Welcome to Moldova, a land of beauty with a tumultuous history. Moldova has been volleyed between the Russians and Romanians for centuries but finally declared its independence in 1991.
I have to admit, upon arriving at our new location in the village of Rassvet, outside of the town of Calarasi, Moldova, I was a little bit skeptical of how this month might look. We are blessed to stay in a lovely little two room house this month, with electricity, but with no running water. We have a large garden in the back with tomatoes, mulberries, strawberries, potatoes, and several other undiscovered plants, which we are learning how to weed and care for.
I am thrilled to have our own kitchen again, which means homecooked meals with LOTS of vegetables, so long as I am in the kitchen. We even have a noisy, formerly mold-covered (but bleachy clean now, thanks to Joshua!), Russian-made refrigerator that rattles. We honestly thought that the fresh cow's milk we placed within it last night might be butter this morning from all of the rattling! We had to purchase a little gas stove, but after cooking over charcoal burners in Africa, a gas stove is certainly a luxury item.
Despite going "back to basics," our little village is beautiful, and our neighbors are friendly, albeit curious as to why these Americans are in their village this month. We are slowly trying to pick up a few phrases to speak with others and build relationships, which is the core of our ministry with the local church this month.
Our local contact, Sergiu, smiles with such joy, proclaiming, "Slava Bogu" (Praise the Lord!) in all that he does. Sergiu left his hometown several years ago and brought his family to the town of Rassvet to serve as a youth minister. Although he does not speak much English, we have all enjoyed getting to know Sergiu and his family, and I look forward to learning from him and serving alongside him this coming month.
Thank you for your continued love and prayers! We are only weeks away from touching down on US soil, but until then, I want to press on and finish this leg of the race in God's gracious strength.
Here are a few pictures from Moldova so far:
Our Home Sweet Home:
Our Lovely Scenic Squatty Potty:
Look Out Below!
One of the local wells where we draw our water from this month:
Going Cherry Picking
Sunset Views over Rassvet Village
