A trip to Shimkent

It seems like my days - and now my weeks - are bursting at the seams with activities. There are moments when I know I'm not taking everything in that is happening around me because I'm already so full with so much that has happened! I'm not complaining but understand what I share is just the tip of the iceberg of what is going on here. Sometimes I think back and realize I haven't valued the moment I had right before me, though I desire to treasure each moment I am given, no matter how exciting or simple it is. I am only promised today and I desire to make the most of it and enjoy each blessing given just for this day.



Wednesday, late afternoon, Beth and I headed to Shimkent for various work reasons which I'll share below. I love this drive as it resonates somehow with my heart. I have mentioned before my love of living on a farm and working with various types of animals. Well, livestock of all kinds are still to be seen everywhere here - even in a city like Taraz. The importance of livestock to a family becomes clearer when driving through the villages, especially in the late afternoons or early mornings.



Shepherding is still a vital profession here. A shepherd's sheep, goats, cattle, and horses are vital to his family's well being. Meat and milk from goats, cattle, and horses are used to feed a family and a sheep's wool is used for making clothes. These are just a few of the staples these animals bring a family. The shepherd's job may not seem exciting as he sits and watches animals all day, but when the moments come that he is called to defend his livestock all his resources and strength are required! A shepherd also needs to understand the weather and the land to safely guide his flock/herd to green grass during the day and then bring them home at night. One of the things I think is so fun is to see is how this is done.

Each morning families open their gates and stand waiting for the shepherd to come down the road to collect their animals - kind of like parents waiting for the bus to pick up their children for school. These animals know the routine and wait patiently without lead or halters for the shepherd to come down the lane collecting this large herd of animals and to take them out into the grass lands for the day. This process is reversed in the evening. Families wait outside their gates along the road. The shepherd enters the village pushing the herd on ahead of him. The cows are anxious to be milked and all the animals know what gate and family is theirs. They stop at their family's gate, turn and step through. An amazing sight to see, even if it requires a delay when driving down the same road. The animals have no concept that they should give right away to a car and so, of course, they don't.


I still enjoy the various "vehicles" that share the road at the same time. And I'm always interested in how things are done here, things that are not right or wrong - just different.



Beth was kind enough to stop and let me get several pictures of this sweet donkey and her foal that were on the side of the road. I just love the little donkeys that seem to be everywhere. Sometime I'll have to tell you all a story I wrote last fall about a little donkey named Troubled Cherished. I am so thankful for Beth's great patience for my picture taking needs. Thank you, Beth.







After some amazing sights we arrived in Shimkent. Beth had some "director" things she needed to attend to at our Shimkent office. I was to supervise a team of students arriving from Oxford, along with a group of young adults from Indiana. They were coming to paint the library in our English center which was in desperate need of painting. I also wanted to see the sweet children in Dr. Lori's clinic who come in daily for PT. I brought a bag of beanie babies and match box cars which were quite a hit with the children who were then allowed to take their gift home. These children have families. Dr. Lori's clinic gives families support, hope and encouragement in caring for these precious children. A couple of these children really responded to me when they saw me - they seemed to actually remember me, though I had been there only once before. I wish I could have spent more time with them but I had painting to do. I just love their sweet faces. The staff at Dr. Lori's clinic does an amazing job with these children.







Now, buying paint in Kazakhstan is an adventure in itself with a huge learning curve and a lesson in patience. Before coming to Skimkent, Kiikzhan and I went to three stores to buy the paint for the library. Now, in order to have the colors I wanted, it was going to cost per drop of added color in each liter of paint (25 liters) or I could by the colorant and mix it myself. As you probably guessed, I choose the mix-it-myself method. Of course, I left my big paddle mixer that attaches to my drill back in Virginia along with my extension rods for rollers. Oh, and mentioning rollers and roller trays - they have rollers here and roller trays BUT the roller tray is two inches shorter than the roller?!?!!? What can I say? I can say it is different! I'll have some Purdy paint brushes, Purdy Dove roller covers, and roller handles brought over - those "little things" taken for grant. Even with these minor setbacks the team was able to paint three of the five rooms. After painting, the books were all put back and the rooms looked great. I mixed a sage green, a yellow, a robins-egg blue, and a blue-green. The front area is the sage green and yellow, the next room is blue, and the next is the yellow with the 14 inch thick doorways painted blue-green. The library is very large, so using varied colors help break-up the rooms, as well as add interest to the library.




