they await the arrival of their first child. Butje & Liuba were unable to come as Liuba is in the hospital with some complications with her pregnancy. It's going to be a busy summer on our OM team here!

Getting through the first week back

A week ago I arrived back in Moldova. It’s been a busy week. I went straight from the airport to my new apartment but it’s only today that I have been able to put any time into making it feel like home. Every day this week I was teaching a two-hour class on the Biblical Basis of Missions to our group of @ 20 students. I really enjoyed the teaching and was glad to be able to do it in English. That’s because Victor is home for this month and he translated for me – and did a great job. We both felt that we made a good team. Translating is a very challenging responsibility and there are only a few people who are so good at it that you are hardly even aware that it’s happening. Victor is one of those wonderful people.
Teaching each day meant studying and preparing every night. And because I was traveling public transport, just getting back and forth to work from my new home was a bit stressful and took more time. But it reinforced the fact that I am indeed back in Moldova. 
My hero of the week is my team-mate Eugen.
One of the blessings of being on a team here in Moldova is that the young men on my team are always so willing to help. And one of the amazing things about Moldovan culture is that you never hear “just a minute”, or “I’ll try to get to it next week”. An immediate need generally gets an immediate response, if at all possible.
*I needed a new SIM card for my mobile phone. Eugen took care of it for me. Then he wrote down all the phone numbers of people that I needed.
*I wanted to use my car. Eugen, Mihai, Andrei and Silas (with Ivanir overseeing!) all helped to move it – in fact, they actually LIFTED it at one point, with me in it!!! Then they changed the flat tire, and then they pushed it up and down the road trying to get it started. We ended up having to leave it until Slavic came back – then he took care of it and by Friday I was finally , and happily, driving again. After a week of trolleys and rutieras, I was relieved to have my car again.
*My computer cord seemed to not be working. I walked into the office where Eugen was working and asked if he could fix it. Within minutes, Eugen and two others had determined that it wasn’t the cord but the outlet adapter and they had repaired it!
*On Friday when the team van was finally available I asked for help moving the few pieces of furniture that I wanted to bring to my new apartment. Eugen, Lilian, and Sergiu rose to the occasion and helped carry furniture and boxes up four levels (no elevator in my new building!) with willing hearts and smiles on their faces. How blessed can one woman be?

Last few days in Canada

Did I fail to tell you about and show you my last days with my grandson and family in Vancouver? So sorry! It was wonderful to see Alejandro and to spend even a brief time with my daughter, who is expecting again in August. (Hallelujah!) Alejandro is at the stage where he only ever wants Mommy and Marah is rising to the challenge,while Dan is being a very patient husband and father. . At one point in my visit, Alejandro decided that Grandma needed a pedicure and tried to clip my nails. He is such an interesting darling!


I also, before I left Toronto, had some special meals with special people. One evening I took Ben out for his April 8 birthday and I did the same for Marah in Van for her April 7 birthday! Below on the left is Harold, Heather and my son Ben, whom I had for supper at my (temporary) home one evening. On the right, you can see me with Karen & Kathy at the Moldova restaurant in Toronto! Mamaliga - yum!

a casa in Moldova

Just so you know, "a casa" means "at home" - and that's where I am. I arrived back in Moldova last night after many goodbyes and many hours of travelling. It was wonderful to arrive back, to be greeted by my teammates and to be welcomed into my new apartment. It will take a few days to get everything in order and gather all my belongings from where they are stored into my new home. I'm just glad to no longer be living out of a suitcase. I am also thankful for the homes I have had while I was in Canada, and the people I have stayed with. Thanks to Tom & Cher, John & Laura, Bob and Carol, my sister Bev, Mom, Lorraine and Kevin, Anna and Barry, Marah and Daniel, Janet, Bob & Jan, Gwen & Eddy, Marianne - wow! I stayed a lot of different places in the last 3 months. Now you know why I'm glad to be home in my own casa. I'll write more once I'm settled and re-oriented.
The photo shows my living room when still occupied by the previous tenants. They took the plants and the TV with them.