Arrival of Advent

Advent is my favorite season of the church calendar. I enjoy all of the ways that preparing for Christ's birth on earth is emphasized through the traditions of opening Advent calendar tabs, lighting Advent candles & spending time reading the prophecies of an Emmanuel promised to the Israelites told in the stories of the Old Testament. Our gathering in church this last Sunday night highlighted the way that God emptied himself by coming to earth in human flesh as a baby. It's odd that those of us in the West are used to celebrating Christmas by piling more on ourselves - more parties, more commitments, more lists, & more material things. Is this our symbolic way of preparing to celebrate God's arrival on earth? I don't know if it will be any different over here in Lithuania. Although there were no signs of Black Friday happening down at the nearby mall, I have already seen the hints of materialism and its control here during some of my experiences thus far. While my disapproval of materialism lasts longer than just the Advent season, I am hoping to hold on to the Christmas traditions that seem to be more about preparing my heart and soul and mind to be involved in the ways of God here on earth instead of making sure I have my gifts and social calendar perfectly arranged. I know that I don't have to wait until December comes around each year to try this way of life, but that is why I am thankful for the changing seasons of the church that remind me and guide me to prepare myself to be involved in God's work on earth.

I start with a thankful heart. I look around and count the blessings. I look back at this last week of Thanksgiving and see the real things and experiences that have been given to me in my part of the world. I am encouraged by the stories I hear of how God is showing up in the lives of others around the world. I would like to share a few thanks that come to mind.

I am thankful for Skype and the ability to stay connected around the world.

I am thankful that pickled pumpkin tastes almost just as good as Thanksgiving pumpkin pie back home.

I am thankful for my staff of student leaders that is willing to celebrate Thanksgiving by humoring me and eating this thing we call pumpkin pie.

Most importantly of all, I am thankful for the support of Steve & Laura Hanson, our fellow Minnesotans across the hall...as well as the use of their kitchen appliances...and don't forget about all of our late night games of 500. Thank you, God, for friends.

Thanksgiving in Lithuania - 2009

shipping overseas 411

The months of October & November brought the arrival of our first packages since living abroad. Thank you AmySue! Thank you mom! Thank you Trish & Pat! Thank you Karen! I have always loved receiving mail, but I believe that moving to a different country is definitely the way to make mail of all shapes and sizes the best thing ever. All of the North Americans working at LCC appear to have similar feelings about getting mail in Lithuania, demonstrated by the large smiles pasted on faces when you see someone walking around with a highly coveted package. A Lithuanian student asked me one day, "What do you get in those packages? I can't understand what is so exciting about the stuff you get in those packages that you couldn't possible get here (Lithuania)." I had to laugh as I tried to explain that people are excited about the contents of their mail because it often includes food items or baking ingredients that we use a lot back home, but doesn't seem to exist in the stores over here. I listed off the things that first came to mind, "Well, of course there's peanut butter, baking powder, chocolate chips, brown sugar, American candy...I know there are others too," but I couldn't seem to come up with a very impressive list of our needs that aren't getting met here in Lithuania. Although my answer may not have satisfied this girl, it made me realize that the best thing about getting mail in a foreign country is that it helps me feel remembered. My absence is noticed and I am being thoughtfully and physically considered by the people I left behind.

The following is in no way intended to be a desperate plea for packages, but a mere mention of some simple, yet helpful information for sending packages overseas to your loved ones. Please keep this in mind. Declare the value of the package to be less than $50 for customs purposes. If the stated value of the package is greater than $50, it requires a lot of money for the person picking it up (us!) from the post office on the other end. Believe me, we found this out the hard way. You are already spending an arm and a leg to mail something in the first place, so keep this in mind to help prevent the pain of another leg on the other side. It will make the arrival of your package an experience of pure bliss and anticipation. And guarantees that your recipient will thank you.

another reason to give thanks

It's Thanksgiving Eve here in Lithuania, even though Lithuania doesn't acknowledge the fact. Still, I am thankful tonight. Erik had a bunch of music practices this evening and I had a lot of work to still do, so I decided to do my sit myself down in the lobby and be a part of the student activities. One of the student activities happening tonight is a photo scavenger hunt competition. I remember doing a photo scavenger hunt during my college days that took us all over the Roseville, MN vicinity. I remember that I had a blast...trying to get strangers to do ridiculous things and than taking a picture to verify the ridiculous things we had done. It looks and sounds like these student are having a blast tonight as well. The event is confined to the residence hall and there are 4 teams of students running around trying to take the most pictures and see who can get the most points.

I am laughing quietly to myself as I think about the reason this event is happening. It's all part of my creative, strategic, and of course calculated, attempts to create community in Neumann Hall. Part of my job as Resident Director entails coming up with consequences for students who violate policies. I have made it my goal to hand out consequences that are as related to the behavior as possible. Hosting drinking parties in the dorms is exclusive to others and is disrespectful because it requires students to hide their behavior from the rest of the community. I am always trying to consider the possible ways that students can give back to the community around them. Therefore, I have required students to plan and coordinate hall events that encourage appropriate behavior and invite others to join in the fun. Sounds easy enough, right? To tell you the truth, I am surprised at how intimidating this type of consequence is to students. Sometimes the process is painfully slow and discouraging. At other times, I am amazed at the result.

