Hello,
I am sure you have been wondering what is up with us and where we have disappeared.
OUR HOME
We moved to our house on Hiiumaa island, Estonia on September 1, 2022. International moving was one of the hardest things we had done. But this was just the beginning. When we moved in, we had a booking contract with the owner. It means we were able to live in the house until we got a bank loan. Orally it was said that this can last up to a year. We lived happily and prepared for buying the house. I already had a job, and November 1, 2022, was Kaspars’ first work day in Hiiumaa hospital as a physiotherapist.
Banks here usually do not give a loan if you have worked at a new place for less than four months. Everything was in order and we planned to start this process during the spring. But then the owner suddenly lost patience and we had a choice – to move out or to buy the house quickly. One bank was really positive, but backed out at the last moment. Pressure from the owner became even stronger. Then miracles started to happen. A different bank was able to finalize an offer in only two weeks. On February 7, 2023, we became owners of our very first home. But after all of these troubles and traumatic communications, it has been hard to share the joy. Now at last we are able to start the process of making this house our home. There are some renovations that need to be done, but generally it is livable place. At last, we have place where to put down our roots.
WINGS FOR WHEELS
Even that we moved country, Kaspar still continues to lead Wings for Wheels ministry. Mostly it is online and focused on small groups. But one week a month, Kaspar is physically in Riga and meeting people. It is so good to see how people in the small group have grown in Christ and how positive changes in their life are taking place. We would like to organise an event in the summer to meet everybody, but at the moment it is not sure yet.
EUROPEAN DISABILITY NETWORK (EDN)
I (Evelyn) am a part of the EDN steering group. EDN is a European Evangelical Alliance (EEA) network partnering with Christian ministries and people who work with people with disabilities in Europe. We meet usually on Zoom. This year, we have planned a meeting with our partners every other month. In January we discussed disability awareness, and in March, fundraising. In May, we will go back to disability awareness and try to get something practical out of it.
I am helping EDN to host meetings, keeping up the website, helping with social media and representing EDN in conferences and in workshops when needed. To be clear, it is not a paid job and I need to cover all expenses myself just as I did in YWAM.
Last October I represented EDN in Sarajevo, Bosnia, when I attended EEA conference Hope for Europe 2022. I helped to lead workshops on disability-related issues, and brainstorm ways to continue with EDN. It was great to see the steering group face to face and to meet our old and new partners. Our main goal was to make people with disabilities visible in the conference and this was definitely successful. More possibilities to share came up and EDN was represented in World without Orphans Europe conference in Sofia, Bulgaria. Next conference will be in Stockholm on May 5-6, 2023 where I, too plan to attend.
PERSONAL
As said before, me and Kaspars both have paid jobs now. We are still in the re-entry and transition period, as it is not so easy to change our lives so drastically. Surprisingly, Kaspar has fit in much easier than expected, and even if his Estonian is not perfect yet, he has found his place. I (Evelyn) have a much harder time fitting in. Of course, working remotely from home is not helping to make new contacts either. During our sabbatical year, it took me “only” 8 months to get used to Hiiumaa (and we stayed for 9 months). So I am positive that I am going to feel better after a month or two.
Children are doing well. Rebeka (4), our youngest, refused to speak Estonian in kindergarten during the first weeks, but now she has no problem. First time we visited Riga after the move, she did cry from her heart, because our Latvian home was not the same anymore (we rent a tiny apartment in Riga). She enjoys the separate room and keeps it surprisingly tidy, too. She has taken over my job of reminding daddy not to forget his stuff 🙂
For Karola (6) it has not been so easy, but now she seems to be doing well. She is in the last year of kindergarten and attending football (soccer) training. She likes it really much, even though there is only one other girl there besides her, and all the others are boys. She likes sport and is very kinesthetic. Academically she is ready for school, but she is not looking forward to it. Seems like having a bigger brother is not making you love school 🙂
Rasmus (13) had an easier start, because he went back to his school and class he was year 2018-2019. But remote study during Covid time and a different program in Latvian school, did not make studying here in Estonia easy. The first semester was really hard, but now he is doing better. He joined a Christian youth group here and is helping in our church by projecting the song lyrics. At the same time, he also enjoys being back in Riga and visiting his friends.
I want to thank everybody who has been praying for and supporting us during this transition time. I hope not to keep so long silence anymore.
If you have questions or comments or anything else you would like to share, you are very welcome to do so.
Blessings,
Evelyn, Kaspars, Rasmus, Karola, Rebeka