On the Edges of Christmas

Well, I will have to say that this was the most relaxed Christmas I have had in at least the last eight years! Instead of being in the middle of everything, as in organizing church events, cooking for my family and shopping for and wrapping gifts, mailing Christmas cards, etc. etc. – instead of all that, I was on the edge of all activities, helping occasionally but mostly just looking on. No stress. No fuss. A very unusual Christmas indeed! But a nice one.

The week before Christmas I was in Paicu and while there, I watched the children of the church preparing for their Christmas presentation. A woman from another village had come for the week, with her accordion, to work with the children and teach them the songs they would sing on Christmas day. I enjoyed listening to the children practice their songs – and not being responsible!
The evening before I left Paicu, I helped Tamara and Tanea to assemble treat bags for the children
– and I thought of the many times I had done the same for the children at Yorkminster Park. This year, I was not in charge – and how relaxing it was!



On Friday evening our Operation Mobilisation team – all 40 of us, including children- went out to a restaurant for dinner and had a really nice meal.

Following that we went back to the centre for a time of fellowship and gift exchange. The children sang some songs for us and gave some recitations - such beautiful kids! We had each bought a gift and put it under the tree, and then we opened them in an activity that allowed for people to trade gifts – it was a lot of fun and some hilarious moments kept us laughing. Two of the gifts were sets of boxing gloves and when Jeannine got a pair, her husband Fulco quickly took the opportunity to trade his gift for the other pair - but not before Jeanine and Snejana did some sparring! I ended up with a set of glasses, which I really needed for my new apartment.The whole evening was a really wonderful family event. And in the whole Christmas season, there hasn’t been the anxiety about getting a present for everyone and spending money to ensure nobody is forgotten. That has been relaxing.

My Romanian friend/surrogate daughter, Dana, came home with me on Friday and spent the weekend with me so neither of us had to be alone at Christmas. Saturday we spent buying groceries and baking for the potluck we would attend on Sunday.
We had a great time together, chatting and talking and laughing all day.
Then on Sunday we went to church together and then to Matthew and Helen’s place for dinner with a dozen people, mostly from the team. (Here is a picture of me and baby Filip – Rafael & Alice’s little guy - with the bath toy I gave him for Christmas. After all, I am his favourite auntie!) It was a really nice day. In the evening I spoke on the phone with my kids and my mom and sister and her family, so that was a nice ending to a stress-free, relaxed Christmas. I know there won’t be many Christmases ‘on the edge’, but this one was certainly a blessing from the Lord.

As far as Christmas in Chisinau... there are some people who celebrate on the 25th, such as the protestant churches. But around the city it is a day like any other with business as usual. I suppose it's somewhat like it was in Bethlehem, all those years ago. There is nothing to indicate that in a stable on the edge of the town, a new King was born and a new Kingdom was ushered in that would change the course of many lives, and the course of human history. Nothing that is, except some crazy shepherds who said they had a message from God brought by angels... and then some foreigners who followed a star to that distant land to find the king. I, too, am a foreigner, seeking to serve my King in a distant land. And I am so thankful that God has come to us in Jesus Christ,who is also called Emmanuel, which means, "God with us."

I wish all my readers a most blessed holiday season and a new year bright with the promises of God.

Paicu

This week I have been in Paicu, a small village in the south of Moldova, not far from Cahul. As you are driving down the highway, about 2 hours from Chisinau, you turn onto a dirt road, drive across the railway track, and there you are! It really is like a whole different world. I have met some wonderful people there and got to know some beautiful children. Everywhere you go there are animals...

In Paicu the days begin with the crowing of roosters, the cackling of hens, the gobbling of turkeys and the honking of geese. I pass the geese on the way to the outhouse and they honk in loud dismay, "Who are you?" "Why don't you feed us right now?" They said the same thing when I was enroute in the middle of the night under the brightly moonlit sky. The geese and fowl of course don't know that I and the rest of the household spent hours last night making 'popchoi', that is taking the kernels from the corn cobs so ther are now sacks of corn to feed them. They may never thank me. Of course, why should they? For to feed them and fatten them up is to our benefit more than theirs. in fact, this morning when called to eat in the 'bucaterie', upon entering that multi-purpose tiny building, I noticed that there were feathers on the floor alongside 'scrapping' cats and one of our ill-fated formerly feathered friends lay naked and headless on the counter. I watched as our hostess singed the remaining hair off the goose over the flame of the gas burner. Then I did my best NOT to see what she was doing beside me that involved a basisn, innards, blood and water as I ate my breakfast of fried pork, mamaliga and warm cow's milk. I've discovered that warmed (boiled) fresh milk in the morning is a delicious breakfast. The other day it's all we had.
There is nothing easy about life in Paicu, but it is a simple life. Need water? Take a bucket and go to the well. Need a bathroom? Go to the outhouse. Need heat? Chop some wood and build a fire. Need food? Kill a chicken, milk a cow,plant a garden. Need to go somewhere? Harness the horse to the wagon. Need money? Hmmm... that may be a little more difficult.

Pre-Christmas visit in Paicu

Dear friends,
Pictures are coming but not until after Wednesday. I am spending a week in a small village in the south of Moldova. It is like something out of Dr. Zhivago or Fiddler on the Roof. Very beautiful but very basic. The people, of course, are amazing and I can't wait to post some of the many photos I have taken and will take within the next few days. Anyway, I just wanted to take a moment to wish everyone a most blessed adn glorious Christmas. God is good and the love He has shown in Jesus is well worth celebrating, wherever you are! Merry Christmas!

A Se Muta

Well, that’s the infinitive of the verb that means ‘to move house’. The wonderful thing about immersion language learning is that as soon as you learn a word, you do it… or as soon as you do something, you find yourself having to learn the word that communicates what it is you are doing. So this week I am learning the verb, ‘a se muta’. It’s reflexive. Eu ma mut, tu te muti, el se muta, noi ne mutem, voi va muteti, ei se mut... and if you are having trouble reading or understanding that it’s because I don’t know how to make the proper pronunciation marks for Romanian words – or it’s because you don’t know Romanian!
So why am I learning this particular verb, you may ask? I have a good reason – because in fact I am moving. This week we (Liuba and I – well, Liuba did most of the work; I just went along for the ride and the end result!) found an apartment for me and I will be moving on Saturday, Lord willing and if Lillian is available to help me. Not that I have a lot to move. There are the two suitcases I brought with me, plus a couple books I may have added and some organizing things for my desk. Other than that, all I have is my backpack with my computer...