Tonight our photo scavenger hunt organizers were two female Lithuanian students in their 3rd year at LCC. These ladies usually avoid attending organized events or anything that looks too much like community, yet I can tell that they are natural leaders within their social group on campus. It took them awhile to own the event, but it was neat to watch them problem solve and work through the issues that our RAs commonly face when trying to plan activities. I have noticed that there are LCC students that attend almost every single event that happens on campus and then there are others that seem difficult to convince to attend any event at all. 99% of tonight's photo scavenger hunt participants were definitely from the latter group I described. I could hardly believe my eyes when I saw which students were racing noisily around the residence hall trying to find the most photos before time ran out. I witnessed real enthusiasm and real laughter. I was even asked to be in some of the photos taken for the competition. It made my day. To top it all off, another group of ladies that I had given the same consequence to came back from hosting their event in Karklu, the other LCC residence hall. Their report was really positive. They said that the students had a good time, and they even admitted that each of them had a good time as well.

Today I am thankful for photo scavenger hunts. And the laughter that comes as a result. And the times when life works out even better than I expect.

our winter wonderland

I believe there are some things worth mentioning and some things worth celebrating. I don't know which one this is, but it's important to announce it anyway. Lithuania has SNOW! This photo is the morning view outside our window today. It's November 5th and winter has officially begun here. The first snow always brings a mysterious excitement with it for me. It is especially mysterious for me today as I have no idea what to expect from snow or winter in Lithuania. I can tell the wind is blowing fiercely, and yet the scene appears beautiful from my perspective inside our cozy apartment. I think I would rather stay inside today, but I have to admit there is something thrilling about bundling up as much as possible in all of my warmest layers and stepping out to brave the elements. I will probably have the chance to experience both today.

Our Baltic Tour

Erik and I got back last night from traveling the Baltic countries. We are SO glad that we left ourselves a cushion of 24 hours on either end of the 7-day trip so that we can slowly enter back into normal life today. We feel thankful for the chance we had to get away. Our spirits are refreshed and our interest in life at LCc has renewed energy. I propose that everyone should follow the schedule of a student. It is so helpful to occasionally switch up one's routine and pace of life in order to better focus on one's work. Ah, the seasons of life.

Speaking of seasons, the sun didn't rise until 7:42 this morning. As I write, the sun is on its way down, officially scheduled to set at 4:56 this afternoon. Sunshine is becoming an elusive memory around here, scarcely coming out of the clouds in between all the rain showers. I hope to take advantage of my time indoors this winter. Some of my aspirations include reading books, working on knitting projects, and continuing my study of the Lithuanian language. I am hoping to read books and watch documentaries that help me learn more about the history and culture in the Baltic countries. My attention was captured while exploring this last week and I realize I still have a lot more to learn.

Quick Trip Summary - We took a bus from KLAIPEDA to RIGA, the capital of Latvia. From there we rode a bus to TARTU, a university town in the country of Estonia. We went by train from Tartu to the capitol city of Estonia, TALLINN. Yesterday we took a 9-hour bus ride back home to KLAIPEDA from Tallinn through Riga. I included the map so that you can get an idea of how accessible these places are to each other. My friends and I used to drive the 8-hours out to McLaughlin to spend the weekend in South Dakota in college. That is pretty much the same distance we traveled to get to our farthest destination this week. The part that stands out to me is how different everything is in between these 2 cities only 300 miles apart. These photos will give an idea of what Erik and I saw on our journey, starting with RIGA.

The city of Riga is situated next to the Daugava river and is filled with beautiful old buildings (in Art-Nouveau style for any art history buffs) and lots of statues and monuments. The Freedom Monument, erected in 1935, is one of my favorite statues of the week. It is a symbol of Latvian independence and continues to function as an unofficial location for political debates. When we there, we were able to witness the hourly changing of the guard. You can see the flowers that people bring to cover the base platform of the statue.

On a very important note, The Museum of Occupation in Latvia provided a detailed timeline with pictures of the Soviet and Nazi occupations between 1940 and 1991. Of the 3 Occupation museums we have visited, this presentation was the easiest one to follow, showing the progression of the events in history, as well as the dismantling of culture, education, and economy in Latvia as a result of these events. On a less important note, we also found a bakery similar to Hermann's Bakery in Cambridge that we visited twice for its very delicious Latvian pastries and lattes. Our next stop was TARTU, a university town in Estonia of 101,000 people and 11 institutions of higher education.

Erik and I noticed a difference about Estonia immediately upon our arrival. It was obvious that education and the arts are valued in Estonian culture. Research, philosophy, literature, and music were emphasized by the things we saw and read, as well as by our interactions with people. It was fun to be among students who were creative and idealistic. We didn't even realize how much we had missed the presence of this until we witnessed it again in Tartu.

We enjoyed our 24-hour stay here, which included walking through multiple parks, reading more descriptions of statues, touring old church structures, eating at delicious restaurants and cafes, and even a brief visit to Tartu University's Medicine Faculty building with its "Frankenstein-style exhibition of all kinds of body parts." Eek. Too many preserved body parts for me. Then again, I don't know how many preserved body parts I would actually enjoy seeing. Not my deal. And of course, Tartu wouldn't be a college town without a second hand store. We checked out Humana (the Baltic version of Savers) before grabbing a bite to eat and heading out of town on our way to the capital of Estonia, the coastal city of TALLINN.

