Mountains worth climbing

There’s a song from The Sound of Music that I’ve always loved. It goes “Climb every mountain. Ford every stream. Follow every rainbow, till you find your dream. A dream that will need all the love you can give it, every day of your life, for as long as you live.”

As the years have passed and I’ve had different experiences my “dream” about working with children overseas has slowly been refined. This past year I’ve gained so much more clarity and my recent time at Savva really confirmed the thoughts I’d been having about future work here. I would love to have a “home” here, perhaps in the city of Chu. While having a family and living out a village life I want to offer an open door to these orphans boys. They leave Savva and are on their own to deal with hopelessness, loneliness, temptations of drugs and alcohol, and an unfriendly and suspicious world. They need a safe place of acceptance to come and receive encouragement to make the right choices. It’s a dream I’m becoming more and more passionate about….though the reality of it happening seems far away. Looking at my situation that dream will require the impossible to become possible and who knows what the years are ahead are to hold?! I haven’t even decided if I will extend my stay here or not! But to dream a dream, to cherish a hope…this makes life worth living. And if you could meet my boys, I know you would agree…

Receiving from their poverty

One of the most challenging and humbling things here in Kazakhstan is receiving gifts. After the teacher training, the teachers gathered together their resources and purchased Sara, Diore (our translator) and myself beautiful, traditional tea sets. We came to serve them and offer ourselves and in return they blessed us!

Even more touching were two of my boys who surprised me on my last day with gifts of their own and the most amazing letters. Here’s a little glimpse (it doesn’t rhyme because it’s a translation from Russian!):

“I am writing to you, Ember
Because I love you as a sister…
You like to have fun with others
To cheer up those who are sad
Sister, I respect you
I will never forget you
I will keep in touch with you…”


And they gave to me, having nothing. I’m honestly not even sure where they got the money from or how long it took them to save up. All I could do was accept them and try to do so without crying! There’s something so beautiful and simply breathtaking about the generosity of one who has nothing and it can bring you to your

knees like nothing else.

More than a little broken and still worth loving

During my days at Savva I sat down with each of the students I new best and gave them a little one on one “interrogation” as we joked. Some had a lot to say about the past and future and some not at all. However, all of them chose to sit with Diore (my translator) and I, long after the questions were done. It became crystal clear how full their hearts became the more someone took an interest in the good and the bad within them and cared how they were.

In one such conversation, a difficult thing happened. A caretaker came over and began to “shame” a young man who was sitting with us. He happened to be a hard young man who was and had trouble upon trouble. Diore and I had been trying to slowly peel away the layers around his heart…until his caretaker came over with accusations (probably true) and compared him to better behaved students, leaving him emotionally stripped and exposed before everyone. He handled this once, but the second time she yelled at him (with us right there) he ran. By the time I caught him he was sobbing to break your heart in his room. With an audience of 10 other boys, I saw this one break like I’d never seen before. I had the privilege of holding this dear boy and speaking love and truth into his life, allowing him space to be broken, hurting, and weak and encouraging him to let go of his anger. The next day the freedom on his face and the light in his eyes was beautiful to see although it was difficult as he had to deal with my departure that same day. Before I went I sat down and spoke with him once more. Although I hated to go I believe that leaving after this emotional incident will impress those vital, deep conversations even more upon his heart. He will be at Chu next year so I am thankful to know I will see him again and be able to impact his life.

Lost and found

Sasha had been “lost” this to me this year. He was not at Chu when we visited and I was told he was working in Merke (where Savva was). At Merke I was told no one had heard from him and that he was in Chu. After walking away from that conversation at Savva I wanted to mourn this “lost” child, but had a sudden surety that I would indeed see him again this year! I was doubtful but willing to accept the hope and kept an eye out for him everywhere.

And guess who came to Savva? Yes, Sasha! I couldn’t help but run to him and throw my arms around him I was so happy and surprised! I got to give him the gifts and letters I had been carrying with me all over Kazakhstan in the hope of seeing him. And we were able to talk and I am so thankful to say he is doing well. He was at Chu after all and has been working on the railway. He even has plans for the future! He hopes that when he’s 20 he’ll qualify for train conductor. He’s found summer work too in construction, not too far away and has a place to stay. We had such a good conversation that my heart is just full of joy of the one who was lost but now is found!

The boys go marching one by one, hurrah, hurrah!

Two Savva boys missed their own graduation this year, but it was for a really good reason! They went to the capital to test for the military school and they passed! In September, they will move to Kiraganda (in the north) and finish high school at the military academy and they have the chance to join a division of the Kazakh military. Here they are (to the far left and the 4th from the left) with myself, 2 of their teachers, and a 2007 Savva graduate.

Back to the future

We were able to attend the graduation at Savva this year, the same day as our arrival. We saw a lot of performances and heard a number of speeches. To my joy, several of graduates from past years came including three of “my boys.”

