So here's the cabin:
We were asked to sand off the flaking coat of 5 year old stain and then re-stain it. It ended up being a month-long project. We finished just about everything except on the very last day we ran out of stain, and were unable to finish the porch and balcony.
Here is Michael, in front of the mostly-finished cabin.
Michael (pronounced Mee-HAAAAIIII!!! in Romanian and spelled Mihai) is The Boss. He is the camp overseer/admin/handyman/jack-of-all-trades. From September 13 – October 5, we spent most of our time with him. He cooked us Romanian cuisine, studied the Bible with us, translated for us, and told us what to do around the camp. He speaks English very well, learning it from watching American movies.
He is one of the kindest and most generous men I have ever met. He loves Jesus and is filled with the Spirit.
Michael has his own personal magic-Hermione-handbag/Elijah-ravens that provide food out of nowhere. No one has ever actually seen, but everyone who knows MiHAI has tasted the benefits. MiHAI will randomly walk into our house with his hands full of tasty goods and spoils of war.
He's not unlike my favorite mother-in-law who brings these amazing dishes to the dinner table, or hands you a platter of freshly baked Neiman-Marcus cookies (my favorite) as soon as you walk in the door. The difference is that she tirelessly works for hours in the kitchen, and MiHAI disappears for 5 min and then re-appears holding that delicious peach/plum jam that just ran out.
We did not buy bread once for the entire month, but always seemed to have two or three loaves in the pantry. Because we never saw where these gifts came from, and he would claim he didn't purchased them, we believe that his "magic" may actually be a black hole. Peter (a true Trekkie if I've ever met one) can give a preliminary explanation as to the physics, and metaphysics, of such a thing.
His favorite fruit is guava. He likes cafe mochas, but loves dirty Earl Grey lattes. (My barista skills were in high demand this month. Also, my Travel French press has already brought our team many smiles and much warmth on the cold mornings.)
In addition to long walks across the hilly Romanian countryside, Michael loves Paprika seasoned Tuc crackers (think specially seasoned Ritz crackers, but rectangular in shape and much more tasty), cooking (we think he has a future in Romanian culinary school, maybe with a little les salt and a little less water though), talking about systematic (non)theology, and playing football (soccer). Most of all though, he LOVES driving his 4-wheeler WAY too fast, especially when he has passengers hanging on for their lives.
Not only is he generous, but he is also gracious and humble. He asked for some good sermons to listen to, so I hooked him up with 400+ sermons and lectures. He said that they should last him through the cold and lonely winter. He was so thankful. I told him to let me know when he gets through those, and I will get him more, somehow.
Please pray for Michael as he prepares to spend the winter mostly alone at the camp. Pray also for a wife for Michael; we were unsuccessful in our attempts.
Now that we are in Moldova, internet is scarce, but we will update when we can. Stay tuned for a pictures blog and other news.
