Another Romanian Christmas

Christmas decor around the house

Another Christmas in Romania. I think I might have said this in another blog post, but it's so interesting to celebrate holidays for a second time in Romania. I knew that coming here wasn't going to be a short-term thing for me, but I never thought about how long I'd actually be here. And I didn't think about the fact that I'd be celebrating holidays over and over again. While it doesn't get any easier being away from home, I do have FaceTime to thank for allowing me to be with my family and friends during these holidays.

Ecumenical Concert - Nativity story at Kids' Club - Veritas Christmas Staff Day

December is a very busy time for Veritas, and for the community of Sighisoara in general. For the last 16 years (I think), Veritas has hosted an Ecumenical Concert where local choirs all gather together to sing songs related to celebrating Jesus' birth at Christmas. I didn't get to attend last year for some reason, but I really enjoyed it this year. There were also other concerts, high school Christmas shows and lots of coffee this Christmas season.

Concert - Coffee - Local high school Christmas show

Veritas also hosts the Candlewalk, which is another lovely community event. It takes place in the citadel with stops at the Monastery Church, town hall, one of the high schools and the Church on the Hill. At each stop, we pray and sing a Christmas song, and we end the evening at the House on the Rock for tea and cookies. My favorite part takes place at the very beginning, the opening per se, when Matthew 5:14-16 is read in Romanian, Hungarian, Țiganește (the gypsy language), German and English by various community members. It's so simple. Just five people reading three verses, and yet I find it so incredibly powerful. I love that the event begins this way to encourage each person who attends to be a light in our community of Sighisoara.

“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven." Matthew 5:14-16

Kids' Club Christmas program - Shoebox gifts - It Takes Courage party

And of course, the various Veritas programs have Christmas celebrations. We had our Kids' Club Christmas program on the 15th, and it was so lovely. For as long as I can remember, children's Christmas programs have always turned me into such a sap. I'm not exactly sure why, but good grief, I cannot handle it. Anyways, my kids put on a fabulous Christmas program with memorized lines, songs, and Christmas cheer for their families and friends. The children, families and Veritas staff also enjoyed viewing a slideshow of photos that I put together of Kids' Club activities from September to December. I loved how much they loved looking at all of the photos. These simple things make my heart happy. 

I also had the privilege of sharing the Nativity story with my kiddos at Kids' Club. I asked one of the boys, who is an excellent reader, to read the story out of a children's Bible while I showed some photos as the visual. He did a fabulous job and I was so proud of him. The kids applauded him when he was done and I only wish I had a photo of his face in that moment. I also celebrated Christmas with Adela and our new It Takes Courage group. Our Christmas party fell during a very, very busy week for the teens so only a few showed up, but we still had a good time. 

It Takes Courage 2.0 - Sibiu Christmas Market - Ice skating aka facing fears

We also took our other It Takes Courage group, now called 2.0, to Sibiu. We went ice skating, which is/was one of my biggest fears. I've always had an irrational fear that I'm going to fall and someone is going to skate over my fingers and slice them off ... not so irrational, but I've obsessed over that thought for years! Anyways, I ice skated and DIDN'T FALL ONCE! It was a Christmas miracle. After ice skating, we went to the Sibiu Christmas market, which was so beautiful. We walked around, looking at all of the little booths, and enjoying the Christmas atmosphere.

My stocking was laying under the tree because it was SO heavy ;) - Christmas morning with kids

I spent Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and the day after Christmas with my friends, Tim, Caroline and their kids (the same family I spent Christmas with last year). There's nothing better than being in a cozy home full of kids on Christmas. AND they just had a sweet baby boy at the beginning of December to add to their growing bunch, which meant lots of baby cuddles in cute Christmas pajamas! We had lots of fun and unforgettable moments, some of which made it on to the video camera's recording to be preserved for years to come. Or to be used as blackmail later in life...either way!

On Saturday, I snuck out to attend our Christmas Eve service at church, which was quite lovely. I invited one of the boys from Kids' Club to come along, and he did. It was so special to be able to sit with him and listen to the true Christmas story being told, with lots of Christmas songs in between. After taking the boy home, I returned to the family's house for our Christmas dinner and a viewing of The Nativity Story. Once the kids went to bed, I helped Tim and Caroline wrap the remaining Christmas gifts, which is always exciting. We had an enjoyable, and surprisingly not too chaotic, Christmas morning full of special gifts for all.

