#6 - Good News!

Dear Family and Friends,

The past two days have been stretching for us.  We thought court might be on Friday, but no go.  Then, we hoped for Monday, but that didn’t happen either.  But, yeah!!!!, we go tomorrow on Tuesday.  We are grateful to Dima and team for making that happen and working so hard to help us not have to be in suspended animation in Kyiv.

This past Saturday, John and I were beginning to feel a little (truthfully, more than just a little) despondent.  We loved being with the kids, but five people cooped up in a three room apartment under gloomy skies was beginning to wear a little thin.  Also, being in a place where we don’t know the language, can’t read the signs, and are immersed in a very different culture is draining after a time for us.  As I mentioned earlier, we were not really feeling as if we could just go out and do the tourist things because we are still nursing Mr. Max.  But, John and I both began to feel more than a little stir crazy to hear English.  So, where did we go?  To church, of course.

Sunday afternoon found us going to church at Christ Church which is the Anglican Church in Kyiv.  The congregation was founded in 1999 and seems to be thriving.  It meets at 3:00 pm on Sunday afternoons at St. Catherine’s Lutheran Church at 22 Luteranska Ave.  Good to see the kindness of Lutherans extended to Anglicans in this part of the world.

We were having a little difficulty finding the location when suddenly a troika of boys appeared walking and pushing scooters in front of us.  When we realized they were speaking English, we asked about the church.  The oldest, Matt, said, “We’re going there, follow us.”  God is so good about sending help just when one needs it! They reminded us of the three boys (angels?) who descended deus ex machina in a basket in Mozart's Magic Flute.

 In we passed, through the front doors, into a stunningly beautiful space.   It was modern, spare, subtlely colored, and highly resonant.  There was a fine tracker organ which was beautifully played and matched to the space.  We were warmly greeted, handed hymnals, orders of service, announcement sheets…you know Anglicans – we love our paper .  We were blessed to be at the service.  After Church we were invited to their potluck meal in the fellowship hall upstairs.  I think it was a little daunting for the kids as they were surrounded by English for the first time.  They managed well, though, and were befriended fairly instantly by the other kids. As were we by some of the adults.

 There was a particularly wonderful family, Dad works at the US embassy and Mom home schools their kids, who invited us to their flat for ice cream and a warm visit.  It was an experience of genuine Christian hospitality.  Also, they had adopted a beautiful little 23 month old boy (Ukrainian) just the month before, so they understood what we were experiencing.  It was so good to be with them!  I hope we stay in touch.  Thanks again, y’all, if you are reading this.  John and I were so reminded of the counsel to show hospitality to strangers and are so grateful that our brother and sister in Christ did just that.  It made a huge difference. It was healing, in fact, for our restlessness.

Today, Monday, we finally got to do some touring.  We arranged with Dima for Vitaly the Wonderful to take us around this afternoon.  Vitaly is a terrific and not at all terrifying driver. We wanted to see a few of the sacred spaces.  John decided against the WW II Memorial, and it was too drizzly to head out to the outdoor folk village museum.  Vitaly drove us around town, walked with us when we wanted to visit somewhere, was very informative about the history of buildings and events, and was just generally good company.  He is very child-friendly and was able to find parking places in areas where doing so would appear an impossible task.  Although it was a bit drizzly and raw, we all enjoyed being outside.  John and I especially wanted the children to see at least a little of their national heritage.  Ruslan will probably remember and the two younger ones will have pictures until we come back.

Tomorrow we go to Gorodnya and Chernigiv for court.  We will go by the internat to return clothes and so the kids can say goodbye.  I don’t think we’ll do the party thing, but would like to get some more pictures and give a few tangible thank you's to special people.  Ruslan says it will be “Goodbye, Gorodnya and hello, America!”  He’s pretty excited and so are we.

Wednesday we’ll do running around (I think) with Dima to get some of the paperwork finalized, and, from there, to the US Embassy on Thursday.  God willing, on Friday, we will fly home.  If all goes according to schedule, our in-country time will have been 17 days. It seems short to write it, but it feels like a long time away from John, Ana, home and our life in familiar places.

Dima has been terrific and completely accessible. He has gone “above and beyond” in numerous ways.  I realize, too, that what we see is just the tip of the iceberg of work that goes into making an adoption happen in an orderly and secure manner in a decidedly unpredictable environment.  We are grateful for all of the work on our behalf.

Perhaps it’s just us, but this is an experience that leaves one feeling very off-balance and vulnerable.  We are so very thankful for the prayers and encouragement that come from many quarters.  It’s what keeps us going.  That and the three amazing munchkins we are going to bring home.  TBTG!

Blessings to all, John and Jennie  

Here are some photos from today.

John, Maxim, Vitaly,and Oksana

The Presidential Palace

The Church of St. Michael Archangel- The Guardian of Kyiv

Golden domes, beautiful even in the rain