Our hostel in Tallinn happened to be the 7th floor penthouse suite of one of the new commercial buildings near Old Town. I have no idea how we got so lucky. It seriously came up as the cheapest price as I was booking a place to stay for the last 3 nights of our trip. We have a funny story about our experience here, but I'll save that for another conversation. Ask me about our shady hostel host sometime.

Tallinn combines a unique mixture of building structures; medieval style, Soviet times style, Soviet-remodeled to modern style, and brand new modern style buildings form an architectural mosaic. We appreciated the variety. We continued our touring by strolling the windy streets of Old Town. We ate Estonian style pancakes and listened to live jazz. We visited the Museum of Occupations and watched video footage of the Soviet control in Estonia. We walked the promenade through Kadriorg Park down to the sea to the mermaid statue, passing a palace and 19th century villas along the way. A friend that we met on the train to Tallinn offered to show us around the city one day and took us to a modern art exhibit at Kumu (Art Museum of Estonia), which was given "The 2008 European Museum of the Year Award." She even brought us along to her professor's art show that night where we got a personal tour and explanation of the paintings from the artist himself.

Thanks for staying tuned to hear about our trip. We are back home and ready to stick around Klaipeda for a while. Please come and visit. We'll bring you with us on our next Baltic road trip!

Museums

It's autumn here in Lithuania and this week is fall break if you are a student and staff at LCC. I am thankful to say that I am not the RD on duty this week, leaving Erik and I free to explore the neighboring countries of this place we are beginning to call home. We took Saturday to recover from a full week of work and classes before we threw our packs on our backs and ran to the bus station this morning to catch the Eurolines Lux Express for a 5 hour bus ride north to Riga, the capitol city of Latvia. Since stepping off the bus in this beautiful city of ornate architecture and many statues, Erik and I have been wondering how it is that a city less that 150 miles away as the crow flies can actually feel as if we are in a completely different country, complete with its very own language. Although we can tell that the Latvian language is definitely related to Lithuanian, Erik and I are realizing that our basic Lithuanian phrases aren't getting us anywhere now that we are in Latvia. Good thing so many of the young people here speak English.

The bulk of our afternoon was spent in the Occupation Museum of Latvia in Old Town. This was our second time seeing and hearing the telling of the Russian and German occupations of Eastern Europe since making a Baltic nation our home. The first time was earlier in October when we travelled to Vilnius, Lithuania's capitol city. We spent hours walking through The Museum of Genocide Victims (also called the KGB Museum), hearing and reading about the people and events of Lithuania's tumultuous and tragic history over the last hundred years. Both museums do an incredibly detailed job of recounting the story of the Baltic perspective to those of us that lived on the other side of the globe and were less involved in the struggles caused by the Soviet and Nazi regimes. I have included a web address below for you to check out if you are interested in hearing about our time at the KGB Museum in a round about sort of way by reading the blog entry of a friend of ours that experienced the museum with us. I would highly recommend checking it out as she is an excellent writer. Once you get to Michelle's blog, you will need to scroll down to her October 4 entry.

http://mwebsterhein.blogspot.com/

So what do I do with this story I am learning? What I read and saw today at the Occupation Museum of Latvia is adding to my understanding of people here. Not only am I becoming informed of the atrocities that people here faced - deportation, imprisonment, executions - I am also starting to understand the ways this story has affected the current generation through my interactions with and observations of students at LCC. I am by no means an expert on the whole topic, but I am thankful for this hands-on way to have history and today connect in such an unmistakable way. It is my hope to share with you as Erik and I see, hear, and continue to take it all in.

Fall Retreat

"Oh, man." This is a phrase that I have noticed myself saying a lot lately. Why don't I ever say, "Oh, woman." I don't know. I guess it doesn't come out that way. Erik and I have just returned from our first official RA retreat with my very first RA staff as an RD . I have so many fond memories of RA (Resident Assistant for those non-Student Life people) retreats from my time in student leadership at Northwestern College. There was the round-trip van ride to Chicago with a day in between to explore downtown Chicago one year. And then there was the camping trip north of Duluth, MN where we used much of our hiking energy to stop and take staff portraits along the way, trying to capture how beautiful we were amidst the autumn colors. What I remember thinking about these retreats was how lucky I was to be an RA. I loved the fact that we were required to take a weekend each semester to get to know each other. What's better than "mandatory hanging out?"

Mandatory hanging out doesn't seem to get the same response from students here. We have midterms coming up this next week at LCC and I felt like I was having a hard time convincing my staff to relax and have fun for the 24 hours I stole out of their busy schedules to spend an evening and a day for the purpose of having fun with each other. We "retreated" to a staff member's summer cottage that is located on a beautiful wooded lot, complete with indoor sauna and multiple fireplaces. I was looking forward to getting away from campus and all of our discipline issues of the last month and I could tell my RAs were needing a break as well. We ate lots of food, played games, watched a movie, visited the sauna, and had a group discussion to check-in about the year. Now I am back home and find myself wondering if people enjoyed themselves. I know that it ultimately isn't in my control. I can only be intentional in providing opportunities for people to connect.

