Matthew Cuthbert, My Pepaw, and Smell Good Man....

Today I have a guest blogger filling in for me.  It is my daughter Kathryn and she does not know she is my guest....but after reading her post this morning....I had to share it with you all. 

 

Matthew Cuthbert, My Pepaw, and Smell Good man

Saturday, June 18, 2016

Hi friends...Remember me?  I have not blogged in a while and I know you all still love me.  My days consist of doing life with these girls, of soaking up every ounce of information I can about orphan care and shepherding the hurting heart.  Most of our girls come from backgrounds full of hurt and abandonment and that brings with it its own unique set of issues.  Brian and I want to do all that we can to love them and lead them-and that includes reading...all...the...time.

Recently, I finished reading the most wonderful book called Anne of Green Gables, My Daughter and I by Lorilee Craker.  It is so amazing as it pairs two things I love- Anne of Green Gables and understanding the heart of those considered "orphans" by society-those with who are hurting.  I would love to write and write and write about this book...but that isn't what's on my heart. 

Recently, I read a chapter about Matthew Cuthbert, the most unlikely, unassuming, and unsung father figure in literature.  While reading it, I may have sat in a coffee house in Moldova's capitol city and balled my little eyes out.  It made me feel eternally grateful for the amazing men who have loved me and loved others so well.  There isn't enough room on this blog for me to thank every father like figure...but there is room to hit a few highlights

Daddy-
I am from the south.  I love that I am from the south and from a family of salt of the earth country people.  People who love big.  In the south, we don't call our fathers "dad" or "father"...good southern girls say daddy.  I can remember my favorite thing as a child was cutting grass with my daddy.  I always felt like a princess riding along with him, wearing his work cap or my favorite cowboy hat.  I loved that special time just with him.  My dad was not a perfect father.  I was not a perfect daughter.  But, we sure loved each other.  Most of my memories of him make me laugh and smile so big.  He was just the kind of person who loved to make people smile and he loved to have a good time.  At my father's funeral, all I could think about was the big life that my daddy had lived.  Full of adventures and laughs and trials.  He had loved big.  He had loved me big. I foolishly thought for most of my life that my father didn't love me as much as he loved my siblings.  By the time I was a teenager, he had raised my brother and sister and was tired.  He wasn't very present then because he was struggling with so much personally.  Some of my most precious times with my father (and my brother) were over the last ten years.  He was very sick the last ten years and we had lots of one on one time in the hospital.  It was as if my wild, larger than life daddy became softer and more introspective.  He would share so much love and words of wisdom with me.  So many times he told me he loved me and was proud of me-things I had longed to hear as a teenager.  Many times my daddy told me, that he knew that God was using his sickness and pain to bring his family together and he felt like that made it worth it....and he meant it...and it did.  God used my daddy's health and even his death to bring us all closer.  At his funeral, the thing that meant the most to me was that every single person that came through the line asked if I was "the daughter that was a missionary".  They would then tell me how proud he was of me and how he talked about me all the time.  That man loved me and my brother and sister BIG.  He loved BIG and He lived BIG.

My pepaw.
If you have read my blog at all.  You have read about my grandparents.  My grandfather took me on my first ever mission trip when I was 12- with Carpenters for Christ. I didn't call him grandfather or grandpa...nope he was too special for that.  He was pepaw.  My Pepaw was not a perfect man, but he served a perfect God...and He served Him with all that he was.  With my pepaw, I always felt safe, loved, and special.  He was one of my earliest heroes.  This man loved others so well.  He was always willing to get up early and drive a bazillion miles to be with a friend in need.  When he passed away, I had the extreme honor of speaking at his funeral.  It was my first time to loose someone I loved so dear.  But, I KNEW that I had to share about him.  I knew that so many in the church knew God because my grandfather had introduced them.  I was his darling and he was my pepaw. I wish that he were alive.  He would love these girls of ours so much.  I think he would have gotten over his aversion of flying just to come meet his new and precious extended family.  He loved family.

