The Challenge of Change

For those of you who know me well, you know that for the past year and a half the two things I have been praying for has been humility and wisdom. Two summers ago, this is the desire that God placed in my heart. Of course there have been other things on my heart and my mind, but I patiently asked and waited for these two characteristics. This is an update of answered prayer regarding the two, and how my challenge with change goes hand-in-hand.

Today I was reflecting on the past 6 months (yes, officially six months as of yesterday) and I sat down to ask myself, “What have I accomplished in the past 6 months?” Honestly, I became really discouraged about the time I had spent in Eastern Europe. It seemed that the few projects I was in charge of were so minimal that someone else could have done them in half the time. I thought about the depression that settled during my stay in Ukraine, and thought if only I could have trust God more than maybe I could have made a difference. I thought about some of the decisions I had made and wondered if I had grown or regressed. It had seemed that the tasks I had set out to do at the beginning of the summer were unsuccessful. So here I am, returning to the States in less than a week without a story of how the Christian bank I worked at saved someone’s life, or how I had fallen in love with this part of the world, or how I had witnessed to someone who had never heard God’s truth before. Then it hit me…the point of my stay here was not to accomplish a task or a goal I had set for myself, but for God to accomplish HIS task. And I think that task was to change me.

I now know myself better than before, which actually complicates things. I know my weaknesses better than ever. I know what triggers my insecurity. I know where I often fall flat on my face. I know how I react to certain hardships in a negative way. I know that I question God on things that should be very elementary. I know that most of the time I would rather please people more than God. I know how fake I can be, even if no one else can tell. I know that the strengths I thought I possessed weren’t strengths at all when put to the test. I know how much God has humbled me while I have been here, and I know that he has just scratched the surface. So everything I now know about myself makes me wonder how I could have been so content with my life back in the States. Basically, I can see right through myself, and it’s not a good feeling.

Now what do I do with all of this? Do I go back home and suffocate the truth I have been shown? Do I forget about all I learned regarding Eastern Europe, Christian developement, and life outside of NWC? Do I act the same way I had when I thought I was an amazing person with all of the answers? Sure, I can. It would be quite easy. Why not? Why change myself if I liked the person I was 6 months ago? Well, maybe because God desires more for me than to be comfortable with my own personality. Maybe he wants me to love others deeper, to see things from his eyes, and to seek him with my whole life...the things I have been lacking.

Remember the last time everything wasn't going how you thought it should and your friend jokingly says, “It builds character.” That’s where I'm at right now: character building. I demand of myself to be more real with people. I demand of myself to love people purely. I demand of myself to change the areas I am falling short. I want to be filled with character that truly represents my Savior. Through these 6 months, God has given me the eyes to see my short comings, and now I have the opportunity to either go back to who I was or to actually let God control these areas of my life. I'm praying for the wisdom to face the challenges of change and for the humility that leaves me in desperate need for him.

With all that said, when I return please don’t expect me to tell you about all the things I accomplished and all the tasks I completed while I was gone. Instead, ask me about the Godly characteristics my Savior is impressing on my heart and about how he has challenged me. Also, realize that this change may have been accompanied by my successful experiences, some missed opportunities, and even my mistakes.

Please pray that God will grant me humility and wisdom as I return, and the desire to seek the change he has for my life.

I can't wait to see you!

Western Europe At Last!

The preceeding post is a list of all the sweet things my dad and I saw on your month long trip to Western Europe. Many people have asked me what I’ve seen, and so there is the semi-complete list. It might bore you to death unless you’ve actually been to these countries. Thus, don’t feel like you have to read the list of tourist sites we went to. It’s more just for my record keeping, and just in case there is someone very excited to visit Europe or has already been.

For those of you who could care less or just want the highlights here is my "brief" summary….I flew into Madrid, Spain where I was SO excited to see my dad. He seems to think that I would have been excited to see anyone at this point, but I reassure you that I was excited to see HIM. We spent a few days in Madrid with a local Couch Surfer (for those who are skeptics of Couch Surfing I want you to know it was a delightful experience every time). Dad and I spent HOURS in the Prado museum until our feet hurt so badly we could barely walk. Then to top off the day we went to another museum where we experienced Picasso's Guernica (one of dad’s favorite paintings of the trip). The next few days we did a bunch of stuff, but I really enjoyed just walking through the beautiful park and getting my first taste of Europe outside of the former Soviet.

We decided we needed a beach, so we headed up to Barcelona. This was a short-lived trip. When we got there they told us the train to Rome only left 3 days a week, which meant we would need to leave the following day. Don’t worry, we made the most of it. Sat on the beach and ended up at Hard Rock Café. I ended up taking dad out for a late birthday present. It was probably one of the best suppers of the trip!

Rome. How do I explain Rome? Well I’ll start with the Vatican…LOTS OF PEOPLE. Although I didn’t get to hang out with the Pope, I did get to see some pretty stellar things. My favorite would have to be the Sistine Chapel. After seeing so many pictures of the thing, it’s really much bigger and better in person. The rest of our time in Rome was spent looking at columns and statues and talking about Roman history. Dad just kept telling me things that I had no idea had happened. I obviously need to get on that Western Civ class at NWC. The colosseum was my favorite here.

Florence was short lived, but gorgeous. We only spent a short time here, and actually getting lost most of it. At one point we ended up on a street that we thought would get us to a park, but in fact was probably just the longest driveways we’d ever seen before. We turned around about an hour into the walk, but like I said it was gorgeous.

Paris was just like the movies. I fell in love with the city almost instantaneously. It weather was cooler and the rain seemed to start when we showed up, but it was still wonderful. Before going I thought the Eiffel Tower would be a little cheesy, but end up being a definite highlight. Dad and I got to watch a beautiful sunset at the top, walked down from the 2nd floor, and got to see the light show once we arrived at the bottom. I could have definitely done it again. Norte Dame was probably my favorite church we visited. I honestly couldn’t stop looking at the stain glass windows to save my life. Versailles was something out of this world. Who makes a palace like that anyway?!!?!?!? I thought Americans had big houses…nope. The gardens were beautiful, and I felt like a princess taking a stroll down the elaborate estate. Oh, and I can’t leave out the Louvre. When Dad and I arrived in the Louvre we were in a really crazy mood. Next thing I know I’m skipping down the halls, and Dad is posing for a picture that looks like he’s kissing Mona Lisa, and I was laughing much too loud for all the serious artistic people. AKA, it was really great.

We stopped by Barcelona one more time on our way back to Madrid to fly out. At this stop we did the same thing as last time…laid on the beach. It was very similar except for the minor detail of someone stealing my purse. Bah! Don’t worry; my passport wasn't taken. Dad would probably like to point out here that he thought this was a good “learning lesson” for me to not be so trusting with my stuff. I also would like to point out that this was one of the moments of the trip where his Dad-ness made me want to punch him in the face. (Just kidding, Daddy! Love you.) We then flew back to Kiev, Ukraine were Dad started his first Eastern European experience. I definitely showed him Mother Russia the first day we were there.

