It's days like today that life just floats by. I'm currently in the process of enjoying a Saturday with *nothing* to do. Catching up on life and just enjoying moments of rest without rush.

The extra bonus of today has been all the Ukrainian interaction... :)

Message from Slavik this morning...(1st since September)

Skyping with Lesya followed by Skyping with Yulia and Sasha(!!!!)

and now I'm writing back and forth with Artur about movie preferences (he says: "I noticed that the majority of American movies stupid"...I'm trying to prove him wrong)

It is these days that they seem so close. So reachable...the picture above is when Yulia and Sasha were eating chips and Yulia asked, "do you want one?" It almost seems as if I could reach through the Skype portal and enjoy one...

I'm so thankful for these interactions. So thankful to be someone in their life. Even if I have no idea what I'm doing... ministry to teenagers. Who knew? I am simply blessed by these friends of mine in Ukraine. It's beautiful.

I sent out a wave of support letters this week. Prayer for support raising is *always* appreciated. I'm excited to what God has for me regarding fundraising and how He will bring it together. =)

Hope all reading are having a simply amazing weekend!

HH

Where do I begin...

So sorry it's been so long. I simply can't believe tomorrow will be a month since I left for Ukraine. So crazy.

The trip was amazing. Incredible. Painful. Hopeful. Crazy events I was astounded by and a Peace that surpassed any of my understanding. I could never put into words how much this trip meant to me, and as I mentioned in my last post, I often feel like I use too many words, so I will attempt to practice brevity....

- First of all, I lost my passport. A very foolish move on my part, but I have wondered now if maybe God picked it up and threw it out of my bag Himself. The events that followed the discovery of the lost passport included an overnight train ride complete with a new friend, (a Nigerian Christian), an insane two hours with Oleg Vasilevsky fighting with his iPad to print my flight itinerary (we lost), a surprising moment at the Embassy when the man behind the counter asked, "Is your name Heather Harris?", a rendezvous with yet another new friend (Viktor), and a journey to Viktor's apartment so he could return this US passport he found in the snow while walking down the street. I was back on a train to Kharkov in 4 hours and safely returned to the beautiful village that my kids call home. The overwhelming peace the Lord covered me with was an amazing picture of His Love for me. His gentle reminder that everything would be just fine and that even though I was alone on that journey, He would protect me and go out of His way to put people in my path as a reminder.

- Second of all, I missed our flight home. When Russell gave me a Ukrainian cell phone, said, "I have to go", and took off running towards customs, I only experienced a split-second of panic. Again, all alone in a foreign country the Lord washed me with His peace. A dying cell phone stayed live just long enough for crazy taxi driver Maxim to round the corner. A hot lunch and open arms at the Vasilevsky's was the community I needed. An afternoon and evening of sushi and Johnny Depp in Ukrainian with the Afonins was a perfect end to my trip. Drifting to sleep that night, I forgot I wasn't home.

- Now about those kids..........

Tears fill my eyes as I allow memories to flood into my mind. There would be no way to describe the joy in their eyes. The laughs...so!many!laughs! The extreme pain always present.

We spent two days at Nova Vodolaga orphanage and spent that time playing games, decorating cookies, singing songs, doing skits, and having serious discussion. There are so many specific stories tied to all these things that I would love to share, but really can't put into words. So let's have coffee sometime. Seriously.

Instead here, I want to share something that's been rolling around in my head and was reminded of this morning at Midtown. I am beginning to realize I have a very small idea of how God works. His work is so much larger than I could ever imagine and I so often shrink that. I have ideas of why we're working with these orphans. I have expectations of the things that should happen during these trips. But what if I really have no clue as to what's really going on? What if there is such a larger, grander, greater story being told that is so much bigger than me, bigger than Ukraine, bigger than these kids? When telling my passport story, I've been reminded that maybe that whole crazy adventure wasn't for me at all. What if I was just being used? What if the train ride wasn't about me being comforted by having a fellow Christian in the train car but instead that the train ride was about the large Ukrainian man in the car with us hearing that Christian's prayers and praise? What if my passport falling out of my bag into the snow wasn't a random act, but instead an opportunity for Viktor (a man divorced, down on his luck, missing his child), to do the right thing and feel good about himself? And oh boy, how about we apply this to the kids? What if....all sorts of things!

After the summer trip, I reminded myself of the following statement over and over again: If all of this...all the trips, all the fundraising, all the time off, all the travel, all the everything is just so one kid changes a tiny bit, it's worth it. It has to be. I realized I can't change the world. I can't convert 300 orphans in 1 year. God can. I can't. So I have to stop making plans, stop writing stories, stop predicting my own future and just let Him do it. His adventure for me is so much more exciting than I could make it. I never would have thought to ask the Lord two years ago to let me sightsee with Igor and Sasha, to visit their orphanage, to let me ride a train in Ukraine by myself, to lose my passport, to celebrate Slavik's birthday with him, to even go to Ukraine in JANUARY. The Lord has blessed me beyond anything I ever could have expected. I am excited and hopeful to see how the next chapter unfolds.

Blessing

I sometimes use too many words. Too many words to talk about something or sometime. So all I will say about yesterday is that it was amazing.

I spent time in Kiev with friends. Two of which were kids from camp. Kids I love. It was a dream come true. One of the most special days of my life. I cannot believe the blessings the Lord has poured out on me. The special moments he gives me with these kids. I think about meeting these kids the first day of camp in 2009. And now sitting across from them at McDonald's laughing and taking pictures. I am astounded by His Faithfulness and Love for me. I am extravagantly loved by the Creator.

The only thing that could possibly make yesterday even better: There's more to come...

Love you all. Forever grateful for the prayers and support. The Lord is moving here. In big ways.

