On the day I was Born the Rain Came Down

Waking Up

2010-07-07T18:59:00.001-07:00

I have recently changed my alarm clock to "peace train" by cat stevens. At first I was not sure if this was a good idea because I thought it might ruin the song for me, it however has made waking up so much better. Here are the lyrics enjoy or you can visit youtube and see a great performance of the song.

Now I've been happy lately
Thinking about the good things to come
And I believe it could be
Something good has begun
I've been smiling lately
Dreaming about the world as one
And I believe it could be
Something good's bound to come

For out on the edge of darkness
There runs the peace train
Peace train take this country
Come take me home again

Peace train sounding louder
Ride on the peace train
Hoo-ah-eeh-ah-hoo-ah
Come on the peace train
Peace train's a holy roller
Everyone jump upon the peace train
Hoo-ah-eeh-ah-hoo-ah
This is the peace train

Get your bags together
Come bring your good friends too
Because it's getting nearer
Soon it will be with you
Come and join the living
It's not so far from you
And it's getting nearer
Soon it will all be true

Peace train sounding louder
Ride on the peace train
Hoo-ah-eeh-ah-hoo-ah
Come on the peace train

I've been crying lately
Thinking about the world as it is
Why must we go on hating?
Why can't we live in bliss?

For out on the edge of darkness
There rides the peace train
Peace train take this country
Come take me home again

Peace train sounding louder
Ride on the peace train
Hoo-ah-eeh-ah-hoo-ah
Come on the peace train

Come on, come on, come on the peace train...

Now on a beautiful note here is a picture that i love. I found it on my sister's blog. It is of me and my aunts. I really love them even if Tyler, my super rude and verbally abusive brother, is right and they don't love me. Also if you will note what a talented photographer my sister Whitney is. She is honestly good at everything. I often tell people Whitney has the golden touch because she makes everything beautiful. Maybe I just aspire to be like Whitney. Who knows maybe I aspire to be my true self whoever that might be.

The beans please

2010-07-06T19:17:00.000-07:00

"No one has ever measured, not even poets, how much the heart can hold."
-Zelda Fitzgerald

I fear I do not have much to say because all I ever do is study. The above quote in fact came out of one of my text books. I have always been a sucker for those Fitzgeralds because when I read The Great Gatsby, during my junior year of high school, I fell head over heals for Gatsby. I have always been a sucker for hopeless romantics but sadly as I have grown older I have realized that such love does not run that deep, and many hopeless romantics do not really love at all. I guess in a way it is good Gatsby expired before all of his dreams really feel apart, although I personally believe he already knew they had. However I do agree with Zelda on the above quote. I think true love runs much deeper.

Now for a funny story. I have been saving a soda pop in my bedroom because I know if I put it in the fridge someone will drink it. I have been feeling like such a glutten about it. When I told my mom she told me about how my dad used to do the same thing but instead of yummy soda pop he would hid canned string beans under his bed. Now I ask you who would want to take another persons green bean. My dad is really amazing.
As for the rest of me I am doing surprisingly well. The closer my test get the less I can sleep. I take my test in one week. I have never been so excited for a test in my whole life. I have been studying for 2 months and am going absolutely crazy. I hope that all goes well, but in the meantime I have started hating going to bed. Every night I dread getting in to bed because I know my mind will start to race as soon as those light go off. If anyone has any ideas do let me know.

-elisa

When will your hand find its self in mine?

2010-07-01T09:32:00.000-07:00

So for some reason I have decided to blog again. Be it that we (us bloggers) feel our lives are so important or that we have no one to share our thoughts with, it really comes down to the same desire a need for a voice. So in an effort to have a voice to free my thoughts I have decided to blog but alas I fear it usually ends up the same. You realize that no one reads your blog and then you feel more alone than before but this time in a virtual world that does not exist. You might be thinking I am crazy for suggesting such things but I would like anyone who has facebook to ask yourself if you have ended a session feeling a little more empty than before you went on and looked at your friends pages. It is an interesting feeling that I think is unique to our time. Never before except if you were a celebrity or king could you actually feel like all 900+ "friends" did not think of or like you.

So before starting I would like to provide my reader with a warning: This blog will not be funny. For those of you that read Nikki Christensen's blog know just how funny a blog can be. This blog also will not be beautiful like Ashly Christensen's blog which is very beautiful (I suppose Christensen's just have talent that Bushman's lack) but this blog will be honest. For those of you that know me that is one this I have always possessed honesty to a fault. It seems to just drip from me and often stain everything I touch. So if you fear such things than stop reading now. In addition those of you who love the English Language I am sure have noticed by now just how much I manage to kill our beloved grammar and spelling. I fear this has been a problem for me for years. I remember in high school one of my English teachers simply passing me and saying that I was never going to get it... A similar experience happened yet again in College. What I am saying is I think it might simply be to late for me but I promise to help my children if you keep reading.

You also should be warned about my current frame on mind. This morning when I was in the shower I honestly was getting stressed about this whole blogging business because I though I had to write everything in reverse or my reader would not be able to read it in the correct order. I am also currently on a spiritual quest. As a result there might be a lot of church reference but I think we can all be open minded about such things. Other than that I believe I am still me at the core. Just a little older and full of millions of useless facts about all things medical. I take my boards in just 11 days and I have been studing, well trying to study 12 hours daily. For those of you that I have not talked to in the last 2 years I am in medical school and the longer I stay and the further I go the voice of Mrs. Durham, my AP English teacher, gets louder telling me it was a bad idea. But I guess now it is simply too late so I will continue and hopefully my life will be of use to others someday. I have always felt my life will be complete and I will be able to die happy when I go to sleep knowing I could not have done more to help others. So I guess that is my goal in life and all other things will fall into place. I look at my mom everyday and know her life is just this way. She has always been the most beautiful person in the world to me. Especially now that I am so stressed out my mom has been sitting by me until I fall asleep every night. Now that is love.

So here are somethings I have been loving as of late I thought you might enjoy.

1. a quote: "I will love you in reality and dreams" -Noah and the Whale (I believe the lucky person who this quote makes me think about knows just who they are.)

2. a video: be ready it is amazing. It is called "shape of my heart" by yet again Noah and the Whale.

3. for those of you that a wondering what medical school does to you I think this picture is a fair description. Not in a negative way.

Just a little something else I thought you might enjoy!

2009-06-25T11:46:00.001-07:00

As it turns out I think this video might be a better depiction of me.