OK – since I wrote the above, I have in fact moved. Lillian (a guy on my OM team) came to get me yesterday and he and I were able to take everything up the four flights of stairs in two trips. He, of course, carried the suitcases, and I carried the assorted other bags, boots, and book-filled basins. I now live in a section of Chisinau known as Botanica. I am on the fourth floor of a typical Chisinau apartment block, which means there are two thick doors to get into my apartment and an interesting locking system that I keep hoping will not prevent me from getting in each time I make a foray outside of the building. It also has an enclosed balcony from which I can hang my clothes to dry and in which I can hang them if the weather is inclement. There are also cupboards on each side of the balcony which can serve as pantry, which is good as there is minimal cupboard space in the tiny kitchen. Hanging clothes is a wonder to enjoy especially when you have a washing machine of your own. Until now, except for the two times Sora Lena did laundry for me, I have been doing most of my washing by hand. Now I have a machine that will do it for me – a new one that works well. Never mind that east European washers take two hours or more for their cycle. (A fact I discovered to my chagrin when I was in Czech Republic last year and went to the laundry room thinking I would be in and out of there in an hour or so – ha!!) When it’s in your own kitchen, it’s not so bad.
The apartment is mostly furnished but I will need to purchase a desk which will fit quite nicely in my bedroom. I guess I will also need a small dresser, as there is no place in the bedroom to put clothes. In the living room there is a huge piece of furniture – I don’t even know what it’s called in English
but you know what I mean; it takes up one whole wall, with cupboards, drawers, display cabinets, bookshelves and more cupboards. So it’s great – for now I can put everything away in there.Here's a couple more photos of my little kitchen and my bathroom, just so you all will know I will be clean and fed! Notice the gas stove in the kitchen... will have to practice lighting matches... and not sure how I will do with baking but it should be fun! And you will notice the hot water tank above the bathtub.. there is central hot water, but in case it isn't working or something, I am to plug in the hot water heater and in 3 hours I will have hot water. (This is assuming of course, that the electricity is on - which nobody seems to think is a problem, so hopefully it won't be!)

The one thing that is very important for me is to be able to get internet access here. So far it’s a bit of a problem as there isn’t a proper telephone outlet I can simply plug my computer into. As I write this, however, the landlord is here working on the wiring in typical do-it-yourself Moldovan fashion. I don’t know if I’ve mentioned that Moldovans are very innovative people who seem to work mostly on a ‘figure-it-out-as-you-go-along’ philosophy. They can build or do just about anything, it seems, but the end result is not always in keeping with our western sense of normality. Sometimes, ok, often, you find stairways with one huge step at the top or the bottom. Or, holes in the wall, where someone had to do some plumbing after the toilet was installed, etc. etc.
The fact that you are reading this now is an indication that my landlord was successful in his attempts and I am now able to access the internet from the comfort and convenience of my own home.
And Inga!!! I have to tell you this - God is so good. Guess what is right across the street from my apartment building? A huge and beautiful park where people go for their Sunday afternoon walks like I did today. I have a wonderful place to walk right at hand - isn't that awesome?
It’s nice to have my own home after so much time on the move. And I am glad to get settled this week as next week I will be going away for my ‘village experience’ in a small, poor rural community in the south of Moldova. So don’t expect to hear from me for a bit, until I get back.
Thanks to all those who have sent parcels – they have started to arrive – one from Mom , another from my sister Bev, and from Jane and from Doris… such interesting experiences at the post office! The weather is beautiful and just today starting to get a bit nippy. There aren’t many Christmas lights in Moldova except for a couple of stores. I have also seen some chintzy decorations at the market. I hope to find something that I can now put up in my apartment to make it feel like Christmas. Just looked at my calendar and realized that today is the third Sunday in Advent – hard to believe!
I think they’ve already done the children’s Christmas play at Yorkminster Park, and my mom and son and niece had a mini-Christmas at Mom’s place yesterday. I think what I will do to invoke some sense of the season is to have a celebration – combining a Christmas and house-warming party. I’ll let you know how it goes!
. .

Moldovan Hospitality

I think it’s about time I introduce you to my host family. I have been staying with a couple who are slightly older than me, and whose children are grown up and married. Frat (Brother) Ion and Sora (Sister) Lena have been more than kind to me since I have been staying with them. Every morning when I wake up and make my way to the kitchen, Lena usually has a hot breakfast prepared. In Moldova, breakfast can be anything from soup to nuts, literally! We have had soup for breakfast, mamaliga (see previous blogspot entry), something called ‘casia’ that was some kind of grain served with ground nuts on top. Yesterday we even had chicken and bulghur. Lena is vegetarian but Ion is not, so occasionally the predominantly vegetarian diet does give way for some meat. In this case, I think I heard the sound of the poor chicken’s objections a couple of nights before I met her on my breakfast plate. And I did see the naked (plucked) creature in a basin, head disattached, the day before so I wasn’t really surprised to see it on my plate the next morning. It certainly does bring the reality of the meal home though…
In the evening when I arrive home, no matter what time it is (except on Tuesdays when we have prayer meeting till 10 pm), Lena shortly comes and calls me to come and have something to eat. Usually in the evenings it is a very light meal – soup or just tea and bread. There is always something interesting and home-grown or home-made. Lena’s father keeps bees so they always have honey in various forms. And one evening, Lena poured me a glass of pure sweet grape juice – it was soooo good! And if Ion comes in while I am eating, he smiles and says, “Pofta buna!”, which is Moldovan for ‘Bon appetit’.
Anyway, Ion and Lena have been very caring about whether my room is warm enough and often I find a big plate of crunchy apples on my desk. On my birthday Lena was so kind to me and even now she still goes out of her way to clean my boots and warm them up by the fire before I leave in the morning. Sometimes, when I wash out some clothes by hand in the evening and hang them out on the line, the next day when I arrive home I find the clothes dry and folded in my room.
At the very beginning of my time here I understood next to nothing that they said. Now, though, Lena and I can actually have simple conversations, including her scolding me for sitting up too late at night (she saw my light on in the wee hours). Ion seems to have a few enterprises on the go and has a flatbed truck and several old vehicles. He and his wife attend different churches and so on my first Sunday I went to church with him in a 1985 (?) BMW. There is a young fellow who stays at the house sometimes and seems to work for Ion. I’m not sure whether he is a relative or not. They do, however have a young niece staying with them till the spring as her mother has gone away to Israel to work. This is fairly common in Moldova – parents going to another country for employment, leaving their children in the care of grandparents or relatives. There just isn’t enough jobs in Moldova and the ones there are pay so little it is barely enough to survive. Life elsewhere seems to hold a great deal of appeal for many people.
Which is probably why Ion and Lena’s children all live in Ireland. Sometimes in the summer they bring the grandchildren to visit. Since I have been here, Ion has been practicing his English phrases because soon he is going to visit his children in Ireland. He will be gone for three months so I imagine he will know a lot more English by the time he returns. Maybe by then I’ll be able to have an extended conversation with him in Moldovan!

Birthday abroad

Last week was my birthday. And it was great! Not only did my host treat me like a princess, cleaning my boots, doing my laundry and giving me flowers, but the OM team gave me a gift and in the evening a group of the English-speaking women on the team took me out to a very nice restaurant. There were some interesting items on the menu but I really enjoyed the steak I ordered.
We were so full, in fact, that we didn't have dessert - and I had seen some chocolate fondue on the menu, too! But I honestly didn't want any more food. Anyway, the group that took me out was an international one: Jeannine from Holland, Aniko from Hungary, Claudia from Switzerland, Helen from Britain, and Alice from Romania. It was a wonderful evening, complete with live music! And to top of the day, I had telephone calls from all my kids. It doesn't get any better than that! Thanks to all! And thanks to everyone who has sent birthday greetings. I will be celebrating for a while as there are some packages in the mail that haven't arrived yet.

