Travel, Inspections, and a Swedish Apostle

We began the week with a sad farewell to our friends, Elder and Sister Hall. They have been a huge resource to the mission and to the young single adults from the Stockholm area and beyond. Elder Hall is a Medical Doctor and has assisted with countless medical issues over the last 18 months - right up to the day they left. As YSA missionaries, they have been involved in several major conferences, assisted with a lengthy canoe adventure and taught the English-speaking Institute class. They will be sorely missed.

At the airport with Pres. and Sister Youngberg, a young man who
had become close to the Halls, Sister and Elder Hall, me, Olivia
and Sister Hales. Elder Hales took the picture.

From the airport, we began our week of apartment inspections in the upplands, north of Stockholm. We are always happy to go into the apartments of these young missionaries, because it gives us a chance to know them on a more personal basis. They always try to get the apartment clean before we come, so we will be impressed. We will usually find ways to improve their living conditions by repairing or replacing things that are in need. It always amazes us how much they will put up with. Lights that have burned out, chairs that are too wobbly to use, no black-out blinds, etc. In more than one apartment, we have found missionaries tying a desk lamp to the top of a medicine cabinet because the lights in the bathroom have gone out. When we inspect those apartments, I can usually repair those kinds of things, or if not, refer them to the landlord to get the repairs made. Olivia has an eagle eye for special needs, which is good, because I tend to miss them.

Sisters Beck and Jones from the
Uppsala Ward. 

Elders Grover and Dawson, also from
Uppsala. We see them every Sunday
because that is the ward where we
are assigned.

Elders Nelson and Waters from Borlänge

Unfortunately, we miss getting pictures of the elders in Gävle, Elders Lewis and Tolman.

At each apartment inspection, we were able to leave a brief message. We reminded them of President Nelson's talk where he prophesied that we would see many miracles between now and the coming of the Lord, but that our spiritual survival depends upon our obtaining and nurturing our own revelation and testimonies. President Joe Johnson's favorite phrase is now used throughout the mission: A good thought is inspiration until proven otherwise. We have heard several testimonies of missionaries who remembered this counsel and saw miracles as a result. Thanks, Pres.

Going out to these places involves several hours travel, so we look for opportunities to see whatever sites are close and interesting.

After our Uppsala inspections, we took the missionaries with us to Kurt and Monica Hedin's home outside of the city some distance. We and they had been invited to celebrate Kurt's birthday and the birthday of his brother. Whenever they invite the brother, they invite the missionaries "...hoping something will rub off." Kurt has been recovering from a hip replacement procedure. Recovery has been slow because of an infection that kept him bed-ridden for some time after his joint had been removed, but before the prosthesis had been placed. He is finally walking without the assistance of a walker or a cane. He and Monica are wonderful, kind people and stalwarts in the ward.

Olivia, Sisters Jones and Beck, Monica, Kurt, Elders Grover
and Dawson, the brother, me at a wonderful meal prepared by
Monica. 

Following the Borlänge visit, because we were in Dalarna, a region of the country with a rich political and religious history, we decided to visit some areas where Gustav Vasa had taken refuge following the victory of Denmark over Sweden when the Danish king, Christian II had crushed a rebellion. At that time there was a union of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, called the Kalmar Union. The Danish king had the most power, however, and tended to use it unfairly. Vasa was related to the Sture family which had led the rebellion, and remained faithful to their cause. With the rebellion crushed and Stockholm in the Danish king's control, the king invited the nobles to his coronation and the festivals attendant to it. Even though they had been promised amnesty, Vasa refused the invitation. Following the festivities, and apparent good will, the king ordered the castle gates locked, had the nobles arrested, read charges against them and then beheaded them all. The numbers seem to be in dispute. One source says 80 were killed, another said 90 and Wikipedia says just under 100. In any case, Vasa survived, though his father and cousin were among the executed.

Word of the so called Stockholm Bloodbath, had not yet reached Dalarna, where Vasa was attempting to raise an army to oppose Christian II, but the people rejected him. He went into hiding, disguising himself as a peasant on a farm owned by a former schoolmate, whom he thought he could trust. At one point he left that farm and hid himself in the hayloft of another former schoolmate. When the wife of that schoolmate discovered that her husband was seeking advise from others who were willing to shift loyalties, she thought his life was in danger. She gave him a horse, sleigh and a man servant to make an escape. We hoped to find the hayloft, which we did. We hoped to find the first farm where he worked as a peasant for a time, but we didn't find that one. Instead, we found a wonderful old church.