Thursday evening Beth took time out of her busy schedule to help me paint. Together we got a little more done for that day. In order for three rooms to be completed and put back together before the team left on Friday. I'll come back in a couple weeks and finish off the last two rooms.







Beth and I left Shimkent Friday around 5 o'clock. We couldn't leave much later because we really didn't want to be driving at night. The weather also looked like a huge storm was coming in. As we were just passing the outside the limits of the city, Beth commented on being relieved about getting past all the police stops with no problems. Well, she spoke too soon. Suddenly a police car with flashing lights pulled past us motioning for us to pull over. We couldn't imagine what was wrong . Beth was not speeding and had her lights on, which is law here. The officer asked for her car papers and said something about the licence tag. We were both like what? Did it fall off or get stolen?" Here, when you are a foreigner, your tag is a different color. Our yellow tag stands out, so most people aren't going to want to steal a foreigner's tag. We both hopped out to check but, when we looked at the back of the car, the tag was obviously in place. As we were looking, the officer waved down a big truck coming from the other direction. I was thinking he was trying to 'multi-task" and give two tickets at once. What he actually was doing was getting tools from that driver to take off our tags because he said they were forged. Again, we were like What? They aren't forged!!" Anyway, he went on doing his thing at which point Beth thought it was time to call a national friend and let him know what was happening. I, in the mean time, had nothing of use to add to the situation since I can't speak much of the language. I had no idea of anything that could be helpful to the situation. But one thought did go through my mind. "This would make a great picture!" I asked Beth, as she was calling Aben, if I could get my camera out. She said it couldn't hurt, so I did.

It was quite funny. As I clicked the picture below, you can see he was not happy. He said something, but I indicated I was going to keep on taking pictures no matter what. Well, you have never seen someone reverse course so fast. He put the front tag back on, went around the car and put the back tags on all the while reversing his tune. Beth was trying to get him to talk on the phone with Aben, but he wouldn't, saying, "Problem jok, no problem!" He asked for a tissue for his dirty fingers, which I gave him, and then he jumped in his car, turned around in the road and sped off. We got in our car, looked at each other and laughed. You never know what is going to happen in Kazakhstan and how fast things can change.



The rest of the trip was uneventful. Storms were all around but never directly over us so driving was never difficult; however, there were spectacular lightening displays in the not-to-far distance. The fields of flowers (below) were beautiful! Beth was again patient and stopped for me to take a closer picture. If anyone knows what these flowers are, please let me know. I'd be ever so thankful. They are planted in rows, so they aren't wild. They look like thistles except are they are gorgeous yellows and oranges.



When I got back in the car, Beth said she began to wonder if it had been a bad idea for her to stop for me to take pictures. She said she didn't know how she would tell Edith, Lois and Chip that I had been struck by lightening while taking pictures of flowers on the side of the road. I said they knew me well enough to know that they wouldn't be surprised. I had actually taken a look around and thought the storms weren't close enough to be in real danger. I got some great shots. If you want to see more pictures of this trip, you can click on the album link on the right top, then double click on the album you desire to view.





Thank you dear, family and friends, for joining me in this next chapter of my life's tale. I love the above picture. It reminds me to slow down and enjoy the things around me. I want to remember each detail of this new life. As I remember back, I realize how much I took for granted. I desire not to waste anymore time or take for grant the sweet friendships I have been given. Please be sure to let me know how you are doing, too.

His mercies, grace and peace to each of you,
Vicki