Back to normal(ish)

Today, the quarantine is lifted, and the Ukrainians are back to life as usual. I am back to a version of life as usual. Because the schools are really behind, I'm not quite sure when I'll actually be back in the classrooms. I did, however, need to trek out to the bus station to buy my ticket to Dnipropetrovsk for Thanksgiving.

I will never ever yell (and if I can help it, I won't even get obviously frustrated) at any international who is trying his or her hardest to speak English. It's mean.

My Russian is continuing to improve, but it's still rocky. I have to be totally in the zone at all speaking moments. In the bus station, there was a lot of reverberating noise and the microphone-speaker thing between the cashier and me was VERY garbly. I did really well for the first part. I told her I wanted one ticket to Dnipropetrovsk for Thursday morning. She clarified which city, which day, and then she said something else that came out garbled and distorted. I asked her for clarification. She yelled it very loudly to me, attracting the attention or almost everyone. When I told her that I didn't understand, she threw up her hands, growled (or at least, that's what it sounded like), and I thought she wasn't going to give me a ticket. Another customer stepped up to ask her a question at that moment, and she yelled at him. I felt so horrible; the poor guy had no idea that she was so touchy already. We finally figured out that she was trying to clarify the date I was asking for, and she gave me my ticket. Of course, I asked for the 9:00 am ticket, and she gave me the 6:10 am ticket. Spiteful? Maybe.

I was super grumbly about the whole experience until I was on the way home. I realized that there's a good possibility that she was already having a wretched day before the inept American came along. Who knows what's going on in her life? I decided to spend the time praying for her, and miraculously, my bad attitude dissipated. Amazing.

I am still a little bummed about the 6:10 am bus departure time...

What I did over Swine Flu break...

I debated about whether or not to put this up, but in compliance with the requests of Kat, Rachel, and Molly, here is a video of one of our rehearsals. Since videoing this, we have worked out some of the kinks. For instance, Maya won't always be changing the words in order to tell the band to change tempo, mid-song. The letter "Б" in the word "Бог" (God) is now much closer to the other letters in the word. And, the word "грех" (sin) has also been fixed. I like how you can hear Stas giving direction every now and then. Thankfully, he told us "good job" more times than he corrected us. That has not been the case up to this point. Try not to laugh too hard, please.

Quarantine activities

After that first week of quarantine, my life got a little more exciting. My church here is hosting a youth conference this coming weekend, and there is going to be all manner of drama, music, performing, etc. Well, Nastia volunteered the two of us to participate in one of the performances. It doesn't require any speaking, so I agreed. All last week and for several hours already this week, we've had rehearsals with the rest of the group. This has added a little fun activity to my otherwise tranquil existence. It has also thrust me into a new level of language learning; immersion in a situation that is almost all direction and instruction. It's been really fun! (But I do come home completely mentally exhausted afterwards.)

The "performance" that we're doing is to the song "Who Am I?" by Casting Crowns. Now, we have been rehearsing (like, for 10 hours) using the English version of the song because there isn't a recording of the Russian version. Last night, we had rehearsal with the band and the girls that will be singing, so of course, we were using the Russian version.

Problem: the sequence of the song is NOT the same.

We had to rework a good chunk of the order that we had painstakingly memorized so that it matches the Russian song. What an adventure. There were several times during our 3.5 hour rehearsal where we had to take breaks so that the guy directing our part could consult with the singers about how to reword the lyrics. Oh my. During these times of breakage, I pulled out my camera to document the fun:

Good idea in principle...not so much in execution. Luda, me, and Nastia.

Um, Nastia couldn't hold on to her silly face. I win.

Dasha could, though.

I'm a rock star. You just didn't know.

More friends: Lyera, Olya, Stas, and Katya.

During one of our translation breaks, the band starting practicing a different song. Katya and Luda spontaneously started doing the motions to it, and I thought it was fun! The chorus translates roughly as: My hands, legs, and eyes/ My nose, mouth, and ears all belong to Him. Enjoy!

Just like Jill

I love Narnia. I've been a Narnia fan since I was a very, very small child and my dad would read them to us. I know a freakish amount of useless information from the series, and it played a major role in my senior thesis for college.

As I've gotten older and continued my life as a Narnia devotee, I've tried to analyze which character I am most like. There are four main female characters: Susan, Lucy, Jill, and Aravis. Now, not very many people really want to be like Susan; she thinks Narnia is silly, she always drags her feet, and she eventually gives up on it altogether. Lucy is so sweet and kind. Aslan values her and audiences love her. Jill is mercilessly teased in "our world" and muffs all of her tasks in Narnia, but she is friendly and gets to save Prince Rilian. Aravis is exotic and brave, full of courage and sassiness.

I've decided that the character I most identify with is Jill from The Silver Chair. I know quite a few people who find Jill annoying and whiny (which stresses me out, seeing as how I identify with her!), but I see in myself so much of Jill's character.


1. Jill feels the need to prove herself.
Jill unintentionally causes Scrubb to fall off of the cliff after they arrive in Narnia. Why? Because she wanted to prove her bravery...but it was a little too much for her. The longer I'm alive (especially here in Ukraine), I realize more and more that I'm constantly trying to prove myself. I'm not quite sure who I need to impress or why I feel it's important, but I do it.

2. Jill gives up her habit of repeating the "signs."
Aslan gives Jill four signs that she is supposed to repeat daily. She does a great job of remembering the signs at the beginning of the quest, but over time, as she becomes weary and frustrated and annoyed, she gives up repeating the signs. I find myself doing this all the time. My entire reason for living in Ukraine is to share the hope that I've found, but so often, I'm too weary from trying to dredge up Russian all day, frustrated by my lack of success at life in general, and annoyed by cultural differences that I just want to put off my quiet time until later. That's the same as failing to repeat the signs, which does the same for me as it does for Jill: muddies my thoughts and smudges my purpose.

