13 (Treize) Visitors from Poland…
It's been another rainy week in France. The flowers are blooming, daffodils, crocuses, tulip trees, and forsythia. There are also many, many trees with pink and white blossoms. It seems like Spring is around the corner!
Last blog post I said I would tell you about the Gypsy community we visited and our visit from the Poland Missionaries.
When Keith's were here with us we stayed in Paris for the night as we were to meet a contact the next day before we headed to one in Barr, France. Before we found our Airbnb, we drove to a contact who had ordered tracts. We pulled up to the address and there were many RV's parked in the yard..(a gypsy community) There were a few smaller buildings and we noticed it looked like a room where they would gather for meals. Tyson and Keith got out and asked a man gathering wood if the contact they were looking for was available. A few minutes later a well-dressed man came out and began visiting. He talked about tracts and showed Tyson and Keith some videos of his "community" gatherings on his phone. He explained that many people think they are of Roma descent but actually, this group had ties back to Israel. Very interesting! He showed them a nice Sprinter van that he had outfitted with laundry equipment..washers, a water system, folding table. Tyson said it was very well put together! Portable laundry! Voila! He had a large box of our tracts sitting in the corner as well. He passes them out in Paris! He offered that we could come back on Sunday for their service and he would introduce the men. As we were leaving the neighborhood we noticed many, many of the same types of RV's around small buildings. I can't even guesstimate how many were actually in that neighborhood but there were A LOT!!
After we got back from our Alsace trip we had a few days to settle in. A farewell supper for our new friend Joseph who was headed back to Lyons the next day. He is going back to the Czech where he runs his family hog farm in a month…then he will be back in July. He said we should come and see him when he gets back.
On Saturday morning we packed up and headed to Paris. There we met Aaron, Deanna, and co., (Casey, Molly, Skye, and Lars), Emily Boese, (Casey's teacher,) and Vince and Jenn Toews at an Airbnb that they had reserved for us all. They got there the night before after a long drive! It was good to see Aaron’s and Emily again and to meet Vince and Jenn for the first time! After a bit of visiting, we loaded up and headed to the big Farm Expo. going on in Paris. It was HUGE! Animals from all over France and beyond and food and farm vendors. A dog show as well! It was neat to see the children looking at all of the different booths of animals. Aaron, Tyson and Sterling would take turns with little Lars on their shoulders and he would just look and look :) He is a sweet-tempered little guy.
The food booths seemed to be a REAL attraction for all the visitors to the Expo. It was hard to maneuver through the crowds! We purchased some cheese at a very large cheese booth. Of course, France is known for its cheese! You should have seen us all circling the cheese man. He had an apron on and he would give each of us a little portion to taste. Then on to the next cheese to try.. I thought it felt like we were having communion and it could have given me the giggles because he acted so solemn about his slicing and giving the portions out:))). We ended up purchasing a little to snack on and moved on! :)
Somewhere amid all the fun, Vince, Jenn, and Emily moved on to look at some of the sites in the rest of Paris. We were just about to the goat exhibit when we noticed there were police with their shields blocking off this section. Everywhere we looked there they were! Later we discovered that we had walked right into the middle of a Farmer's protest without realizing it!!!… In the middle of the goat exhibit! Ha! Who would have thought it? The Policier began turning everyone around...
At one of the buildings the President of France, Emmanuel Macaron was speaking…All in all, it was an interesting experience and a way to absorb French culture! French people! French Food! French animals! The President and a protest all in one spot!
We decided to head out and slip by the Eiffel Tower. :) Aaron's have a very large van, I don't remember how many it could seat, but it seated many people that day! We had left our vehicle at the Expo and rode with them to the tower. We toured around the base of it. The actual inside was closed due to a worker's strike. We met up with Vince's and Emily and everyone climbed into the big van! Aaron did a great job driving in Paris while Tyson navigated them to some of the must-see's…there was passing of party mix and slicing of cheese (without a knife ;) ) The cheese was then ranked from best to worst! HA! There are some strong cheeses in France that are not to everyone's liking!! I think it was Vince who mentioned the fact that we probably would all never be together in quite the same situation again. :):) In a big van, altogther eating cheese as we whizzed around Paris on a busy rainy Saturday…. Soon it was dusk and we headed back to the Airbnb.
The next day was Sunday and we gathered for a service that was called out to a group of listeners from Ukraine and Russia. We all sang and then the men held the service while Jenn interpreted to the ppl listening. It was good to be with others and have a little service. :) We spent the rest of the afternoon visiting and taking walks, Sterling reading and the girls playing.
Toward the evening we put on a little tea and got ready for a visit with a couple who had moved from Ukraine to Paris. They arrived and she had brought some snacks as well. We talked into the evening….Sometimes in French and the rest in their mother tongue Russian…Jenn would interpret! (She is pretty amazing at interpreting :))
It was a very nice visit! We sang some songs together and that seemed to be a highlight for them! They both expressed a longing for fellowship that they felt they were missing. I think they have found memories of their life in Ukraine. They talked very warmly to us about our cousin Leonard Jr. whom they were good friends with. We parted ways with the hopes that we would meet again!
The next day we headed back to Lille with Aaron's! We met at a special indoor playpark where the children could burn off energy! By the end of the afternoon, the kids were worn out! Aaron's hung out at their hotel for some downtime before coming over for supper. It was really nice to spend time with them talking!! All too soon though they were on their way home…It was good to see them, and we hope to meet again! Maybe next time in Poland!
A few days after Aaron’s left we got a message from Garth and Jodi Isaac from Heart Valley. They had been doing some traveling in Europe and decided to reach out! We met for supper at a small Italian place down the road from us.
Then they came back to our house for some espresso and Paris-Brest pastries. It was short and sweet and then they were off to make their way closer to Paris. They left from Charles De Gaulle airport the next day. We were glad they took the time to connect! It was nice to make new friends and hear about some of their adventures. :))
Life has been pretty low-key the last week or so…. We continue to do tract work in the city of Lille and in the other regions we travel to. We have got questions from some in town and Tyson prays daily that God will help those searching, and that somehow we will be able to connect. Anyway, hope you are all well! It's been a long recap, so I will draw it to an end! God Bless! -Lydia-
