The last two afternoons Caroline and I had the opportunity to work in the kitchen with a couple of the Estonian men. The kitchen was small so we often bumped into one another. Caroline and I peeled potatoes, cut carrots and cabbage, diced onions, and sliced hotdogs to make a soup called pilofv. I love cooking and I was thankful for the vegetables but my favorite part was getting to know Ronvan (Ron) and Marco. Ron speaks a little English so we were able to communicate pretty well.
Ron has been in and out of prison and is addicted to cocaine. This is his second time in the program, he is on his fourth month. Ron is expecting a baby boy (Robby) in three weeks and has a 6 year old son named Kevin. Ron loves to travel and has had the opportunity to explore many places in the world and has lived in Australia for 6 years. Being in the kitchen helped break down a lot of walls and let us connect better, Ron and I actually have a lot in common. Marco struggles with alcoholism. He is on his 8th month out of ten in the program. He used to be a big time marketing director. He has two daughters: one 6 years old and the other 8. They showed us pictures of their families. Although Marco doesn’t speak much English I really enjoyed talking to him and us both trying to guess what the other was trying to say. Many times we didn’t get it but was fun and made us laugh a lot.
Caroline, Marco, me, Ron
When it was mine and Caroline’s turn to cook, Marco and Ron and especially Niketa (our supervisor) were a little nervous that we weren’t going to make enough food to feed all the hungry working men. The men at Village of Hope requested Mexican food. There is a tight budget here so our supplies were rather limited. They said we had to use a large amount bread and hotdogs. Hmmmm… Mexican food out of bread and hotdogs… I thought back from when I worked at a bed and breakfast of a soufflé we used to make that we could modify. They also wanted us to make a dessert but they only had flour, apple sauce and musuli. Caroline and I caught a train to town to go to the grocery store. We bought some corn, beans, eggs, salsa, and dark chocolate. We also made some rice, which was a million times easier than making rice in Africa (where you have to start cleaning and picking through rice after breakfast for hours upon hours and then use coals to start a fire, go to the well for water, continuously fan the coals with a plate and hope for the best). Dinner turned out pretty well and there was more than enough food and our “healthier” cookies were a hit. Caroline and I really enjoyed serving all the men and giving Ron and Marco a break.
Story behind all of the hotdogs: Before my team and I arrived at the Village of Hope they had a food shortage. The men all prayed for food. One man requested sweets, another requested a lot of meat. Surely enough, God provided what they asked for and more. A local church donated enough sweets to fill multiple freezers. An anonymous donation of 125lbs of hotdogs were donated. God has a great sense of humor.
