Swamped September

School has been in session now for 6 weeks and I have been in Moscow for 7 weeks. "Staying busy" is how I have explained my time here so far to family and friends back home. Although it may seem that I have had more "free" time than not, I am constantly filling the free time with little things. School is one form of busy. I am constantly engaged in school activities, planning, teaching, tutoring, fulfilling my duties, and helping students and families in any way needed. I am also busy outside of school with English cafe, exploring the city, and spending quality time with my flatmates. Busy sums up my entire life here but I wouldn't use busy as a negative word. 

In the 'teaching realm', second grade has been a huge adjustment. We have been learning academically, spiritually, and socially. Each day is a new challenge of some sort but as a class we work through it together. In the end, we come out on top. We gain experience together in every thing we learn. Currently we are learning all about: Cursive letters, poetry, how people change and grow, government, and Moses. We learn through reading, writing, using imagination, hands on activities, building curiosity, songs and videos, and through each others experiments. I am so blessed to have the class I have now, all of my students love each other and get along great. They encourage each other, help each other, and support each other.  

Outside of my teaching life, I often stay busy. September was filled with many adventurous, fun filled, relaxing, happy, activities. My flatmates and I decided to host a Ladies Game Night where we had 14 Ladies in our apt. Thankfully we have been blessed with a nice big apt to host fun nights such as this. It was a night full of laughs and new friendships built. My flatmates and I went on an adventure to Kolomenskoye Park where we went to a Honey Festival. Honey is a huge deal here in Moscow. We walked around to all the vendors and purchased our share of 7 different kinds of Honey. After this we walked through the park and my flatmates climbed some apple trees and picked apples. It was a fun filled day together. I had the opportunity alongside of 9 colleagues to go see, "Phantom of the Opera" live in a Russian theater. It was a beautiful production. I am thankful for great friends to embrace the Russian culture together thru show. The Moscow Marathon took place this month and I was a part of this by being the photographer for a student at our school who ran the marathon. What a fun experience for him but also for those of us who went and cheered him on at different stations. During this month I also had the chance to be a part of our English Cafe group again, where I speak with Russians who speak little to advance english and our staff went on staff retreat to a little retreat center out of Moscow. It was beautiful and the atmosphere was filled with Fall. :) 

Although this past month was swamped with activities whether school related or not, I enjoyed all the opportunities I had to be a part of each event. I gained more knowledge of the Russian culture. I have grown closer to my colleagues and students. I have embraced the beauty of Gods Creation, and I also have stepped out on faith more. God is carrying me through each and every day! 

Praise Reports: 

• Umida's family made it back to Moscow safely from Uzbekistan 
• Weather is absolutely perfect and beautiful 
• Dental problems are solved!!!! 

Ways you can pray for me: 

• Continued support flow
• Me - I joined the praise team at my church 
• Sickness and Chicken Pox has infected our student/teacher body
• Our school, staff, students, and families 

Another beginning full of Emotions

Moving internationally is a tedious process that can never be done easily. Hiccups will always come along just when you think you are in the clear. Within the 2 months of preparing to come to Moscow, I felt like I was constantly in the hiccup stage, like they were never going to go away. Just a few days before I was supposed to board my plane, my visa and important documents were misplaced by the post office. During this stressful time, the thought that kept going through my mind was, “God has a purpose and there is a reason this has happened.”  As hard as it was for me to not be discouraged, I stayed in prayer and continued to seek God’s purpose for my life. I was able to get on the plane on Saturday and start my journey to Moscow.

Showing up to work the day after I flew in was tough but it was such an incredible feeling to be “home.” The excitement, love, support, and dear hugs I received from faces I have missed was such an amazing way to be welcomed back to Moscow, to Hinkson. Teacher in-service was the rest of the week and I thoroughly enjoyed being a part of the “Virtuous Minds” discussion among my fellow colleagues. You could definitely see the vision, the excitement, and the love for God and teaching among the teachers while we prepared for the school year to start.

Teaching second grade has been fun and interesting to say the least. I absolutely love having the opportunity to teach second grade and seeing what it all entails. The experience of children being more independent, curious, and the conversations we are able to have amazes me. I have 8 children, four of which I had two years ago in Kindergarten and four others who were at Hinkson last year. Each child is unique. I have 1 student from Africa, 2 Americans, 2 Russians, 1 Russian/American, 1 Canadian, and 1 Uzbekistan. My class is very diverse but we all come together every day to learn, to love, and to serve our God!  

Our theme verse in Elementary is Proverbs 3:5-6, “Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understandings, in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will make straight your paths.”

I am so very thankful that I serve a God who will always direct my path even when things seem so uncertain and we cannot see the clear picture as to why things are happening the way they are. We must learn to Trust Him and not do things on our own!

