“God is able to provide you with every blessing in abundance, so that by always having enough of everything, you may share in every good work.”
- 2 Corinthians 9:8
Today is American Thanksgiving and I’m excited to be spending it in Budapest with the other YAGMs (three serving in Hungary, and three in Slovakia) and Trazy and Jeff, who are Americans serving in Hungary with the Reformed church. Dick and Caroline Otterness have been gracious enough to invite us to their home in Budapest for the occasion.
Raking leaves outside the church on a warm late November day
Of couse, for us Canadians, Thanksgiving was more than a month ago already. In October, as I thought of my friends and family back home sitting down to eat turkey, I realized that the holiday meant more to me than ever before. Being so far from home, I appreciated my blessings even more. More than that, I realized that, as I adjusted to a new life, God was providing for me in new and often surprising ways. My family has a tradition that before our Thanksgiving meal, we go around the table and share some things for which we are thankful. I started a list of my own in my journal, and would like to share some of those things with you now (in no particular order!). There is so much to be thankful for, and here are just a few:
Weather
The weather throughout September was unseasonably beautiful—cloudless, clear blue sky, not a breath of wind, and temperatures in the mid 20s nearly every day. Weather might not seem like such a huge thing, but when you’re getting settled in a new and unfamiliar environment, blue-sky days instead of rain are definitely something to be thankful for. Though autumn definitely arrived with November, last week we had two or three days that were warm enough for me to sit outside on the porch in a t-shirt!
Hobbies
Two hobbies that I thought I would miss during this year
Down by the river
were playing the guitar, and ballroom dancing. I left my guitar in Canada, but to my delight, I have access anytime to a beautiful guitar right in the house I’m staying in. What’s more, Péter is teaching a young Roma man from the village how to play the guitar and invited me to join in the lessons. I’ve never been able to more than dabble in guitar playing, but now with somebody to teach me, I can learn much more.
There’s no ballroom dancing in this village of 800 people, of course, but I learned that every Saturday a woman is offering free lessons in gypsy dancing, so I have been a couple of times. I’m so grateful to be able to pursue these as hobbies, and am finding that for the first time in five or six years, I have time to pursue other hobbies, too, like reading, drawing and even some yoga.
Helping out with a grape harvest in early October
CorrespondenceWhen I committed to this year, I accepted that communication back home might be extremely limited with high rates for international telephone calls, pay phones located in shady areas, and limited or no internet access. Not so. I have my own key to the office next door where there is a great internet connection. I bought a Skype package before I left—and the sound quality has been excellent—and so I can make unlimited calls home. The only thing limiting me is the time change!
Food
September was a lovely time to arrive in a countryside village. I have enjoyed plenty of freshly picked fruit and nuts, grapes
Harvesting grapes
off the vine, and fresh homemade apple and grape juice. I even got to help with a grape harvest! I’ve tasted homemade jam and sausage, milk still warm from the cow, and lots of home baking. I’ve been introduced to lots of Hungarian cuisine and am even learning to prepare some of it myself. Tomorrow I will spend the afternoon learning to bake some Hungarian dishes with a lady from one of the Bible school groups.
I have been invited several times to share meals with families in their homes and have been blown away by Hungarian hospitality (today I thought the meal was complete after finishing my soup, pasta and pork when the hostess bought out the main course—rice, potatoes, and two more kinds of meat!) I’ve don’t think I could, in good conscience, say I’ve ever truly been Hungry in Hungary. There have been times when I have not had time for a meal on a busy day because we’ve been rushing from one place to another. Though we have never let on that we hadn’t eaten, every time this was the case, it seems that somebody generously and mysteriously offered us food—whether it be a plate of fresh baking from the pastor or an invitation to sit down for soup after teaching the children in the next village. I am thankful not only to be surrounded by such generous people, but also that God provides at exactly the right time.
Support from Home
The lady that delivers the mail in the village came to the local pastor’s home one day while I was there and was commenting on all the mail I’ve been getting from home. I’ve decorated my room with all the cards, postcards, and photos from home and I’ve received some beautiful emails as well (thank you everybody!!). I feel so grateful for all the support I’ve had from family and friends—from those who have sent letters or emails, who have asked parents how I’ve been doing, and who have been remembering me in their thoughts and prayers. I’m blessed to have such a strong support system, and I can definitely feel the strength that it provides all the way across the ocean.
Enjoying a day in Budapest
Daily Challenges and Joys
There have certainly been challenges thus far in my time here, but for every moment of homesickness, frustration, or discouragement, there is a moment of joy that more than makes up for it—whether it be a sunshiny day, sitting around a table with new friends, teaching a little girl her numbers, or having a conversation with a Hungarian co-worker that I know I couldn’t have had a month ago. There are definitely “up” and “down” moments in such an experience, and while I can’t quite bring myself to say I’m thankful for the “downs,” I am thankful for the opportunity to challenge myself and for all that I am able to learn in the meantime. And I am thankful that an “up” always follows each “down.”
