How do writers do it? Write that is. I am sitting here after spending almost two hours writing on the computer and I am basically out of words. There were so many emails to respond to and blogs to write that I just can’t think of writing any more. I will because I have to, but know that this blog is a burden to me. Don’t take offense though because it is not you it is me. I thought once, briefly, about being a writer. Wouldn’t that be a great job, sit at home and just put words on paper? If it came easy to me, it would be the best job in the world, but unfortunately, I become increasingly bored the longer I type so after a certain point, writing is work.
The third day of the service project, was the first real work day. We had already been to our school, so the plan was to get there in the morning and hit the ground running. Unfortunately the ground was muddy so running wasn’t an option. Instead, we hit the ground sliding, but not after a few hang-ups. The first was at breakfast; it wasn’t there. You may not remember my earlier description of the Slovak Republic so let me remind you that it is a former Communist country. Things do not exactly happen on a western, consumer based timeline. Our breakfast, which was supposed to be delivered the day before wasn’t. Tito, the head cook, was not dismayed and made due with the leftovers from Sunday. But that snafu along with first day bugs made just getting to the sites a trial. We did arrive and work was done.
I mentioned earlier that Josh Beautrin was the site leader where I was. I don’t know too much of his back ground. He has been on staff with MCYM for a number of years and is married to Alex. Why I mention Alex I don’t know except that she might come into this story so best to mention her now than later. At our school, there was an assigned classroom where we stored our extra stuff and clean shoes. (In Slovakia, they are very proud of their buildings; you were not allowed to wear your outside shoes inside. At the door we used, there was always a large pile of either clean shoes or dirty shoes, depending on whether the group was inside or out. This requirement worked out for me because I had not brought any extra shoes on this vacation, let alone to Slovakia, so Josh was truly generous and bought me not one but two pairs of shoes: one cool set of leather work boots and another Birkenstock knock-off.) We met there each morning and organized the day. We would have a snack, receive wonderful, biblical instruction from Josh, have nap time, sing songs, pray, and a whole mess of other awesome Jesus things.
After the first huddle, the group, 60+, headed out to the school “playground” to begin work. Playground is used loosely here because it consisted of nothing more than dirt and tree stumps. You can really begin to understand the state of these elementary children when you see that they had nothing, I mean absolutely nothing, to play on. Our goal, and the focus of the entire project, was to show Jesus’ love through our work and interaction. We built them a playground because of our love. We sang songs and taught them English because of our love. We played basketball and volleyball because of our love. We took out the stumps in the ground because we needed busy work to occupy the other 25 kids that couldn’t be showing their love through working on the playground, singing songs, or playing games.
The ground was broke that first day, holes were dug, and leveling strings strung. Jesus was seriously loving those Slovak kids. Lunch was next. Lunch is a long and glorious memory which I will dispense now… Some of it.
Lunch at our site was given to us by the local culinary school next door to the elementary school we worked at. Let me say that again, our lunch was prepared and served by the culinary students in school. I don’t think you could have paid large sums of money to receive an experience such as ours. The other sites were eating at a lumber mill cafeterias, the other local schools own cafeterias, or other such places. We were eating lunch at the culinary school next door. Four course meals, amazing soups, deserts, fruits, and teas made up the menu. Each day we had a choice of meals served to us by the beautiful wait staff. (I am not going into detail about the natural beauty of the Slovak people. I have already been warned about being too free in my admiration of teenage girls.) Lunch was a highlight of the day. We had it so good that it caused our fellow brothers and sisters stuck at other sites to fall into sins of jealousy and envy. You couldn’t talk about lunch with them because they would react with scorn after a description of our lunch. Doesn’t it say in the bible to rejoice with those that rejoice?
Many other things happened that first day of work, but I really, really have run out of words today. I will tell you of those other things… later!
Until then and tomorrow.
Jason
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