Flat Stanley Visits Friends

Flat Stanley is a story written by Jeff Brown about a boy who had a bulletin board fall on him while he slept and he became 1/2 inch thick.  He has many adventures like getting mailed to California or flying like a kite.  Some elementary school teachers use this as a springboard for a project for English/Social Studies.  Each student creates a "Flat Stanley" and sends him to a person he knows.  Jayden sent his Flat Stanley to us and we enjoyed having him with us and taking him on adventures.  He arrived on April 8.  In his instructions, Jayden told us that Stanley was afraid of thunderstorms and would need a night light.  Just after he arrived, we had the first thunder and lightening storm with rain that we have had for months!  I was awakened by the storm and put Stanley by our nightlight on our bathroom counter while I enjoyed the storm!

The next day I took Flat Stan with me to the temple.  The grounds crew were planting the flower boxes with forced narcissus and pansies.

We were invited to visit Pavlina Ubyiko and Yulia Simanovskaya on a Monday afternoon, April 11.  Pavlina Ubyiko is a secretary in the temple office who speaks English and is also a temple worker.  Yulia Simanovska is another temple worker.  Both of them have children but are divorced.  They are very nice. We met and first went to a museum about the Chernobyl nuclear power plant accident. That is a place in northern Ukraine where Russia built several nuclear power plants.  On April 26, 1986 (25 years ago) one of the  plants exploded and burned, sending radioactive particles that were carried by the wind all over.  It is considered the  worst nuclear accident in history so far.  Many cities and towns nearby were evacuated and the people had to live somewhere else.  They never got to go back to their homes or apartments.  In the museum there were lots of pictures of children who had to leave their toys and clothes and go somewhere else.  

The first picture shows Pavlina and Yulia with Flat Stan at the steps going up to the exhibits with signs of cities that were ruined hanging above.  The apples pictured on the steps were reminders that no one could pick the fruit and eat it that year because it was contaminated.  

The next photo shows Flat Stan in a bush in front of a monument for those who lost their lives.  There were some older students waiting to go into the museum and one of them told me she knew a Flat Stanley from Chicago!  Though this might be boring, because of the problems with the nuclear reactor in Japan after the tsunami there, we all are more concerned about the dangers of radiation leaks from nuclear power plants.

Then we went to Pavlina's aparrtment.  This is the school among the apartment buildings where she lives.  Sis Ubiko's apartment in one of the buildings behind the school, an old building and very typical of apartments in Kyiv. 

Flat Stan is having fun with the big sign on a building and Grandpa! 

Here is a picture of Sis U welcoming us to her apartment.  They fixed a wonderful meal.  

Here is Flat Stan by some french bread that Grandma had spread with cheese spreads.  Sis U is frying some potato and cabbage dumplings.  Sis. S is standing by the salad she made.  

Then you can see on the table the yummy split pea soup and salad we ate along with the special cake they bought for our dessert.  

Flat Stan enjoyed meeting the cat, Fluffy, who is old and deaf. 

Grandpa bought the sisters some daffodils as we were leaving to go home.  We were very grateful for their hospitality.