The young lions lack and suffer hunger; but those who seek the LORD shall not lack any good thing. (Psalm 34:10 NKJV) Скимны бедствуют и терпят голод, а ищущие Господа не терпят нужды ни в каком благе. (Псалтирь 34:10 Russian 33-11)
Левчуки бідні й голодні, а ті, хто пошукує Господа, недостатку не чують в усьому добрі. (Псалми 34:10 Ukrainian 34-11)Los leoncillos se debilitan y tienen hambre, pero a los que buscan al Señor nada les falta. (Salmos 34:10 Spanish NVI)
Yesterday morning we called a taxi to take us over the railroad tracks and past the large Italian owned ceramic factory that makes floor and wall tiles, and up a high hill to the cemetery where Galina's father's body is buried. We came here to weep with Mama Elena and to try and comfort her since this was her first time to visit the grave since the funeral a year ago. Thursday night she asked if we wanted to hear how they met. How could we reject her offer since she met him in far-away Ural mountain town near Chelyabinsk? This was after World War 2 and she described all the poverty of their times. It was the first time I heard it mentioned as a Depression which is certainly accurate. She told how when she graduated with her engineering degree, her fellow students were assigned to jobs at various places in the old Soviet Union. If they refused to accept the assignment, they faced 3 months in jail. She said it was just the way they maintained order at that time. She wrote a letter to the minister of labor or some title like that in Moscow, and pleaded with them to allow her to be able to stay on here in Slavyansk and help support her family who were all victimized by the war. She was turned down, but she said she had decided before the rejection came to go ahead and do her duty for the country. She moved to that far away place with another young woman from Ukraine. They arrived together and were given housing in an old barracks that lacked any conveniences such as heat and water. It was November and already cold in that region. Before she left Ukraine, she said she and her mother took some old fabric from Red Army uniforms and made her a coat and died it black so she would not freeze. She also described the warm boots she and her mother fashioned out of scraps. After getting settled as best they could, she was assigned a job to review work of some young men who were working on lathes. She had to check the accuracy of their work, and they didn't get paid for what they did. She had her own metal stamp with which she identified what was acceptable. One day a young man came and complained that several of his pieces were rejected, but the work of this friend was never rejected. The friend turned out to be Misha who was described to her as the "young guy who works on the American machine". She said he was very proud to be able to use this good metal lathe that had been donated to the Soviets to help them in the war effort against Nazi Germany. She said they had no heat in the building where he worked, so he would smear his face with the dirty hot water that was used to cool down the metal he worked on when it was turning. She said the first time she saw him he was all black and had metal shavings in his hair and stuck in his skin. Anyway, we listened for over an hour as she told details of how life started out for them in that harsh post WW2 environment. He courted her by suggesting that he play the guitar and the two girls could sing some songs of their Ukraine homeland. On the way back to the house, we encountered a long train carrying enough track to replace what looked like the entire line that serves Slavyansk. The city was threatened with loss of rail service if they didn’t upgrade the track. After a long wait since there was no way to get to our destination without turning around and going almost all the way to Kramatorsk and then to Slavyansk, the cars eventually passed and we were allowed to cross the tracks.
When we got out of the taxi, the little watch dog, Julia (Yulia aka Yulka) was doing her duty with her loud bark until we opened the gate and she saw no strangers. She always remembers us even when we have been away a long time. After putting our bags down and getting Mama to rest a while, we went to the center of town where some shops are and bought some necessities for the home. We also bought more medicine to help with the nagging symptoms of whatever it is that has me wheezing and sneezing. When I saw medicine, I’m referring to various herbal remedies that seem to give some relief. While in town, we noticed some construction going on for a new outdoor café that will add some new ambience to the downtown area. While in that area, we ran into the first person to become my friend in Slavyansk when we came here for me to see where Galina was a school girl. Dima was working at the city when we were looking around for a place that offered Internet service. There were not so many options at that time. He and his wife later opened up a shop dealing with mobile phones. When I gave him one of our cards advertising our work in Nikolaev, his first question was, “why not do that in Slavyansk?” They are not yet Christians, but are open to teaching when we have the opportunity. They like many people in this part of the world have applied to enter the United States on the visa lottery program. They are supposed to hear something soon if they were chosen this time around. When we came home, it was finally time for me to spend time pulling weeds in the garden. Those pesky Norwegian Johnson grass was popping up in the middle of all the strawberry plants. The only way to help that out is to get down there and get your fingers in the dirt so you can pull up the weed with its roots. At least that kind of work, at the end of the day, you can look at it with a sense of satisfaction. I’m very happy that the weather was nice yesterday since it is rainy today. We plan to leave in just a few hours for the long overnight trip back to Nikolaev. Last night I finished preparing my sermon while Galina and her mama laughed and cried together Elena gave Galina a valuable family photo album from Galina’s childhood and a few pictures of her grandparents on both sides.
We had a wonderful call yesterday from Vladimir, the director of the Boys Home. He was elated that they received their tractor/mower that we recently helped purchase. He wants us to come see it as soon as possible so they can properly thank us. The boys will use it to plow the garden area, cultivate and mow the large campus. We plan to be with the boys this coming week for a makeup of today. He always tells us we can come when it is convenient for us. They are always waiting on us. Thank you for the ardent and faithful prayers. 
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