Sunday morning we were able to talk with Ryan for Mother's Day. It was so wonderful to hear his voice. He is doing well and is loving his mission and the people of Ukraine. We asked him some questions so I thought I would include a little of that information.
I asked him about Ivano-Frankivsk where he is currently serving. He said the city is very green. It is hilly countryside and there is agriculture everywhere. He said most families have plots outside the city where they grow their food. It is super humid and the temperature was 40 degrees that day, cold and very wet with a snow/hail mix. He said there are usually around 35 people at church and the missionaries. He spends pretty much every Sunday translating Sacrament meeting for those who don't speak Ukrainian and teaches an English lesson for the African members there. He said the city is around 200,000 people and you could walk across it in an hour. It is by the Carpathian mountains.
His current companion, Elder Belashov is a convert and the only member in his family. He's been a member around four years. His family is supportive, but not interested in the church and they are from a village with not much money.
When I asked him if he was sleeping well, he said the bed in Ivano is his favorite so far even though it is too short. The walkway to the building has a sign low enough that he would hit his head if he didn't duck. Okay, I guess my son is taller than most Ukrainians. :)
I asked him how the food was there. He says he loves the food in Ukraine. They eat a lot of pasta, rice and meats and their monthly budget just went up so they should be able to get more fruit and vegetables. They never have dinner appointments, but the older sisters will usually feed them when they go over to do service for them (such as mowing their lawns, carrying things for them.) He usually eats two meals a day, breakfast and lunch, and then stop at a store at night for a snack. They usually eat at home. His favorite food so far are the Ukrainian cabbage rolls and the weirdest food are the holodets (jellied minced meat- don't google it, I'm warning you, it will make you nauseous.)
P-days they usually hang out as a district (his city where there are 4 missionaries) and they've been playing Risk. Someone made a Risk board up and they play the game.
Overall he is doing great and really enjoying his time. We invited his friend, Jacob, so they could say hi since Jacob leaves soon for his mission and they won't see each other for 3 1/2 years. I just enjoyed being to hear his voice!
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