Besides all the great things we saw at all these cities, I really enjoyed the people we met and getting to experience everything with my dad. I think this trip will be one of those things we talk about for the rest of our lives….mainly because I didn’t even know two people could get lost so much or that dad could hold a map for so long or that we could consume ice cream about 3 times a day – everyday.

So there is our trip in a few paragraphs….which turned out to be a few more than I intended. Sorry about that. Dad and I are now here in the Ukraine. I started up work again. Dad will be here for about 2 more weeks. I leave to go back to Moldova in less than a month, and I will then arrive back in the States Dec 1st. With that said, I’ll try to get in a few more blog posts before I return. Know that I miss you all, and I will see you soon!

PICTURES OF THE WHOLE TRIP: http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/

"What'd you do the past month?"

"What'd you do the past month?" Is the question I got in the office about an hour ago. Hmmm...how do I tell someone the 100s of awesome things I saw??? Well just in case you want the play-by-play, here's a list of the sites that my dad and I visisted!

Spain:
Madrid
Prado Museum – Paintings of Velazquez, Goya, Rubens, Rembrandt, El Greco
Royal Palace – 3rd largest palace in Europe
Plaza Mayor – Madrid’s main square after Plaza de Sol
Templo de Debod - An authentic 2nd Century BC Egyptian temple
Madrid Cathedral – Madrid’s largest church, built once they moved the capital from Toledo
Plaza de Espana – Sweet sculpture of Cervantes from Don Quixote
Reina Sofia Museum – Picasso's Guernica
Puerto de Alcalá – somewhere pretty to take your picture by
Retiro Park – Madrid’s main park
The Crystal Palace – awesome glass palace, AKA a lot of windows
The Boating Lake
Rosaleda (Rose Garden)
Figueres - small town where Salvador Dali was born
Dali Museum – a museum designed by Dali for the viewer to experience the artists’ world

Barcelona
Sagrade Familia- architect Gaudi started building this church
Hard Rock Cafe Barcelona – I took my dad out for a late birthday present
Beach – Basically the only think we did was lay on the beach

Italy:
Rome
Vatican:
Museum – Belvedere Torso, School of Athens by Raphael, and a lot of Mary
Sistine Chapel – Famous ceiling and Last Judgment
St. Peter’s Basilica – Michelangelo’s Pieta, St. Peter’s tomb, where St. Peter was crucified, crypt with tombs of the Popes
Dome – I road the elevator to the top of St. Peter’s Basilica for a great view
Pantheon – Built by Hadrian with a domed room that inspired many other famous churches, Raphael and Italy’s first 2 kings are buried here
Roman Forum – downtown ancient Rome, filled with Roman ruins
Palatine Hill – the remains of Ancient Rome’s palaces
Colosseum – 2,000 years old and AWESOME
Trajan’s Column – column telling Trajan’s victories
Arch of Constantine – marks the victory for Constantine that made Christianity mainstream
Spanish Steps – A place to sit with other tourists
St. Peter-in-Chains Church – holds Michelangelo’s Moses, has the chains that held St. Peter
Trevi Fountain – built to celebrate the reopening of the ancient aqueduct that powers it
Capitol Hill Square – Designed by Michelangelo, beautiful government buildings
Castel Sant-Angelo – a church/castle connected to the Vatican underground

Florence
Accademia (Museum) – Michelangelo’s David
Duomo – Gothic cathedral that has the 3rd longest nave in Christendom


France:
Paris
Versailles: Largest palace in Europe
The Chateau - main palace
Estate of Marie-Antoinette
Gardens – huge and awesome
Walked down Champs-Elysees – city’s largest square and famous boulevard
Arc de Triumph – Napoleon made it to commemorate a victorious battle
Eiffel Tower at sunset, walked down the last 2 flights,
Louvre – Venus de Milo, Mona Lisa, other Raphael, De Vinci, etc.
Notre-Dame – 700 years old famous Church
Latin Quarter – Sorbonne University
Pont Neuf – Paris’ oldest bridge
Deportation Memorial – memorial to the 200,000 French victims of the Nazi concentration camps

In Spain

Well I don't have much time to write, but I wanted to let you guys know that I'm officially in Spain. I wanted to also let you know that I put up some pictures from my 2nd trip to Kiev. Go ahead and check it out. http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/

I'll try to keep my pictures updated, but I don't know how often that will actually happen.
~Bobbie

Larysa - Big Heart, Small Business

Here is another client story I wrote for my internship. This client is one of the few Christian clients we work with. I encourage you to read her story and see how HOPE is not only helpng cleints and their families, but also helping the family of God!

Name: Larysa
Family: Adult son and teenage daughter
Type of Business: Shoe retail
Loans from HOPE: 1 small business loan
Loan Amount: 8000 UAH = about $980

Larysa has owned a small business in the market place for 15 years now. During this time she has sold sports wear and women’s clothes, but within the past 7 years she has been in shoe retail. With the occasional help of her daughter, Larysa is able to maintain her business herself. In return, her business helps to maintain her family’s financial obligations including looking after her adult son and teenage daughter. As we spoke with Larysa, her daughter kindheartedly introduced herself and to us in English and told us she would soon be going to a university in order to study linguistics.

Being one of the few evangelical clients of HOPE Ukraine, Larysa starts her morning praying for God’s blessing on her business. She said when she received Christ her life and priorities changed for the better. As a new client of HOPE, she explained that “when I got a loan it was God providing.” Not only is God providing for her, but he is using her business to help provide for others. Larysa was grateful for taking out a loan with HOPE because some of the proceeds also go to Christian English camps called “Tomorrow Clubs”. Partnering with HOPE to improve the kingdom of God is just few of the ways she gives back to her community.

Involvement in weekly church services and leading small groups lead Larysa to volunteer her time at a local addiction center. She spends her free time here working with mothers of drug and alcohol addicts. When sales allow and the Hoy Spirit guides, some of her profit goes to pay for people to stay at this center. Her generosity is also seen first hand in the market. If she knows that someone is lacking funds and yet needs shoes, she will sell the pair of shoes without any profit markup. God continues to bless this generosity and she is often able to attend Christian conferences and meetings for encouragement and fellowship.

Larysa is merely using her small loan to increase inventory and sales. In return, God’s fingerprints are left on a Tomorrow Club, small group, family needs, addiction center, and shoes for the underprivileged.

Olena's Story

Here is a client story I wrote for my internship. I hope this give you a better insight into some of our clients lives and how HOPE loans help them! Enjoy.