Once news of the Stockholm Bloodbath reach Dalarna, the people changed their loyalties and sent messengers to find and bring him back. By this time, he had began a trek from Sweden to Norway. The messengers caught up with him before he reached Norway and persuaded him to return. He did so and raised and army which eventually grew large enough to dethrone Christian II and dissolve the Kalmar Union. The route he took to Norway is now a route for a cross country ski race every year.

The building served as a home, barn and hayloft. Vasa is said
to have escaped through the latrine of the building

The sod roof of the cellar beneath the loft is sealed by birch bark.

The lake behind the hayloft was frozen over when Vasa made his
escape.

The parish church of Torsång is out of
the typical path of most tourists, but it
was open so we toured it.

It is the oldest church in Dalarna. Parts of the building were there
in the 12th Century; much of the rest of the building was complete
in the 14th Century - 100 years before Columbus sailed to the Americas

Images of men appear in odd places
in this old church. This one is part of
the oldest wall. Some say it is Thor,
but since it is a Christian church, that
is unlikely. Most believe it is St. Olaf

The artwork in the church varies from
 the 14th Century to the 18th. Not sure
about this one - I just liked it.

This crucifix dates to the 15th Century. The cross was replaced in 1912, but the figure which is of wood, is original

The alter piece dates from the 1600s

These little guys were in
the side choir room

They make up the structure of the roof and ceiling. Most likely added
in 1912 when the building was renovated. The workman was then the folk hero.

These carved horses are the typical Dala horses.
More about them when our daughter, Hannah,
comes with her family to visit us.

Dalarna is famous for the Dala Häster (horses). This little guy
riding on one is in the center of two roundabouts in the area.

We have lost three senior couples in the past two weeks, which means that inspections that would have been performed by them had to be distributed among the remaining couples. We inspected the apartments in Eskilstuna and because I missed a turnoff from the expressway, we were late and in a bit of a hurry, so we also missed taking pictures of the elders and sisters in that area, Elders Cotton and Rasmussen (to whom we also delivered a front bicycle wheel - people will steal anything, it seems); and Sisters Clark and Palmer.  We also missed taking pictures of the Katrineholm elders Dumas and Winkle, whose apartment we did not check, but to whom we delivered a bicycle.

We did take a few minutes to visit a portion of the city of Eskilstuna
that has maintained old wooden buildings, some of which date back
to 1650. These are rented by craftsmen who sell items they have made
in the tradition of the old customs. This man creates leather and metal
objects. Here is a suit of armor in leather that he has crafted for an actor
who needed it for a production. The leather comes from a tannery in Sala
that tans in the old fashioned way. This man then dyes it using different
tree barks.

Friday, we assisted with the Stockholm Zone Conference. This was the last zone to receive the new smart phones. The missionaries are all excited about the increased opportunities to contact and keep contact with prospective investigators, stay in contact with investigators and new converts in areas they have left and to exchange Facebook information with people who are hesitant to give them a phone number or email address. There will be a huge learning curve for the missionaries and the mission presidents where this technology is going, but so far, the rules have been kept and a lot of good has already come of it. For us, it also means if someone has a problem with something in the apartment, they can forward a picture to us, so we can diagnose it and bring out the right part or fixture.

Sister Hales always leaves the building
cleaner than we found it.

Olivia models the scarf Sister Hales
crocheted for her

Since we were close to downtown,
we wanted to visit the building where
the old ward used to meet. The Hales
had found it before, so they showed
us the way.

Missing is the first part of the name of the Church -
Jesu Kristi Kyrka. The rest is in the banner. The beehive
is still there. Olivia's father would have attended church
here, as would her Uncle Art.

All over the downtown were these high school graduates. The hat
is traditional, here. The first time I saw it was last year when our
landlord's grandson wore his. I thought he must have graduated
from a military academy. Not so - they all get these hats.

Following a special missionary meeting on Monday, we wanted to see the cherry blossoms in the middle of the city. It took about an hour just to get to the place because of the traffic, motor and pedestrian. When we got there, no place could be found to park, so Olivia committed a drive-by shooting:

This picture was shot from the passenger window of the Ford van.
They were beautiful, I only wish we could have enjoyed actually
walking through the park. Next time we will take a train and walk!

The day was a holiday in Sweden, Valborg or Walpurgis day. It is celebrated by building bonfires, eating, singing, games and for most, lots of drinking. It is one of Uppsala's biggest holidays. It is the only day that the bell at the castle is rung. Thousands of people, mostly the university students, wander the streets, go to the park or find a place where a bonfire is going to be lit. The town also has a boat race. The boats are judged, as I understand it, on appearance as well float-ability, if that is a word. The boats are constructed from Styrofoam and decorated according to a theme each team chooses. We did not see the race, but it was reported to us by Elsa, who had friends competing there.

