A quick update from Москва

So much has happened since arriving back in Moscow on Sunday afternoon! Since I tend to think in bullet points, I'll fill everybody in that way:

• Educational license - Our day of prayer and fasting on Tuesday was very effective, as we received part of our answer immediately after we finished praying (in the form of a cell phone call)! We found out that the woman who must take our papers to the educational committee was able to get us on the committee's schedule for August 28, which is the first day they'll be back in session! Please continue to pray for favor in that process. If we are granted the license during that week, many problems will hopefully be averted. Our 30-day period, during which we are to "address" the problem of our licensing, will expire around the first of September.
• Apartment - Upon arriving at my apartment on Sunday, I found out that it was in a state of complete disarray, as a big renovation of the main room (we have a one-room flat) was underway. I won't be able to move in until at least the 19th. But I'm not worrying. I'm staying in the vacant apartment of a friend before another missionary couple from the school arrives on Monday, and then I'll stay with another friend for the next couple nights. What would I do here without the Hinkson family?
• Apartment needed for friend - Another one of my friends, Laura, the 4th grade teacher, arrived on Wednesday to discover that her landlords were refusing to rent to her and her roommate. So she's currently out of a place to stay, and it's quite stressful, with school starting in just five days (August 20). Please pray for her to find a good flat that is affordable (it's nearly impossible to find an apartment that costs less than $1500 per month...the best she's seen so far was $1666 for a place with no furniture) and near the school. I told Laura within the hour that many people I know would be praying.
• School staffing - The roles of science teacher and teachers' aides have been filled! Praise God!
• Student's sick mother - I haven't heard any news about this family situation yet. Keep praying.
• Ira - My precious little gray cat is slowly mending. I was able to see her for the first time a few nights ago. She's been so traumatized by all the needles and vaccinations and surgical procedures, that she's really guarded whenever anyone reaches for her, even me. She did recognize me...barely. Just yesterday she went in to have X-rays on both legs, and the doctors decided that the bones in her left leg were healed enough to remove the pin. They had to knock her out for that, but it was a success. She slept most of today. Another follow-up procedure will take place next Friday. Then a few weeks after that, we'll take her in to remove the pin in the right leg, God-willing. Once we get moved back into our apartment and all she has to do is heal, I'm sure she'll begin to warm up to me again. But in the meantime, while I'm still "homeless" in a sense, she's staying with the missionary couple who watched her this summer, in order to help her heal in a familiar environment. Praise God for her progress!
• School! I'm so excited to start my third year of teaching! I've heard a lot of good things about the 16 students I'll have this year, and I feel so much more prepared this year than in years previous. The classroom is almost finished; I'll be here working on it all day tomorrow in order to have it ready for Business Day on Monday (meeting students and parents, etc.). School starts on Wednesday, and I plan to have everything in place by then. There's something so invigorating about a fresh start!

More to come from Moscow in the coming days :)