Boo

Hello again! So today is our very last day in Donetsk... we have a couple hours to finish packing and such before the 2nd module graduation, saying goodbye, and leaving. Yikes. All eight of us have established extremely important relationships here, and the idea of leaving our friends is weighing pretty heavily on all of our hearts. I realize how cliche this sounds, but it is impossible to convey just how deeply connected many of us have become to this place; at least for me, Donetsk could easily be my home one day.

I want to take this time to thank some of the people we met here who have made our month at DCU so very enjoyable (some have been mentioned in other entries). Colleen, Lawrence, Margaret, and Jim run the English Intensive Program and have stolen all of our hearts, as well as two other American teachers, Rosemary and Alan (Dalan), who are currently living in Kiev and came here for part of the month. One of the biggest hits with our team and all of the students was Bryan, a Texan college student with a huge passion for this part of the world and the perfect sense of humor to match ours. The teams from Minnesota, Alabama, and Glenkirk (in Glendora, CA) also were invaluable to our experience here. All of these people, Americans or otherwise, served as either our leaders or colleagues, and all were our friends; they helped us with our practical duties, our leisure time, spiritual development, and, when things got intense, tried to keep us sane.

All eight of the people on our team are very different from one another, with various passions, personality traits, gifts, needs, and backgrounds that sometimes complemented and sometimes frustrated each other. Obviously, God brought us here for specific purposes that I hope we were all able to recognize, both individually and corporately. Josh, Alexandra, Barbie, Hannah, Sarah, Rachel, Chelsea, and I have, in varying degrees, been permanently inspired by our experiences here. Most of us are set on returning, either by leading next year's team or, for those of us graduating, finding our own way back. There are hundreds of stories we could tell and thousands of pictures we could show everyone back home of the people and places that were part of our lives for one little month, but nothing could possibly capture how God is moving here.

We have a precious few days left: tonight we take a train back to Kiev; Monday we fly to London; Tuesday we fly back to the states (with the exception of Chelsea and Alexandra). Please pray for our remaining time as Team Ukraine, and that we will be able to fully process what we have seen and felt. Also, obviously, please pray for our safe return and for the remaining funds we have left to raise to cover the trip's cost. Finally, please pray that we will not forget DCU and that those of us who want to come back will find the means to do so.

Thank you for your continuing support, and for reading this rambling entry. :)
До свидания!