Girls that graduate will be in Taraz next year and hopefully I will see more of them. They will be at the local polytechnic institute finishing high school and learning a profession. The boys will be going to Chu to another polytechnic institute. My concern, as I’ve said before is that Chu is a well renowned drug city and the boys have little to no guidance or support. Moreover, I found out from them that the teachers instruct mostly in Kazakh whereas they mostly all speak Russian. There are few to little healthy recreational activities and the temptations to drink and smoke are great.

What they don't teach you at school (Alternate title: Teacher training II)

Besides teaching teachers, we also gave training to caretakers in the same subjects of learning styles, discipline, and then in love languages as well. They too were receptive of our information, though admittedly a few older teachers were more accustomed to older patterns of relating to children which included extremes of shaming students and/or reinforcing bad behavior.

But where I had known one or two women at Savva before, now I know many! They came to sit with us, greeted us, and loved the fact that Sara said the children at Savva are all our children. Sara and I are so excited about helping not just the children, but the caretakers and teachers which in turn will bless the children twice over!

(Here we are playing a silly game together!)

Everything I need to know I learned in kindergarten (Alternate title: Teacher training I)

I was nervous about the idea of teaching teachers, but it went GREAT! There were a few times I was worried about their boredom or worried that we were offending them in some way, but when I expected criticism, they gave praise instead.

Most of the teachers at Savva have been there for 5-40 years! Many of them are already in retirement and keep teaching because they love their work and they love the kids. They understood when we talked about remedial learners and behavior problems, eager for fresh solutions to old problems. We also introduced the newer concept of learning styles. Although change takes time, we are thankful to have been received so well. They all completely evaluations that we are so eager to read!

One funny thing you can see in the picture below are some of the role plays the teachers did which were absolutely hilarious! We all knew which kids they were and watching grow men throw fits was too funny for words!

The hope is that perhaps we could have specialized educators visit from the states to do trainings two or three times a year and, with Internet now available at the orphanage schools, perhaps to do even an online training for the teachers!

90 years and aging fast!

So I’m at Savva right now and unable to post any blogs, but I’m working ahead here, hurrah! On June 6th a group of us went to Savva to celebrate their 90th anniversary. There are some really cool thoughts from Kiikzhan and Moldir on the Interlink blog. I did want to show you my huge art project for them…turned out pretty well I think. The director certainly seemed very pleased!

And don't forget the special anniversary meal including...SHEEPS HEAD! Thankfully there were about 8 tables the head got passed around to before it go to me, so all the "good parts" like the eyes and brain were gone. So sad! None for me.

No more teachers' dirty looks...

To help the Saramoldeava children end their school year, we had a great picnic by the river with the boys group and girls group as well as all the "ministers" (class officers) of the orphanage and a few of their teachers. I had a lot of fun bonding with the teachers, especially one who helped drag me into the water! The other great thing was that a couple of the older boys absconded Sara's camera and mine ad got some really great shots!







You might notice that a picnic for one orphanage seems way cooler than handing out small gifts at another. But Ulan has about 200 children we work with and the least amount of structure and discipline. On the other hand Saramoldeava has about 18 groups of children and wide number of sponsors (we sponsor only 3 groups) and they are highly organized. It's just of the challenges we face working with a wide variety of orphanages here in a culture that is still weeding out corruption.

No more school, no more books...

To celebrate the end of the school year we took small gifts to Ulan orphanage for a special day. I was excited to get some great photos of kids I don't see that often. This is the one orphanage where the children all speak Kazakh and so I'm looking forward to spending more time with them in August, at camp. We had some help in handing out presents from the the Knauss family. The Knauss boys wrote about their impressions of their peers at the orphanage on the Interlink blog. In the meantime, here are some of their amazing faces...

Summer Madness and Loads of Americans!

Summer is the busiest season of all around here. It begins with the month long visit of the Knauss family. David Knauss has recently switched from being the in country director to the stateside President of Interlink. With his arrival have come a lot of business, American team, and coaching meetings. I've been asked a LOT of good questions, but have been a bit overwhelmed by all the meetings we've been having. It's been especially difficult with the challenge for me as a new person on the team, and with the question of extending my stay still hanging. I honestly have been pretty overwhelmed, but even though some talks have been difficult, they are necessary for us to have unity and for us to work together. And this is how summer starts!

Then we have a JUNE delegation to Savva. We will be at the orphanage for about a week. Sara and I get to do an ALL NEW teacher training. I'm nervous, but I think it will go really well. We're teaching on love languages, learning styles, remedial learners, and behavior management. Although it's difficult not to be attached to a certain class or group of kids, building up and connecting with the teachers is going to have an even bigger impact on them long term!

After a brief week, a team will arrive in early JULY to work with the Youth Impact kids (orphanage grads). Olya and I are working together to lead this delegation and I'm learning a lot.

Then, shortly after they depart, AUGUST brings us a delegation to Ulan summer camp. This will be more of a camp type place and will have a smaller US team, meaning we here in KZ will be playing a bigger role. I'm hoping my language will do well enough I won't need a translator! Maybe...lol.

So if you don't hear from me so often, sorry! I'll post stories and pictures as quick as I can!

Here we come big city!

