We end up doing all kinds of things here… Kai and I helped some of our friends record a music video – in the weeds between the river and our house.
It was cold, but we got it done just as the sun was setting. Hopefully, I can post a clip of the video here once we get it ready.
The renovations around our house(s) continue. The “other” house is starting to look a lot better. The bathroom in the back part is now functional, and the main “living” room is completely renovated.
Our house is getting upgrades as well, with a new front door and new steps (with a roof). Roma is sure keeping himself busy here!
One of the reasons we went to Finland was to get a chance to see one of my all time favourite bands, Stryper, in concert. I did see Michael Sweet playing some of his own stuff, as well as Stryper songs, at a concert in Niagara Falls, New York a few years ago. Tracy Ferrie (the current bass player in Stryper) was also with Michael at the time.
Kai and I had to stand in line for 1 1/2 hours just to get a ticket for the concert. When we finally got our tickets, there were only about 40 tickets left, and hundreds of people still standing in line hoping to get one!
It was worth it. Opening for Stryper was a Finnish band, “The Rain”, who did a great job as well.
We decided to take a short family vacation to Finland in November. We flew out of Kiev on November 13th, and returned on the 22nd.
It was a great break, and a definite culture shock to go from Ukraine to visit a country that is known as the least corrupt country in the world. It was also an interesting experience for me – instead of relying on others to interpret for me as I have to do here in Ukraine, I was suddenly the interpreter for the rest of my family.
We stayed in Helsinki for a couple of days, then drove to Turku where Kai and I were able to go see Stryper in concert. After that, we went to Jyväskylä and visited my aunt and my cousins before driving back to Helsinki.
Here are a few photos from the trip:
The view from the plane before we descended to Helsinki…
Kiana on the plane
The gang in front of the Stockmann store in Helsinki.
Downtown Turku.
Visiting my aunt Pirkko in Jyväskylä.
Just a few photos from Birthday parties we’ve had here…
Petra’s birthday was September 21st, Kira’s birthday was September 24th, and our friend Tolik had his birthday at the beginning of October.
Petra’s birthday
Kira’s birthday
Tolik’s birthday party in the rain…
Steve Hill has a very succinct explanation of what is happening (or not happening) in the churches here. His analysis is accurate, and is exactly the problem we have seen here as well.
I think it’s time for an update on what is happening here, what we are doing, and what we are hoping to do in the future. I’ve realized that most of the other posts (and photos) on here are predominantly about our day to day lives, and although they may give you an idea of what our life is like here, they don’t really provide a complete picture of what we are really “doing”.
So… although this may end up being a bit long, I will try to give a more complete outline of our experiences, our ideas, our dreams, and yes, our difficulties.
In the past two years, we have learned a lot, experienced a lot, and are now trying to use what we have learned to develop a plan that will make a difference here.
Our primary goal when we came to Ukraine was to help the orphans. That is still our goal. When we first came, we weren’t sure how we would be able to help, we just knew we had to try. Now, after two years of living here, getting to know some of the kids from the orphanages at a personal level, seeing the difficulties they face, we are starting to understand what we can do, and what we must do.
Happened to find this cartoon on the web this morning… Kind of reminds me of what we go through here, especially when we have extra kids in the house and it rains for a couple of days (meaning that the laundry won’t dry).
Good Books: