Wherever you currently find yourself in the world, it’s no secret that all our lives have been affected by the Covid 19 pandemic. Our circumstances and situations might be different, but in an effort to create some solidarity between us we are starting a new mini-series titled “This Global Pandemic.”  Each episode will have an interview with a new expat woman who will share her perspective on what life in the time of a global pandemic has been like for her. 

In today’s episode you’ll hear from Kim, who lives in Ukraine with her husband and their six kids. They also have guardianship of three men with special needs and they work to deinstitutionalize people with disabilities. Kim shares with us what is was like for her family to unexpectedly welcome several new people into their home to quarantine with them, help a family get their adopted son to America in the middle of the pandemic, and what the Lord has been teaching her about releasing her love of control. Grab your favorite beverage and a comfy seat and prepare to be blessed by Kim’s story.

Connect with Denise

Connect with Alicia 

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Connect with Kim

Questions discussed during this episode:

What was your initial reaction to the news of COVID-19?

Did you stay in your host country or evacuate back to your home country? If you stayed, tell us a little about how your host country has responded to the crisis. If you evacuated, tell us what that experience was like.

What does a pandemic looks in Ukraine?

What was a moment you realized COVID-19 was serious? 

Have there been times when you broke down (maybe with tears, maybe in frustration)? What caused that to happen? How did you move forward?

What has community looked like for you while sheltering in place?

With an already full house, what has it been like adding two extra people?

What are your kids’ thoughts about the coronavirus? How have you talked about this with them and how have they responded?

While staying home, what are some of your favorite activities? Have you started doing something you didn’t normally do prior to the global pandemic?

What are some plans/trips/celebrations you had that have changed or been cancelled? How have you worked through that loss?

What are some of the worries/concerns you have?

What are you listening to these days?

Mentioned in this episode:

Album by Josh Garrels

Noteworthy Quotes:

“The border closes and they’re not allowing any foreigners into Ukraine and they’re not letting any flights leave Ukraine and that’s when coronavirus and a pandemic became very real to us.”

“It felt like every possible thing that would keep this kid from the family and love that he deserves is coming up against him.”

“Adoption in the time of coronavirus — we just had to make it happen ourselves.”

“The most community that I’ve ever had here in Ukraine was during quarantine.”

“I’m surrounded by people and I’m doing a lot of stuff, but those heart-to-heart friendships are really hard for us to find culturally.”

“To have them live with us and understand fully what this life is and all that it entails just brought us so much closer together.” 

“It was a really, really beautiful, unexpected blessing of quarantine and the pandemic that I wouldn’t have expected and I’m really thankful that the Lord gave us this time together.” 

“He brought me friendship in the time of quarantine. How unexpected is that?”

“Our kids saw that the other kids in the village were playing with each other and that was hard.”

“When you’re dealing with human lives that have been so broken, it’s hard oftentimes to see results and significant change.”

“I realize that the garden is therapeutic for me because I see results. I see weeds and I pull them and they’re gone. And I did something to make something healthy right then. I plant seeds and they grow.”

“My biggest concern is how do we start to go back and when do we start to go back to more of a normal life? And what is that even going to look like?”

“When we turn our eyes on Jesus and we fully look in His face, all these things will grow dim — strangely dim — like it doesn’t make sense how dim they’ll get in the light of His glory and grace.”

“This life, this sin-filled earth, this pain-filled earth is not all that there is. There is more.”

“Just tarry there with the Lord in the garden and ask what your response should be. Don’t try to do more than that and don’t do less than that. Just tarry in the garden with Him.”

“That’s what I’m learning in this time — not to hold onto things so tightly and love be in control.”

Related episodes and articles:

Show credits: 

Hosted by Denise James, Alicia Boyce, and Melissa Faraday // audio and music produced and edited by Melissa Faraday // content managed by Heather Fallis.

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