Chicken Pox? , A Safe Journey Home and Memorial

Daniel made it home to Michigan.  What a crazy day yesterday was!  He emailed me and said that the flight from Kiev to Warsaw left one hour late and he was stressing since the layover in Warsaw before his flight to Chicago was only going to be one hour.  Yet when he arrived in Warsaw, he found that they apparently helв the Chicago flight for him and several others headed that way.  Thank you Heavenly Father!  Daniel said he even managed to sleep a little which is usually not easy for him when we travel.  After about three more hours of sleep at home, he was off to work to test the new machine.  Joel and Brina had already arrived back at the house from Uncle Timothy and Aunt Shannon and were sleeping.  Cyan is still at the farm with Grandpa and Grandma until Daniel is rested and ready to get into some semblance of a routine.  Timothy and Shannon have been so accomodating to Brina and Joel and all that goes with the life of teens.  Shannon has driven them back and forth countless times to band and orchestra and piano lessons, science classes and who knows what else.  They have opened their home completely and gone way out of their comfort zone to do so.  Words cannot come close to express how that has blessed us.  I am trying to think of the right ones and they just dont come to mind, it is such a huge leap they took to do this for us.  Daniels parents have also opened their home to the kids, sweeping Cyan especially into their routine and looking out for her special needs.  I just want the world to know we are so blessed with family and friends, near and far, who have supported us along the entire journey.    Encouraging, prayerful, generous family and friends.  

Yesterday evening, Anya, whose flat we are sharing (along with her parents Valentina and Anatoli) , realized she was breaking out in spots and called a doctor.  He came and confirmed she has chicken pox.  We quickly pulled out the medical file I have from the orphanage to see if Maxim had been vaccinated for this.  In the space set aside for the chicken pox shot, they had marked and dated it but written the word flu, so try and figure that out.  I do not remember if I ever had chicken pox so this adds another measure of adventure to this crazy journey.  I suppose if we break out the  best thing to do is relax and take pictures of us together with our spots.  May it not be so, however.  May we get through the next days, unscathed, and may Anya recover quickly.

This morning at nine oclock, Helena and Sergei came for Maxim and me.  The goal was to get his birth certificate and the decree from the judge notarized and nationally authenticated (big words for another fancy stamp and hand-stitching along the edge), finish his medical check-up and take the above mentioned papers to be translated into English for the US Embassy.  We accomplished the notarization and authentication, and got everything turned in to the translator.  However, the doctor said that although he used to do exams even without the childs passport and fill the number in later, the laws are more strict now and we must wait until we can present Maxims passport.  

So we wait.

 Between stops today and during the lunch hour, Sergei graciously accomodated my desire to see a particular synagogue in an area called Podil and to visit the Babi Yar Memorial, dedicated to the Jews who were killed at a particular ravine in Kiev during WWII.  I was surprised at how emotional I felt standing there.  The thought of 100,000 people innocently going to that beautiful area, with their official papers and valuables, thinking they were leaving the city for safety and then being naked and slaughtered one week later is mind boggling.  I looked around at the older buildings, wondering who saw and heard anything from the windows nearby.  What a broken world produced that tragedy and without Christ, it is really that same broken world. That is why we are commanded to pray for the Peace of Jerusalem.  To do so is to pray for the return of the Messiah.  He is Peace.  Come O Redeemer Come.