I am just learning more and more how different this place is. Work and relationships seem to be so very separate. My RAs seek to be excellent in all of the areas they invest themselves individually. They strive to get good grades academically. They are motivated to interact with the residents on their halls, make sure policies are enforced, and plan floor events. As well, each of them is highly social within their own friend groups. I am noticing that this doesn't necessarily carry over into our time together as a staff. For the most part, all of them respect each other and even like each other enough to call one another friends. Something that I am noticing when we are all together as a staff is that business is purely business and not as much relational effort is put forth (I should clarify that it's not as much relational effort as I would expect to see.) If it's required, they want to know my agenda and what they can expect to gain from our time together. This approach isn't necessarily wrong, it is just so different from my past experiences in Student Life and even my personal approach as an individual. It doesn't mean I won't continue to dream and hope and put energy into creating a united team in ways that I have experienced it in my life. It may have to be through other means...maybe non-mandatory fun opportunities. The end result may even look different than how I imagine it now. I may have to get there though a different approach. So, once again, I am remembering that I am here at LCC seeking to understand more than to be understood. I know Erik and I have a lot to bring to this place. I also know we have a lot to learn from this place. This is just one observation along the way...As well as one photo I have to document the retreat. I kept waiting until I could tell that everyone was really enjoying themselves, but then decided I had better at least capture something.

And then another picture of us from a different weekend. This is already out-dated because 24 hours after the picture was taken, Erik shaved off the beard. Seems about right. Winter is coming and he gets rid of the beard. It has been funny to see people's reactions to his bare face. Lots of comments and looks of surprise.

2nd Annual Ugly Duckling Cup

Did I mention that Erik and I have a lake in our backyard? We probably would have said, "No, there's no way that can be called a lake...that's a pond," at the start of being at LCC. Now my perspective has changed and I sometimes catch myself calling it Neumann Lake. Well, today a few of our students floated and paddled their way across Neumann Lake through the wind and rain in hopes of becoming the victorious team to take home the Ugly Duckling Cup trophy. I'll let the video I have attached explain the rest. Notice you don't see the end of the race. That's because our team's (East Crew) raft sunk in the 2nd attempt to cross the lake. It was still good fun to watch. The other 2 rafts did surprisingly well, in spite of the fact that they all looked like a pile of trash crossing the water. Oh well, there's always hopes of taking home the trophy next year.

ps-Yes, if you pay attention to the video closely, you'll be able to see the Johnstrand's 3 Rubbermaid bins under our team's raft. They seemed like a good idea during the brainstorming last night, but the submerging began once all the bins had filled up with water. It's good to know that our Rubbermaid bins can serve a purpose here other than carrying our belongings from the States all the way to Lithuania.

pps-Pay attention even more closely, and you'll see a brief appearance of the Johnstrand-duo as well. :)

The family increases

Well, Erik and I have some news. Our family has grown and we have decided to adopt a little girl born in Lithuania who goes by the name of Ieva! What do you think about that? As you can see from the photo, she and Erik get along quite well and spend their time running around together being each others' best playmate. :)

Actually, the true story is that the the adoption is NOT official. Our family has not actually increased in size since our arrival in Klaipeda. It IS true that Erik's best friend here is a 4-year old charming girl named Ieva.

Ieva (pronounced Ye-va) is the daughter of Kim and Andrew Stave, who have both worked at LCC for the last 7 years. Ieva is their oldest child and their son, Isak, was born in the middle of this last June. The Stave's have welcomed us to the LCC community here by offering a home off-campus to visit, where we have made meals together and shared our weekends exploring the city. We appreciate this friendship that has developed so quickly and naturally. It's fun for us to spend time with a couple that brings their kids into the fun that is already happening and are still able to be present with others too. The feelings between Ieva and Erik are mutual and there is nobody that can capture Ieva's attention the way Erik can. I know that Erik is used to being "Mr. Fun" and/or a mobile jungle gym when my cousins are around, so this is helping him stay in practice while we are away from close family for now. We miss you, Wees'.

Yesterday we explored south of the downtown area with the Stave's for a couple of hours. We bought a week's worth of fresh fruit and vegetables from a variety of stands at the local market. Then Kim and Andrew drove us out of town and we headed to Palanga, which is a city on the coast 25 km north of us. Kim's parents are in town visiting for the month and volunteered to babysit the kids. The four of us stopped in a linen store before strolling the boardwalk out to the beach to take in the sea view out on the pier. The night ended with dinner at HBH, which kind of reminded us of a Chucky Cheese meets Disney World, complete with rope courses and a full outdoor basketball court in the middle of the restaurant complex. Well, I wanted to make sure we were introducing some of our new friends. We hope you get to meet them yourself when you come visit us!

bandele's & breakdowns

Erik and I started off our day today with an authentic Lithuanian breakfast. We discovered that we can walk down to the best-tasting bandele shop in town and all the way back to campus in less than an hour. Good to know for those days we wake up to blue-sky mornings. Bandele's are a delicious treat that we discovered a couple of weeks ago. A bandele is essentially a warm, airy, flaky sweet bread roll with different fillings tucked away inside. The best part about them are the endless filling options. You can find chocolate, whole pieces of fruit, cheese and even hotdogs stashed away inside. Erik and I each decided to get 1 cheese and 1 chocolate for our visit today. We grabbed 'em and cruised back before Erik's class began.

I think the beginning and end of the day were the best parts. The middle was not as delightful as the filling I found in my bandele. It was one of those days where I felt overwhelmed with the tasks and conversations before me.

