baaaaaaaaad attitude

I had such a struggle with a bad attitude today. I don't really know why, I just woke up feeling irritated and battled with it all day. Maybe I'm getting tired, maybe I'm starting to worry too much about the future (after DTS-- what to do, where to go (want to take another training school), where to put my things when/if I go, where will Marina and her kids be, how to do this and that...) and we're still like 4 months away from even the end of DTS and the beginning of those things.

But I did make it through the day.

And I'm hoping for a better (attitude) day tomorrow.

"Give me understanding, and I will keep Your law and obey it with all my heart. Direct me in the path of Your commands, for there I find my delight. Turn my heart toward Your statutes and not toward selfish gain. Turn my eyes away from worthless things; preserve my life according to Your word." Psalm 119: 34-37

" 'Teacher [Jesus], which is the greatest commandment in the Law?' Jesus replied: ' Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. (Deuteronomy 6:5) This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. (Leviticus 19:18) All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." Matthew 22:36-40

Jenni's Journeys #9

feeling good.

I had an incredibly productive day, and I'm so thankful!

I started feeling a little sick yesterday, but already had plans to go some places and do some things. And I actually was supposed to go somewhere today-- but I called and canceled and decided that I'd stay home all day to really try to rest my mind and body and immune system. And even though I still had a to-do list, I feel quite rested and accomplished.

This is a general idea of what my to-do list was and morphed into throughout the day:

• Sleep in (check)
• Eat something tasty (check)
• Sweep the mile-high piles of dust bunnies off of the floor (check)
• Do a bit of laundry (check)
• Make and eat some pancakes from scratch (check)
• Call Korinne and talk for a ridiculously long period of time (check)
• Write an update for the amazing people that care about you (check)
• Pluck my eyebrows and clip my fingernails (check)
• Perform a miniature facial on yourself (check)
• Read and intake some Truth (check)
• Prepare worship for tomorrow morning at DTS (to do...)
• Prepare a creative teaching explaining why YWAM is all for relationships (to do...)
• Make something cute and creative to encourage the DTS students (to do...)
• Go to bed by 10:30 (something I hope for...)

So, I'm feeling good.

Tomorrow will be the start of the 3rd week of DTS. Seriously, the 3rd week?! But things are going really great. Like I said in my update (that I completed today):

It’s funny (and completely normal at the same time) how I signed up to be DTS staff… but in a way I feel like I’m a DTS student again, for the 3rd time. How does that work? I’m not complaining though… I’m actually really glad to have this continued opportunity and setting through which I can learn more about what it means to follow Jesus-- on the insides of me and also flowing out of my actions and physical being. It’s really something beautiful and painful, and both explainable and inexpressible...I really can see how God is guiding our students--like a Shepherd guiding His sheep with His heart full of sincere love. And I can testify that God really is speaking to us and showing us His active presence and Truth. It’s incredibly exciting and humbling.


ephrata

If you are bored enough to watch this, it's a video of walking all the way through my hometown (Ephrata)... from one end to the other and back again. :-)

free day

I bought a khachapuri this afternoon and it had a big long hair in it. So I took it back to the place and the gave me a new one (which actually surprised me). But it was grroooooossss-- the fact that there was a hair in the first khachapuri, not the new second hair free khachapuri.

Today was my day off. Typically when I picture a day off I think of: sleeping in until 12 or later, maybe spending some time creating something--like painting or making cards or something, also walking outside in the sunny weather, and maybe even cleaning my room. And those were things I was actually looking forward to. But then yesterday I found out that one of the ladies from the street kid center I'm working with, had planned a special program for the kids at her church and they wanted to know if I could come and help. At first I really didn't want to... but I chose to go anyways.

When I walked out of the metro, I was like bombarded by these kids yelling my name, hugging and kissing me, asking where I've been (because I haven't been to the center now for like 2 weeks). That in itself was sweet and rewarding. Then seeing them enjoy their time at the program. And also, I brought one of the DTS students, Tamila, with me-- and she really liked it. AND I was able to set up outreach for our DTS for this next week (working with some refugee kids)... there was a lady there who is doing that now. SO, in the end, I'm really glad that I chose to go!

first week-- check.

