HOT

This week Moldova has been hot. So hot. In the high 30's most of the time. I dare not complain as I am one of the very few people I know who has air conditioning at home. God has been very gracious to me. But I have also been reminded of how easy I usually have it because this week my car has been out of commission. We finally determined that I simply had a lemon battery and today I bought a new one and am trusting all will be well now. But all week I have had to travel like most Moldovans travel - by public transport: bus, rutiera, and 'pe jos' (on foot). By 8 in the morning the temperature was already so high that I was sweating buckets by the time my roommates and I walked the 3 blocks to the bus stop. Then you get on a bus, or a mini-bus if you miss your bus, and either way you are jammed like sardines in a vehicle with little or no air circulation. Personal space is non-existent.

On the way to the bus stop I observe the many people who make their living as vendors of whatever they have to sell: fruits & vegetables, sunflower seeds, watermelons, various sundries from cigarettes (which can be bought individually) to pens to chocolate bars, phone cards, newspapers. From early in the morning they set up their little spot wherever - hopefully in the shade - and hope by the end of the day they won't have quite so much to pack in their bag to carry home on the rutiera or bus. Some people have space in small stores or warehouses where they can leave their wares at night but others just load up a bag or bucket, or truck if they are lucky, each morning and transport it into the city. In the supermarkets and grocery stores you can't find much in the way of fruits and vegetables because people just don't buy them there. It's much cheaper and fresher to buy them in the 'piata' (market).

Today my car is working again. It was such a blessing to be able to drive to the grocery store and carry home my supplies in my car, rather than walking through the horrendous heat to the nearby market and buy only what I could carry back to my apartment. I think the Lord knows that I need to be reminded from time to time that I really do have it easy compared to the majority of people here in Moldova. Not only that, he blessed me with friends and team-mates to help me when I do have car problems. My 'adopted' son Lilian came to my rescue in all the dealings with my car and its battery this week. Next week Lilian leaves for England for four months to take a training course there. I will miss him a lot.

But in spite of the heat and the car problems, I realize that I am very blessed. And so I give humble thanks to the Lord for all He has done for me. May I have opportunity to share the blessings I have received. As the apostle Paul said, "You will be made rich in every way so that you can be generous on every occasion..." (2 Corinthians 9:11)