More newness...

I had good intentions for today...really I did. I was going to sleep in for as long as possible, take a nice long shower when I woke up, and finish unpacking my room...and then MAYBE clean some parts of the house that I thought needed it. Well, I woke up early, sat around watching episodes of TV on my computer, took the long, much needed shower, and have done everything I can since to avoid cleaning and unpacking. Oh well...

I had a GREAT time traveling Europe for three weeks. I spent the first week in Paris with my brother Andrew and his lovely wife Mary. I saw some sights, ate some really wonderful food, and spent special time with two people I really love. I also met some German girls that I was quite fond of, and one Russian guy who I wasn't really that fond of.

I spent the second week in Barcelona with a Russian friend of mine named Vika (Victoria) that I work with at the Playschool. Barcelona is an artistic city that I wouldn't mind living in someday. It was a whole lot of fun with Vika. I am now madly in love with Gaudi's works.

I spent my last week on an Orthodox pilgrimage in different parts of Ireland, staying mainly in a place called Letterfrack (Connemara). Ireland is greener than anything else I've ever seen, and the people are really great. I kept thinking "Why in heaven's name would my family ever have left this great place?!? I mean...potato famines aside...". Right, I know. Potato famines are a big deal. If they hadn't moved, I probably wouldn't be here today. Anyway it was really interesting to see this place that I had heard so much about, and whose culture I thought I knew so well.

The pilgrimage was really interesting as well because it focused on monasticism in Ireland's early history. We, as Orthodox, learn so much about the Desert Fathers, and the hardships and sacrifices they underwent when they moved out to the wilderness. In that same vein, Ireland is also a place where people have run for monastic settlements. Due to flippant weather and secluded islands, they have great difficulty growing crops, and getting from one island to the next. The hardships one experienced in Ireland were comparable to what our Desert Fathers experienced, just in a much wetter climate.

I was quite fond of the seclusion, finding it a great opportunity to reflect on my own life--especially concerning the last year I've spent in Moscow. Of course, I've lost enthusiasm for different things that used to be more or less important to me, some things that have been better or worse for my soul. There are also habits that I have grown to appreciate and some that I am more remorseful over. As always, there are people that I have lost communication with because of the time difference or lack of ability and convenience. If that's you, I'm sorry. Let's try to get reconnected.

Anyway, now I'm back home in Moscow. I moved into a new apartment in the very center of the city. I have two roommates, one of them being Corie Anastasia Hurley (one of my best friends from CA). I've also cut down on the amount of work and city-travel I usually do to save time for more important things in my life--one of them being my health. I'm still taking Russian lessons, and probably be starting German lessons in October sometime.

My new kids at the school are also really, really great. Some of my kids who had very, very special places in my heart are gone, but now I have their younger siblings, and some new kids that will quickly snuggle their way in. I'll be honest--I often feel that Moscow eats away at my soul, but working with children seems to heal what is taken by big city life. Their sweetness and purity gives me motivation and happiness when I lack the strength to find those things within myself.

Hopefully, I'll get to post pictures soon. My computer is an old man, so it takes ages to load anything.