Missionary Kids | Tales From The Black Forest

Posts Tagged ‘Missionary Kids’

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June 1st, 2011

Grad Is Upon Us

Written by Dani Filed under: BFA, Dani, Prayer, Work & School

In two days, 60-something seniors will graduate from Black Forest Academy. This is a big deal. It’s a big deal because it’s a milestone they’ve been working towards for 12-plus years, but it’s also a big deal because graduation will usher in what will probably be the biggest change of their lives.

Senior Transition Day

In April, I had the privilege of participating in Senior Transition Day. It was a day meant to help prepare them for transitioning to their passport countries. The day covered topics like building community, what it’s like to go to college as a Third Culture Kid, how to say goodbye to BFA, and how to say hello to America. The Seniors even received practical information about opening a bank account, what documents they need to take, and what to consider when getting a phone plan. I spoke on a panel just for the girls. We talked about managing your time and money, The Freshman 15, drinking, dating, boundaries, sex, extracurriculars and more. I was very excited to participate and greatly enjoyed my time with the girls. I hope the Seniors learned from this day; I certainly did. I walked away from Senior Transition Day with a greater appreciation for the immensity of the change these kids are about to encounter.

College is a big transition for everyone. For most people it means moving away from home, being on your own for the first time, learning to manage your money, your time, your weight, and a whole slew of other things. But BFA kids aren’t your average American teens. These are kids who’ve spent more of their time speaking French than English, who grew up using the British Pound instead of the America Dollar, who know their shoe size as 41 rather than 9. The majority of the BFA Seniors have no bank account, no driver’s license and no idea how to pay their bills. For most Third Culture Kids, college is a HUGE transition.

Simple Question, Difficult Answer

For example, one of the questions I got asked most often during my first few weeks of college was, “Where are you from?” With BFA kids, I make a point not to ask this question. When I do, I get blank stares and then a slew of questions. “Do you mean in America? Where I’ve lived the longest? Where I live now? Where my parents are from?” Instead, I ask, “Where is your family now?” Can you imagine how challenging this seemingly simple question will be when they encounter it 500 times during their first week of college? Should they even try to explain?

Some TCKs have spent no more than a few months at a time in their passport country. They may speak the language, be an American (or Canadian, or Korean, or Australian) citizen, and look the part, but inside, they don’t feel American. They feel Turkish, or Italian, or probably a combination of all three. Finding out who you are is a difficult task for anyone, but for TCKs, there are whole other arenas of identity to figure out.

These students have rich, diverse, and distinctive histories, backgrounds and experiences. These aren’t your average American kids (I recently heard one student list off the seven languages that he speaks), they’re going to face more challenges than the average college freshman. But underneath all of the challenges are the same basic questions: Who am I? Where do I fit? What is my purpose?

Pray for Seniors

Could you pray for these seniors as they embark on the journey of adulthood?

Pray for courage. Pray for grace. Pray for patience.

Pray that they will be willing to ask for help, would be gracious with their fellow countrymen who might not understand, and would run to Jesus in their distress. Pray that they would know the nearness of God in the midst of what might seem like a vast loneliness. Pray that they would learn that He is their identity; He is their home.

Tags: america, BFA, Black Forest Academy, College, Grad, graduation, Missionary Kids, MKs, moving, Seniors, TCKs, third culture kids, transition, University

April 6th, 2011

Mmm, Mmm Good

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Written by Israel Filed under: BFA, Work & School

So this last Sunday we had two students come and cook a meal for us. There is a class that the students can take called Independent Living. One of the aspects that the class provides is the opportunity for students (usually a girl and a guy) to go and cook a meal for staff. It’s a great way for the students to learn how to cook and for staff to interact with students in ways that they might normally not.

We did this last semester, and it was a great opportunity for us to eat good food and learn about the students’ lives outside of BFA, so we signed up again this semester. A Senior boy and Junior girl sent us a list of ingredients and the menu, and we went shopping the day before, since stores are closed on Sunday.

Tags: BFA, Black Forest Academy, food, Israel, Missionary Kids

December 25th, 2010

A Long Awaited Post and Merry Christmas!