The Boss

Operation Mobilisation started in Moldova, and continues, under the very competent leadership of Matthew and Helen Skirton. They started coming to Moldova in the early 90's on outreach trips with teams of young people. Eventually they were mandated to establish an OM base in Moldova and for 11 years they have been living here. Now they are building a home, so I guess it is home to them in many ways. Both of them are originally from Great Britain. In spite of his youth, Matthew is a man of vision, compassion and competence. Helen is also very gifted and keeps the busy homefront running as well as maintaining contact and care for the many staff members and students who are involved with OM Moldova. Their home was the first one we were invited to as new members of the Moldova team, and it was to their home I went when my first crisis occurred and I needed a shoulder to cry on. Helen was there. And Matthew follows up with all the team, gently touching base from time to time with various members to see how things are going and to address problems when they arise. Matthew and Helen are wonderful parents, obviously united in their intent to maintain a quality family life for their three girls and the little one soon to arrive. Matthew is also a gifted preacher and teacher and I have been blessed every time I hear him preach - even when it is in Romanian! Because Romanian is his second language, even though he is fluent, I am usually able to understand enough of his sermons - given the scriptural context too, you understand - to benefit from them. It is a very different thing to listen to a language from a native and from a person who speaks it as a second language.
The picture above was taken on our way back from visiting one of the student teams working in Anenii Noi. As you can see, we shared in a real cultural experience of eating in Moldova!

And here you see two of their beautiful girls. Lydia is on the left, and little Rachel is their youngest. There is a picture of their oldest daughter, Hannah, in one of my newsletters.

A letter to my Mom

The following is a fictional letter based on a true situation. Just so nobody will worry - I am not now, nor have I ever been, in jail in Moldova.
Read and enjoy.

Dear Mom,
I am writing to you from a jail in Transnistria. Not to worry, they say that Moldovans rarely hold prisoners longer than it takes for a letter to be mailed from Chisinau to Canada. Hopefully we will be out in time for Christmas, but remember that Christmas here is celebrated in January, not December!
You may wonder how I arrived in this predicament and whether I am suffering for the Lord, like Paul and Silas in the Bible. Well, you might say that… My fellow team members and I were on our way to Transnistria to visit one of our relief and development projects. We were bringing essential provisions for the relief of anyone living in a distant land: chocolate. Not that Transnistria is a different land; it is part of Moldova, but they like to pretend that they are part of Russia. So, they speak Russian, and teach their children Russian, and require even Romanian-speaking children to attend Russian schools. The people in charge obviously went to the same political school as some of our Quebec friends. So anyway, we were on our way to visit a project that provides healthy wholesome meals to some of the poorest children in the community. The meals are provided by the local church and our organization funds the project. After lunch, the children are then cared for through the afternoon and taught about the love of God, in a country that for so many years did not allow such instruction to be given.
Friends in Germany had made a donation of this chocolate candy, so we were taking it to the children to supplement the wholesome meal with one more essential food group (chocolate). However, the pastor of the church met us before we got to the ‘border’ crossing and when we told him we had chocolate, he was greatly concerned whether we would be allowed to take it in. We discussed various options, such as covering the chocolate with our jackets, but felt that was not an open Christian type of behaviour. We didn’t want to exactly hide them so we put them under the back seat of the van.
Unfortunately, after examining our passports carefully, the border guards decided to search the van for contraband that we might be smuggling. When he found the chocolate, we knew that trouble was on the way. We generously offered him one of the packages of chocolate candy and I think he would have let us go. But he opened up the package and took a bite and then frowned. He picked up the package again and saw that it was past the expiry date – by 2 days! What?!! (he said in Russian) ‘You are trying to smuggle illegal substances into the country and not just that but illegal substances that are beyond the expiry date. Outrageous!! Off to jail with you!” And with that we were whisked away at gunpoint in one of the old old Russian army tanks they keep handy for such situations. We were driven for another half an hour over the incredibly pot-holed bumpy roads of the city and then thrown into a jail cell with rusty hinges on the door, spiders on the wall and the essential hole in the floor in the corner of the cell. “No toilet paper for you!” the jailer proclaimed as he slammed shut the rusty door. So I just wanted to write you this quick note to let you know that I am safe and secure but not to expect e-mails for a little while.
Love, your daughter, suffering for righteousness’ sake (ok – suffering on account of chocolate)

PS – If you are wondering how you got this so quickly it’s because shortly after I wrote the above, something amazing happened. First we prayed. Then (we found out later) the jailer started eating some of the chocolate the border guard had given him as Exhibit A of our crime. He opened a package and ate it, then opened another one and started to eat it. It was so good, he couldn’t believe that it was actually stale-dated. So he checked the package – and it wasn’t expired. He checked more of the packages and soon discovered that there was only actually one package of chocolate that was expired, and that just happened to be the one the guard had sampled. So he decided that we had been wrongly thrown in the slammer and we could go, if we gave him the chocolate. We explained the children’s project to him and he agreed that we could take enough chocolate to give each child one package and he would keep the rest. He sent a driver to get our van, and before it was even lunchtime, we managed to get to the location where the children’s feeding program was held. What a delightful time we had, and weren’t the children pleased to receive their chocolate! It was a Relief to us all to give it to them. And once we get home again, I will advise you of any further Developments.

Some of my young friends

I am not without darling children in my life here in Moldova. At the OM Centre, there is currently a ten-week program running called 'Challenge into Missions'. This is a leadership training program for young adults and leaders from within Moldova as well as from other places. The students come to Chisinau for two weeks, then go out on a mission outreach in the villages and towns for two weeks. After that, it is one week back for debriefing and more instruction, then out again for two weeks. Currently the 20 students are away but when they are around (and they all stay at the Centre), the place is very lively. And in this group, there are two families with children so part of the responsibility of the group taking the second level of the program is to help with childcare for three beautiful little girls.
These little girls always greet me when I arrive and speak to me in Romanian as if they expect me to understand them. One day I learned the word for 'read' and that was the very day Abbie handed me a book and asked me to read it to her. I learned a lot of new vocabulary reading Noah and the Ark to these darlings.



I also have a language contact who has a beautiful daughter about 1 1/2 years old. I enjoy visiting them, too - just to practise my Romanian. Liuda (the mom) is very patient with me and gently corrects my mistakes or tells me a better way to say what I want to say. Every week I hope I will be able to communicate on a more substantial level not only with the Mom but also with the child.

