It's a Small World, After All

It was not very busy at the metro early on Sunday morning.  We heard bells ringing at 8:50 a.m.  We wondered what the significance was.  They sounded beautiful.  We have a car but chose to walk to the metro and get more familiar with finding our way around.  If you look up at the station we are arriving at, you might understand the challenge it is to connect the name of the station with what we hear.  We have gotten off on the wrong station several times but eventually we figure it out.  We got turned around driving the car home from the church yesterday and the metro seemed a better bet in finding our way. 

We arrived at the church with few minutes to spare. The contrast between this church and the Salt Lake City Headquarters chapel is stark.  

 

Today we found  a counselor in our branch presidency was our son's companion in Taiwan.  I made the connection as our RS teacher was talking to a sister from Hong Kong.  She mentioned she served in Taiwan.  It was the same mission as McKay's with the same mission president.  As I visited with her, I found out that she works in the embassy as a liaison for Greece and US with China.  Her husband works for DC embassy remotely here in Greece.  

I met Tawna that is from Kiev.  She fled the Ukraine and ended up in the Netherlands.  She was visiting Greece with her mother on a vacation.  She is a waitress and was happy to be in the Netherlands because she said she was too old to be a waitress in Kiev ...they only want young girls.  She was a RM that served in Russia.  

There was a young mother from Texas.  She was staying with a friend 2 hours outside of Athens.  She got her three little boys up at 6 am to ride two different buses and the metro to get to church.  She home schools the boys and wanted to bring the Parthenon to life for them so she came to Greece.  

I can hear "It's a Small World". 

Our European Area Director came this week from Germany.  He took us to visit many organizations that serve the refugees, migrant, and asylum seekers.  Do you know the difference? 

 Refugees are people in a specific predicament which calls for safeguards.  Asylum seekers and refugees lack the protection of their own country.  We went to many different organizations that are serving the refugees that come from Syria, Iraq, Africa, Ukraine and many other places.  

This center is run from the Jesuit church.  It was an old building and very warm.  There were many contrasts between organizations...those that have and have not. All wanting to help those in need.  We will be meeting with more organizations this week as we get oriented.  We have been invited to come and serve as time allows.  We are hoping to do that.  Most are in the heart of Athens.  I have tried to take each new thing one at a time and not get overwhelmed.  Shopping was a challenge as we took Google translate and tried to figure out what we really wanted. 

The young missionaries have been wonderful to chauffer, instruct, explain, etc. all that they have learned.  It has been very tender to me as I reflect on my own children as they served their missions in all parts of the world.  A little child shall lead them seems so appropriate.  They have been a huge blessing as we get our bearings. 

Here is to a new week, new adventures, new places to visit and a growing dependence on the Lord to guide us.  We have always wanted to serve a mission together and as hard as it has been to adapt and change, we feel so blessed to work together to accomplish what we hope the Lord had in mind when He called us here.