Living in Albania--Richard L. Bowman

September 8, 2014

Etc. from Lezhë

Life in Lezhë continues in the same ways and yet different. For example, the new street that was being constructed during our time here in the spring is still being worked on, but now it is almost finished as they are about ready to connect it to one of the main streets already in existence. (And I get to watch some heavy equipment that my dad would know all about.)

an excavator at work on a new street in Lezhe

An Excavator Doing Its Job on a New Street (3-Sep-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

On that same day Elsie and I went to lunch with several of the other American and Albanian teachers. The conversation was lively and informative, as we continue to work on our Shqip (Albanian) language.

Elsie and some teachers from LAC at lunch

Elsie and I at Lunch with Other LAC Teachers (3-Sep-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

Katrina Schmid talks with other teachers at lunch

Katrina Schmid Talking and Listening to Another Teacher (3-Sep-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

Also at lunch that day next to our table was a family of five eating. Remembering our grandchildren, I had to take a picture of the youngest one and his mother as we watched the rain coming down.

a small boy and his mother at lunch

A Mother and Young Son Watch the Rain (and me) (3-Sep-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

All of the above photos were taken on Wednesday (September 3), then on Thursday morning we left for a trip to Montenegro from which we returned on Friday late afternoon. I'll share some of those photos after I go through them later this week.

On Saturday, as I went out for some bread to augment our meals, I also bought some bread in the shape of pretzels that caught my attention. They had been sprinkled lightly with salt and were very good. We will have to get them again.

pretzel shaped bread for a snack

Albanian Bread Including Some in Pretzel Shapes (6-Sep-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

So life continues the same but different. Now I need to get breakfast under way and get to LAC to work with Dini on some computers before school starts a week from today.

September 6, 2014

Music at Guri i Themelit Church

Elsie and I enjoy worshipping with the people who attend the Guri i Themelit (Cornerstone) church in Lezhë, Albania. We have learned to know many fellow Christian brothers and sisters and many who are exploorng what faith in Jesus Christ means. So this post will highlight the music in the Sunday morning worship times.

During the singing at the church on August 17 and 31, I recorded a few vignettes of choruses and but them together into one video. Since the video is almost 15 MB long, it may take a minute or two before it starts. Or you can right-click on the link and save the target as a video to your computer.

"Albanian Christian Choruses (Lezhe; August 2014)" --a 14.7 MB mmp4 video; should run on most devices.

Below is a screenshot of the video.

screenshot from the Albanian Christian Choruses video

Title Screen for a Video of Three Albanian Christian Choruses (5-Sep-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

Even though several of the young woman from the church have graduated from high school and this fall have gone away to various universities, we still have some up-and-coming singers to join pastor Rafael Tautari in forming a praise team.

praise team leads us in singing

Anisa and Evianda Join Pastor Rafael on the Praise Team (31-Aug-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

Below are photos of the left- and right-hand sides of the church on August 31. I took the pictures from the row of seats along the back wall. There were at least eight persons on the back row.

congregation stands to sing (left)

The Left-hand Side of the Congregation (31-Aug-14; © Richard L. Bowman)

congregation stands to sing (right)

For those who know the Albanian language, here are two songs photographed from the projection screen. The first one is a translation of "You Are My All in All."

praise song, "you are my all in all"

This second one is a translation into Albanian of the song, "Here I Am to Worship."

praise song, "here I am to worship"

As the guest preacher got up to share the sermon God had given him, the projector showed this slide.

sermon title

Rafael introduces the guest speaker

It is encouraging to see that God continues to be at work among his people around the world, even in places where some of the human dynamics are discouraging. It is always good to remember that God and his Word are faithful. He continues to communicate his love for all persons shown through the gift of Jesus' life, death and resurrection. Praise Glod!

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