June began with the last retreat for the group of volunteers serving in Slovakia. The nine of us (five from America and four from Germany) spent a couple of days together in Slovensky Raj (Slovak Paradise) with the director of the volunteer program in Slovakia. As always we had a lot to catch up on since the last time we were all together, and we spent a lot of time just talking about everything that has been going on. We spent some time reminiscing about our first couple of weeks in Slovakia together- orientation in Bratislava, language training, and departing for our placements. We laughed about the good and bad times we all had throughout the year, and shared our thoughts about the year coming to an end. Once again we connected in a special way and were able to understand the experiences we have each had, and the thoughts running through our heads. We spent one day hiking in Slovensky Raj, which was beautiful, and then spent a day doing an evaluation seminar. We spent time discussing the difficult times, good times and satisfying times throughout the year and how God used them to help us learn and grow. We also discussed various aspects about leaving our placements and returning home.
I realized at our retreat how hard it is leaving this group of volunteers, because they have been my support and my family for this year. Whenever we got together for our retreats it was almost like a family gathering, and it helped me through this year. After our retreat Mark, Ashley, Kristen, and I took a trip to Prague to spend a couple of days sightseeing. Prague was an amazing city and I loved everything we saw there- the castle, the cathedrals, the astronomical clock, and the picturesque streets.
During the month of June I also had a retreat with the workers at the center here. We took a long weekend trip to Liptovsky Trnovec and stayed at a retreat center in this village. It was wonderful to spend this time with the workers and once again I enjoyed the fellowship among everyone here. We spent time in Bible study, prayer, worship, work-related meetings, and had fun activities like hiking, swimming, and going to an ice cave. I had fun playing with the worker’s kids too. I was reminded of the Slovak’s hospitality and love to serve when Eva had a big backpack full of a thermos of coffee, mugs, sandwiches, crackers, and apples that she shared with everyone on our hiking trip and trip to the aqua park!
The thought of going home in a couple of weeks is bittersweet. I am so excited to see my family and friends (I’m not going to lie- I am pretty excited to see my dog too!). After a year I can’t wait to give everyone big hugs and spend time with them. I can’t wait to just be in my house, my town, to go places, to be able to talk in English and hear English, and to be in my home church service. At the same time I have developed a home here in Slovakia and feel like I will be leaving a part of myself behind when I leave. I have adapted to the culture and found my place here. It was a strange feeling after I was traveling to Budapest in the spring, because when I got back to Slovakia I felt like I was home; I was back in a familiar place. I was excited to catch up with everyone at the center who I had missed for the past week. In the beginning when I was lost and confused with the language and culture, I never would have thought that I would have found a home here like I did.
As I am preparing to go home I have been thinking over the time I spent in Slovakia. I did not always have a clear idea of what I was “doing” here. In the beginning I did not have clear cut tasks or specific things to help with, but I was a part of the community and tried to discover what that meant, and how to give what I could. In one of my newsletters from the very beginning of the year I wrote about a woman I met in a nursing home in Banska Bystrica. Her response to the worker who told her that I did not understand very much Slovak while she was talking to me played through my head during the year. “Yes, but she is listening”. I never saw her again, but I remember how happy she was to have someone to sit with, someone’s presence, and someone to listen and just smile. This helped me to more fully understand what it means “to be”; what it means to be present, and to accompany our brothers and sisters in the world. Henry Nouwen states, “Our humanity comes to its fullest bloom in giving. We become beautiful people when we give whatever we can give: a smile, a handshake, a kiss, an embrace, a word of love, a present, a part of our life…all our life” (Life of the Beloved). I tried to take this with me throughout the year, as a reminder to give whatever I can each day, even if it is something as small as a smile or simply being there. As the end of the year is coming near I am continually reminded of this, and want to live each day giving as much as I can.
I am sure the next two and a half weeks I have left in Slovakia will go really quickly. We will be having guests staying at the center here, including a group of Americans! They will be doing an English Bible camp with children from the area, so I am excited to be able to help with this. I hope to spend a lot of time with the guys and the people here, and make a final trip to my first placement in Horná Mičiná before leaving. I will send out my final newsletter after I am home next month!
