One of the biggest changes I have had to adjust to here in Ufa (besides the language!) is the difference in how I shop. In America I had grown quite happy with my routine of one big weekly trip to the shopping store plus one or two smaller trips to get things we ran out of and a trip to Wal Mart at least twice a month. This got me pretty much everything I needed. The difference now: there are no Wal Marts and I don’t have a car. This means I or Clarke can only shop for what we can carry home, so we shop almost every day. Most stores are small, specialty stores, and some can be quite tricky to find.
I found one of the best children’s stores in our area by seeing a banner on the side of a building and walking around to the side and near the back of a building to finally find a door with no sign, but which I saw others also going through. It felt like I was sneaking into the building, but it turned out this was the main door. We have found a lot of good places this way. You just have to keep your eyes open!
I write about this because so many of my friends ask about the differences in living here and back home. There are a lot! I have had some hard days, but it is always temporary. God allows me to struggle through my doubting and self-centeredness but then faithfully reminds me of who I am in Christ and why I am here and that He is always with me. The hard days are always good for me. Learning a new way to live day to day has given me a bigger perspective. Today I had 8 things on my list to buy for a gathering we are having in our home next week. I got 5 of them after being out for 2.5 hours. This was a successful trip for me!
Thanks for your visit to Family Fountain and comment on the blog post about "Granny." How did you find my blog?
ReplyDeleteI enjoyed looking through your blog and learning something of your work in Russia. My wife and I have an interest in doing work their some time. I am going to add your link to my blog register to keep up with your teaching in Russia.
Thanks again for the visit.
Has been a while since I've visited here! Hope everyone is doing well.
ReplyDeleteI like this statement: "God allows me to struggle through my doubting and self-centeredness but then faithfully reminds me of who I am in Christ and why I am here and that He is always with me. The hard days are always good for me."
I just took a Christian philosophy course on belief, doubt, thinking about God, etc. It was very good and faith-building. God is with us in our struggles, in faith, in new places, in our roles.
Good post.