Name: Olena
Type of Business: Shoe retail
Loans from HOPE: 1 small business loan
Loan Amount: 8,000 UHA = approx. $980

“It’s a long story as to why I decided to start the shoe business” Olena replies referring to the store she began in 1995. The story started when Olena lived in Eastern Germany with her husband who was serving in the military. During her time in Germany, she was employed as a performance musician playing the piano for her audiences. Although the money was slim, she cherished performing and referred to those days as “the best days of her life”.
In 1992 they moved to Eastern Ukraine after her husband retired from the army. After they moved back to the Ukraine, Olena put her piano skills to work as a kindergarten music teacher at the local military base. Although she enjoyed the job, the income was minimal. Thinking of starting her own business, her husband lent her the start up capital so she could begin selling shoes. This start up capital was used to purchase shoes from Turkey, Poland, and Russia in order to resell them in Ukraine.

After being asked about any struggles she had to overcome, she quickly broke out into laughter. Through the audible smiles, she told us that the largest setback was last year when she had a box of shoes worth about $1000 stolen from her. When the police came to write up an incident report they asked her, “Why are you still smiling?” She replied, “Well, what am I gonna do?” The officer was shocked that she would respond to this situation in this way, but at this moment her joyful spirit was evident. She asked a few acquaintances to loan her some money to cover this loss and she persevered successfully through this hard time.

Besides the small loans from friends, she has only taken out three loans with banks since starting her business 14 years ago. Appreciation for HOPE was apparent when she compared these loans to the loans she took out with other banks. The two previous loans had a very hard repayment system with high interest rates. She decided to take a loan with HOPE because “it was very quick and easy system of receiving loans.” Although she only took out this loan a little over 2 months ago, the loan was given just in time for customers who would be shopping for back-to-school clothes. She has already seen the impact of the loan from having a larger inventory while sales are increasing.

Although sales look good this month, the economic crisis has undoubtedly hit the Ukraine. Most business owners have been forced to buy their inventory in US dollars because it is more stable than the local currency. Depreciation is a huge concern for business owners like Olena. In the midst of a global economic crisis that has even hit Ukraine, Olena’s future plans have changed to purchasing lower quality shoes so that locals can still afford to buy from her. These profits go to support her and her husband. Her retired military husband currently works as a bus driver in the capital city of Kiev about 45 minutes away from Olena. She travel travels back and forth and spends half her time in Kiev with her husband, and the rest of her time selling shoes in Bila Cerkov

Although Olena doesn’t get to see her husband every day, she continues maintain relationships with her customers. Having a much interconnected community, she has the privilege of calling her customers her friends, neighbors, and colleagues. Working in the market for an extended time she says “It’s like a continual conversation with my clients. After so many years in the markets, there have been so many conversations.” It is conversations like these that not only help sales, but help Olena and HOPE Ukraine build up a community where people are valued and supported.

Change

Oh how I love NWC. Even when I'm not on campus they still have me debriefing on paper. I sent in a Summer of Service Evaluation yesterday. Since I spent so much time writing it, I thought I should probably share some of my thoughts with the rest of you. So as I sat to write about things that had happened in my life, I realized that there were some things that had really changed me. As I thought about it, I came to the conclusion that it would be a huge waste of 3 months not to change. With that said, here are a few of the random ways I’ve see my experience play out in my life.


· Being independent is necessary only to the point of realizing the need for God.
· I’ve started to seriously take hold of the power of God’s timing and live in union with it instead of in conflict against it.
· I’ve learned that non-Christians can change a Christian for the better.
· Doing something that will truly show the love of Christ to the “least of these” is a sacred calling not meant to take lightly. It involves deep love, long work hours, humility, passion, confrontation, encouragement that leads to empowerment, and many years of hardships. It’s a life decision…not a $100 bill.
· I observe better; I listen longer; and I think deeper.
· As I learned more about the demographics of a people group, my outlook on history and how it affects a culture changed. This also changed how I viewed characteristics of my own culture as an American and as a Christian.
· My attitude about how the Church interacts with non-Christians sadly became more realistic.
· After one interaction with a missionary couple in the Ukraine, I understood that it is impossible to live a joyful life without vision.
· Somewhere among having to budget for each month, going to work every day, cooking each night, and still trying to stay connected to the people I love back home, I’m scared that I actually grew up a bit.
· In order to become more Christ like we must change despite what the people around us want.
· I should not ever take for granted the power of Christ’s presence through a single hug or the deep, penetrating connection to fellow believers.
· Without a loving Christ, Christianity is worthless and without allowing someone else to love and change you, you cannot love or change them.
· The best part of a meal was after dinner when we all sat down for 30 minutes conversing with a cup of tea in hand. Tea is the symbol of a habitual commitment of time given in order to love the person sitting across from you.
· My perspective on foreign aid changed drastically. It is now hard for me not to ask the question, “Is this a temporary fix, or is this something that will truly show God’s eternal love?”
· The things I miss have revealed to me where my priorities lye…both the good and the bad.
· After recognizing that for most of my summer God was the only one that knew what was going on in my life, I took one step closer to truly loving my Savior.

Address

Ukraine Apt Address:

Bobbie Lydick
ул. Мира, дом 20, кв. 13
г. Запорожье, 69035
Украина (Ukraine)

Benefits of Foreign Aid in the lives of Women

Okay so my friend sent me this article about the benefits Foreign Aid can have on women. The article is long, but I seriously suggest reading the whole thing. It's worth your time.
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/23/magazine/23Women-t.html?pagewanted=1&_r=1&emc=eta1#


If you're pressed for time here is a 5 minute summary in video form that you can just watch:
http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2009/08/20/magazine/kristof-audioss/index.html#


If you only have a minute...then read the insert below about why MFIs focus on giving loans to women!

WHY DO MICROFINANCE organizations usually focus their assistance on women? And why does everyone benefit when women enter the work force and bring home regular pay checks? One reason involves the dirty little secret of global poverty: some of the most wretched suffering is caused not just by low incomes but also by unwise spending by the poor — especially by men. Surprisingly frequently, we’ve come across a mother mourning a child who has just died of malaria for want of a $5 mosquito bed net; the mother says that the family couldn’t afford a bed net and she means it, but then we find the father at a nearby bar. He goes three evenings a week to the bar, spending $5 each week.

Our interviews and perusal of the data available suggest that the poorest families in the world spend approximately 10 times as much (20 percent of their incomes on average) on a combination of alcohol, prostitution, candy, sugary drinks and lavish feasts as they do on educating their children (2 percent). If poor families spent only as much on educating their children as they do on beer and prostitutes, there would be a breakthrough in the prospects of poor countries. Girls, since they are the ones kept home from school now, would be the biggest beneficiaries. Moreover, one way to reallocate family expenditures in this way is to put more money in the hands of women. A series of studies has found that when women hold assets or gain incomes, family money is more likely to be spent on nutrition, medicine and housing, and consequently children are healthier.

