The sidewalks here aren’t good for jogging. Neither are the roads. The only reliable form of transportation in Ukraine happens to be the train system. And, it’s not reliable because it’s clean. No, no, no. It’s reliable because it’s on time.
Ukraine isn’t a country that I would’ve put on my bucket list. I never imagined spending my honeymoon or vacation weeks in Ukraine. The only thing I knew about Ukraine was that it was somewhere near Russia—a fact that some Ukrainians aren’t proud of.
Our team was asked to come to a ministry in Uzhgorod, Ukraine—a city of about 120,000 on the western-most part of the country. We are serving at a day camp, teaching English, helping with crafts and playing more soccer than we bargained for. Some of the kids (ages 4-18) come from wealthy homes, while other are orphans who are in the foster family system. Some know English but all know what a hug feels like.
I’ve been amazed here at how hard it is to order a burger at the local McDonalds, appropriately named, McFoxy. Ukrainian isn’t anything like English, French or Swahili. The only way I know to order a burger is to point at pictures on the wall of the restaurant. If a restaurant doesn’t have pictures, I don’t eat lunch. Life can get very simple very quickly.
The people here are hard and stoic. Smiling at a passer-by on the street isn’t common. I have yet to see a policeman. Ambulances are more like people-movers than life-savers. Life is different here from life in the States.
Some days I miss home. But, for the most part, I revel in the adventure, knowing that nothing will be familiar for a year. I just miss peanut butter. And Fat Free Hazelnut Coffee-Mate Creamer. And the feeling of jogging down Old Shell Road on Sunday morning with my best friend.
But, for these next 9 months, I will have to survive on Nutella and not peanut butter. I will choose to drink my coffee black instead of with creamer. And, I will run down the beat up roads of Ukraine alone.
“For now, I live in a less anchored place, where being lost is irrelevant. For now, only when there is a need, do I discover where I am. Being lost only has meaning when contrasted with knowing where You are.” –David Hollies
