Monday, December 23, 2013.....a year ago today we were working on submitting our papers to serve a mission. It seemed like the process was long. It seemed like a long time waiting to see what our call would be. It seemed like a long time waiting to get our visas. And now after all the long times, we are here about to celebrate Christmas in Denmark.
I am a stranger to time I guess....It baffles me. It rushes past like the water in a river...never to return. And all we have right now is right now. It is a lesson I am continually learning. I want to make the here and now count for something good.
SK and I have spent time today planning and discussing what direction we should take with our mission. There is some latitude for us. For instance, we often begin our days at the center around 2 in the afternoon and end them around midnight or later. We have not been given callings in the branch...and I believe that is so that we can visit the other wards and branches and get to know all of the YSAs. But that is still up for discussion.
And with a new center, and possibly longer days at the center (10:00 to 10:00), we may have to reconsider the way we do everything.
Our Stake President is actually the man we answer to, and we need to visit with him. We saw him at the concert last night and he mentioned that he wants to visit with us after the new year...which is good. Our Mission President said that we were assigned to our little branch to be of assistance there, so we have been hesitant to not attend. For the time being, we will work on getting to know all of the YSAs in our branch. There are 18 or so, and perhaps 5 might be considered active. So there is much we can do here.
We are so very grateful for this beautiful opportunity.
Tomorrow is the big celebration! Most everyone here celebrates big on the afternoon and evening of the 24th. We will start out our day by traveling and hour and a half to deliver mail and packages from home to some missionaries in an outlying area of the zone. While we are there, we will inspect their apartment. Doesn't that sound fun? It will be the first time since we got here that we have traveled so far outside of our little area.
Monday, December 23, 2013
Sunday, December 22, 2013
Just Doing My Job
If I hadn't felt the Christmas spirit before today, (and I have) it would have come in a torrent. We left early for Church so the choir could practice. We got there at 8:30 and Church starts at 10. I took plenty of things with me to read and write, but as it turned out I never opened a book or clicked my pen.
We have a new member of the ward who was baptized last month. He is from China and has a beautiful testimony of the Savior and His atoning sacrifice. He is a dear man. When he was baptized, his sister and his niece were at the Church. They are not members of the Church and I believe they are mostly unfamiliar with it. They live up north in Denmark, a fair ways from here and had taken the train to get here. I was able to visit with his sister in my broken Danish and she spoke a little English and we got along fine. I also spent some time with her daughter Lily, who speaks flawless English, so we really got along well! She is fifteen and told me she plays the piano.
Several minutes later,she sat down at the piano and began playing a very complicated classical piece. We were all astonished. Not one to let a golden opportunity get by, Sister Hansen (who is very musical and plays the piano beautifully) asked Lily if she would consider playing for our choir's Christmas concert. Lily said yes!
Before they left that day, I hugged them both and said goodbye. They both seemed a little surprised, and I came home worried about their reaction. The Danes I know here are all huggers, and so I assumed that anyone who has been here any length of time would have gotten used to hugging. I prayed that they would not be offended. And I worried on and off.
Lily was unable to get to any of the practices since then until today. I am unsure what time they would have had to leave their home to get to the Church, but they were there when I arrived. I was so happy to see them and visited with them a little bit and then went in to the chapel to listen to the practice. Lily and her mother came and sat by me...and once again I carried on a very delightful conversation with the mother....nobody else probably would have understood us....but we understood each other!
The practice began and Lily was outstanding as our pianist. We normally have around 40 people in the congregation, but today 15 were in the choir, and we had nearly 45 in the congregation! One of the ladies who came was a lady I had visited with in the town square that very cold day last week. She seemed to enjoy it. Sacrament meeting was so beautiful as our little choir sang from their hearts. The Christmas story was read and three of our five Primary children gave talks about what Christmas is. My heart swelled with love for the dear people in our branch.
Before the sacrament was blessed and passed, I explained to Lily's mom what it symbolizes and told her that she could partake if she was comfortable...or not. Whatever she felt would be fine. When the sacrament came around, I took a piece of bread and passed it to her, but her brother (the one just baptized) reached across her to take the tray at just the moment that she looked like she would take a piece. So when he passed it back, I held it for her and she took a bit of bread and then later water.