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Written by Israel Filed under: BFA, Christmas, Culture, Life, Prayer, Travel, Work & School

A Long Awaited Post and Merry Christmas!

Well right now we are staying warm inside on a very snowy white Christmas! Dani is trying to solve a Rubik’s Cube (starting from the solved position) and I built a two-seater car. We are really glad to have some time to ourselves and to have a short break.

My dad and Raina just left from being here for about 10 days. We went to France, Switzerland, and of course Germany. They wanted to see all of Europe, but that wasn’t going to happen. We both miss having family here for the holiday seasons. Christmas is amazing here, but it isn’t the the same without family.

Dani solving the Rubix Cube, from the end.

Israel making a two-seater car.

The Past Months

So I’m going to try and recap our last two or so months here in Kandern, Germany. We’ve had some really great experiences and some not so good ones, from working in the dorms during Thanksgiving, to having the car break down on our way back to Germany.

Herbstmesse

This is the fall festival/fair that happens at various places around the area. Pretty much everything is closed except food and rides. The school takes a day trip to Basel for all the students to be able to take part in the festivities. It was pretty crazy seeing all the rides. It was like a little carnival. But the big hit at Herbstmesse every year are the bumper cars. I guess those are always popular no matter where you are. You can see the pictures here → Herbstmesse Gallery.

Thanksgiving in Germany

So, of course, there is no Thanksgiving celebration in Germany. (I wonder why?) But the school and the individual dorms celebrate the event during the month of November. At the dorm we substitute at, Blauen, we helped prepare the food and get ready for the meal. It was a great evening with the girls at the dorm, and with the other couples who help, at the dorm, as well. You can see the pictures here → Blauen Thanskgiving Gallery.

Storch Dorm

So Dani and I also go visit a few of the other dorms. One of those is Storchenblick, or Storch for short. I had to get our car worked on after the first freeze. The driver’s side door decided to not unlock anymore, and we also hadn’t put our snow tires on the car. So, one of the girls at Storch, who speaks German, helped me translate at the local auto-shop, Auto Brehm. We got our car back a few days ago, with new locks/keys and tires. Yeah! I also took a mid-semester group picture for them. You can see the pictures here → Storch Group Gallery.

Christmas Banquet

The school has a few banquets during the fall semester, and one of the biggest is the Christmas Banquet. This years theme was a Masquerade Ball, and the Student Council decide to just do desserts instead of a full meal. It was alot of fun, and there were some great skits that happened. The school grants wishes every year that the students submit, and one of those was for all the Korean guys to go up and sing on stage. Needless to say it was hilarious, and not all the guys knew what they were getting into. You can see the pictures here → Christmas Banquet Gallery.

Last But Not Least, The Visit

So my dad and my youngest sister, Raina, came to visit us for about 10 days. They wanted to see everything in Europe. We are not that adventurous, or capable. So we ended up visiting just a few places. We went to a castle, Haut-Kœnigsbourg, and a cute little village called Riquewihr in France. They walked around Lörrach (without us). And had a few days to walk around in Kandern Germany. We then went to Adelboden, Switzerland and skied the Alps. And then on the next to last day took a train and visited a few towns on the way to the Christmas Market in Freiburg, Germany.

So, Coming Back From Switzerland

We were driving along, minding our own business, when all of a sudden the engine light comes on, and the car starts overheating! Seconds wizzed by, and moments later…Okay, ignore the melodrama. We did end up getting stranded in Heimburg-Bern, Switzerland for about 5 hours more than we had planned. The radiator had overheated. It was too late in the evening to find help, and we had no cell-phones. So after looking for possible solutions Dani and Raina found a wireless signal without a password, which is illegal in Germany. (I’m not sure about Switzerland.) And we used the wireless internet, the laptops we had, and cell phones to find help.

We were eventually able to Facebook, make Google calls and email our way into finding someone to pick us up and call for help for the car. We found our way to a McDonalds, had some food, and our ride picked us up and took us back home. It was a crazy unexpected twist that taught me that I will have to look into getting a cell phone plan here if I’m’ going to be doing some more driving. We all went home exhausted and overwhelmed since this was two days before they went back home.