Year One Over and Done

2009-06-24T22:43:00.001-07:00

Hello friends! It has been a little while and here I am alive and done with my first year of medical school. Can you even believe that? I can't! I can honestly say this past year has been one of the hardest and most amazing of my lifetime. As many of you know, I have gone through a lot but I can now say with confidence that it has all been worth it. This realization came upon me the other night when I woke up after my fever broke (in case you didn't know, I am currently recovering from Swine Flu). When I woke up, every thing I have experienced raced through my mind and I realized without a doubt that it was all worth it. I would have done it all again a million times over if it meant getting to know all the wonderful people I have had the privilage of getting to know this past year. People like Marius, Gheta, Flourine, Teo, my Romania girl, Jeff, Emily, my family, Sara Wilson, Trenton, Lindsey, Alex, my kids at cancer camp, and ultimately, myself. In fact, I think the price I have had to pay for all that I have gained has been very small indeed. But the strange thing is, at the time it seemed like the greatest price in the world. These are my thoughts at the moment, and I hope someone can find some greater understanding in them...what really matters though, is what we do with what we learn--and only time can tell what results these lessons might bring. Well enough of my blabbering on about the woes of med school and the life of a med student.
I have some lovely Haikus that my best friend Nikki wrote for my Mother and I earlier this week in order to help us heal:
I.
Sneezing Bushman girls
Worry Capitol friend, both
Vomiting, pleading

II.
Still incredulous
Angriest virus around
Swine Flu despair, quick

Needless to say Nikki is a very talented lady.

So now for closing I would like to include a little movie... Please do not think I am an egoist but it is a little something I put together during the school year. I took these pictures everytime I felt like I was not alive to remind myself that I in fact was. I supose it was a last stitch to remind myself that despite the isolation of medical school I am alive and that inspite of myself I am an artist. So please do you best to enjoy! Know I love you all and wish I could be with you more often.

as always elisa

Upon Request my Life

2009-04-06T14:20:00.000-07:00

Hello all of you out there that have nothing better to do than read about my life! This is my blog, which I will now be updating periodically due to some requests. (I just hope you Romania girls know how much I love because I am morally apposed to blogg’in). As it turns out, for some reason, people think that my life must be interesting because I am in medical school but I will be the first to tell you that is a farce, unless of course you consider hanging out with text books and people just as nerdy as yourself exciting. Don’t get me wrong I really do love it! All I am trying to say is that shows such as “scrubs” have really made it seem much more exciting. So I fear dear friends who read my blog thinking Elisa’s life must be exciting because she “doing things with her life” will most likely be asleep by the end of this entry and lets hope you never read this blog again.

It all began with a white coat ceremony! That is a ritual they do in medical school where they give you a white coat at a pre-graduation like ceremony in hopes that when you encounter patients they will see you in your white coat and believe what you say is true. I personally am very grateful for the coat due to my youthful appearance. I need all of the believability I can get.

Next I ran away from life to DC. While there I stayed with my most amazing friend Nikki Christensen. We have been best friends since the 7th grade when I first met her while she was wearing a pair of jean overall shorts. Truly an amazing out fit… speaking of it I have always been mean to suggest bringing it back. If anyone has the nerve it is for sure Nikki. Needless to say, as you will see from the pictures, Nikki is now much more stylish than I will ever be. I just really love her and for those of you that do not know her you are truly missing out. While in DC we had the most wonderful time with a beautiful bike theme. It all began when Nikki picked me up from the airport on her bike upon which she pumped me and my bags back to her apartment. I could not stop laughing the whole time. We had a lovely time riding our bikes to all of the monuments and Roosevelt Island. It was exactly what I needed. Nikki was truly the best hostess in the world and she saved me quite simply from going crazy. It appears that she always does that for me. Although the trip was just drenched with lovely things like home cooked meals from Nikki best part was when she cried when I left. And then she called me crying a few hours latter from the lawn. I don’t think I will ever have a friend that loves me that much again. Oh yes but one more thing while we were there we happened upon the most amazing Jim Henson exhibit! I truly am such a sucker for the Muppets. And what made it the best is that everyone was so happy to be there. At the end of the exhibit there is a film playing of clips of his work. I sat on a bench between and old man and a young girl that were grinning from ear to ear. And it struck me that although Jim did not cure cancer he truly did make the world a better place simply with puppets! What a wonderful way to change the world!

Washington Monument

Lincoln Monument

Good Old Mark!

Next big thing was for sure going with Nikki’s family to Spring City over Christmas Break! I would go off about it but words could never express just how much I love the Christensen family. It was perfect. A highlight for sure was when Nikki was band from listening to Dolly Parton… which was a true shame because I really do love her so much.

So Craig and Susan

I love Nikki

Ladies

The most recent wonderful thing that has happened to me is for sure visiting my dear wonderful Kelly Kronk Johnson. Kelly and I just had a wonderful time running around Pittsburgh. She truly is just the post “precious” person in the whole wide world. I think what I loved best about being there was just feeling so loved by my dear Kel. I also loved seeing Frank Lloyd Wrights “Fallingwater”. It was amazing and since I am such an architecture/furniture nut I just loved every second of it. It was one of those things that were just not built up too much, which is really saying something because it is rather built up. I also had a blast hanging out with Kelly’s family! I just love them so much! Not to have favorites but I am truly a sucker for Rebecca Kronk, Kelly’s mom. Not that I don’t love the rest of you Konks but Kelly’s mom’s hugs just do me in. She is one of those people that when she hugs you you just feel so loved you want to cry. Needless to say it was just a magical visit.

Fallingwater

Baby Annett

Good Old Best friends!

Kelly's Amazing Attic

This is it!

2008-07-26T18:00:00.000-07:00

Hello world… well in just one hour and 2 min from the moment that I started typing this email/blog I will start on my way home to you, well at least most of you. This past week might have just been one of the best in my whole lifetime. Literally this week consisted of one blessing after another. I am not sure why it happened with way but it did and I could not be more grateful. I honestly have done every single thing in Romania that I wanted two… I find myself leaving with no loose ends. Let me tell you about some of these little wonders that have happened to me.

The week started out with more Visa paper work. My dear friend Teo, who is helping Marius get to America, has been so worried about doing everything just right that we have all found ourselves spending a lot of time working on getting stuff ready for the big Visa meeting this Wednesday. On Monday while we were reviewing paper work I told Teo not to worry about helping me see my kids from last time that have been moved to another orphanage. Although this was a hard thing for me to do I realized that we had just run out of time and helping Marius was much more important at this point. The next this I knew Teo come running back in to the room and told me we had to go right now. Teo had lined up my going to Glata, the orphanage where my kids have been moved to without my knowing. She truly is such an amazing person. When I got there I could not have been more happy to see my little boy Flourin that I had worked with last time I was here. He is now 14 and comes up to my shoulder but is still the same old Frourin in his own little Autistic world. Of course when I saw him I could not help but cry as I hugged me little boy. He just looks so good and seems so happy. (I just read over those last few lines and am sorry that they have done a very poor job expressing what I felt. I wish I was a great writer so I could tell you how time stopped when I saw him but alas that is just not in the cards. Please do forgive me.) Teo also took me around to see some of my other kids and it was just amazing. I tried to thank her when we left but I just started crying but my dear Teo knew what I was trying to say. She just looked at me and said Elisa I know.

