Continuing my life journey and how I was led, this section deals with our arrival, home, life and work in Smrzov, a village in post-Communist Czech Republic. It is another part of an upcoming book or website section entitled Divinely Led.
Part 4: Back to Europe
Our Home in Smrzov
Our first day back in the Czech Republic for the then foreseeable future, rather than just a visit, in March 1993 was memorable. The homeowners arranged for their daughter and son-in-law to pick us up from the Prague airport and drive us to Smrzov, a small village in south Bohemia about two hours away. The time was early spring, so new beginnings in more than one way.
We were welcomed at the house by the elderly couple. They had offered during our last visit to arrange ahead of time for a new car to be delivered. It was waiting in the garage – a maroon Skoda station wagon. We also agreed to buy from them basic furniture and they left us some equipment like a lawn mower till we could decide what to do. In addition, they informed us about various things that we would need to take care of and gave us names of people who could help.
We had just made a monumental change from the busy and polluted Los Angeles area and jobs with the church we were at the time a part of, to a small village in country Czech Republic, that had just split from Slovakia and was adjusting to democracy after decades of Communism.
I felt at home quite quickly. The people were friendly, welcoming, helpful and generous. We became accepted and, being in a small village, began to be invited into homes. We were also getting to know people in the neighboring town of Lomnice, where we did our shopping. We had met a few people there during our preliminary visits and they in turn introduced us to others. The word spread and before long we were being asked to teach English at the local school (which we declined) as well as privately. I ended up with six or more home-teaching situations, which I enjoyed.
While I adjusted quickly, Alex struggled. Learning the Czech language became a bigger challenge that he had expected. Luckily, knowing English and German enabled him to communicate with quite a few people and make good friends. He was also missing his old job – even though we had left because our jobs were drying up. He was tempted to go back – which really wasn’t practical. We had to have multiple pep talks rehearsing how we had both felt God’s leading before coming.
Before long, our friends Libby and Joseph offered us a kitten from their cats’ litters. In the end we ended up taking home a male and female kitten and named them Mushi and Mitzi respectively. They brought us a lot of joy as they were growing up and played together on the kitchen floor jumping in and out of boxes. Sometime later, sadly Mushi disappeared and we never found out what happened to him. The opportunity to replace him offered itself not much later, so we continued with two cats. A separate story about our cats, and especially Mitzi, is found later in this section.
Living in the country and a small village was a new experience and brought special opportunities. I was able to take morning walks right behind the village, along a field road to a forest. Sleeping, curled-up deer were waking up and running away in front of me in all directions. In the winter there was frost or even snow on the ground.
Alex and I took many country walks together. There were quite a few options all within walking distance. Not far was a big pond which served for both recreation and fishing. Many city people had summer cottages in that area. In the forest we would pick mushrooms, strawberries, blueberries, and raspberries. Sometimes we came across a hunter’s lookout and climbed it for a view over the area.
A short driving distance brought us to small towns, other ponds which this area abounded in, and even chateaus from times gone by which served as tourist attractions. Our niece, when she visited us some years later, was amazed how many castles and chateaus there were in such a small area.
We had enough of our own fruit from the garden to last us most of the year. The house had a cellar with shelves where we stored our apples. I bottled most of the plums, cherries and currants and they lasted through the winter. The best part was that they were organically grown and unsprayed.
One small problem we encountered, which took us a while to figure out what was going on, was that a few mice got into the cellar and built a nest in some Styrofoam. They started chewing on our apples in the vertical openings of the plastic crates. Once we realized what was happening, we let one of the cats sleep in the cellar, but alas, for some reason, the cat was quite happy to coexist with the mice and the problem persisted till we finally got some mouse traps.
As we got to know our neighbors, we learned that some had hens, bees, cows, or rabbits. We started buying fresh milk, honey and eggs straight from the source and for a good price. Our neighbor Frank would let us pick his summer apples that didn’t last long and he couldn’t use them all.
The village had a small store for the basics and a pub for the beer drinkers, which was well attended during its opening hours. The Czech Republic is a leading producer and consumer of beer, and pubs are popular hubs for socializing. Back in the 1990s, there were no laws to ban smoking in enclosed areas, and many Czechs enjoyed smoking. So pubs and other places of gathering would soon cloud inside with rising smoke to the chagrin of the non-smokers, most of whom probably didn’t like passive smoke, but their rights, health or preferences at that time didn’t count.
There was also a small church in the village, but its doors were permanently closed. Some old-timers nostalgically reminisced back to times when there was more activity and closeness among the people. During the Communist times church attendance was discouraged, but perhaps in the country it wasn’t such an issue. Religious interest peaked a few years after the 1989 Velvet Revolution, but before long the desire for the pursuit of materialism took over. Ironically, the Czech Republic, despite being the birthplace and seat of activity of fifteenth-century theologians and reformers John Hus and John Amos Comenius, is overall secular. Churches, mostly Catholic, exist and are attended, but not by many.
We spent a year on the home front getting settled and adjusted to our new lifestyle. Then, in January the following year, some interesting opportunities spontaneously opened up. That is the subject of the next chapter.
For other information on divine leading, see Spirit Helpers and Guides
Here is a short reflection on being divinely led.