Did I Say That...?

Before we left someone asked me if I knew what the weather would be like in Stockholm. The first time we were contacted about serving here our assignment would have been only in Stockholm, so it was an appropriate question. I reasoned that it was at sea level and situated similarly to Scotland's North Sea, so I responded that it would probably snow, but that the snow would not likely stay. It does snow and so far, it also stays. We were informed that this is the heaviest single snow storm in Stockholm since the winter of 1905.

As I mentioned last post, Tuesday, we got some snow, which was nice for the new missionaries. It was a good storm that left about 4" and went on for most of the day. By evening it had stopped. 

At home there was a lot of snow on the driveway that we share with the landlord's son who keeps a couple of trailers there for his business. I spent about an hour shoveling the snow off the driveway and had a great night's sleep.

The next day we got up to see that the driveway was completely covered with snow as deep as what I had shoveled the evening before and it was still coming down. Wednesday on the week of transfers is the day the new missionaries are treated to a traditional Swedish meal, get more instructions and then open their letters to find who their companion/trainer will be. They needed us to be at the church early because we had left our van for the missionaries to take the greenies to the mission home to sleep and the car we took had materials in it they needed for their presentation. As we traveled, we saw buses off the the side of the road, traffic snarled, road blocks where cars had slid off the road and stop-and-go traffic, making us quite late.

[Snow on our balcony give some perspective.] 

We needn't have worried. Nothing was going to start on time. The snow continued and caused delays for everyone. We shoveled off the walks, only to have them covered again in minutes. Elder Clouse and I took one of the smaller cars that is pretty nimble in snow and made our way to a store where the meal was waiting in steam table pans and carried them back to the building. Still snowing, we had to go the long way round because the normal road was too steep even for the little car with studded snow tires.

The meeting continued and it continued to snow. We got the missionaries to their companions and sent them to T Central on a chartered bus. There they would catch trains to their areas of labor. We stayed and cleaned the chapel with Elder and Sister Clouse. It continued to snow - heavy, heavy snow. 

In the mean time the missionaries who were to return home made their own ways to the temple, leaving their phones in their areas. The trains were still running and the train station is walking distance from the temple, so they did fine. President and Sister Beckstrand left to be with them at a little after 1:00 PM. They found themselves stuck in traffic and moving hardly at all, so they called the temple and asked that the missionaries be informed that they would not be in the session, but would be in the celestial room when they came through the veil. 

Still stuck, and not moving at all, they called the temple and asked them to instruct the missionaries to take the train to the closest station to the mission home. By that time the trains were delayed by about 2 hours and the buses were not in service at all. It continued to snow.

During this time, Olivia and I were trying to make ourselves useful at the mission office. I shoveled a path to an area of the mission office not accessible from the indoors. Snow was up to two or three inches above my knees and quite heavy. It took about an hour to complete the path and more time to dig some of the cars out of the snow. A great workout, but it continued to snow.

Elder Clouse got another call from President and Sister Beckstrand stating that he should go ahead with the traditional going away meal for the departing missionaries, and if necessary, start the final testimony meeting without them. Talking to the office missionaries and the assistants to the president the decision was made to have the missionaries who were stuck at the train station just walk to the mission home. The missionaries there had no phones, so the office elders drove to the station to relay the message. When we got there with the Clouses, Elder Clouse and I decided to also go to the train station and at least bring the two sisters back in the car.

 [The assistants to the president digging out the driveway next to the office]

 [Trying to dig out a car.]

 [The POEs and assistants dug out a spot for the bag van (similar to a UHaul) to stay for the night.] [Taking a break.]

[A snowplow driver saw what we were trying to clear out and finished  the job for us. The neighbor was upset that the plowed snow had blocked the path his little girl used from the sidewalk to his home, so the elders cut a new path for her.]

When we got there, we discovered that the office elders had taken the sisters with them and intended to drop them off and return for some of the elders. We packed three of them in our car and took them back; the other three were picked up by the office elders on their second trip back. Elder Clouse got another call from President Beckstrand asking him to start the meal and take charge of the testimony meeting. He had no hope of returning any time that night. By now it was after 8:00 PM. We helped with the meal, but had to leave before the testimony meeting because the office elders were giving us a ride and had to leave for some reason. We said our good-byes to Sister Woolsey who had been serving in Uppsala and to whom we had grown close. The Beckstrands finally arrived during the testimony meeting at about 10:30  PM. They had been stuck in the traffic caused by closing a tunnel for over 9 hours.