When the meeting was over I thanked Lily and thanked her mother for bringing her. Her mother (I couldn't pronounce her name, much less spell it) and I visited some more and as we were about to part put her hand over her heart and said "I am so happy." I did the same. Then she hugged me. That made ME so happy!
After all the meetings were over, we went to our handsome fairytale couple's house to celebrate....I am unsure what....but it was a great celebration. There must have been about 30 people there and as usual, they served a feast! I am utterly baffled how they do all they do and still manage to decorate beautifully and serve food made from scratch. They don't go down to Costco and pick up several readymade dinners...they make everything themselves. It was awesome.
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We came home and relaxed, and read. I am trying to finish the Book of Mormon by the year's end. The missionaries challenged Elijah from Ivory Coast (he has been a member about 5 months to read it by December 31....and I asked if could do it too. I only have 25 pages left and should be able to finish it easily. I like to read it like that....it stays with me better, and its messages are so powerful.
Lea, one of our YSAs....and according to her our favorite because we have a daughter by the same name (and truly she is one of our favorites) invited us to her ward choir concert this evening. It was at the stake center, which is about a half hour by car....much longer by bus or train. We got there a few minutes early and saw that several of our YSAs were singing in the choir including Elijah. I reported on my reading.
From the moment that choir concert started I was enthralled with the music. The leader is a music teacher somewhere and she rivals Miss Schultz. Every eye was on her, every voice controlled and every note seemed perfect. They tackled some very complicated pieces that were both delightful and inspiring. One great piece started with Pachelbell's Canon as accompaniement and launched into a very familiar Christmas carol. All in the same song were several classical pieces that were wonderful.
In between choir songs was a 12-woman group who sang...and they were amazing. The choir director was one of the 12. There was a pianist who has played for Prince William (I think that is a Danish prince) and I can see why. There were two teen pianists who played solos and a vocal soloist. The choir had about 50 in it. This is a WARD choir. I can't believe one ward has all that talent. They don't have a Melissa Taylor or a Melissa Solomon, but they are awesome.
I have done my job admirably today. I decided long ago, that people like these choirs and my sweet sister Judy who have musical ability to spare have one very important need -- to share. And for that, they need an audience. That's me!
We have a new member of the ward who was baptized last month. He is from China and has a beautiful testimony of the Savior and His atoning sacrifice. He is a dear man. When he was baptized, his sister and his niece were at the Church. They are not members of the Church and I believe they are mostly unfamiliar with it. They live up north in Denmark, a fair ways from here and had taken the train to get here. I was able to visit with his sister in my broken Danish and she spoke a little English and we got along fine. I also spent some time with her daughter Lily, who speaks flawless English, so we really got along well! She is fifteen and told me she plays the piano.
Several minutes later,she sat down at the piano and began playing a very complicated classical piece. We were all astonished. Not one to let a golden opportunity get by, Sister Hansen (who is very musical and plays the piano beautifully) asked Lily if she would consider playing for our choir's Christmas concert. Lily said yes!
Before they left that day, I hugged them both and said goodbye. They both seemed a little surprised, and I came home worried about their reaction. The Danes I know here are all huggers, and so I assumed that anyone who has been here any length of time would have gotten used to hugging. I prayed that they would not be offended. And I worried on and off.
Lily was unable to get to any of the practices since then until today. I am unsure what time they would have had to leave their home to get to the Church, but they were there when I arrived. I was so happy to see them and visited with them a little bit and then went in to the chapel to listen to the practice. Lily and her mother came and sat by me...and once again I carried on a very delightful conversation with the mother....nobody else probably would have understood us....but we understood each other!
The practice began and Lily was outstanding as our pianist. We normally have around 40 people in the congregation, but today 15 were in the choir, and we had nearly 45 in the congregation! One of the ladies who came was a lady I had visited with in the town square that very cold day last week. She seemed to enjoy it. Sacrament meeting was so beautiful as our little choir sang from their hearts. The Christmas story was read and three of our five Primary children gave talks about what Christmas is. My heart swelled with love for the dear people in our branch.
Before the sacrament was blessed and passed, I explained to Lily's mom what it symbolizes and told her that she could partake if she was comfortable...or not. Whatever she felt would be fine. When the sacrament came around, I took a piece of bread and passed it to her, but her brother (the one just baptized) reached across her to take the tray at just the moment that she looked like she would take a piece. So when he passed it back, I held it for her and she took a bit of bread and then later water.
