Trip 39 / Entry 5 / Milan

September 20, 2014

While on my way to Bucharest

I am waiting at Malpensa Airport, Milan for a Swiss Air flight that will take me to Zurich and then on to Bucharest, Romania where I will be picked up by former student, friend and YWAMer and toted off to Costanta where I will preach, teach and do evangelism for a week. Next Saturday I will fly back to Milan and then stay in Parma for a week where I will preach and teach. It’s a busy three weeks with my next trip that takes me to Norway for nine days. I’ll try to keep everyone updated as I go.

Just a little more than annoyed!

I really hate it when people mosey about acting stupid with the intention of cutting into line, don’t you?

I decided to go to McDonald’s for a “Sausage McMuffin” before flying all day. I wanted something “cheap” (it is not cheap in Italy and in an airport) and hearty. There was only one girl at the counter and one one in the kitchen area so it felt under staffed and was taking time to get orders processed. With two fellows in front of me, I took my place. Soon I was joined by a short blonde lady who took her place behind me.

In a moment a Muslim fellow came into the area with his three wives covered from head to toe. They took a booth while he stumbled non-nonchalantly to the counter. He went right to the front acting confused and stupid as though Iraq or Iran have no such thing as a cue. Seeing him, the attendant was not fooled and motioned him to the line behind all of us which was, by now, one less in front of me. Get this! As he comes to the line he steps right in front of the blond lady standing behind me. Culturally, I immediately understood what had just taken place. He felt his place was in front of a woman. Now, for him, this is just the way it is in the world of Islam.

I don’t like injustice and have always been for the little guy. I turned and said to the lady, “Come stand in front or with me.” She was grateful but shocked and said it was alright and didn’t matter. Her name turned out to be Rosie, on holiday from Toronto, Canada. When I told her that I was from Ottawa she wanted to know what I was doing here. This gave me a good opportunity to explain ACCI and the ministry that I did. She asked if it was Christian and then took my card. In this short time Rosie got a lesson in comparative religion as I explained the nature of authentic Christianity.

Before she left to board her flight, Rosie left her table and husband to once again thank me for defending her rights. Little things matter. Little things open BIG doors.

Trip 39 / Entry 4

September 17-20, Charlotte, Milan and Zurich

Three Nightmare Vignettes 

Charlotte 

SOMETHING ALL OF YOU SHOULD KNOW…

She said, “I’m sorry you cannot fly on this passport until it is updated?” Puzzled, I replied, “What, what?” I didn’t think I heard her right. “But it is a valid passport. It’s good until January 20th.” “Yes,” she returned, “But it must be valid for three months after you return.”

“Who in the universe would know that rule,” I asked. Jeanette was sympathetic and said, “God, bless America.” Then I wanted to know if I could change my ticket to a valid return date (October 20) to which she said, “You bought this through Expedia, you’ll have to make the change through them and it will cost you an arm and a leg.” This, of course, would mean going back home and missing my flight. Suddenly I thought, “I have a valid Canadian passport, could I use it?” She said, “I don’t know why not.” You can’t fly out on your US passport but you can return on it.”

LET’S HOPE JANETTE IS RIGHT.
Maybe you should all pray about this or I may be celebrating Natale in Italy this year.

________________________

Milan

SHALL I TELL YOU WHAT’S WORSE THAN BEING ROBBED?

Last night on the way home from pizza, two people came up suspiciously. I shooed them away but this morning when I got out of bed and put on my pants, I felt my wallet pocket was slightly lighter. This freaked me out! I didn’t have much in the wallet – 300 Euro since I had just gone to a cash machine – but I did have all of my ATM cards and credit cards!!! Well, after looking all over the room, I was sure the wallet had been lifted, In a cold sweat I called and cancelled everything which took an hour (I love Skype when it works). After doing all of this and then making other arrangements for money, I took a shower and after doing so, I put on another pair of look-alike jeans. Guess what? You know, don’t you? There was the wallet with everything in it so my record holds firm, 39 visits to Europe without a loss. Nevertheless, trying to back up the cancellations so that i can have access to money is an utter nightmare and once you have done it, it is a done deal! Anyhow, I will figure it all out and as they say, (I don’t know who “they” is) “Better to be safe than sorry.” 

