Multumesc, Moldova

I am in the airport at Chishinua and I am reflecting on my experiences here in Moldova.  In Budapest, I began to dread the thought of going to yet another country before being settled, and I was planning on getting in and out of the program efficiently and without much emotional investment.  That was simply impossible.  From the moment I landed in Moldova, its rolling green hills soothed me and made me excited to be here.  The people I came with from the states and Canada were a great team, the Moldov(i)ans were welcoming and their hearts were overflowing with love and faith in what we came to do and in the children we served, and the food was great!  My host family felt like a second family, and it was very difficult to leave them.  Today, while I am in transit, the whole group is having a barbecue that Andre, Julia, and I bought the pork for and I have to miss due to my airline's change in flights...so sad!!  When I got to the camp and was without internet for 5 days, I was just figuring I would go in, teach some classes, be a good staff member, and get out clean.  After a few days, though, I realized how much I really cared for the kids and my heart was made wide open to them.  I saw God work in their lives and was so excited and grateful to be a part of it all.  There are so many moments of this trip that I will never forget, including eating sunflower seeds from the flower, walnuts from the trees, watching shooting stars, cooking with Julia and Sherry, singing "I am somebody", going to the farmer's market with Andre and Julia, playing water balloon volleyball, speaking with young men and women about God and encouraging them in their faith, stumbling out of exhaustion and grogginess in the morning on the way to the staff bathroom with Kaila, etc.   I have contact info for many of the kids and my short term colleagues in Christ, so I am not worried about losing touch...I'm trying to plan a visit here over my Christmas break.  I am also excited to be on my way to the Czech Republic at last!  Katrina secured the apartment we were hoping for in Liberec, and Laura will be arriving on the 25th, so soon enough I will be settled in a beautiful little flat with a garden.  Tonight, I will meet one of my coworkers at the airport who will bring me to my couch surfing hosts.  What a crazy life!