When the meeting was over I thanked Lily and thanked her mother for bringing her. Her mother (I couldn't pronounce her name, much less spell it) and I visited some more and as we were about to part put her hand over her heart and said "I am so happy." I did the same. Then she hugged me. That made ME so happy!
After all the meetings were over, we went to our handsome fairytale couple's house to celebrate....I am unsure what....but it was a great celebration. There must have been about 30 people there and as usual, they served a feast! I am utterly baffled how they do all they do and still manage to decorate beautifully and serve food made from scratch. They don't go down to Costco and pick up several readymade dinners...they make everything themselves. It was awesome.
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We came home and relaxed, and read. I am trying to finish the Book of Mormon by the year's end. The missionaries challenged Elijah from Ivory Coast (he has been a member about 5 months to read it by December 31....and I asked if could do it too. I only have 25 pages left and should be able to finish it easily. I like to read it like that....it stays with me better, and its messages are so powerful.
Lea, one of our YSAs....and according to her our favorite because we have a daughter by the same name (and truly she is one of our favorites) invited us to her ward choir concert this evening. It was at the stake center, which is about a half hour by car....much longer by bus or train. We got there a few minutes early and saw that several of our YSAs were singing in the choir including Elijah. I reported on my reading.
From the moment that choir concert started I was enthralled with the music. The leader is a music teacher somewhere and she rivals Miss Schultz. Every eye was on her, every voice controlled and every note seemed perfect. They tackled some very complicated pieces that were both delightful and inspiring. One great piece started with Pachelbell's Canon as accompaniement and launched into a very familiar Christmas carol. All in the same song were several classical pieces that were wonderful.
In between choir songs was a 12-woman group who sang...and they were amazing. The choir director was one of the 12. There was a pianist who has played for Prince William (I think that is a Danish prince) and I can see why. There were two teen pianists who played solos and a vocal soloist. The choir had about 50 in it. This is a WARD choir. I can't believe one ward has all that talent. They don't have a Melissa Taylor or a Melissa Solomon, but they are awesome.
I have done my job admirably today. I decided long ago, that people like these choirs and my sweet sister Judy who have musical ability to spare have one very important need -- to share. And for that, they need an audience. That's me!
Saturday, December 21, 2013
Turning Darkness into Day
This is the shortest day of the year...Winter Solstice. Technically there was to be 7 hours and 1 minute of daylight, but that doesn't take into account the looooong dawn, the very gray skies and the loooong twilight. It rained on and off throughout the day, and there is a breeze...well more like a gale and the temperatures are staying in the 40s. I love it....even the rain. I have my Mary Poppins umbrella and I am good to go.
And go we did. We went to the place where there is light....beautiful light. We went to the temple. When you step in the front door you immediately feel a glow of warmth and peace. There is a little room off to the side to hang coats and leave your shoes. I am growing more familiar with this....we have a coat rack right by the front door and make good use of it daily.
Coats? I had one in Arizona that has been moldering in the back of the closet for 20 years. I wear my coat every day here and give thanks for it each time I put it on.
It is a small temple, but feels spacious. Colors are muted grays and gentle pale blues. The artwork is beautiful. I think Wayne Brickey was the artist who did all the murals. One mural is a beautiful scene of a Danish forest with reindeer and even a swan (any portrayal of Denmark must have a swan...not only because there are a lot of them around here, but I am sure because of H.C. Andersen's fairytale "The Ugly Duckling."
After we went through a session, another worker took us down to the baptistry and explained the murals there. It made me cry it was so moving. The artist does a self-portrait in the crowd observing the baptism of Jesus. He paints himself as blind....and the cloth that covers his eyes is being pulled away by Carl Bloch and C.C. Christiansen.....in deference to their ability to portray the Savior.
Many in the crowd are people in Carl Bloch paintings. Do you remember the one by Carl Bloch where the Lord is teaching the people on the hillside? There is a little girl there looking at a butterfly. It is in the mural at the temple. Christina...a sculpture of a pioneer girl which has been mentioned in general conference is in the painting as well.
I didn't want to keep the worker, so I drank it up and we left. But I long to go back and sit in front of it. I guess we are just going to have to go to the castle where most of Carl Bloch's works are, and the rest of you better go to BYU Museum of Art and see the magnificent Danish works there.