On Tuesday I got to spend the day with Marius’s older brother Inout, which was absolutely amazing. After only a day both Mindy and I totally fell in love with him. When we told Marius he was not very please and informed us that we were his friends not Iount’s. Inout truly is an amazing person. We helped him great ready for his big trip to the Visa office in Bucharest. The elders donated some clothes and Mindy and I got to pick out the rest. Needless to say we absolutely loved it and he thought we were totally crazy as we tried to speak to him in Romania. A real high light was when by accident I asked him if there was 6 million people in his town… as it turns out there is only 400. I thought he would die laughing. When we sent Inout and Teo off on the train both Mindy and I got all teary eyed. It was amazing how after only a day we loved him as much as Marius. Teo called me the next day totally exhausted to let me know that they got the Visas after a lot of convincing. When Inout found out Teo said he started dancing in the street, a beautiful moment.

On Wednesday I went to go visit one of my boys from last time in his foster home. This was also due to the work of Teo. I loved going there and I got to take a lot of really great pictures. More then anything I just loved seeing how happy he was. Seeing him there reminded me yet again that happy ending are out there.Mihai (age 15) with his 15 year old brother Alex

Last of all I want to tell you about one more of the millions of amazing experiences I have had this week…. Here goes this might be the highlight of my whole trip. Well Marius has started walking by him self now. He is so independent! He just wants to do every thing by himself and he is always so excited to show us just how much he does not need us. Today he was walking around being very careful not to fall. I was sitting there watching him on a bunch just thinking how hard it was going to say goodbye in a few minutes. When my dear little boy stepped over and put both of his arms around me and gave me a big kiss on the cheek. Simply this was one of the biggest tender mercies of my life. Marius made my heart skip about one billion beats and I knew that without I was meant to be here.

Well my dearest friends and family I must least you now but know I love you very much! And also keep praying for my girls they have two weeks left and they have so much to do. Thank you for sticking through this with me. I cannot begin to tell you how much your support has meant to me. I love you all.

-elisa thelys bushmanOur last group pictures! I love these girls! I will miss them!

Someone got their visa today!

2008-07-24T10:43:00.001-07:00

So Marius got his visa today and he along with the rest of us are super happy! It truly has been a miracle process! I just feel honored that I was able to be part of this. I wanted to post this video for all of Marius's girls friends. You know who you are. Ladies we are so lucky to have this boy. I hope you enjoy this video as much as we do.

sticky hands

2008-07-19T14:11:00.000-07:00

Passports!!! the most amazing day!

2008-07-19T13:49:00.000-07:00

Hello family and friends! So this week has been an odd one because as each day ended I became more and more aware that I have one day less left here. As a result I have been focusing a lot on the use of my time, which has in turn slowed time down. I am not sure if this is a good or a bad thing but I think in the future it will be a good thing. I will have just that many more memories.

Life here in general has been great. I find myself each day leaving the orphanage thinking that things just could not have gone better. Our workers really like us and the girls are just so confident and comfortable with their kids. I guess that really is the catch-22 of this program. As soon as we get really good at what we are doing it is time for us to leave. I sometimes can’t help but wonder if us being here is really good for the kids. After a lot of thought I have resolved that we really do more good then harm it is just sad that harm does happen. This week in particular I have been able to see just how the Lord uses us to make a positive difference…

All of the girls with the exception of Mary, Melissa and I went to spend a 4-day weekend at the black sea. Although it sounded like a lot of fun I realized I would be way too anxious if I spent any more time away from my kids then I already have. So I opted to stay and as a result Melissa and I have almost worked ourselves to death trying to make up for their absence. As I write this I realize that it seems like I am complaining but in all reality I have absolutely loved it. When I get anxious hard work is just the thing I need to balance myself out and I got my fair does this week. Melissa and I have been spending a lot of time getting things ready for Marius to leave to America. On Thursday at the orphanage Teo informed us that Inouts (Marius’s bro) was coming to Iasi so they could get passports made for the three of them. She asked us if it would be ok if we got Marius a pair of pants, shoes, and a nice shirt for his picture. Needless to say it did not take any convincing. Melissa and I could not have been more excited to get the job done. I told her we could be done by 1 so as soon as we were done with the orphanage we booked it to the mall. After a lot of debating we got Marius the cutest blue button up shirt that we thought would just match his eyes perfectly along with a pair of pants and some sandals. Just as we were ringing up our order, at 1:03, I got a call from Teo asking us where we were. I guess we were not the only ones who were excited. When we got to the hospital Melissa and I booked it up the four flights of stairs to Marius’s room. Just as we got to his room a nurse came over and tried to stop us from entering because there was to many people in the room. Usually we take the time to talk to the nurses and get them to let us go in but today was just not the day. We just ran right past her into the room and got Marius in his new clothes and place him in the foldable wheel chair the orphanage was nice enough to let us barrow. Marius just thought it was the coolest thing in the world. Not only did he have a new outfit but also he had a hot new ride. I think if the day would have ended right there he could not have been happier but of course it just got better. As we all piled into the taxi Marius just got this huge grin on his face that would not go away. He kept hugging his big brother who he adore as he asked us about all of the things outside. At that moment I realized that not only was this Marius’s first time away from the hospital in 8 months but it was also the first time he had ever been in a city. You seen the town he is from is about the same size and the village I told you about last week. He had never seen a tram nor ridden in a taxi. He just loved it! As we waited at the passport office while Inouts and Teo filled out paper work Marius played the DS to keep his mind off of things and the people who kept looking at him. Truly yet another way that DS has been a blessing (Pete you were without a doubt directed to get that for him). It only took us and hour to get the passport, which blew Melissa and me away. It was so ironic that the most inefficient place I have ever been could get a passport done in an hour just mind boggling. Marius was so excited about the passport he would not let anyone else hold it except for when we fed him his first Swarma (the Romanian version of a kebab). Truly it was the most amazing day. I just feel honored I was there witnessing it. That smile on Marius’s face when we were in the taxi is something that has forever changed me. I think I witnessed an emotion that has never before been defined something much more brilliant then joy.

As for now wish me luck on my last week and I will see most of you soon!

-elisa

simply the cutest boys hand I will ever hold
even though he is not smiling he is happy I promise.