Our Valborg celebration was held at the Bjorn and Evelyn Näslund's property several kilometers out of town. He has lots of willows, vines, dead trees and the like that need to be taken out, so what better way than a bonfire? The fire is to burn out winter and welcome spring. Because it is a time when the witches visit a certain mountain in Germany where they cavort with Satan and return to curse the land with their evil energy, the bonfires keep them at bay. Good thing. We saw fires all over the area and there was smoke in the air much of the night as we returned home. It was lots of fun.

Elder Dawson, Elsa, Sisters Beck and Jones, me and Elder Grover
enjoying a korv in korvbröd (hot dog), chips, and even nipon soppa
which is rose hip powder reconstituted and heated, It was very tasty! 

Rasmus Hammar with his brother-in-law Peter and sister Julia
Stegeby

Rasmus and his parents Ulf and Judy Hammar. His parents were
married in the Washington DC temple on the same day as Olivia's
sister and brother-in-law Jennifer and Ray.

Tore and Sol-Brit Burman who have
been special friends to us here.

Sol-Brit by the bonfire 

Olivia, Sisters Beck and Jones with
the neighbors' bonfire in the background.

Did I mention a special meeting? Actually, there were two. What are the chances that an Apostle of the Lord would come to Sweden? Rare. And would speak just to the people of Sweden? Even less likely. And an Apostle that speaks to the saints of Sweden in Swedish? Almost zero. But it happened! Elder Dale G. Renlund and his wife, Ruth were assigned to visit the temple construction in Rome, and since they were so close, they took time off to come to Sweden where he has living relatives, where he spent some of his childhood and late teen years and where he served his mission. 

Sunday evening he and his wife spoke along with the temple president and his wife. I took no notes, and regretted it. Especially, when he pronounced an Apostalic blessing on the Church and the saints in this country. He teared up and had a hard time speaking when he said, "I feel like I have come home." 

Monday morning we arrived early to help with the set up for the photograph of the local missionaries, with Elder and Sister Renlund and to set out the sack lunches for the missionaries who would be catching trains and buses afterward. We spent much of the night before fixing sandwiches and filling the sacks with all they would need for lunch. 

Following the photo shoot, he and his wife stood by the door to the chapel with President and Sister Youngberg and greeted every missionary personally. When we went in, he looked directly at Olivia and told her how much he and his wife appreciated the work of senior missionaries. He said that after his Africa experience, he has a special sanctuary in his house where he burns incense to praise the work we do. For those not familiar with his sense of humor, he was serious about appreciating senior missionaries, but he does not burn incense and worship us. Just so you know.

We took copious notes this time and I wish I had time and space to share them, but much of what I wrote down applies to me personally. There is much I need to improve upon and he helped me find it. Now, I just need to apply it. One thing is, that I need to keep learning Swedish even though I will never speak the language. It helps me and brings the Spirit into my life when I recognize words I have studied and when I learn something that applies to my life in this strange language.

Olivia sneaked in a photo of Elder Renlund and Elder Youngberg
(distant relative of our President) reviewing some items from
Preach My Gospel.

Sister Edwards played a medley of hymns on the violin for our
closing song. Her talent added to the special spiritual experience
we had just enjoyed. To her right are President Youngberg, Elder
and Sister Renlund.

Since I could not get to this until today I will share some fun things with we were involved. We got a call last night inviting us to a grill party by the Assistants. Then Pres. Y called to tell us that the gas grill that has been at the mission home for who knows how many decades had finally rusted into pieces, so he wanted to get a new one. His car would not be large enough to take it, so he needed the Ford van. We met him at the store, picked out the grill and loaded it into the van.

Following the office meeting, Elder Hales and I took the Assistants and moved much of the furniture out of a vacant apartment while the POEs shopped for the week (today was their P day because of the special meeting yesterday) and Olivia and Sister Hales picked up what we would need for the meal. In the mean time, President Y tried to assemble the grill. He was assisted first by the POEs when they returned from shopping, then the Assistants, Elder Hales and me. It was after 3:00 PM by the time we finally ate.

The elders played a Swedish game called Kubb where you
throw dowels at pins that look much like 2X4s

I took a while for these two to get the hang of it, today.
Elders Lilenquist and Lee

Elder Berlin knocking over the kubbs on the other end with his dowels

The final hit has to knock over the king by throwing the dowel
from between your legs.

All the happy partakers of the first grilled meal from the new grill.
Elders Lilenquist, Lee, Jarman, Berlin, Hardin, me, Olivia, Sister
and President Youngberg, Sister and Elder Hales.