For the next two weeks the center will be closed. So this evening we are scheduling appointments with missionary companionships to inspect their apartments before the end of the year. We are going to do half of them next week and the other half the following week. I'm thinking of taking a pair of white gloves....what do you think? No....I'm looking forward to visiting all of them. They are so cute!
I am trying to think of something I can take to them as just a little fun gift....sponges, scrub brushes or something like that attached to a piece of chocolate. What do you think?
Since coming home (it has been dark now for hours...it is 8 p.m.) we have been listening to Christmas music. We have our little Christmas tree lit up and candles burning. Ah...the warmth and light of Christmas. Isn't it beautiful?
By the way.... a bit of trivia....which haircut do you think cost more?
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My hair was shampooed, cut, blown-dry and styled. 199 Krone. SK's hair was cut. 200 Krone.
In case you are wondering, that is roughly $40
And go we did. We went to the place where there is light....beautiful light. We went to the temple. When you step in the front door you immediately feel a glow of warmth and peace. There is a little room off to the side to hang coats and leave your shoes. I am growing more familiar with this....we have a coat rack right by the front door and make good use of it daily.
Coats? I had one in Arizona that has been moldering in the back of the closet for 20 years. I wear my coat every day here and give thanks for it each time I put it on.
It is a small temple, but feels spacious. Colors are muted grays and gentle pale blues. The artwork is beautiful. I think Wayne Brickey was the artist who did all the murals. One mural is a beautiful scene of a Danish forest with reindeer and even a swan (any portrayal of Denmark must have a swan...not only because there are a lot of them around here, but I am sure because of H.C. Andersen's fairytale "The Ugly Duckling."
After we went through a session, another worker took us down to the baptistry and explained the murals there. It made me cry it was so moving. The artist does a self-portrait in the crowd observing the baptism of Jesus. He paints himself as blind....and the cloth that covers his eyes is being pulled away by Carl Bloch and C.C. Christiansen.....in deference to their ability to portray the Savior.
Many in the crowd are people in Carl Bloch paintings. Do you remember the one by Carl Bloch where the Lord is teaching the people on the hillside? There is a little girl there looking at a butterfly. It is in the mural at the temple. Christina...a sculpture of a pioneer girl which has been mentioned in general conference is in the painting as well.
I didn't want to keep the worker, so I drank it up and we left. But I long to go back and sit in front of it. I guess we are just going to have to go to the castle where most of Carl Bloch's works are, and the rest of you better go to BYU Museum of Art and see the magnificent Danish works there.
For the next two weeks the center will be closed. So this evening we are scheduling appointments with missionary companionships to inspect their apartments before the end of the year. We are going to do half of them next week and the other half the following week. I'm thinking of taking a pair of white gloves....what do you think? No....I'm looking forward to visiting all of them. They are so cute!
I am trying to think of something I can take to them as just a little fun gift....sponges, scrub brushes or something like that attached to a piece of chocolate. What do you think?
Since coming home (it has been dark now for hours...it is 8 p.m.) we have been listening to Christmas music. We have our little Christmas tree lit up and candles burning. Ah...the warmth and light of Christmas. Isn't it beautiful?
By the way.... a bit of trivia....which haircut do you think cost more?
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My hair was shampooed, cut, blown-dry and styled. 199 Krone. SK's hair was cut. 200 Krone.
In case you are wondering, that is roughly $40
Friday, December 20, 2013
Oh CRUD!
Today has been a walking day. We never have the car on Friday, and we had a small list of places to go to. We started out with a bus ride to the mission office where we dropped off the last dozen mini-cheesecakes for missionaries who happen in. Sister Hansen looked at them and laughed....she had a kitchen full of treats that other people had brought in, so we just added ours to hers. We visited with President Sederholm for awhile and then left for the center.
Even though we had stayed late last night to get the dishwasher going and to wash all the pots and pans and serving dishes, we needed to go back to do the rest of the cleanup job...sweeping, emptying the dishwasher, cleaning off tables and counter tops and putting the garbage out.
When we were finished, SK asked (with a competitive twinkle in his eye) if I wanted to play him in a game of CRUD. I have only watched up until now. I said OK. Let me say up front that I always have beginner's luck whenever I try something new. We played two games and I won both handily. SK was thoroughly depressed about it. He mentioned that he had tried to hold back his normally aggressive playing, and I kind of believe him. But he was quite disheartened nevertheless.