Andriesen in Photo form

2008-07-15T12:18:00.001-07:00

an 80's version of elisa with the priest

these poor horses

the best host in the world Teo (our sister as she says)

cheese is beautiful

the sheep which made the cheese as beautiful

two of the sisters waving goodbye

one of the sisters husbands who told us a very long story about how in america someone asked him what he wanted to drink and he told them is name

all wagon no cars in this town

the librarian and her parents who gave us a cross stitch off their wall

needless to say this one is for you mm

the honey man also collects broken t.v. this is just a few

a traditional romanian home and couple

andrea and his foster mom. they are just crazy about each other. we met him because he is an orphan from the orphanage we work in. meeting him made me realize that happy endings are a reality and well worth believing in.

the veg. oil maker

the church that started it all

These are the people in the best neighborhood int he world!

2008-07-15T12:03:00.000-07:00

Hello world! So I have a very wonderful place to tell you about this week. Remember back when I attended the funeral for my child Marian in a town called Andrieseni? Well while we were there they made us promise that we would return and this past weekend we did just that. After searching for a maxi taxi, aka a bus taxi that went to Andrieseni, we headed on our way. From the moment we stepped off the bus to the moment that we left wonderful thing after wonderful thing seemed to happen. It reminded me a lot of when I went to Peru with my uncle Jack and sister Cory a few years back with a humanitarian group. I remember pulling up in our bus and just being blasted with confetti and flowers from the moment we arrived to the second we left. The people in this small two of Andrieseni were just as gracious. I have thought and thought of how to tell you about what we experienced there and I have realized that there are not to express the kindness that we were shown. It was one of those experiences that you would have to be there to believe it. Regardless, I will try and do my best to give you a little taste of what I saw and felt. I think the best way of doing this will be to tell you about some of the people I came in contact with. So here they are I hope you love them as much as I did.

One of the first people who really affected me, of course not counting the priest and his family who are truly some of the most Christ like people I have yet to meet, was the Beekeeper. Teo our hostess took us all throughout the town to meet the various people that contributed unique things to the feel of the town, the beekeeper was one of these people. When we pulled up to his house, on the buggy we road on the whole time, he was waiting out back with his bees. The priest came with us but sadly had to abruptly leave because he was stung by a bee… go figure. He was so excited to see us that he happily showed us not only the honeycomb but also his coy pond, cactus garden, green house, and a series of landscapes he had done. During this whole time his mother just walked around with us smiling at all of her sons accomplishments. After our Mr. Rogers like tour of beekeeping they sat us down and made us eat one cup full of honey each, this was of course after we had all ready been served two 3 course meal in a two hour period. I personally loved it and when our buggy trotted away I struck with how giving this man was, but this giving did not stop that night he brought us 5 L. of honey as a gift. Of course at our next stop, just like the ones that had come before, the people were extraordinarily nice and they cut down all of their flowers in their garden to give to us because they had nothing else to offer… mom they were all bulb flowers. Anyways another stop that absolutely did me in happened the next day after we camped out in front of the church, which was wonderful because I got to see the stars all night long. We pulled up to a small house with a huge garden and a bunch of old people just poured out. As it turns out 6 elderly sisters who grew up in the house get together and spend each summer together tending their land. I thought it was a wonderful idea and they were so nice. What was more surprising is that they had planned on leaving the previous day but had heard we were in town and changed their travel plans so they could feed us lunch which was far to kind of them because we had already been fed lunch by another family just and hour earlier. I just loved these old ladies so much they all seemed like such beautiful free spirits. They insisted on walking us threw their fields before we left and sent us off with a bucket full of fruits they had shook from the tree. I am sorry that I only have time to talk about this small handful of people I have so much more to say but alas I don’t think anyone has time to read it. I guess what I really learned is that the world is full of beautiful giving people. And I personally found that Romanian culture really does have something on my own.

Other then that the highlight of my week was talking to my mom and dad while they were at my Grandma Thelys’s house celebrating her homecoming from a mission she just served in Chili. While I talked to them as a family they pulled up my blog and were asking me questions about various pictures and experiences. Needless to say it made me feel like a million bucks and grateful that I have a family who loves me very much.

-elisa

Just a lot of progress with my boyz!

2008-07-13T01:56:00.001-07:00

I would like to begin my saying Happy 4th of July! For you that know me well know that this is my holiday of choice. I missed each and everyone of you and tried to shut out the missing by eating corn bread as you will see it worked a little.

I just glanced over my blog to insure that I don’t tell you a story you have already heard and I realized that my life here really does center around a few key people, Marius and Alex. So if you don’t like hearing about these boys I must ask you right here and now to stop reading because this email will not be all that interesting for you. So here you go… We have been waiting for months to see if Marius’s brother is granted custody of Marius because his going to America for treatment depends upon it. This week, after all of our waiting, we got the good news! When Teo got the call she went running around the orphanage looking for me and when I finally saw her she was down the hall. I have never seen someone jump so high in my whole life. She just came jumping down the hall on the verge of tears shouting, “Elisa we got it”. Although Marius has been through so much seeing Teo’s reaction left me with no doubt that he is a very loved boy. Truly that is only a reaction a mother can have. So now we just have to wait for the papers to arrive in the mail, which because we are in Romania can take up to a month! Oh the woes of post communist life. No need to worry though he will be able to get his treatment now and someday Marius will have his face back and sweet prosthetic hands.

Tuesday the 8th of July was a very important day that Alex and I have been looking forward to for weeks now. It was his tenth birthday! I have been trying to figure out what to get his for a while. This was not the easiest thing since he cannot talk but I narrowed it down to balloons and a big horse. Now the trick was finding both of these things. I planned on spending all Saturday getting things ready for his birthday but I was hit with a bad case of the flu. I spent two whole days in bed with a high fever which luckily only lasted two days and left me with an hour on Monday to make Alex’s birthday dreams come true. Things worked out perfectly. We bought all 19 balloons the store had and got the biggest and only stuffed animal horse we could find. When we got to the orphanage on Tuesday morning we blew up all of the balloons and walked in one by one into his room holding them. As each girl entered Alex’s smile just got bigger and bigger. I thought it little eyes might blow up. It was truly a great birthday and to make things ever better Alex was dressed in a tuxedo that the orphanage just happens to have.

The last thing of note is that my little baby Christi was in the hospital for some tests which means we got to see him and got to take pictures of him! Although it was good for us Christi did not like it one little bit. I did not get to see him the first day because I had other responsibilities to attend to but the other girls said he was really upset about being there. It seems as though when I saw him the next day his love of he hospital had not increased at all. When I walked in he was just crying and crying. I picked him up to find that he along with his mattress was covered with pee. We was very upset because something like this would never of happened at the Orphanage. I changed him as quickly as possible and after that he was just fine as long as we were holding him. Seeing Christi so scarred like this made me so grateful yet again for the Orphanage where he is taken care of. Although it is not the most ideal care it is so much better then it could be. They really do the best with what they have. Seeing him there also made me think a lot about how I will be leaving in just three weeks to go home and start me new life. I remember the first time I left I was so stressed about leaving my kids and what would happen to them but this time I am not scarred at all. I know that they will be taken care of. I know that other girls will come and will love my children just as much as I did. It is funny how much things can change with time. As for now I am off. I am sorry that this took so much time to get to you but life has been crazy.with much love!

