Michael & Liz are Bloggable

I think the first year of our marriage has been a very fun one with lots of changes. We bought a house, we moved in together(I don't consider the two months before the wedding, living in different rooms, to be the same as "moving in together"), we got Daisy in September, and we have gone on a lot of trips from Hilton Head to Colorado. Well this summer is going to be another HUGE change for us. I am not going to be able to fool anyone by saying that Liz and I are going to have a child this summer, especially when you look at the title of this blog entry. But what we are doing is participating in a program called Children of Chernobyl. I'll start from the beginning.

I think it is very easy in church to approach activities and events with a mediocre attitude of "oh that's interesting, but no thank you". Lately I have been trying very hard to pinpoint things that Liz and I can participate in because I don't think we feel ready to jump all the way into something in depth like small groups. We aren't as open about discussing religion as I think people who attend church usually are. We both know how we feel and don't feel comfortable sharing just yet. Maybe someday we'll take the plunge, but it's also not too terribly encouraging when inviting us they say (and this is not a joke) "You should come out because there are a lot of people you're same age... like 40's..." Last time we checked, that wasn't quite "our age". Not that there is anything wrong with being 40!! :)

Well back to the story... we have been looking for ways to participate. So about two months ago we were sitting in church and someone gets up to speak about their experience with the program called Children of Chernobyl. They hosted an 8 year old boy from Belarus who had been living in the Chernobyl area. He came over for 6 weeks during the summer and stayed with them while he received treatment for the medical issues he had because of where he grew up. The treatment included dental care, general physician care, and anything else that he needed taken care of, it was all done for free. Of course while he was here he was also having fun participating in summer camps, going to the beach and pool, and enjoying the awesomeness that is Raleigh/Durham. Due to the vast difference between our environment of living and theirs, just coming here for 6 weeks of fun is medical care in itself. The food they are allowed to eat is minimal due to the contamination. They aren't allowed eating any form of dairy in Chernobyl not to mention a bunch of other foods. They have to be explicitly told to eat when they come here because they aren't sure if any food is safe. Life is much more difficult for them so to come here for 6 weeks is a dream come true. Well after participating now for a few summers, they are once again waiting for their boy to come back to the U.S for another 6 week stint and couldn't be more excited about it.

After hearing her story and her statements, I think what struck me the most was the notion that I felt the exact same way she did when hearing about the program. That is, starting to list ways in which it wasn't for us. They don't speak english, we can't take care of them because of work, we don't have children so they'd be bored. All of our reasons why I wouldn't want to do it were the same. Why not though? What the heck? The worst that could happen is that the child has a miserable time, is not interested in getting to know us, and we have 6 weeks of uncomfortable silence followed by a remorseless goodbye. Even in the worst situation, we just helped a child become healthier and slightly happier. We just learned a little more about patience and little more about each other. Even the worst case scenario falls just short of the best case scenario. We're hoping to have a lot of fun with our child, and to enjoy their surprise at all the American life has to offer. We want to make them laugh and smile during a 6 week, once in a lifetime, opportunity. And maybe next summer like all the families who participate in the program, we can also bring our child back for consecutive summers and continue this for a few years to come.

So after thinking about it throughout that service and realizing that it does sound like an awesome thing to be a part of, I looked at Liz and said "How cool would that be?" and Liz responded "Are you serious? I mean I agree, but I didn't imagine that you'd want to do it."

We then did a lot discussing amongst ourselves after that service and decided to pursue it and were eventually accepted as a host family. So after talking it over with the program coordinator, we have decided to host an 8 year old girl. We don't know any other information other than that but we will find out more around May. They will be arriving late June and leaving early August. One thing that will be exciting between now and then, is we get to send pictures and a letter to our child to tell them how excited we are for them to visit, and also to put their mind at ease about where they are going. I can't imagine an 8 year old getting up and going to the other side of the world without a little fear. Not to mention, how their parents are going to feel about the whole experience. But we have no doubt that we'll give this girl the best summer of her life and do everything we can to help her out.

So look for lots of pictures and information as the summer approaches on what our experience is like with our child. We already have a beach weekend planned for July 4th with Jon, Julie, and Dewey so that should be a blast because I am sure our child has never seen a beach before.

It will be nice when May comes around and we will know her name, rather than calling her "our child".

If anyone wants to check out more information about the program, here is the link and then click on "summer respite":
http://www.cofcnc.org