Iki...

Three days ago, I made the 27-hour journey from Lithuania to Michigan. It was with very mixed feelings that I left my "home away from home," which is definitely what Klaipeda became for me while I was there. In some ways, I felt ready to come back to the U.S. and see my family and friends in this part of the world. And at the same time, it was difficult saying goodbye to friends and experiences that I had in Lithuania.

Right now, I feel kind of stuck in a foggy place between Michigan and Lithuania. It is good to be home, but a little strange at the same time. Even though I am physically here, my head and heart are still partially in Lithuania.

The past four and a half months were incredible! My time in Lithuania was not always easy, but even the things that were hard were an important part of learning and growing from this experience. I feel unbelievably blessed by the people I was able to meet, and the experiences I was able to have while I was there. It was all so rich and full, and right now I know that I can't fully process and understand all of it. But, I am going to trust that God will continue to teach me from it, and gradually allow me to see and understand more of what He did in Klaipeda, Lithuania this past semester.

The title of this blog is "iki" which is an informal way of saying goodbye in Lithuanian. It's more like "see you later". (It's also the name of the grocery store, as pictured here, where I did most of my shopping.) As I hugged my friends for the last time before I left, I mostly said "iki" or "paka" (in Russian), with a hope that my leaving was more of a "see you later" than a "goodbye".

Klaipedos Vaiku Globos Namai RYTAS

Over the semester I've had the opportunity to do a psychology practicum at two different places working with children. One is called Rytas Orphanage (see title above for the Lithuanian name), and the other is called the Children's Day Center (Vaiku Dienos Centras). It has been a really special experience for me to do my practicum here. Saying goodbye to the children, and to the volunteers I work with is going to be hard.
At both places, I've done a variety of things with the children. Most of my time is just spent playing with or (trying to) talk to them. (My Lithuanian has improved somewhat through my time with them, but I've also learned more about non-verbal communication.) I also help them with homework, as long as it's either English or math homework. Sometimes there are crafts or games planned that I join in. At the Day Center, another practicum student, Sarah, and I started doing an English lesson once a week. I have helped take the children from the Day Center to the cinema for a movie, gone out for pizza with some of the older boys at the orphanage, and played baseball with the kids and some volunteers.

I have had a lot of fun, but it has also been a challenging experience in some ways. Slowly, I've started to learn more about where the children are coming from. In the Day Center, most of the children come from homes where one or both parents have struggles with alcohol. Quite a few of the kids have learning disabilities and emotional struggles. Some days I can see a lot of pain and sadness in some of their eyes. That is where it's really hard not being able to fluently speak the language. I have been learning how to show care and empathy without words.
There are about 65 kids living at the orphanage between the ages of 4 and 18. I found out that only between five and ten of them are actually without parents. Most of them have families who have for some reason or another given them up, or have chosen not to take care of them properly so that the children were removed from the home. I do think that the orphanage is a good place, that the caregivers take good care of the kids, but it is hard for me to think about them going to bed each night in what is similar to a dorm room, instead of at a home with parents to tuck them in.

As I said before, saying goodbye will be hard, but this semester I have been learning more how to trust God. I have to trust that he continues to watch over and take care of these children, and use people in their lives to show them his love. It is comforting to know that God is with them.

Moscow and St. Petersburg

Spending a week in a country where very little English is spoken or written, and the national language has a completely foreign alphabet, is a very cool experience. Last week I was in Russia with all of the other North American study abroad students at LCC and seven leaders, six of whom spoke Russian. We were all extremely thankful to have them along with us on the trip. We would've been lost without them.
There are so many highlights from the trip that it would be impossible to tell them all here. So, I'll just give you a few.
1. Red Square at night! That picture is of St. Basil's Cathedral, which is in Red Square. My group walked around there one night after going to a ballet, which was also a major highlight for me.
2. The Moscow Metro system. It is supposedly one of the most intense metros in the world, with around 8 million people using it every single day!
3. The bridges and rivers of St. Petersburg. I think there are around 60 rivers in the city, which means that the city is basically made up of a bunch of little islands.
4. A Russian Sauna with 34 other girls... a good bonding experience, and a great way to end our week.
5. Spending time with the other American students, as well as our leaders (five of them are international students at LCC). It was fun getting to know people better on this trip.
My Russia trip was great. I was actually kind of sad to leave, but I am glad to be back in Lithuania at LCC. I'm excited that I still have seven weeks to spend at this place that has become so special to me! (Oh, and seven weeks is plenty of time to still get letters! Feel free to write me if you want. I love mail!)

Getting Ready for Russia!