-elisa

The Top 20 Pictures well I mean more...! Here you go!

2008-07-01T13:40:00.001-07:00

Good work Charla this is all of us!

The cold I had with a scary Jaron bear in the background

Sweet glasses

Just funny really.

Pest

Sleeper train! I took 4 of them this trip

He is everywhere! Krakow

Krakow

Even sweeter!

so sweet, Krakow

Jewish grave yard

The family name well almost... I found them mom.

This speaks for itself... amazing

Beauty (found on a wall in the Jewish sector), krakow

Jeff hates when Charla and I talk we on the other hand love it

Good friends on the roof in a hostel

Sweet!

My fav. Church in Krakow

The best tag I found

Some tricky subway tags

Buda

Two some what Jewish girls in the great synogauge, Hungary

Budapest at night

This one is so for alex

Bridges in Budapest
Romanian Country Side by Train

Krakow and Wonderfulness

2008-07-01T13:17:00.001-07:00

Last night, as I was attempting to begin this email, I told my friend mm that I had just had one of the best experiences of my life. But as I began this email and look back upon the past week I am finding that every day has been full of such amazing experiences. This has in turn lead me to believe that there is something truly special about Romania that I hope I will be able to describe within my email. So here goes my past week!

As I told you last week, although the orphanage and hospital are wonderful they do have a way of wearing on a person so this past week we took trip to Budapest and Krakow, which as it turns out are just as special as Romania. Krakow truly is one of the coolest places I have ever been not only is it beautiful but it is not so big that you feel lost all the time plus according to myths Krakow was built on a dragon. My old roommate Charla, who is working in Liverpool this summer, met us there along with our friends from Moldova. It was so great to see them again! I think it was just the break that I needed. I had a wonderful time busting around Krakow as my friend Charla cracked me up by singing songs from The Flight of the Concords as we ate millions of Kebabs. But this is not the real reason we went to Krakow it was simply just an added bonus! We went because located near by are the Nazi death camps of Auschwitz and Birkenau. After visiting them I am convinced that the world would be a much better place if it were mandatory for all people to make a pilgrimage to these almost holy sites. I think all people would be much kinder if they saw the reality of hate first hand, which this empty buildings embody. For example as I walked through one of the female barracks in Birkenau my hand slipped touched a row of bunks. It gave me the heaviest boots I have ever hand in my life. There was just so much sadness there. But when I looked up I saw fading murals some of the inmates had painted on the walls of children’s stories and my boots were filled to the brim with hope. Those images embodied to me what really makes such places sacred the beauty, humanity, and charity that can exist despite the hate. All of this reminds me of a quote I found in my brother’s room that goes “The greatest protest is beauty”. It is true.

Now as for my return which happed after millions of concerts, meetings of friends, late night talks, beautiful landscapes, Turkish baths, and night trains… Seeing my kids again was absolutely amazing but it seems since that point things have just gotten exponentially more amazing. Today while I was upstairs playing with my kids Teo, the physiologist, came running in and told me to come down stairs with her so I did and there was my Alex swimming in the pool with two of the other kids. Teo and I ended up going swimming with him and despite our best efforts we both managed to get soaked in the foot deep pool but it was more then worth it. I have never seen Alex that excited before. The as the hospital Marius walked for the first time! I am not sure if it was more amazing to see him walking or to see Teo’s eyes fill with tears. It really was a huge day for him. When he sat back down Teo looked at me and said “he won’t need any of us soon” and I smiled reassuring her that will be a great day. There are so many more things I could tell you about but I fear there is no time! And I am sure by this point you are all more then done reading. But as always I thank you for making it to this point… The world is really changing and is becoming more wonderful all the time. Believe in that and good night!

-elisa

A Week of Progress

2008-06-17T14:24:00.001-07:00

As always a big hello is in order! This past week has been a good but very crazy one. It is most definitely mid semester and I think everyone is feeling it. Being the facilitator has helped me to see just how important a mid semester retreat is for group moral. The girls are all still doing an amazing job but they are getting tired so I think the trip we have planned for Budapest and Krakow will be a perfect way to get our strength back. I for one am super excited not only because get to get my sister, Kristen, a gift from where she served her mission (Budapest) but because I get to go to Krakow which has been a life time dream of mine. So yes I hope you are all ready for a great traveling email next week.

I have really enjoyed my time at the hospital as of late. We have broken up the floors so Melissa and I take Marius along with the floor below while the other girls take the other 6 floors. As a result while Marius plays the DS, which he is getting better at all the time, I have gotten to know some other kids a little better. There is a very amazing girl Alexandria that I have been spending a lot of time with. She is such an amazing kid but like all of the kids there she is dealing with some pretty hard things. Alexandria was born with clubbed feet and as a result has spent a lot of time in hospitals as they do surgery after surgery in an effort to correct the problem. I think somewhere along the way she has developed some pretty sever attachment problems because every time I go see her she asks me over and over again not to leave. I have tried to create a routine with her so she knows I won’t leave for a while. Every time I go in we change her diaper, give her a bed bath with my vast supply of hand sanitizer, and then put on good smelling Lotion. As a finishing touch we put on Chap Stick and paint our nails. She loves that part best of all. But more then that she loves to paint my nails. Needless to say my toes and toes nails have never been covered with more red polish. I also have been reading an animal book with her that my dear friend Ashley made me before I left. It has a bunch of animals with the Romanian word below. She is getting great at making the animal noises. My favorite is her fish face. Although things were going really well with her she was moved to the fifth floor so I don’t get to see her anymore which has made me really sad. I am not sure if our routine made a difference to her but I was surprised by how quickly it made me attach to her.

Thursday was Marian’s funeral and it could not have been more perfect. He was buried in a small city called Andréa Shawn about an hour towards the Moldova border. I was so happy to see that he came from a beautiful town with a great priest and people who made sure his funeral was done correctly. Meeting the priest and seeing the care he took of his town really changed the way I think of the Orthodox Church. I fear I had developed some small prejudices. I was glad I went for many reasons. Personally it was good for me to see that he was physically taken care of. Second seeing his family was a very enlightening experience. His mom was not there because she lives in a different city and simply did not care enough to come, but his grandma, two uncles and little brother came. They were super poor along with just about everyone in the town and one of the social workers told me that his little brother used to live with his mom but ran away because his dad beat him so much. Seeing them made me realize that the Orphanage really was a blessing in his life. He got more care and love there then he could have from his family. I found myself being grateful that the Orphanage existed. Third in the Orthodox Church part of the funeral service is that all of the person’s things are given away to the guests. All of the poor little kids in attendance walked away with Marian’s things. It was beautiful to know that Marian was able to make a difference in the lives of the people in his city and in that way he lives on.