3. Jill is often more focused on herself and her convenience than on her task.
How often do I get angry when my internet goes out for no reason or my water is cut off for a day or I have to change the lightbulbs every other week because they keep exploding? I so frequently let those very non-important issues to distract me from my actual goal and focus.

4. Jill has had personal interaction with and instruction from Aslan.
Now, as I learned when I did research for my thesis, Lewis did not intend for the Narnia series to be an exact allegory of the gospel. However, there are many parallels. In a collection of Lewis' letters to children, he writes this about Aslan to one little girl:

As to Aslan’s other name, well I want you to guess. Has there never been anyone in this world who (1.) Arrived at the same time as Father Christmas. (2.) Said he was the son of the Great Emperor. (3.) Gave himself up for someone else’s fault to be jeered at and killed by wicked people. (4.) Came to life again. (5.) Is sometimes spoken of as a Lamb…Don’t you really know His name in this world?

I know his name in this world, and like Jill, I've also had personal interaction with and instructions from Him. Also like Jill, when I do focus on the task at hand and don't forget to repeat the signs, I can accomplish things- not in a "prove myself" kind of way but in a "I'm doing what I'm supposed to be doing" kind of way.

I really love Jill. I think it's because- despite all of the things that she does incorrectly- she refocuses and finishes well. Who doesn't love that?

What Narnia character are you?

Dear Kari

Dear Kari,

Thank you for your very pertinent question (how does the patronymic system deal with maiden names?)! The answer is that you keep your given name and patronym, lose your maiden name, and add your husband's last name. I guess in some ways, it's a little more straightforward than our system, but I have to say that I love that we have so much choice over names in the States.

Love,
Erin

I'm sorry...I didn't catch your patronym.

A couple of nights ago while my company was here, we got into some discussions about differences in American and Ukrainian cultures- a discussion that could go on for months. One of the issues we talked about for a while was one I've discussed many times since arriving here: American middle names.

This isn't really a strange topic to those of us born stateside, I guess. Most of us have a middle name. Many of us like our middle names, others don't. Some are family names, some are just names that our moms liked. Some people have middle names that weren't family names or particularly liked by Mom- just names that "went" with the first name. In the South, it's also very common for people to have double names. However, the point remains that we just don't give it too much thought.

Ukrainians are fascinated by our system of using middle names, because it is so very different than the Slavic system. Ukraine, like many Slavic countries, uses the patronym system. In the patronymic system of naming, a person's "middle name" is his or her father's name + an ending. For men, the Ukrainian ending is "ovich" or "ivich." For women, the ending is "ovna" or "ivna." So, if a father's name is "Ivan," his son's patronym would become "Ivanovich" and his daughter would become "Ivanovna."

A sample name might look something like this:

Irshko Alexander Ivanovich
surname "first" name patronym

Irshko Tatiana Ivanovna
surname "first" name patronym

If I were Slavic, my name would become: Brassart Erin Jeffriovna.

As much as I like my dad, I'm sincerely glad that's not my name! What's your patronym?

When in Rome, do as the Ukrainians do.

I had some friends over to visit tonight, which was FANTASTIC (especially since last week was so dry and devoid of company)! After they left and I was cleaning/straightening up, I realized how I've adapted to the Ukrainian way of doing things (in some respects...in others, I'll probably never adapt).

Shoes off.
When you enter someone's home, you always remove your shoes at the door. Today, in preparation for my visitors, I tried to insure that there would be plenty of floor space near the door so that the shoes and boots wouldn't pile up. I didn't realize what I was doing until after I'd done it. Honestly, the "shoes off" policy isn't that bad...it cuts down on junk tracked onto the carpet.

Guests: Don't arrive empty-handed.
I love this about Ukrainian culture. You don't visit someone's house without bringing a gift. Usually, the gift is a bag of cookies. Sometimes you get a carton of juice, a bar of chocolate, or some cake. I think it's so very kind and friendly. Tonight, I got a bag of Fig Newton-type cookies and two small packages of my favorite chocolate cookies.

Hostess: Don't be greedy.
When your guests bring you a gift of food, you should put it out to be enjoyed by all. So, in addition to the muffins I made, I served the "Fig Newtons" and the chocolate cookies. I learned this last year and immediately noted that when I take food to someone's house, I should make sure that it's something I like to eat, too.

Drinks all around.
Not the alcoholic kind, of course. In Ukraine, you serve tea. What kind? Correction: kinds. It's pretty customary to offer at least a choice of black or green tea. I usually keep a passion fruit kind on hand, as well. Whereas in the States we tend to offer different kinds of soft drinks or coffee, Ukrainians offer tea and sometimes juice. I try to keep juice on hand for visitors. I like juice, but I don't drink it quite as much as my Ukrainian friends. My favorite is peach juice. I'm going to miss it when I return to the US.

Up your sleeve.
During the winter, people usually wear hats, scarves, and coats. When Ukrainians take off their coats at someone's house, they stuff their scarves down into the sleeves of their coats, for safe-keeping. Smart. However, this plan can backfire. I once forgot that I'd stuff a scarf in my sleeve, wore another scarf, and didn't notice the hidden scarf until later that evening when someone pointed out that it was hanging out of my sleeve cuff. I'm so cool...

I will probably hang on to some of these habits when I end my term. So many of them make great sense or are just terribly friendly. I definitely don't mind embracing these particular aspects of culture. Gotta love that Ukraine.