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365 Czech Republic

From a Bear to a Boom

I shared yesterday that Titus was going to be part of some kind of event tonight that we honestly thought was a play. The directions we were given was that he was to have a mask or costume and have a paper lantern on a stick. Bethany actually ended up making him a lion mask because Titus wanted one and we thought there were two parts or something to the evening. For instance, maybe the kids come in masks and then they change into something else for a formal program. Either way, we weren’t sure.

Bethany commissioned me to go to the store and hunt for a paper lantern and a stick. I don’t know even know where I would find that in the States much less Czech, but we texted some friends here and they pointed us to the store that had it–a paper store in the town square. I found what we needed about thirty minutes before the program was starting, went home, and we all walked over to his school. When we got there everyone from the school was lined up outside and there tons of families still walking there. Below is a photo of a few pumpkins outside the school that were lit up which was a little confusing. Was this a Halloween thing? I also noticed the lights on the school were completely off which the made me seriously wonder if we were ever even going inside. As I looked around I saw kids dressed up as witches, skeletons, and had their faces painted. Are we trick or treating? What is going on? These are the questions that ran through my mind. When I saw Titus’ teacher she was dressed as a witch and had a broom. Oh boy…what have we gotten ourselves in to?!

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

After seeing some of the other kids outside we realized there was a little misunderstanding about having a light inside the lantern so I ended up running (literally) over to the store and getting a stick with a light for Titus’ lantern. I had seen them on my first visit and knew now what we were actually supposed to buy. We just wanted to make sure that Titus had what the other kids had because remember, we still think he’s going to be a bear in a play. While I was at the store everyone ended up walking around the town with their lanterns, including Bethany and the kids. Bethany took a few photos of their walk (below).

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

I met back up with the family as they were completing their walk around the park in the center of town. I put Titus’ lantern together with the light. Here’s a photo of him with it.

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

Mostly we just followed the crowd around which brought us back to the school at the end of the walk. We all walked into the school property and the all teachers were dressed up with bags of candy and wrapped treats. It was dark and very confusing for us so I stayed with Avery by the gate to the school and Bethany took Titus to the teachers with the bags. He got a little wafer bar with chocolate that he shared with all of us. The crowd began to move towards another part of the school yard so we followed behind. Everyone ended up sitting on the picnic tables and benches out in the playground area. Again, it was dark, so we just found a spot towards the back of everyone and just kind of sat there.

After a few minutes the teachers and kids started chanting something that we didn’t understand. This went on for a few minutes. How long will this last? I guess there’s no play tonight? Titus ran over to the slide and was playing because he knew his way around the school yard. He told us he played there all the time. Not 10 seconds after he came back to where we were sitting, we hear BOOM! and suddenly fireworks are going off about 30 feet from us. They were close and loud. The kids quickly covered their ears and Titus started crying and yelling, “I want to go home!” He’s not a huge fan of fireworks. I grabbed Titus and put him in my arms and told him he would be OK and that it would be over soon. Below is a photo of the slide he had just been on before the fireworks started to go off.

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

The fireworks show lasted about 2-3 minutes. Titus kept insisting we leave, but there really was no way for us get back to the gate with everyone standing around so we basically had to grin and bear it. I just started laughing. This is just not something you would ever see happen in the States: a bunch of preschool and elementary kids with their families standing a few feet from huge fireworks that are literally exploding directly above them…in the playground of the school. Welcome to the Czech Republic.

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

Lantern Lights (11/6/14)

The fireworks ending signaled the end of the night and also confirmed that there was definitely no play or bear suits tonight. In the end it all turned out OK. Titus cried a little more on our way home, but we assured him, as we often do, that Jesus is always with him when he’s scared. We walked back to our place with some Czech friends from our church who have a son in the same class as Titus. They are a great family and that was actually the highlight of the night being able to spend a few minute with them.

I guess the moral of the story is we’re learning to trust the Lord in new areas. We have no idea what we’re getting ourselves in to sometimes, but we trust the Lord will lead the way as we walk by faith.

Categories
365 Czech Republic

Laboring on Labor Day Weekend

For the United States it’s a nice long weekend. Everyone will celebrate Labor Day on Monday and most likely take the day off. Many are probably already at the lake, on the road, or heading out someplace for a little rest and relaxation. Unfortunately, we’re not in the United States so instead of taking a break we were hard at work today on our apartment trying to get things unpacked (yes, still…) and getting our storage room organized. We shared before we have very limited space so we’re trying to make decisions on what things will stay inside and what we can put in the garage. After filling about six or seven plastic tubs we called it quits. We definitely gained some space in each room and we keep chipping away at the boxes.

Gettin' Work Done (8/30/14)

Titus and I (Shay) went to Tesco (store) and did a little shopping this afternoon. Bethany stayed home to work on the house and and do laundry. If I’m going to the store I like to take my time and really just take in everything that’s available. Things change constantly and I am on the hunt for a few items, namely a good vacuum and an iron. Our iron from the States is too high of wattage for the power transformers we have and even though our vacuum works here it has to go through a transformer which really isn’t convenient and not the most efficient when it comes to energy consumption. As we were slowly making our way through the aisles I saw this board game (photo below) on learning English. It’s funny how learning English is associated with England. In my American mind I want stars and stripes on the front of this box.

Gettin' Work Done (8/30/14)

This evening we had a chance to Skype with Bethany’s sister, husband and their two year old son Jude. It was nice to connect with them for the first time since we’ve been here. There’s no doubt that technology like video chatting is just such a blessing to foreign missionaries. I realize not all missionaries are able to connect back to family the way we can, but we praise God for means to do so.

Gettin' Work Done (8/30/14)

More and more Bethany is having to make things from scratch in the kitchen. I think it’s great how she has jumped right into it. I’ve said before she’s braver than me and I can tell you she is doing it with a willing attitude and never complaining. We can’t just go to the store and get a familiar pasta sauce so tonight she made her own from scratch. The only down side is dinner takes a little longer some nights but I usually end of taking the kids outside if the weather allows. Tonight I took them in our backyard and put Avery’s new streamers on her tricycle (Nana and Papa sent them to us in the “box o’ fun”). She had a huge smile on her face as she made her way around the driveway and that’s always a joy for me to see.

Gettin' Work Done (8/30/14)

As we were laying the kids down tonight we heard some big “booms!” coming from outside. Bethany and I ran to the open kitchen window to find fireworks coming from down the street. We’re not sure if they were happing on the Poland/Czech border and we’re honestly not sure what the celebration was, but it was fun. Bethany said, “I’m gonna get the kids!” and ran back and we all watched the big sparkles in the sky for a few minutes together. Oh fireworks, you really don’t get old and I’m not too old for you. Here’s a little video I took accompanied by a song by Sleeping At Last that I enjoy.