Peeling Onions for Jesus

Have I told you about Sora Maria? She is the wonderful woman who cooks the meals for us at the OM Centre, and she is my first language contact. Two or three mornings a week I go to help her in the kitchen so that we can speak Romanian together and she can help me learn to say things properly. It’s very different than a lesson in that the focus is on comprehension and communication rather than grammar.
I remember my first time or two with her, it was very frustrating as I didn’t understand anything she said. It was pretty much a 'point and tell the word' thing for a few weeks. Now I am pleased to realize that we are actually having conversations and getting to the point where we can even joke together. Conversations that are serious, such as how each of us lost our respective husband, and conversations that are more humourous. For example, this morning when I insisted on helping, she asked if I was willing to peel onions again. The other morning I peeled a huge huge bowl of onions that she says she will use in a sauce on Thursday. It was funny because Fulco and Butje, two of the male staff members, came in the kitchen and left quickly as they both were in tears due to the onions. We suggested that the Spirit of God was very present in the kitchen as they were moved to tears when they entered. It was quite amusing. So today when Maria pulled out the onions, first I teased her and suggested that she was giving me only the tiny ones and she was saving the big ones for herself as they were easier. She laughed when she realized I was teasing her – she has a great sense of humour. Then I started talking about how my friends in Canada want to know what my mission in Moldova is. I said to Maria that I will write them and tell them that my mission is to peel onions, many, many onions. We both started laughing at the thought of how so many supporters are standing with me in my noble mission to peel onions! But then on a more serious note I said that whether I am peeling onions or whether she is making soup, we are indeed doing it for the Lord. And it’s true. Scripture says that whatever you do, whether you eat or drink, or peel onions or grate cabbage or stuff envelopes or pour concrete or change diapers or teach piano or fit pipes together, you should do it all to the glory of God. So, I am peeling onions and practicing Romanian at the same time, and developing a relationship with a beautiful and kind-hearted Moldovan woman. For now, that is my mission. Glory to God!

Who are the people in my neighbourhood?

I really want to introduce you to some of my friends at OM and so today I will begin with a couple of lovely pictures I have. You may remember that I have asked you to pray for Rafael and Alice's baby, Filip. Filip has had problems with his kidney and is expected to have surgery to correct the problem sometime in the spring. Here he is, with Vlad, one of my team members. Vlad works with Kids' Games, a huge outreach program that involves whole villages in sports activities and lunch programs in the summer months. Vlad is Moldovan, and a really nice guy who is very capable with techno stuff. He's the one I go to when I need a CD burned or want to buy a cell phone. Vlad is also responsible for the literature ministry we have - and just returned from Romania where he picked up a shipment of Christian books to make available to churches in Moldova.
Perhaps you would like to meet Filip's mom and dad too? Here is Alice with Filip and then on the right there is a photo of Rafael. That's my Romanian friend, Dana, with him. Rafael is our team leader for the Chisinau team. He and Alice are from Romania and they live in the apartment above the OM Centre. Since I've been here - because of Filip's health problems - they have been in Romania quite a bit of the time. They both speak English very well and Alice wants Filip to learn English, so I have volunteered to speak English to him. Not a difficult task at all!

Feedback

I have to say I have been really amazed and overwhelmed at the feedback I have received on my blog. Thank you to all my loyal readers and thank you to new visitors who give helpful comments and insight. Alex, thank you so much for your corrections and Moldovan insights. I know that there are many things that I see but many more things that I don't see. I am always willing and keen to learn. I know that some people have been reluctant to post comments on my blog as it is so public. No problem - just send me an e-mail! My e-mail address is Barbtherev@yahoo.ca. I apologize that sometimes I am slow getting things posted but I really do enjoy writing about my experiences and I want to post photos with my stories. Sometimes that accounts for the delays. Today I discovered an internet cafe in Ialoveni so I am a happy camper. This will make responding to e-mail much easier and I will get to know some of the young people who hang out at the local internet cafe, perhaps. As long as the music is bearable, it should be good.
Anyway, I went out for a brief walk and to buy some juice, so I better get back home, or my hosts will wonder what on earth has happened to me. God bless you all - and keep those comments coming!

My Language Teacher

While I'm here at the internet cafe and have the picture easily available, I want to introduce you to my language teacher, Oxana. Every day Oxana comes to the OM Centre and patiently instructs me on the ins and outs of Romanian vocabulary and grammar. What a blessing and delight she is!

Visiting

This week I had the opportunity to do more visiting than I have done previously. It’s kind of exciting to start developing new relationships, challenging as it is with language ineptness. However, for one of the visits anyway, it was my language ineptness that was the reason for the visit. Part of our language training involves having ‘language contacts’ – people who are brave enough and patient enough to spend time with an unknown foreigner, and to make conversation with that stranger even though their vocabulary is more limited than that of a child. Up until now my only official language contact has been ‘Sora (sister) Maria’, who cooks the main meals for us at the OM Center. (All the fellow believers here are referred to as ‘sister’ and ‘brother’.) As she is preparing lunch each day for 20-30 people, I sit with her in the kitchen, sometimes grating cabbage, sometimes chopping carrots, and I learn how to say some of the words related to what we are doing. Maria is extremely patient with me as I forget a word two minutes (or less!) after she told me what it is. Yesterday I remembered the word for pot lid and for cabbage, but I couldn’t for the life of me think of the word for pot or for carrot. Aside from kitchen vocabulary, Maria asks me about my activities and I flounder around trying to tell her where I went the day before or what I ate for breakfast at my hosts’ home. She corrects my warped sentences and laughs with me when I know that what I just said makes absolutely no sense and she can’t figure out what it is I’m trying to say. Sometimes we have gone into the other room and drawn pictures – e.g., mushroom - on the whiteboard in order to communicate.
So this week I was given a new language contact, as part of our learning is also travellling around the city and finding our way. For my first visit, Liuba took me to show me the way and to introduce me. Liuba is another OM’er, a Russian-speaking Moldovan, (who also speaks Romanian, as most Moldovans do speak both languages) and she works in the personnel department of OM Moldova so it is one of her responsibilities to help the newbies get established. We took a trolley-bus – my first time - and went way to another part of Chisinau that I’ve never been before. It took an hour on the trolley as the power lines came disconnected a couple of times and there was a lot of traffic too. When we got there, there were rows of apartment buildings and we entered in the very dim, dreary ground floor of one of them. We made our way through the dark entry way to an even darker elevator where I had to get the flashlight out of my purse (that I always carry) to read the numbers on the buttons. As we stepped onto the elevator I wondered what the chances were that it would actually take us where we were going without breaking down. But we got to the fifth floor, again – dim hall and just nothing fancy concrete walls and floors – and knocked on the apartment door. We were welcomed by Ludmila , Liuda for short, and her little daughter Otilia, who is 1 ½. Liuba left me there and I spent an hour or so visiting and making conversation with this lovely young mother. She very patiently and gently corrected my mistakes and I felt at ease and encouraged by her willingness to spend this time with me each week. She and Otilia walked me to the bus stop, where I got on a rutiera, which got me back to the OM Centre in 20 minutes! Next week I will be on my own to find my way there but I will look forward to it. Today as I head off for my weekly shopping trip and visit to the internet café, I am thinking of what I will get to take to Otilia and Liuda that will be nice for them and a tool for language learning. I’m thinking maybe a children’s book…
Another visit that I had this week were with Olga Molcan, the President of the Baptist Women’s Union of Moldova. That was a really special time and I look forward to attending the women’s annual conference next week, which she invited me to.
Now, I’ve run out of time at the internet café – and I did want to show you some photos – will have to wait for another day. Otherwise, I will be taking the rutiera home instead of the bus, and you all know how I feel about rutieras!! Thanks to friends who have commented – so glad to hear from friends old and new alike. God bless you all...
ok - it's another day and I have a wee bit of time so let me finish about the other visit. On Thursday evening I went to the home of sister Rachel, whom I met at teh little Pentecostal church I have been attending in Ialoveni. She lives not far from me but as I arrived after dark, she had to come looking for me. Her son, Vitalic, was a great help when I called, as he speaks English very well. We had a wonderful visit once I got to the house. There were two other sisters who came over to join us and we had some great conversation, with the help of Rachel's son. There were a few times when he and I got into some interesting discussions on the side about various topics from politics to religion to America and Canada!The picture above is me and the women and here's a photo of Vitalic and his mother.

