The Real LG

I've had good intentions of being more active here again but that's gotten off to a slow start.
I arrived to Kyiv June 7th, repacked some bags, spent the night and hopped on a bus for Western Ukraine. Preps began the 8th. We've had great days since. Here are some pix from the past 2 weeks.

This one's out of order and I can't get it back where it belongs. Too bad so sad. Some of the happy participants of the most recent picnic. We do this as often as possible!

When you've been a naughty puppy, chewing up volleyballs (2 in the past 3 weeks) and stealing food off of picnic tables, you get locked up for the duration of such activities and no amount of crying, whining and fussing gets you out. 

Dusya is one cool kitty.

The sky was beautiful tonight. The pic, of course, doesn't really do it justice.

More happy campers- Darren and Matviy. In the background on the left is "Стара Хата" (literally 'Old House') which rumor has it will be torn down soon (it's well ventilated in all the wrong places) but, in the meantime, functions as overflow ladies' sleeping; in the center of the pic is a guest room; on the right is the entrance of a root cellar. 

And yet more happy campers. Karen, Vasyl, Lillian, Taras, Iryna.

Taras, Iryna, Viktor, Maria. 

The grill-master. He did brats, hamburgers and whole eggplant this time. 

I tried to tell her the way to ensure a bad pic of yourself is to make it bad on purpose. Sigh. Sweet girls: Alina, Olenka, Karina, Tanya.

A hard day's work makes you tired.

Homemade ice cream! Olenka sat on the lid; Olesya and Tanya took turns cranking the handle. 

Kitchen

Different day, different people, same spot, same event. We like doing this! ;)
Kenny H, Kenda E, Sharon, Braden, Becky, Olena, Natalia

Where was I?

Oh my. It's been so too long. I loved blogging. I still do it in my head. But.... uff. Someone pointed out several months ago that it was high time for an update. And I really meant to do an update then. But I didn't.
So I'm going to find some pix and see where it goes. It's been a great summer. It really has. As always, by the time our preps and convs finish here, it feels like summer's pretty much over. July 25th. Phyllis' birthday. One month and 6 days of summer left, according to the Ukr'n calendar. I fly to the Czech Republic next week for a week. (What shall I take Phyllis for her bday? ☺😊☺😊)

Shashlyk! 

Start of Kisl preps. Tanya S, Sharon W, Ira S, Ruzan M

Dan W, Bill H, Tanya S 

Charlene M, Ira, Ruzan, Olesya T, Sharon

Bilo. Lovely walk

Bilo dining area 

Serving line at Bilo

Polish and Ukr'n kids bonding....over a tablet. Sigh

This sweetie had a blast on this scooter! 

Uncle D was the basketball goal! 

Post conv cookout. Laura E, Sharon A, Alan B

Hanging out on the grass in Kisl. (Story: at supper, Nastya says to Ruzan- We're friends but not (strong friends- like super close, I suppose) because you wouldn't hang out on the grass with us. So after supper, they did. 😆)

Anya H (Lutsk) and Nastya  (Ira S' step-granddaughter) were instant BFF's. Here they are playing 'Nova Poshta' (i.e. UPS)

Nastya's heart broke when Anya AND her mom AND everyone else left after conv. 

Anya, however, was off to the sea with her folks. No heartbreak there! She is one of the sweetest, happiest kids I know. 

Rain predicted for later in the day, so dining tent came down ASAP.

And on to the last place. Noviy Buh. And this monkey. He has his mouth as full as physically possible! Zakhar D

Ivan Ivanovych and Kolya visiting

Serious dog and her anemic pup. Named the pup Teo

Teo meets a terrified kitty. 

There are more pix but I can't get to them, for some reason. So maybe I'll add descriptions later. Xoxo

So- published and then got access to the rest of the pix. Charlene's cousin Kelly married to Ben- a cousin of Bill's. This makes C and B kin. 😆

My tent at NB. Not a bad place to sleep, really. All it's missing is a recliner. 😅

Baba Halya's kitchen table and stools. Love the colors! 

Kelly's pic. Love it! 

Olena's pic of her with Sonya and Zakhar D (Zhenya and Tanya's youngest).

Some Beautiful Soul brought me these! I ate a few but most are tucked away for later. 

Valer Kozak. In his Kozak T. 😊

Breezeway between house and mtg shed at Kisl. Coolest spot on the place. I would have slept there if not for all the frogs and spiders....and possibly a few other reasons. 