I received a number of practical and fun items, but there was one gift that topped them all. I opened a card that said a donation was made to European Refugee Relief in my honor, along with a sweet, sweet message from this family. Of course, there were tears, and they came for multiple reasons. In short, I think the tears came because I am so grateful to have met such caring friends in Romania who know me well enough to even think of giving a gift such as this. A gift to me, but also a gift to a people group that is so near and dear to my heart ... a people group that I cannot be with at this time in my life because of my work in Romania. And now I'm crying again, but that's okay :)

Anyways, back to the Christmas Day activities. After our Christmas morning, we ate cinnamon rolls and sausage for breakfast, followed by their tradition of cinnamon rolls IN chili for lunch. Yes, you read that right ... and it is DELICIOUS. Just drop a cinnamon roll in your bowl of chili and you're good to go! This family attends another church in town, where a few of my other friends go as well, so I tagged along for the Christmas day service at 5pm. After church, we went back home and celebrated Tim's birthday, as he is a Christmas baby. And then, the day after Christmas was spent relaxing, playing with new toys and games, and just spending time together.

Even though it was a busy December, I enjoyed participating in all of it. From buying small gifts for my Secret Angel at Veritas, to eating cozonac and lots of clementines, to walking around in a beautiful and snowy Sighisoara ... this Romanian Christmas was one for the books. Or should I say, "one for the blogs" now?

#CBtakesRomania: Round THREE

Background art: Annie Shaughnessy; Design: Me

I feel like I start every blog post by saying something like "Hey...it's been awhile" followed by "I'm going to try to blog more". I don't know why I pretend like that'll happen. I want to (I always say that too.), but then life happens.

As most of you know, I've been home (in America) since July 10th...and it's been a wild ride, to say the least. I came home a little earlier than planned for a conference. I briefly mentioned this in my last post and I still haven't processed through all of the information that I gained there. Someday.

During this time at home, I feel like I have taken in A LOT of information. Good information, but overwhelming information. Conference workshops, books (like this one, that totally wrecked me), sermons, podcasts, conversations with friends, etc. It's been h a r d...and I haven't necessarily been coping very well with all of it. Information related to effective service and how we can truly help people without hurting them, following one's call in life, being present (rather than perfect), etc. Not to mention the fact that I'm still dealing with all of my thoughts and feelings related to my time in Serbia, Croatia and Greece with the refugees. PLUS missing Romania. As I've said before, there's a lot that goes on in this mind of mine.

All of that to say, if I haven't connected with you or texted you as much as I usually do or seemed super excited about things...that's why. I don't want that to seem like an excuse, but it's the reality. I feel like I'm at a very messy point in my life, and that's not a bad thing. I think it's good to examine things in one's life and ask the hard questions, but again, it's h a r d.

Are you still with me? I got a little deeper than I had intended to with all of that honesty and messiness talk, but I think it's important to be real.

I'm assuming you know this, but I am returning to Romania. On October 4th, to be exact...assuming I can raise enough support. The funds are coming in...sloooowly. Honestly, it's been very difficult to feel like this is going to happen. I'm conflicted because I still feel very called to serve in Romania, but obviously it's hard to feel affirmed when the funds aren't coming in. Hence, the quote at the top.

A few people have been asking about the best ways to support me. I wanted to try to simplify the ways you can support me. So here you go...

1. Global Mission fund: Go to THIS WEBSITE. Opt for a recurring gift, if you'd like (this option helps me out a lot). Tax-deductible. Done and done! These funds cover my living and ministry expenses.

Side note: If you attend my/a Nazarene church, you can write a check to the church with "Bloom Deputation" in the memo field. The treasurer will submit it through the appropriate system.

2. My Personal fund: Go to my PAYPAL link and support me :) These funds cover my monthly student loan payments, toiletries, food, etc. You can also write me a personal check, but I won't put my home address on here so just email me (cjbloom2@gmail.com) if you'd like to mail me something.

3. Saving the biggest and best way for last...Pray. Pray that I can raise the support I need since I still feel very called to Romania. Pray for peace, ministry effectiveness, relationship building, etc. Pray for me as I work through this messy time in my life.

Questions? Email me. Text me. Call me. Stop me when you see me. Oh, and thank you.

2-8

Twenty-eight years old. Woah. When I was a teenager, my 28th birthday seemed like light years away. Actually, I know I never thought specifically about turning 28 when I was a teenager. I'm sure I thought about being 20, 25, 30, etc., but not 28. Either way, I know that teenage Casey had a totally different picture in her mind when she thought about being 28/almost 30. I can assure you that it involved a lot of stability...having a secure, well-paying job with a husband and a handful of kids. I used to want 12 kids. I still kind of do, but that's another story. Anyways, teenage Casey never could have imagined what was in store for her at 28 years old. Even if you told her what was in store, she never, never, ever would have believed you...and I think that's kind of lovely.

