Hello Blogosphere! I am not a Northwestern/Gordon Romanian Semester student, but I was able to join this great group over the weekend. I thought you all might be interested in hearing about this program from the perspective of an outsider.

First, something about me. I am a Northwestern College faculty member doing a Fulbright in Cluj Romania this year. I came to Lupeni to meet with the 2 psychology majors who are doing their senior thesis research projects in Romania.

I arrived on Friday afternoon and was able to welcome the group as they trickled into Apartment 8 after class. Apartment 8 is often used as a ‘base.’ Kadie Becker, resident assistant for the semester program, lives there, along with 2 other New Horizons staff members. The students get together for supper on Friday night. They explained that they normally have soup that someone takes charge of and others bring something. So, they have soup and something something. On the menu for this Friday night: chili.

Wonderful chaos and great smells reigned in the kitchen, as some chopped garlic, others did dishes, and still others made tea. I offered to rinse dishes just be part of the action. Conversation revolved around the food and the thought provoking class material they had just learned. While the chili was cooking we hung a white sheet up on the wall in the living room and tested the projector. After a prayer, we filled up our bowls, grabbed some delicious corn bread, and went to the living room to watch a movie. Our mid-movie break brought ice cream and cookies.

I joined the students of Apartment George for the weekend. Dana was kind enough to share her room. Thanks Dana and the rest of Apartment George! Saturday included a variety of activities for the women of Apartment George. I worked with the two psychology students while others read, did a little shopping (bringing back, among other things, great clementines from the market), visited their host families from their homestays, attended IMPACT club meetings, and did some cooking. Taylor, Dana and I took a break from senior thesis work and went to the Penny Market to pick up snacks for their presentation on Monday. While we were out we also got a langosi—basically a piece dough wrapped around a filling (mine was chocolate) and deep fried. They make them while you wait. One word for these treats: yum!!

Saturday night Apartment George ate a soup that cooked on the stove most of the day. The students retrieved chairs from various rooms throughout the apartment and we ate elbow-to-elbow around the tiny table in the kitchen, turning out the lights and laughing at the ambience created by our two candles on the table. Various members of the apartment contributed to the soup—the potatoes and carrots came from Genny’s host family and she and Samantha peeled the vegetables. Taylor and Dana bought a cabbage and added it to the soup. Dana added spices and brown rice. I think everyone in the apartment gave it a stir at one point. Holding hands around the table for prayer this little group celebrated the blessings of life lived in community.

Sunday morning was a flurry of activity in preparation for church. Various activities filled the rest of the day, ending with another community meal—potatoes, cabbage, and sausage, fruit salad, and cookies for dessert. The students joked that their lives revolve around food. It would appear so from my description of the weekend, but in reality the days seemed to revolve around gathering together to talk and laugh and discuss. I eavesdropped on a morning discussion of the differences between Orthodox and Reformed theology, over lunch I laughed at descriptions of adventures the students had together, and prayed with these women before each meal. I was blessed by my visit.

Monday was the big event that truly brought me to Lupeni. Taylor and Dana presented the research they had been working on over the semester. These women overcame the challenges of language and culture to collect data from students who were part of New Horizons’ youth development program, IMPACT, and from a comparison group of students from local schools. As a college professor I know that students ask, at times, how all this ‘stuff’ they are learning could ever be useful. Last year Taylor and Dana were in Research Design class with me. This year they used what they learned to investigate how IMPACT affected moral competence, trust, and locus of control. I was proud of the results of their hard work and their poise and professionalism in presenting their work.

The students will soon be leaving Lupeni and return to the states. If you run into any one of these wonderful women, ask them about their experience and take the time to listen. In hearing about their time in Romania you will be blessed.