Some photos - i hope

Just some images of Moldova that I would like to share with you. One day I was at the market around closing time and here are some of the things I saw.

People work so hard here. And they make very little money for all the hard work they do. And professionals don't do much better. My Romanian teacher, Oxana, graduated from university and only makes about $50 (not sure if that's per week or month, but either way, it's not a lot!) as a teacher in a public school.

OK - this is the house where i live. :-)



This next one was taken last Saturday when I was out walking. Couldn't resist taking a picture of this guy. He stopped to chat and we had a lovely conversation. He didn't speak romanian, but Russian and so we understood about one word of each other's conversation but we gabbed away for quite a while. I said something about Baptist and he said Pentecostal. I said Canada and he said Moscow circus. I think the horse was in the circus, but who knows. It was just one of those very fun moments. Glad I can share this photo with you!

Rules for Riding Rutiers

What a ride I had tonight!! Whoa! At one point I felt like I was standing on the back of a horse – bareback – holding the reigns and riding standing up trying to keep my balance for all I was worth. I am finally starting to learn my lesson about routieres (no, I don't know the proper spelling), I think. Did I tell you, by the way, that I call them ‘miracle boxes’? That’s because miracles do happen every day in Moldova when 2 or 3 times as many people squeeze onto these mini-buses intended to seat 14-16 people. When they were built, nobody indicated to any Moldovans that there might be a limit on how many could stand in one. So, for example, the other day when I was hoping to get on one and the person before me was not moving any farther into the bus allowing space for me, the woman behind me actually started pushing me onto the bus so that there could be room for her too. I wasn’t in a big hurry, so I stepped back and let her perform the Moldovan miracle as the bus drove off with her safely(or not) squished against the door(see rules 7 & 8).

So - here are the rules for riding on these miracle boxes:
1. If you want to catch the much more convenient (large) bus from Chisinau centre to Ialoveni, find out BEFOREHAND what time the last bus leaves from the station. It will save you from waiting in the cold for an hour, hoping a bus might come, meanwhile missing two routieres that would take you where you want to go eventually.
2. Find out where some of the other routieres go so that you will know alternate routes on such an occasion.
3. If you have to get off before the final stop (once you actually get on a minibus), don’t move, or allow yourself to be moved to the back of the bus. Otherwise, even if you do know where you want to get off and try to call out and are not heard-or understood – you will miss the ideal place to get off. Also, if you’re still stuck at the back when the minibus stops, you may not manage to get off before more people are squeezing into the front door against impossible odds. (Tonight the door closed before I got to it and I had to cry out in my impeccable Romanian – “No, no, no. I’m going. Stop! Wait! and in English – please let me off!!)
4. It is actually preferable to ride the routieres only during daylight hours so you can, in fact, determine where it is you want to get off. One of the interesting things about these buses is that the driver keeps the inside lights all on at night so you really can’t see out the windows – and don’t forget there are very few streetlights in Moldova.
5. Have your money ready to pay the driver, and pass it to him straightened out, not crumpled up. He likes that better. And if you didn’t pay him when you got on the bus, remember to pay him before you get off. (Some routes you pay on entry, others on exit.)
6. If you need change, sometimes it helps him if you tell him what you have passed to him. You may think that keeping a foothold as the minibus swerves around a corner, narrowly missing the trolley on its right and the car trying to pass in the non-lane on the left, is a challenge, but think of the driver. He has to maneuver on Chisinau streets and make change at the same time. And sometimes he has to do that while arguing or having a conversation with a passenger. (I can’t tell the difference yet.). Don’t expect him to double-check the bill you just gave him.
7. If you are able to stay near the front – actually, if you are unable to move anywhere beyond the immediate right of the driver, squished with 3 other people between the driver and the door, it is in your best interest not to block the driver’s view of the rear-view mirror on the right, especially if it is time for the customary race on the highway with the closest routiere going in the same direction. Also, figure out a way to stabilize yourself, firmly planting your feet on the floor, bracing yourself, holding a bar if possible but otherwise bracing your hand or your elbow or even your head against the ceiling. It is probably not a good idea to lean against the door and it is in your best interest, no matter which way the van lurches, not to push your knee against the gear shift nor to land in the driver’s lap. Fall towards the back of the bus – it may actually help people to move back more effectively anyway.
8. Again, with a preference for driving in daylight hours, if you do not urgently need to get on a crowded bus to get somewhere fast, why bother? It’s much easier to wait for the next bus and maybe get a seat on it.
9. If you can actually get a seat and you will be getting off at the last stop, or the most popular stop, feel free to sit in a window seat halfway back. There are three advantages to this:
a. you aren’t above the wheel going over the bumpy roads.
b. All of you is on the seat. When you’re on the aisle seat, sometimes you can only get one half of your backside on the seat, especially if you are a generously built person, sitting next to another generously built person. And with only one half of your bottom on the seat you still have to brace your legs almost as much as if you were standing - to ensure you don’t fall off the seat going around those corners.
c. Halfway back is better than near the front where you have to be passing people’s money back and forth to the driver. (Another interesting thing about these buses. People pay once they get safely seated. I.e. if you sit in the back seat, once safe and sound you can pull out your money and pass it to the person in front of you, who in turn passes it along till it gets to the driver. If you need change, it is passed back from the driver through all the intermediary people, just the way it came.
10. Find out what you need to say and exactly where you need to say it, so that the driver can drop you safely right at your front door, without slamming on the brakes and causing you to go flying out the front door.
11. “Mergi cu Domnului.” (Go with God.)

Where do you keep your goats?

