November in Slovakia

Fast flies the time! We've been here two months, and we've celebrated both Slovak and American holidays. The Velvet Revolution National Holiday came and went quietly, as it name implies, as this country, along with numerous other European countries, remembered the freedom bells that rang out 20 years ago as they threw off the bonds of Communism.

As would be expected, our own Veteran's Day came and went here with little fanfare, except for the numerous FaceBook comments of appreciation for men, like my hubby, and women who are honored for the defense of their country near and far. And my hubby was blessed by these comments. Thank you, FaceBookers!

Thanksgiving, however, was featured here a bit more flamboyantly, since the presence of a healthy-sized American group created quite the opportunity for its observance.

And celebrate we did. Interestingly we had three nationalities represented--Slovak, Norwegian, and American--resulting in quite the international array of favorite holiday dishes from these lands.

How we squeezed enough tables and chairs plus 12 people into our rather small apartment (or flat, as many call it here), we really aren't quite sure, but see for yourselves!

Thanks to love packages from our daughter, daughter-in-law, my (Brenda's) sister, and a dear friend, we were well supplied with all the ingredients and spices to have a deliciously traditional dinner. These pictures tell the rest of the story!

Yes, we missed our family like crazy, but Skype helped!

And now Christmas is upon us. The Pedestrian area officially welcomed Christmas with its lovely display of Christmas lights which came to life a week ago.

We've seen little commercialism in the way of advertisements, etc. But then, we've no TV, radio, or newspaper to flaunt that aspect of Christmas in our faces. I went shopping with our friend Mary last weekend to purchase Christmas decorations at a rather large department/grocery store here in Martin; our search was confined to one aisle of choices!!!!

The common description of Christmas observance here, as shared with me by my delightful students, is that Christmas is confined primarily to Dec. 24-25, with its culmination on Christmas Day in the form of family gatherings for meals, songs, Christmas giving, and worship at church as the typical conclusion to the Day. Personally I find the understatement of this wonderful celebration refreshing, a great deal less stressful, and much more to the point! We have decorated our place using lovely Christmas candles with red and green accents, and LOTS of Christmas music, thanks to I-Tunes and allclassical.org, which broadcasts worldwide from Portland, OR. Fresh-cut trees are not readily available, and the few that are would require a copy machine to pay for! Furthermore, artificial trees somehow just don't smell right!!!!!

Our contacts with the area continue to expand. Larry and I are both now teaching at the University in Zilina as well as continuing with our classes and individual students here in Martin. Weekly, sometimes daily, opportunities arise to share the reason for the season. Please pray that our words will be ready and kind and straight from the Father's heart to the listener's!

We thank the Father for each one of you who reads this and prays for us!

Emmanuel--LaBrFast