Lessons Learned

As I have 2 weeks before I leave Lithuania I thought I would share a few more tidbits of what I have learned during my time here....

1. I still get in trouble for laughing too loudly…
2. I need to hold tightly to God no matter what
3. Bulgaria is a beautiful country
4. Mug N Muffin
5. It’s ok to keep my options open and not only focus on one thing
6. Changing plans is ok…
7. Other countries have disparity just like the US. It is not that some countries have all poor people and are in deep need of our help. There are economic differences everywhere though some countries may have greater disparity than others.
8. Many people have had very limited access to computer until they came to college.
9. To play Texas Hold Em
10. Life in Bulgaria is pretty sweet
11. Celebrating a birthday before the birthday is a no-go
12. You can really touch people through the simple things
13. Changing flights is wicked expensive
14. Lithuanian weather and Boston weather are both highly temperamental
15. Be quick to apologize and slow to get angry
16. Small celebrations can bring much joy
17. No matter how much I plan, I still mess up
18. Egg decorating consists of lightly carving with a knife, wrapping in leaves, herbs then boiled leaves
19. Target moccasins are not seen as an acceptable form of outdoor footwear
20. People in ministry can fall just as hard as anyone else
21. Portion control is something that many Americans, including me, need to become a lot better at.
22. Only using ½ bag of rice makes for more servings
23. There is so much joy being able to laugh at yourself
24. Ecuadorians use USD
25. Luxembourgian is a language
26. There is an actual paved path to go to the orphanage
27. Klaipeda is like a new world without snow
28. Healthcare reform is a hard and complex issue
29. No equivalent of “One Mississippi, two Mississippi…” in Lithuania
30. Dina is another word for Duvet
31. The world is much bigger than just the US
32. Not everyone wants to live in the US
33. It is not the country or people group that is evil and horrible, but rather specific people doing that
34. People on both sides of war experience pain, hurt and devastation and also strive for healing and restoration
35. Once again, my life plan never works
36. You need to make sacrifices in order to care for others
37. St. Petersburg is full of color
38. Language Joke:
What do you call someone who speaks three languages? Trilingual.
What do you call someone who speaks two languages? Bilingual.
What do you call someone who speaks one language?
American.
39. Changes in prayer- Enough of the typical “American prayer”- Giglio
40. God allowed his son to suffer so why wouldn’t he allow us to suffer.
41. All the “good guys” in the NT lose
42. Lithuanian reminds me of Latin
43. Low interest banking for those in need, by those in need really works. Gamean Bank.
44. I have SO much that I take for granted
45. My love for children continues to grow as I spend time with them
46. Sometimes, a slap in the face is very necessary to remind me to do the right thing.
47. I am truly thankful for people that hold me accountable
48. Dr. Usrey used to work at Jess’ college
49. I can’t change everyone’s opinions but I can do my best to make an impact in the lives of those with whom I have relationships.

Thanks for all the love and prayers :)

Weekends Away

The last two weekends I spent time gallivanting around the Baltic states with great joy!!

For Easter weekend I went to a church camp in a small countryside called šilalė! It was the most decommericialized Easter I have ever had. It was a family retreat with the church that I go to here in Klaipeda. There were churches from šilute, Kaunas and Vilnius there as well started by the same pastor! Almost everyone spoke Lithuanian and I just chuckled to myself about what I had gotten myself into, but it got tons better very quickly! The speaker was from one of their supporting churches in Florida so he spoke English and everything was translated to Lithuanian. (Which was pretty sweet b/c Laura didn't have to translate for me which she so graciously does every Sunday)

The people there were wicked sweet and super gracious especially with my limited Lithuanian skills and my issues with endings :) The ones that spoke English were also willing to practice with me which was so sweet! I had such a good time there and had so much fun getting to know some of the people :) The messages were great as well and were challenging to me and made me think a lot about what I doing now and what I am supposed to do in the future! I will miss everyone a lot!

This past weekend we went to Tallin, Estonia and Riga, Latvia (the other 2 countries on top of Lithuania) it was a great trip. It was a lot more relaxing and chill then the last adventure I wrote about. This weekend was warm, sunny and super relaxing. We rented bikes for a few hours in Tallin and rode along the coast and around the city which was SO much fun!! I forgot how much I loved bike riding :) Both cities were very beautiful in there own way, but as always, I was glad to come home to Klaipeda!

Pics are soon to come :)

Sending huge hugs and lots of smiles
~Chrissy