Saturday in Trastryanets

I can't seem to upload pictures again today, sorry. There are some good ones. Today we have been running around getting pictures for passport and visas, documents done and notarized - 2 hours waiting at the notary wasn't very fun. Steve and Cort are with Vladimir on their way to Trastryanets to get the new birth certificate. Garretts are with Natalie and Vasilie going to Shoska. Nanette had to come back after her and Emily were on their way to Kyiv. She's got to sign papers tomorrow morning, so hopefully her and Emily will still make their flight on Thursday. Laina and I are at the internet cafe, we are leaving in just a minute and will walk 1 mile back to the apartment. She's staying with us tonight, she's officially a McGinty! We bought candy and a poster and markers. She's making a big card/banner for her class. She's sad to say goodbye. Alittle scared and nervous. Keep her in your prayers for the goodbyes of tomorrow. We were treated to a wonderful program at the school today. A big to do! Well this is a long post, I'll let ya read it if you want. Tomorrow we are headed to Kyiv, so we probably won't have access to Internet for a day or two. We are almost home - MONDAY. see you then.

SATURDAY IN TRASTRYANETS
what an amazing day. We headed out to Trastrionets to Fedya’s house. The house where Laina grew up. It was a humble home which had been neglected for quite awhile. It was on a large lot with many fruit trees and gareden area. I imagined that many years ago it was beautiful and well maintained and an abundance of fresh produce. I imagined a happy little girl playing happily in the backyard with her Uncle Fedya, with caring grandparents watching on. Before we went in the house, Laina cut some daffodils that were blooming in the yard and we walked across the road to a large cemetery. Close to the road, Laina took Cort to the burial spot of her grandparents. She laid to flowers on the gravesite. We walked up several rows and came to the graves of her aunt, (Fedya’s half sister) and her father were buried. It is an interesting thing to be in an Ukrainian cemetery. There was a Ukrainian Orthodox church with music chanting in the background. Those images make Cort so uncomfortable.
After viewing the cemetery we went back to the house and entered this small dwelling. But it was a house. We have mostly been in apartments. With some work the house and yard could be quite an incredible place. The standard is just so different here and the ability to make improvements so limiting. We sat down on his bed in the same room as the oven and stove (that heats the home, source of heat is fire) and he brought out several photo albums that we looked through. He gave us a stack of photos (3 I’ve got to scan and make copies) but the rest we can keep, which will be such a treasure. We are really luck to get anything like that. Most of these kids there is nothing, no pictures, so we are so blessed to have these few photos and memories of Laina’s past. Most are of grandparents, some of her parents wedding.
We took a few photos and then we left. We all loaded in Vasilie’s van and drove a couple of blocks away to her teachers house. This woman, I guess (with the language barrier it is hard to know if we have all the details right) was Laina’s teacher up to the 4th grade, until she was put into the Internat. Fedya and Laina went up to the gate and hollered her name and pounded on the gate. The version of a doorbell. Laina was nervous, she had butterflies, and Fedya held her by the gate as her teacher came out. She hadn’t seen Laina for almost 2 years and she was so surprised and thrilled. She grabbed Laina and hugged her and stroked her and talked to her so lovingly. Laina’s eyes sparkled. It was so touching to see these wonderful, important people in Laina’s life how they have loved and cared for her so deeply. It is just so sad that her own parents denied themselves to be a part of her life. It is scary to see how alcohol and addictions can take over lives and how it affects the lives of others. She is a special girl and all who know her think the world of her. We got some precious pictures of this reunion. This teacher was happy to meet us and wished us well. What a treasure. We also got her address and phone number. It will be important for Laina to keep in contact with these wonderful people in her life.
Then we went to her friends house. We don’t know details of this friendship. She was nervous but I think she thought she would have the same kind of greeting as her teachers. Unfortunately, it was not as encouraging. She was not at her house, but her brother ran to find her. She was up the road a few house, sitting outside on a bench with an older man and younger child (grandpa and sibling?) They hollered for her to come as they were walking up the road. She wouldn’t come and when they got to her, she just sat on the bench. She didn’t jump up and greet Laina as you would imagine a long lost friend would do. She wouldn’t even allow us to take a picture of her with Laina. She will regret that someday.
Then we ran to the store and grabbed some food. We drove to meet Fedya’s girlfriend, Miya and her family. He had previously told us he had a girlfriend whom he had only met a few months before, but he loved her very much and hoped to marry her. He had told us that she had something wrong with her leg and had a hard time walking. So we imagined a limp or something. This family invited us right in. We only had a few minutes as Vasilie thought we had to hurry back to Sumy before 3:00 and it was already 2:00 (a funny story for another day.) Miya was very shy, she looked like a special young lady. Her handicap was much worse than we expected, her legs were quite crippled. She could hardly walk. It made us admire Fedya more as a young man that could see beyond the outside and love this young woman for the inside. It was touching. We went in a took a couple of pictures. This was the first time Laina had met her and her family. Fedya must of told the mom about us, because she just smothered me with kisses and hugs. She would hardly let me go. She walked us to the van, continuing to smother me with affection. We hurried home to Sumy and hung out at the Internat.
After leaving we had to go to the store and get drinks and cakes for the program at the Internat on Sunday. We went to the Pizza place and guess what, they closed at 6:00, so our only option was a bus ride back to McDonalds. I have to tell you our other bad luck. On Friday, Steve was so excited to go to an Art Museum. We found out that there was a big nice one in Sumy. We got Laina from the orphanage and told her we were going to a museum. She was not excited at all and did not want to go. She thought it would be boring. We took the 20 minute bus ride and met the Peckham’s and Dodges also. They needed something to do. We walked to the Museum and the sign on the door said that they were closed on Friday’s. When Laina saw this she jumped on the stairs and started dancing. The thing is Steve is getting really discouraged. We also found a Museum in Donetsk to go see. These Museums have tons of old Soviet Art which is quite impressive. On Monday we went to the museum there in Donetsk and the hours said they closed at five. We thought we would go the next day in the morning, so we did and we get there and go inside the entrance and a man in uniform informs us that the Museum is closed on Monday’s and Tuesday’s, the only 2 days we were there. Tomorrow is a holiday and the Museum in Sumy will be closed again. His only hope is on Tuesday, hopefully he will fit it in.