The snow had turned from a heavy snow to a light fluffy snow by now, so the road were covered with the heavy snow that had been packed solid and had a light, tractionless layer on top. Luckily, the snow plows were out in force, so some of the roads we traveled were clear. They took us to the van which was parked about a mile from the mission office where the assistants had abandoned it because they didn't want to take it further, since it still had the summer tires on it. There we got into the van while the office elders waited to be sure we would get out alright. There were two roads to choose from that would get us to the street that would eventually get us to the freeway and home. One was plowed and easy to maneuver, but a longer route. The other was not plowed, but had tracks that were packed down and was a shorter path to the same road. In other words the smart way and the stupid way. 

You can guess which way I chose.

We slid off the road and the elders and I shoveled and pushed while Olivia drove and mumbled something to me about why I hadn't listened to her and that sort of thing. We finally got out and back on the smart road. When we got to our neighborhood at about 11:00 PM the roads were covered with packed snow. Olivia had continued to stay behind the wheel, having concluded that someone with some brains and common sense should drive. However, she did not want to manage these roads, so I traded places and drove once again. We got to the very last road and looked down the hill to the driveway. I started down and almost immediately applied the brakes to get us into the driveway. I turned to go in but the car just continued to slide past the driveway and down to the bottom of the hill.

As I have described in other blog posts, these roads are very narrow, so we couldn't just leave the car and walk home. About every other driveway in the neighborhood has a large steel bin labeled "SAND" which means gravel, I guess. We walked back up the hill and filled a large snow shovel with the gravel and drug it to the car where we sprinkled the grit under and in front of the tires. She drug the empty shovel back up the hill while I inched the car up the hill. We filled the shovel again and repeated the action. We continued to do that until we almost got to the driveway. we shoveled and scraped a large section down to the pavement in front of the driveway so we could actually turn the car when we got there. WE MADE IT. 

Olivia had warned me that she did not feel that I should take the road where we got stuck and that she feared that we would not get into our driveway, but that we should borrow a car with studded snow tires for the night. When the adventure was over...

We had a talk. Some serious repenting was needed on my side of the companionship.

Thursday, we informed the office staff that we were not able to get out and we took our first P day in over three weeks. We planned our next two days, I got a haircut and we slept in. We needed it. The landlord's son shoveled off their balcony onto ours. The pile was not only up to my waist, but compacted, making it exceptionally heavy. I shoveled off the pile and the rest of our balcony, the stairs down the hill to the son's house and around the sheds where he keeps his equipment and supplies. I slept well again, but got to bed very late.

 [Before] [After]

Friday we put the snow tires on the car and did some shopping and other preparations for the following day and still did not manage to get into bed before 11:00 PM. In the mean time, our plans for Saturday were scrapped by emergencies that were called in on Friday. We arranged for a pair of missionaries to give up a bunk bed that was needed by some sisters who are in a threesome. We then got a call from some sisters who have no heat and only a small space heater. There were also elders who were without a toilet seat. The reason we got to bed so late is that we spent a lot of time just mapping out our route to make it to everywhere we needed to go and still be home at a reasonable hour.

Saturday we followed our charted course and traveled literally hundreds of kilometers to all the apartments who needed us and made it back to the office at a reasonable hour. We were amazed at how well the day went. Of course, we had to drop things off at the office, which means we have to talk to everyone there. Which means we didn't get home to eat until 9:00, again.

