Highlights from May

May was a full month! The month started with me taking a trip to the States, where I was for less than a week. I was there for my boyfriend's and my brother's graduation from NNU. After that, I went to Sighisoara, Romania for a week-long visit to see my Romanian family and to participate in ministry there. Finally, I was back in Razgrad for the latter part of May, when we celebrated the day of Cyrill and Methodious (missionary monks who created the Cyrillic, and thus Bulgarian, alphabet, and translated the Bible into Bulgarian). The month ended with going to two "balls" (aka grad parties) to celebrate two young ladies from church who graduated from highschool. So many activities in May, and so many wonderful memories. :)

Continue reading if you'd like to see the pictures!

While in Idaho, Michael and I went to the wedding of some Chinese friends

April in Pictures

Now that I am back in the States and have faster internet, I am able to upload some more pictures from Bulgaria!

Here are some pictures from the month of April. :-)

view of sunset from back balcony

(Click "read more" to see the rest of the pictures)

Last Post from Razgrad :(

As I sit here and write this, I have just finished the final bits of packing. Everything is stuffed into a suitcase, with clothes carefully padding the souveniers so they don't break, and everything is ready to go. I leave Razgrad tomorrow morning to go to Sofia, and fly out of Sofia on Wednesday. My time in Bulgaria is finished, for now. Where has the time gone?! It seems like just yesterday I was packing my bags in Washington to prepare to come to Bulgaria, and now I have to leave already. Razgrad has become home to me. It is more home to me right now than my family's home in WA, and I will miss living here. I look forward to seeing my family, and am so glad I will get to spend time with them again. I look forward to seeing my dog, too. :) So, there are some exciting things ahead, things I anticipate with much joy. However, I still have to leave my "home."

It is hard to leave. I have made friends here in Razgrad that I will treasure for the rest of my life. I have made friends here that will be my friends long after I return to the States, even though we are living far apart. Even though I am leaving Razgrad, leaving Bulgaria, it will still hold a special place in my heart. This morning, as we were saying goodbye to everyone at church, many people gave me hugs and told me "Don't forget Razgrad!" It would be impossible for me to ever forget Razgrad. I have learned so much and grown a lot while I've lived here, I have built deep friendships, I have matured and learned more about living for God, all during the time I have lived in Razgrad. My time here has certainly not been without struggles, for I have had many, but God is faithful through it all. I will miss being here in Razgrad.

This morning at church was a mixture of joy and sorrow. I was so joyful to be able to worship God in Bulgarian, with my Bulgarian brothers and sisters in Christ. It has been a great joy of mine to sing in Bulgarian, knowing that God hears and understands every language. (And, it has been especially wonderfully once I could pronounce all the words in Bulgarian AND understand what they mean!) Today was also sorrowful because I had to say goodbye to many, many dear friends, knowing it will be a long time till I get to see them again. I am so thankful for this time we have had together over the past several months. God has blessed me with some great friends, and I pray God has used me to be a blessing, as well. I know that if I follow God, God will always use me. So, even though I am leaving, God can still continue to use the time I have spent here to be a blessing.

The Relaxed Life in a Village

Have you ever spent a few days living in a village? Here's a brief glimpse into village life, as experienced through my eyes.

Read on if you are interested!

The warmth of a welcome

Over the last several weeks I have received many warm welcomes.  These welcomes took place in three different countries, and so were structured differently, but each one made me feel like people were glad to see me. There were a few contexts for these locations. I went to the States for my boyfriend’s and my brother’s graduation from NNU, and was there for about six days. After that, I went to Sighișoara, Romania, and visited my host family (from when I was there in 2009), the churches, and many friends. After a week in Romania, I came back to Razgrad, Bulgaria. 

Read on if you’d like to hear about these welcomes.

April Activities

April has been a wonderful, full month! There have been some great experiences that I will treasure. It was especially joyful to be able to celebrate Easter here in Bulgaria. Read on if you would like to hear about the events of the month.

Easter in Bulgaria: The Greatest Day: Christ is Risen!

For my Cultural Anthropology class I'm taking online through NTS, we had to write a forum post about how Easter is celebrated in our context. I thought I would share my forum post with you, in case you find it interesting. Enjoy reading about Easter in Bulgaria!