______________________________

Zurich

Now a new development of interest. I come to Swiss Passport Control and the lady here thumbs my pages and says, “Where will you go from here?” I proudly listed off the countries. She went on, “There is no place to stamp. I cannot allow you to enter.” I pulled out the Canadian passport that was clean as a whistle. “Oh!” She said, “That will do.” CLICK. Away I went.

Trip 39 / Entry 3 / Milan

September 19, 2014

Pray for Cristiano

I will draw a portrait from this and take it to him on October 24th

“Jesus looked upon him and loved him.” Have you ever had this experience? You meet someone and something in you connects. I advise that no one dismiss an impulse of this nature. Sometimes it could be a little kid bouncing a ball on the street.

For about five years I have been stopping at Cin Cin Bar along Buenos Aires in Milano. I will sometimes have a coffee and draw the people sitting there. This has won the approval of the servers and Cristiano, the Maitre D who showed up about two years ago. I tell Cristiano that he is a “hooker’ since it is his job to pull people walking by into a chair and get them seated under an umbrella.

Cristiano and I have become good friends. An Italian born in San Paulo, Brazil, he speaks five languages, has lived in Brazil, Japan, Australia, the U.S. and now Italy. He always admired my drawing and we now talk a lot about “religion and philosophy.” Like so many others, he has a collection of New Age ideas regarding good energy and argues that we are gods but we just don’t know it. I told him him that a god that didn’t know he was a god wasn’t much of a god. It is a lot of “hear-say” Deepok Chopra, Donald Walsh gobbledygook but I haven’t told him yet and he doesn’t know it.

As we discussed his views, he finally said, “What do you think?” In less than three minutes I told him I wasn’t God and I was mostly sure that I was pretty much an idiot. Since he admires me, he found that amusing and laughed. In a nutshell I gave him the gospel from the creation through the fall, sin and separation and the need for Jesus which left him speechless. He only could say, “We agree on many things.” We shall see if this turns out to be true.

Cristiano is amazingly compassionate and I can learn a lot from watching him. As people go by, I’m sure a hundred a day stop and hug him. Yes, some of these are attractive women to be sure but some are elderly,  in wheelchairs, one fellow pushing his dog in a child’s pram, another was a Indian flower peddler and it goes on and on. All of his serve staff, a Croatian fellow that speaks impeccable English to a Ukrainian lady (she looks 25 but turned out to be thirty-nine) that moves like a butterfly from one table to another. They all seem to adore him. He is a good man.

Trip 39 / Entry 2 / Milan

Thursday, September 18, 2014

 

Shaking off jet-lag

Before going on to Romania on Saturday morning I took two nights at the small Charly Hotel where I sleep turn my clock around and catch my wits. As I came out of the Milan Centrale terminal, there they were again. I see this everywhere in Europe. Gathered to get their city and lodging assignments were about thirty Latter Day Saints “missionaries.” I do not let moments like this escape me and take the opportunity to engage them. My favorite verse to get their attention is this one, “You will cross land and sea to make one proselyte and when you do, you make him two-fold more the child of hell than he was already.” I also like (when appropriate), “If thy light be darkness, how great is that darkness?”

“They preach fiction as though it is truth while we preach truth as though it is fiction!”

Harry Hedrick

 

Trip 39 / Entry 1 / Milan

SOMETHING ALL OF YOU SHOULD KNOW…

She said, “I’m sorry you cannot fly on this passport until it is updated?” Puzzled, I replied, “What, what?” I didn’t think I heard her right. “But it is a valid passport. It’s good until January 20th.” “Yes,” she returned, “But it must be valid for three months after you return.”

“Who in the universe would know that rule,” I asked. Jeanette was sympathetic and said, “God, bless America.” Then I wanted to know if I could change my ticket to a valid return date (October 20) to which she said, “You bought this through Expedia, you’ll have to make the change through them and it will cost you an arm and a leg.” This, of course, would mean going back home and missing my flight. Suddenly I thought, “I have a valid Canadian passport, could I use it?” She said, “I don’t know why not.” You can’t fly out on your US passport but you can return on it.”

LET’S HOPE JANETTE IS RIGHT.

Maybe you should all pray about this or I may be celebrating Natale in Italy this year.