So my language tutor, Delia, suggested that we try to have 3 2-hour lessons per week since I only have 4 months before camp and my goal is to be practically fluent by then. I swore I wouldn't go back to school ever again, but now I'm loving learning the language and doing my homework and studying for hours. Unlike organic chemistry, learning Romanian is very practical and useful for everyday life here, and that's a huge motivation. It's awesome that everything that I read and hear is slowly unlocking in my brain and I actually can understand the basics of what's going on sometimes. I'm so thankful that I studied Spanish and Latin in high school, and especially Latin because Romanian is the closest romance language to the original Latin. It really helps just even knowing how to study a language and the background in grammar. Delia apparently raves about me to Tom and Leah, saying how I'm a quick learner and a teacher's dream student! That's really encouraging, even though we're only going over the basics and I've only had 5 lessons so far. I'm actually pushing her to teach me more concepts and give me more homework. She was kind of blown away yesterday when I told her I've been reading the Romanian Bible along with my English one, comparing the two and picking out the words I know and trying to pick up new ones along the way. I asked her to go ahead and explain the genetive case to me, since I pretty much figured it out from my reading, I just needed to know the specific rules. Me and Jess are going to go over my homework together to kind of teach each other. She needs some review on the grammar and I need help with hearing and speaking it, and how the sentences actually go together. So it's great to have more practice when I'm at home!
Speaking of Jess, she's pretty sick and has had a bad sore throat for a couple days. She went to the doctor yesterday and got some tests done today. They said it could possibly be mono, which would really be awful. Please pray that it's just a bacterial infection that can be treated and will go away soon, and that I don't get sick either! We've been disinfecting everything and trying to be careful, because it would really suck to get something like mono for half of the time that I'm here!
On Monday, I got to go help out at the baby hospital, and I fell in love. I just want to take them all home with me! There's 26 babies, 6 newborn to about 3 months old, 12 four to 6 month olds, and 8 six month to year olds. I don't know the whole story to why the babies are there, I know some are orphans, but one of the babies' mother came to visit her son, so I don't know why he is there. There's only one girl, Cornelia, from Heart to Heart, and a couple nurses to take care of them on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 3-6:30. So I'm hopefully going to be helping out as much as I have time for there! They really needed the extra hands to hold, feed, change, and play with the babies, and I absolutely loved it. I think it's a great way that I can volunteer right now since I don't need to know how to speak Romanian to take care of babies! It's also only a ten minute walk from my apartment! We were told that we would have to take the metro to Victorei, switch lines, and go all the way to the end at Pipera, and then take a tram a couple stops to get there, which would take 45 min to an hour. But last Saturday, after me, Jess, and Nora went to the Hard Rock Cafe for lunch, Nora's mom drove us home and showed us how we could just walk there since it was so close! It's literally the next main road over and you walk down the road practically right across from our apartment!
Art class also went really well this week, and although I was warned about some behavior problems with certain kids, they've always been great for me! We pulled out the paints and they used foil as part of their picture. Here's some pictures of them hard at work and the finished products!
Bible study was really challenging last night and I always enjoy that time of digging deeper into the word with other believers. We studied Luke 6:27-38, where Jesus gives a list of how to love our enemies and the Golden Rule. He explains that even sinner can do "good" things and love those who love them, and that we shouldn't settle to just be like the sinners. Tom explained that because we are Christians, we need to live at a standard that sinners can't because they don't have the Holy Spirit. Our entire life should reflect Christ and be unexplainable to those who don't know Him. My prayer is that I will not just lead a "good" life, but one that is completely sold out to Christ, out of my comfort zone, and that I will "turn the other cheek" in order to point others to Him. Right now, I'm comfortable. Yes, I'm in a foreign country on a missions trip, but my life is comfortable and I throughly enjoy the work that I'm doing here right now. It's a scary prayer, but I want God to stretch me to teach me to be more like Him. I know it won't be easy in any way, but He's promised me that He will give to me the measure that I give to Him, and that "God is able to make ALL grace abound to you, so that in ALL things at ALL times, having ALL that you need, you will abound in EVERY good work." (2 Corinthians 9:8) :]
tenPas this sounds AMAZING! I'm so proud of you! Who knew you were so artsy ;) And you need to bring a baby home to me!!!
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