Arpasu de Jos

Very emotional day. Brad and I both feel really connected to this part of Romania. We walked the city early in the morning, just reminiscing.The mist in the distance, the towers, the sound of birds….. There is a rhythm here and we’re part of it. The old women and men, the children laughing and pushing, the street sweeper, all the morning sounds and sites.We met up with the cousins and headed to the village in the foothills of the Transylvanian Alps. Anca, Andrieu and Alexandra came with us and arranged for dear Father Dobrien to meet us.

We walked through the graves and got acquainted with our great uncles and aunts. We toured the church of our great great grandfather, and we got Danny and Maria blessed, once again, in the Romanian church.Anca had us to the house that her grandfather built on the site of our great grandfather’s home. We marveled at the family treasures, the history within the walls, but mostly we were in awe of the fact that we were standing on the ground that our grandfather played on. We walked through the barn we’re he did his chores, we sat at the table he ate on, and we were amazed at the pictures of our family that had been sent across an ocean to let the old family know that all was well in America. And there we were — cousins who share a past and now a future.

The churches are amazing, the old homestead is a time capsule, and the love between us transcends all understanding. A bond that began over 100 years ago between brothers, has now been reconnected. Stories and pieces of the puzzle all put together again.

God is good.