We are sad to be
away from our friends and family this Thanksgiving, but here you can read what
we are thankful for this year, and it’s almost like we’re sitting around the
table with you :)
This year we are
thankful for:
Technology!
Being able to Skype/Facebook/email has made this overseas transition so much
easier.
Classes that are
conversation based! There isn’t much grading outside of class and that is a
welcome change.
The Czech people!
In American there is this terrible attitude that if people can’t speak English,
they shouldn’t be living/working there. If that was how people here felt about
Czech, we could never do what we are doing.
Students! Even
though some days they are slightly frustrating, they always make for an interesting
day & a rewarding job.
Food/Housing/Paycheck!
And all the good things that come with a paying job. It’s easy to forget, but
we are lucky to have these basic, wonderful things.
Hamburgers and
Vanilla Coke! And other American foods we can find here to remind us of home.
Each other! This
missionary experience is fun, challenging, and it makes it even better to share
it.
God’s constant
care! There have been many times these last few months when we’ve thrown up our
hands and said, “You have to do this. It’s too much for me.” These have been
difficult but growing moments, and God’s involvement in our lives here so far
has been clear to see.
You! The support
we’ve had from our friends and family has been such an encouragement.
Happy
Thanksgiving to our American friends & family! Eat lots of food for us
& enjoy time to relax with loved ones and remember all God has provided for
you this year.
Small Thanksgiving decorations we found in our flat
This last Monday (November 17th) was a national
holiday here in the Czech Republic. One week after the fall of the Berlin Wall
in Germany in 1989, thousands of students in (then) Czechoslovakia marched
downtown and peacefully protested the communist regime, only to be violently
suppressed by the police. Hundreds were injured. This only ignited the support
for the anti-communist protesters. The next few days were peppered with
country-wide strikes, with both young and old protesters now showing their
desire for change. Protesters showed their support by shaking keys, not only as
auditory support, but also signifying the unlocking of doors, and telling the
communist leadership to go home. On November 24, 1989, the entire ruling party
resigned, and on December 29th, just a few weeks later, Václav
Havel became Czechoslovakia’s first
democratically elected, ending 41 years of communist rule.
Today these events are referred to as the Velvet Revolution,
and as a commemorative plaque here in the Czech Republic states “When—if not
now? Who—if not us?” (English translation).
November 17th is now celebrated as a national
holiday (translated: Struggle for Freedom and Democracy Day), honoring those
students that took a stand for something better. As far as I can tell, however,
it is usually just referred to as “Student Protest Day.” Classes are cancelled
and student led protests ensue.
This year—the 25th anniversary of the Velvet
Revolution—was no different. Student protesters gathered to call out Miloš
Zeman, the current Czech President, for his atrocious behavior, and demand his
resignation. Thousands of students held “red cards” aloft symbolizing the
ultimate football (soccer) penalty for misconduct for which a player is thrown
out of the game. Cries of “Resign! Resign!” and “Shame! Shame!” rained down on
the president as he and his peers from Germany, Hungry, Poland, and Slovakia
unveiled a new plaque in honor of the 1989 events.
People with their red cards protesting in central Prague
Many of my students took part in the protests this last
Monday, and it is encouraging to see young people (though I’m not old) taking a
stand for what they believe and getting invested in the future of their
government and country. Some of my students where disheartened, however,
believing that their protest fell on deaf and defiant ears. But as one student
said to me, “Maybe sometime he might hear, but what matters is that we told him.” And I can’t help but think that they not only told their president, they told five presidents. Five presidents and the world.
Praises:
- We have made it 3 months in our new home!
- We have another Teach Beyond member coming from Budapest to stay with us this weekend.
- We are very grateful for Skype/Facebook/email...all the things that make it easy to stay connected & not feel so far away.
Prayer Requests:
- Positivity as we enter into a holiday season away from family
- During the next few weeks we're hoping to make the decision if we'll come home in July or stay in Prague for a second year. Prayers for direction & a peaceful decision.
- Prayers for the city we live in as the people use their voices and push for change.
We have had a couple people ask how they can support me & Jadon this holiday season as we spend it away from home & family. And we have thought of the best way people can do this: Christmas cards! It would be wonderful to get Christmas cards and feel connected this season. The only catch is, they would need to be mailed by December 5, because we get our mail at school, and we'll be leaving for break on the 19th. BUT if you send one late, we will just as gladly open it in January :) The address to send to is:
Written by Brittany
This has been a very crazy and very difficult week, probably the most difficult so far.
For those of you who have been keeping up via Facebook/email/Skype, you know that we left for Berlin last Sunday afternoon to apply for our long-term visas and employment cards. Jadon, myself, and our teammate Annie had an appointment for 1:00pm Monday afternoon. We were prepared with all the right documents, but these appointments are always stressful. Thankfully the woman at the Berlin office was incredibly kind and helpful, and she really made us feel more at ease. She also helped us apply for another short-term visa because the visas we were on expire in 5 days, not nearly enough time be processed & approved for the long-term ones.
Thankfully, we were approved for the short-term visas, but we had to return to Berlin late Thursday night to pick them up at 10:00am Friday morning. While this really went as well as we could have expected, it is difficult to do four 5-hour bus trips in one week, especially when we never really had much time to explore/enjoy the city. We were in Berlin for 36 hours total this week - 20 on Monday & 16 on Friday.
This was also a difficult week at school. We are at the end of the quarter this week, and we needed to give the names of the students who were failing our classes or the students who had not turned any assignments in. While this seems simple, because we teach a conversation class, every student has some grades because they get participation grades every day. So though some students may be struggling or missing assignments, none are failing and all have at least two grades in the grade book. It took a lot of communication, miscommunication, apologizing, translating, explaining, and frustration for us to express this to the teachers we work with and for them to explain to use exactly what they are looking for with these lists.
More than a language barrier, we really had an experience barrier. We are used the the US system where if a student is struggling, their name goes on a list. Or at quarters, you submit all students' grades, not just the students who have zero assignments turned in (how do you get to November and have zero assignments turned in?!). Whereas the teachers we work with could not understand the confusion. Our confusion was met with looks of "Of course this is how you do it, why would it be different?" And I'm positive there are things in the US school system that I would struggle to explain to an "outsider."
So all these things added up to a week of frustration, exhaustion, homesickness, etc.
Then, on Friday night, we got right off the bus from Berlin and went to the One Republic concert, which we have had tickets for since August. It was an amazing show (of course) and a fun way to end the week, but more than that, for me, it was a perspective check.
One Republic sings a song called "Good Life," which if you like One Republic or are a casual radio listener, you will know (and probably love) this song. You can listen to the whole song below, but part of the song goes:
"We all got our stories but please tell me
What there is to complain about."
While they performed, they projected pictures from all over the world where the band has toured, but many of the pictures were of Prague. And it is such a beautiful city, and there are so many wonderful people, and though it is not always easy, it is always an adventure. And in that moment I just felt a little God-nudge. Look where you are. Look what you're doing. Remember how I'm with you? What's there to complain about?
Praises:
- Everything worked out going to & from (and to & from) Berlin
- We now have visas until February 2015
- No school Monday! A 3-day weekend will definitely be a welcome rest.
- That God continually nudges, and He does so in ways & from places you don't expect
Prayer Requests:
- That we are approved for our employment cards & that they are processed quickly
- Continual understanding and grace, both given to us from others and that we are able to give it to them
- That we are the Light and Love we are supposed to share with everyone, even when we are frustrated, exhausted, confused, homesick, etc.
