Appointment tomorrow

Saturday morning I woke up feeling better.I had a dream about meeting a Bishop who was very kind to us. He told Mark and me not to worry. He said that God was aware of us and that he, the Bishop, would find the children for us. I woke up feeling lighter of heart. I know it's likely I dreamt about the Bishop simply because we've been to so many churches, but if nothing else the dream was a timely reminder to trust in God. 

Saturday was also sunny and warmer outside which was a nice change.  We walked several blocks to visit another historic church- St. Vladimir's. It may  be the most beautiful so far, partly because it was all built in the 1800's and the icons and decorative painting inside was done by a team of artists over a period of about 20 years so it had a unified look. The relics of St. Barbara are there, along with other saints including St. Vladimir and many beautiful icons.

 We saw that preparations were being made for something special. There was a carpet rolled partway put and a small crowd of people waiting expectantly.the chanting began and alter boys, deacons and several priests came out of the altar and waited on the carpet for several minutes until the Ukrainian Patriarch, Filaret, entered on the carpet which was rolled out for him right before he walked in. Mark and I were standing by the relics of St. Vlad which are in a highly decorated gold coffin. Patriarch Filaret came within a few feet of us and prayed by the relics before going farther into the church.

The service was the vigil for Palm Sunday. Although the whole service was in Ukrainian, we pretty much knew what was going on. About two hours into the service, the Patriarch and several priests and deacons came out and stood in the center of the church which was partitioned to keep the crowd out although we were just a few feet away. The patriarch used a big brush to generously douse everyone with holy water as we held up our pussy willow bundles. It was a lovely sight to be in that beautiful church with many Ukrainians from all walks of life holding up the pretty branches as the sun streamed through the high windows.

We left about 3 hours into the service after the priests anointed us with oil. Many people were coming and going throughout the service which made sense from the standpoint that by having people coming and going, more people were able to attend at least part of the  long service.

Sunday morning we went back to St. Vlad's for the liturgy and it was very crowded.  People were lined up outside to get their pussy willows blessed by priests who came outside of the church.  The inside of the church was densely packed with people and some people were continuously moving through the crowd. Some were going to confession and others buying candles and other things. Once again many people did not stay for the whole service which allowed other people to get to come inside.  Early in the service, an elegant woman in white accompanied by many bodyguards and photographers came in to pray. She walked by a few feet away from us. Later we found out that she was Julia   Tymoshenko and had been the Prime Minister of Ukraine. Otherwise, the  people in the church were from all walks of life and it's clearly not just babushkas keeping the faith here. 

Sunday evening we went to the ballet at the Opera House. It is a treat to be in such a beautiful venue for a ballet especially when the tickets were under $10. 
 
Monday morning was warmer and perfectly sunny. I teased Mark that the weather improved once he bought a coat ( we found the reasonable stores)!  We walked for hours throughout Kyiv today and got a little lost looking for the Chernobyl Museum. We found it and it was well worth the walk. The presentation was both artistic and down to earth and had elements of hope in God's care shown throughout the exhibits.  As much as i liked the museum, the topics ( death, destruction, radiation, children with cancer) were tough and I cried a lot. I told Mark I'm about done with crying. We walked home by the direct route which was much shorter and then attended part of a service at St. Michael's. The prayer of St. Ephraim did not need translating and this service, attended by only a few people while we were there, was again beautiful but more comforting than the big crowded ones. I started feeling more secure again in God's care.
 
Today we had an appointment at the Cental office for adoption (SDA) to sign for our appointment tomorrow.  We do not know many specifics yet, but are hopeful and expectant that tomorrow will finally be the day that we see and settle on "our" kids.   Please continue to pray for us as we make one of the most important decisions of our lives!  We are trusting God that we will know what to do.  The high stakes have me in quite a state-- I'm fine and then Mark will say something that he means to be hopeful but I get worried or suddenly miss my dovelet too much and just start crying again.  Mark is patient man.

It has turned out that the government office for adoptions will be temporarily closed down as of June so we did get in under the wire. They expect that they'll start back up in a few months, but it's not at all clear.  Last time they stopped adoptions it was over year before they resumed, our translators told us.   

Please pray for us to be wise, and that we'll be in clear agreement at each step, and that we'll have hearts ready with fatherly and motherly love to meet our precious new children.

Here are photos of church on Sunday:   

http://www.tymoshenko.ua/en/article/yulia_tymoshenko_

And here am I outside the church with my pussy willows on Saturday