Well just really quickly I know my time is up but two of the best things happened this week! 1. After the funeral I went upstairs to say high to my kids at the orphanage. When I got there and looked over there was Alex asleep in his bed. It was amazing to see him so calm. I just sat there looking at him with my eyes filling up with tears. One of the works Lumi saw me and came over and tickled his hand. Alex eyes immediately opened and he looked right at me and smiled. I think being there for him woke up could not have been more amazing. 2. Marion went outside and wore a shirt this week for the first time is 7 months! He is making so much progress.

-elisa

This is for Marion

2008-06-09T14:39:00.000-07:00

Hello dear friends and family! I hope that you are more then happy and are feeling very blessed. As for me I am Ok…

Every time when I began writing these emails I look through my weekly journal entries and pick out the highlights I think you will be most interested in. Today in particular I am grateful for that routine. Before beginning this email/blog entry, there was a huge part of me that wished I was a Wii character so a huge arrow could come pick me up and take me out of this place and put me somewhere else. For those of you that have never played Wii this might be hard to understand but do try. Today has been one of the worst I have known in a long time for various reasons, which my mom knows far too well about because I called her at 4:00 A.M. her time crying about them. (Thank you mom you are amazing). The whole morning had just gone poorly. It seemed like one thing after another went wrong acuminating in Mindy telling me that Marion who has been in the hospital died. I guess one of her workers had come in and told her sometime throughout the day. It broke my heart, not that he died because I know it is for the best, but that I was not there for him when it happened. I think dying alone like that would be one of the scariest things in the world. When I got home I phoned Mario, our caretaker here, and asked her to call the director of the orphanage to see if we could help. I think Mario knew I was in a panic because she said she would call immediately. I wanted to call and ask if we could help because I knew the director would ask us to help and I did not want Marion to be a project like that. I guess tomorrow I will be going with a caseworker to pick out his casket and other such things. I am sorry this email is not going very well but I fear I am pretty emotionally spent at the moment. So back to why I was happy I looked through my journal first… While I was looking through my journal I saw that I recorded an experience about Marion that happened earlier this week, which helped me to realize just how good of a thing his passing is. On Monday when I was cleaning his face and putting lotion on his arms I moved one of his little arms to find that the sheet was soaked with blood. Marion had a huge bedsore that left his bone completely exposed on the elbow. It made me sick thinking how bad his sores must be on his back if his arm is that bad. For this reason and many others I am glad that Marion has moved on to better things yet I cannot help but missing him. I know I should not be sad but no matter how many times I tell myself it is a good thing, which it is, I feel sad inside.

On another more consistently happy note some of the field study students in Moldova stopped by to say hello as they were passing through Iasi. It was so great to see them and talk about the different projects we are working on. (Truly Ashley B.T. I think one of your field studies dreams was realized through our interaction). They are helping with an NGO that is focused on stopping trafficking which is a huge problem in Moldova. It was amazing to hear what they are doing and where they find their motivation. It was also great to share with them what we are doing here. To do this we took them with us to the hospital and I am pretty sure I can safely say they loved it and so did the kids. It was pretty exciting for the kids to see boys, which is something they don’t see very often. They kept calling them giants. But what was more wonderful was see how these boys were effect by this amazing little kids. I of course cannot speak for them but I am pretty sure that they left that hospital a little different then when they came which is saying something because they were already A+ individuals.

So as for now it is good bye and good night. Be good and I hope this next week is a good one for all.

-elisa

Pictures... Read them and Weep

2008-06-03T08:37:00.000-07:00

Iasi Relief Society

Hot BYU Ladies

Chilling with the Branch Pres! He is truly amazing!

A True Animal Lady!

Hot Dudes and Hot Bands

2008-06-03T08:31:00.000-07:00

I am not sure if it is even possible but I believe that I have just finished my fifth week here. This whole concept of time is absolutely mind boggling to me. Despite this I will do my best to describe what I have done with time.

So Fluorine, Marius’s roommate, went home on Friday morning. As a result Thursday was our last day with him. All week long Melissa, Mindy, and I planned what we could do for him so he would always remember just how much we loved him. We thought of a lot of things but we could not think of the perfect gift. We ended up getting him a basketball, ice cream, and pictures with us. When we walked in with the basketball he just lit up and we knew we had gotten the right gift. He ran over to get the ball, which he immediately began to dribble. But the fun did not last that long. Marius who is supper polite made Fluorine stop so the nurses would not get mad. Marius has really become good at working the system. He knows just what we are allowed to do and not do and he makes sure we do them because if we don’t then we have to go home early, which Marius does not like. The rest of the day we just sat there and enjoyed our boys. The nurses started moping early so we had to leave but we all quickly gave Fluorine a kiss goodbye. Marci, Marius’s aunt, told us that when Fluorine’s dad came for him the next day he said he did not want to leave because he want to see the girls again. Of course his dad said no so Fluorine gave Marci and extra kiss for each of us and left. It as crazy to go to the hospital without him but I guess that is just life and I am glad that he is at home where he can run around. Oh one last story about Fluorine… One day Mindy was talking to Fluorine about how he was burnt and she told him she way sorry. He quickly told her not to be sorry because he was glad he was burnt because he got to meet us. What an amazing little boy.

Now on a completely non-service note the girls and I went to a concert hosted by one of the many local politicians. At the moment Iasi is crowed with kids campaigning for various politicians. I can honestly say that every time we go out we get bombarded with fliers about people promising to make Iasi a more spectacular place. I think that this politician thought that by bring the most popular bands to Iasi he would show the young adult population just how great Iasi could be. Needless to say we were sold; good thing we cannot vote. I happened to have my nice camera with me so Whitney Scott and I went up to the front to get some good pictures, but it did not workout very well because the front was blocked off for campaigners. One of our friends did his best to get us in but the local Iasi police force was not having it. We wandered around the back of the stage to get some shots from that angle and the next thing we knew we had walked right into the fenced off area where our friend was. It was great not only did I get some good shots but we also got to meet some local politicians and have our picture taken with a Legendary Moody Blues like Romanian band called Holograph. While all of this was happening a younger yet very popular band called Voltaj was playing. According to their website they were voted the best performing group in Europe last year. Anyways what happened next was very funny. As they ended one of the band members walked up to Whitney and I and struck up conversation. He talked to me about my camera and about his band. Pretty soon he was asking Whitney and I if we wanted to go to the disco-tech with him. Although this was tempting due to the great story it would provide I could not say yes because our sweet branch president had asked us not to. So Whitney and I just walked away knowing that regardless we had a pretty good story about a Romanian celebrity hitting on us. I told Marius about it at the hospital and he just about died he could not believe I did not go to the Disco-tech. So I guess in the end it was a great story regardless and it made me that much cooler in Marius’s eyes which is everything.

