TEMPLE TRIP-BIKING THROUGH THE TULIPS

We returned home from Romania this past Tuesday.  Spring apparently hasn’t sprung to all of Europe yet.  When we departed from Cluj early Tuesday morning the temperature was only 28 degrees. All the doors in the airport were open to allow passengers to board buses to their planes.  We were both quite cold.  It was a reminder to always bring warm clothes, even when you don’t think you will need them.

Thursday afternoon we traveled with some senior missionaries to the Netherlands. We are blessed to have permission to attend the temple and visit other sites within 500 km of Frankfurt. There are currently 3 temples within that driving distance and once the Paris temple is dedicated there will be 4 temples.  All take about 5 hours to drive to. We determined that we would attend the temple in The Hague and also visit the tulip fields nearby.  I had looked online before our departure and realized that the 26^th of April is King’s day in the Netherlands. This would be equivalent to July 4^th in the U.S. with huge celebrations being held in Amsterdam and other locations through the country.  We arrived Thursday evening to find everyone closing up after the day’s parties.  The stores and restaurants were closed. This was a little challenging as we had assumed we would eat dinner on Thursday evening and then buy food to eat for breakfast for the next two days.  We finally found a restaurant that was open and very crowded. The manager reluctantly allowed us to stay for dinner, for which we were very grateful.

Friday morning we left our hotel very early and were one of the first cars to arrive at Keukenhof when it opened at 8 a.m.  Keukenhof is one of our favorite places on earth.  During the spring months it is known as the Garden of Europe and has more than 7 million spring-flowering bulbs and more than 800 varieties of tulips.  It is indeed beautiful. By 11:30 the park was packed and we went outside the park and rented some bikes.  The weather was pretty nippy at under 50 degrees with a cool breeze, but we were fortunate that the expected rain never arrived.  We rode the bikes 20 km through the flower fields and nearby towns.  It was most lovely. In addition to seeing the beautiful flowers, we rode by a lake and were passed by a caravan of old-time cars which were probably from the 1930s or 1940s.  It was sad to see that many of the fields were being topped off. Even though the flowers appeared to be in full bloom a cutting machine was being guided through the fields, lopping off the colorful flower heads and leaving the stalks and plants to wither.  This is all part of the tulip’s growing cycle as the plant then diverts its energy to the still-living bulb underground, which will bloom again.  The bulbs are harvested in mid-summer and sold to growers for planting in the autumn. 

Saturday we went to the Hague temple.  We love going to the temple, but we especially seem to have had very spiritual experiences in this temple. It is a small temple, we have always been personally greeted kindly by President and Sister Van Dam. They are the temple president and matron and have served in many different locations throughout the world for our church. We attended two endowment sessions on Saturday.  On one of the sessions there was a young man whose mother was Mexican, however she was living in Germany.  He had just been called to serve in the Jakarta, Indonesia mission. This is where we served our first mission.  I was very thoughtful throughout the session thinking about the journey we have taken through 3 missions.  I have been concerned about some of my family back home and wishing I could so something to help them with their challenges.  The thought came to me “Do you think you can do a better job with them then I can?”  It was humbling to be reminded that God is aware of my family and their needs.  We will continue to pray for them and keep in contact with them. I must keep in mind that they are His children too and he is indeed watching over them.

Sister Keyser, Russell, Elder and Sister Garrett, Sister Lovell-notice there are no crowds!

Eileen and Russell, I cant resist being a little juvenile

Hague temple at night

Drawbridge connecting the temple grounds with the town center

Monks walking through the gardens

It was pretty chilly for this bride getting her photo taken

Ready to start biking, ready also for a blizzard!

Sister Keyser didn't want to take any chances on getting cold-those are socks on her hands

Stopping by the tulip fields

Eileen and Russell

Elder and Sister Garrett, Eileen and Russell

GREETINGS FROM TRANSYLVANIA

This past week we spent some time getting caught up after our trip to Cape Verde.  We are currently in Romania training a new couple who are serving in the western part of Romania - Transylvania. The Biehns will be based out of the city of Cluj.  If it seems like every week we are traveling it is because we have been. Our travel schedule is based on new couples coming in requiring training and we also travel when we have special requests, such as visiting the hospitals in Moldova. Russell has laid out a tentative travel schedule up until our departure. We pretty much know which weeks we will need to travel and which ones we will be able to stay in Frankfurt.  The first few months of 2017 have had an especially heavy amount of traveling.

Elder and Sister Biehn have been in Cluj just a couple of weeks. It has been fun to get to know them and try to help them understand their role as humanitarian missionaries.  It is a little bit of a challenge for them because they are not replacing a prior couple here in Cluj. This is a new position that we opened due to the large geographical area of the country and the many needs. They have been basically starting from scratch with their apartment, working with the branch and their humanitarian efforts.  They will need to do a lot of research to locate quality NGOs to work with in this section of the country.

