170. “. . . I was struck by the progression I had observed on this trip. In Russia, I had found a warty and weary people who were still hiding there stories, not only from the world but from each other. In the Ukraine, I discovered believers celebrating a spring-like freedom. They were starting to tell their stories openly, and they were doing that with joy. Now, in Eastern Europe where finding that walls no longer cast shadows. The curtain had opened so wide that citizens were free to cross their country’s borders. Here believers, like Stoyon, seem to bask in the sunshine. . . .” ~ Nik Ripken