February Newsletter - Kristen in Slovakia

February Newsletter

Koreans, Piñatas, and Halusky

Usually February is the month which is dreary and seems to drag on forever. However, here in Velky Slavkov, it was a month full of exciting things and flew past before I knew it. It was full of fun activities like learning Tai Kwon Do, sledding, making a piñata and American and Slovak cakes, throwing a party, and appearing on national Slovak television, as well as the usual Bible studies, English lessons, cooking food, and teaching swimming.
In the beginning of the month, we hosted eleven Koreans who were doing missions work with our boys for the week. The boys had the option of having a week off of work and we spent a lot of time together with the Koreans. In the mornings, the Koreans taught the boys (and Jessie and I) Tai Kwon Do which we all really enjoyed. The boys love watching action movies, especially Jackie Chan, so they enjoyed getting to learn some of the kicks and punches they had seen in movies. Then, in the afternoons, we had some activities with the Koreans like having a Slovak/Korean language lesson, learning some songs, going sledding, or just talking to each other. Most of the Koreans spoke English pretty well and none of them spoke Slovak so Jessie and I got to practice our translating skills which was a lot of fun and we felt helpful. It was fun to be able to help them to speak to each other and a lot of it was words or phrases that we actually knew. Also, some of the boys who were in the English class were able to practice some of the basic introductions and questions that they had learned which was good practice for them. Then, in the evenings, we would all gather together, including the boys who had still gone to work, and have fellowship time together. There was a lot of singing, a Tai Kwon Do exhibition and skit performed first by the Koreans in the beginning of the week and then by the boys at the end of the week to show off all of their hard work, traditional Korean dances done in costumes, learning how to play Korean games, praying together, teaching the Koreans how to break dance, and just time to hang out together. My favorite part of the week was being able to see how well the boys and the Koreans were able to form relationships together and to see them together interacting, even without being able to speak together. The love of Christ and the breath of fresh air that the Koreans brought to us was such a welcome change of pace and the boys really responded well to it.

While the Koreans were here we also had the chance to go sledding in the Tatras Mountains which was an amazing experience. We had these wooden sleds which seat two or three people and some great hills to go down once we hiked up the mountain with them. Then, my favorite part was the ride downhill. Hiking up seemed like a huge chore, but an amazing, twenty minute straight, ride down the mountain to end it all was well worth it.

Jessie and I also made a surprise appearance on Slovak national television. We were not warned ahead of time to prepare anything but were surprised when television cameras came to Myln and even more surprised when they wanted to speak to us briefly. We spoke in both Slovak and English and it ended up being a nice piece about the work done here and the boys who live here.
Then, in the middle of the month, was Valentine’s Day. Jessie and I decided to go all out for it and have several activities. In our English class the day before Valentine’s Day, we taught a lesson using words associated with it and then had the class make Valentines in English. They were all surprisingly really into it and took their time and made some elaborate Valentines. Since most of them don’t have a significant other, they gave Jessie and me their Valentines and we have them decorating our wall in our room.
We decided to plan a party for the boys for the actual day. For some reason, we decided that it would be really fun to bring some Latin America culture here and make a piñata. It turned into a huge, long, messy project but it was a lot of fun. And almost all of the boys came into the dining room while we were making it and wanted to know what in the world we were doing, so we got lots of interest in the piñata and got out word about our party pretty fast. Plus being able to hit something with a stick and get candy sounded pretty appealing to all of them. We also decided to make the “American” confetti box cake that was sent to me as well as a Slovak chocolate cake for refreshments for the party. All of it was a smashing success and the boys really enjoyed it.
Everything else is going well here. Pali, Jessie, and I have a great time every morning in the kitchen preparing lunch for the boys and workers. Jessie and I are trying to learn how to make all the Slovak food so we can try to make it when we come back. On Friday we made the Slovak national dish, Bryndzova halusky. It is a lot of hard work so we don’t make it very often, but it is one of my favorite foods here. Halusky is a potato pasta. We made it by first peeling a pot full of potatoes. Then, we shredded the potatoes and added in several kilograms of flour, a little water, and some eggs. After we mixed it all together we had a thick dough. Then we took a huge metal grater and put it over top of a huge pot of boiling water. We pushed the thick dough through the holes to make small balls of pasta that cook in the water. Then we combined in a bowl bryndzova (sheep cheese) and milk and poured it over top of the cooked pasta. Finally, we topped it with cooked bacon pieces. It was delicious.
English lessons and Bible studies are also going well. We spent the last two weeks in English going over food words, making menus, and practicing dialogues where they would practice ordering food in a restaurant. In the weekly Bible studies we hold with the boys we are reading through the book of Acts. Two weeks ago we had a really good Bible study focused on repentance and the boys got really into it and participated a lot. We also just started up swimming again, adding to it some new boys, so that is also a lot of fun. The pool is part of a really nice hotel and is fun to be able to do an active activity with the boys and they really enjoy swimming. Finally, one of the boys is teaching Jessie and I how to play guitar and we have lessons about two or three times a week with him.
Well that is a summary of everything that has been happening here this exciting month. Thank you to everyone who sent me emails or Valentine’s cards. They were definitely appreciated. I hope everything is well with all of you and your families.

God’s blessings,
Kristen