It's been about a month since I last wrote, and another quarter of my semester has come and gone. It's hard to believe I'm about halfway through my time here. The last month has been a bit different from my first month here. I've gotten into more of a routine with my schoolwork and with my psychology practicum. For that, I have been spending time at an orphanage and also at a day center for kids whose parents have problems with alcohol. I have really enjoyed spending time with and getting to know the kids. I know this is a huge part of my experience here in Lithuania that I will really treasure and appreciate.
An unexpected change that has taken place is a room change. I had been living in a four-person room with five people, and I was sleeping on a mattress on the floor. A spot in a different room opened up, and so I moved and now have an actual bed! I now live with three girls from different countries, one from Belarus, one from Latvia, and one from Ukraine. Their names are Masha, Masha, and Dasha! It has been cool to have had the opportunity to live with four girls from Lithuania in my first room, and now three more girls from different countries. Instead of hearing Lithuanian spoken in my room, I hear Russian. (In LCC, Russian is probably more commonly spoken than Lithuanian.) It's been fun learning bits and pieces of both languages since I've been here.
Aside from schoolwork, my practicum, and moving to a new room, I have continued to really enjoy getting to know people here at LCC, both students and staff. One night I got to go to a professor's family's home to make dinner with his wife, and I brought along two of my friends, Jenia and Christina (we're in the picture above). The staff are really amazing here. They pour a lot into the students' lives, and just genuinely really care about them.
Well, I should probably get some sleep now, because tomorrow I will be leaving for Russia! For fall break, the study abroad students always take a trip to Moscow and St. Petersburg. I'm really excited! I'll let you know how it went once I get back!

Riga & Tallinn

Over the past weekend, I went on a trip with all of the study abroad students to the capitals of Latvia and Estonia. It was a very cool experience. In Riga, we went through a museum and learned about Latvia's history including German and Soviet occupation. It's neat being able to learn about the history of a country while I'm actually in that country! We also spent a little time exploring the city, and of course, I stopped with some friends to have tea!
From Riga we traveled north to Tallinn, which is in the northern part of Estonia. I loved it there! The architecture and the colors of the buildings were awesome! One of the highlights of Tallinn was having dinner at a midieval restaurant called Old Hansa. It was very authentic, with amazing food and music! I'd recommend it if you're ever in Estonia! :)

Intercultural Olympics!

Me and my friend Cristina, who is from Moldova.The international team hard at work in tug-of-war.
This is me and some friends taking a break.

Four weeks already!

Wow, it seems crazy that I've been in Lithuania for four weeks (and in Europe for six)! This has definitely become my home away from home for the time being. It's been about two weeks since I've last written, so I'll give you a little update on what's been going on here.
Two weekends ago we had this thing called Intercultural Olympics at LCC. There were five teams made up of students from Belarus, Lithuania, Ukraine, U.S., and one International team with students from all different countries. We got third place, but we did win the "sportsmanship award"! It was a really fun day and the weather was beautiful!
I've settled into life as an LCC student. My classes are going pretty well, nothing too intense. My favorite is a class called Intro to Theology taught by this brilliant man named Steve Dintamen. It's kind of neat because this is one of the required Bible classes for all of the students. Even though this school is called Lithuania Christian College, a very small percentage of the students are actually Christians. I would say that most students choose to come here in order to improve their english, and because of scholarships that are offered by LCC. But after being here for only a short time so far, I can tell that this is a really special place. I've had some neat conversations with a couple of friends who have definitely been encouraged in their search for God since coming here.
Okay, what else... I've gone to the sea a few more times, and it is still just so beautiful. The weather has been incredible for this whole first month! They call it an Indian Summer, just like we have in the U.S.
On Monday, I celebrated my 21st birthday, and it was a really special day for me. It was a fun experience being able to celebrate in a different country. I didn't know if it would be strange having a birthday without any family or close friends from the U.S. around, but my friends here made me feel so special. I got chocolates from Latvia, Belarus, and Lithuania, flowers from a couple of different friends, and three cakes! Two of my friends from Ukraine brought me a cake in the early evening, then I went out to dinner with some friends and Meredith had made me a cake on behalf of my family, and when I got back to my room, my roommates had a cake waiting for me. It was a very memorable birthday!
Today, I'll be leaving for a weekend trip to Riga and Tallinn, the capitals of Latvia and Estonia, with all of the Study Abroad students from North America. I'm pretty excited. I've heard these are both really cool cities, and it will be fun to spend more time with some of my American friends.
As always, my hope is that everyone is doing well back home! I'd love to hear from you (real letters are preferred)! Ephesians 6v23-24