Chuckles.
I wasn't raised Catholic.  But, I had a godfather. No, I'm not Italian either.  Just blessed.  When I was christened as a child, my mother chose her childhood friend and her friend's husband to be my godparents.  They had a baby girl that was born the year before...and they just took me as part of their family as well.  So many of my childhood memories consist of my godparents.  Trips to Knoxville.  To the Worlds Fair.  So many amazing memories with my extra family...and my Godfather:) He was not like a Corleone at all.  He is warm, caring, and servant-hearted and loves Jesus so much.  Every major life event I have ever experienced, Chuckles has been there.  (That's our nickname for him).  My birth, my christening, my high school graduation, my wedding, my grandparent's funerals and so many more.  He loved my father dearly.  Chuckles rushed to be at my side when my father was dying.  In fact, within five minutes of his arriving, my father passed.  I think my daddy waited so Chuckles could be there to hold me...yet again, Chuckles was there to hold my hand and love me through a major life event.  He and his wife helped me get organized and prepare myself for what life is like when you lose a parent.  Thankfully, God knew I needed many parent figures in my life and He gave me a Chuckles.  My godfather is so good at making the stranger a friend...and helping people belong.

Smell good man.
 I wont say his name here...because he is not the kind of man who needs praise and adoration.  He is a simple kind of man with a big love for his people.  He was the father of one of my dearest friends in high school...and when I was going through a particularly rough period during the summer of my senior year in high school, he loved me (and all of our friends) like we were his own. My parents were divorcing and it felt like quite a surprise to me and it also made me second guess everything about myself.  Divorce can do that.  In a period of time when I was quite the opposite of my typically easy going, lovable, outgoing self....this man looked at me and didn't see hurt....didn't see brokenness...didn't see the mistakes piling up....He saw sparkle.  He saw light.  He saw beauty and he (and his sweet wife) loved me through one of the hardest times in my life.  I was broken and I didn't want anything to do with anyone. And this precious man...who always smells of Brut cologne, just loved me right where I was.  To this day, every time I smell Brut cologne, I am filled with the sweetest memories of this man. When I see him and his sweet wife, I feel like I am transported back to my teenage years and right into the arms of this father-figure who walked through the valley with me.  I don't even know if he knows how much his presence has meant to me.  When my own father passed away earlier this year, it was so incredibly difficult.  But, this sweet man stood in the long visitation line just to come give me, one of his adopted (if not ragamuffin) children, a hug and to let her know that he cared. and that I was still sparkles!  Gosh, I wanna love others like that.

Brian
My sweet Brian has not been like a father to me personally...but he is like a father to our precious girls.  They don't refer to him as father or dad...they just call him Brian.  But, they know that Brian means a whole lot to them.  Brian is constantly going and working and they know that every thing he does, he does for them.  They love Brian.  He is kind and patient and personifies Christ's love.  I love that our girls have this example of a godly man.  I love that they see that you don't have to be loud and proud and a boss to be a godly man.  You can be kind and hard working and love God and others.  I love seeing Brian taking care of our girls.  He loves them so much.  He would do anything for them.  He would do anything to protect them.  He was born to be here....to live out who he is....to just be Brian to these girls of ours.  My buddy loves big and serves with his whole heart.  He reminds me so much of Matthew Cuthbert in Anne of Green Gables

Webster's dictionary has several definitions of father...but the one definition that stands out the most to me and is so much more than someone who shares genetics (and also defines these five men I have written about) is this:
father (noun)- someone who takes care of or protects someone or something.
All five of these men have done this for me and the people I love.  I am so thankful for fathers of all kinds.    Happy Father's Day!!!

"Everyone wants to feel secure and wanted.  We all want to belong.  He said He would not leave us as waifs on the street; He comes for us.  He never forgets the children whose names are written on the palm of His hand.  God makes us belong.  He is enough.  At every bend in the road, our father is waiting for us, reaching out His arms.  And we are orphans no more"   -Lorilee Craker

March Greetings From Moldova

I have had several ask what Kat and Brian are up to and so I thought I would share their March newsletter and let them tell you in first person.

