IASI DAYS are the BEST days!

So this past week/weekend was Iasi Days.

Best. Thing. Ever.

Not so good for my wallet or my waistline but it was a joyful occasion indeed.

**Normally I crop, and sometimes lighten, my pictures for your viewing pleasure but I have so many now that you'll just have to battle your way through unedited pictures. Enjoy though!

DAY 1 of Iasi Days:

We were unbelievably starving after coming back from the clinic and institute so

naturally we stopped for meat on the side of the road. :)

I pointed to a giant thing of meat and waved money in front of me.

They figured out that I wanted it. :)

DELICIOUS.

Best hunk of mystery meat I have EVER had!!!!

After chowing down we decided to meander on into the tent that was filled with smoke, dancing, music, and old men.

Did we dance traditional Romanian dances with drunk old men?

Yup.

Was it incredible?

Yup.

I LOVE ROMANIA!

(and dancing, and my wonderful friends here!)

After the dancing somehow we ended up back at our apartment and the following things happened.

Jenna, Heidi, and Debra took their pants off to reveal the leggings they bought.

Then Heidi and I compared our "food babies" that are growing from

eating so much.

 DAY 2 of Iasi Days:

Did I mention that they have interesting, new, and wonderful food?

I did?

Well here are some pictures anyway!

Did I eat an entire pig leg?

Yup.

(The picture comes a little later.)

There are vendors everywhere selling tasty sweet, sweet treats.

One of my favorites was this little homemade gingerbread cake.

YUM.

 

This little shop knew us pretty well by the end of Iasi Days.

We were there every day.

Okay...2-3 times a day.

Seriously people.

They had these doughnut things covered in chocolate, crepes, and grilled corn.

I love them with all my heart. 

Bless their little Romanian souls.

So day 2 continued with us coming home from the clinic and finding this graffiti wall.

This is us trying to look hard core.

Success?

No.

Silliness?

Yes.

It was cold outside but I dislike wearing pants.

Therefore, Britta and I made a pact not to wear pants for the rest of Iasi days.

Leggings as pants = A terrible fashion faux pas

BUT

Leggings as pants= The most comfortable outfit ever! 

Here we are showing off our legs.

Sadly I don't know how to pose for pictures. Ha. 

Sometimes I do yoga in the mornings.

Sometimes I do it outside on metal poles.

Again the silliness continues.

(Jodie is first and I'm second)

Well, at least my balance is improving...

Hala Centrala= Center for cute and cheap coats, hats, gloves, and very friendly people.

I kept blowing kisses to this little boy.

She was such a friendly woman and had such a cute little sailor son!

Shops, shops, and more shops.

I felt happily lost in a sea of fur, wool, and pleather.

It was fantastic.

Day 2 concludes with a pig leg and a giant sausage.

I don't even like meat and yet I ate mine AND about half of Britta's.

I was wearing my stretchy non-pants pants which allowed this to all be possible.

Too much information?

Probably.

I'm pretty sure my parents are the only ones reading this anyway...

:)

Day 3 of Iasi Days:

Rain, rain, rain, I love/hate you, rain, rain, rain. 

All. Day. Long.

Thus, we donned the same outfits we wore the day before (NO PANTS! :) ), grabbed our umbrellas, and set out to spend our monies on cheap scarves, toys, FOOD, and hats.

Our neighbor Bianca weathered the storm with us for a while too!

I so love that girl!

Oh! I bought a coat!

It's red, perfect, gorgeous, and any other pretty adjectives you can think of.

I've always wanted a red coat so thank you Iasi days for making my dream come true.

P.S.--I seriously don't know how to pose for pictures.

I look like I'm in pain half the time but just look at the coat people.

DID I MENTION THE FOOD ROCKS??????

We made our way through the storm to clean the church and this is what we found.

Miles, and miles, and miles of people standing in line waiting to touch the dead hand of the patron saint of Iasi Days.

Isn't that interesting?

They blocked our way to the church so we had to talk to the police so they could let us pass.

I live the craziest life don't I?

Here's Jodie and I in the rain in front of the line!

Yeah for rain!

The elders took us out onto the balcony to show us the line wrapping around the church.

It was so crazy!

I really admire their dedication to wait in that line though. The elders said that the people wait in line for about 3 days to touch her hand! 

It's fascinating isn't it!

Oh ya, here are the elders!

