A Week in Bila Tserkva (July 31-Aug 5)

Having just checked our blogpage, I realize that we haven't had a new posting in a week! (By the way ... thank you to those of you who made comments even though you knew that we wouldn't be able to be on-line much last week - we love hearing from you - it's so encouraging to know that you are checking in on us, and praying for us!) There was a computer with an internet connection at the church building, but we weren't able to squeeze in for any real time on it. With a Let's Start Talking team from Tennessee (3 girls), a peace corps couple from Idaho (who are parents/grandparents), and a pretty high-tech minister (Ukrainian) in the building regularly, we didn't feel right bumping any of them off!

As our last "week in review" posting was rather lengthy, you may be happy to find that the pace of life was much slower for us in BT, and so our posting this time around can be much shorter. We were able to focus solely on one congregation, which in many ways was very nice. It is an active congregation with many meetings throughout the week, so we had the opportunity to experience many different aspects of its ministry.

We particulary enjoyed spending time with various members of the congregation, and just getting to know them better. Kostya, the minister, impressed us with his heart, enthusiasm, and good rapport with the community (especially the neighborhood children!).

On Thursday and Friday we visited a local orphanage. The children in this facility are six years old, and younger. The interior of the orphanage was so impressive - very clean, bright, with many plants, and incredible workmanship exhibited throughout the building. And the kids, of course, were adorable. Many of the children were on holiday, so we were only able to meet 12 of the residents (there are usually 30-40 children housed in this "children's home"). We were only permitted to interact with them briefly, as they were having what looked to be a very tasty lunch. They seemed to enjoy having their pictures taken, and meeting us. As we toured the facility, Abbie found many interesting items with which to play along the way.

Under the circumstances (severe money shortage in Ukraine for such facitilities), this home appears to be run very well. When we asked if there were any immediate needs that we could help with in regards to the children, the interim director, who is a member of the church that we were visiting in BT, proposed that maybe we could bring some fresh fruit. We enjoyed going to the market (open-air bazaar) the following day, and selecting the local favorites, but also throwing in some more rare items like fresh pineapple and kiwi. We also purchased what turned out to be an obscene and somewhat embarrassing amount of candy to be given to the kids. After having a rather trying time at the fruit stand deciding what would be best to purchase, we decided it would be better to just tell the lady at the candy stand the situation, and how much we wanted to spend ... who knew how far 50 greevneh ($10) would go! We had to make her stop before the all the greevneh were spent!

We celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary on the fourth of August. Perhaps in not the most romantic of venues choices, we attended a traveling circus that just happened to be in town! We were amazed by the acrobatic abilities of the performers ... somewhat saddened by the animal participants (PETA's influence apparently not yet being felt in Ukraine) ... but overall, very entertained. It was hot and crowded, and too loud ... and the speaking was, of course, in Ukrainian, but we enjoyed the opportunity to see a part of the local culture - and it was a pretty amazing circus! Abbie is still talking about it, and she especially enjoyed the clown (the one who came on in between the acts) who happened to speak most of the time only by using a whistle and hand motions - very good for kids, and those of us who don't know Ukrainian!

Another highlight of the week for Abbie was that the apartment we stayed in had a kitten. This was not, however, a highlight for the cat, as Abbie's enthusiasm was hard for the kitten to match ... and Scott and Katherine's predisposition to favor dogs, was to say the least, strengthened.

For those of you wondering, our trip to and from Bila Tserkva were much less eventful than the previous trip - no maniac drivers. Again, we thank you for your prayers. Hope you enjoy the pictures.