Moldir and I will head out tonight, Sunday, for Almaty to pick up the Savva delegation. We get a day of shopping (rah) in Almaty at the bazaar and then the delegation arrives on Tuesday at 1:10 am and then we’ll head back to Taraz via bus. Should be fun…but boy am I glad I’ll come back to a home in Taraz and get to stay when they go!

Clowning around...

We took a special treat to the Saramoldeava orphanage for Children’s Day: 3 clowns! I wrote about it on the Interlink blog, but here are some of my favorite photos from the day. Most of the children had never seen a clown before, but only one was too afraid to participate. The cool part was our orphanage graduates were working as clowns. The purple clown is Oksana, one of “my girls” who graduated from Savva orphanage last year.

My little orange secret

I’ve found the hole in my wallet. I mean, I finally realized this week where that extra 700 tenge ($5) a week is going…salads! Yes, salads. They are orange and green and red and vinegary and oily and spicy and good all over! My mouth is watering now to think of a lovely Korean salad. “Korean?!” you might ask. Well, yes, there are quite a lot of Koreans in Kazakhstan, and oh they make the yummiest salads! Carrot salad, rice noodle salad, green bean salad, mushroom salad, beet salad, cabbage salad…except no fish! I sincerely love fish, but in a land locked country fish are a no no in my book (unless they come in a can)! Last week I bought salad with what I though were small peppers in it, nope, fish. *sigh* My Kazakh is well and fine, but all the Korean ladies selling salad speak Russian. I tried to ask if it were fish, but apparently a wiggly, swimming hand is NOT the universal sign for fish!

Sticking out like a sore thumb (Alternate title: Is there a sign on my back?)

It was one of those days. I woke up late, the bus was crowded, I smashed one lady in the head with my computer bag on that crowded bus, and then on that same bus proceeded to be mashed into two other grumpy people including a nursing mother and fat business man. All of which who were Russian speaking and who frowned at me with their heavy, tired, eyebrows when I begged forgiveness in Kazakh. Finally I arrived at the haven of work where it’s okay to be an American and where a completely overwhelming art project awaiting my hours and hours of unrelenting attention. *sigh*

Then there was this one beautiful moment when I walked out of the office for a cup of tea and had the sudden realization that “I live here. I live in Kazakhstan. Me. Kazakhstan. I don’t have to leave. This is my home.” And I was happy.

Then the police came for me. Yup. Police. For yours truly. They asked for my passport and visa which was locked away in a safe I don’t have the key to. They departed after checking the office photocopy and asking me what I am doing here, to which I responded, “I work with children.” Not sure what the trigger was, but there she blows.

My utterly dire humiliation…on Kazakh TV

My Mom is sighing now over my ultra dramatic title. Mom, I can still hear you in Kazakhstan! Well the story I’m about to tell wasn’t dire and I wasn’t really humiliated, but, well here’s the story…

My tiny little apartment of a Kazakh school recently had a local TV crew visit. My teacher requested I attend and my boss thought it would be good for Interlink’s reputation. The only problem was the complete and overwhelming anxiety I felt at the whole idea of it! The fright came in forms I have never known before, beet red face, sweat gushing, pounding head, dry mouth and loss of consciousness! Now if any of you know me, you’ll know I’ll jump up front almost any time…give me a mike and an audience and I’m gold. Therefore, my throat clenching anxiety was inexplicable to me, but I figured like any good performer, I would act as if I was okay when the time came. Yea right! When the time came I balked! Completely lost it! When the camera came, I got passed my name and…died. Died a miserable little death in head exploding red heat, stuttering collapse of the mental system, and a complete loss of all self-confidence. Yes, an utterly dire humiliation!

Oh I have to laugh at myself! In all this knee quaking drama, there are redeeming bits. First, I could be edited out completely! Save that, I’m not sure when it will air, so maybe no one I know will see it! Third I now know the name of my Kazakh school, which I honestly didn't know before! Fourth, we did get to sing a wonderful group song in Kazakh (which of course everyone knew but me) which went something like this for a resounding 10 minutes “Zaa….Deeeyeaa……blah blah blah [smile benignly at camera]….Laaaaa.”

How are the kids? (They are the reason I'm here after all!)

School has just finished for the children. They have a few weeks of relative freedom and then will go to summer camps of various standards. We're are wrapping up our weekly visits and preparing for the big summer delegation trips.

There's a couple of great posts about our work with the kids on the Interlink Resources blog. To save being repetitious, I would simply encourage you to check them out there:

New beginnings is about 3 orphanage children who are returning home to their mother.

Ping-pong ATTACK is about a great family day we had with some of the kids from Saramoldeava.

Shiny, happy, people holding hands...

Shiny walls that is! The remont (remodeling) of the basement with
the controversial glossy paint has finished at long last. The Kids Connection, storage, and security offices have been painted and decorated with a spin off in the Youth Impact office. Although I didn’t expect to do interior designing, I’m really thankful to have a creative outlet here and be such a blessing to the office staff. The moment I finished painting I swore it off…for at least a week! In the meantime, I’m very happy with the results and with the relationships that have been built with the staff as we’ve worked together on these projects! And of course, the most important part, they like it too! Here are a couple of pictures of the product..