Today is Sunday and we are home from Church, we have finished dinner and have spoken to Cedric's family who were just getting ready for their meetings.  Last week I mentioned that a young man who sat by us in Sacrament Meeting and continued to our investigator class with his schoolmates. He was back again today with two more schoolmates and the bishop asked us to take some Sunday School time to answer their questions. Olivia and I were the only ones in the classroom with them at first, so we started. The classroom is the room with the baptismal font, so we explained baptism and priesthood authority. In a few minutes we were joined by the elders. It was a great time with each of us explaining different parts of the doctrine of the Church and answering questions. We were able to explain the logic of; repentance, the plan of salvation, the concept of eternal families, Word of Wisdom, abortion, and many other topics. Again, the young men were impressed and at least two of them seemed interested enough to pursue things further. Elder Bringhurst gave them a copy of the Family Proclamation, I gave them each a pass-along card and invited them to research mormon.org.

The seminary teacher in Olivia came out and some very important things were explained. Afterward, the elders were very complimentary about our participation. They said their goal was to be able to teach as we had done. It was nice for us to hear that, because I was concerned that we might be blowing their teaching method. 

Today was Ward Conference and we were surprised to have the stake presidency release our bishopric and install a new one. The bishop is Mathias Holmdahl, to no one's surprise. He and his wife are examples of the believers and we are happy for them. They are a younger couple; probably in their forties. They have two small daughters who are very intelligent and active. He is related to Elder Hall, who with his wife just got to our mission last Tuesday.

That is the news for this week. We love you all. Olivia has been asking the older grandchildren to write to us electronically so we get the news from their point of view. Today Rebeca, Jordan and Ruth's daughter, wrote and asked with many exclamation points when we are coming back because she misses us. At this end of the time spectrum, 22 months seems like a long time, but looking back, two years seems to come and go very quickly.  We constantly pray that we will be efficient, effective and truly magnify our calling.

Up, Back and in the Middle

Some have commented that they think I have slacked off because I have not added to the blog the last two weeks. We have just been busy - very, very busy. I have needed a hair cut for a week, but there has been no time to accomplish that. Maybe, by next Sunday I'll either have a haircut or put it in a man bun - all the rage, these days. We haven't had a P day for three weeks, but we see one coming.

I will begin by describing our week before last. The week began with on invitation to attend the young single adult FHE held in the ward we are assigned to attend.  The last time they held the meeting they had a room full of people, so they wanted out assistance. As it turned out, only the missionaries, the FHE coordinator and one investigator came. The investigator is very active in attending the meetings on Sundays and has been meeting with the missionaries for a couple of months.  At one point I sat down across the table from her and asked her about where she thought she was in her progress. Essentially, she admitted that she was hesitant to commit to joining the Church because she would disappoint her family who are Apostolic. I got to testify to her that when she could honestly pray and tell her Heavenly Father that she was prepared to do his will, no matter what the consequences, everything changes. While there would be challenges, she would experience growth as she had never experienced before in her life. The missionaries continue to work with her, but the past three Sundays she has not been present because she works in Stockholm some weekends. We pray that she will act on the promptings so the Holy Ghost will continue to be with her.

Then,we traveled with Elder and Sister Clouse to Norrland (north country) stopping to inspect 9 apartments along the way. They were a great help to us. Elder Clouse had to look into a car that had been in the shop for 10 weeks without any serious work being done on it.  He also needed to retrieve the winter tires for a car that was removed from a town when the senior couple there were transferred to the south. In this area, specific winter treads, which usually includes studded tires are required before December 1. It turned out that the car was not repairable, so arrangements were made to sell it at auction and have it transported out. It seems that being driven without oil really does cause damage. Hmmm. We were able to pick up the tires and do our other visits, as well.

We visited Hudiksvall, a town where the mission president has been anxious to place missionaries, but finding an apartment has been very difficult. We were met by the missionaries from Sundsvall, town north of there, who travel by train to serve there about once a week. The members in that town watch Sacrament Meeting as it is broadcast from Sundsvall, but there are no priesthood holders there who can pass the sacrament, so members travel to Hudiksvall about every 2 months to administer that sacred ordinance.

We picked up the missionaries at the train station and took them with us to a member's apartment complex where we picked up a member who had a rental they were willing to rent to the mission. It turned out that the little cottage is about 15 - 20 kilometers out of town on a farm; sort of servants' quarters. The mission president is not sure about accepting that offer due to the distance and lack of regular bus service to the place, but is still considering it.