As is typical with our training, most of our time is spent working in their apartment.  There are some beautiful historical places to see in Cluj but as of yet we haven't had the time or good enough weather to go see them.  Yesterday while walking back to our hotel, Russell was stopped by a young adult who said “Hey Elder.”  It was cold and rainy and we didn't stop for long, but this man was from Idaho, visiting Romania for the European gymnastic championships which are being held in Cluj this week. He was with a very petite woman who appeared to be in her 30s.  He told us she was a very famous Romanian gymnast.  We were wishing afterwards we had asked for her full name so we could look her up and see when she had participated in gymnastics and if she had won any medals at the Olympics.

Sunday, today we went to the Cluj branch.  Sister Biehn wasn't feeling well and stayed home.  The members were extremely friendly towards us and asked if we were going to be new missionaries.  I think they are disappointed that most of the Biehn’s time will be devoted to humanitarian work rather than working with the members.  In Relief Society one of the sister missionaries was trying to get a hymn to automatically play on the electronic piano.  I offered to play which the members seemed very appreciative for. After Relief Society I was asked if I could play for the choir while they learned a new number.  I played the song through for them several times while they practiced. It was a song I had never heard before.  However, one of the investigators visiting said that she was familiar with the song because they sang it in her church.  I was impressed that even though this young woman hasn't had any of the missionary discussions yet, she was coming to church and participating in the choir.

Tomorrow morning we have a very early (7:30a.m.) meeting with a friend of one of our NGO partners in Bucharest.  We are hoping that the Biehns will get some referrals to local NGOs and ultimately potential humanitarian projects they could do here in this area. 

One project that was recently approved that the Biehns will be working on is with an organization called Love Light Romania. This NGO was started by a couple from the UK.  They have been here in Romania for 17 years helping those in need.  Initially they started working with individuals, primarily children infected with HIV.  Now they are working with Roma families, trying to help them become more self-reliant. During last winter LDS Charities funded a project to provide some basic food supplies for Roma families who had little. Last week another project was approved with this NGO.  LDS Charities’ role will be to provide sewing machines and woodworking tools as part of a project to help teach Roma children to learn skills which will help them become self-reliant.  I have attached a video link to the winter vegetable distribution.  

We went from the heat of Cape Verde to the snow of Romania

Transilvania bank-across from our hotel

Eileen working with the Biehns on the computer

Sister Biehn showing me some washable feminine hygiene supplies made by the sisters in her Relief Society back home. These kits are provided to girls who have to stay at home due to the lack of necessary monthly supplies. Please look at the website daysforgirls.org for more information about this project.

Choir practicing at the Cluj branch. The two young sisters on the left are investigators

Cluj Relief Society

Cluj chapel

Market outside the Biehns apartment. Look at the size of those radishes!

Church in downtown Cluj

Photos below taken by photographer for Love Light Romania. Their website is Lovelightromania.com

OUR WEEK IN PRAIA, CAPE VERDE

This past week we returned from a weeklong trip to train Elder and Sister Biven in Praia, Cape Verde (“CV”).  There are a number of islands in the country of Cape Verde. Due to the difficulty (time and expense) of traveling from island to island, coupled with the great growth of the church membership, and also the many humanitarian needs in the country, the decision was made recently to have a second Welfare/Humanitarian couple serve there.

Map of Cape Verde 

The week of our departure was a challenging one.  By the time we were ready to take our evening flight to CV, I (Eileen) was rather reluctant to get on another plane. We have traveled seven of the last eight weeks.  Although it might sound exotic, it is really exhausting, especially when we come home and have all of our normal work to catch up on upon our return.

Sometimes God evidences his love to us when we need it most. That was the case as we traveled to CV.  We rarely meet members of the Church as we travel.  As we were walking through the airport during our layover in Casablanca, a family ran up to us to say hello. They were traveling from the US to CV to visit some senior missionaries serving there.  As we boarded the plane our seats were reassigned and I realized we had been upgraded to Business Class. The biggest benefit from being upgraded is that we could be the first ones in line to obtain the necessary visa upon our arrival. Since it took 10 minutes for us to get the visa and there were about 75 people in line behind us we were so grateful to get through the line quickly.  It was about 3 a.m. and we were anxious to get to our hotel and go to sleep.

