Meet my Romania friend, Mariska!
She is one of the sweetest, hard working, wise people I have ever met, and after
leaving our little village, Sistarova, I've decided to write a blog
in honor of her and the memory she's made in my heart!
It all started when our contact, Mihai, asked some of my team to help garden someone's house nearby. We took a 10 minute walk down the road, took a few turns, and arrived at this quaint little house with a long garden in the backyard. We walked through the gate to see Mariska diligently working on plowing her garden. Mihai introduced her to us and after smiling and communicating through motions, we went to work on her garden. After gardening for several hours as a group, I could not believe she does this every day alone! It is hard work, much more difficult and time-consuming than its appearance.
As the sun set, we put our tools in her shed and said goodbye to her, explaining that we would be returning tomorrow to finish our work (we could have definitely used Mihai’s translating skills for that part!). She began speaking to us, her eyes glistening with tears, as her voice broke several times. We weren’t sure if they were happy or sad tears, but circled around her to hug and pray for her.
After praying a few minutes with her, Mariska motioned us to enter into her home, which consisted of two small rooms with unfinished floors and packed tightly with her bed, kitchen supplies, table, and laundry. We sat down on her bed and chairs as she slowly walked with her cane, taking deep breaths as she placed some sweet rolls in the oven for us. Then she grabbed her Bible and hymnal book and sat down beside us. Putting on the biggest, thickest glasses I’ve ever seen, which she sported in adorable fashion, she began to sing. Song after song, she sang to us whole-heartedly with one of the most beautiful, angelic voices I’ve ever heard. We couldn’t help but grin with joy, tears streaming down all our faces as we let her soothing voice touch our hearts. It was as if God’s presence and fullness of joy swept through the room, leaving each of us at a loss for words as we stared at this beautiful woman. A woman who, at age 93, was filled with life experience and knowledge of God beyond anything I could comprehend. I wished I could speak Romania at that moment and just listen to her story, to hear what she’s been through, to soak up wisdom from her life.
Once she stopped singing, we sang “Amazing Grace”, which she knew and began to sing along with us. Then she grabbed the fresh rolls from the oven, motioning us to eat as much as we wanted. We ate up her food, sweet presence, and hospitality all at once. As we stood up to leave, she began crying again, pointing upward to heaven and carrying a solemn look on her face. It seemed as though her words held both joy and sorrow. We prayed for her one last time, praying showers of blessing to fall down upon her, and that she would continue to remain a faithful servant to God as He’s remained faithful to her.
Though our ministry in Romania was limited on the relational aspect, the handful of people we got to know blessed my heart tremendously. I loved that we got to invest in these relationships, especially with Mariska. I believe God used us as a breath of fresh air in her life, reminding her of His love. I wonder if part of her reasons for crying were from seeing herself in us through a mirror, reflecting upon her youthful years and reminiscing on her own life experience. I pray that God will continue to encourage her through many sources of people and relationships, constantly reminding her of His faithful promise to love and adore her all the days of her life on earth until she meets Jesus face to face!
