Ministry near Moldova…
1. We are entirely spoiled by having beds, a shower with hot water, food provided, a toilet, blankets and pillows, and heat.
2. I shovel, throw, carry or anything having to do with dirt in the afternoons at a construction site outside our front door that will one day be a Community Center for families to come and spend time together and be in a Christian community.
3. At night, I walk to English Club and talk for 4 hours to anyone from a father and his 14 year old daughter, to a young man intent on learning English in order to attend college in the states in the fall but worried about the test he has to take to prove his proficiency in English.
4. My team of girls and the girls from another team are living in a make-shift fort in a concrete building. We have a line with blankets hung across it as a curtain on one side and a wall of cabinets as a blockade on another side. I have the honor of having a top bunk so my line of vision goes above the cabinets and straight out to the “dining room” next to us.
5. We are sharing space with about 10 Russian-speaking men who live here as part of a drug and alcohol rehabilitation program. During the day they are hard at work with us in the construction site, have Bible studies and live in community together. Although all but one of them speak little to no English, we smile and nod at each other as we pass in the hall or wait in line for the singular bathroom.
6. We have 3 amazing women who work tirelessly all day to prepare food for the 14 of us plus the men who live here. If I had to pick one thing that they believe is vital for every meal it would definitely be bread. Thankfully, they also are huge supporters of delicious soups, cabbage-based things and some kind of grits for breakfast. It’s always an adventure to see what mystery will be revealed in the pot they bring to the table.
7. It’s cold here! But thankfully we have an amazing wood-burning furnace which keeps us nice and cozy and I have even been brave enough to stoke with wood a few times.
8. There’s a super cute town right across the train tracks and down the hill from where we live and we already discovered lots of places to have treats like wifi, hot drinks or American food. There’s even a farmer’s market, thrift shop and cool street market that’s reminiscent to a swap meet.
9. A few of my teammates and I got invited to intrude on an elementary school field trip to the theatre and got to see an entire play in Russian and a circus act! We may have been more excited than the kids…
10. Although Month 10 brings the countdown to being back home to less than 50 days, I am confident that God still has LOTS to teach me and do through me as we finish our ministry here and head to our last month in Turkey!