Support, Service, School, Solo, Spain

Why hello friends of mine. It's been a while since I posted last, but I really don't have too much to fill you in on. My life is pretty chill to say the least. I've been keeping myself busy with work, walks, skype, cooking, sleeping, and a lot of episodes of The Office.

Here's a brief update on my life. As of today, I have been outside of the US for exactly 3 months; I've been in Zaporizhzhya, Ukraine for 9 days; and I started my new job 4 days ago. Things have been going pretty smoothly. I took the first couple of days to find an apartment. While the apt-hunt was underway, I stayed with my boss' family. They were super sweet to house me and drive me around everywhere I needed to go. I'm very thankful for them and all their support! I also got pretty close to their 12-year-old daughter named Katya. She's AWESOME and a huge blessing in my life. I will actually be staying with her for a few days while her parents are out of town. I'm excited for some fun girls-nights :).

In addition to the huge blessing of my boss' family, I also got the pleasure of meeting an older missionary couple from Canada. After some small talk about Alaska, they lent me some cook wear, bedding, and some other random things I needed for my apartment. This would be Huge-Blessing-#2. I'm excited to get to know them more and see a little of what their ministry looks like here.

As for my job/service project, I'm starting to put together a questionnaire for a marketing focus group here in Ukraine. HOPE is "hoping" to find out what kind of items their clients would purchase if given small consumer loans. These loans would be for home-appliances or other personal use items. They are hoping to market the new consumer loan products in order to get more clients. I'll be testing some of these ideas. My boss also told me about another project we will be starting soon. We will be making a client catalog. So our clients can buy products they need from other HOPE clients. It will specifically be targeting clients that are having trouble paying back their loans. For example: Client A sells towels. Client A also can't pay back his loan. If he sells his merchandise, towels, he will then be able to use this money to pay back the loan. So, Client B comes into the office and says, "I need a new towel." If Client B buys it from Client A after seeing it in the catalog, then Client A will have more income to pay his loan back. Not only does it help Client A, but also...1)helps the MFI (microfinance institution) get their money; 2)it helps the individual loan officers PAR %(portfolio at risk - which is the % of clients per loan officer that aren't paying back their loans on time). If their PAR % decreases then their salary increases; 3) and it also helps our clients advertise their products. In the future, we hope for all this to be done by shopping online and develop some kind of delivery procedure for all our clients.

Other than that, school starts tomorrow at NWC, and I too will have to start my Advanced Accounting class. It will be interesting to see how my study habits get better or worse while being outside the classroom setting. With this said, it's hard for me not to be back at NWC. I've been pretty successful keeping myself busy so that I don't get too homesick. I'll try to keep this up until I acquire some kind of life here in Zap-town. I still feel like I'm in transition after leaving Moldova. I have to be honest and say that I have very little friends here. My Russian is not good enough to have conversations with strangers, let alone build a relationship. I've met very little people that actually speak English. Some days I go the whole day without taking to someone here (and we all know how strange this is for me...bah!) I'm trying to stay positive through everything and looking at this time as one big "solo" trip. Trying to get the most out of living with myself and seeing what God has for me personally. It's funny how we get so wrapped up in what everyone else is doing that we don't have time to listen to what God is trying to tell us. That describes my life perfectly the last couple of years - being so busy that I have very little time to sit and reflect on the small things of life. I think I'm learning more than I can understand right now.

In another month, I will be taking a vacation. I'll be heading to Western Europe with my dad! I'm so excited for the trip. We've been planning the trip for a while now...okay, so he's mainly the one that's been planning it ;). We will be going to Portugal, Spain, France, Italy, and where ever else we decide to go when we get there. I'm really looking forward to seeing a familiar face and to have the ultimate father-daughter experience. If anyone has any contacts where we can stay feel free to e-mail me!

There's my life in a nut-shell. I hope you enjoy reading about it, because I enjoy living it.
I miss you all...A LOT!

Apartment pictures are up in case you're interested! http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/

Kiev, Ukraine

I arrived in Kiev, Ukraine on Saturday after a 10 hour bus ride from Moldova. When I got here I soon realized that I had jumped into fall. The weather was perfect and the heat was gone. I spent an hour and a half waiting at the bus stop because my bus had arrived early. After a chilly morning of waiting with two suitcases, I got settled in for a week of new sites and transition to a new country.

Saturday: A team of Americans went to buy souvenirs at Andriyivsky Uzviz. We looked around for a bit, but then Meredith and I decided our money would be better spent on coffee. After a quick stop at St. Andrew's Church, we proceeded to a place called Кофе Хауз (Coffee House in Cyrillic). Afterwards it started raining so we retreated to a cheap Ukrainian cafeteria and caught a quick glance at Kiev's Golden Gate. Later that day we got to see the World War 2 monument accompanied by the Motherland Monument. The Motherland Monument is on top of the Museum of the Great Patriotic War. Motherland stands 204 feet tall and is said to weigh 530 tons. She still holds a large shield with the Coat of Arms of the Soviet Union – a blast from the past to say the least.

Sunday: Meredith and I started the day off going to Hillsong Ukraine which is the Kiev-based offshoot of Hillsong Church in Sydney, Australia. It was crazy going to a mega church in a post-soviet country, especially after being in Moldova where 98% of the population is Orthodox. I also took my first subway ever. It was a bit hard with the Cyrillic lettering, but relatively easy. Later we met the guy we would be staying with for the week. He is here in Kiev working for US Aid. He showed us around downtown Kiev. We walked down the famous Khreschatyk Street. The street is blocked off on weekends and holidays for pedestrians to walk around downtown. We walked past the Taras Shevchenko National Opera Theatre and ended up at Independence Square. This is the destination of Kiev's Orange Revolution in 2004. Ukrainians wore orange and flocked to the center part of town to protest against a corrupt government election. After about a month in subzero temperatures, a revote was allowed and the election was deemed fair. This left Ukraine as more politically aware and fighting for a better democracy.

Monday: We stopped by HOPE Ukraine's administrative office. We met a few of the people that worked there and then set up a time to meet with my new boss on Tuesday. One of the guys in the office needed to go downtown so we followed him and his wife there. They showed us around a huge underground shopping mall. Later Mer and I went to the Park Misky Sad. There we saw the Rainbow Arch which is part of the Friendship of Nations Monument with a beautiful view overlooking the Dnipro River. We took a path along the lock bridge where newly married couples will come and put a lock which symbolizes their lasting relationship. We took a walking break and sat outside the beautiful Puppet Theater. People watching was a must at this stop. Also it was my brother's birthday...HAPPY BIRTHDAY, STEVE!

