Weather, babies, and Drafts

The weather in Kiev has been unseasonably warm - which has been pleasant.

Today, however, a gale blew in from all directions. Hail and sleet came banging in from the left while rain flew in from the right. The wind blew through making visible currents in the rain.

Looking down on the sidewalk from our window, we watched the poor people caught in the rain - their umbrellas turning inside out in the wind, clutching their coats up to their chins, and breaking into a fast trot to wherever they were going - the store, home, a friends. Anywhere dry. 8 minutes later the rain and hail and wind stopped. the Sun came out and now, looking out our window, you see a fresh and brighter Harkovsky, the sun reflecting off of a distant Communist grey building. Nestled in the middle is the brick Baptist church of the Transformation. A lovely new building with, seemingly, multiple ministries - including a group for young mothers. There are hundreds of mothers who walk up and down our sidewalk. Apparently children must be taken out in the air twice a day without fail. In Ukraine - fresh air is very healthy - unless you are inside and open a window - at which point the air turns into a Draft (note the capital D as in deadly). While many younger people have conquered their fear of the Draft - others remain in its clutch and sit suffering and sweating in stuffy overheated rooms for fear of the horrors of opening a window. While there may be some wisdom in this - a teacher of mine in highschool once suffered from a full paralysis of the right side of his face from sitting front of a fan - the extent to which it is sometimes taken is very difficult for me - who feels that it is hot, stuffy, and unbearable. However, I am also currently suffering from a head cold - invariably brought on by sitting in front of an open window during our small group last night - after another group member had relinquished his seat due to the draft.