It may seem like a strange question but the thing is, you never know where animals will show up in Moldova. For example, the other day when I got off the minibus I realized that the building directly across the street was a post office. (And I thought of the times I had made a point of going to Chisenau with stamps being one of my specific errands!) I was glad to make this discovery as I had forgotten to mail a letter that day.* So I crossed the street and stuck my letter in the box that says ‘Post’ adjoining the building , hoping it is indeed a mailbox. As I walked away from the building, I noticed that there were goats grazing in the front garden of the post office. Not sure whose they were – but there they were! A couple days later I was walking down on the lower back road and there were a couple more goats – possibly the same ones – looking relaxed and content outside the fence of some building. No people around, nobody tending them. So, where do you keep your goats?
The other evening as I went for a walk, there were a flock of turkeys wandering along the side of the road. They seemed to have enough good sense to stay off the paved part where cars travel but it did seem slightly odd to this urban Canadian to see turkeys ranging for food along just any road they happened to fancy. Since then, I’ve noticed that animals can actually show up anywhere in Moldova, except in houses. People aren’t big on house pets. Animals are purely functional. Dogs are kept outdoors to guard the property. And if the dog doesn’t belong to anyone – maybe even when it does – it wanders wherever it pleases. I have seen any number of dogs wandering around the streets of Ialoveni and Chisenau. Many of them appear to be nursing mothers and yesterday afternoon on my walk I even noticed a couple of young pups out for an adventure all by themselves. Nobody takes much notice of these mongrels, but I was pleased this morning that the minibus driver did slow down and honk his horn when the dog crossed the road in front of him.
Speaking of dogs, we have dogs that ‘guard’ the OM Centre. There is Deena, the mighty German shepherd who has a good loud bark but in fact may be slightly ‘off’ mentally as she sometimes can be seen going in circles in her kennel.
Cassie & Sam (Sam is the gold one)There is also Cassie, who belongs to OM, I think. And Sam, the dog that belongs to Matthew and Helen, and who is my friend. Sam came to them in a sack with siblings thrown over the wall last spring. The puppies were in a pretty sorry state but the Skirtons found homes for them and made a home for Sam. They are building a new house and Sam will be their guard dog at the new place. After all, Sam does know how to bark, but he also makes friends very easily, so I hope no intruders discover that!
The interesting thing, with all these dogs, is that nobody walks them. They just stay outdoors in their kennels all day with very little attention.
Now you may ask is there a guard dog at my home in Ialoveni. In fact, there is not. But never fear, the people next door have a rooster whose bounden duty it is to continuously crow from the first sliver of dawn’s light until the end of the day. I’m sure that rooster will strike fear into the heart of anyone approaching with evil intent.
In any case, I am secure in the love and protection of my loving heavenly Father. I appreciate your prayers for my physical safety and protection and would ask that you would also pray for spiritual protection as I seek to serve the Lord. I do believe there is an enemy who resists the light of the Kingdom of God. May the light of Jesus Christ shine clear and strong through my life and witness. Trusting in Him, all will be well.


*By the way, I am still trying to determine how long it takes for mail to come and go here. So far, I think it takes at least a month either way. Perhaps if I received more mail by post, I would be able to figure it out more easily (hint, hint). 

Language Learning

The short essay on this is: It’s hard.
More details? My day largely consists of language learning. Most mornings I work on my homework from the previous day’s lesson. Then I make my way to the kitchen where sister Maria is preparing lunch for all the students, the staff and any guests that might happen to show up at the Centre. Matthew often has pastors or visitors from other countries dropping by to find out more about OM’s program and ministry. The students are in the Challenge into Missions program, levels 1 and 2. Level 2 are offering leadership to the level 1 students. They have classes most of the day for two weeks and then they are sent out in teams to the villages to put into practice the lessons of discipleship, service and evangelism that they have been learning. I was privileged the other day to be able to speak to them about prayer and how important it is not only to be praying for others and for the world, but also to have people praying for them. (I know how important that is, and am so thankful for all my faithful prayer supporters!)
So anyway, I help Maria in the kitchen, learning not only how she prepares the food but how to say cabbage, as I grate it, or carrots, as I chop them, or potatoes, as I peel them. And she asks me about my day or my activities and I understand maybe a tenth of what she says, but every day it increases minutely.
Dinner is at 1 pm and after that I either go for a walk, or downtown to run and errand and maybe speak some Romanian or maybe simply be jolted to death in the ignominious minibuses – what a ride that is! At 3 pm is my Romanian lesson and by the time 1 ½ -2 hours is up, I have had my fill of the language for the day. But tomorrow I will do it all again and I will know more than I did yesterday! Praise God for His patience with us!
Today I am sad because I missed the opportunity to go to the airport to say goodbye to Sarah. But I did give her a parcel to take home and deliver to Ben for me, so I am glad about that. Sarah, if you ever get around to reading this, la revedere!! And thanks for being here! God bless you real good!
As soon as my lesson is over I run for the computer as after office hours is the only time one can really get access to the internet. So here I am, thinking of you all, and glad to be receiving e-mail and to know that you are thinking of me! God bless you all!!

Mamaliga

Before I left Canada, I took my son and daughter and their respective significant others to a Moldovan restaurant in Toronto. I was told that a typical Moldovan dish is ‘mamaliga’ and so I ordered that, just to try it. The first truth about mamaliga that I learned there, is that it comes in a mound. Secondly, it is served with sour cream. And there was something else at that restaurant, but I don’t remember it. In any case, the second time I had mamaliga was at the girls’ house here at the OM Centre. The girls take turns preparing the meals and all seemed pleased on this particular evening at the prospect of having mamaliga. True to form, it was served in a huge mound on a plate in the centre of the table and people helped themselves in large spoonfuls. There was sour cream to go with it and some kind of meat sauce also. The Moldovans present really enjoyed the mamaliga, with or without the meat sauce. Personally, I felt that the meat sauce provided some of the needed flavour.
Today I found out exactly what mamaliga is, although I was pretty sure I knew. This morning in my new casa my hosts were preparing a scrumptious breakfast of mamaliga. I watched Lena make it – basically adding cornmeal to boiling water – and there you have it: mamaliga! True to form, it was served in a big mound on each plate and I was madly scrambling for the words I had learned the other day but have quickly forgotten for ‘Stop! That’s enough!!’ We stood to pray before sitting down to this new breakfast adventure.
The secret, I think, of good mamaliga is not the substance itself but what it is served with. First of all there is a dish with crushed garlic cloves – many of them – mixed with oil, water, and a strange substance she referred to as borsch which could be broth, I suppose, but I really don’t know. Domnul Gisca (Mr. Gisca, or Ion is his name) had crushed an odd-looking cheese that apparently is made from sheep’s milk. So, you take a forkful of mamaliga, dip it in the oil/garlic mixture, then in the crumbled cheese, then in the sour cream. The garlic really gives it the flavour it needs and the sour cream eases the nip of all that garlic! We were happily eating our mamaliga and I do like it ok, then Ion pulls a bottle out from under the table and pours the contents into a bowl. They set that between them and give me a small bowl for myself. It looks kind of like sour cream but lumpier and more runny and I mistakenly put some on my plate to go with my mamaliga. Wrong! I watch as they drink it by the spoonful from their bowl and Lena encourages me to do the same. I taste it and it’s really not too bad. I ask what it is and basically Ion says they buy it (milk??) from the store, leave it in a bottle for 3 days and then drink/eat it. So does that mean it is sour milk? Not sure – not sure I want to know - but it was good.
Unfortunately I need to leave in time to be at the centre at 9 and there is no way I can finish the mound of mamaliga that is still on my plate. I am realizing that breakfast really is the main meal of the day and although I am rarely hungry enough to eat everything they want to feed me at breakfast, I might do well to do so as the evening meal is basically bread and tea. I apologise profusely, thank them for the wonderful breakfast, and rush off to catch my minibus to the OM Centre.
Mamaliga – a true Moldovan meal! Slava Dumneul! (Praise God!)