I think I mentioned this when I wrote my New Year's post, but I don't really do New Year's resolutions. Instead, I like to do a birthday list that I came across on a blog a few years ago. This blogger made a list of 22 things she wanted to do before she turned 23, or however old she was turning that year. The list had a few big goals/things to accomplish, but it consisted mostly of small goals, which is what I loved. I decided to give it a try and I've been doing it for probably 4-5 years now. I don't always accomplish everything on my list, but whatever I don't accomplish, I just add to the next year. I actually kind of forgot to write one last year. Well, I might have written one, but it must be at home somewhere. When I started to write my new one (28 before 29), I decided to back track a bit. I wrote one retrospectively for 27 before 28 and I am going to share it with you. I have this fun notebook (that I actually received on my 25th birthday) that allows me to create a digital copy of what I handwrite. It's pretty cool. So here's the list...

Did you think I was going to end it there?! No way! That would be like my shortest blog post ever. I will now highlight a few of these fun items...

1. It seems a little silly, but the donut ice cream sandwich was JUST SO GOOD. In celebration of a friend's birthday (Hi Erica!) a year ago, we took a trip to Chicago. We had heard about this donut ice cream sandwich phenomenon and it did not disappoint.

3. OBVIOUSLY, pursuing missions fully was a huge step in the right direction for me.  I cannot even begin to list all of the times when I feel like God has confirmed that this was the best choice.

4. I am so thankful for the time spent with my mom while I was home. Specifically, our pizza picnic in the car one evening. We got pizza, did some thrifting, and probably ended the night watching some episodes of Gilmore Girls.

9. Although learning a new language (Romanian) has been an immense challenge, I feel like it has really helped me to grow in unexpected ways. I have gained an ability and desire to share more with others, mostly in writing through my blog. I've also been able to connect with people in a different way...in English and Romanian, verbally and nonverbally, which is a pretty huge deal for me.

13. Standing in a field of sunflowers was something I had never thought I would do, or something I had even ever thought about. However, this was one of those moments where I felt such a peace about being in Romania. It was a moment I will never forget it.

18. When I was home for six weeks in summer 2015, I had a massive garage sale. It was soooo much work, but also an amazing display of my supporters...MY PEOPLE! I was able to sell some handmade Romanian items, spend time with family and friends, share my adventure with strangers, and so much more.

22. Flying back to Romania was so incredible. When I left, I knew I would return, but I had no idea how natural it would feel. My return felt like coming home, and I am so thankful for that feeling. Obviously, it's hard to be away from my original home, but Romania is definitely a second home.

26. I feel like I say this all of the time, but I love the Romanian children that I work with. I always enjoy the kids I work with, but these kids have totally and completely captured my heart in a way I could never have imagined.

27. Last, but not least, the peace. The infamous peace has made all of the difference in this adventure, but also in my 27th year of life.

Starting my 28th year in a foreign (well, not-so-foreign) country is something I truly could never have imagined. I am so excited to see where year 28 takes me. Here's to 28!

2016

from 2015 Best Nine on Instagram

Leave it to me to wait until mid-January to write a New Year's post. Typical. Well, Happy New Year! La mulți ani! My New Year's Eve was pretty low-key, but that's how I like it. At home, my favorite thing to do on NYE is to flip between the various TV specials. Turns out, Romania also has TV specials on NYE! I was a happy camper! I wrapped myself in a blanket on the couch and drank a cup of tea. It was splendid.

Fireworks are a big thing here on NYE. The city sets off fireworks up in the citadel, but there were multiple displays this year. And I could see a lot of them from my window! I opened the window and quietly watched for about 5 minutes. It was lovely. I don't usually do this, but I'm going to share something that I wrote in my journal on New Year's Day. Enjoy!

01.01.16
2016. A new year. A fresh start of sorts. As I stood at my window at midnight, watching the fireworks and hearing the bells, I felt truly happy. I caught myself smiling in that moment. Sure, I was alone, but I was not lonely. God is with me. I have made some incredible friends. My coworkers are so wonderful. I love the kids and teens that I work with. I have my family, my core group of friends, my #CBtakesRomania supporters. Standing at the window, I felt such a peace about where I am in life. I am where I am supposed to be. I think this is probably the first New Year when I'm not setting big goals to really change my life...because I don't really need to. Obviously, goal-setting is important, but I don't feel like that needs to be the focus of the New Year. I'm thankful. I want to focus on that. I want to set small goals that will improve where I am in life instead of things that will change where I'm at. I have no clue what 2016 will bring, and that's okay. I'm thankful for where I am and ready to see where He leads me. Here's to you, 2016!

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