We walked home taking a circuitous route to stop at a few different places. We got home and had a very late lunch and then walked to Tivoli. It is fully dark by 4 or 4:30 and the lights were blazing. It was a little windy which made it nice and chilly and just fun. We walked through the park stopping to look in a few little shops and then found an indoor restaurant to eat. We had pretty typical danish fare and it was great.
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We strolled out of the park and down one of the main roads to the little street where our apartment is.
We have had a lot of walking time today....time to talk about what we hope we can accomplish in the new year with our YSAs. There will be big changes ahead with the center moving, and with hours changing as well. We may be at the center from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and beyond 5 days a week and that could be very exciting ...especially if there is an opportunity to do more missionary work among the young crowd. The bad news? There may not be room for the pool table (aka the CRUD table),. And so ends my reign as the CRUD champion of the Madsen missionary couple.
Even though we had stayed late last night to get the dishwasher going and to wash all the pots and pans and serving dishes, we needed to go back to do the rest of the cleanup job...sweeping, emptying the dishwasher, cleaning off tables and counter tops and putting the garbage out.
When we were finished, SK asked (with a competitive twinkle in his eye) if I wanted to play him in a game of CRUD. I have only watched up until now. I said OK. Let me say up front that I always have beginner's luck whenever I try something new. We played two games and I won both handily. SK was thoroughly depressed about it. He mentioned that he had tried to hold back his normally aggressive playing, and I kind of believe him. But he was quite disheartened nevertheless.
We walked home taking a circuitous route to stop at a few different places. We got home and had a very late lunch and then walked to Tivoli. It is fully dark by 4 or 4:30 and the lights were blazing. It was a little windy which made it nice and chilly and just fun. We walked through the park stopping to look in a few little shops and then found an indoor restaurant to eat. We had pretty typical danish fare and it was great.
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We strolled out of the park and down one of the main roads to the little street where our apartment is.
We have had a lot of walking time today....time to talk about what we hope we can accomplish in the new year with our YSAs. There will be big changes ahead with the center moving, and with hours changing as well. We may be at the center from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. and beyond 5 days a week and that could be very exciting ...especially if there is an opportunity to do more missionary work among the young crowd. The bad news? There may not be room for the pool table (aka the CRUD table),. And so ends my reign as the CRUD champion of the Madsen missionary couple.
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Chicken Stuff!
Chicken Stuff? It is a term we coined years ago when I found a recipe for chicken that everyone liked. I made a few changes and found the winning recipe, but never knew what to call it, so we all took to calling it that "chicken stuff." It was one of those recipes that I could throw together fairly quickly and that always was popular. Even people in the ward who received chicken stuff from us when they were sick or in need of a meal seemed to like it.
So it was inevitable that we fix it for our YSAs. Now I have to tell you that I spent the day working up to the meal being served at 8:30....and tonight at 8:30, the carrots were still percolating, the peas were just getting warm, the pasta was just about ready to be drained and I had 25 YSAs just coming out of class ready to eat. I meant to take a picture, but it just didn't happen!
The meal tonight was chicken stuff, boiled carrots, steamed peas, sliced french bread and mini-cheesecakes. The Lord is good to us. I always figure that I am making enough for 40 or more and it always ends up that we have enough and perhaps a touch to spare. We fed 26 tonight, which was surprising because we were missing several of the regulars who have gone to their parents homes to celebrate Christmas.
I don't know if the food is good, or if the Lord has answered my heartfelt plea that it will taste good to them....but that is what happened tonight. They seemed to love it, and ate seconds and in some cases thirds. I ran out of time right at that last minute and served the carrots without butter or salt of pepper, but they ate them all....and there were a LOT of carrots! The carrots here are particularly good, crispy, a beautiful bright orange and sweet.
We also had a sweet young man come with his friend who has recently converted to Christianity. This was the first time the friend had come to a Mormon meeting of any kind. He seemed to enjoy himself and spent the evening after class visiting with many of the other YSAs. I can't imagine how anyone could leave the center and not have felt something. Everyone is so friendly and welcoming, and there is a special spirit there...even when they get a loud game of CRUD going.
We wanted to give them a little something to say Glaedelig Jul, so we got cute little gift bags from IKEA, put about 5 different little wrapped candies inside and a book mark of one of our favorite scriptures, and wrote a little note to them. It wasn't much but they seemed to like it.