My New Home

You take the number 35 ‘routiere’ (minibus) from Chisinau to Ialoveni (pronounce yellowven) and you get off at the town ‘centrum’ and walk back up the hill. Turn left at the corner where the goat is tied by the lamppost and it’s just a few houses down on that road.
The house is #11 and like all Moldovan homes it is surrounded by a fence. Most fences are either blue or green – this one is green. You open the gate and go through to the door and ring a bell that sounds inside with a melody like a cellphone. Sister Lena opens and greets me and the language challenge begins.
(My house is the one on the right in the picture.)
I have a room at the back of the house which looks out on the road and am careful to turn off the lights at night before changing as the curtains are merely lace. They certainly don’t keep any cold out but my hostess kindly provided me with a nice comforter that enabled me to stay warm at night. That is, once I put on my sweatshirt and wrapped a polar fleece around my legs and happily wore the cozy socks that Elaine gave me before I left. I have been so grateful for those socks! I do have to get myself a pair of proper slippers though for walking around in the house. Moldovans always remove their shoes upon entering, so slippers are essential as the floor is cold. So tomorrow is Saturday – my day off – and I will go to the market and buy some slippers and hangers and other essentials.
Anyway, my house is luxurious by Moldovan standards (i.e. it has an indoor toilet and electricity and running water) and my host is so kind. Please pray for patience for all of us as I grapple with the language. We try to communicate and I might understand one out of ten words she says. At our training they said that we would be tempted to give up and withdraw and I am beginning to understand that now. It takes so much effort to have the simplest conversation but already I know I have learned a great deal in such a short time. So I must persevere! Two hours with my language teacher each day helps but also makes me realize more and more things that I still need to learn. That can just be scary! However, the motivation to speak Romanian is that much greater now that I am in a home. And Matthew told me this morning that he would like me to help him next week with a seminar on how to share your testimony. Then he said next January I would be teaching that seminar (I’m thinking to myself, that’s something I can do) and then he adds in an offhanded kind of way with a slight grin….”in Romanian”. And the wires connect, reality hits, I realize that six months from now I will look back and think how hard it was and how I thought I would never learn it and yet I will have learned it and I will be able to converse and it will just be a distant memory of the past. I have to believe that, as so many missionaries before me have done. I put my hand in the Lord’s and thank Him for new challenges and that ‘I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
And the Lord blessed me so much this morning. Some of you know that my favourite tea is peppermint. Since I came here I have not been able to find a brand of mint tea that really was very good. This morning with my breakfast, Leona offered me ‘cheai’ (the Romanian word for tea) and when I tasted the delightfully hot drink it was the most wonderfully flavourful mint tea I have ever had. And of course, she showed me the mint leaves that she had grown in her garden! How good is the Lord, to grant such a blessing – small perhaps – but it is in the small things that those who love us demonstrate the depth of that love. As the hot tea warmed my insides and soothed my spirit, I felt loved by God this morning. I hope and pray that each of you are also experiencing those little miracles and blessings that are there to remind you that you are precious to the Lord and He loves you.
One last thing I want to share. As I came out of the house this morning to walk to the bus stop, the first sound that greeted me was the “Moooooo!!!” of a cow that wasn’t there last night but today is tied to the fence across the road. Welcome to Moldova!

A Sunnier Day!

Greetings, all!
Well, today the sun was shining, the bathrooms were working and I went to meet the family with whom I will be staying for the next three months. It is a couple in their 50's - empty-nesters - who live in a village called Ialoveni (pronounce Yellowven) which is about 20 minutes away by minibus. I will stay there and come in and out to the centre most days or visit in the community with different people who will help me with my language. My Romanian lesson went very well today and I knew most of the words from the first few vocabularies AND I actually had what might be called a conversation in Romanian with Sister Leona, the woman whose house I will be staying at. Are you impressed or what? Praise God!
And - the very best news is that the house has an indoor toilet - never mind that you have to flush it with a bucket! There is also warm water for bahing as there is a propane heater (like the one we had in Poland) in the bathroom. I have my own room and there is an empty cupboard to hang my clothes and a table to set up with all my books and papers. At last I can spread out a bit!
Ianos (pronounce Yanosh) is from Ialoveni and he took me there to see it. Oh - my ride is here and it's time to go - watch for more details! Glory to God for all his goodness.

Morose in Moldova

Ok – well, maybe not really morose, just kind of disappointed. Perhaps more than disappointed. I was supposed to go to my host family today but for reasons unknown to me it didn’t work out and I may have to stay here at the OM Centre for a few more days. That wouldn’t be so bad if it weren’t for the plumbing problems. And the fact that a whole group of students for the training program are arriving tomorrow. That meant that I had to move out of my cozy bottom bunk in a room with 8 other people into the basement room and a mattress on the floor. But that really isn’t so bad as my snoring was keeping people awake anyway. Can you believe I actually confessed that in a public place – that I snore?! Well, I do… and if your illusions of me as a picture- perfect missionary have been shattered… who am I kidding – not one of you thought of me that way, or is surprised that I snore, are you? My snoring is legendary. J
Ah, the life of a missionary! I have to say that one of the difficult things we are dealing with has to do with schedules, times, expectations and communication. We North Americans expect things to function according to the schedule. When they don’t we get upset because other plans need to be rearranged or simply because we expected something to happen at the designated time and it didn’t. Eastern Europeans don’t seem to work that way. We found that when we were in Poland and it’s true here. Schedules and plans change and one is expected to ‘go with the flow’ or to figure out what has changed. For example, last night I was in the Centre (which is also where the guys and families stay) and they were serving the light evening meal. So, I was in the building and I joined them for the meal. Then I discovered that the girls were in the other house and had prepared an evening meal and sent someone to see if I wanted to eat. (Technically, that’s where I should have eaten.) So, tonight – not wanting to repeat the faut-pas – I was in the girls’ house at the approximate time people eat but there was nobody else there and nobody was preparing food…. So eventually I went back to the other building and there was everyone sitting at table… Who knew? This is not untypical – things just happen and it seems you are supposed to figure out what is happening and when, and if you don’t know you have to ask . But first you have to find the right person to ask – that is, the person who is responsible and who hopefully knows enough English to communicate it clearly.
And that brings us to language learning. I am. A bit. A very small bit at a time. In the mornings I am assigned to spend time with ‘Sora (sister) Maria’, our cook, as she is preparing the dinner (which is the noon meal) in the kitchen. She doesn’t speak English so if I ever want to converse with this most wonderful woman, I am going to have to learn Romanian. This morning I learned how to say ‘ appa fierte’, which means boiling water, and I also learned the words for ‘wooden spoon’, ‘sink’, ‘pot’, and ‘meatballs’. (She was making meatball soup.) But when she spoke to me in sentences I was totally lost. So for now I think our time will largely consist of vocabulary building and practicing a few short sentences.
Fortunately, in the afternoons I am assigned to spend 2 hours each day with my language teacher, Oxana, who is a lovely young woman who speaks English very well and knows how to teach a language. So we are working through the text book and doing lots of additional stuff as we go along. I’ve written down all kinds of things that I wanted to know and she has answered questions that arose from my time with Sora Maria. I know this is going to be really great and in a few weeks I will be amazed at how much I have learned. But right now it is frustrating when I want to converse with someone and I have written down the words I want to say but can I remember them without my notebook? No way! Sigh…. I have a great new appreciation for the many, many people who have come to Toronto not knowing the language and have mastered it so amazingly well. If you have contact with any of them, please remember to speak slowly and to include them in conversation as much as you can. You have no idea how exciting it is when someone is jabbering on with words that are totally meaningless to you and then suddenly you recognize a word! Wow! Then you know you are on the right path. Next week they will be jabbering and I will recognize two words! Please pray for me.
By the way, Carol, thanks for reading my blog and commenting but I still am not sure if it is Carol R or Carol B! So let me know, ok? I love you both!
Anyway, I would have to say that today has been the first of one of those ‘culture shock’ days we were assured we would have. And up until this very moment I was allowing myself to indulge in a bit of a pity party. But when I consider the agony of all those people affected by the earthquake in Asia; and the concern of my team leader, Rafael, for his baby son who needs to have some kind of operation for his kidney; and the burden of responsibility on the shoulders of Liuba and Janosh who are leading the training program that begins tomorrow, I realize that I should redirect my pity into prayer for others who have far greater problems than I do. Not that I won’t have a good cry at some private moment – probably in the shower( if it’s working.)
Sorry I can’t post any pictures – the internet connection seems to object to that practice so I might wait a bit. And just so you know, I have burned a CD with all my photos thus far and I gave it to Sarah to take home with her. She will be delivering it to my son Ben so if you are interested in way more pictures of my travels, get in touch with Ben to borrow the CD. I think Sarah is heading home on the 20th and I am guessing that Jane Johnson will be the first to contact Ben about the CD, so you may want to contact her rather than trying to find Ben. Sarah lives in Unionville, very close to Kathleen Wilson and her family so I am hoping those two will connect as they will really hit it off. Did you hear that, Kathleen?
That’s all for now. Sorry for so many words and no photos. I look forward to hearing from any of you that would like to write. My current address – in case you forgot – and where I can receive snail mail – is c/o Operation Mobilisation, Casuta Postala 2366, 2012 Chisinau, Republic of Moldova.

