March 2022: Sweet Hellos and Sad Goodbyes

I'd be dishonest to say we didn't enter March with some trepidation.  On paper, it looked to be a highway of transition that would require a lot of physical, mental, and emotional energy.

God was faithful, though, and provided through the continued support of Bonnie and Peder (seen off camera, left, in the photo below).

The after-school feeding program continued this month on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons & Saturday mornings.  It continues to serve as a great connection point with our young neighbors.  Most of them stay for "Study Hall." below.

I don't remember taking this photo, but I am amused by Lucy's begrudging compliance with Reni's antics.

We were invited to celebrate the birthday of a special friend.  They treated us to an incredibly special meal!

Week 2

Our colleague, Tiffany, took some vacation time this week, so Ellie and I checked in on her cats!  Nathan and I are allergic, so my memories of cats are all outdoors, around the barns.  I didn't remember them being so playful!

 

This week held all the usual, plus some extra time prepping the Planters apartment for a new family arriving at the end of the month.  We took off Friday morning and early and met our Afghan friends in Tirana for a picnic at the lake to celebrate their son's 4th birthday.

They brought some of their favorite food they remembered us enjoying from our visit in February.

We won't forget memories like this!

Albania released a new piece of currency.  This is worth approximately $100.  When we pay for most things in cash, bills of this denomination are really only practical for large purchases.

One Saturday afternoon we played mystery game on the streets of Tirana.  Most of the locations it sent us to were not this questionable, ha ha.  Our friends were good sports on an unusually chilly day!

Week 3

Sunday, March 13 was a special, delayed celebration of Women's Day.  Shpresa coordinated a bus for the women of our village to visit Berat, a UNESCO World Heritage site, and lunch at a restaurant. It was nice to see our neighbors enjoy an extended time of fellowship, seeing a place that was new to some of them.  And of course, I had the pleasure of serving as the photographer of the group. :-) I will spare you a lot of photos, though!

If you love stone and wood in architecture, your heart will be happy by a visit to the "old town."

The next two days we took an abbreviated spring break trip with some missionary friends down to Vlora.

We enjoyed a castle ruins entirely to ourselves and enjoyed several games of Bocce Ball, overlooking the convergence of the Adriatic and Ionian Seas.

A herd of either goats or sheep kept the pitch neatly cropped.

We enjoyed a change of scenery and the kids enjoyed having extended time with their friends.

The rest of the week included shopping for kitchen cabinetry for the new center, installing some new items on the rooftop terrace (photos later, below), and the usual weekly programs. 

Making posters for an upcoming charity soccer match to benefit VT Albania.

 

Saturday we hosted the Hope Center at Jeta instead of going to their place.  We shot targets and played games with Nerf.  It was a huge hit. 

Week 4

Sunday, March 20 we hired a bus and a large group of us from Vlashaj, including many students of VT Albania, traveled to Peze for a charity match to benefit VT Albania.  

The friends sponsoring the fundraiser also held a raffle.  Many of the attendees bought tickets for the VT students in attendance.  I ended up holding tickets for a couple of the students because they were more than they could manage! :-)

Local neighbors represented VT in a match against retired pro-futbol players!  It was a lot of fun!

On Monday, March 21 we hosted the first ever evangelical symposium in Albania on serving individuals with disabilities.  We discussed inclusion into our churches and the theology of disability in Scripture.  It was a valuable time of training and networking and we couldn't have been more thrilled to have the honor of hosting this historic occasion! Some local ministries used it as training for their staff!

A friend, Lisa, who was visiting Albania gifted us this beautiful swing for our terrace.  It is a popular photo spot, as you can see!

When your kitchen table is your office, and the village boys drop in every afternoon unannounced, sometimes you just have to get away, ha ha! (This is the "lower terrace" -- a space that was originally planned to house the mechanics of the new center. It has turned into Nathan's secret hiding spot.)

Nathan bought these games quite some time ago, but we were finally able to install them.  They provide some entertainment for guests on the roof!

On Friday night Peder delivered a message to our little church body about how to study God's word.

We discovered a mini-donut maker amongst my parents' belongings here in Albania.  We made some chocolate cake donuts and dipped them in melted Nutella (no Betty Crocker frosting in a tub here!) and sprinkles to give a young friend.

On Saturday and Sunday we attended an overnight on the beach for the Alpha Course.  The first event included ice-breaker games. 

While in line at the hotel buffet, this woman (below) bravely introduced herself to me! 

She was at the same hotel for a different conference and recognized our family from hearing about us through many mutual friends in the adoption community. She and her husband live near the Sisters of Charity orphanage in Elbasan, where Reni resided.  They have become a local resource for many families adopting children from that home!  (They were not yet married when we were in Elbasan 12 years ago).

Ellie made a new friend at the retreat who documented their time together with this beautiful sketch!

We returned home and Nathan had to take Reni's feet apart to fully clean them of all the sand he acquired from playing on the beach!  I think this may be a fore-taste of summer!

VT has accepted several new students this year!  I have the joy of taking their school photos.  I particularly loved this image.  After taking his head shots, I asked B's dad to jump in for a quick photo.  Can you not see the kindness and love jump out of this image?

I seriously don't know what we would have done this winter without the help of Bonnie and Peder.  Because of them, I felt like we were able to get our feet back under ourselves for the first time in over two years.  They jumped in and gave us a reprieve from some responsibilities, then tackled items on my 'honey-do' list that had been sitting there for eons. Theywere embraced by our community here and loved our neighbors so, so well.  They have an open door to return anytime.

Remember that reference to transition at the beginning of this post? This week was a little nuts.  I think Nathan counted five trips to the airport in five days:

On Monday we welcomed back our colleagues, the B family, from four months away.  

On Tuesday morning the Andersons departed.  

On Tuesday afternoon we welcomed Tony for one month. 

On Thursday morning we went to the airport at 4AM to hug our Afghan friends goodbye (I have photos but I look terrible -- I obviously didn't check a mirror before leaving).  I have to insert this: they finally are able to start the next season of their life in Canada, starting in Calgary, but in the moment of saying goodbye, we could only acknowledge that it still carries a lot of unknowns, and they still tremendously miss their old lives and family.  Their boys, especially, struggle with this lack of control over their world. I could only comfort my friends with the fact that Jesus himself understands.  When he was the same age as their sons, he too, had to leave the comfort of his home and move to a new country with new foods and language. I was honored that they asked me to pray for them, and I ask that you include them in your prayers too.  There are so many refugees in this world today, but how amazing that Jesus understands!

Then on Friday, we welcomed a new family, the A's!

In it all, God has been good. Just wait to see what April brings! Thanks for loving and supporting our family!