A Mary Poppins Day

Today was our Sunday to take the bus.  Even SK and Elder Hansen enjoy taking the bus because they can actually enjoy the sights going by.  When both are in the car, one drives and the other navigates...neither of which leave much time or attention for sight-seeing.  We carried an umbrella all day, if that tells you anything.  Not serious enough rain to warrant the Mary Poppins umbrella, but steady rain nevertheless.

It was fun to talk with the other missionaries today...we will all be taking the much-feared language test within the next two weeks.  You might be able to guess who is the LEAST concerned....the young elders....specifically Elder Jewkes.  He is out and about using Danish all day every day....hearing and speaking.  He is so cute!

SK is almost as casual about it as is Sister Hamblin, both of whom served here 50 years ago.  Sister Swena (Sister Hamblin's companion) came at the same time and has been really good about studying it as well as speaking it whenever she gets the opportunity.  Another couple - the Middlemases - are coming in this week from up north to take the test.  They will stay here with us.  They will take it on Thursday morning.  Elder Middlemas was also here nearly 50 years ago and was doing great with it when we were all in the MTC together, and his wife was already speaking and understanding a great deal.

So you know who is at the bottom of the class.  Yes, it will be quite humiliating if I flunk the test.  But they are all very kind and would be very compassionate if that were the case.  Everyone assures me that it is relatively easy....it is that word "relatively" that worries me.

We are looking forward to their visit and hope to have some time to visit about how the CUV program is going in Jylland.  There are several of us senior couples in Denmark and we exchange a weekly newsletter of progress, so we kind of keep up with each other, but there is nothing like a face to face visit.  We have a special tie to Elder and Sister Middlemas because we spent time with them in the MTC and made the trip here together.

We talked with each of our Arizona grandchildren tonight and heard about all the many things they are involved in.  It is such a treat to see and hear them.

I need to make a correction from last night's post:

Catherine Trine Tennesen was single when she joined the Church in Denmark and came from a family who loved her.  But her mother was distressed about her joining the Church, believing that she was going to the devil.  It was she who spit in her daughter's face when she bid her farewell, and they never again saw each other in this life.  She married Peter Madsen after arriving in Utah.

SK's great grandmother Ellen (1st wife of Peter Madsen) also had a difficult time saying goodbye to her mother who would not go to the wharf to see her daughter off.  But she relented. and rushed down to see them, but the ship had already sailed.

We went to the center this evening for a CES broadcast with Tad Callister as the speaker.  It was an excellent talk.  It was about blueprints.  He showed a blueprint of his home from many years ago and briefly told about getting it built according to plans.  He then told about the blueprint of the Church, which can be read in the New Testament.  When looking at the Church today, it is patterned after the blueprint of the church in the Bible.

It was excellent, and I think all of the young people who were there this evening felt much rewarded for attending.  I certainly did.  It has not been written up yet to print, but if you have a half hour or so and would like to listen to a really really great talk, go to this site:

https://www.lds.org/broadcasts/ces-devotionals?lang=eng

There were few of us there tonight, but we sat in comfortable couches in a circle and watched the broadcast....the sound of rain hitting the windows in the background.  It was a near perfect evening.

If only I had brought some chocolate!