Much love!

Eisa

Pop Rocks!

2008-05-26T03:01:00.001-07:00

Wow family I think this week can be summed up best by a quote from Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close that reads, “Anyone who believes that a second is faster than a decade did not live my life”. I can honestly say this week has been one of the longest and fastest of my lifetime. I also must say that the above-mentioned book is one of the best I have read in a very long time. If I was a book critic, which I am not, I would agree with the Baltimore Sun when they stated “Extremely Loud and Incredibly Close is a miracle, a daybreak, a man on the moon. It’s so impeccably imagined, so courageously executed, so everlastingly moving and fine”. Please if you read one book this summer let this be the one.

Now as for me this week started out with some Pop Rocks. I took them to the hospital to share with Fluorine and Marius. I figured that after our daily English lesson, which they hate, they might enjoy a little treat. The boys thought pop rocks were an absolutely wonder so they kept asking more for more. But as many of you know, who eat pop rocks, the more you eat the sticker they become making them harder to get out. When Marius asked for more I was having a hard time getting them out so I gave the package a little flick and a bunch came pouring out at once. Poor Marius end up with a bunch of pop rocks up his nose. Luckily with some strong nose blows Marius got them all out and we had a little laugh about it. I am so glad that he has such a wonderful sense of humor. Later that day when his brother was visiting Marius found one stuck to his face and he quickly popped it in his mouth to show his brother. It made me laugh not only because it was sick, but also because it made me happy to see him doing things that all kids his age would do.

The next big thing that happened this week also had to do with Marius. So in his room there are a few other kids. One child named Gabi who is burnt very badly and another who just has burns on his tummy named Leu. Leu might be one of the cutest little boys in the whole world. I have spent a lot of time blowing bubbles with him this week, which I might say I am becoming very good at. On Wednesday I did not go to the hospital because I was dealing with a little anxiety but the other girls did. A few hours after they got home I got a phone call from Marci, Marius’s aunt. She told me that one of the kids had sprayed mace in the bathroom that he said he found on the floor in the hospital. As soon as we heard I feared that the mace was Mindy’s and sure enough it was. What made the situation worse is that the little boy was Leu and he did not find the Mace but had stolen it out of Mindy’s bag. The poor little boy had no idea what he had taken so he ended up spraying himself right in the face. I’m sure that surprise will cure him from stealing for a while. As a result we were not allowed to go back to the hospital. There was a huge part of me that thought they would never let us come back. Although I realize that it was not our fault I can still see how that would make them really mad at us. But on Saturday after days of worry we found out that we could go back on Monday as long as we bring chocolates for the nurses, who now are not very fond of us. Done and done I say! I called Marci to tell her and she said Marius has been sad all week and refused to talk to Leu. Poor little Leu I feel so bad for him but I am glad that we get to go back. I have been missing my Marius like crazy. I love him so much!

The other best thing that happened this week is simple. Maria my little down syndrome baby gave ma a kiss for the first time. I realize that this is not a big one but it more then made my day.

As for now I am yours and I will talk to you soon with the exception of when I am hers.

-Elisa Thelys Bushman

True love will find you

2008-05-19T22:40:00.000-07:00

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mm7fQW32ggE

Long Lost Friends

2008-05-19T14:07:00.001-07:00

Now how to begin other then by saying this past week has been a true delight! Each day has of course been full of its trails but the good things have most defiantly outweighed the bad. I believe I have come home every night being amazing by something that happened. Now I don’t want you all to think something huge has happened because I truly don’t think that is what Romania is all about. Coming back has reminded me how it is those small things that make everyday so worth it. So here let me tell you about some of those things.

The orphanage has been great but I fear my heart is being stolen by my kids at the hospital but don’t worry they are all orphans too. Being there makes me so excited about my future. I know it might sound weird but I love being around sick kids. I think they are wonderful or at least most of them. I have been spending a lot of time on two different floors this week. The fourth floor where Marius is and ICU were Marion is. First I will tell you about Marion. Marion is one of the kids from the orphanage, where I work in the mornings, that has severe epilepsy. He is a very sad case in that his epilepsy is so severe that he is completely non-responsive and cannot control his movements. It now has become so severe that he has been moved to ICU until he passes away, which they say could be at any time. Most of the time Marion is asleep but when he is awake he is constantly seizing. I never knew Marion when he was able to respond or smile but I know at one point he was a slightly chubby little boy that could smile. I make it a point to go see his everyday and tell his stories. When I go the nurses look at me like I am kind of crazy because I am talking to someone that cannot understand me in a language that they don’t know, but this does not stop me. I also put baby lotion on his dry hands and feet. I realize that Marion most likely does not care about being moist but on the off chance that he does I thought it would be good to cover all the bases I could. I have really grown to love this little boy over the past week and find myself missing him when I go without seeing him. The other day when I was talking to him Osmond, a little boy that was in ICU the first time I can that now lives there and call the nurses mama, came running in and gave me a big hug. As we sat there talking to Marion together Osmond just kept patting his hand as he said his name. I’m not sure why that meant so much to me but it did. I guess I was glad to know that someone else knew him.

Well the other two boys that have really stolen my heart are Marius and his roommate/best friend Fluorine. These two little dudes are both burn victims. Fluorine was burnt when he was climbing a telephone poll (don’t ask he is a 12 year old boy). Marius was in a fire that both of his parents died in which he miraculously has survived. After being in a coma from December to February Marius woke but to reveal the wonderful boy that I have grown to love in just two weeks. When I came to Romanian I knew he would be here because the girls that came before are trying to get him to come to America to get treatments and reconstructive surgery so his face can be rebuilt. Working with Marius has been amazing not only because he is the biggest tease in the world but also because he has the most amazing aunt that we have also gotten to know. Marci has come here from Boston to help with Marius and as it turns out all of the other kids in the room especially his new friend Fluorine. She is amazing and just gives to these little boys all day long. The most amazing thing about Marius is his love for others. He is constantly thinking of everyone else around him except when he is playing the DS that Pete gave me before I left. (By the way Pete he is so good at it you were right. I cannot believe what a perfect gift it was. You are amazing and the boys here all love you for it,) I was just about to say my favorite moment with Marius so far was ______ but then I realized that every moment I have spent with him has been the best. So I guess the right thing to say is one moment that stands out to me was one day when I came in all sweaty from the long hot walk to the hospital. I sad down next to Marius and he quickly lifted up his little hand to brush my hair out of my face. It really just meant the world to me. I love that boy. I also love all of you and I hope you made it through this email.

Until next time I’m yours,

Elisa

Hello hello again!

