Can you imagine standing in line at a train station ticket window for that long? Apparently the complications come when you travel from one country to another. In other words, if our travels were to keep us in Poland, there would have been no big deal. But we’re traveling into Slovakia and Hungary, and each country has its own rail system.

On Sunday morning, Gene decided to double-check the tickets, just to make sure all was done correctly.

To his chagrin, he had seat reservations for two but only one ticket for actually boarding the train. And so, back to the train station he went. This time, he was helped by a female worker who had witnessed the entire four-hour scene on Saturday. She fixed the problem in less than 10 minutes. Gene said, “Wow – this was a lot faster than yesterday.” The woman rolled her eyes, half-smiled, half-frowned, and said in English, “Yes, my friend is an idiot.”

We’re not sure that she meant what she said. But her response was enough to tickle the funny bone.

The women’s retreat in Hungary is next weekend. So far, my IM contact who helped organize the event had to return to the States suddenly two days ago because her elderly mother had a severe stroke. Barb, my IM friend, hopes to return to Hungary in time for the conference, bless her soul. And now, I just learned that my translator’s father is in hospital for a serious infection and surgery. God must be up to something big for this women’s conference! Pray with me for these two women and their families, and for God to accomplish His good purposes. The registration now stands at 191, not including the five-member committee!

The wedding bulletin said the groom was scheduled to arrive at 4:30. Some folks told us the ceremony would begin at 5:00; others told us we could show up at 5:30. When the ceremony actually began, there were about 20 people present. Within a half hour, another 40 or 50 had wandered in. The bride, a converted Hindu, wore a white satin sari with gold embroidery and the groom looked handsome in his black suit. They celebrated their marriage with a western ceremony, complete with signing the register. Midway through the service, however, Gene and I began nodding off.

Rather than embarrass ourselves by snoring through the reception, we excused ourselves and stumbled to our room that was, thankfully, air-conditioned. We bid each other goodnight and collapsed in bed, stared at by a curious five-inch gecko on the wall. If I was to be bright-eyed, or at least coherent, for the next day’s conference, I’d need a good night’s sleep.

Guess what? Even with the help of a sleeping pill, I slept only three or four hours. Jet lag was doing its thing on my body and my brain. Wide awake in the middle of the night, my thoughts flitted from one thing to another. And I began to worry about having enough energy to last the day. Only by God’s strength would I be able to speak for three sessions on Saturday morning.