My role as Resident Director in Neumann Hall is to provide security for all the residents, which means I (together with Steve) am supervisor to our Resident Assistants, as well as the receptionists and night guards who sit by the front doors during the day and through the night. Our campus is situated in the middle of the city and it is common for us to have many locals wandering through our property on their way to somewhere else. We also seem to have our share of strange personalities who have nothing better to do than hang around the buildings on campus. I have found it challenging to keep the receptionists at the desk, monitoring who is coming in and out of the building. It is a frustration that seems to come up time and time again. Last night I was coming back from a late afternoon meeting and walked into our apartment as Erik was escorting one of the strange local men out of our apartment. Apparently he walked into the building, past the vacant receptionist desk and then into our place where Erik was doing homework. Well, we were able to persuade our unwelcome visitor to leave the building, but it definitely took some coaxing to get him to leave the property. I don't know if the Lithuanian students were much help in translating, as this man wasn't making much sense in any language - it seemed due to some degree of mental illness combined with alcohol. The more frustrating part about the incident to me was how difficult it was to find the receptionist on-duty and coax her to call the police. I was surprised by her lack of concern to be a part of any solution to our problem. Ah, the joy of supervision. I'll spare you the details about my follow-up as it doesn't really matter to you.

I am finding myself in a culture that seems to have little regard for procedures and policies that keep order and make sense, yet I am responsible to maintain a safe and secure place for students. I am coming from a culture that is so dependent on carrying out the correct steps of action when responding to any type of crisis that I almost feel lost when I haven't been briefed for any and every possible problem. What? I need to think on my feet and make decisions in the moment? On the other hand, should I even expect anyone here to follow my requests, especially when it seems to be a part of their job description?

I definitely think I am overreacting. It isn't as bad as I am making it to sound. But it's different, that's for sure. I will adapt and find balance. I have been told many times by Lithuanians and students here that the police can't do anything if no one was hurt. Well, for now, I'll keep plugging along. Finding the holes and trying to come up with ways (and of course, procedures) to bring helpful change. Taking myself less seriously and realizing that life keeps rolling along... like they tell me, "Nobody got hurt this time."

So even though the middle of my day was all about discipline and other frustrating moments, the end wrapped up as well as the morning. My first staff meeting of the school year with the Neumann East RAs. We met tonight from 8-10 and had a great time. It felt good to laugh. It was good to hear each of them share about themselves. We worked on creating a staff mission statement together before getting down to business. I am really looking forward to the year with this group of student leaders. They are terrific. I consider it an honor to be working so closely with each of them. You can see their beautiful faces in the picture below we took during RA training week.

Tonight I look back and decide I am thankful for the gifts and the challenges that are here before me.

41 Moons Given

Last night Erik and I celebrated our 41st full moon together. What, one might ask, does that even mean? Let me explain. The first walk Erik and I took together just four summers ago up in northern Minnesota happened under a full moon sky...which was shining beautifully on one of the lakes near us. That was the start of us. It wasn't that that we officially started dating or had any monumental conversation during our full moon stroll, but something was started in each of our hearts that would begin to align the direction of our lives. Since that first moon, we have paid attention to the phases of the moon more closely. The waxing and waning that happens in the sky provides a more understandable timetable for our life together. 41 moons makes sense in my head and heart better than if I were to tell someone that I met Erik the summer of 2006 and that we have been married for two years.

The way you celebrate a moon is quite simple. All you need to do is get out under the dark night sky and look up at the moon in all its fullness. You soak its beauty in with your eyes. You notice the way it lights up the night around you as it reflects the light of the sun back onto the earth. Ha! I am laughing at my description because I have never thought of teaching someone how to do this. It's sounding like some ancient pagan practice by some more serious lunar followers. Well, Erik and I have celebrated some of our moons next to each other and some of them in separate states. I always liked thinking that we could see the same moon even if I was at Grandpa's house in Washington and he was out in the field with students in the Utah wilderness. The moon is a piece of Creation that we pay attention to more closely as it symbolizes our love for each other. I am thankful for 41 moons given.

We watched the full moon last night from the roof of our house, which happens to be a university dormitory with six floors. It was fun to listen to the night sounds of our new city on a rather calm Friday night. Our watching almost always brings us back to talking about our first moon and all the life that has happened since then. We have full hearts as we look back.

Our first month spent living in eastern Europe has increased our interest in the people and culture around us. We are excitedly trying to progress in the language and I was even able to sign up for the same class as Erik for Lithuanian 101. Erik has jumped in with both feet as he completed his first week of the fall semester as a student registered for 8 classes! (It appears as if all of his semesters at LCC will be quite full if he is wanting to be able to graduate within 2 years.) I find myself in one of my dream jobs as a Resident Director here at LCC. The challenges and demands of the job are sometimes consuming, but I know that learning the ropes is taking a lot of my energy and attention right now. I enjoy this beginning and am looking forward to a more balanced pace of life once I figure out how to live and work and socialize all in one place.

I am really eager to invest in these students. I know I have much to learn from them and their stories. There are over 21 countries represented in the LCC student body this year. It makes for quite an interesting mix of people. The other day I answered the phone in the lobby and I could tell that the caller was speaking Lithuanian. I tried to find someone in the crowd in the lobby that could help me out with translation. You would be surprised at how long it took me to find a Lithuanian speaker in that busy lobby. I was struck with the diversity that is in this place. The stories will continue to happen and I will continue to share them with you.