2008-05-13T13:26:00.000-07:00

Hello my US world I am sorry that this is late, but I have just had a hard time thinking of what exactly I want to say and exactly how I want to say it. I thought that with time both of these would come but I fear they have not so please do bear with me as I try my best to make this email worth your while.

First I would like to thank all of you that read my last email. It meant the world to me. I loved all of the sweet replies I got from so many of you. I must say this experience means so much more knowing that so many people who I admire and love are a part of what I am experiencing. Keeping that in mind I hope you enjoy this past weeks adventures.

Because getting into the orphanage was not in our seeable future, on Monday of last week, we decided to go to Brasov (Transylvania) to see Dracula and the beautiful countryside there for a few days while we waited. I fear I had forgotten just how long the (9 hour) train ride was which meant I also forgot to tell the girls to bring treats because they do not sell them on the train. In the end it turned out for the best because we made friends with a lot of old Romanians by sharing the treats we bought during a quick 2 min stop in some unknown town between Iasi and Brasov. The old lady in our compartment (who we name Bunica Tamera or Grandma Tamera) was very hesitant about talking to us at first but we used our poor Romanian skills anyways and found out a lot about here. She told use about her daughter Juliana who was living in Australia, in order to make money for her family (which is a very common thing in Romanian culture). She expressed how much she missed her and how sad she was that she could not talk to her grand children because they could not speak Romanian. It was enlightening to see first hand how the poor economic situation in Romania truly affects the people. When she left Bunica Tamera kissed us all on the cheek as she called us by her daughters name.

The rest of Brasov was a blast but I have bigger and better things to tell you about. While we were waiting for a tour of a local castle I got a call from Mario (our in country caretaker) saying that she got us into the orphanage and hospital starting Friday morning. After a dreadful over night train ride where the conductor made us pay an extra $140 dollars because we could not understand we got back to Iasi just in time to go to the orphanage and meet the kids. It was amazing to see them again! I could not believe how much and how little some of them had grown. One child that really surprised me was Cosmina who we had called our little doughnut because she never moved and was rather chubby. It was crazy to see her walking and interacting with the world around her. Another highlight was seeing my little Alex who had become a very dear friend the last time I was here. When I walked in Alex went berserk and started smiling like crazy, he remembered me! Alex is 11 and has a severe case of cerebral palsy but has a more then perfect mind making it possible for him to remember unlike the majority of the other children who do not have this capacity. Alex like all boys loves to tease. Just today when he was teasing me by pretending like he was going to bit me he lost control of his head, which swung and hit me giving me a nice bruise across my face. He felt so bad that he almost started to cry. Although I did not like to see him sad it was nice to have one of kids care in return. Seeing him and all of my other kids, even though they had not idea who I was, was amazing! I feel bad that I cannot express what I am feel but I think that some things are not meant to be expressed in words. I feel blessed that I have been able to experience some of these things. Well I have reached my page limit which means I must go but I hope that this email reaches you all in safety!

Elisa Goes to Romania Again!

2008-05-03T06:34:00.000-07:00

Before I begin I would like to say if you have no interest in Elisa Bushman's adventures while living in Romania don't read another line! But if you would like to hear about them just cross your finger that I send you a weekly email. And if you don't want them keep those fingers crossed that you don't. I am excited to share my experiences with each of you. I hope that you like them. I also plan to set up a blog but I have not had time yet so this mass email will just have to do. I have also included some pictures to give you a visual of what is up.

Hello my dearest family and friends! I don't know exactly how to start this set of emails. How does one start a story that they don't know the end of? Truly a question I have yet to figure out. As a result I am currently listening to Bob Dylan in hopes of getting the inspiration needed to put all of my recent thoughts into something legible. Let us hope that Bob can inspire another young impressionable youth so this email comes out well.

I would like to begin by telling about my travels to Iasi, Romania, where I will be living for the next three months while I volunteer at a local orphanage. I remember very little from my first flight from SLC to JFK. I fear that I slept the whole way with my head up next to the window. As I waited for my second flight I noticed that many Hasidic Jews were also waiting for my flight in addition to a small group of people speaking Romanian. As I started talking to the Romanian group and found they were also Jews. I'm not going to lie this made me very excited because I have been researching the Jewish population in Romania this past semester. The first thing she asked me was if I was Jewish. I quickly said that my grandma was Jewish and she became very excited while stating that meant I was Jewish. I did not have the heart to tell her that in all actuality I was not really Jewish because my grandmother's mother was not a Jew but I did not have it in me to take away her obvious excitement. So I smiled and said I guess that does mean I am Jewish. This in turn made her granddaughter, Rebecca, very excited who started asking me dozens of questions while inviting me to come visit my homeland of Israel where they lived. I loved it! I felt so welcome. She insisted that I call the Jewish missionary in Iasi when I get there, so I could rekindle my lost faith. It made me smile realizing how very similar people of faith are.

On my actual flight to Vienna I was, as always, sitting in the very middle middle of the plane. But to my great delight I was sitting next to the littlest oldest grandma with a German accent that I have ever seen, her name was Stella. Stella was on her way to a Holocaust memorial service commemorating 70 years since the start of the holocaust in Vienna, her home. She was asked to both participate in the service and speak at about a dozen other appointments. I loved sitting by her because I got to help her with physical things while she in turn she told me stories about her young adult life in Vienna. When Vienna was first occupied Stella was a young mother. She said the Nazi's came in and forced the Jews to clean the streets with toothbrushes in order to humiliate them. When they came for her she had just finished washing her new baby. They told her she needed to go clean the streets and she simple looked at them and said can't you see I am busy. The SS officers' in turn looked at her and left. At first this surprised me but after getting to know Stella over those 9 hours I was not that surprised. She was one fiery woman little woman. I am not sure what it was about Stella that I loved so much it could have been that every time I fell asleep she would tickle my back (Ike you would have loved her) and every time I woke up she would smile at me and ask how I was. I personally believe it was much more then that. I have always been a firm believer that there are just some people in this world we click with. Stella was one of those people for me. When I left I gave her a small artwork I made of grandma Nola with a note and this really made her excited. She said thank you about one million times and gave me her card so if I was ever in Manhattan I could come my and see her. I waved goodbye and wished her luck on her very busy week to come. After getting off the plane I looked back to find about 20 little people just like Stella sitting in wheel chairs all on their way to he honored as holocaust survivors. I was simply blown away. Truly I was on a very special flight.

Sorry I have gone past my page mark! I promise to do my best to never do this again. But quickly I would like to say that Iasi is more beautiful then I could have dreamed it to be! I was here in the winter last time and it was just gray gray gray. Now it could not be more green green green. I love it! I have attached some picture of my apartment, which has quite the fancy bath, so you can all have a better content of where I live. Until next week I love you all very much and will hopefully have more interesting stories for you soon because with any luck they will let us into the orphanage. I am really excited to go and see my kids again.

-Elisa Thelys Bushman