 

Happy March!

     Here in Moldova, we have celebrated the coming of spring….in theory, not in reality. We still have snow in the forecast this week. However, March 1st is the official first day of spring here. It is a time when people share little treasures called Martisor’s (martzishores). The Martisor is tied in to an old legend about a dragon kidnapping the fairy of spring which meant a long winter. A young knight went to fight the dragon to free the fairy. To commemorate his battle, everyone gives red and white ribbons with various designs and they are worn until the last day of March when they are then put on a fruit tree to encourage its growth. It is a very interesting tradition, but I will wear my lovely martisor until the end of March, just like everyone else

     We are getting ahead of ourselves and telling you all about March, when we haven’t shared February’s joys with you This February, we completed our third term of Romanian classes, and Brian and I feel more and more confident with the language every day. I am sure we have the grammar of a five year old, but luckily we are surrounded with 50 girls who do not mind helping and correcting us. We love our Romanian teacher and our classmates. The class has been an excellent opportunity for us to meet new people and make new friends, and we are thankful for that. Please continue to pray for our language acquisition skills. Moldovans speak very quickly and use a lot of slang and a mix of Romanian and Russian which makes for some interesting conversations.

     February started with us beginning to plan a trip to the U.S. to visit and do fundraising. We hope to be in Alabama sometime this fall. We have been watching ticket prices every day. Airline tickets are so expensive and it is such a huge percentage of our savings that, while we are excited to go for a visit, we are not excited about the plane tickets.  But, God is faithful and every situation like this presents us with more opportunities to just trust Him and lean in to Him for all that we need!


     February saw the end of our 12 week study on biblical love with the girls. It culminated with Brian and I being interviewed at church one Sunday and with Brian leading Youth the following Friday. Brian and I had a lot of fun sharing about the differences between girls and boys. Then Brian shared a short message about the kind of love we should have for each other as Christians. He seasoned it with humor and truth and it was amazing. I am so thankful for the way he models Christ’s love to me every single day!

     During February we had the opportunity to visit several orphanages that we had never visited before. One of them, was for children with disabilities. I actually found the phone number for this orphanage on a blog by a Peace Corps volunteer here in Moldova and decided to call. The director there is young and excited about helping make a better life for all of her students. She and I talked at length (in Romanian-yay!) about the students and about my background as a Special Education Teacher. Her workers are desperate to do the best they can for the students. This attitude is NOT the norm here in Moldova. Most of the workers we have come in contact with or with whom our girls were around, are physically or emotionally abusive of the children in their care. This woman was a breath of fresh air! She and I have planned some teacher trainings and professional development that I will lead for her workers! I am so excited. Brian and I will be going to minister to these sweet children each week and our girls will be joining us and teaching art classes, cutting hair, and just loving on these children who have been cast aside by their families.

     I wish you could see how beautiful our girls and guys are when they are in the middle of doing His work. It is breath taking. They love serving the least of these. In fact, Valentine’s Day, Brian and several of our girls drove to the garbage dump in our village and served salad, plov (a wonderful dish of rice and chicken), hot tea, and homemade heart shaped cookies to the people who live there. Yes, there are people living at the landfills in Moldova. They weigh on Brian’s heart and the girls knew that he wanted to minister to them so they loaded him up and off they went to serve. After serving, they still had some food left. They meant they were not going home until the hungry were fed. They drove to three different villages and provided food for families in need. The girls have since decided that they will feed these families they encountered at least once a week. In addition to school work and house work, they take the time to prepare large amounts of food to share with the hungry and disenfranchised. Many of our girls and guys remember living life in these same circumstances. Every single day we are thankful for the work that God has called us to here. Some days it is difficult, because we are working with a house (or three) full of teenagers. But the difficult moments are growing us…aking us stronger where we need to be stronger…and softer where we need to be softer. February really was a month of love for us. It was a month filled with heart to heart chats and girls opening up and sharing their life stories with us. Every day we are earning their trust and earning the trust of these girls is a treasure. Pray that we never tire of doing His work here…pray that on the nights when we are exhausted from a day of physical labor and we here a knock on our door at 11:00 that God gives us the energy we need to be a listening ear and a gentle hug. Pray that God guides us in mentoring and guiding these beautiful young people.