I made it through the first week of DTS. In many ways it was really difficult, but I can say that it was actually quite an amazing week. I'm really seeing how God is protecting and blessing our students. And He's really teaching me a lot too, just about my character, how to be in a leadership position, how to choose humility instead of pride and really a lot of other things. Of course I'm completely exhausted, but I feel really rewarded.

Some of the DTS peoples

We're STILL waiting to hear from the students who applied from South Korea... they had trouble with their plane tickets, and said that they'd be getting here by Wednesday-- but they haven't showed up and we haven't heard from them. So they have until Sunday to get here... after that there won't be enough of lecture phase left for them to get credit for the school. So it's kind of a bit strange not knowing about that situation. Like, we're still planning and preparing things with the expectation that they will be here. But really I have no idea what's happening with them. So we will see.

I can't really find anything else to say (because my brain and body are tiiiiiirreeeed) but I felt strange just abruptly ending with that last paragraph. Okay, good night.

explosion

Tomorrow, my life will explode into an array of joyous events and activities.

In other words, DTS will start.

I'm excited.

music

I remember reading on the news the other day, about a study some people were doing on the way music affects behavior. They stated that kids who listened to music that freely talked about certain activities, more frequently participated in those activities in their actual lives (I won't get specific here). And then some other people came along and said that it was too simplistic (or some word like that) to draw a connection between music and behavior.

And I'm thinking like, HELLO... it totally influences.

Music moves people-- that's why they applaud loudly after a band performs an awesome song. That's why they cry when they hear certain lyrics sung to certain melodies. That's why they drive more aggressively/faster when they're listening to an upbeat intense song.

I see it in my own life too. The music I listen to totally affects me and my mood and my thoughts.

I just think it's ridiculous that people would want to deny that fact.

my grammatically painful story of my visa adventure with Maia

I was so wrong when I had the thought that applying for my visa/resident card thing would be easy. I must have forgotten that I'm applying for one in Georgia.

(Georgia, I still love you in spite of your sometimes deterring and problematic quirks.)

By the way, this story might be painful to read for the grammatically proficient.

I gathered all my papers and headed downtown to meet Maia, who would be helping me with translation and such. Our first stop was to find a good translation/notary place to translate and notarize my passport. Dropped off the papers. Next, visa pictures. Done fast, and pretty good (is it even possible to take a photogenic passport/visa photo?). We then headed to a leisurely stop at a coffee shop while my passport was being translated. Drank some tea and ate some sandwiches. Then off to pick up the passport translation which was done very well. Good. Next off to the ministry of justice to begin the application process. We walk into the building and notice that there aren't many people there... we think: 'Good for us! This will be done quickly!' We get up to the man sitting behind the desk and are informed that the visa/passport part of the ministry of justice has been moved to another (distant) location.

Problem 1.

This was not, however, insurmountable. We stop off at McDonald's for a bathroom break (clean bathrooms all over the world). Then we run into some of the street kids that I work with, and talk with them for a little bit. They buy us flowers for Mother's day (it's tomorrow) and give us many kisses. Then we hop on the metro to get to our next location.

After quite some walking, we find the new location of the passport/visa part of the ministry of justice. It also happens to be the place where refugees and others are registering. So there are like 10 times as many people. But we find our line and begin to wait. Take note, lines in Georgia do not resemble actual lines by any means. This requires vigilance, always being ready to inform newcomers who the last person in "line" is.. otherwise you will get cut in front of again and again. We get up to the desk and begin to explain our goal (apply for a longer visa) and ask how we can do this. After quite some discussion, (she wanted to send us to yet another location, but I pretty much refused... and it turns out that she was the one who could help us, but I think she wanted to send work somewhere else if she could... which is understandable because there were really a lot of people), we are sent to pay a fee for the visa at a local bank (180 lari). We go to the bank, wait in line, pay the fee, return to the new ministry of justice and see that the line has increased significantly, but take our position at the end. We wait for a while, and then are noticed by the lady who had been helping us--she calls us over. She shows me the letter I have stating that I'm working with Axalgazrdoba Miznit (Youth With a Mission) and shows me a few things that need to be changed... even though this is the same letter that I used and that worked for my last long term visa...

