Our mission is the Czech/Slovak mission and our assignment is in Zvolen and in Banska Bystrica, Slovakia. We live in the small town of Zvolen (40,000). We have been here for seven weeks now. Trying to learn Slovak is daunting to say the least, but we are trying. We have found that as we persevere in greeting people that some will actually return our greetings. A few even smile! ;) So many will give a stone-faced stare---or avoid eye contact altogether.
We don't have a car so we walk a LOT. Shopping here means not buying more than we can carry home and remembering to bring our own bags to carry it in. We ride trains and buses to other cities.
Our formal initiation into Slovakia came while standing in endless, all-day lines at the foreign police office in Bratislava to apply for visas---just to be arbitrarily denied. Two weeks later, we tried again. This time, after another LONG day of standing in line, our visas were approved! The attorney for the Church in Slovakia, who waited with us, said at that point we only needed to have our pictures taken. That sounded like a little thing. Wrong. Two hours later I was finally in front of the camera, watching another police officer scrutinize my documents AGAIN. I began to seriously worry that my visa might not be granted. After 20 minutes, he took my fingerprints and photo, and I was home free! In a few weeks we will go back to Bratislava (a three hour train ride from our home in Zvolen) to stand in line again to pick up our visas. A couple of months later we must return to Bratislava to have our medical exams for the mandatory "free" medical coverage. We are told that the doctor we must see is from Afghanistan and HATES Americans. Does it get any better than this? ;) Oh yes, evidently you never know how long of a visa you will get---some are one year, some less, some more. No one can really tell us why, not even the attorney. So who knows? We may be back applying again in no time at all.
Last week we did our first all-out contacting with the young missionaries. Each time we approached a person and the young Elder with us turned to me and said, "This one is yours, Sis Nye," I felt absolute panic! All of my Slovak words and phrases vanished as I stuttered and stammered. But we survived---to contact another day!!
On Friday evenings the 7 of us missionaries in our district (3 young elders and 2 young sisters) sing Church hymns (in Slovak) at the town square. Reaction last week was not what we had hoped. About the only thing that came of it was when a man tried to give us 20 cents. ;) (We're really not singing for money!)
We did a service project helping at a week-long day camp which the city of Zvolen did for Roma children. The language was a barrier for us, but the young missionaries and the Spirit helped translate our words and feelings. What a thrill it is to occasionally see some of those children in town and have them greet us excitedly. We find again and again that the Lord blesses us far beyond our efforts.
We live near a church whose large, old bell rings out each hour of the day (and night). A smaller bell rings the quarter and half hours. I love it! However, it is now telling me that my time is far spent.
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