April 21, 2020
Field Trip #3 ~ Sibiu
This is our new friend Sora Olfa Haji! She is a beautiful Romanian sister who, because of the pandemic, just got back from AZ after serving a year there. After she quarantined at her home, here in Bucharest, we were able to drive her to her new location to finish out her mission. She is adorable, beautiful and so spiritual ~ what a joy for Romania to have her back with us during the Pandemic!
It's about a 4 hour drive to Sibiu from Bucharest. Once we got out of Bucuresti we began seeing flat areas of land then we traveled along the Olt River Valley. Gorgeous! The Olt Valley is one of the most beautiful and impressive areas in Romania.
The river flows through spectacular gorges and you can see a whirling motion as it moves downstream. The actual city of Sibiu is not too touristy but it is like the beautiful little towns in Spain and Italy (so I've been told 😉) with a gorgeous plaza and cobblestones streets.
We went through valley after valley of rushing water and green hills that went on and on and on ~ so beautiful!
As we got closer to the city and out of the mountains there were many horse drawn carts that the Gypsies use for their mode of transportation and livelihood.
As we approached the city it flattened out quite a bit; it was still pretty with many unique and fun houses.
We had a wonderful welcoming party ~ Sora Collins (Washington State), Sora Pierce (Australia) and Sora Elmont (Utah)! Our sweet Sora Haji looks like she will fit in beautifully!
Our Sibiu Sora's were ready and excited for Sora Haji's arrival. What a gorgeous sight!
To tell you the truth it was a little hard for me to leave Sora Haji behind ~ she seemed so young and although she had already served a year it just felt wrong to leave her without us remaining with her to help her adjust. It reminded me of when our eldest daughter, Mindy, went off to college. She was so young (17), had graduated early and I was just spending a few days with her in Utah and then just leaving her there to start school at BYU. As I left early that morning it broke my heart as she was crying while she was brushing her teeth; it just felt wrong to leave her alone there at Grandpa and Claire's home. We arrived at the airport and sat down in the waiting area (this was a time when friends could come and sit in the waiting area with you before you got on the plane). I am not sure why Mindy didn't come to the airport with us 😕 but she had stayed home. As we were sitting there one of the airline attendants asked if there was anyone willing to give up their seat. I jumped up and ran over and told them that I wanted to give up my seat! I was so happy and felt so blessed that I could go back and be with Mindy for a little longer. As we arrived home I ran downstairs and Mindy was still crying (and it seems like she was still brushing her teeth 😏). We embraced and she told me she had prayed that I would come back. It was a tender moment and I'll be forever grateful to Heavenly Father for answering this sweet, baby of mine, prayers. We spent Sunday going to the temple and walking around and talking nonstop. It was so wonderful having that one day that was just the two of us visiting and talking about her fears and a little anxiety of being there on her own. We drove down to Provo that afternoon and by this time many of the other students had begun arriving and her roommate had also showed up! It was great that she could meet other "newbies" and feel like she was not so alone. It is hard letting your children go off to anywhere but it only took about 2 days for Mindy to realize that she was going to have the time of her life over the next year!
Here they are in their official capacity!
The trip home was nice and relaxing and gave us time to talk about the upcoming week ~ we have a busy month ahead of us but it is always fun to get out of the city for a "mini" vacation! As we watch these adorable missionaries it helps us to understand how wonderful it was for our children when they served missions. These kids learn so much as they serve, teach and share their testimonies with others and with each other. We can already see so much growth and their development over the last few months. How great it would have been to have been a 'fly on the wall' in each of our childrens missions (and to have Kobe, or any of our grandchildren, serve in the same mission as we are in ~ that would be a dream come true ~ but I certainly couldn't promise that there wouldn't be a little nepotism from us 😉😏😁)!
