Homesick and Its Cure (Thursday April 15 and Friday April 16)

Have you ever reflected on how different the Gospel of John reads in comparison to the first three gospels? It's my favorite. I have so many favorite passages in John that many of my pages are worn out from use. His gospel reads in a more reflective tone. There is theology mixed with the retelling of events. So many times he adds, "it was because of ... that this happened" or "He said this because..." John was writing late in life, years after he walked side by side with Jesus. I assume the passage of time made Him understand events even more. 

I did a terrible job blogging while I was in Sofia. I don't know what it was...but I did not pick up the computer very often. I fell in love with Bulgaria and my daughter, but I didn't capture those events here. I was blogging for Emmaline. I kept my journal this way for both Laura and Howie and then printed it for them to read later in life if they are curious what their crazy mama was thinking during their adoption process...and to allow them to see the marvelous ways the Lord worked to bring them into our family. I want the same things for Emmaline, and so I'm going to play catch up. But, now we are home, and she is so different than she was...her blog will read so much differently than the in the moment thoughts of her sister and brother. Who knows, maybe this one will end up being my favorite. I will never be John and my words certainly don't even have a fragment of the importance of His...but maybe the passage of time will deepen this little journal I'm making for my girl. 

Thursday April 15 brought deep homesickness for both Robert and me. We grieved for our children and did not love Sofia enough to want to stay another 10 days. Emmaline was improving but it was still hard and we just missed home and our kids so much we could hardly speak of anything else. We tried to get an earlier flight out, we tried to rearrange appointments, all in vain. In the end, our wonderful adoption agency rescued us. I mentioned when they checked in that I thought we should get out of the city and they helped us find a driver to get us to Rila Monastery the next day. 

The next morning we drove for about 2 hours up into the mountains to Rila Monastery, a UNESCO World Heritage site. It was exactly what our souls needed. Our driver, Dimitriv, was jovial and friendly. Robert sat in the front with him chatting about cars, family, church, and Dimitriv's dream to drive across the United States. He told us the history of things we passed and drove us up these gorgeous narrow mountain roads. I stared out the window admiring the country, wondering about the people in the villages we passed. 

We wandered around and through the monastery for another couple of hours. The monasteries preserved and protected Christians and the Christian faith during times of Muslim (during the Ottoman reign) and Communist persecution and suppression. The monastery and surrounding mountainside is absolutely gorgeous. The restaurant was closed and we were all hungry. Dimitriv took us to a local hole in the wall type restaurant that was the best food we had the entire trip. Robert tried Bulgaria's famous Rakia. (Robert said it made him feel "tingly all over" and Dimitriv replied to never drink homemade Rakia, because "it will kill you.") I passed on that experience. 

Something about the time in the country, and the conversation during the day, revived us for the rest of our trip. Although we liked Sofia and Bulgaria up to that point, I mark the day we visited Rila as the day we started falling in love. The next day (Saturday), we started talking about coming back forever. That was the turning point. The Lord said...look at all I have made, open your eyes to the people who need Me here. And, we looked, we saw. He changed our homesick hearts and made us know home is wherever He puts us.