Then, the whirlwind tour began. We visited the apartments of elders and sisters in Sundsvall, Skelektia, Umeå, Luleå and Boden. At each apartment, we performed our normal inspections and made some repairs. The back of the van we drove was filled with items they needed in their apartments all through the area, so we dropped those off where needed. As we inspected, we discovered items they were living without, so we shopped for those and gave them out on our way back home. We also took bags full of clothes and other items that had been left in the apartments by departing missionaries and accumulated over the years.

Along the way we saw the largest cheese slicers in the world, stayed in a vacant apartment two nights and at a Scandic hotel (similar to a Holiday Inn Express) another.  One difference we have noticed is that when a hotel offers breakfast, it is a feast. All kinds of breads, cheeses, yogurt, cooked and dry cereal, muesli, meats, rolls, eggs (scrambled and hard boiled), juices, cocoa, fruits, etc., etc.

We saw a couple of the sister missionaries who came out with us. Both have excellent trainer companions and speak Swedish like it was second nature. We were very proud of their progress. We also checked an item off our bucket list. As we traveled one night, the car in front of us suddenly stopped, so Elder Clouse, who was driving stopped and pulled to the side. We then saw why the car had stopped as a moose and her calf sauntered across the road in front of us. We still have not seen a reindeer or the Northern Lights, so more travel is warranted.
 (a borrowed image, unfortunately. It was dark and they were fleeting)

Returning from our trip to the north, we immediately had to assist a couple who returned to their home in Utah, then clean and outfit their apartment for a pair of elders who had to move out of their apartment in Stockholm. We then had to deep clean that apartment (still not quite done) with the help of the missionaries, the sisters in that district and a new senior couple who are here to do records preservation. Then we immediately had to clean, prepare, furnish and outfit a new apartment in Väster Haninge which is south of Stockholm and very close to the temple. We started that project on Saturday and worked with the Clouses until late.

As we returned home, we were sorry that it seemed impossible to go into the main cemetery for All Saints Day. People from all over the city go the cemetery and leave a lighted candle on the graves of their loved ones. We could see the thousands of candles, but the traffic was impossible to get in. Then we noticed a church just off the freeway exit to the mission office. We took a chance that there would be a churchyard and we were not only right, but also surprised to see how massive the cemetery is. There were candles everywhere and even as late as we arrived people were still coming in, many with older parents and young children. We found a place where there were so many candles that we could feel the heat from them. It was a quiet place with a fountain and water plants. A nice couple explained to us that most cemeteries have such a spot for people whose families are not in the city or for those who have been cremated. In fact many have their ashes spread in that spot. It was touching to see the level of dedication to family there.

Writing this, it doesn't sound that hard, but it all involves hours of travel, shopping and putting furniture together. The IKEA method is a blessing because we can put lots of furniture into our van, but it is a curse, because it takes hours putting it together. No matter which store we choose to purchase the items, we end up trying to follow the directions and re-doing much of it when we noticed we did not pay close attention to the details.

A week ago Sunday we were invited to the home of ward members, Torre and Sol Brit Burman. They are a retired couple. He was a dentist and she was his assistant, They were very generous with us and served a wonderful meal. Olivia didn't drink as much as she should have because the pitcher of water was constantly being refilled and then injected with CO2 to make it fizzy. I personally like it, but it was less than her favorite.  Their son is not active in the Church, but joined us for the meal and engaged in the conversation.  He is a concert pianist, but currently out of work. He graciously accepted the invitation to entertain us for the evening and it was wonderful. Olivia boldly told him he was needed in the ward as she often has to accompany on the piano in Relief Society due to the fact that there is only one other member and a missionary who plays and she is often missing.

Olivia has invited the family to come to our house after Stake Conference in two weeks as they will have to travel into Stockholm to attend. They were happy to accept and even thought their son would take the train to come, but would not attend the conference, unfortunately.

Last Sunday was Sister Woolsey's last Sunday in the ward. She returns home Thursday and she will be deeply missed. She has been our interpreter in Sacrament Meetings and for Olivia in RS. She has been a dedicated, faithful/faith-filled missionary. Her equally dedicated companion, Sister Wilson, translated a Mongolian sister's testimony into Swedish and Sister Woolsey translated it into English. I should say back into English because the woman's son had sent the English translation to the sisters, who then translated it into Swedish. It was 4th hand by the time we heard it, but it was still inspiring.