Tuesday: I met with a man that would be my boss for the next 3 months. He gave me small hints into what I would be doing once I arrived in Zaporizhzhya. We decided that I would pick out my own apartment once I arrived. He also helped me get my bus ticket for the 8 hour trip on Saturday. We worked on some questions for a focus group I'll be orchestrating soon in Zaporizhzhya. After that the day was pretty relaxed until Mer and I got lost trying to find a local coffee shop. Five bus stops later with the help of a really nice elderly Ukrainian women, we finally found the metro to take us downtown. It was a long day, but it ended with a great conversation over coffee. To finish off the night we went to a lookout that looked down on Independence Square beautifully lit up.

Wednesday: I would call this the "Day of Sights". We went to St. Sophia's Cathedral which is the oldest standing church in Kiev which has Byzantine architecture dating back to 1037. We then went to the kievo-Pecherska Lavra. 123 mummified monks' bodies sit in caves in the "lower lavra". Visitors are only allowed into one small, dark section. Orthodox believers pilgrimage to Kiev just to kiss the glass cases that surround the bodies of the monks, because the bodies are believed to have healing powers. Head scarves and skirts for females are a must. I think this was probably one of the most powerfully cultural experiences thus far. We then proceeded to walk around the campus of the Lavra before leaving. Taking my first tram ever, we went back to the apartment and got ready for the upcoming "football" game. We met some of our host's friends and went to a soccer game that started at 9pm where Ukraine lost badly to Turkey. Let's just the goalie was having an off-day.

Thursday: Mer and I left the apartment at 9am. We got picked up by the "company car" and road to a town 40 minutes away called Bilacerkov. The local market was host to 2,000 small businesses and 40 of these businesses are HOPE loan clients. We interviewed 5 clients and asked them questions regarding the history of their business, their future goals, how the loan had helped them, and any social involvement within the community. We will soon be choosing a few of these clients to write stories about in order to send the stories back to HOPE in Pennsylvania. Once these get written up, I will post one or two of them on my next blog so you can get a better idea of the type of clients HOPE Ukraine is helping. The rest of night was relaxing. We made supper and dessert at the apartment and enjoyed good company and fun conversations.

Friday: That's today, my last full day in Kiev.
Saturday: I leave at 2:35pm and will haul all my stuff by bus to Zaporizhzhya where I will live for the next 3 months. I'll be staying with a family for a few days until I find an apartment.

Life-State: Monday I will start my new job in a new town. A lot of people have asked me if this makes me nervous/scared. So here's my most current answer... I guess I'm really at peace with the transition. I'm moving because, well, I had to. I'm excited to see a different type of microfinance and to see the community developement side of thing that HOPE Ukraine's Tomorrow Clubs fight for. These clubs help teach kids English while telling them about Jesus. The work/job part of the internship will be really great. There are a few things I am worried about. I'm worried about not being at Northwestern this semester. It will be hard for me to know that all my friends are back at college without me, that most of the SOSers are back, and that I won't be involved in RUSH, RA, or other campus events. But I know I'm here for a reason and once I get settled in things will be fine. So there's my current life-state. Feel free to leave comments or amusing happenings about your life. I miss you all!
~Bob

Pictures: http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/

Tobacco -- Death or Development?

Last Thursday I went with two other girls to a village located about 3 hours north of Chisinau. Our purpose was to interview a potential client for a work project. If chosen, they would receive a relatively large loan with very low interest. We would also use the information gathered to write a business plan in order to contribute to the organizational structure of their company. The company we visited was an agricultural business that raised many different types of fruits, vegetables, and tobacco. They not only planted fields, but also owned 8 greenhouses. If the loan was given, the greenhouses could be covered with a type of plastic that will allow them to obtain heat, lighting, and water. They would then be able to produce some crops year-round. The company currently employs over 150 people with seasonal work. If they would be able to cover these greenhouses, they would not only increase revenue, but would also be able to employ more workers year-round. This would contribute greatly to the economic development of the village. Other positive community projects are also being started by this company. One of those projects is a kindergarten for their employee’s children.

The owners took us on a tour of their greenhouses. They also took us to see the tobacco huts where tobacco was hung to dry. Middle aged women that looked much older than their numerical age suggested sat in dirt with tobacco leaves surrounding them. In their left hand they held what looked look a knitting needle with a heavy string attached. With their right hand they picked up a tobacco leaf and pierced it with the large needle. This mind-numbing action was repeated until the string was covered with tobacco leaves the width of the hut – one strand down and a few more months’ worth of string to go.

It caused me to ask questions I’d thought about before, but hadn't experienced before. There were the obvious questions that first come to mind regarding working conditions, but there were other questions that were not so obvious. First of all, even if these women were paid a respectable wage, how do I feel about the production of tobacco? Coming from a country where the deadly effects of cigarette addiction are understood at a very young age, a moral dilemma arises. Most of us would agree that creating jobs by drugs or prostitution would not be worth the repercussions. But what about tobacco? Is it okay to loan money to a company who contributes greatly to a mass amount of cancer and death? Or is it better to make cigarettes so that many women can be employed and put food on the table for the young children that are waiting at home? With Moldova’s bad economic state in mind, I also wondered if a county’s economic development and growth outweighs the repercussion of tobacco's effects.

I spotted another group of women further down the hut. The translator and I walked down the row. I proceeded to ask about their family. All of them had children. One of the women spoke up proudly and said, “My oldest daughter is going to college in Chisinau.” After this short conversation we walked back to where the others were standing. I was curious to how much these women made. I asked the owner what the wages for this manual labor were. She proceeded to tell me that the women worked 10 hours a day, 6 days a week, and got paid 1000 lei a month (about $100 a month).

(10 hours a day)(6 days a week)(4 weeks a month) = 240 hours/month
$100 a month/ 240 hours per month = about $0.42 per hour.

After returning home and thinking about this for a while, the number haunted me. I was almost mad at the owner that she would want a loan to employ more people at this rate. It bothered me so much that I went and talked to some of my friends about the numbers. What frightened me more was their response. “Oh yeah, that’s about average for working in the village,” they responded without any hint of concern in their voice. They proceeded to tell me that $100 a month is what respected village teachers make. I didn’t know what to say. In the past I had seen Moldova’s GPD per capita sitting at $2,500. Compared to USA’s $47,000, the numbers were shocking. Now seeing it in action was much more heavy and intense. I wondered if this would be considered “sweat-shop” wages. I finally decided they were not, but this got me thinking about more sticky situations regarding economic development. If there is no minimum wage, where is the line drawn between “helping people gain an income and increasing community development” and “taking advantage of cheap labor and destroying their humanity”? Thinking further, I also wondered if it is better to cut one person’s wage in half so that two people can hold jobs even if it does mean bending over that fine line. Think about the economic crisis in the states. For example, you have a job and your brother is struggling with unemployment. Would you rather get paid $20 an hour and your brother get paid nothing or both be employed and each receive $10 an hour? I know this is not the best example considering $10 an hour is nothing like splitting $0.42 between two, but I still think it is good to think about. I believe that thinking about examples like these will lead us to think about other situations regarding poverty, hunger, and other social injustices. It will lead us to think about the situations that break God's heart while breaking God's people.