My Take on it All, Ej

So, its approaching 3 weeks tomorrow that we got here. It sure doesn't seem like its been three weeks. In some ways it feels longer, and in others it feels shorter.

I think that moving to another country is bizarre, I was just talking to Becky about this yesterday. Hopping in an airplane and being transported within hours to some other country, on the far side of the world, and yet I didn't really experience the distance that I travelled. I mean to look on a map or globe and see Lithuania in comparison to where we were, I just cannot comprehend it. It is probably similar to what getting older feels like. You may not have felt like you lived 60, 70, 80 years to get to the place where you are, but you did. You actually are that old. And no matter what it felt like we are where we are. Its nice to have things make you stop in the present moment and think about what brought you here. And where Becky and I find ourselves is quite enjoyable.

I was righting an email to my friend Erick Briden yesterday and I was telling him about three things that I have truly enjoyed about being here. First, the Baltic Sea. We are about a thirty minute walk from the beach (which upon walking everywhere since being here, it doesn't seem that long now). The beach is so beautiful. I have gone there many days so far and just laid on the beach with a book, or an audio version of one, and just watched the sun and sea. It is good for the my soul to sit and watch that pair.

Secondly, the forest. There is an enormous pristine forest almost right outside our door. The university, where we live, is on the north side of town. Up here there is this huge swath of forest that sits between us and the Sea. I don't really know how big it is, but I will go walking for hours in there and not find the end of it. The trees are huge and there is thick moss on the ground. There is an immense trail system, nothing paved or marked by any signs. It feels like some universalist's dream, cause all these paths are so winding and interwoven it seems like they do lead to the same place. Other than it being flat, it looks similar to the forests in British Columbia, Canada that I was in for a couple of summers.

And finally, the town. Klaipeda is a good sized city, but the down town/old town is pretty quaint and cozy, its easy to feel familiar with it. There are all sorts of old buildings and streets to explore. The restaurants are really great. The prices are good and the food is wonderful. It is just meat and potatoes, but man, do they know how to cook.

Other than those things, I have been playing basketball, recording songs, and getting ready for school. Also, I have been trying to learn the language, and boy is this one a doozy. I learned some french in middle school and high school, and this is considerably more difficult. I heard that since this is arguably one of the, if not the oldest language, instead of simplifying over the centuries they decided to go the other route and just continue to make "exceptions". Which we all know is often not the best approach to take in life or, as it turns out, languages, as the case may be. And I think I like it more for that.

As for the school itself and the community of LCC I have been very encouraged. What struck me about it was the similarity it bares to my favorite communities that I have lived amongst. The staff here are gathered around a purpose to serve people for the sake of love, through their faith in Jesus. We gather as people who believe in God, and we want to better peoples lives with relationships, personal growth, and faith . And this place could use some softening through love.

The culture is one that seems to be about a hardened exterior for protection. Due to their past they have needed to adapt to the realities that they lived in, which sadly is an inability to trust anyone because of the Soviet times. I have heard stories of peoples grandma's getting sent to work camps in Siberia for singing old Lithuanian folk songs and getting told on for it. Folk songs for cryin' out loud. So everyone learned not to trust people who are not their closest family, much less people of different nationalities.

My experience with the people has been mixed. Some people are rude and seem to be angry, trying to keep a tough guy image, while others have been really friendly and helpful. Walking down the street I have experience all sorts of different interactions. Old round women who, upon finding out that I am american, start waving their hands at me like they are trying to swat a fly thats been busing around their head. And old men who, at any time of day, literally bump into me because they are so drunk, at least thats their excuse. The children are great to hang out with (thanks for the advice Dane), and they are really kind and fun. And every age between treats me with kindness and smiles, or acts like I don't exist (and if I am to choose between non-existence, or existing, but only as a fly, I still haven't decided yet).

All these different responses I am getting are probably not much different from what I would experience back home. I am willing to bet these observations of people are brought on due to two reasons: one, I am looking for how people are treating me here (Apparently we have a need to do that when we go to new places and not in the old ones). And secondly, here, I stand out...to say the least. I have a feeling that its about as fair for me to judge Lithuanians based on my experiences of walking around here as it would be if I were to judge minnesotans based on me walked around downtown inside a human-sized plastic hamster ball, dressed in something as culturally out of style as a kilt, trying to hug everyone that makes eye contact with me. Which of course would fail immediately, and would become quite awkward due to the giant plastic ball that I would be sliding down the inside of.

So, I have this to say, I love it here. I am so thankful for everyone of you who is supporting us to be here. You are all so, so great. I love the challenges and the beauty of this place, these people, and the community that I get to be a part of. I know this is a long post, and thanks for reading it. I think there will come a day when life here will become pretty normal and I won't have as much to write about. so until then...

Ej

Pretty, pretty, pretty good

Yesterday I became 26 years old. The night before we had a bunch of people over to hang out in our apartment and have a grand old time. It was sweet to have some chill time to talk and laugh with people that I had been training alongside all of this week. Good to get out of meeting mode and into fun mode.