‘Tis the Season

So overall we’ve had a good first semester. It’s been much more difficult then we expected. And there have been plenty of unexpected challenges along the way. We’ve learned alot about the trials of marriage, living in another culture/language, and developing a new life in a new world. We love it here. But are learning that it’s not always easy: like getting stuck in Switzerland.

We hope you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. Drive safe, and always wear your seat belts. We love you all, and are very thankful for the gifts and prayers that have been sent our way.

- Israel and Dani

Tags: Castle, Christmas, Family, France, Germany, Herbstmesse, Jernigan, Kandern, Life, Missionaries, Missionary Kids, Photos, Seasons, Storch, Switzerland, Thanksgiving, work

November 21st, 2010

Our Lives Since July

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Written by Israel Filed under: BFA, Family, Life, Support, Video, Work & School

We made this video for the Missions Day of our home church, The Grove, in Arkansas. We wanted to share this glimpse of our lives with you all. Maybe you should create your own video and send it back to us. Okay? Okay.

First Semester at BFA from Israel Jernigan on Vimeo.
The song in the video is Your Glory by Sons and Daughters. It is used with their permission.

Tags: BFA, Black Forest Academy, church, Dani, Germany, God, Israel, Israel's Video, Life, Media, Missionary Kids, Prayer, transition, Video

September 5th, 2010

In A Cow Traffic Jam

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Written by Israel Filed under: BFA, Travel, Video

For those who don’t use Facebook here is a link to the two videos! Enjoy.

The Introduction

Tags: BFA, Black Forest Academy, Dani, Germany, Israel, Israel's Video, Missionary Kids, Switzerland, Travel, Video, Weekend

August 23rd, 2010

And the Year Begins

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Written by Israel Filed under: BFA, Prayer, Work & School

Tomorrow Is the Day, the First Day of School

Woah. Can you believe it? We’ve been waiting for over a year to meet the students of Black Forest Academy, and now we get to. It will be extremely exciting, I’m sure.

We’ll start the day off with BFA’s Opening Ceremony, which includes a flag processional for all of the different countries represented this year. For those of you who’ve been to JBU, it’s like International Chapel, which pretty much guarantees that Dani will cry. The Opening Ceremony is meant to be inspiring and fun for all involved, especially the students. Right now, that’s all I know specifically about the first day of school. I’m sure Dani knows way more specifics, but my main job will be taking pictures and capturing what goes on.

The First Time For Many Students

After the Opening Ceremony tomorrow, parents will say goodbye to their kids. We’re told that it’s a very difficult time, with lots of tears. Tomorrow will be the first time for about 70 students to be at BFA. Most of them probably haven’t ever stayed at a boarding school. They will be leaving their parents and having many experiences that college students have back in the states: homesickness, a new environment, a new country, nothing familiar, no parents, dorm life. As you can imagine, it can be difficult.

There will be around 350 students total this year. I think there are around 47 students in the elementary school, which includes a bilingual school. The elementary school is in another town about 10-15 minutes away. The building is very tiny for the amount of students they have this year. They are growing each year, so everyone here is excited about the potential for that school.

Every year there are many changes, both for staff and students. New staff arrives, current staff change positions, and old staff leave. This year there is even a new director. Every year, students must say goodbye to their teachers, dorm staff and friends. BFA is a place that is always changing. Tomorrow is the beginning of another year, which will inevitably look different from the next one. Yet in all of these changes, God is present and at work. As you can imagine, the first day can be pretty overwhelming for everyone, but it holds so much hope and potential too.

God’s Timing Is Perfect

Over the past month, we’ve had moments when we couldn’t believe that we were finally here. Our hearts have been at BFA since July of last year, so it’s nice that our bodies have finally joined them. As we prepare for tomorrow, it feels like the fulfillment of the path God set us on over a year ago. He’s been building and shaping us for this, for what begins tomorrow. It’s become abundantly clear that this was his perfect timing for us to be at BFA. We are honored to have the opportunity to serve these kids. Please keep us all in your thoughts and prayers as we begin this new year.