Our layover in Casa Blanca

Elder and Sister Biven are a very talented couple from the Midwest.   Elder Biven is an engineer and worked in different parts of Africa as a young man. Sister Biven is a nurse and will be functioning as the mission nurse, while Elder Biven does most of the humanitarian work.  They had only been in Cape Verde for a few days when we arrived.  Sister Biven needed to run some errands so I went with her while Russell trained Elder Biven on finances.  Later, when it was time to return to our hotel the battery on their car was dead.  We decided to have the men push the car while I popped the clutch in an attempt to start the car. A neighbor man came and helped us push the car. I popped the clutch several times with no response.  Another missionary couple came and took us back to our hotel. Later they were able to find a local man who jumped the battery for their car.  We were appreciative of the kindness of the other missionaries and the locals who were very kind to help.

Trying to get help for the car with the dead battery

On Sunday we went to church. As there was no pianist I played the piano for sacrament meeting. The people in the ward we attended were very gracious and friendly to us.  That afternoon the four of us went to our hotel and sat outside to review a dozen case studies of previous humanitarian projects done in the Europe Area.  The Bivens were quick to catch on to the principles we were trying to teach.

Brother Mendocoa and his boys at church

The primary children learning about Jesus

Russell discussing case studies with the Bivens

Tuesday evening we were asked to attend a meeting with the local Church priesthood leadership and the Church director of Public Affairs for CV.  In the future we will be coordinating the public relations aspects of the Church’s humanitarian efforts with Public Affairs so that they and the local priesthood leaders will be aware of our projects and can participate in the project’s closing ceremonies/events.  

Our flight back left at 2:45 a.m.  We arrived back in Frankfurt at 5 p.m. I had a bad case of gastrointestinal distress and was very glad to be back home.  

Coastline dry and rugged

Now I can say I have walked the beach in Africa

This lady just returned from a fishing trip

There is really a person underneath all that brush

This man was cooking something in his pot. I tried to take a photo of his food but was frightened by some dogs that came near me fighting with each other. I had no desire to be bitten by rabid dogs

This man thought it was funny that I wanted to take a photo of him cutting the meat on the sidewalk. Notice the machete in his hand used for cutting the meat

At the market

Eileen's maiden name is Cannon. We had to have a picture with one of the old cannons at the fort in Cidade Velha..  The fort was finished in 1590.

The mountains were steep and arid

Bananas by the bunch

Scale for weighing produce

Slaves from Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone were tied to this pillar and auctioned off to send to Brazil and the Caribbean. This settlement was active in the slave trade starting in 1466.  Christopher Columbus stopped in this city on his 3rd voyage to the Americas in 1498.

Sister Biven answering a medical call

It was very typical to see women and men carrying supplies on their head

We walked passed these pigs. Does that mean we walked through a pigpen?

The breeze felt nice in the warm sunshine

Fishing boats at the base of the ruins of the old fort

Tourist information

This beach was right outside our hotel. It was a popular place on the weekend.

Praia

We ate here twice. The meat is fresh tuna. It is brought out on a hot stone and you take it off when it is done to your liking.

This lighthouse was very near our hotel 

Most of the island is quite dry, the flowering trees can be quite beautiful.

Today we celebrate Easter.  We are very grateful for our Savior and the love he has shown to us.  We know that it is only through His atoning sacrifice for us that we can repent from our sins, and have the gift of being resurrected some day. Click on the link below to view a special 2 minute Easter presentation.

https://youtu.be/Ly9xk59Qkfc

The Prince of Peace: Find Lasting Peace through Jesus Christ

 

THE PIGEON

Shortly after we arrived in Germany last spring, I planted a number of geraniums in flower pots to place on the railings of our apartment balcony.  The flowers grew well over the summer and fall, and when the first frost was near I (Russell) decided to move the plants inside and try to preserve them over the winter.  When I did this in Belgium a number of years ago I lost about half of my plants over the winter.  However, this time I lost only one of twenty.  Eileen and I were both glad to move the plants back outside two weeks ago as we don’t have a lot of room in our apartment.  We were one of the first in our building to put flowers out and ours were relatively quite large.

A week ago I noticed that a few of the flowers were looking rather beaten down and I thought maybe the wind had messed them up.  Then while eating lunch one day last week I noticed a pigeon on the ledge of our balcony.  I chased it away but it came back two more times.  By the time I came home that evening almost all my flowers were beaten down.  I realized that the pigeon(s) were attempting to nest in my flower boxes!  My feelings toward the pigeons were not very missionary like, which only brought to my mind President Kimball’s quoting of a poem “Don’t shoot the little birdies that fly up in the sky” as a rebuke. We have been given instructions by our landlord to not allow the pigeons to be near our balconies.The dilemma is how to get rid of the problem?

