"Patience is a virtue."

I thought I'd post a few pictures from this week. Enjoy! =]

These are the stairs that lead up to our house. Don't let your eyes decieve you, they go up, up, and up. My legs are starting to get used to them though!

One afternoon I went to Tsigmadru to see what a medical clinic was like. These are two kids out of a plethora that were there.

Blurry picture of the festival by night. It was beautiful.

Earlier this week we went to a hotel right outside of the city to spend some time cooling off at the pool. We learned a few cultural differences here:

-Girls 10 and under, wear skimpy bikini bottoms with no top whatsoever.

-Some kids just go naked.

-Men wear banana hammocks.

-All women wear bikinis, regardless of size and age. And I got stared at because I wasn't.

-There were no lifegaurds and no restrictions, and no one would yell if you ran.

It's a rainy day today and I haven't done much except read. The advantage of the rain is that the temperature has dropped and we can walk anywhere without getting soaked in sweat. Also, the country simply needs rain. So I thank God for it.

I'm beginning to feel anxious about this coming year and ready to begin whatever we'll be doing. I know God has given us this time to adjust and just get used to living daily life here. And I bet that what I'm doing right now is just as important as what I'll be doing a month from now. So patience is what I really need. It will all happen in time. Please pray for patience on my behalf until God provides something for me to take part in. And thank you everyone so much for your prayers thus far, they truly make a difference. =]

See post below...

You'll see plenty more of this picture I'm sure. It doesn't look as impressive as it truly is in this picture, but this is the huge staircase in citadel that leads up to an old Orthodox church and a German Scoala (School). Someday I'll get a good one of this.

The view from my favorite place in our apartment, the window. I like to sit on the window sill and look out over the city, and it faces the West which is great for two reasons: 1. We see the sun set every night and each day it seems to be more colorful and beautiful than the last. 2. When I sit in the window and look out, I pray for everyone back home, because I'm facing them! =]

I don't really know what this is supposed to be. Obviously it's a globe and I think it used to be a fountain, but it isn't anymore. The old Orthodox church is the one in the background (but don't mistake this Orthodox Church for the one at the top of the hill. =] )

I don't know if anyone can follow what I'm talking about, because it's easy to be egocentric and forget details, but I hope you like the pictures all the same!

Festivus for the Rest-of-us

There is a feeling of constant movement in the air. The feeling where, although you sit perfectly still and nothing is moving around you, something stirs inside. And no, it's not your bowels. The humdrum of life beats in your ears and brain.

The reason for this feeling in Sighisoara is that a huge festival has begun. It lasts the entire weekend and I'm sure that thousands of people will come through the city before it's over. There are people constantly around our house, out back on the path outside of our gate, in front looking at historical towers, taking pictures of our stairwell (because apparently it's photogenic). The citadel (center of town) is hardly recognizable. There are stands lining everything that even remotely resembles a wall loaded with gobs of stuff that nobody really needs. Many times you pass a stand that you thought you saw "back there" (a lot of them have the same stuff). Stages are set up all over the place with traditional music and dance. As you walk through the stands your stomach will most likely begin to growl because of the permeating smells of food stands. You would expect life to feel cheery and uplifting at an event like this and most of the time...it does. Then you take a few steps forward and run smack into someone wearing all black with black makeup and long black hair. Freaky? Yeah just a bit. You see, this is a "midieval festival". Therefore it's entertaining and somewhat frightening. =]

Anyway, that is what's going on this weekend. We spent this past week trying to get our house up and running. We're still having a few technical difficulties and the time it takes to straighten them out is much longer in Romania. But, while running errands all over town I managed to take a few photos. (Those are posted at the top of this one.)

Pictures!

At the Washington-Dulles airport.

The clock tower in the citadel.

The House on the Rock, or international cafe.

The soccer field up by the Briete. My brother went here when he came to Romania. Jake played soccer here with the Romanian kids too. =]

The Briete woods.

More of the Briete woods.

Me cutting a HUGE watermelon. It was ginormous!

This entry is really--July 24, 2007

As I lie on the carpet of our apartment and move only my fingers to type this entry, I sweat. It is so hot here! The heat skyrocketed up one hundred degrees yet again today. We were hoping for rain to relieve us today, but no luck.
There are so many things to be stressed out about right now, but to be honest, I’m doing great. Several things aren’t working in our house and it can be frustrating sometimes. The ATM cards aren’t working. The wireless internet isn’t working and the man who tried to come help us couldn’t do anything for us because we don’t speak Romanian. Oh how I wish I could speak fluently. Maybe if I pray hard enough it will just come to me. Haha. =] Because our wireless internet isn’t working, our Vonage doesn’t work either. Therefore, we can’t make any calls or give anyone our number who is trying to help us get settled. The only contact we have is through coming to the internet café and spending money on connecting. That is not necessarily a good thing because we can’t get money out of the ATM right now. The boys are tired and cranky almost constantly because they aren’t getting to bed until around eleven. Oh, and the Hopkins are missing one tub of stuff from the flights over here still.
Yet I still find comfort in the fact that I know this is where we need to be. God has us here for a purpose and although it is yet to be discovered, all of these small frustrations are only bumps in the road that will bring us where we need to go. The only thing there is to do is rely on God to provide what we absolutely need and it is for him to determine when we really need it. I guess you could say my patience has been turned up to full blast and I am willing to wait. After spending time in the word and rereading all of the encouragement that I got from my friends, this verse stands out to me:
“Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us, to him be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever! Amen.”
Ephesians 3:20-21

And we're off..

Well, it truly has begun. Today is only day three here in Romania and I already feel like I've been here for weeks. My sleep cycle is not normal yet and I find myself laying awake at night in the blistering heat, staring at the cieling. I tried to read myself to sleep, but no dice. I'm hoping that when it cools down, and when the concerts up on the hill at Villa Franca stop (they had loud blasting music every night since we've been here that goes until at least midnight) I will be able to sleep. And then I can be more concerned about the things I should actually be concerned with. Haha.
We went to church on Sunday at the Nazarene Church and it was great. I was still half asleep...but I met a girl my age that has just spent a year abroad herself. It seems like she and I will get along very well. I'm excited for that. We also met with Dorothy and Roberta today and talked about a few things together. They are wonderful people and very open minded too. I can't believe how hard it must be to have short term missionaries coming and going with their own agendas all the time...and they do their best to be rational and try and make it so that everyone is happy. I think I am going to love having them as people to go to when I need help with something.
I am thrilled to be here right now and anticipating what the year will bring.
Even from the very few days I've had here I know this is going to be difficult for me and grow me in ways I could have never grown at home. I'm nervous, but I know that I am taken care of by the greatest caretaker there is. =]

It has begun...

Well, with a countdown of only 6 days, I believe the journey has commenced. Never had I imagined that it would come this quick. The simple fact that I will be in Romania a week from now rocks my world even though I've known this little tidbit of information for almost a year. Through experiencing the VISA Free Methodist World Missions training I have learned so much (and it's not over yet!). My brain is in lockdown right now because I've taken in so much over the past 3 days that I'm fairly sure it could melt at any moment. I don't even know how to explain the value of hearing experienced missionaries talk. I can't tell you how many times I've had to remind myself that I am a missionary. That's still hard. I don't feel like I am. So basically today I am utterly overwhelmed. I know that this is what God wants for me, but I feel a little like Moses right now (in a very very humble way =] )..."send someone else". Don't worry, I'm not going to back out. Like I said, I know this is right somehow...it feels etched into my being. I just don't know how it's going to work. And trust me, I know that God will work it out too. But I guess He has told me "This is going to be hard. Go."