Prayer Request :
My Uzbekistan students’ family can receive their visas to make it to Russia to start school.
My class as they adjust to the changes of being in second grade.
Our school, staff, students, and families.

When a door Opens.... go through it

       When I came home from Moscow, I knew it wouldn't be long until I went back, but I didn't expect it to happen as fast as it did. In the 401 days that I have been home, life has taken me through many obstacles and accomplishments that I wouldn't trade for anything.The accomplishments have reminded me that my hard work and commitment has paid off. The obstacles have taught me to have more faith and to keep pressing forward, not to give up. This is exactly what I am doing by returning to Moscow in August of 2015.

I have been contacted from different people at the school in Russia to return this Fall. During each conversation, I repeated over and over again that I was unable to return for a couple of years due to financial hardship and support. The thought of returning never left my mind. I wanted to return desperately, I prayed about it religiously, but I also had to continue my life here and focus on work to survive. After applying to the school system here, I received another email from the director about returning... instead of jumping the gun to say, "I can't" I read the email intently and prayerfully. Through the entire email, I cried. My heart was set on going back but the deep emotions of leaving and knowledge of support I had, tore me apart.

After days of skype calls, conversations with those closest to me, praying, budgeting, and making phone calls to obligations I had here, my decision was made. God was opening doors left and right, it felt so right. I continued to pray up until the call and email I made to my director to confirm I would be returning to Hinkson in the Fall of 2015.

Even through the 401 days spent in Florida, through the obstacles, accomplishments, friends, family, 3 jobs, a house, and car, all things paid off well. My dream that I never stopped believing would happen again soon, happened! As hard as it has been in the past month figuring all the details out, I know this all happened because it was God orchestrated. The faith, strength and courage I have gained is all because I serve a God bigger than any obstacle and He is in the middle of every accomplishment.

Hinkson Christian Academy in Moscow, Russia, will once again be my home away from home!


Prayer Requests:

• Monthly Financial Support
• LOI and Visa documents on time 
• Traveling Mercies (August 8)   

Riding the Roller Coaster

April ended just a quick as it came. It is the middle of May and I have been extremely busy. There hasn't been many moments that I have actually had time to just sit and breathe (unless I was sleeping). We are now on the downward slope and its going to be a fast ride! As the end of the year rolls around there are many things that happen at the school as well as in our own lives as we prepare to wrap up another 10 months in Moscow. I am going to give you a quick summary of what has happened so far in the month of May.

On May 2nd, we had a half day at school because that evening the staff at Hinkson were being appreciated as staff members. The school paid for all of the staff to go on a Ghezl River Boat Cruise down the Moscow River! It was absolutely beautiful. Everyone was dressed so fancy, and we were able to see downtown Moscow at sunset! I will never forget the beauty of God's creation even in a fallen world! We celebrated going through accreditation again and doing well and we also celebrated the time and service those staff whom are leaving have given to Hinkson! Another bittersweet moment of being a part of Hinkson and having this year be my last year. My weekend ended by me administering the SAT early Saturday morning and ending the day with a great picnic with our English Cafe group at Kolomenskye Park! It was a great afternoon of fun, laughter, food, and games! Thank God for wonderful friends.

The next weekend was probably the most eventful weekend I have had in a very long time. 7 of the Hinkson women including myself decided to take a trip over to St. Petersburg. After a long day of work on Thursday and a farewell party for me and a couple other teachers, we headed out on an overnight train to St. Pete. The train ride was approximately 6.5 hours. We arrived in St. Pete at 6:30 in the morning and we were on the go until 3:30 the next morning. We slept for about 5-6 hours and were on the go from 10am until 10 Pm when we headed to the train to make our way back to Moscow. In a total of 40 hours and 20 mins we slept for 6 hours but managed to seen about 10 sights in 34 hours. Our feet were killing us and we were exhausted when we returned to Moscow but it was well worth the trip, even in the rain!

When we got back to work it was also going to be a busy week. I had a field trip with my kiddos to the Moscow Zoo. It was a beautiful sunshine day and the kids really enjoyed seeing all the "smelly" animals! At the end of the week we had our last Elementary Music Program and the kids rocked it! They looked great, they sang beautifully, and they remembered all their parts and motions! Thank you Ms. Siwak for a wonderful performance! It was definitely "Oceans of Fun."

There are now 18 days until I leave this place that I have been able to call home to head back to my home in Florida. There are many emotions that are full of nerves, excitement, and sadness. Through all of the emotions I am trusting that God will continue to provide for me what I will need upon my arrival in Florida but also that I can say goodbye well and adjust back to the culture! I would like to ask for prayers from all you of as the next 2 weeks are going to fly by and be full of emotions but also that I can have a safe return to Florida in June!!!

Where did the time go?

