Ukraine Part 4 - Convent & Sister Anya
On a chilly morning shortly into our drive we came upon an Eastern
Orthodox Convent, situated on a hillside.
Igor said, “Visitors are always welcome here at the Convent.
We should stop for a visit; they would be excited to have a guest
from America.’
Igor parked on the side of the narrow dirt road leading to the main
buildings, and then proceeded to remove the distributor cap from the
engine, placing it in his pocket.
“Now, no one can steal the car,” he explained.
We had an easier time than usual walking up the hill.
The Convent’s driveway, patio, and sidewalks were all
shoveled clean of snow. While I headed towards the door, marked
Entrance, Igor lingered near the gate, looking back at his car
before catching up.
A young nun in a blue choir robe greeted us in perfect English, and
introduced herself as Sister Anya.
She was taking a break from the busy sewing room, where she
and a number of nuns were sewing vestments and other religious
garments. They all
smiled at us as Sister Anya led us through this building next to the
chapel. Surprising to
me, a few of the nuns were wearing American street clothes, tennis
shoes, one had on a dodgers T-shirt.
Anya gave us the grand tour.
She led the way through the sewing room, a class room, the
library and cafeteria.
Everyone we saw was working except the convent’s cat that, without
any intention of moving out of our way, lay soaking up the sun in
the doorway of a dark, dusty gift shop along the walkway next to the
chapel. The gift shop
displayed an assortment of icons, pictures, and religious books, all
written in Ukrainian or Russian.
On the hillside beyond the chapel was a garden plot where sheep were
chewing on the tall dry grass.
A dozen geese had been milling about until we arrived and now
strutted away from us, making enough noise to wake the dead in the
small cemetery behind the chapel.
The convent’s two large brown guard dogs had decided I wasn’t
a threat and kept pushing against me playfully.
At the conclusion of our tour, Anya led us in to the chapel to visit
the sanctuary. She
handed Igor and I each a lit prayer candle as we walked in.
She seemed eager to share her religion and all she loved
about it in a way that made me sense the relief many of the
Ukrainian people must have felt when communism ended and they were
free to openly worship God and openly practice their religious
faith.
As we continued our drive though the vast farmland, Igor proudly
reminded me that the Ukraine was considered the ‘grain basket’ of
the Soviet Union. We stopped at a small rundown roadside store
overlooking the village of this former Dairy Collective.
As I stepped out of the car,
the only car in the small parking area, I could see several houses
beyond a grove of trees on a slight hillside. Near the railroad
tracks on the far side of the village was a large building formerly
used to make butter and cheese. The little store was almost bare of
merchandize compared to a convenience store back in Wisconsin. I
told Igor I would pay for the pack of cigarettes and candy bars he
planned to purchase, however, they were out of candy bars. The pack
of cigarettes cost 400 hryvnia, 30 cents, and I paid for two bottles
of coke-a-cola at $1.00 each. On an almost empty shelf behind the
Babushka near the cash register were 3 bottles of vodka. I indicated
to Igor that they will soon be sold out of vodka.
“No. They are just for looks, nobody ever buys vodka, everyone makes
their own”, he replied.
by Everil Quist, International Agri-business Consultant
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Everil Quist - President & CEO of QuistSpeaks, LLC
"Enjoy this story about the noble peoples of third world countries. I've truly enjoyed working with them and have many heartwarming and entertaining stories to tell.
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