Наш Бог как велик!

Happy parents-to-be!

This morning we had the opportunity to attend church here in Simferopol.  We were fortunate to make it to church this morning as we got on the trolleybus that has the same number as the minibus.  We figured they went the same way.  Wrong!  So we hopped off and made our way back to the correct bus after a 15 minute detour and still had one minute to spare.  There were two sermons today, one in English, and the other in Russian.  The English sermon was given by one of the folks from Ohio, who happens to be a youth pastor.  It was a layman’s version of how bad do you want to be a Christian.  The service was similar to the ones we attend back in Raleigh.  Worship, message, and more worship.  I love to sing and it’s hard for me to make it through the worship at home because I get so caught up in the words that I get choked up.  The effect of listening to songs in Russian is the same.  Plus, we made more friends!  I love this place.

I want to take a moment and share some thoughts on adoption and why we chose Ukraine.  First, my wife and I have always considered adopting a child, and even talked about a daughter to round out the clan.  Last year, we fell in love with a boy from Ukraine.  Not North Carolina or Virginia or Texas, but Ukraine.  We didn’t do this because we felt drawn to Ukraine or because we had heard the words of Jesus say go make disciples to all nations.  We came here because we fell in love with a boy we considered to be our son.  We didn’t ask to adopt all the children in Ukraine, nor did we impose this will on anyone else.  We just wanted the one little boy, he just happened to be Ukrainian.  He was worth all the costs we are incurring.  Financially, emotionally, and spiritually.  Could this be done cheaper?  I have no doubt the financial cost can come down.  But let me ask you this, how much would you spend to save the life of your son or daughter?  That’s the mindset that we have taken.  We continue to pray for that little boy as he did not choose to be an orphan.  He did not choose to be an orphan anymore than a child in America did.  They are equals in that regard.  They are not equals in the walls that have to be climbed to reach potential opportunities that exist for them upon leaving the orphanage.  The common denominator for both is the need for love. 

We have since fallen in love with another child, a little girl, who also just happens to be Ukrainian.  Will I advocate for orphans in America?  Absolutely.  I am 100% for adoption.  I think adoption should be a first resort to starting a family.  We didn’t go that route as a family, but I certainly did as a father.  My oldest son is biologically not related to me.  But I have loved him as if he were my own son.  He was three when I met him.  I was 26.  So you see, I don’t care if it’s America, Ukraine, Ethiopia, China, Vietnam, or Canada, adoption is always an option.  I realize I am slightly biased having done this once, per se, and we are now adopting together as a family.

This is my daughter, what more do I need to say.

This afternoon we visited Sophia and we arrived during naptime.  The caretakers actually let us go upstairs.  I guess we have earned their trust.  When Lisa poked her head in the room Sophia was just finishing getting dressed.  It would have been way cool if we could have been the ones to wake her up.  We waited in the small lobby outside her room and when she came out we went downstairs.  Now we had originally set today up to be when I would play soccer with the boys.  But since we came in the afternoon, and by then the sun had warmed up the temperature a good 30 degrees, we opted for no soccer.  We brought watermelon that we had cut into slices and offered them to any takers.  None came home.  Today’s visit was another nice opportunity to sit and play with Sophia.  We still had other children around, we almost always do, but Lisa plays with Sophia and I entertain the others.  Today, Lisa and Sophia played boxes.  This is the game where you create a grid of dots and each turn consists of connecting two dots.  The object is to draw the fourth line to create a box.  You put your initial inside and get one point.  At first, Lisa was struggling to get Sophia to understand the strategy.  Lisa would complete two sides of a box and Sophia would draw the third on her turn.  Thus leaving an open scoring opportunity for Lisa.  Lisa would ignore the obvious scoring chance and move elsewhere on the grid.  Sophia did not ignore it, she finished the box and would smile.  It’s kinda like not blocking your son’s shot on goal when playing basketball.  Again, Sophia smiled and she trounced Lisa 121 – 75.  Lisa wrote the score down under each name.  Sophia took her pen and started to write her name in English.  WOW!!  This was completely unprompted.  Lisa did ask her if she wanted to write her last name and she did.  Sophia did great.  I love this girl more everyday.  Now here’s the kicker on the game.  Lisa was playing easy on Sophia, but in the next game, Sophia versus Victor, or Витя, she was strategizing big time.  She understood the game clearly, I think she was being nice to Lisa!  After she had a comfortable lead on the second game she backed out and let someone else finish up.

Towards the end of our visit I remembered that we wanted to ask her about writing notes to her friends.  We did and she was thrilled to do this.  FYI – on the iPhone, you can add international keyboards and switch between them as needed.  Very cool feature, especially if voice recognition doesn’t work.  She would type a message for one, and I would post it on Facebook, then another, and another.  At first she wasn’t sure what to write, so we prompted with How are you?  I miss you.  It’s been quiet since you left.  Then she dove right in.  Very cool!

Victor and Achmed, he's holding his hands to prevent him from grabbing
him.  Boys will be boys.

We’ve done a few, actually several, side trips to break up our days.  Lisa got her hair cut at a salon near our apartment.  This was an experience in hand gestures and her stylist, Leo, kept pointing to the gray in her hair asking, “Color?”  We’ve had to get pictures developed.  We eat out once or twice a week.  The new church group has been great as we had to learn the bus system.  FYI – the trolley bus costs about $0.15.  The minibus costs about $0.30.  So even with our mishap, we were out $0.30.  Ouch!  There is an Adidas store, actually there are two (one of each side of the street), that has been running a 50% off sale.  When a pair of sandals normally costs $20 and they have them at half off, we didn’t pass up the opportunity.  We bought a couple pairs for some of the children in the orphanage.  If they will let me, I will snap a photo of how far they will wear a pair of shoes out, it tells the story.  Plus we found out today from a boy who is 15 that his birthday was July 15^th.  Well we couldn’t let that go by, so I asked him what he wanted.  He said his birthday has already passed.  I said you’re right, now what do you want for you birthday.  At first he said I don’t know, then he said shorts.  You got it, buddy.  I’ve also gotten to play and hang out with another older boy, who if I had to guess, is also in the 15-16 yr old range.  I will pray for him as he graduates in the next year or so.  Lastly, we love shopping at the central market.  If you really want to learn Russian fast, go there!