     This month we ask you to pray specifically for God’s hand in every detail of planning our trip to America. Pray that we find the most affordable plane tickets, that we can find a car to drive or borrow while we are there, and that God just blesses every moment with family, friends, and churches. We also ask you to pray for us as we begin the search for a car. We have been hindered in our ability to visit orphanages and minister with our girls and guys because we do not have a car. We want to be able to take them with us and minister alongside of them. This is a big step as we have been very dependent on others and on public transportation here. It is a big financial step as well. We will be adding fuel costs and other auto related costs to the mix of our monthly financials. We know God wants us to continue to put down roots here, and part of that is purchasing a car. Please pray with us. We need a lot of His guidance-buying a car here is very different. We are so thankful to have friends and partners in prayer and in ministry and we know that NONE of this work that God has called us to do would be possible without your support! We are incredibly grateful!

With hearts full of gratitude,


Brian and Kathryn Jones

Team Jones in Moldova


March 5,

Moldova and Team Jones Update

La multi ani!!
Hello dear friends and family. We hope this letter finds you well and enjoying the New Year and all of the joys and promises it holds. We hope that you all had a wonderful Christmas spent with family and friends. We are well into January, and we apologize that we have not sent you an update sooner. Let’s just say we have been going full speed ahead since we last wrote. During the month of December, we unloaded a large container from Scotland, had multiple Christmas celebrations, took our English class to see The Hobbit in English, visited with friends, celebrated Moldovan Christmas, celebrated New Year’s Eve and then headed wildly into 2015.

The first week of January brought special guests from America, including Philip Cameron (the founder and patriarch of our organization) and Sadie Robertson (from Duck Dynasty and Dancing with the Stars.) We had an amazing week with them. During their time here we had our big Moldovan Christmas (Moldovans are traditionally Russian Orthodox and they actually celebrate Christmas on Epiphany- January 7th). We also unloaded a massive container from the U.S., visited three orphanages where we took Christmas gifts, performed skits, and shared love. It has been a whirlwind start to 2015. We wouldn’t change a minute of it.


We would love to be able to communicate clearly through words and photos how amazing the Christmas season was here in Moldova, but as the saying goes, "you just had to be there". Here’s just a little bit about what we experienced here:

•On Christmas night, we had a huge celebration that included music and skits performed by four different groups of our kids. Brian was even part of one of the teams and had a few lines in his team’s skit. We then swapped "secret angel" gifts which was so much fun because we had the chance to do little gifts for our secret friends leading up to Christmas as well. We enjoyed delicious food and stayed up way too late.
•The second Christmas which is usually celebrated January 7th was actually celebrated a few days later because of scheduling issues. Again, there was music and wonderful food. This time, however, we all opened our gifts from America. The gifts for our guys and girls from Stella’s House and Simon’s House were all organized by two of our wonderful friends at Centerpoint Fellowship Church. We appreciate their amazing effort and sacrifice to make these gifts possible, and we are very thankful for the many individuals, families, and small groups all over the Montgomery/Prattville area who sponsored one of our kids and spent their time and money buying gifts for them. These young people were all so excited and so thankful for their gifts. To see their faces as they opened the boxes was priceless. For the past few years, we have been on the American side of this process. One of our favorite things every year was organizing the Christmas box project, and we never thought we’d have the chance to be here to see the kids open their gifts. Just to see what a blessing these gifts are to them is the best gift we could have received.