Sister Wilson had a 26th birthday, so to honor both Sister Woolsey and her, we brought them and the elders who also serve in Uppsala home with us for a dinner and birthday cake after our meetings. It is always interesting to hear the conversation of young people and inspiring to know that they know they are on the Lord's errand. They are young people with purpose, perspective and vision.

(Sister Woolsey wanted to see out Viking Ship before she went home. Elder Payne, Elder Bringhurst, Sister Wilson and Sister Woolsey.) 

During Sacrament Meeting a young man came in and sat by us. It was a particularly good testimony meeting and he was touched by what was expressed. It turns out that he and four other young men were visiting because of an assignment in one of their classes in school.  We and the other missionaries gathered them up and used Sunday School time to explain the beliefs of the Church and answered questions.  Two of them have given contact information to the elders, so I would not be surprised to see a baptism come from that visit. It was certainly inspiring to feel like a missionary again. We know our responsibilities as housing coordinators is important and we love doing it, but the opportunities to share like that are especially rewarding.

Yesterday, we spent the entire day from about 9:00 AM to 11:30 PM working on the apartment in Väster Haninge that I mentioned earlier. It is a nice place, now. Then we rose early to meet the incoming missionaries at the airport and assist them to register at the Migration Office, take pictures in old Stockholm, attend a lunch at the YSA center and then go contracting with an experienced companion on the streets of the city.  Tomorrow we will assist with their meeting and luncheon where they will learn who their training companion will be and where in the country they will be serving.

From there we will assist in preparing and sharing a meal at the mission home with the missionaries who are leaving to return home. It is always an emotional time for them. We look forward to hearing their testimonies just before they retire for the night. We will then assist in transporting them and their belongings to the airport.

Thanks for being interested in what we are doing. It is amazing to see how the Church grows in every part of the world. It is a huge undertaking and one that dedicated people everywhere are assisting to succeed. We are happy to be a part of it.

I Can Fix That

Those are my famous last words - I can fix that.  Anyone who knows me knows that either I can't fix it, or if I can fix it, the project will end up looking like a four year-old has fixed it. In any case, we are usually better off just getting a new whatever. Still, Olivia and I are trying to save the tithes of the Church by fixing what we can rather than buying new.

We visited the apartment of one set of elders where we were told that the missionaries had been putting the dish drying rack on the butcher block counter top, rather than the stainless steel on the other side of the sink. The result was mold and several splits in the butcher block.  It was also reported that they had somehow ripped the curtain rod bracket from the right side of the window leaving a gaping hole in the concrete wall and a large piece of plaster broken off. They have a small apartment, and a large sofa, so it was also suggested that we remove the couch and replace it with a small desk and a bookshelf.

When we inspected for ourselves, we agreed with the elders that the couch should be replaced with the desk and bookshelf, but I was quite sure the mold was not that deep and that we could just sand and re-seal the wood.  I was also sure we could fix the wall.

We bought the desk and bookshelf at (you guessed it) IKEA. The mission has a good set of tools including a sander, but we needed the sealer and something to repair the wall. Luckily, Olivia was with me at the hardware store because she had the presence of mind to actually ask for assistance. What is called "spackle" turns out to be something like Bondo and what I thought was sealer received scornful looks from the helpful clerk who also mumbled something in Swedish that sounded like "You idiot."

When we arrived at the elders' apartment, I took charge of the butcher block, one elder took the tube of whatever-it-is-that-fixes-walls and Olivia and the other elder assembled the desk.

I found that the mold was not just skin deep. No amount of sanding was going to go below the mold. When I thought that I had gone deeply enough that the mold looked like just darker grain, I made the mistake of cleaning off the sanding dust to find that the mold was more distinct than ever. I decided that it will just have to do. I used an old shop class trick to fill the cracks. I put a little sealer in a small lid that was in the garbage. To the sealer I added some of the sanding dust and mixed it in. I took a piece of heavy paper and filled the cracks with the mixture and it filled the cracks perfectly. The sealer is clear, not a stain, so the elders now have a counter top that still looks like mold is all over it, but it is safely sealed.

