We have had a busy week since I last had a chance to write. We have enjoyed a glorious week off from our language studies. This was in order to allow us to attend a team retreat Monday through Wednesday. So, our teacher decided to take the rest of the week off to visit her parents in Kiev, Ukraine. We have tried to take advantage of that time and do some fun things in addition to our normal routines, so I will try to bring you up to speed.
“That’s Russia!”
We have heard missionary friends of ours say “well, that’s Russia” before, but we are really starting to get a feeling for what that phrase really means. On Monday morning the family hiked a mile up the street to the nearest metro station (with three suitcases and four backpacks in tow) to meet our team and load the “bus” for our annual retreat. It was about 30-degrees and as we walked it began to snow. By the time we arrived at our meeting place the snow was falling heavily and the roads were getting slippery. As we started to load up we realized that the company had only sent a 17-passenger vehicle for the 20 of us. That’s Russia. We then drove the 70 kilometers outside of Moscow to the retreat center that we had booked for the week.
Russian Retreat Centers: Making RA Camp Look Luxurious
The only word I could really think of as we drove through the front gates of the retreat center was “gulag.” However, I am told that this was one of the nicer Christian retreat centers in Russia. Let’s just say that I don’t ever want to visit a bad one. As we popped out of the van like clowns out of a VW, we lugged our things to the second floor only to find that only three of the four adult couple’s rooms had bathrooms in the room. Guess who got the fourth. That’s Russia. The next morning I padded down the hallway in my jammies to take a shower. I turned the hot water on and waited….and waited…and waited some more. Then I turned on the hot water to the other shower on full blast…and waited. Stone cold. (And you have never felt cold water like the cold water here.) So I padded back to the room. Luckily our room did have a sink in it so I gave Kellye and John fair warning and started my day with a sponge bath. At breakfast I commented to a teammate about how cold the shower was and he told me that he kept getting the water too hot. It turns out that the lines to the shower were reversed and the hot water was in the opposite direction from which I was turning the knob. That’s Russia.
Capture the Flag and Other Feats of Physical Prowess
Our first evening at the retreat center ended with most of us spreading out around the campus to play “Capture the Flag”. If you have not played it, it is kind of like a mini war game where you can be captured and put into jail if you are caught behind enemy lines. I haven’t played capture the flag since I was in college and it seems that while my mind still believes it is 20, my body was in for the stark realization that it is not. To make matters worse, by this time it had been snowing for at least 12 hours and the ground was beginning to be covered with ice and snow. Now, I won’t tell you just how bad my body decided to rebel against me under these circumstances, but I spent the rest of the retreat being known as “Mr. No-Vertical-Leap” and my colleagues doing impressions of me attempting to hurdle the hedges in order to escape capture. I spend a lot of time in “jail” that night.
Never Eat S’mores With Your Gloves On
We were blessed to be joined on our retreat by a couple from Colorado that lead us in Bible study. Mark and Christy served on the mission field for many years before making Colorado their current home. More on that later, but one of the wonderful things they did was to bring suitcases filled with goodies. Candy and CDs for the kids, magazines (including MacWorld just for me) and books for the adults and a special suitcase filled with all the fixins for s’mores. So despite the six inches of snow that was already on the ground and the steady snow shower that was pelting our faces we gathered firewood and built ourselves a nice little bonfire. It was more like a campfire, but trust me when I say that nobody there wanted to camp by the fire for long. After one of our Journeymen discovered, the hard way, that you should not eat S’mores while still wearing your fuzzy mittens we doused the fire with snow and headed back indoors for the night, all the while looking like an army of snowmen (and women) making their way down the path.
