Saturday, June 11, 2005

Saturday, June 11, 2005
I just got back from classes, which ended at noon with the first exam over Hermeneutics. The students were worried that the exam would be too hard, so we reviewed together for an hour before the exam, and I think everyone did okay. I gave them a weekend assignment to select a passage of Scripture from either Testament from which to do an exegesis presentation next week and to study from a list of Greek words which will be on the exam this coming Thursday.

The last few days have been a blur – I haven’t had time in the evenings to catch you up what is going on here in Chilny, but here is a quick resume (sorry if some of this is repetiton, but I am typing as thoughts take shape and don’t remember what I wrote earlier).

Classes start at 9 am and go for 50 min. then minute break (which is usually filled with ping pong, I taught them how to play group ping pong starting with about 12 around the table – they love it) for 10 min. Classes continue until noon, then we break for lunch, and back to class at 1 pm and go until 6 pm. It makes for a long day, but time well spent.

Sam, I am taking a lot of pictures. I love this digital camera! I have some pretty good pictures.

The other day I mentioned that we should eat some ice cream (marozhenae), and they keep bringing it for me, which I share with everyone else. They have a room off the classroom for my personal comfort, in which they stock fresh fruit, tea, juices, cookies, and now ice cream. They definitely are treating me very well – too well! They are very kind and hospitable and thankful that I have come this far to teach them.

Today the cook, who wears a white chef’s hat, told me that she was worried about cooking for an American, thinking that the cooking would not be good enough. The food is really great and they go out their way to accomodate me. I have eaten more meat (myasa) then ever in Russia. And my host family’s wife is cooking up a storm for me. I really enjoy living with a family for a lot of reasons which may be obvious, but it helps me to learn Russian and to refine my pronunciations. Last night I was reading, or trying to pronounce, one of Luda’s books which is a Russian primer that works through the alphabet giving pronunciations of various verb conjugations. So with Luda on my lap, we were learning Russian together (she is 7). Sam and Laura, she loves to play with me on the floor where she runs at me and I flip her over me onto my legs. She had never done that before. I wonder if my Dad invented that, because I have never seen anyone else do it. And Laura, she loves to swing the way I swung you countless time, and we both loved it.

So here I am back with my host family on Saturday afternoon. I think I will take a nap and study for tomorrow’s sermon – what a luxury!

Hopefully tomorrow I can add more to this continuing saga from the Motherland.

Love to all!
Dad