•The next day, we celebrated with the kids at Providence (the home for younger children, not an orphanage exactly, that is run by Stella’s Voice). They performed some songs and skits, and our crew from Stella’s House and Simon’s House did as well. Then Santa handed out their gifts. Their reactions were amazing. These were the first gifts that some of these sweet children had ever received. A few of the kids ran up to Galina (who runs Providence) and asked her questions about
their gifts, but we didn’t quite understand. She told us later that they kept asking her if these gifts were actually for them to keep. They couldn’t believe that all of these things were actually theirs.

•On the big containers from both America and the UK, there were gift boxes for kids at other orphanages. These boxes contained some really cool toys, clothes, and candy, but they also included very basic toiletry items. We took these boxes to two different orphanages in the Straseni region. The first was Straseni Orphanage which is where many of our guys and girls lived for many years of their lives. The next stop was a place called Scoreni which is an orphanage for children with behavior issues and emotional disabilities. The kids at these two orphanages loved their gifts, and the team had a great time seeing their excitement over receiving these items. These were great visits, but the third orphanage we visited was by far the most memorable.

•To tell you about this third place, we must start by telling you the very short version of Ulizana’s story. Ulizana is an amazing, talented, and brilliant young lady who is currently spending most of her time working with the Stella’s Voice ministry in the states. We felt so blessed to have her visit here during Christmas. When Ulizana was very young, her Mom couldn’t take care of her, but she didn’t want to leave her in an orphanage. With the best of intentions, she decided that Ulizana would have better care at a hospital for kids. So Ulizana spent many of her early years in a hospital for very sick children. She didn’t have tuberculosis, but she was given the medication for years. She recalls that when she was taking the medication, she had a very difficult time learning in school, and it seemed impossible for her to remember anything. On top of that, some of the workers there didn’t treat the children very well. She describes the hospital as being worse than the orphanage, and that’s saying something. Once she moved to the orphanage, she worked really hard and caught up in school. To meet her now, you would guess that she was always the kid who was the best in her class at everything. It’s only by the grace of God that her life has been transformed. Just a few weeks ago, we went with Ulizana to take gifts to the children in the hospital where she spent so many years. This was her first trip back there, and the workers there (many of the same people from years ago) were amazed by her. We were honored that she allowed us to be a part of such a big day for her. Of course, we gave out more gifts to the kids there. These children were the most excited about their gifts. It turns out that no one had brought gifts there at all this Christmas until Stella’s Voice arrived. Theses boxes contained some really great gifts, but they were excited about even the simplest things. It was awesome to just watch their reactions to these things, many of which we would consider stocking stuffers in America. The coolest thing was getting to see Ulizana go back to this place and be part of blessing the children at this hospital.

•In addition to seeing lots of kids open gifts, we were blessed to receive gifts from home. That was such a nice surprise. We received a suitcase full of wonderful goodies from our church family at Frazer. They do so much for us already, these gifts were an amazing and unexpected blessing. Our friends who organized Christmas boxes sent boxes for us as well, and we appreciate those so much. On top of that, we received gifts from family and lots of Christmas cards. We’ve always loved getting Christmas cards in the mail, but this year they seemed extra special. Also, on the container from America, we received furniture for our apartment. For the past 6 months, most of our stuff was still in our suitcases because we only had minimal furniture (a mattress and a kitchen table). The ministry sent us some furniture, and we have plenty of storage and a comfortable bed. So we were very, very spoiled during Christmas.
There is so much more to tell, but we know that no one wants to read a short novel about our past few months. We can’t express how much we appreciate your prayers and your financial support. Without both types of support, we’d never have a chance to serve God, Stella’s Voice ministry, and these amazing kids. Thank you so much for all that you do for us.

Wishing you all the best,

Brian and Kathryn Jones

Team Jones in Moldova
**There were pictures in the newsletter but for the life of me I could not get them to post.  I will try again later.