Elders: Bennett, Stintson, Benson, and Cox.

They have been such wonderful assets to us while we have been here and translate sacrament meeting for us every week.

As we walked home from cleaning the church we passed by the place where I got food every single day for Iasi Days.

This nice man had served me time and time again and when he saw that we were there again he ran out to meet us and so I needed a picture with him.

:)

While Jodie was taking the picture he started kissing my cheek.

And then again and again.

HA!!!!

Then he pulled a sign out of his jacket that asked for my name.

I couldn't stop laughing it was so funny that he had it all prepared.

Sorry cute Romanian Iasi Days man my heart belongs to sweet orphan children right now!

To top off Iasi Days we passed by Gelateria MoMo.

(My nickname is MoMo for those who didn't know!) 

 Well that was the past few days...

Complete and utter silliness most of the time but boy was it fun!

:)

Iasi Days = A mighty fine success!

Children of God

IF YOU ONLY EVER READ ONE STORY THAT I POST THEN PLEASE READ THIS ONE. 

 It's been another eventful week here in Romania!.

I could tell you a thousand stories but for today I will tell ONE hospital story

that will hopefully get you thinking a bit more seriously about who you are and why that's important.

The Child That Changed My Life:

I had one hour left to volunteer in the hospital and I asked the nurse on a

new floor if there were any orphan children.

She pointed to a room.

I entered and what I saw was shocking, heart-wrenching,and life-changing.

There, completely naked, was a little girl about 6 years old

tied to one of the bars of a small metal crib.

No sheets were on her bed, no underwear, no diaper.

No one else in the room.

Just this small, malnourished child with layers of tape around her wrist to keep her in place.

I gasped at the horrifying sight.

I have been very reasonable to this point with my posts and my feelings about Romania.

I have tried to be as open-minded and as non-judgmental as possible in these posts

but THIS little girl's living conditions are UNACCEPTABLE.

(The people in Romania, the orphanage, and the hospital are kind, wonderful people and yet, it was appalling to see a little girl like this. I must acknowledge that these wonderful hospital workers are doing the best they can with the knowledge and resources that they have available. I'm not angry with anyone...just deeply saddened by the state of things...)

I ran to the nurse to get an explanation.

She was from the country.

2 days ago her parents dropped her off at the ER and left her.

She can't speak--remember she's 6 or 7.

She uses her feet and legs as much as her hands.

She is very DIRTY.

She would rip her IV out of her arm so they had to tape her arm to her bed.

(I was told that I was not allowed to hold her or undo her restraints.)

I found her gnawing at her arm and she will probably have permanent scars now.

The nurses didn't even know what to do with her so they left her like that until they could figure something out.

I tried  to be okay with their logic in taping up this little girl.
At first I felt angry. 
My heart has begun to soften towards this situation as I realized that anger won't help 
this girl in any way. All I can do is offer any help that I can.

But I had no idea what to do to help her...

I did the only things that I could.

I cleaned her up the best I could, put a diaper on her--anything is better than naked--

brushed her hair, blew bubbles and balloons, smiled, and sang.

What did she do?

SPIT. 

HISSED.

BIT.

This child is wild. 

I truly wonder where in the world this girl came from and what her life 

was like that led to her to be like this.

It literally breaks my heart. 

I still can't wrap my head around it.

It was like I was in a movie.

 A horror movie.

For moments all I could do was stand there and stare at this little girl writhing, biting, and spitting at me and just wanting to cry.

No child EVER deserves to be brought to this.

I wanted to rip those restraints off, pick her up and just hold her and tell her that 

I wouldn't leave her and that I would take her home and she wouldn't have to be

scared or alone anymore. I wanted to say that she was safe and everything would be okay.

But I didn't.

I couldn't promise that.

I was helpless...I felt completely useless.

All I could do was try to hold her hand and calm her down while trying to be as happy and sweet as I possibly could without screaming that this wasn't right!
I did everything I could think of to comfort her...
Looking back I can think of this scripture in Matthew 25:

Come, ye blessed of my Father, inherit the kingdom 
prepared for you from the foundation of the world:
For I was an hungered, and ye gave me meat: 
I was thirsty, and ye gave me drink: 
I was a stranger, and ye took me in:
Naked, and ye clothed me: 
I was sick, and ye visited me: 
I was in prison, and ye came unto me.