The pigeon reminded me of Goldilocks – testing out one of the plants to nest in was not enough – who had to try sleeping in all the bear’s beds.  My sympathies were clearly with the bears and not with the squatting trespasser. Not knowing what else to do I brought my flower pots back into the apartment.  I guess I will wait until we get past the time the pigeons are laying their eggs and then move them out again. 

As I have thought more about my analogy of the pigeon to Goldilocks, I find myself wondering if perhaps God views me like the pigeon or Goldilocks.  He has provided me a beautiful world to live in, a wonderful family, the fullness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, relative prosperity and good health.  And all too often I make a mess of those things in my attempt to satisfy my shortsighted “needs” or desires.  I am glad God is patient and forgiving with me, and I will try to be more so with my neighbor the pigeon.

PROMPTINGS OF THE SPIRIT

Through the miracle of modern technology we have been able to listen to four of the five sessions of General Conference broadcast from SLC. It has been a spiritual boost for both of us. Although all of the talks had meaningful messages, I (Eileen) felt especially touched by one particular talk. Elder Rasband’s talk “Let the Holy Spirit Guide” seemed especially pertinent to the thoughts going through my mind this past week.

Wednesday morning we received notification from Elder and Sister Lindsay that they had been called to be our replacements.  We were especially pleased, as we know this couple well. Not only are they extremely well qualified but also we have a firm conviction that Heavenly Father wants them here in Europe doing humanitarian work.

This is our third mission together as a couple. During our second mission we served as recommenders for senior missionaries in the Missionary Department. The Lindsays served as recommenders in the Welfare Department. We interacted daily with them, sometimes having conversations multiple times per day. We shared an instant bond with them.  The Lindsays had served two prior missions and we loved hearing about their experiences in Egypt and the Philippines.  We ate lunch daily with them and also did some things socially with them. They laughed at my ridiculous jokes.  They told us of spiritual events in their calling.  A strong friendship was forged.  When Russell had some complications with kidney surgery the Lindsays were the ones that I turned to.   Even though we had been released from our service in the missionary department I knew they would drop everything and be there to offer comfort and support. 

We have exchanged occasional emails with the Lindsays since we have been in Frankfurt.  This past January I had a very strong feeling that I should write to the Lindsays.  While sitting in the airport one day I wrote them a long letter telling them of the love I had for them and asked them when they would be going on another mission.  That was on a Tuesday. On Saturday when we returned to Frankfurt I told Russell that I felt I needed to call them. He questioned this prompting, as he knew that I had just written an email to them just a few days earlier. Nevertheless, I called them. During our conversation I discovered that the Lindsays had been fasting, praying and attending the temple to determine what the Lord would have them do regarding serving another mission when they received my email.  Through a series of miraculous events, the Lindsays received a call this past week to serve as our replacements.  As I listened to Elder Rasbands talk today I thought about the impressions I received to both email and talk with the Lindsays.  I didn’t call them out of friendship. I called them because I “felt” inspired to do so. I truly believe that Heavenly Father wants them in this calling. I am grateful for their goodness and desire to follow the Lord’s will.  I am also grateful that perhaps in a small way I was able to help the Lord move His work forward here in the Europe Area. 

Earlier this week we traveled to Greece to help train Elder and Sister Willmott. The Willmotts first were called to Greece to be office specialists, and then they were moved to Thessaloniki to work as Member-Leader Support missionaries and also help with some of the Churches efforts to render aid to the refugees there.  A few weeks ago the Humanitarian missionary couple that was serving in Athens needed to go home suddenly due to some medical issues.  The Willmotts were asked to move to Athens just a week ago and are fill a role which primarily deals with the Church’s refugee aid efforts in Greece. As we listened to Elder Bednar’s talk about how missionaries are first called to serve and then secondarily assigned to serve in a specific location I thought of them.  The Willmott’s willingness to serve wherever and do whatever is asked of them is a great example of how we should serve.

On our return home from Greece I had a small misfortune. A man sitting behind us on the plane was reaching up to get his wife’s suitcase, and it slipped and fell on my head.  I visited a local hospital for a checkup. I am grateful that I wasn’t hurt worse than a headache and a few sore muscles.

Listening to conference yesterday and today has been marvelous. I know that we have a prophet leading our church and that we are greatly blessed to be able to hear him and the other leaders of our church speak. I am excited for the additional newly announced five temples which will be built. I have done medical work in Kenya and the Philippines, and we have a daughter who lives in Saratoga Springs.  Each of these three locations has special significance to me.

Eileen with Elder and Sister Willmott

L to R-The Ritchies (our replacements in the Missionary Dept,) Russell and I, The Lindsays (our replacements in Germany) This photo was taken at our farewell to Germany. Both the Ritchies and the Lindsays attended to show their support.