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By the way, maybe you have read two recent reports in the news. One is that Denmark is the happiest place on the earth. No not Disneyland, but Denmark, and they have earned that title two years in a row. The other is that in a rating of the most corrupt governments in 176 nations of the world, Denmark is tied with New Zealand for the title of least corrupt. Not bad!
I think one reason they are so happy is because they don't have scorpions here.
So it was inevitable that we fix it for our YSAs. Now I have to tell you that I spent the day working up to the meal being served at 8:30....and tonight at 8:30, the carrots were still percolating, the peas were just getting warm, the pasta was just about ready to be drained and I had 25 YSAs just coming out of class ready to eat. I meant to take a picture, but it just didn't happen!
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| Aeldste Madsen peeling 4 pounds of carrots with our wonderful peelers. |
I don't know if the food is good, or if the Lord has answered my heartfelt plea that it will taste good to them....but that is what happened tonight. They seemed to love it, and ate seconds and in some cases thirds. I ran out of time right at that last minute and served the carrots without butter or salt of pepper, but they ate them all....and there were a LOT of carrots! The carrots here are particularly good, crispy, a beautiful bright orange and sweet.
We also had a sweet young man come with his friend who has recently converted to Christianity. This was the first time the friend had come to a Mormon meeting of any kind. He seemed to enjoy himself and spent the evening after class visiting with many of the other YSAs. I can't imagine how anyone could leave the center and not have felt something. Everyone is so friendly and welcoming, and there is a special spirit there...even when they get a loud game of CRUD going.
We wanted to give them a little something to say Glaedelig Jul, so we got cute little gift bags from IKEA, put about 5 different little wrapped candies inside and a book mark of one of our favorite scriptures, and wrote a little note to them. It wasn't much but they seemed to like it.
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By the way, maybe you have read two recent reports in the news. One is that Denmark is the happiest place on the earth. No not Disneyland, but Denmark, and they have earned that title two years in a row. The other is that in a rating of the most corrupt governments in 176 nations of the world, Denmark is tied with New Zealand for the title of least corrupt. Not bad!
I think one reason they are so happy is because they don't have scorpions here.
Wednesday, December 18, 2013
Princes and Gentlemen
Wednesday is our day to prepare for the meal on Thursday. Shopping, chopping and baking are generally the order of the day. Normally we have a car on Wednesdays but it is also transfer week and we have missionaries coming and going all over the place. Our car was needed to transport many to and from the train station, so we were on foot again. We don't mind, but it does make it tricky when we have a lot of heavy bags to carry.
Have I mentioned how much I love our YSAs? I think they are wonderful young adults and I feel that it is such a privilege to work with them. When I was their age, I never in my wildest dreams imagined that I might someday be 64!!!! I do remember a few people who were in that range...like my grandmother, but they were sooo old. So I love it when they come and talk to me and share a little part of themselves with us.
I know they are committed to the gospel. We have one young woman who is 19 and who was baptized about 6 months ago. She is fun and happy and so eager to take part in everything. She gave a talk Sunday in Church, and besides being afraid that she would throw up or pass out, she did a great job. She got a tattoo on her wrist a couple of years ago and wishes it weren't there. She is excited to someday go to the temple to be married. I think she will be a catch for any young man who is her equal spiritually.
I was impressed with two of the young men who spoke with passion about the location of the new center last night. Their input was asked for and they were articulate and convincing in their arguments. At the heart of what they had to say was that we need to have a place where people can come and feel the Spirit...to relax and enjoy being with others who share their values....where missionaries can come to teach investigators and where the YSAs can introduce friends to the Gospel.
The bus rides today held my interest - as always. At one point there were two young men, possibly in their 20's...very handsome, both very blond, clean shaven, and with either military bearing or perhaps athletic. An older woman got on the bus, and they both stood to let her sit down!!!! That just had to have charmed every female on that bus.
We got most of our shopping done and home by 7 after spending the afternoon at the center. I began baking and cooking and realized that I was lacking a couple of ingredients (about 10:30 p.m.), so SK walked to three different stores looking for what I needed. He is always agreeable to do things like that. He spent his morning trying to change a plug on my new crockpot from England!!!! (oh Joy!), fixing our keyboard (the space bar was out of whack), and doing various and sundry other odd tasks that were begging to get done.
