Relocating, and Other Stories from Public Transportation

Many of my most memorable experiences did not take place at a destination.  It's always the getting there, the journey, that incurs the most fun.  Well, at least what I call fun.  You might call it hell.  It's all a matter of perspective.

The first time I visited Finland, I traveled by ferry boat from St. Petersburg, Russia to Helsinki.  Having hopped off at the ferry terminal and walked just a few blocks to the Russian Embassy to renew my visa, I distinctly remember hauling my luggage back out of the consular office, down a tree-lined street, sitting down in the sun on some giant moss-covered rocks, looking out over the Baltic sea on the horizon and the Helsinki city skyline, and deciding right then and there:  I'm going to live here someday.  I had been there only four hours when my heart - not my rational brain - seemed to commit itself to a pursuit of residence in Finland.  

That was in April 2010.  I wouldn't actually move to Helsinki to start my master degree until September 2012, but when I finally arrived I wasn't all that surprised to be back.  It just seemed right.  I struggled financially as a student there, working and studying 16-18 hours a day for the first year and still barely making ends meet.  But nevertheless I was genuinely happy.  I was exactly where I dreamed of being, in an incredibly beautiful city built around forest and sea and archipelago.  My school offered amazing facilities and opportunities at the low cost of free tuition, and my classmates were creative and inspiring.  And during that first year and a half I grew more in my personal life than I had since my first international move to Belgium six years prior: amid my intense lack of resources, I learned to rely on God completely for provision and in the process grew more spiritually than I ever had before.  It was in Helsinki, walking each evening along the seashore or riding a city bus across bridges connecting islands, that I found a quiet place -- not only externally but somewhere inside my own heart and mind. As I began to avail myself of those moments in solitude, I developed a habit of praying through everything that was going on in my life, laying it all out there in conversation with God.  And for the first time in my life, in that quiet place my ears became attuned to God's voice, to what he was saying, doing, and teaching.  I began to see my prayers answered in incredible ways, far beyond what I had requested.  I thought to myself, God will never take me away from Finland; this is my sanctuary. 

Expedition à la West Coast USA

Coming home to Oregon is always an adventure.  It never ceases to amaze me, how quickly my four brothers and my sister grow and change.  It's awesome to see them growing into their beautiful and unique personalities, exploring different passions and hobbies, and developing such a great sense of humor.  Laughter unites.

And every time I come back - which is certainly not often enough - I always wonder how I could have forgotten the beauty of the Rogue Valley and its surroundings.... Mountain trails, serene lakes, grassy plains, pine forests, sandy beaches, rocky coastlines... we have it all!

We like to dabble a little in a lot of different outdoorsy things.  This past month has been a lot of fun as we show my Finnish friend Sini around the West Coast.  We met in Helsinki and - after spending a lot of time together playing soccer, relaxing in her family's summer cabin, and hanging out with friends this summer - she moved to work in Toronto this autumn just days after I left on business to the US.  Perfect timing to catch up in North America over the holidays, and we've had so much fun welcoming her to our family Christmas and taking her on LOTS of mini family vacations.

New Year's Morning in Eureka, northern California - with my sister Tori & friend Sini

Maxime on the Mountain

Radio Free Europe just published this beautifully illustrated story of a life and a land redeemed.

In an isolated part of the Caucasus, a monk is spending his days in prayer and silence atop a 40-meter pillar of limestone in western Georgia (near the town of Chiatura). The Katskhi Pillar was used by stylites -- Christian ascetics who lived atop pillars and eschewed worldly temptations -- until the 15th century when the practice was stopped following the Ottoman Empire's invasion of Georgia. For centuries the pillar was abandoned and locals could only look up at the mysterious ruins on its summit. Finally, in 1944, a mountain climber ascended the pillar, discovering the skeleton of a stylite and the remains of a chapel. Shortly after the collapse of communism and the resurgence of religion in Georgia, former "bad boy" Maxime Qavtaradze (now 59) decided to live atop the pillar in the way of the old stylites. “When I was young I drank, sold drugs, everything. When I ended up in prison.... It was time for a change. I used to drink with friends in the hills around here and look up at this place, where land met sky. We knew the monks had lived up there before and I felt great respect for them." In 1993 Maxime took monastic vows and climbed the pillar to begin his new life. "For the first two years there was nothing up here so I slept in an old refrigerator to protect me from the weather." Since then Maxime and the nearby Christian community have constructed a ladder to the top, rebuilt the chapel, and built a cottage where Maxime spends his days praying, reading, and "preparing to meet God." As a result of the interest in the site there is now a religious community at the base of the pillar. Men with troubled lives come to stay and ask for guidance from Maxime and the young priests who live at the site. The men are fed and housed on the condition they join the priests in praying for around seven hours per day (including from 2 a.m. until sunrise) and help with chores. 

Be sure to view the 19 beautiful photos of life on the pillar by Amos Chapple in the original post on Radio Free Europe.

At the nexus of several influential and conflicting forces, this small country has seen a lot.  It's refreshing to hear now a story of hope and restoration.

Film: Of Mountains, Monks & Milk Tea

Earlier this week, I had the opportunity to share my experience as a Lumos Student Traveler in Nepal with students and faculty at Belmont University. This was the first screening of my film documentary: "Of Mountains, Monks & Milk Tea" and I was able to provide an intro as well as respond to questions via Skype after the film.

You can watch it here on Vimeo in full HD.

Of Mountains, Monks, and Milk Tea from shirah-eden on Vimeo.
Explore Nepal with Belmont University graduate and Lumos Traveler Shirah Foy as she joins the Pema Chholing Monk Family to teach English to Sherpas in the Himalaya. Discover the beauty of a 500 year-old-monastery and the ancient rituals of the Nyingmapa lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. Meet the 19 little boy monks who captured Shirah's heart, and the lamas who bestowed their wisdom upon her. Follow her on a 10-day trek from her monastery home at 3,000 feet up to Mount Everest Base Camp - the very roof of the world - at an incredible elevation of 18,200 feet. This film based on HD footage captured on site in Nepal in summer 2012.

Volleying at 3,000 Meters

I took this photo during my last weekend in the Himalaya this past August. It was the last festival of the summer, and the entire village below the monastery hiked up to this clearing, where the guys measured off and marked out a volleyball field. The monks tied their monk-skirts up around their waists (obviously wearing shorts), and felled a few trees, ripped off the branches, dug holes, and planted stakes to hold up the net. All in about 15 minutes. Pretty impressive.

A match of monks vs. villagers

Meanwhile, I did cartwheels across the mountainside, played with cute little Sherpa toddlers, and took a few snapshots - like this one - with the hopes of forever capturing a moment of absolute care-free enjoyment in this incredible place I'm honored to have called home.