Breaking Down Incrementally and Going Out In Joy
I am not sure that the timing for our retreat could have been any better than it was. Life in Russia is not easy. No, it is hard. And…that’s Russia. We all experience it. Whether you have been here for 13 years, two years, or just six weeks, after living in America, life in Russia is hard. To Russians it is just life…but for those of us used to the conveniences of the Western World everyday life here can be frustrating…and that is on the good days. You have probably guessed from our infrequent posts that we are still without dependable Internet service and I can’t really express to you the frustration that brings. Add to that the inability to communicate with those around us and the frustration of learning our new roles and it is usually only a matter of time before your first breakdown sets in. And, after spending time with our teammates we discovered that it happens to everyone, but some of us crash and burn all at once while others of us break down in increments. The secret, however, is to stay rooted in your call and to live in joy, regardless of your circumstances. I can never express enough gratitude to Mark and Christy who took time and money to leave their comfortable life in Colorado to share with us about living in joy. Yes, these are things that we all knew. But it is good to be reminded every now and again by someone who has walked the path that you are on. So remember that wherever in the world that you live or whether you speak the same language as your neighbor or not your life is supposed to be filled with joy. Whether you have high-speed Internet or just a hamster that runs around a wheel in a box to power your network connection you are to be filled with joy. How do you get that joy? It only comes from one place…a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Once you have that I promise that no circumstance or incremental breakdown can rob you of your joy.
Dining at an Oasis
Having the week off has given us some time to do some fun things. The kids and I have taken a few minutes to play in the snow. But even more notable has been yesterday’s trip to the Starlite Diner, an American-style diner in the heart of Moscow. We had pancakes with real maple syrup, bacon and probably the best cup of coffee that I have had since Miss Penny served me my last cup at Country Cabin. All the while we ate a fresh layer of snow fell from the skies and we listened to American rock-and-roll classics blaring from the jukebox. It was a little slice of heaven. I cannot wait until Kellye and I get to go back for date night in December so we can try their hot wings! After breakfast we got another treat…a trip to MediaMarket— think Best Buy on steroids! They had one of the largest flat-panel tv screens that I have ever seen. We bought a hair dryer for the girls and I got a DVD of Looney Tunes cartoons that are overdubbed in Russian. Hey, if you are going to learn a foreign language you might as well make it fun!
Plowing Concrete and Long Cold Winters
I think there is something about how constant cold, snow and ice effect a person’s personality. Russians are not unfriendly, but they are not an outgoing gregarious society either. We have been jealous as we have read the blogs of other missionary colleagues who have been invited into the homes of national friends, neighbors and others that they meet. Quite frankly, we are jealous that they have forged relationships with any nationals at all. Before arriving we were told that the work here can be described as “plowing concrete” and so far that has been a pretty accurate description. While others are enjoying meals with neighbors, we are happy when any of our neighbors nods their head at us in the elevator or on the sidewalk outside of our building. This week I had the opportunity to speak with several different people and while my communication skills are limited at best, I was still able to have brief encounters with these Russians. I will write more about these encounters, as I am able to begin to develop relationships with them. However, in the meantime please pray that we would be able to reach these people and eventually have the opportunity to share the Gospel with them.
Praying For Us…
As Thanksgiving approaches this week we are reminded for all we have that we are thankful for. I cannot tell you how thankful we are for you. All of you who take time to check our blogs regularly and pray for us. We can’t tell you how much that means to us and what an important part of our ministry it is. As you head into Thanksgiving week and the Christmas season, please pray for the following things on behalf of the Hooks family…
1. Dependable Internet service.
2. Language acquisition.
3. Wisdom in making decisions about the children, home situations and other matters that will need Godly discernment.
4. Joy in all situations.
5. That we will begin to have an impact and ministry in Russia.
Blessings,
Marc
2 comments:
I am awed at your other world experiences and its upper world lessons you are learning!
But, hey, how come I find the latest blog immediately on your wife's and daughter's pages, and have to dig past the earlier stuff to find your latest?
DMB
I cannot tell you how awesome it is to read your blogs. Knowing how difficult things are there most of the time, it is so inspiring to read this and see how you find the best in things. It really helps all of us to do the same. Although it isnt as hard here, because everything is so easy, we really miss alot of the blessings along the way and the joy in everyday little things.
Thanks for being inspiring. We will all be glad when you get better internet so we can keep up better!
Love ya'll,
Kay
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