MANA - Spiritual Life Center

Observations from an outsider…..

When you live in a country that pays it’s workers so poorly it is amazing to see the turnout of a church group for a clean up day. Yet another thing in the States that I can see where we take it for granted that when the church has a project there are almost always a donzen and a half volunteers to see that the job gets done. Volunteerizm is simply part of our culture and is something we smile upon and reward. Not so here.

It has been my obseration that the afluence of the country’s appearance and available “things” has indeed gone up, but that the pay has not. It has been said more than once by a Lithuanian friend that,”It is nice that we now have all these new and very nice things available to us but the question I have is,’ who is buying them?’”

To just get by in this country, it seems necessary for a couple to both maintain full time jobs. This brings in the bare living expenses. If you are enginuitive you can create your own business and this is where many have thrived. If you are the average person however you may live with your parents, who will raise the kids, if you have them, while you work and since you are sharing a house you may have some extra money to enjoy life a bit. The children go into full time state run childcare called “Kindergarden” by age 2 where they remain daily as late as 5 or 6 pm until they begin their formal eduction in 1st grade at age 7. After working each day at a job that requires a lot and compensates very little, you go home for a few hours with the kids or the “second shift”. Once you’ve given your kids your time, get the kids fed and put to bed you may fall into bed yourself to start the whole process all over again the next day. The weekend may be the only time you have to relax and that becomes only one day if you have chosen to attend church each week. Which many Lithuanians don’t see as necessary.

So when we announce that we are having clean up days at the community center and ANYONE shows up. I am always amazed that they were willing to sacrifice their precious time for the betterment of those they do not even know yet.