Problem 2.

I live quite far away, so we jump into a taxi and head to my house to type in the corrections and print out a new letter. We then jump into another taxi and head to my directors house so that he can sign it and stamp it with our official organization stamp. Then I hop back into that same taxi (he waited with Maia in the car) and head back to the new location of the visa/passport part of the ministry of justice and see that the line has stayed just as large as before. But we take our place at the end again.

By this time I was quite exhausted, Maia was feeling carsick from all these quick taxi rides and the ministry was supposed to close in like an hour and a half.... so I was SO hoping that things would work out okay.

After some time, I make it to the front of the "line" and proudly display my new, corrected letter. The lady reads it and then looks at me with a significant amount of pity in her eyes, and shows me that there is still a mistake... it was not clearly explained how to change this mistake, so Maia begins to defend her translation and I begin to beg her to take it in spite of the small error (and it was SUCH a small error, quite irrelevant to my visa application). The lady, filled with mercy, called one of her coworkers and checked to see if it would make a big problem for me if I turned in that document as is. They said that it would be fine and I was so ecstatically relieved.

Almost problem 3.

Then she continues with application process and begins to input my information into the computer. She asks me what my position is in the organization and I say that I'm just a staff person. But she can't understand exactly what that means. She asks if I'm a manager or assistant, and I say no, I'm just a staff worker. She still is puzzled as to what to write in that blank, and so the 10 people waiting in "line" behind me begin to all chime in (it's the Georgian way of resolving conflicts) and she eventually decides to leave it blank. Then she begins to upload my visa picture into the computer, and we discover that the guy at the picture place didn't put the cropped version on the disc... so I beg her to please please just crop it on her computer. She again mercifully does.

Almost problems 4 and 5.

And about 6 hours after beginning our journey, and after asking the kind lady that helped me again and again if all things would be approved, I hold in my hand the confirmation paper that my application was received.

(this is where I breath a sigh of relief).

So, hopefully by April 1st I will have my resident visa. I have no idea how long it will be for-- 1 year or 5 years. And she said that if there are any problems, she will call me-- but let's hope that doesn't happen.

And, this was my day!

naaaaaame droppppping

Hey! I had a pretty good weekend. Went to Gardabani for the children's program, ended up staying the night at my friend Diana's house. Went and saw my friend Tarana's new baby (in Gardabani). Then came back to Tbilisi really early this morning and went to church with some other friends, Dan and Alla. That was pretty exciting, because I pretty much understood what the pastor was teaching.. not all words, but the main idea... and it was in Russian! (which I have not actually studied, just picked up from hearing it so much)... so that was pretty cooooool.

Tomorrow I'm going with Maia to turn in my application and do all the necessary stuff to get my one year (or hopefully two years this time) visa. Then off to visit Tia because it's her 7th birthday tomorrow!

Wow, I'm doing a lot of name dropping in this post. Too bad most of you don't know who these people are, because if you did I'm certain the name dropping really would be worthwhile and effective. :-)

I saw some of my street kids today in the metro (they're begging in the metro sometimes too). I saw how people were like so afraid to be close to them... and I thought it was so strange, because I really don't have any of those feelings at all. And it's so interesting to see how people look at me when I'm talking to them or kiss them (the typical Georgian greeting)... I hope it's some sort of "testimony" to both the kids and the people watching.

So, in honor of my lovely street sweethearts, here are some fo-toes.

Visiting their house (it's actually not a paradox that the street kids have "homes"... they rent small rooms/houses (not very nice, but liveable at least)... they are actually together with their families, many of the kids are related too... but they live this lifestyle of begging on the streets... it's very complicated and I'm only beginning to understand a little bit of it.)




This is the traditional way that they carry their babies (sometimes they have their little sister or brother with them, or some other relative).




Aren't they like incredibly adorable?? Larissa on the left, Esmira on the right.




We had one day where we gave out Operation Christmas Child gifts, and the parents came too! It was SOOO exciting to begin to build relationship with them! If we want the kids' lives to change, the parents have to change first. And up until now, we hadn't really met any of them... so this was a very cool day!




Aslan with his gift.