On the Fourth of July our work crew at the camp took the day
off. We slept in, and of the five of us only Doug got motivated to get one
thing accomplished for the day. He cut the grass at the White House with a
bumbling lawn mower, while the rest of us mulled over what special thing we
could do to make it a holiday. Our final decision: to drive to Lake Sevan
(about 40 miles northeast of us) to go exploring.
Lake Sevan is recognized for being one of the world’s
largest high-altitude fresh water lakes, at an altitude of 6,200 feet. It is
large, like lake Michigan, but we discovered it is severely lacking in
beaches! We did find a picnic/swimming
area and Doug and Caleb jumped in, and found the water just as cold as northern
Lake Michigan in early July. We did climb up to discover another ancient
church, Sevanavank (this one built in 874) overlooking the lake from a
peninsula. After our explorations we went to a restaurant to enjoy fresh fish
from the lake. It was a good day to be Americans in Armenia!
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| Sevanavank Monastery |
All is going well for us, in spite of some unexpected
changes in our team! Only 14 days into our Armenian existence, we were sad to
learn that Pete Alexander’s mother had passed away in California. Pete and
Schell (camp managers) headed for the states, leaving us temporarily in charge
of all of the happenings at the White House and the renovation work at the camp
in Hankavan Valley. God has been good to guide us to make decisions and work
with the three volunteers that remain here with us. We are so thankful for the
support of the Young Life staff here in Armenia, and staff in the states, who
have been talking us through situations and praying for us. Their support has
been key to our sanity! We look forward to the return of the Alexanders this
coming weekend.
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| Celebrating the 4th of July with a delicious fish dinner at Lake Sevan |
We have been enjoying our time here, in spite of the
unexpected surprises and twists and turns in plans. Hankavan Valley where the
camp is located is one of the most beautiful places on God’s green earth, where
cows roam the roads, the river flows cold and fast from the mountains, men cut
hay with scythes, and the lady at the khanut greets me with a friendly smile
when I stop to buy bread. It has been a gift to be here, especially knowing that
our work here will enable Armenian Young Life kids to enjoy coming to this peaceful
valley to get away from their daily hassles and learn about how much they are
loved by God.
