Camp livin

Greetings fellow blogonians.

Here is the run down on my life since the last time we met together.

Monday: Orphanage.

The kids were CRAZY. I'm talkin.. as soon as we walked in the door they were hanging on us. It was actually kinda frustrating to be quite honest. They wouldn't stop stroking my beard, shoving toys INTO my face, crawling into my lap, doing cartwheels, and fighting with ea. other. HAHA it was hard to keep any attention, and that was what was getting to me... but hey, its understandable. I had a wave of peace when I meditated on the fact that they are all screaming for attention and love. There is a camp going on within the orphanage. Some of the children have parents, others don't. Regardless, it is always difficult to be just another fish in a sea full of them. If attention is what they wanted and needed, they got it. After my attempt at the Noah story, we just forfeiting anything other than playing. One of the most heart warming parts of the day came during the singing portion. I have been singing a song called Hosanna to them, and without prompting them, they joined in on the chorus. :) They are smart. It was so joyful to be singing the same praises that Angels sing at the thrown of God with the kids without any kind of demand.



Tuesday:

The orphanage was actually manageable. The kids must have not had as much sugar prior to our arrival. They were very well mannered and I actually was able to tell them a story. In sum, the story told them how BIG God was and how SMALL we feel sometimes. I then told them about how God made himself small like us. The point of the story was that God came as a baby and was once a kid, like them, who grew up to do great things like heal the blind, diseased and such, all the while hanging out with kids. I told them He believed in how special kids are and how they can grow up to do great things like He did. That He never gives up one people, especially kids.

We talked about if they felt special or not... the first reaction was an honest no. We then talked about how I grew up as a kid and some of the things I dreamed about doing when I grew up. Then I asked them what they wanted to do. When they answered I assured them that God has made them special enough to achieve dreams and not to lose hope. When asked again if they felt special, most of them said yes (which might have been the answer that they thought that I wanted to hear... or maybe there was a new truth behind it).

That day were told not to take any more pictures of the kids... boo.

We moved into the camp later on that day. I am in the room across from where I slept last year. It is surreal.

FOR THE TEAM OF LAST YEAR: The boys bathroom is up and running. The showers are now divided :) Jimmy's bed has been replaced by a table and I'm sleeping in the bed that Justin was exiled to. The common room still looks relatively the same, despite the new furniture. Its comforting :) I wish you all were here. It doesn't seem nearly as right roaming around the building without running into Arthur sticking his butt up in the air to relieve pressure (wink wink) or to walk into the girls room without seeing Abs reading Harry Potter. But ALAS, I despite the sweet memories only being in my head, I still feel oddly at home.

Wednesday:

Matt's family made breakfast for us. Sarah is an amazing cook, as it turns out. Matt also knows his way around the kitchen. After breakfast came the orphanage.

It was a nice little story time and play time. We talked about how knowing Jesus makes people change their attitude which helps them, and the people around them enjoy life easier :) My goal is to equip them the kids with coping mechanisms that are founded in God and an understanding of him so that when I leave (like most everyone who visits them) they still have something to remind them that they are special and loved, in a world that preaches a different message.

I snuck a picture :)


On our way back to the camp we stopped by the sea to say goodbye to the train gang who will be going back up to Kharkiv. I will surely miss their friendship but lets be honest... I'll probably see them again at some point :)

Sergey and I did some manual labor today. We weeded along some curbs and then painted them a light blue that can be found in the flag. I don't particularly like that kind of labor.. probably because my body has never really grown accustomed to it. I do like being faced with a challenge.. and I do like being outside... and I like helping people... so it wasn't too bad :) My back hurts now though :)

Dinner was with the Gaws again. SOOOOOO GOOOOOOD. The garlic bread was fantastic.. homemade bread and everything. Matt made some pretty darn good spaghetti sauce that complimented the Ukrainian ravioli. It was a very pleasant evening, yet again. This family is an answer to my prayers. It was a relatively early turn in. I was exhausted.

Today is Thursday. It is a day of Gaw Family Scrambled eggs and potatoes, laying around and hardcore rain drops. :) Matt, Sarah, Campbell, Yana and I are going to Sergey's because his mom "did a bakery for us." hahaha that means she baked some sweets for us that we'll take part in over tea and coffee. Sergey won't be with us because he is in Simferopol, picking up the American team that will be here for camp III. Suit up kids, this game is getting real!

The team will be here at about 8pm. Just in time for a late dinner, brief examination, meet and greet and bed. I'll be in the room with the single American girls. Sergey is with the boy interpreters and Yana with the female ones.

Tomorrow will be a number of things. I will be going to the orphanage at noon, but other than that, hanging out with the team and getting ready for the 100 or so kids that will be coming on Saturday.

So, life is great here. I am having a blast at the camp. I wish you could meet the Gaws. Pray for Matt's foot, as it is recovering from the blade of an ax. Pray for the camp, because there will be a lot of kids here and it has some major potential on the spiritual side of things. :) I'll upload some more pictures and a video when Sergey gets back with his camera. love and blessing to you all.

-Tommy
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