Learning patience

As we wait and wait for the arrival of our container and for all the proper papers to be processed and accepted by customs, I often wonder if we really need all that "stuff".  We've lived for 2 1/2 months without it and now I can't remember half of what we own.  Amazing how the things you think you can't live without become lost in memory after only a couple months.  Nevertheless, it WILL be nice to sit on a couch rather than the floor and to sleep in a REAL bed!  I think it will be a little like Christmas as we unpack boxes and are reminded of all the "stuff" we just can't live without!  A life application lesson that the whole family will hopefully not be soon to forget!

 

The snow is melting a little each day and with it the anticipation that I will soon be able to take Naomi for walks in her stroller.  You see the snow has prevented us from exploring our new neighborhood as it nearly impossible to maneuver a stroller through the snow-packed roads.  Naomi and I are home alone on most weekdays as Catalin takes the girls to school in the morning and then is busy with visa applications, gathering all the necessary paperwork, attempting to secure our container and arranging all the details associated with its transport to Bucharest.  He is also spending as much time as possible at the medical clinic where he is hoping to provide administrative assistance.  So Naomi and I have been spending a lot of time at home.  At times I feel like a prisoner as my independence as I know it to be (i.e. wheels and the freedom to go...) have been stripped and I am forced to become independent in other ways.  Now, don't get me wrong, I'm not writing this for you to feel sorry for me, I'm just expressing my feelings.  I'm trying to take the opportunity to meet my neighbors as much as I can.  I've met several people from various floors of the building.  Some meetings have been nothing more than a "good day" (buna ziua) while others have spoken some English with me as word gets around quickly that an American family lives here.  Everyone has been quite friendly so I am hopeful that friendships can be formed the longer we live here. 

I am also having an interesting time cooking.  I say "interesting" because I seem to be learning something new about the food here each time I cook (or try to cook)!  For example, I bought ground beef to make spaghetti but was very disappointed as we gnawed our way through the meal.  It wasn't ground the "American way" and was therefore so tough that I ended up throwing it out.  I hate throwing away food but everything I tried to do to remedy the toughness just made it taste worse.  So you can understand my elation when shopping at a small "supermarket" I spotted what looked like "American ground beef".  I had to try it!  And to my delight it cooked up and tasted the way I expected it to.  Wow, I was thrilled....it doesn't take much these days!  Then there's cheese....you have never seen so much cheese in your life!  But as I roam the isles of wall-to-wall cheese I see no hint of cheddar.  So what will my kids actually eat?  Thankfully they like Feta cheese because there are about 50 different kinds of Feta (I may be exaggerating just a little, but there are LOTS of different kinds)!  Well, you get the idea.  Shopping is a cultural experience in itself.  Not only does everything look different but at some shops you have to fight the crowds just to manipulate your cart down the isle.  No kidding....I was pushing my cart down an isle and seeing some items that I needed to my left I contemplated releasing my grip on my cart in order to grab the items off the shelf.  But as if I was caught in the river rapids I knew that if I let go of my cart I would cause a traffic jam so I planned to go with "the flow" and then at the end of the isle turn around and come back the other way.  My plan almost worked but I was cut-off by some employees of the store who were using an inopportune time to restock the shelves.  I was forced to turn around again and never did find my way back to that isle for my needed purchases.  Ugh!  I'll try again next time! 

 

So in all my frustration I'm attempting to maintain an attitude of gratitude.  After all, I DO have so much to be thankful for.  I'm thankful that I have the option to buy the food I need for my family, thankful for a car to transport the groceries, thankful for a warm home and a new refrigerator in which to put them.  I am reminded of the verse in Philippians 3:19 which says, "And my God will supply all your needs according His riches in glory in Christ Jesus."  God continues to supply our daily needs, and He even throws in a few "wants".... perhaps just to put a smile on my face and remind me that He is there even in my frustration. :-)

 

Shannon