Last week I got home from Relief Society and set up the iron because he was out of white shirts. I was going to watch a Mormon Tabernacle Christmas concert as I ironed. I couldn't find the shirts. I asked SK where they were. "In the closet," he said. He had ironed 12 shirts! That was impressive.
Great "young" men everywhere in Copenhagen!
Have I mentioned how much I love our YSAs? I think they are wonderful young adults and I feel that it is such a privilege to work with them. When I was their age, I never in my wildest dreams imagined that I might someday be 64!!!! I do remember a few people who were in that range...like my grandmother, but they were sooo old. So I love it when they come and talk to me and share a little part of themselves with us.
I know they are committed to the gospel. We have one young woman who is 19 and who was baptized about 6 months ago. She is fun and happy and so eager to take part in everything. She gave a talk Sunday in Church, and besides being afraid that she would throw up or pass out, she did a great job. She got a tattoo on her wrist a couple of years ago and wishes it weren't there. She is excited to someday go to the temple to be married. I think she will be a catch for any young man who is her equal spiritually.
I was impressed with two of the young men who spoke with passion about the location of the new center last night. Their input was asked for and they were articulate and convincing in their arguments. At the heart of what they had to say was that we need to have a place where people can come and feel the Spirit...to relax and enjoy being with others who share their values....where missionaries can come to teach investigators and where the YSAs can introduce friends to the Gospel.
The bus rides today held my interest - as always. At one point there were two young men, possibly in their 20's...very handsome, both very blond, clean shaven, and with either military bearing or perhaps athletic. An older woman got on the bus, and they both stood to let her sit down!!!! That just had to have charmed every female on that bus.
We got most of our shopping done and home by 7 after spending the afternoon at the center. I began baking and cooking and realized that I was lacking a couple of ingredients (about 10:30 p.m.), so SK walked to three different stores looking for what I needed. He is always agreeable to do things like that. He spent his morning trying to change a plug on my new crockpot from England!!!! (oh Joy!), fixing our keyboard (the space bar was out of whack), and doing various and sundry other odd tasks that were begging to get done.
Last week I got home from Relief Society and set up the iron because he was out of white shirts. I was going to watch a Mormon Tabernacle Christmas concert as I ironed. I couldn't find the shirts. I asked SK where they were. "In the closet," he said. He had ironed 12 shirts! That was impressive.
Great "young" men everywhere in Copenhagen!
Tuesday, December 17, 2013
Moon, Mad and Mads
P-Day! We got a lot accomplished today...as far as running around (OK...so we walked) getting things done that have been on our to-to" list for several weeks. It felt good. It is an interesting contrast to my life in Gilbert, where I mapped out destinations by car. Here, we plot our course by foot...and try not to do too much backtracking. It is fun to go into little shops....and I mean little.
We went in one shoe repair shop today that may have been 8 feet by 12. It was crammed with all kinds of shoe stuff. I went in specifically to get some kind of insert for my shoes that would cushion the many steps I take each day. The old black shoes I inherited here have been heavensent in that they are so well padded and give my ankles good support, but they are - in a word - ugly. I would really like to wear shoes that look at least respectable with a dress. The shop owner there is very knowledgeable and helped me select some inserts that I put in my boots and I think they will work! I can interchange them with the other pumps I brought. That was one good errand done.
We bought a curtain for our bedroom. It has blinds up, but they don't give complete privacy and the bedroom is on the ground floor with a window that looks out over the walkway. So, I brilliantly deduced that if I could see out, people can see in! Today we found the hardware to put up the curtain. Hooray!
And so the day went...ticking off a long list of things to do. One Eureka moment was when our pathway crossed a chocolate shop that I had heard was very good. We went in and got a few little chocolates that I thought were excellent, but SK felt they were too dark (chocolate!!!), so I inherited his other two pieces besides the three I had selected. Isn't that great?
In the evening we went to the center for our monthly meeting with the mission president, a member of the stake presidency, our high councilor, our institute director, our YSA Chairman and several of our YSA reps from wards.
I listened so hard to every word said, and picked up a great deal of what was being said, but missed so much more! I asked one of the YSAs afterward to tell me the gist of the meeting. I was so happy to hear I had gotten most of it myself....but a lot of it was reading emotion and understanding various words. I love those meetings! I love to see the interaction and the respect shown by everyone.