Then shall the righteous answer him, saying, Lord, 
when saw we thee and hungered, and fed thee? 
or thirsty, and gave thee drink?
When saw we thee a stranger and took thee in? or naked, and clothed thee?
Or when saw we thee sick, or in prison, and came unto thee?

And the Kind shall answer and say unto them, 
Verily I say unto you, Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one 
of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me.

This scripture brings such peace to me as I realize that as I reach out as much as
I can to her I am in return serving the Lord.
 I love the Lord and I would do anything for Him.
He showed us how to care for those around us.
--He was the ultimate example of charity and love--
  I hope that my sincere love for His children can reflect my love of Christ
and also reflect the love that Christ has for these children.
It has taken me a few days to attempt to make sense of all of this...
and this is all I've got so far:

The Savior loves this little girl.

He loves her so much and knows her perfectly.

He can comfort her in a way that I cannot.

She CAN make it through this challenging time in her life and she doesn't have to do it alone.

She will become such an incredible person (I just know it!) and her life can be beautiful despite the cruelty that has been shown to her thus far.

 The Savior is there and LOVES her dearly and will be with her throughout it all.

He will NOT abandon her no matter what happens to her.

The Lord is on HER side.

He has a plan for her.

This little one, so precious in the sight of the Lord, has angels 

watching over her to bear her up in times when she is can't do it alone.

A precious, and royal, daughter of our beloved Heavenly Father will not be forsaken.

He will guide her and protect her.

I thought of how Christ tells us to leave the ninety-and-nine and go attend to the one.

This girl is the one.

She is lost, alone, and scared.

I want to do everything in the world that I can to help her and I will.

But I know that it won't be enough and I instead am grateful that she is so precious to the Lord that He can make up for what I cannot do for her. 

It fills me with wonder and with awe to think that "the worth of souls is great in the sight of God."

 Let me just end this story with a quote by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf that says this all much more eloquently than I ever could. This quote applies to this little girl, to the children here and throughout the world, to me, and to all of you as well.

At times we may even feel insignificant, invisible, alone, or forgotten. 

But always remember—you matter to Him!

You will not feel loneliness, sorrow, pain, or discouragement forever. We have the faithful promise of God that He will neither forget nor forsake those who incline their hearts to Him. Have hope and faith in that promise.

 God sees you not only as a mortal being on a small planet who lives for a brief season—He sees you as His child. He sees you as the being you are capable and designed to become. He wants you to know that you matter to Him. May we ever believe, trust, and align our lives so that we will understand our true eternal worth and potential. 

Just in case you were wondering who you were or who these children are. Watch this cute little video and you'll find out. 

 

I cried so hard when I watched this video because it says "has given me an earthly home with parents kind and dear." While I have been given just that these children have not.

They too are children of God and I earnestly

pray that these children will realize that they have others in their lives 

who can lead them and guide them. 

They are children of God.

You are a child of God.

Do not forget that your children, brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, etc. are children of God

and are so precious and have infinite worth!

 If the only thing that I can accomplish here is to show these children

(through kindness and love) that Jesus Christ loves them then 

this trip will be a success.

I love Romania and I am so grateful that 

I have the opportunity to be here to serve these children!

:)

 

Are You Living Your Dream? (Parts 1 & 2)

This post is split into 2 sections:

PART 1: 

Serious Business, Inspiration, Hospital, Babies, Etc.

 On Friday I was working in the hospital and I met the most incredible doctor.

I had just fed a newborn baby and was rocking her to sleep when he came in to meet me.

A kind, 30 some year old, man who actually spoke English!

(Having charades be your main form of communication is taxing after a while so I love meeting English speakers.)

All I can say about this man is that he is INSPIRING.

He told me that the baby was only 12 days old and that the mother abandoned her.

The day after being abandoned she came down with pneumonia.

I realize that this might just be a consequence but thinking about it in that context

makes it seem like the sweet baby's body started giving up after her mother gave

up on her...heartbreaking.

 

(This baby SMILES when I kiss her. This picture captures it almost perfectly!)

The doctor felt the same way--heartbroken.

I talked with him for over an hour and I wish I could have recorded it.

We had such a beautiful conversation about medicine, children, and God that left us both emotional.

This is paraphrased but I'll do my best to relay the main points of the message:

"I'm from Jordan and I have never seen a problem like this in my life.

