Venturing out on our Own

With an entire Saturday ahead of us, John and I decided to explore downtown Odessa on our own. We took the bus downtown and enjoyed several hours of walking around. In the garden area, close to the Opera House of Odessa, there is a little art-market where local artisans display their handwork (embroidery) and artistic skills (painting). While clearly for “tourists”, we enjoyed the opportunity to venture out on our own and look at the beautiful items. We have been interested in purchasing some artwork from this area, thinking that would be a special memory to bring home with us. However, with unknown costs ahead of us, including possibly bringing home more children than what we had planned (budgeted) for, we decided to wait. We did manage to purchase some ice cream and drinks, and I even understood when the lady said how much our purchase added up to! When it came time to come home, we found the bus stop, waited for the correct bus, bought our tickets and even managed to get out at the right stop! Not bad for two small-towners who can’t read Russian or Ukrainian!
John and I spent most of the time sitting in the shaded park talking. This has been the first real opportunity for us to spend time together – just the two of us. We enjoyed talking through the upcoming details and decisions that await us when we can finally visit these children. Although we can hardly remember their pictures from the referral sheets (I only recall the youngest child’s picture – John can’t remember any of them), and we only have their names and birthdates, we seem to becoming attached to them. Our talks centered around “when” they come home, not “if”. We have tried to be careful not to become too attached, as we haven’t even yet met them, and might still not accept this referral. It is indeed difficult to remain unattached, however. We trust God, and that He will direct our hearts and minds to the correct thoughts and feelings. If these are not our children, but rather for someone else, than we trust God will show us, and prepare us for that.