Erik surprised me with singing me to sleep that night as it was officially the 15th of August by the time we headed to bed. Ahh, one of my favorite things about being married to EJ, the musician. Then we woke up Saturday to have a true Erik and Becky adventure as we paddled 12.8 miles down a river with a group of new friends.

We checked out the school van and drove to the countryside to rent kayaks and take a mini-bus to our drop point 20 km up the river. We were surprised to find that the water in the "river" was about waist deep in most parts and we were glad that we had decided to forego the life jacket rental due to the extra and seemingly unnecessary charge. The sun was shining and I felt like it was a day to fully relax as we paddled downriver. Another one of my favorite things...relaxing. We paid little attention to the map because there really was no way to go the wrong direction; we figured we would get there when we got there. Our stop for lunch happened to be a spot on a hill that had a sweet rope swing and we were soon joined by some local boys to utilize the swing into the river. Erik and Steve launched themselves off the high tree branch to land in the river using the swing as well. The mood was still pretty laid back at this point. Little did we know that our lunch spot was only 1/5 of the way into our journey for the day. The paddling continued.

And continued. The sights were beautiful. We saw some native wildlife as well as some native Lithuanians. I even had a drunk guy swim out to my kayak and try to hitch a ride down river with me. The thing I was most concerned about was getting tipped over and getting fully submerged. I survived without getting wet. And the paddling continued. At this point we got more serious about our paddling as we finally did the math and realized that 20 km meant we were going to have to paddle 12.8 miles. We made it to the end. We were still having fun, although our enthusiasm was all used up. We were glad to come to the end. The picture here shows one of the odd sights we saw along the way...a bicycle hanging in the air with fresh flowers in the front basket.

Well, our experience took the entire day as it was 8 o'clock when we got back home. Erik ran to the grocery once again and then we made spaghetti for dinner. Mary called just in time to share my birthday dinner with us. I think we are getting the hang of these Skype conversations. There was a moment while we were all interacting that I almost started crying because I felt like Mary was really sitting in our apartment with us and I wanted it to be true. I am thankful for technological advances. Later Erik and Jaxxon were hanging out on their respective couches having a Skype conversation while I put together a collage frame of our wedding photos to hang in our apartment. Now and again I feel like being crafty.

Well, that was my day. Some of you already know that I have a lot of expectation and anticipation when it comes to celebrating birthdays. This was a true success. It was fun to get out with 5 new people who are quickly becoming friends. It was fun to have a day away from work and all the planning that is going on for the soon-to-arrive student leaders. It was fun to be outside and get physically worked out on the water. Thanks to many of you for all of the kind messages and emails I was blessed to receive when I got home last night. Each of them warmed my heart. Thanks for caring for me. I will leave you with a quote from Erik, spoken aloud this morning. "If there's one thing to celebrate in life, it's each other."

First time...

-we saw the Baltic Sea! I must say that it felt like we were on a Californian beach, although way less crowded and the waves weren't as convincing. The sand and the view were beautiful! These Lithuanians seem less concerned about dress code than the Minnesotans we know. Either way, we are definitely going to love having the beach in our backyard (or under an hour's walk away).

-we had an old Lithuanian man smile and greet us.

-Erik made an attempt to greet him back, although he may have sounded more French than Lithuanian.

-we walked thru a carnival that was in town.

-we bought toilet paper in Lithuania.

-we made dinner in our new apartment in Neumann Hall.

And last, but not least, we had our very first Skype conversation!

Thank-you Sheehy's!

Beginning to be here

Our first Saturday afternoon in Lithuania. We have unpacked most of our belongings and found a place for each item that travelled along with us in our 3 Rubbermaid bins or 1 large duffel bag. Erik got up early (10 am) this morning to visit a market somewhere in Klaipeda with Andrew, Steve and Andrew's two kids (Andrew and Steve are other LCC staff from the States). Erik had his eye out for a new pair of wheels, and he came home with nothing less than a stylish high-riding, 1-speed bicycle. I, myself, am a fan of its green color. We aren't even discouraged by the lack of air in the back tire. I guess that bike pumps work differently in Lithuania and so we lost all the air in the process of pumping up the tire with our pump. By the way, the picture shown here is of the city view we have from our roof of the student dorm.

Erik is taking a nap on our new living room couch. We are both still working through the jet-lag from traveling. We slept about 3 hours of our 28-hour journey on the way year, 2 hours on the flight to Frankfurt and then 1 hour in the Frankfurt airport. We are thankful that all of the flights and everything in between went without a hitch. I didn't even realize I was going through customs when the German man checked my passport so that I could get through to my gate. I kept waiting to pull out all my paperwork to prove that I had medical coverage and show my reasons for going to Lithuania. It never happened. They let me in with no questions asked.

We met another couple destined for LCC while on the plane to Germany. The plane was incredibly huge and almost spacious, so Erik was taking advantage of the hallway by the bathroom to do some stretching mid-flight. He started talking to an Indian man about attending a university in Lithuania. Soon a stranger came around the corner and entered the conversation with his own questions. It didn't take long before the stranger became Mark and later Sherry, who are both serving at LCC this year in English professor and librarian roles. Please take note of the indoor smoking lounges we saw in the Frankfurt airport.

