Where in the world is Team Sparta? We are in Sverdlosk ,Ukraine, a coalminer town near the Russian border.
Ukraine broke away from the Soviet Union/Communist rule in 1991, a time that most people we 
meet remember quite well. The people of this town are really not friendly…..that sounds harsh, but they really don’t show it until you get to know them. A matter of trust, perhaps. As you walk down the streets there are no smiles or laughter (it’s uncommon). Karen started laughing on a city bus, and our interpreter (Eugene) shushed her sternly. He told us that we don’t need to create unnecessary tension with the miners on their way home. He also told us that if we smile and say hi to people on the street, they will think we are crazy.
Eugene says that we stand out because we look “indie” by the way we dress. We took it as a compliment. There are older people here who look exactly like pictures from the World Wars, with the same stern faces and clothes. Then there are the younger generations dressed casually or…..what we would consider risque. Mini skirts, fishnet stockings, tight low cut shirts, crazy make-up, and stilettos seem to be the popular way to dress for many women. You can still spot wooden clogs on some of
the elders and even clothes with the USSR emblems. We are in Eastern Ukraine where they support Russia and not America; Western Ukraine is more supportive of America. The country is divided……or so we’ve been told.
The town feels barren, empty despite the people in it. Sometimes it feels like we have stepped into a Russian film from World War II. The buses (Soviet buses) are 50 or so years old, the buildings monotonous and the same. There is no place to grab a cup of coffee or really to go in and sit. The pubs/bars get rowdy pretty quick, with common knife fights. Our first day of ministry, we were picked up in a very old school ambulance. In fact, I think it was probably used during the War. We drove closer to the border, to a hospital, where we plastered the “disinfectant ward.” The women who helped us, seem a bit leery at first (they only speak Russian). Svetina and I work on the ceiling; she taught me her way of doing it through watch and repeat. It’s always amazing the communication that can happen with no words.
During a break I found the women and sat with them for a bit…..we tried to talk. They were getting ready to make tea, when the other girls found us. The women sprang to action. They made us sit on all the available seats, poured us tea, put their jackets on us, and ran to get some cake and candy. We felt like queens drinking simple tea from their mismatched chipped teacups. Just that morning our contact had shared with us from James, stressing the importance of sharing Jesus through our actions.
Perhaps the apathetic and dark spiritual feel, that exists here, is a result of the many years of Communist rule, of being controlled. It’s a cultural differance that can turn some people off right away. These people are amazing, though, and once you get to know them you fall in love……..and they start to smile. In fact, I think the real reason we stand out is because we laugh and smile in public. Even when we try not to, we do…..call it habit.
