JUNE 2019 UPDATE

A lot has happened since our last newsletter. We enjoyed our furlough catching up with family and friends. We celebrated Addie’s second birthday again at Natalie’s parents’ house in Florida and enjoyed our time on Jordan’s grandmother’s farm in Oklahoma. And Jordan preached the Word in churches in between. It was a joy to see all of you.

Jordan preaching the Word at the Rockledge Church of Christ, Florida

Winter Holidays

Following our return to Slovakia, we decided to travel to Krakow (a three hour drive) to visit the Christmas markets. Despite the freezing temperatures it was a delight to see the city center light up with Christmas lights and bustling with joyful shoppers and travelers, turning the place into quite a winter wonderland. Once again we celebrated Christmas with the Halustok family, and embraced the New Year with Katka S., her son Teddy and husband Marek, baking bread and startling the neighborhood with fireworks. A couple of weeks later we hosted another raucous holiday party like last year’s, complete with a potluck supper and a belated game of White Elephant Gift Exchange (One thing we gathered from this: Slovaks are too nice! Hardly any gift stealing).

Hello and Goodbye

February proved to be an emotional start to the year. Leading into the  final (and difficult) weeks of pregnancy for Natalie, we learned that her mom’s cancer had returned, despite the doctors’ optimistic prognosis. Immediately she was hospitalized and treated for extreme abdominal pain and related symptoms. It was discovered that the cancer had spread to a catastrophic level, and was a type of cancer with a very high mortality rate. Despite everything, she kept telling us not to worry and that she was in God’s hands. After two rounds of chemotherapy, it was too much for Noy, making her quite weak. It was then she told her husband, Natalie’s Dad Jerry, to forgo it because she didn’t want to suffer anymore. This of course, was a very difficult thing for him to accept, despite him wanting to drop everything and find the best treatment he could to see her well. As much as we wanted to, was not possible for us to travel to the States to see her at this time, because Natalie was much too far along. And even if she already delivered, we would have to apply for the baby’s passport to allow for travel - which takes a few weeks to accomplish. 
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The time came, and after a quick birth, we welcomed Annabelle Roxana to the Arnold team, brown haired and brown eyed - the opposite of her big sister
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One week later, Noy went to be with the Lord.
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One deep regret is that Noy didn’t get to see her granddaughers (and meet Annie for the first time) again, and that we weren’t there for her, and for Jerry. But the Lord in his great mercy allowed us to speak with Noy one last time before she received her robe and crown.

It's Official

When Annie was four weeks old, we took a 6 hour train ride from Kosice to Bratislava, the location of the American embassy in Slovakia, to apply for her passport. One night in a hotel and a day later, the process was complete (thanks to American efficiency! In addition to the official one, even issued an emergency passport for her so we could fly out to see Natalie’s Dad as soon as we were able). We have concluded that a train ride with a newborn is loads better than a car ride.
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Shortly afterwards, the church in Kosice hosted a small party to welcome Annabelle into the world and into the assembly. It was a heartwarming and lovely reminder of how loved and supported we are, especially after losing Noy.

Return to the States

While it was wonderful to see most of you again, it was a strange feeling to be back in the States, shortly after returning from furlough a few months earlier. We stayed with Jerry to comfort and support him as well as introduce Annabelle to Natalie's side of the family.  Jordan taught him how to cook basic meals; he never had a need to cook since Noy always kept the house in top order. Thanks to the efforts of some special people, a memorial was celebrated in Mom’s honor in the church in Florida, her and Jerry’s home for forty plus years. We celebrated her life as friends and family reminisced special and funny moments about her; tears mingled with laughter. We also introduced Annie to Jerry and the church, as well as to Jordan’s parents and family as we later traveled to Texas and Oklahoma. ​

Prayer Requests

After a four week trip, and a two day delay in Istanbul following a flight redirection and missing our connecting flight, we once again returned to Slovakia, bringing along with us colds as well as jet lag. There are few things that are unique in parenthood, but we believe trip delay, jet lag and colds with a toddler and an infant is not something desired by anyone ever. 

Our hearts will remain heavy, but also very full, sharing in the fond memory of a woman who traveled from Thailand to end up an American citizen; who wanted to meet baby Jesus (after reading about him in a children’s Christmas book) only to discover he had grown up; who was more comfortable alone in her backyard than any high class affair; who ministered to others the best way she knew how (typically in the form of Thai cooking- “He could have called ten thousand angels, and she could have fed them”); who deeply loved and raised two children the best she could and delighted so much in her grandbabies, who did the best she could with what she had. 
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While he has great support from the church in Florida as well as from Natalie’s brother and sister-in-law, please continue to remember Jerry as he begins a new chapter he didn’t realize he would have to start alone.

Noy and her daughter-in-law Janet

We would also ask you to continue to remember our Slovak family in your prayers - for the Halustoks, for D., Katka S. and her family, Katka O., and her two young sons, for our dear friend Gabi, and for our Bible study group. 
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God bless you and keep you. 

​Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints.  - Psalm 116:15