More pictures available at http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/

Cultural Christianity

For those of you who don’t know yet…the real world isn’t a small mid-western Christian country club. Deep conversations are hard to find, and if they come, they’re usually accompanied with a beer in hand. The latest sex gossip travels fast, and there’s no such thing as, “Wow, that’s way too much information.” Religious talk is welcomed to a point everyone feels comfortable – universalism at it’s finest. True friendship is something to latch onto. It’s something which arouses jealousy for those who actually find it. At first glance, it might seem as though I am anti-the-real-world. But what if these experiences were to not drive us away from our Christian bubble, but in fact allow us to demonstrate the truth that will pop its naivety completely? Could these experiences allow us to stop being inwardly focused on “Christian Community” and start building the Kingdom of God?

Christians often joke about the “Holy Huddle” of believers, but after jumping out of the huddle, the actuality of it scares me. There are quite a few things I’ve taken in as I reflect on being outside the world I’m used to. It’ll take a bit for me to really make sense of them, but I think I’ll get a better grip by starting this dialog now while you all are still listening. So here it goes…

One of the Moldovans I’ve gotten to know refers to the Orthodox Church as not being Christian. This made me uncomfortable when I heard the statement. “Who’s this guy to say they’re not Christian?” A different friend told me of the rituals performed for the sake of a cultural religion. Very few of the people performing these rituals really understood the meaning behind them. It hit me that the reason my Moldovan friend didn’t think they were Christians, was because although they are culturally Christian Orthodox, they did not live a life that tried to glorify God. In fact, their actions often caused people to look at them and say, “If that’s what following God is like, I don’t want any part in it.” This got me to really think about what it means to be “Culturally Christian”.

I quickly found out that in Moldova, and a lot of other countries, it’s ethically exceptable to illegally download movies. In fact, there aren’t even places to buy movies. It’s just assumed that if you want to watch a film, you download it. It wasn’t until I saw someone I consider a leader in the faith download lots of movies and talk about it unashamed that I really understood it is morally accepted here. (Note: if you’re wondering in your head why I would tell everyone it’s okay to illegally download, you’re completely missing the point.) As we start out in the faith, we begin discovering a lot of gray areas which we reason as either “good” or “bad”. A lot of times we make hard and fast rules and then make sure the usage is consistent. If not consistent, we’re left admitting that maybe we weren’t right the first time. One must ask if this good-verse-bad type of consistency is driven by conviction or pride.

As a “cultural Christian” one starts to take what other believers think is “good” or “bad” and take it as truth. This is what forms the Christian bubble. This is also what forms the notion that Christians are judgmental. Without even knowing why, we (yes, this I’m intentionally including myself in this statement) automatically write something off if our cultural Christianity says it’s taboo. Let’s look at an exaggerated example. Let’s say someone starts driving their car on the sidewalk in the US (I added the “in the US” because it’s actually okay to this in Moldova). Without even thinking about it, I would instinctively think they were drunk or at least shouldn’t have a license. Even if it is just internal, the person would react to situation negatively. This is something our culture has stated is not okay. In the same way, a lot of times when a Christian sees someone doing something “bad” they think they shouldn’t have a “license” AKA shouldn’t be acting that way. Whether hidden in their thoughts or even bluntly verbalized, a negative vibe is definitely given off. I think this is the cause of judgment. Judgment is reacting negatively to a person or situation because you do not agree with what is happening. In other words, it’s an inability to connect with a person because one has already decided that something this person does or believes in is “bad”.

What I’ve slowly started to realize is that what a Christian culture deems “bad” is not always Biblically bad, even if a verse is pulled out of context and quoted. One of my friends put it this way, “That’s why I think I like traveling so much. I can experience who God really is instead of what everyone back home thinks he is.” By wanting to take Jesus seriously, I think we need to experience who God really is, and I think that’s done by putting love before judgment and the Bible before a Christian popularity contest.

As Christians, what would happen if we didn’t write people off for the immediate vibe they gave us? What if we could TRULY understand how to love our neighbor as our self, even if they’re atheist? What if we could see God in humanity as a whole again? Would we rather demand the truth of Scripture or be fake? Wouldn’t it bring others closer to knowing the Kingdom of God? And if it’s at the cost of popping this Christian bubble and sacrificing the title of a “good Christian” so that truth is known, would you do it? These are a few of the questions I’ve been asking myself.

I wish I had some great conclusion for this blog post, but if I had a conclusion I would be ending something I know I need to better understand. I don’t want to shut the door on a great conversation, but instead I want to ask those close to me who care about their faith to think about this with me. Please feel free to post responses, criticisms, or suggestions how to better portray the truth. If you would rather e-mail me my e-mail is bobbielydick@gmail.com With that said, I’ll end with a quote that really hit me. It’s by one of my good friends struggling with Christianity. She said…

“I don’t doubt that Jesus existed, but I don’t think he meant for his followers to turn out like this.”

Microfinance 101

"So...what exactly is microfinance?"
Say you are in a country where there are no jobs available, and I don’t mean the state of the US right now…think worse. If there are no jobs, then you have to make your own jobs. This means being employed by yourself, AKA starting a business. In order to start a business you need money. But where does this money come from? There are two options: you either save the money or receive a loan. Here in Moldova there are savings accounts available, but in other parts of the world saving is a problem.

Problem with saving:
Living Conditions: Imagine living in a “house” where you don’t own furniture let-alone a lock on your door or windows. There is nowhere to hide your money and people are desperate enough to steal anything lying around. So maybe you opt to bury it then. Rain, fire, or other natural disasters don’t care where your money is. If something happens, your money is gone.
Social demand: In many developing countries, familial and communal ties are so strong that it would be social suicide to deny someone money if you had some to spare. This puts a person in an awkward position - giving up money for your friend’s relief efforts instead of their own development. (Which is why a lot of people don’t like giving money to beggars – development verse relief.)
Lack of Alternatives: In poor communities, banks exist to serve the wealthy and have barriers that keep the poor out. They require minimum balances, fees, or deposits which are sometimes double the average annual income in that area. The poor are too risky for banks to help. Instead of a bank a village might have a “Savings Collector”. But instead of having a “free saving account” the poor are paying in order to keep the collector employed. 30% APR isn’t affordable just to save a small amount of cash. Many people don’t even have a savings collector.

Saving money can not only help in gaining capital for a person's business. It also provides reassurance that if an unexpected expense comes up they can pay for it. For example, if your son got extremely sick one might have to choose between getting medical care or feeding her other children. Something as small as having a savings account could easily save a life.