HH

Travel and New Years in Kiev

I'm in Kiev! Currently staying with my good friend Lesya in her awesome apartment.

My travel was absolutely phenomenal. The best trip I've taken to Kiev by far. :) No layovers, no delays, smooth flights. Nearly empty flights with lots of empty seats...it was a great travel day.

I've spent the day with Lesya and her mom. We ate a delicious traditional New Years dinner (nothing like camp food guys...) :) and then just hung out here for awhile. We then took a stroll around the neighborhood in the snow and went by the grocery store. Such a peaceful, serene night with the occasional fireworks going off. It's such a quiet neighborhood and a stark contrast to the craziness of Kiev's city center that we've been in the past two summers.

Early bedtime tonight and then I get to attend New Life Church in the morning. Definitely excited for this and REALLY excited to see all my Radooga friends...(including the Vasilevsky's and their *special guests*).

Only 3 days until we head to Kharkiv to visit our kids!!

Thank you for the continued support through prayer. I love you all!

HH

один день!!!!!!

Ok, so I leave tomorrow for this incredible trip. I simply cannot believe this is actually happening. It really does seem like we just left camp, so to have the opportunity to see the kids again so soon...it's just amazing.

We found out yesterday that one orphanage we were going to visit is closed for the holidays, so we are actually going to the orphanage that "my" kids live for TWO days instead of ONE! I am sad that we will not visit those kids (who will most likely be staying with extended family over the holiday), but to have another 8 hours with the kids I am closest to is just...wow. I can't find the words.
One of my closest buddies, Slavik, is turning 16 on January 8th. To be there with him around (maybe on) his birthday....wow again. There are so many special details about this trip and I feel abundantly loved and blessed.

My bag is packed. My airplane outfit is set out. :) Camera is ready with extra batteries to attempt to capture the magic of this visit. There are details I'm forgetting...but none that will hinder this journey.

Thank you to everyone for your support and prayers. It means SO.MUCH. I can't wait to return and share pictures and stories of this amazing holiday adventure.

Love you all!
HH

Blessed beyond belief

Interestingly enough, tonight it felt like this was the most stressful holiday season I've ever experienced...this whole Monday-Friday job thing isn't necessarily conducive to Christmas shopping. There are some days I miss having a Tuesday morning off work to get things done. But in the moments of stress and frustration, it hit me pretty hard that I am literally surrounded by blessing. I look at all the things going on in my life and when I really think about them, they really are incredible blessings instead of sources of stress.

Let me first say that the Lord provided ALL the funds for my January trip through kind and generous donations. This is the first trip to Ukraine that I haven't had to pay for a portion. That is simply incredible! I am so thankful that raising money happened quickly and am SO grateful for those of you that supported me. I thank you so very much.

Speaking of Ukraine...(oh yeah, that's what this blog is about), I will be there in a mere 9-ish days!! That has not set in AT ALL. I think with all the craziness of work and the holidays and everything else going on, I haven't had time to really process that a week from tomorrow I'll be boarding a plane and heading to Kiev. I am unable to put into words how grateful I am for a visit to the kids. When I left this summer, I prepared myself for a year of missing them...and to have the opportunity to see them SO soon...well, it's incredible. I CANNOT wait to see them.

I hope to update a bit more frequently over the next week as our team prepares to leave. Please keep us all in your prayers. I will be traveling Dec 31st/Jan 1st so pray for safe travels. The rest of the team comes on the 3rd. Thanks to everyone praying for me and the team!!

Love you all!

HH

Midtown in Ukraine!

Recent blog post I wrote for our team's blog... :)

Russ has given some basic information about Ukraine and the issues facing orphans there. But what about our kids?

The orphaned children we visit live in (or in suburbs of) Kharkiv, Ukraine. Kharkiv is the second largest city in Ukraine with a population of around 1.75 million. It is in extreme Eastern Ukraine so it is much more Russian-influenced than Kiev, the country's capital. The children we visit primarily speak Russian as a first language rather than Ukrainian which is more widely spoken in central and Western Ukraine.

Our kids come from three different orphanages that are located around Kharkiv. They range in age from 8-19. In the summer of 2010, there were around 175 children at camp most of which were boys. Many of the children suffer from physical issues due to institutionalized rearing. Many are extremely small for their age and are shorter in stature. Some have mental or social delays that often go undiagnosed. But these children are also incredibly talented and gifted in many ways. So many of them are amazing artists. There are great singers, dancers, rappers, gymnasts. Many of the boys are incredible soccer players and can beat ANY of the Americans in ping-pong.

But one of the most important things to remember about these children is they each have a life story that is unique to them. Many of the children are at the orphanage because they were removed from their homes by the government due to abuse or neglect. Others are there because their parents were put in jail or died. Some of the children lived on the street for a period of time before coming to the orphanage. There are some children that appear to have been simply "given" to the orphanage by a parent that could not handle raising a child. This further reminds our team how important relationships with the kids become. It is so important to know each one of the kids and their specific story in order for us to build lasting bonds with them. Often, though, the kids are very reluctant to discuss the past and sometimes instead weave inconsistent stories instead of sharing the painful details.

After spending the past two summers with the same group of children, it is apparent to our team that these children simply want to be known. They want to be heard and loved and encouraged. It's often difficult for them to accept this affection, but it is obvious to our team and those that work with them that this is their true desire...as it is for all of us.

Thanks to those who are stepping into the journey of knowing these kids. A member of our team recently told me that our work with these kids is "eternal." Might be a hard concept to understand when there is a picture of an unfamiliar child on your fridge, but praise God He gives us the opportunity to show His Love to these kids. Thank you for your prayers!

-Heather