March?? Nope it is now April... Wait, when did that happen? Time is something that just keeps on ticking even when it seems other things take forever to come or go. The time here in Russia has just been flying by without anyone really noticing. It doesn't seem possible that it could be April right now but then again, it has been a very busy eventful couple of months. Everything from, Spirit week, Men's Day, Dr. Seuss Day,Valentines Day, Women's Day, English Cafe's, ACSI Team coming, Spring Break, and many more has made the month of April arrive much sooner than we were expecting. Maybe we didn't notice because the fact that even though it is April the weather has been cold and off and on with snow showers. Just when we think to ourselves, "yay the sun is out and it is getting warm," the dark clouds roll in and snow dumps on us. I do not believe the sun knows how to work here. It shines but that doesn't mean there is heat that radiates from it.

As I sit in my apartment staring out the window at the beauty that the sun brings to Moscow, I think about everything that I have to get done at school and at home before I can depart from this beautiful busy life and return to the states. The things that I ponder actually crack me up and to think that not many people in America will even understand kind of makes me sad! I will miss the public transportation, I will miss the daylight hours, I will miss the scenery, I will miss the snow (maybe not the length snow stayed but the snow in general is beautiful), I will miss my work place, the people, the fun 1st time moments, the adventure, I will miss many things about Moscow. To think that in 7.5 weeks I will be on my way back to America leaves a bittersweet feeling. Everything I have learned here will stay with me, everything I have gained will be near to my heart always, and everything that frustrated me while I was here- I am sure I will miss at one point.

The last 7 weeks of teaching at Hinkson will be dear, happy, and sad. I think about the lives I have touched and how my life was touched and blessed by many others. As much as I missed home, my family, my friends, sunshine, and Florida - I wouldn't have traded the last 2 years of my life for anything! Where else can you go and get squashed and pushed out of the metro at rush hour? Where else would a babushka yell at you for not wearing your scarf when it is 40 degrees F outside? Where else would you go through 4 cement doors and use 4 different keys just to get into your apt? Life here was very interesting, weird, funny, cold, irritating but it was also a new life experience, a great adventure!!!

Here is something I want to leave you with today... As we are approaching Easter, I have been teaching my littles the story of Easter and what it means. My very inquisitive kiddos have had so many conversations and questions about this story it blows my mind. It reminds me that, no matter where in the world we are from - Africa, America, or Russia (all the cultures of my kids) We all serve the same God who lived and died just for US. We are special to Him, He died for us, and He wants us to live for Him!!! It is our job to go and teach this story to all people of all cultures and to celebrate His life and Resurrection!!

The last thing I will leave you with... As I sat at my desk while my students where finishing their Bible worksheet, I typed quickly the conversation they had among themselves.

Student A - What color was Jesus Cloth when he died? Purple Right?
Student B - No one knows, ask him when you get to Heaven.
Student B - When we die, Satan will die and go to Hell.
Student A- But he is already in Hell.
Student B - But how?
Student A- Satan can get into our bodies and make us bad….
Student B - Yea that is why God put him in Hell to stay out of our bodies so we can be good and go to Heaven.
Student C – Jesus is Awesome.

Happy Easter Everyone!!! 

