Visit to Lugans'k and Irena's House

We were extremely thankful to have spent the night in a new train car, and all 4 of the girls even got to bunk in the same cabin!  We really have been blessed once again! (Special thanks to Oksana!)

It is Monday the 2nd, and the train cars were covered in blowing snow and the ice drops on the windows prevented any good picture taking.  Therefore, I am left to describe for you what it looked like when we all woke up this morning to the gentle swaying and rhythmic clicking of our train as it glided east.  Most of the countryside is a barren scape of snow and rolling hills.  Lugans’k is a region that was built on coal mining and steel production.  One of the former manufacturing facilities is one of the highlights that we can see as we pass by.  Our translator points this out each time we go by it, as his wife’s family has derived a living from one of these facilities before its collapse after Ukrainian independence in 1991.  There is still evidence of some activities by the cooling tower steam plumes and the dark smoke drifting from the stacks.  Having been an EPA certified stack opacity reader myself, I can guarantee that nearly each of these stacks that I looked at was out of US EPA compliance, and would warrant daily fines in huge amounts if back at home.  I am simply amazed at the state of equipment and disrepair, and yet the tracks in the snow suggest that we are not looking at a museum of an old factory.  Instead, we are looking at the remnants of a factory that is still alive to some degree.  This is a determined society who is forging ahead against all odds and beyond what we can comprehend as possible.  They are forced to make do and to press on through another winter, another economic down turn, and who knows what personal tragedy that each person can share from these villages. We have heard and seen so much hard life today that it is difficult to take all in, let alone process and share.



View of Natalie's home village Vesnyonya

Cousin Elya, Misha, Aunt Luba, Natalie

We had a warm greeting at the train platform with Natalie’s Aunt Luba smothering us with hugs.  Her husband, Misha, was holding their two year old Elya.  Elya is bundled up head to toe, but his rosy cheeks, bright eyes and big smile were instantly contagious to us all!  Both Luba and Misha have no hearing and rely on signing for communication. Therefore, smiles, hugs and charades started immediately.

 We quickly drove to check in at the Hotel Druzhba and joined together for a late breakfast along with Nadia, our 2003 house host who also came to meet us.  Elya kept us entertained as we passed the note pad back and forth from Luba and Misha to George and Samantha, who could then translate to us. Luba sat right next to Natalie, and soaked in every moment. We took lots of pictures and then headed off to see Natalie’s orphanage for a quick donation of zip lock bags filled with goodies.  

We were surprised by the new security gate and guard, that now had to let us in.  There was a new Director, but fortunately two staff were on hand that vaguely remembered Natalie's name.  We shared some photos and asked how the orphanage was going.  They reported to be the one and only in the area that had received a family model designation and associated funding for this new style of family care.  In conjunction with this, there were now only about 45 kids (half of previous) living there now.  The staff was extremely grateful for the personal visit from Natalie, and mentioned that it just doesn't ever happen.  If we come back and have more time, they promised to gather more staff that would remember her.  It was refreshing to hear of this orphanage being properly funded, and that a family model was now being pursued.  I asked, and they confirm that there is no threat of a closure of this orphanage in the near future for funding reasons.  Next stop: Grandma at her village about an hour and a half away.



Natalie in fron of her old orphanage



The roads were snow packed and slushy with the trees still hanging on to their white covering from last night’s storm.  After another exercise of ignoring the opposing traffic in the same lane, we finally arrive in the little village of Vesnyonya.  There are no improved roads, and realize that the snow is much deeper than we thought. The entire area that contained all of the settlement homes (I just can’t say neighborhood) was hardly passable, and we got stuck several times trying to get our van down these roads after just one snow storm.  Now that we have to walk in it, the snow definitely seems deeper! Grandma Irena is already outside, and immediately came out to the roadway to meet us. We are overwhelmed with how special this moment of becoming reconnected is. We walk through the gate and immediately greeted with the sights, sounds and smells of a miniature farm.  The two dogs are barking repeatedly and cause the ducks to scurry off.  The walk way between the small barn and main house is a path of discolored and swept snow mixed with ice. We are welcomed inside as she apologizes for how cold her house is.  She has a fire built, but it is not warm yet excepting for in the kitchen.  I took my shoes off, ignoring her request that I keep them on. Soon I realized just exactly how cold it was, and quickly put them back on. While George began catching up with his friendship with Irena, the girls sat inside while Kris and I strolled outside to get some photos in the fading light at just 3 pm. 