Some Things To Be Praying About For The School

That families will know how to say goodbye well. That parents will be able to have peace about their decisions to send their children to BFA.
That the new students will not get overwhelmed by the enemy, but will have peace and excitement in their transitions.
That all the students will have a good first day and first week, and will figure out all their class schedules.
That the new director will have peace and know how to lead.
That the staff at BFA will be rested and ready for anything that might get thrown their way tomorrow.

Some Things You Can Pray About For Us

That we feel like we fit in well at BFA. Dani especially always has a difficult time with the initial adjustment period of new situations.
That we adjust to how long everything takes to done. Washing a load of laundry takes at least 90 minutes, no drying included.
That we are able to be a part of the German community here, by getting to know our landlords, for example.
For our new routine, neither of us have had regular work routines for about a year now. For Dani it’s been two years.
That we continue to pursue God, especially now that our ministry is officially starting up.

Tags: adjusting, BFA, Black Forest Academy, Family, first day, Germany, Goodbyes, Missionary Kids, Opening Ceremonies, Prayer, school, staff, students, transition

July 9th, 2010

That They May Know Him Better

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Written by Dani Filed under: Life, Spiritual Journey, Work & School

Since we began this journey 12 months ago, I’ve run the gamut of emotions. I’ve recounted my emotional journey many times since August, so feel free look back if you’ve forgotten. I think I’ve done a pretty good job of documenting our lives (and especially my emotional life), but I haven’t done a very good job of sharing what’s been the driving force behind this drastic life-change, and what has been on my mind every day of these last 12 months.

On July 24th of last year, I received an email from my friend Pam, inviting us to join her at Black Forest Academy for a week. I had never heard of Black Forest Academy and, being the researcher that I am, found the website. I spent the next four or five hours sitting on my bed, devouring every piece of information I could find about BFA. I’m pretty sure that by the time Israel got home later that evening, I’d even blog-stalked several staff people. Basically, I fell in love with BFA from the moment I visited their website. What kept me arrested and what captured my heart wasn’t the excitement, or the opportunity to travel back to Germany, or the even the possibility of doing something fulfilling (though those were all appealing), what made my heart leap was the students. Black Forest Academy is a boarding school for missionary kids. 90% of the 350 students are the children of missionaries.

While at Orientation a few weeks ago, I heard the story of my new friend Anne, and have been reflecting on it ever since. Anne attended BFA as a boarding student for three years during high school. Here’s the short version of her story. One night, she asked her RA why God had taken her away from her home and family to come live with a bunch of MKs. Her RA said, “Because He loves you Anne,” and that statement changed Anne’s life. This story gave voice to the burning passion and hope of my heart—that Jesus would use my life to say to BFA’s students, I love you.

I haven’t shared this in the blog, but in September, I was assigned a small group of seven sophomore girls. Their small group leader was leaving, and, since we thought we would be arriving soon, I was to take over. Since September, I’ve been able to get to know these young women through Facebook, and I love them. Even though I’ve never met them, and have no idea if I’ll understand their stories, or even if I’ll ever lead their small group, they’ve taken up residence in my heart. God placed these girls in my life so that he could increase my love for the students of BFA. These students have sacrificed security, stability, a sense of home, and often aspects of their family, for a calling that wasn’t even theirs.

Israel and I are being sent to be Jesus to these kids, who, though they know many facts about Jesus, might not believe that he delights in them. We’ve been given a great opportunity. We have the privilege of loving the children of people who have taken up a mighty calling. We have the joy of loving students who Jesus deeply cares for, students who have spent their lives telling others about the love of Jesus, but perhaps have never believed it themselves.

I’m doing a poor job of expressing the deep conviction that has grown in my heart, but I think what I want you to know is that these kids are worth it. Just as much as any people group across the globe, they deserve to have someone go on their behalf, that they might know their Creator. Thank you for allowing us to go. Thank you for funding us and sending us out. Thank you for taking up this quest with us, for saying that these kids are important too. I am deeply honored.

Tags: BFA, Black Forest Academy, Jesus, love, mission, Missionary Kids, passion, purpose, supporters, thank you

December 9th, 2009

Grief

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Written by Dani Filed under: Life, Spiritual Journey

Hopefully you know by now (unless you’ve just stumbled across our blog) that we are planning to work with missionary kids at Black Forest Academy. As part of our preparation, I’ve been reading (rather slowly) Third Culture Kids by David Pollock and Ruth Van Reken. Missionary kids are third culture kids (TCKs), which means they’ve spent a significant period of their formative years outside their passport countries. I’ve also been going to counseling for the past few months. One of the things that keeps coming up, in the book and counseling, is grief.

