Life continues to be busy! Most of the time it feels that I am usually only minutes ahead of my schedule, and often behind. I thought today I would give a rough sketch of what my set schedule is each week.
Monday:
- Violin Lessons
- Adult English Bible Study
Tuesday:
- Kids/teen club
Wednesday:
- Monostorapati kids club (I'm probably not going to be so involved with this one, and will be helping Sondi out or using the time for catch up)
- Team prayer meeting
Thursday:
- Adult English Club
- Probably will be teaching or sharing in high schools on Thursdays as well.
Friday:
- Team prayer walk around town
- Generally a free day to plan and catch up...unless we travel
The between times in this schedule are usually spent baking, lesson planning, cooking meals for our little household, cleaning, occasionally babysitting the boys, (Shaun and Sondi's boys that is, not Matt and Paul, or "my boys" as they are often referred to, mostly by Sondi), and if there is time I practice violin and study Hungarian.
For those of you who know me, I can tend to be a bit of an overachiever in some aspects and a bit of a perfectionist, and so I am still trying to figure out my priorities. I am beginning to realize that if I am not careful, I'm going to pour all my time and energy into things that don't matter, and miss the things that do matter while I'm here, like making time for people and the relationships I have here.
And speaking of friends, all of us traveled two hours to Budapest this weekend and had the opportunity to see Roxi, Benji and Annette, three friends we met while at summer camp. Together we spent Saturday doing some sightseeing, and the rest of the weekend I was shopping with Sondi. Sunday we also visited Shaun and Sondi's church.
It was also during my time in Budapest that I became more aware of the state of the economy here in Hungary. Things seem quite expensive. Most things cost about the same as in Canada. Food, transit, and housing seem a little cheaper. Clothing is probably close to the same or more, and gas is more expensive at over $2 per litre. But the minimum wage here is only equivalent to $2 an hour, and Shaun and Sondi said that's what many people live off of. I have no idea how people do it, nor how businesses keep going. I guess there are perhaps enough people making exceptionally good money to support the businesses, and perhaps the tourism keeps things going as well.
I also got a chance to sort of experience up close how many people live. While in Budapest, Shaun and Sondi's family and I stayed in a small vacant apartment owned by a friend. This apartment was one and a half rooms, and probably 400 sq feet, 500 at best. I've stayed in camping trailers that were more roomy. Their friends had been living in there as a family of six. With me and the Carlaws, we were a family of six, so we often tried to imagine what it was like trying to do normal life in that tiny apartment. This is not an uncommon living situation in Hungary. When I got back, my suite felt like a mansion, and my little kitchen was just the perfect size.
Today we will celebrate David Carlaw's eighth birthday. Then, this upcoming weekend we are going to have a summer camp reunion where we will try to recreate one day of camp for any kids who would like to come reminisce about the fun we had this summer. It'll be a lot of work to pull off, but I am really looking forward to it! Following that, we will have a Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday or Monday.
Here are a few pictures from my weekend in Budapest.
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| Sondi and I waiting at the tram in Budapest |
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| Matt, myself, Roxi and Benji standing on the Danube River. Paul was taking the picture, and Annette was still up the hill. |
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| A glimpse down the street of Budapest |
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| Annette, Roxi, Benji and Matt at Hero Square, (I am behind the camera) |
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