We walked further back through the snow pathway that was clearly used by the animals and turning to mud in spots.  Icicles hung from all the eves, making for great pictures. On the right is the main house, which we discover is too big to regularly afford to heat. (Maybe 400-500 sq. ft.) On the left is a very small building which is half house, and half barn.  In the first part lives Sergey, Irena’s son and 4^th husband, Vlad. In the back lives three cows of which one is expecting. We didn’t ask to see the cows this time, partially because of all of the manure like mud on the path leading up to the door. Imagine three cows in a place maybe ½ to ¾ the size of a one car garage. Most all of the hay in the region is handled loosely with forks and wagons, and their next structure housed the winter’s supply. Another small building was loaded up with fire wood, another with coal, another was a root cellar, and yet another was for storing food and cooking in the summer. The total coal for the winter could fit inside my F-350 short bed box, so sparing use was obvious. There were two small buildings, one of which was the outhouse.  Finally, there was another two room house that had smoke coming from the chimney, and we remember this from our 2005 visit as Irena’s kitchen and bedroom.  All of the buildings are extremely rough, and are in need of more than just a coat of paint or minor repairs.  Still, it is their home as it was Natalie’s home for her first 13 months of her life.  Irena showed us the exact bed that Natalie used to sleep in.  It is so hard to explain how heartfelt these moments were, knowing that this life could easily have been a reality for Natalie.  I don’t want to point out all of the shockingly rough amenities to be disrespectful in any way.  These people are a testament to survival and being tough! We have the utmost respect for how hard their life is, and how hard they work just to maintain existence.

One of the most touching moments was when Kris thanked Irena for loving Natalie so much in that first 13 months. (before Natalie was taken to an orphanage and after Irena's hospitalization in the year 2000)  We tried explainiang the imortance of this, but it was already felt and shown on Irena's face as she wept with joy.  Irena thanked us for all the love that we are giving Natalie.

Most of us guys think we could tough it without any running water by getting to enjoy this taste of pioneer days perhaps a few times a year while camping or hunting.  I can assure you that our tune would change if this became our life, and there was no money to help offset the many other challenges associated with this life.  For example, we received a message after we left that Irena was sick in bed with a fever, and couldn’t get up.  Thank goodness for her situation, since she has her son Sergey and husband Vlad to care for her.  She is unusual in this regard, since so many widows are not able to find husbands.  She has succeeded in this regard three times after loosing her first three husbands to illnesses related to working in coal mines at early ages.



Did he really just drink that whole bottle?



used to be my bed!

Looking back at the evening, Irena’s impending illness was not noticeable.  She went through great effort to shower us with many food dishes and sweets! The eating experience will never be forgotten by our three girls, and I’m sure they will share with you more details if you ask them. Our stay lasted about 3 hours, with one of the highlights being a photo album that Natalie had put together for Irena’s keepsake. We took lots of photos, and laughed together when Sergey requested a second picture without his teeth showing.  He actually has decent teeth, and our laughing was only following his lead on himself taking it lightly.  When it was time to leave our coats were no longer needed, and it seemed a shame that the house was now warm.  Our goodbyes were just as tough or worse than when we left the mobbing orphan kids who were touching the van as long as they could keep up.

Once back out on the main road, we all settled in for the long drive over the snowy and icy road.  The shadows of the headlights brought more depth to how rough the road was.  Likewise, the images of our visit were strickingly vivid as we all played them back in our minds while staring at the moon.  Kris and I are so thankful to have had three of our daughters experiencing the rich tastes, textures, emotions and sights of today’s visit.  Inta from our worship band at Grace Place came to our minds when Rhya quickly pointed out the money song playing on the radio.  How rich our life has become as we truly know ………………………

It’s not about the money, money, money
We don’t need your money, money, money
We just wanna make the world change,
Forget about the Price Tag.

Ain’t about the (ha) Ka-Ching Ka-Ching.
Aint about the (yeah) Ba-Bling Ba-Bling
Wanna make the world change,
Forget about the Price Tag.

Jessie J - Price tag song