Culture in Chisenau

Today Sarah and I spent the afternoon and evening together just being Canadians in Chisenau. It was the wine-tasting festival and the street was closed off and people were everywhere. There was a whole string of wine-tasting booths which we avoided in favour of the parallel food booths. Managed to communicate what we wanted food-wise, and then went looking for a table. There were none empty but some vacant seats on the end of one bench at a table. The people warmly welcomed us to sit down and began conversing with us in a great deal of Romanian. I understood virtually none and Sarah understood a bit more than that. The woman sitting next to me was very close and very friendly - arm around the shoulder, offering me wine and cheese, etc - while her brother was telling her to leave me alone and let me eat (I guess). It was quite hilarious and we took a picture and the other lady gave Sarah their phone number... go figure!
Then later we walked through the park on the way to the coffee shop where we planned to eat supper. Halfway through we saw a bride and groom with a whole group of dancers in traditional Moldovan costumes dancing around them! It was amazing! What fun! It turned out the dancers weren't even with the wedding party but were with one of the wine factories and just happened to see the couple and decided to help them celebrate. It was awesome.
The plan for the evening was to attend the opera - Sarah's first! So for 20 lei (@$2) we each purchased a ticket to Tosca and saw the performance in the Chisenau Opera and Ballet Theatre. In spite of the great price, there weren't a lot of people in the theatre but those that were, were not quite like a Toronto audience. For example a girl in front of us was receiving and making calls on her mobile during the performance. Across the aisle from us was a guy who obviously was a great opera fan and felt compelled to sing along with some of the best songs. (I kid you not.) The lady next to me had actually come to advertise some organ concerts and leaned over to me after the first act to tell me about them - when I didn't understand, one of the girls in front of us translated for us. The lady wasn't there for the third act - maybe she didn't like the show.... During the second intermission, Sarah, who could never be described as shy, heard some people speaking English so she walked over and introduced herself to them. I came over too. It turned out they were with the Salvation Army - Norwegians working in Moldova and friends visiting them from the US. We had a nice chat and they helped us get the story straight about the opera since we didn't know the story line and we couldn't figure out the Romanian program. At the end of the program people from the audience took flowers up on stage to the performers. The funny thing was that they gave flowers to the two male leads but the female lead wasn't given any flowers! There is no end of surprises here including the washrooms we finally found in the basement of the opera house and then almost got locked in by the time we made our way back to the entrance. We had SUCH a fun time today!
Took a taxi home successfully but only because Sarah knows enough Romanian to tell the driver which way to go - and she knows the way home. She has truly been a gift to me - not only in the fun we had together but in the sharing and encouraging we were able to give each other. She misses her mom and I miss my daughter so we're a good combo. Thank you, Lord!
Tomorrow I will attend a Moldovan Baptist church in Oru (?) with Matthew and some others. Watch for more details...

How sweet it is...

...to walk down to the end of the road and see a whole huge vineyard stretched out before me with vines laden with clusters of purple grapes! What a beautiful country this is! When I was praying one day, the Lord reminded me of the passage in John 15 where Jesus says, 'I am the vine you are the branches... abide in me. For if you abide in me, and my words abide in you, you will bear much fruit.' Oh that my life would be as fruitful as these Moldovan vines!!
I will see a bit more of the beautiful countryside on Sunday when I go to Orhu with Matthew and Vlad to a service at the Baptist Church there. Then in the afternoon we will go to a Pentecostal church service. I have been instructed that head coverings are required for married women, and probably for any older women such as myself. (Just remember most of the girls here are 21-25) The director of the Central Europe division of OM - Paul Stilli - has been with us for the last couple of days and will be till Monday. He is a very kind, very gentle, loving and encouraging man. He sat with us through the annual reports and discussions about the ministry and all that is going on. It has been a very informative few days for me and I have a much broader overview now of the work of OM Moldova.
Next week I will be going to stay in a Moldovan home. I have no more details yet except that Rafael hopes to find me a place with indoor plumbing!
Please pray for me tomorrow as I am going on one of the minibuses by myself to town to meet Sarah. The mini-buses are really something: jolting up and down over Moldovan roads/streets that have no lanes clearly marked, driving fairly quickly. You wave down the mini-bus outside your house, get on, sit down, pass your money forward and wait for the change to be passed back from the driver through all the other passengers to you. When you want to get off, you tell the driver where to stop! It costs 2 lei to take this bus, which is about 10 cents!
Anyway, I will probably write more after my adventure tomorrow. Sarah and I are going to meet, shop, eat, and go to the opera. Would you expect I could see Puccinni in Moldova???
Happy Thanksgiving to all! We won't be having turkey but Sarah and I are going to make apple crisp, since we can't make pumpkin pie. (no pumpkins, fresh or canned - and no Crisco!!)
I send my blessings and love to all of you.
Barb