We found desiccated frogs everywhere at Kisl. This one was perched here until nearly the last minute. 

In doing some computer housekeeping this afternoon, I came across a post I'd started to write earlier.

In our rambling this afternoon, we came back through the center of town, past this very quiet and now nearly empty place. But being here brought back some very clear and sharp memories from Feb 20, 2014. That was a chilly day. That was the day that snipers were on the rooftops in downtown Kyiv, picking off people from the streets and squares below. Aiming for people wearing special white vests with red crosses on them designating them as medics. The day we flew out of our apartment in an almighty hurry when we realized that our dear girl, my co's youngest sister a medical student was actually still in town. She was part of a group of about 40 doctors and medical students from our city who were leaving for Kyiv but their departure had been delayed. There was a desperate need for trained medics in Kyiv. She'd been there often before, during some of the worst days to bring medical help to wounded people. But this time felt so much more uncertain than the other times.

This quiet street was where the bus was loading and we got down here in time to tell her good-bye and hug her tight and wish her the best... and hold our breaths and hope that all would be well. I don't remember that there were any tears shed by anyone there. Everyone was sober and determined. About half a block away was a large public meeting in the main city square where public officials were going over safety measures for our city. 

So much has happened since then.

So much. 

I've sometimes written about it, mostly I haven't. What can you write? Thousands have died. Thousands. At least one army pilot was kidnapped inside Ukraine and taken to Russia where she's been accused of crimes; she's been imprisoned there, illegally, for months. 

For a long time, we were so thankful that at least none of those nearest and dearest had been called up by the army. 

At the end of January, I was having a pre-bus bread and honey snack when an army officer came calling with the notification for the man of that home. He's my age, exactly. His wife is my dear friend; so is his bro-in-law. He has 2 young children. We were all stunned. Of course it could happen; was bound to. But then it did. 

Because of poor health, he was deemed unfit to serve, thankfully. (With the proviso that if war is declared- or martial law- he must report.)

Several weeks ago we were with another man, a contact, who'd been called up in the very first wave of mobilization last spring. He served his 12 months and was deactivated. Alive, whole, healthy. It was a huge comfort and relief to see someone who came home from the army in one piece; so many don't.

Another friend's young son, 17, was 'called up'.... but because he's not yet of legal age (to serve) and because he's a student, he was deferred.

And today we received word that one of the dearest got his papers and was declared fit. He goes this week. He's 49. He has a wife, 6 kids. In fact- those 2 up there? The 2 sisters? They're his oldest and youngest daughters. I cannot imagine what this summer will be like without him. 

And that youngest one. She's still a med student, 3rd year. And she's still actively involved in training military medics. Many weekends, she's near the front where she hears constant gunfire. She trains soldiers battlefield first aid.

So much of this is hard to understand. It has at times kept me awake all or most of the night. It has at times made it hard to read, to pray, to concentrate. It has completely altered life here. Many grocery stores have collection bins for goods that the soldiers need; many collection tins for funds for the army and private militias. And many many people, in spite of very difficult times financially, give and give and give. 

There is comfort in several firm facts: 

• God doesn't give us more than He gives strength to cope with.
• Nothing is beyond His strength and control.
• We see a small part of the picture; God sees the whole picture.
• God has a plan- it is to save the souls of men. This He does. 
• There are things that are more important than even natural life. IE- Life is more than bread and the body more than clothing.
• God will care for those who trust Him.

So- we continue to trust. Someday, this will be history. We don't know how it will end, we don't know when it will end. But it will. No storm lasts forever. 

I've shared things on Facebook, sometimes. Often I haven't. Then someone says: You need to so that people know what's going on. So I've shared again for a bit. But really? People- Russia is in Ukraine- tanks, heavy artillery, soldiers. This is not a Ukrainian civil war- this is Ukraine trying to get Russia out. Why is Russia here? We don't know. Not really. Why can't the two countries live as neighbors with independent governments? I don't know. But apparently one can't imagine life without the other while the other is desperately trying to create life outside of the domination of the other. Yes, there was a ceasefire. No, it's not the first. No, it's not actually been adhered to...at least not by the rebels and Russians. Ukrainian troops and heavy artillery were withdrawn from the front lines; the other side simply takes that territory. And so it goes. So someday, hopefully, I'll be here to tell you about how it all ended. But that day is not today.

And yes, this is partly why I really haven't blogged much the past year (although I was on a decline, post-wise before this all started). So much just doesn't seem important in light of the current situation. 

xo