Pres. Hinckley said that the Church population in Denmark would double in a period of 5 years. It was pointed out that that period is still ahead of us. It was also pointed out that Elder L. Tom Perry said the major growth of the Church in Europe will be among people between the ages of 18 and 30. So there is a heavy responsibility resting on the shoulders of these young people...and these guys are definitely up to the task!
Tonight's meeting was very important because we were discussing moving the center from its present location to one in Copenhagen. It is in Frederiksberg right now. There are several sites being considered including two different churches. It is hoped that when we have moved we will be easier to get to by more YSAs. But that is a hot topic and being debated much.
Our lease is expiring and it is an expensive place to rent. If we consistently had at least 50 in attendance we could maybe justify it, but for now, we will be leaving it in January. I so hope the new place will prove to be a drawing place. It will be much smaller....perhaps too small for the pool table, and that means no CRUD!!!!! That would be a tragedy. We sometimes have as many as 20 playing that game at the same time, and everyone loves it...including SK.
Speaking of SK, here is a major change. I have called him Mad for years and years. That must stop. Here the word for food is mad. I can't very well go around addressing him as "Food." So henceforth and forever I will call him Mads...a perfectly respectable name here pronounced Mass. You may have noticed that our last name means "son of Mads." So there you have it!
One very poor picture....but I had to include it. A full moon shining over Copenhagen....in just a few hours you will be gazing up at the same beautiful moon!
.JPG)
We went in one shoe repair shop today that may have been 8 feet by 12. It was crammed with all kinds of shoe stuff. I went in specifically to get some kind of insert for my shoes that would cushion the many steps I take each day. The old black shoes I inherited here have been heavensent in that they are so well padded and give my ankles good support, but they are - in a word - ugly. I would really like to wear shoes that look at least respectable with a dress. The shop owner there is very knowledgeable and helped me select some inserts that I put in my boots and I think they will work! I can interchange them with the other pumps I brought. That was one good errand done.
We bought a curtain for our bedroom. It has blinds up, but they don't give complete privacy and the bedroom is on the ground floor with a window that looks out over the walkway. So, I brilliantly deduced that if I could see out, people can see in! Today we found the hardware to put up the curtain. Hooray!
And so the day went...ticking off a long list of things to do. One Eureka moment was when our pathway crossed a chocolate shop that I had heard was very good. We went in and got a few little chocolates that I thought were excellent, but SK felt they were too dark (chocolate!!!), so I inherited his other two pieces besides the three I had selected. Isn't that great?
In the evening we went to the center for our monthly meeting with the mission president, a member of the stake presidency, our high councilor, our institute director, our YSA Chairman and several of our YSA reps from wards.
I listened so hard to every word said, and picked up a great deal of what was being said, but missed so much more! I asked one of the YSAs afterward to tell me the gist of the meeting. I was so happy to hear I had gotten most of it myself....but a lot of it was reading emotion and understanding various words. I love those meetings! I love to see the interaction and the respect shown by everyone.
Pres. Hinckley said that the Church population in Denmark would double in a period of 5 years. It was pointed out that that period is still ahead of us. It was also pointed out that Elder L. Tom Perry said the major growth of the Church in Europe will be among people between the ages of 18 and 30. So there is a heavy responsibility resting on the shoulders of these young people...and these guys are definitely up to the task!
Tonight's meeting was very important because we were discussing moving the center from its present location to one in Copenhagen. It is in Frederiksberg right now. There are several sites being considered including two different churches. It is hoped that when we have moved we will be easier to get to by more YSAs. But that is a hot topic and being debated much.
Our lease is expiring and it is an expensive place to rent. If we consistently had at least 50 in attendance we could maybe justify it, but for now, we will be leaving it in January. I so hope the new place will prove to be a drawing place. It will be much smaller....perhaps too small for the pool table, and that means no CRUD!!!!! That would be a tragedy. We sometimes have as many as 20 playing that game at the same time, and everyone loves it...including SK.
Speaking of SK, here is a major change. I have called him Mad for years and years. That must stop. Here the word for food is mad. I can't very well go around addressing him as "Food." So henceforth and forever I will call him Mads...a perfectly respectable name here pronounced Mass. You may have noticed that our last name means "son of Mads." So there you have it!
One very poor picture....but I had to include it. A full moon shining over Copenhagen....in just a few hours you will be gazing up at the same beautiful moon!
.JPG)
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