Now I see it everyday--mother's not able to care for their children, they're drunk, or on drugs, or simply have no sense of responsibility.

 This hospital is filled with abandoned children.

I am so blessed that I have this degree so that I can care for the physical needs of these children to the best of my ability.

I assume that you are Christian? (Yes, I am.)

Good, I am Muslim. We both believe in God.

I feel like I am connected to God in this hospital just as a priest in a church of worship is 

connected to God.

These children are just beginning their lives and yet many of them are so close to death.

I feel like the children provide a type of perspective in which we can see the truly important things in this world. God, family, homes, love, etc.

You believe that these children have souls, yes? (Yes, I do.)

You see, I cannot just care for the physical needs of the children here.

I must remember that they have souls.

 They are close with God as I am and I must do my best to heal not 

only their bodies but to make sure that their souls are

being healed from the cruelty, unfairness, and abandonment that

has already been introduced to them.

...

If I had the chance to go back and choose a different profession,

perhaps one that would be easier on my family, I would choose this same one every time.

Nothing parallels it.

To see children suffering is painful to me but knowing that I can in part relieve that 

pain is what keeps me going.

I am living my dream but I do not do this work for myself.

I do it for God.

I do it for my children.

I think of my children as though they were these children in the hospital.

I love my children and I would do anything I could for them if they were ill.

I must do the same for these children.

What you are doing here (volunteering) is worth more than you realize.

These children don't even realize right now how wonderful it is.

It is simple yet vitally important for their survival.

Thank you so very much!"

No. Thank YOU! 

After he left, I held that baby with a little more purpose and a LOT more love 

(if that is even possible).

I had talked to my Mom the other day and told her that one of my fears was that

I would become desensitized to the suffering that I do/will see.

I hope I don't and I don't think I will. 

Not now that I have had this talk with Dr. Inspiration. 

I believe that we can all contribute beauty to this world and it is often through

children that this is accomplished.

Are you living your dream? 

Yes!

 PART 2:

Silliness, Iasi, Hair Cutting, Bread, Missionaries, Etc.

I LOVE my life right now.

I LOVE these darling little people that I get to spend my days with.

I LOVE kissing babies and getting kisses in return.

I LOVE changing diapers and getting these

 kiddos as clean as possible.

I LOVE singing lullaby songs.

I LOVE Romania.

I LOVE Romanian food.

I LOVE the people in Romania.

I LOVE hospitals, orphanages, doctors, nurses, 

workers, my fellow interns, etc.

I LOVE my life.

Here is a picture of one of my favorite little spots that I walk by every day: this little overgrown garden, humble homes, and through the middle is the city of Iasi!

This is another street picture. 

 Sunday evenings can be a little dull...

so what do my roommates decide to do to spice it up?

Yup, we have a hair cutting party.

Bangs anyone?

 Where was I when this glorious occasion was commencing?

I was laughing, taking pictures, snorting, and being SUPER excited

to see my roomies cut their own hair.

 

I was REALLY supportive of this as our Sabbath day activity.

Maybe next week we will dye their hair?

Please?

Monday Night:

Tonight at FHE (Family Home Evening) was the last time we would see Sora (Sister) Bennett.

:(

(Right: Sister Bennett; Left: Sister Atkins)

She has finished her mission in Romania and will be going home this week!

Thank you so much Sister Bennett for all of your help, love, support, your unbelievable example, and testimony!

This is a picture of the lovely women in our FHE group!

5 Quick comments about this next picture:

1. This is Bianca. She lives next door to us and speaks great English, is wonderful, sweet, and beautiful.

2. Seriously, how does she have such adorable rosy cheeks?!

3. I came straight from the hospital so I am wearing my spit-up covered scrubs. Sorry for being gross.

4. My "deer-in-the-headlights" look is because the picture wasn't taking and when a picture takes too long I resort to my SUPER fake smile. 

This same creepy smile can be found on almost every I.D. card and family photo I own...it's sad. 

5. I am holding in my hand a DELICIOUS loaf of sweet bread made by one of the sisters in the church.

Notice how it is like the size of my head?

I ate it all...and half of another one. :)

It was really good, okay?

  

 I didn't lie. Here is the evidence that I ate it all.

 

That's all for now folks.

More adventures in Romania are soon to grace the pages of this blog.

Await it anxiously.

P.S.-- I hope you are all doing well and showering much more often than I am!

:)