A hired driver met all of us at the small airport in Vilnius. It was fun to see the people waiting in the small airport lobby with beautiful flower bouquets in hand, ready to welcome their visitors to Lithuania. Although Justinas (J is a Y sound), our driver, didn't have flowers in hand, it was a relief to see the black type of our names on his white sign and know that at least someone knew we had arrived. We loaded our luggage into the van and then ate some food and walked around while waiting for Rachel Johnson, another LCC staff person, to arrive on a different flight.

The drive towards home in Klaipeda seemed familiar and strange all at the same time. We thought that the countryside of Lithuania looked similar to the farm and open spaces in Minnesota, with a few more hills. All of the billboards, road signs, gas stations and evenautomobiles reminded us that we were in a foreign country and not at home. Justinas spoke excellent English and was kind and helpful with our questions about his country. I was impressed with my first real Lithuanian.

We have been in a haze since arriving at LCC on Thursday evening. Steve and Laura Hanson (Steve is a 2nd-year RD at LCC) were here to show us our new apartment and then take us out on the town so that we wouldn't be able to fall asleep. They performed their job well, guiding us all over town and finding a great restaurant to sit outside and eat true Lithuanian fare...potato balls stuffed with meat. Erik and I slept for 12 hours that first night. Steve and Laura's helpful tips and suggestions may not be remembered very clearly, but they served as our tour guides all of yesterday as well. We ate in another Lithuanian cafe for lunch with Veslava (she is the other RD I will be working with and is a 2006 grad of LCC), took a tour of LCC's campus, shopped for groceries at our first Lithuanian store called Maxima and then ended with eating pizza at the Hanson's apartment.

I am all caught up with the significant events thus far. We are feeling settled in our bare, yet cozy, apartment. We have survived all of our outings because we have had language guides along. We are missing the usual people and places of home, but I don't know if it has sunk in that we are staying here for a while. I am sure the reality will come. We love you and are thankful for this opportunity to be here. Good morning to all of you in the states...the weekend has arrived!

I hate to say Good-bye, So I'll see you when I see you...

The time has come. We board a plane here in Chicago in about 15 minutes that will take us on our 2nd flight to Frankfurt and our 3rd flight to Vilnius, Klaipeda. The plan from there is for a driver hired by the school to pick Erik and I up for the 4-hour drive to LCC International University. Wow.

I don't know what to think, so I thought I would check in and say that the blogging will now commence. I am so excited to share the experiences of this next step via the world wide web with those we care for so much and are sad to leave behind. Frankfurt, here we come! Tschuss.

(Please note that I am a responsible wearer of my fashionable passport holder, unlike Erik's technique of taking it off as soon as we passed through security in Minneapolis. See pictures to understand.)

Hip Hip Hooray

Erik and I often laugh together about a memory of ours that happened soon after we met at Boundary Waters Experience, a camp up in Ely, MN. I'll fill you in on the story now as it is fresh in my mind as I look over our fundraising progress for Lithuania today.

It was one of our first days off of the summer (June 2006) and Erik and Luke were planning on going fishing for the day. Anna and I hoped to bike over to the lake and join them for the afternoon on the boat. When I called to ask them what kind of sandwiches they wanted me to make for lunch, the boys told me they had caught a large number of fish so far. Without skipping a beat, I exclaimed, "Praise the Lord! We're going to have fish tonight!"

Little did I know that Erik and Luke had barely cast their lines out that morning and had instead been enjoying each other's company over pipe tobacco and poetry...leading to absolutely NO fish caught thus far. The boys could hardly stop their laughter as they listened to my genuine response about our potential fish fry that evening. I soon learned the truth of the situation when Anna and I showed up to join them and I later became the consistent joke of the summer. Praise the Lord...We're going to have rain tonight. Praise the Lord...the campers show up today. This photo taken at a later date shows all of the participants of the particular story, including Luke and Anna.

I tell this story as my first response to calculating our pledge responses so far is...Praise the Lord! We're going to Lithuania this year! I can hardly believe it. As of today, we have been given $11,745 in pledges towards our first year at LCC.

I must say the process of putting our dream to be a part of LCC International University and our financial need to make it happen out in the open has been a vulnerable position for me. I like to have an answer to give people and an explanation of HOW I am going to make it happen. This time I have an answer to give and I am trusting that the people in our community and support group are going to respond with exactly how this will play out.

Thank you to those of you who have taken time to capture our dream of being a light and a blessing to a new culture in a new place in the world. Thanks for sending your contact information to stay involved in our story. Thanks for sending your hard-earned dollars so that we can meet our needs. We feel FULL with love and encouragement. This will be what carries us through this transition time of leaving Minnesota and starting in Lithuania.


A first experience for the Johnson's. We may not be able to make up our minds about a lot of things, but we know for sure we like to experience life fully. In new ways. In new places.

With humor and in seriousness, Praise the Lord...we have supporters who give!

the busy beginning

So here's the first post.  I couldn't see the day that becky and I would have our own blog, and sure enough its here.  And for what a great reason.  We are planning on leaving on August 5th to Lithuania. 

 Thanks for checking this out, your on the right track.  We will keep everyone updated on the progress of our fundraising and events as they come up.  

As of now we have had donations that add up to $600!  we have a way to go, but that's a great start.  We are really looking forward to hearing from all of you and being able to keep in touch.

See ya,

the Johnstrand Band

here is a video that will give you a picture of Lithuania for all those that have no idea (like ourselves).  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OStISjdmmSI