I moved a lot growing up. I believe I moved 12 times in my first 14 years of life. I don’t know if I technically qualify as a TCK, but I do relate to some of the aspects of TCK life. One thing I’d never realized is that there is a grieving process to moving. Let me tell you, that was an eye-opening chapter. According to the book, the transition cycle for moving is Involvement, Leaving, Transition, Entering and Reinvolvment. Okay, in and of itself, that doesn’t really mean much. The wow moment for me was reading about the Leaving stage, which isn’t talking about getting on a plane and heading to your new home, although that’s part of it, but about emotionally removing yourself from your home. You begin to loosen emotional ties, back out of responsibilities and refrain from taking new ones, and stop making new friends.

So, for the first time, I’m aware of this process. We’re in this strange sort of limbo. We’re preparing to move to another country to start a whole new life. We’ve basically sold all of our possessions, we’ve moved in with friends, we’ve given our cat away, we’ve quit our jobs, but we’re still here. And, instead of pulling away from our relationships, we’re strengthening them and making new ones, because everyone here is vital to our success at BFA. And I don’t mean financially, although we do need money, but, emotionally and spiritually. The people here will, in many way, sustain us as we serve in Germany. Instead of distancing ourselves from friends, family and church, we’re trying to become even more connected to our lives here, so that we have an anchor of people from which we can launch ourselves into BFA.

And it’s weird.

People ask me how things are going and how we’re doing, and I don’t really know what to tell them. We’ve sold all of our stuff, all of our wedding gifts. We never took any photos of our apartment, the only home we’ve know since we’ve been married. We’re living with someone else. We gave our cat away, and I bawled and I want her back. We want to be in Germany, but we’re not. We want to get to know our friends better and to love them better, but then it will hurt that much more when we have to leave.

So I think I’m experiencing grief. I’m glad to know that is what’s happening, and that it’s normal, and that it will keep happening. But it’s strange.

I’ve been thinking about home, and what that means. TCKs often don’t know where home is. I can identify with that right now, because, apparently, home isn’t a place. It’s not your things. Or where you live. Or comfort food.

What I’m trying to get at is that this whole missionary thing can be hard at times, and we haven’t even left yet. We’re in process. We’re learning and changing and grieving. I’m grieving the apartment (that I never liked), and our possessions (that I wasn’t very attached to) and our cat (whom I loved). I guess the fact that I even care about leaving our apartment shows that this really is a transition. And maybe it really is a sacrifice. It didn’t seem like much of a sacrifice before it happened, and even now, it doesn’t seem like much of one. And I’m actually glad to do it, because I’m so excited about what God has for us at BFA. But I guess it is a sacrifice to leave all of your things and what you’ve known, for something that has no guarantees.

I guess I wanted to let you all know how we, or at least I, am doing. In one sentence, I think this whole transition period is strange. That’s really the best word I can think of to describe it.

Tags: apartment, BFA, Cat, church, Family, Felin, friends, Germany, grief, home, missionary, Missionary Kids, moving, possessions, strange, stuff, TCKs, third culture kids, transition

Page 1 of 212

Posts Tagged ‘Missionary Kids’

Grad Is Upon Us

Senior Transition Day

Simple Question, Difficult Answer

Pray for Seniors

Mmm, Mmm Good

What Did They Cook?

Photos

A Long Awaited Post and Merry Christmas!

The Past Months

Herbstmesse

Thanksgiving in Germany

Storch Dorm

Christmas Banquet

Last But Not Least, The Visit

So, Coming Back From Switzerland

‘Tis the Season

Our Lives Since July

In A Cow Traffic Jam

The Introduction

The Cows

And the Year Begins

Tomorrow Is the Day, the First Day of School

The First Time For Many Students

God’s Timing Is Perfect

Some Things To Be Praying About For The School

Some Things You Can Pray About For Us

That They May Know Him Better

Grief

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