Instead of saving, loans are the alternative, but what if the person doesn't have good credit? If you ran a bank, would you risk giving money to someone who had nothing in the form of collateral. How would you reassure the loan will be paid back? It seems like a risky business endeavor. Instead of getting a loan from a bank, people must find other ways to get money. They might go to someone down the street who has some extra cash. Not knowing what they're getting themselves into, they might fall into the trap of a loan shark. A loan shark is a person that will loan them the money they need and then charge them extremely high interest so that they are always indebted to this person. Thus, the loan shark is always receiving money because the poor person can never pay back the interest with the small wage he/she makes.

MFIs try to change this very thing. They can not only provide saving accounts, but also give legitimate loans with reasonable interest rates. MFIs are basically banks that use other ways of deciding whether or not a person is eligible for a loan. They also use education, social pressure, and other alternative ways to guarantee repayments. These institutions give the poor an opportunity to be good businessmen in order to care for their family, create jobs for others, and eventually help the economy of a country as a whole. Instead of just giving a hand out to people, giving a loan to people restores their dignity as human beings. It acknowledges that these people's poverty is due to something they are personally lacking. It is in fact a lack of opportunity.

Check out this video it'll make more sense:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrKQZeoAzyI&feature=channel

The next time I blog, I'll start giving more specifics to the MFI I'm working at and to MFIs in general. Also, some of this blog was taken from a book entitled The Poor will be Glad by Peter Greer and Phil Smith.

Beach Time

This weekend a few of us here in Moldova decided to check out Ukraine since we're so close. Hello, Black Sea. That's right, the weekend consisted of running away to Odessa, Ukraine right on the Black Sea. It was beautiful, cheap, and very relaxing. (Don't worry those of you who shelled out some money for Moldova. I used my own money for our short trip. I would have felt bad otherwise.) It was nice to get away for a weekend after working long days. It's been a little over a month since I've been here - just five more to go. Wow, that seems weird.

Our whole trip revolved around the beach. We slept in then headed straight to the beach until the sun went down. Afterward we went back, got ready, went out to eat, and just hung out together on the main road of Odessa. It was pretty sweet.
There are pictures up at: http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/. Feel free to check them out.

The only down side of Odessa was a little bit of homesickness I felt. The company on the trip was awesome, but when you're some where great it's hard not to have your best friends surrounding you. I kept thinking, "Oh, my college friends would really like that."..."If the c-towners were here we'd definitely be doing this right now" or "This reminds me of this person or that person". So at times it was a little bitter sweet. Know that I miss you guys back home!

The way back was a little interesting. Instead of going straight from Moldova to Ukraine, we passed through Transnistria. Transnistria is located mostly in a strip between the Dniester River and Ukraine. It is internationally recognised as being a legal part of Moldova, although de facto control is exercised by its own government which declared independence from Moldova in 1990. Transnistria is run completely independent and has quite a few issues with Moldova. Let's just say it was an interesting experience. At one point I was taken into a room and told, "You WILL have problems." Crossing the boarder was a little harder, longer, and cost a little bit more than expected since we were from the US. All was well in the end.

God Reflections

It just kind of hit me today how much I've been seeing God at work through different people. It's not that crazy "God just hit me with a cosmic 2 by 4" kinda thing. It's more like a good walk thinking about what has happened over a long period of time. So here's just a few of the ways I've seen him working lately! Also, I have new pictures up. Feel free to check them out. http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/

Clients:
I've gotten to visit a few of the clients already. There was a lady we went to visit, and I loved spending time to get to know her and her family. Her kids brought so much joy to my week. It's crazy how you can connect with a child right away and just want to make sure they'll be provided for. I think microfinance makes more sense once you put the face to the loan. We also got to visit a client in order to put together a business plan for his company. He mainly sold windows and doors. His business recently had a decrease in sales. He was proud of the fact he didn't have to let go any of his employees. He said, "God is taking care of us." A very sincere man...one you actually believed when he talks about God's goodness.

Executive Director:
During the internal audit the past week and a half, we've had a chance to interview all the of the staff members of the MFI. There's something really powerful to hear a man full of vision. It's hard to come by a true visionary, someone who not only dreams for something better, but spends his whole life working toward it. That kind of devotion and commitment is a Christ-like trait. Don't worry, I'm internally taking notes on the matter.

HOPE Interns:
For those of you who don't know, there are other interns like me around the world with HOPE International. Most of them are in the home office in Lancaster, PA, and a few are in the Dominican Republic. I'm not going to lie, during orientation I thought I would just meet them and then they'd walk out of my life rather quickly. Surprisingly, this isn't the case. Daily there is at least one of them that gets on Skype and asks me "How is Moldova?" or "Is there any way I can pray for you today?" I'm impressed, and they're an encouragement. I love it when people can walk into your life for a day and make a difference. That's the way Christians should be.

Moldova Friends:
Three and a half weeks ago, I would have never thought I would have people to hang out with on the weekends. Not that I'm unsocial, but I am in a country where I can't even speak the language. These people are an answered prayer whether they know it or not. I'm learning a lot from them, most of them have been here at least a year and have a lot of insight to offer.

Home Friends:
Every time I get an e-mail, Skype call, facebook message, or blog comment from someone at home it makes my day. I haven't gotten homesick yet, but I miss feeling connected to everyone. These small messages make me feel more connected, and through that God shows me how blessed I am to have great friends and family. Not to mention, I got this sweet encouragement journal that I read A LOT. It means so much to me. Thanks for all who wrote something or wanted to write something :). P.S. You should get Skype if you don't have it!


One more thing to check out:
This is a website I made for the upcoming Vision Trip to my organization. If you would like to see microfinance in action please feel free to check it out (or if you just want to see what I actually do with my life)! Come see me, it'd be crazy-fun! http://visiontrip2009.shutterfly.com/

Starting week 3!

Pictures:
http://bobbielydick.shutterfly.com/
Here's a site where I'll be posting pictures. I'll try and post the link every time I add new ones. I hope you enjoy them!

Ukraine:
In order to live in Moldova for longer than 3 months, you have to get a residence permit. Which is extremely hard apparently. (I can go into more detail about that later if you would like.) So, we are thinking that I probably will NOT be in Moldova for longer than 3 months. What does that mean? Well, that means I will most likely be in the Ukraine from September to December. Crazy! It'll be weird to get used to Invest Credit in Moldova and then have to leave. At the same time, I'll be working with another MFI (microfinance institution), and it would be a great opportunity to see how other MFIs are run. I would probably learn a lot through this. I'll keep you updated on this situation and let you know where I am :).

Work:
Invest Credit starts a two week internal audit today. This might sound really lame...but I'm kind of excited. I'll get to help a lot with this and review a lot of how Invest Credit is run. I think I'll learn a lot and get to put some accounting to work. The other interns and I are also starting to create a business plan for a few loan clients. IC (invest credit) takes a few clients a year they believe deserve more attention and help them create a business plan for their business in order to encourage growth in the businesses and the community. We get to meet with three of these clients and put together these plans for their businesses. It should be a lot of work, but it should be cool.

