Month 11, and I’m in Moldova, Ialoveni Moldova to be exact.
(picking cherries from a tree in our yard)
There’s been a few times specifically when a country has really captivated me, when I have really felt a connection to the people and area itself. Places that I feel really comfortable to be in, to be more specific like the way I was drawn to and how I felt being in Cambodia, Ukraine and Rwanda.
Well it’s happening again…Moldova for me these past 2 weeks has been a place I have just fallen in love with, the people, their stories, their lives and families.
But then there is this thing about being in month 11th it’s weird. You are fully aware that in 18 days you will be going home, yet there’s really no way of it fully hitting you because here you are doing the same thing you’ve been doing for the past 10 ½ months, traveling and serving.
So here I am in Moldova still fully on the race, but not. It’s confusing I know, for me too.
It’s good though, seriously really good, because I can honestly say that I am content. Content on being here in Moldova serving with Pastor john, and his ministry with the community and his church. Content here living with his wonderful family with my team, not to mention the team I’ve been with the whole race. And then content not knowing what’s next, knowing pieces to a puzzle but having no idea what it will look like when it’s finished..scratch that I’m not sure what things being finished means especially dealing with life plans. Haha. But why stress just because there are things unkown? God knows.
Content because I am still where I am suppose to be finishing up what I am suppose to be doing.
And what I am doing now is walking A LOT. Quite literally walking everywhere, no distance too far. The other day we went to go visit a blind lady who our Pastor does social work with and we walked for 50 minutes one way. The church we go to everyday is a 30-minute walk one way and then we walk just about everywhere else as well.
We have been doing a Kids camp as well this past week. The week has been full of lots of water fights, singing, English lessons, and relays. Some highlights included a water balloon game where children made out of pure muscle stood and chucked water balloons at Crystal and I as we stood still and had to keep track of how many times we were hit, and then there’s the lunches we eat while at camp, they have been amazing haha.
Living with this amazing family has been a highlight of the month as well, most meal times involve lots of laughter which is always wonderful for me. We do eat some “different” things though like mashed beans with loads of onions on top and potatoes with 1,000 cloves of garlic in them.
I find myself also spending much of this month soaking up for lack of a better term all the world race experiences that I will so very soon be away from. Trying to be present in all my moments.
Here’s a quick little story with that, the other day the girls and I were going into the capital for our off day from ministry. We got directions but of course got on the wrong bus to start, but we were tired of waiting for bus 35, and so we got on a bus that was at least heading in the same direction, and figured it would just be more of an adventure. On the bus I sat next to a man who spoke no English, and needless to say I spoke no Romanian. He gathered that I was from America and kept saying this strange word I couldn’t make out, but then AHA I understood it, it was the word Chicago. After much deliberation I came to the understanding that this man had been a bus driver in Chicago for 25 years. I found it strange though how he had never heard of NH, which I gathered from the look on his face that stayed very consistent through my repeating and repeating of the word NH. If this was the case I will never know but I have to say we had a pretty awesome conversation, that man and I not being able to speak to each other. And then figuring out where to get off the bus and make it into the city and back without getting lost.
These are the moments that I am focused on this month the times I know that I take for granted but were not normal everyday situations a year ago.
So that was kind of just a smorgish board of some of my thoughts lately. Things are going good, like I said content is my word for the moment.
What moment can you not take for granted today, that would even help you stay content?!
Lets try to be people content in every situation! Wouldn’t that be great?!
Lots of love –Elaina
