“Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
And lean not on your own understanding.
In all your ways acknowledge him,
And he will make your paths straight.” Prov. 3:5-6
It’s a Friday night, my two room-mates are out and I’m home alone with our black and white cat, Matroshka, who is asleep in her new favorite spot – the top of my wardrobe. I’ve got a small oscillating fan blowing to help me endure the summer heat wave that is July in Moldova. The full moon is has risen over the horizon with its gentle glow illuminating my 5th storey balcony and bedroom.
In my ears are children’s songs that I sang repeatedly all week at a day camp with an ocean of 300 little ones. My whole body hurts from the physical exertion required to play basketball, soccer, volleyball, capture the flag, relay races, ping pong, foozball, and frisbee for five days straight as well as referee, counsel, comfort, dance and sing with children of all types.
Joining the Don Bosco team was a good experiece – 40 team leaders, many of them youth themselves. We were from five countries (and languages): Moldova, Romania, Italy, Poland and me, American. Check out pictures of our time on the blog: donbosco-chisinau.blogspot.com (pictures with me only during the first week, July 10-15).
During this week I learned that you don’t need to have a perfectly organized program to have a good time. There is something special about just coming together, belonging to a group, that makes the children feel special. Their capacity for joy gave me energy to keep up with their dance until the last day. The camp will continue for another week, but I’ve got other plans.
The time has come for me to be near my family as we say goodbye to my dear grandfather, Leon James Cone Jr. I will take a short leave of absence and travel to New Hampshire as we celebrate his life and legacy and grieve this loss together. Thank you for your prayers and continued loving support.
Our WMF Moldova team is preparing a camp for about 25 children from the orphanage, August 8-20. Please keep us in prayer for this time as well. If this last camp was about breadth (reaching as many kids as possible) this camp in August will be about depth. We want to keep it small so that we can go deep with the children we already know and plan to continue mentoring throughout the school year.
In Christ,
Rachel