Village:
I had my first village experience yesterday. It was a lot of fun. A woman named Natasha had us over to her house and taught us how to make "Placinte". It's a traditional Moldovan dish. Basically deep fried dough with potatoes & onions or brinza (a type of cheese that's not like we think of cheese) and dill in the middle. It was really good. We ate with her three kids while she told us stories about the life during Soviet times. It was really interesting, and I learned a lot. We got half way home when Natasha called one of my friend's cell phones and told us she had found my keys at her house. I returned on the last bus to the village. No taxis would come and get me. They finally called someone from the village who had a car. He took me home, but it was quite an experience. At one time I think we were off-roading it. I thought he was going to drop me off in the middle of this field outside of the city. He didn't though...that's good. I arrived at home after a good 4 hour adventure by myself.

Alaska vs. Moldova

The normal summers in Alaska are a lot different than here in Moldova. I don't know if I would call it culture shock, but it's definitely different. Adjusting has been good so far. I haven't run into too many problems yet. Here are just a few differences:


Dress Code:
Alaska - 7 t-shirts and 1 "nice" long sleeve shirt will do the trick for the entire summer.
Moldova - If you're not wearing skinny jeans, a skirt, heals or something immodest, you're probably under dressed. Don't worry I haven't broke down and bought any skinny jeans. I plan to hold strong. But I did bring all the nice attire I owned and have gone through it all already.

Showers:
Alaska - No running water = showers once or twice a week.
Moldova - I've not only showered, but also dried and straightened my hair every day since being here. (Cultural)

Transportation:
Alaska - "hondas" are the only means for getting around in the village (AKA 4-wheelers)
Moldova - "Rutieras" (a bus-like, non-taken care of, van) are convenient because you can flag them down at any moment and drop you off whenever you need them to. Learning their routes is the tricky part, not to mention a lot of people in one very small area.

Weather:
Alaska - average temp in the summer = 55
Moldova - average temp in the summer = 85

Language:
Alaska - English, so easy
Moldova - Romanian...well, let's just say I'm failing at this.

Work:
Alaska - youth ministry, discipleship, and serving the missionaries
Moldova - office work. Did you know it's hard to sit at a desk for 9 hours??? I just found that out.

Living Situation:
Alaska - teenagers in and out of the house at all times. Always someone new staying over. Lots of people and family.
Moldova - I live alone. Which is weird going from living with 18 wonderful girls at all times to being by myself. I would rather live with 18 people than none.

Over all, things have been really great. I've been lucky enough to have a lot of wonderful people around to fill me in on everything. I'll let you know if/when my brain hits Moldova overload.

Prayer Request

Hey friends...I just got word today that my friend Daylon Harrington died in an airplane accident on May 26. All I know is that he was flying in a plane from Portland to Arizona. They were at an elevation of 16,000 feet when they sent out a mayday and that's all I know now.

I met Daylon at Kako camp in Alaska during my first summer. He was a volunteer pilot for the camp for the three weeks we were there. He also stepped in and did some counseling and activities when we needed him. He was so great with the kids and exuded Jesus every time I talked to him. I kept in contact with him the past two years. Daylon was 24 years old and wanted to be a missionary pilot. I had tried to call him when I got out of school, but never got a hold of him. He was a sweetheart and a blessing in my life.

Please pray for his family and friends.


Here's the news coverage on the story. It'll give you a better picture of Daylon, and it also talks about the camp we were at together. http://www.katu.com/news/45929207.html?video=YHI&t=a

Lost in Moldova

Well it's official...I'm in Moldova. I arrived on the 24th. Yesterday Jessica, another intern, and I toured the town. It was a lot of fun, and she answered more questions than I even knew I had...which was amazing. I got to see a lot of the city, visit the office, see her place, shop for some groceries, etc. After I got home, I settled into my new place....which is extremely nice. The executive director of the microfinance organization just built a new house. I live in the basement...thus, I have a brand new apartment which is nicer than some of the apartments I've seen in the states. I'm very blessed. This morning, I tried to come into work for my first day. I thought I could find the office by myself. I'd already been there at least 4 times. So I started a venture that I will further explain to you...

...I felt confident as I got ready this morning. Nice gray business capris, a cute sleeveless top, heals on my feet, and trendy sunglasses in my purse. I grabbed everything I thought I would need for the office, including my laptop and all it's supplies. I threw my things into a green saddle bad and the rest into my small purse. I started what I expected to be about a mile walk from the house and put on my shades as the sun beamed down. It was a gorgeous day and the walk was beautiful, but I have to admit, I wasn't completely sure where the office was located. I took a left, then a right, then two more rights. I hit an intersection and started to question which way to go next. Here's when I started applying the Scripture read that morning from my Utmost devos "pray without ceasing". I was hoping the Spirit would lead me straight to the office...I was poorly mistaken. After looking down two streets which seemed identical to me, I went straight. I started to wonder how all these Moldovan women do it, walking everywhere with their high stilettos. My heals were only an inch and a half, and before long, I opted to go barefoot instead. Now with many people staring while I held my worst enemy, heals, I continued to walk straight hoping a familiar landmark would pop out. I was optimistic until the street ended with a large scenic outlook. Although it was beautiful, I would have much rather seen the overgrown trees outside the office building. At this point, my computer felt like it weighted 50 pounds and my bare feet were about to kill me. Before I returned to my house, ask for directions, and walk even further, I decided that I needed a break to preserve this moment.

Here I am. I'm on a wooden park bench with Moldovan techno music blaring from the heavily trafficked street. Market Salut, a fancy restaurant dec-ed out in bright yellow stands tall. A stray dog is resting in the shade in front of me, and business-looking people rapidly pace back and fourth on the wide, double-layered side walks broken up by white-painted trees. The books were right about the air. It's clean and fresh, but they forgot to mention one small detail. The smell of tobacco comes and goes rather quickly as so many carry cigarettes in hand.

I must return, but this was anything but a failure. A cultural experience to say the least. Or maybe all cultural experience involve some sort of failure.


P.S. I'm now at the office...all is well and starting my first day at work analyzing statistics. What? Crazy.

Getting Ready

My flight leaves at 9am on Wednesday. I have approximately 100 things to do until then...one of them being writing to my wonderful friends via blog. I'm starting to get really excited now that I'm done with school. I got to talk to one of the current interns in Moldova this morning and got a few questions answered. It's also been great to see a few people at home for the 2 days I'm here.

I start training with HOPE International on Wednesday and then fly out on Saturday. While in Moldova I will have access to the Internet and will try to keep my blog updated. I will also have Skype. If any of you are interested to talk to me "on the phone" here's the website to download Skype: http://www.skype.com/. The service is free and really easy to use. My user name is: bobbie.lydick

Feel free to leave me comments or send me e-mails. Thanks for all your support and prayers. I'll blog next week to let everyone know how my arrival went!