A little bit of my Heart

My whole life had been in shambles from things like: my dad being a severe alcoholic, a car accident that almost killed me, being sexually abused, my sister dying at a young age, my mom going into depression, and the end of my junior year in high school-we were being evicted from our home. This really rocked my world because this meant I had to change schools going into my senior year, quit soccer, not go to church, and everything else I loved. I decided at this point it was best for me to leave my parents and find somewhere else to go, I had no idea where I would stay, how I would eat, how I could finish school and survive. I looked to God in the midst of the nasty storm in my life and He took care of me. For the next 8 years, although I was taken care of, there still seemed to be uncertainty in my life.  I really started to lose faith around this point because I never thought I would get out of this circle of my life. I had a youth pastors spouse tell me that I would never be anything. That I would turn out just like the rest of my family, unmarried, pregnant, a drug user, and a drunk. I began to believe this and because I was always told these things and lived in it, I started to believe it and acted on it. I did many things I regret ever doing but in doing these things I learned I wanted nothing more to do with this part of my life and I could be better than this and I would show everyone that I was capable!! I still bounced house to house, I had to say goodbye to many of those who truly cared about me as I left to go away to college alone, I had no idea how I could manage to pay for college, live on my own, work, and study. Through it all, God never left my side and in 2011 I graduated college, something I always dreamed of but never thought I would have the chance to succeed! I did it and I did it for me! Even after college, life was still rocky, I still bounced around, I still was unsure how I could live, but again, God opened a door to a teaching job and I survived one more year without my parents or all of those negative people in my life. Throughout all this time, I always wished my parents would come around and want me, to want to be a part of my life, but my hopes were always crushed because they only wanted my money (what little I had) and when I didn’t do what they wanted, they would yell, cuss, and tell me how horrible I am. I never wanted to hurt anyone but I knew I had to do this for myself. I knew I couldn’t turn back to their lifestyle. I was very active in church, made wonderful friends, and my life continued even through the pain I suffered from daily.
God had much bigger and better plans for my life and it was laid upon my heart to really consider teaching overseas. Before reality even sank in, I was on a plane heading to Moscow to start a life there. My whole world was about to change, again. I was unsure how I was actually going to handle it after reality sank it and jet lag wore off but God knew what he was doing and exactly what I needed in my life! Moving across the ocean into the total unknown all alone was extremely frightening. It was rough living so far away from people that I loved and a church that had always been there for me through all the storms. I must say, that in all my years of heartache and change, being here in Moscow I have felt so much more encouragement and sense of belonging that I have ever felt. I am accepted here for me and it is a great feeling to have. I had many rocky moments my first year in Moscow but I made it through with Gods continual guidance and faithfulness. I am now ending my second year in Moscow and I am preparing how to say goodbyes once again. I am prepping for yet another change in my life. I don’t know where life is going to take me. I don’t know where I will stay, how I make it once I move home again, but the one thing that is still constant is Gods love and Faithfulness through it all. God still continues to show Himself to me in all of the storms and changes of my life, it is my job to trust and obey what He is calling me to do.
I am not good at goodbyes, I never have been. I keep telling myself, “the more I do them, the easier it will get.” That is a lie! It will never be easy to tell my true friends and family goodbye or until next time. I have met some amazing people here in Moscow that I can call family and I know I can always call on them. As I begin to process all of this “change” that is about to happen, a lot of pain along with happy memories rise to the surface. I will miss Moscow very much, maybe not all the cold and lack of sunshine, but I will miss the love, support, encouragement, and friendship! I believe that my being here in Moscow has brought me to be a different person with a new perspective. I am going back home a new changed person with a better understanding of who I truly am! Being here in Moscow, I have found ME!!!

The New Year has Begun

Snovym Godom! As it is pronounced in Russian, Happy New Year! Fireworks boomed throughout Moscow from approximately 10pm-6am. It was one of the longest nights I have witnessed here in Moscow. Just when I think I could roll over and fall asleep, huge flashes of light would come through my window and the sound would startle me awake! Although I didn't get too much sleep it was a beautiful night! For the first two weeks of January we were still out of school for the Holiday break! I stayed home, enjoyed the peace and quiet since my roommate was gone away to a camp. I did my favorite things; cleaned, watched movies, cleaned some more, and enjoyed being able to skype with home as much as I wanted to. It was a glorious time.

January 7th is Russia's Christmas, I had the opportunity to go over to my bosses house and have dinner and play games with their family. It was a great night, I was introduced to new games! What great fun we had! The following Friday was a busy day but it ended with great fellowship at our directors house for dinner and games. If you haven't noticed food and games are a very common interest we all have here at Hinkson. :) Our Christmas break was coming to an end but we were all very anxious to get back into the swing of things at school. I was especially excited because I was getting a new student, A GIRL! YAY! That now makes for 6 boys and a total of 2 girls in Kindergarten class this year!

The first week back was an exciting but extremely exhausting week back. There is nothing like having to retrain your kiddos every little thing from how to get dressed to go outside to write your name on your paper!! It also amazes me how much dynamics of the classroom change when you add one student or even if one student is absent. Boy, has it been an interesting start to the new year. The rest of January seemed so very busy and exhausted as we were battling issues in Kindergarten, trying to finish Curriculum trak for our re-accreditation, meetings galore, tutoring everyday after school, and also trying to keep up with my own things at my apt. It seemed so busy and overwhelming that I turned around and February had arrived so soon!

February arrived and was quite a happy but rushed start. February started off quite calm but as we sat in our staff meeting it became very busy and overwhelming to write down all the dates on the calendar. The calmness of February has ended and the hoopla of stuff is just about to begin. This coming week we have Spirit Week; Twin Day, Wacky Tacky Day, and Character Day. Followed by Valentines parties, finishing Curriculum trak completely, Winter Break, 100th Day of School, Mens Day, and Dr. Seuss Day! I believe that February, already being a short month, is going to pass right before our eyes. I am prepared as much as I can be but the prayers are very much appreciated for our whole staff team as February is a very crucial cram month! Re-accreditation is vastly approaching here in March and there still is a lot to be done!

I still must say that through all the chaos of things happening at school and around us, our staff has been incredible at uplifting each other and helping in any way possible. I am blessed to be a part of the staff here at Hinkson! God is using each of us to serve the school and the students/families that we come in contact with on a daily basis!