The wall looks great and the desk is perfect. When the missionaries are no longer able to rent that apartment, we will have to replace the butcher block, Until then, it's fine. We didn't have time to put the bookcase together, but they have the tools and the instructions, so they can take care of that.

From there we rushed over to the sisters' apartment a few kilometers away (I know you are impressed that I used kilometers rather than miles), where we had been the night before. They had hosted several other sister missionaries the night before prior to the Sisters' Conference. The next morning all the electric hair appliances were going at once and blew the breaker. We went over to see if there was something they missed in trying to flip the switches and found that there was nothing else we could do. Later that evening, however, we had dinner with President and Sister Beckstrand. President Beckstrand served his mission here as a young man and has been here 27 months as president of the mission. He was familiar with the system I had described and knew that there was a main fuse associated with the breaker box. He was quite certain I could just replace the fuse and it would be fixed.

 

That is why we rushed from the elders to the sisters the next day. I replaced the fuse and flipped all the switches again with no success.  At that point we did have to call in the electrician, so I called the agency from which we rent the apartment. They were unconvinced that I had replaced the fuse, but eventually put me in touch with the building manager who was also unconvinced.  Finally, I was able to talk to the emergency manager and gave him the sisters' phone number so arrangements could be made for an electrician. By that time it was after 4:00 PM, so no one could come out for another day.

The next day contact was finally made for the electrician to appear. He, of course, was unconvinced that I had replaced the fuse so he came without tools or parts, so he had to return to his shop and get another fuse. This time the fuse was behind a locked door in the basement of the apartment building.
The result is that the sisters now have electricity, but after all that time, all the food in the fridge had spoiled, so Elder Clouse had to arrange for extra money in their accounts to replace it.

The reason for the other sisters to be staying with the Stockholm missionaries was that this week was the big Sisters' Conference.  Much of our time was preparing for the various aspects of the conference.  Olivia was asked to assist Sister Clouse in her presentation which was based on the story, or rather the movie of Cinderella.  In the Grimm version Ella's mother advises her to be pious and kind, but in the movie she is advised to be courageous and kind. That was the theme.

The overall theme was Disney princesses, so the cultural hall was decorated in Beauty and the Beast, the other presentations were Snow White and Little Mermaid themed.  We spent shopping time looking for a candlestick, tea pot and cup. I was then tasked with the duty of finding and printing off pictures of the characters in B & B those items represented. Olivia also needed props for Cinderella, so she decorated a pumpkin to look like it was turning into a carriage. I was in need of something to do during all her preparation, so I found an image of a goose and lizards and made them to go onto the carriage. No picture, unfortunately.

The men got the opportunity of setting up, driving out to the COOP (a local grocery store that also caters) to pick up the food for the meal, cleaning, washing dishes (my specialty as everyone else disappeared when the time for cleaning pots and pans arrived), cleaning up and just making sure details were taken care of. It was so much fun seeing these excited, hard-working women enjoying each others company and feeling so special.

Sisters Woolsey and Wilson from Uppsala where we 
attend church                                                                              The APs as candle & clock at photo                                                                                                                 booth with some of the sisters

The entire group with Sister Beckstrand and senior sisters         Sister Clouse w/ office elders                                                                                                                  (note the candelabra and clock) 

Olivia, Sisters Hurlbut, Beckstrand, Clouse, Mitchell, 
and Watson (senior missionaries)                                                       
                                                                                          Sisters Heaps, Gow, Hansen, Botchway,                                                                                           Capuccio, & Nelson (they came in our group)

 Sisters Trotter & Young      I did get hot chocolate & brownie                 Elder & Sister Clouse

 We have spent a wonderful day at the Uppsala Ward where everyone is so accommodating to our lack of Swedish. I am finding that for many in the ward Swedish is a second language. A couple from Iran speak Italian and English; the ward historian is from France, one single man is from Norway, another woman is from Philippines, another couple (both working on PhDs) is from Vienna, another man is from Bolivia, one woman from New York, a woman from Finland, a family from Mongolia, another from the US and there are others, as well. English is commonly spoken, some better than others.

The last two Sundays, students from the university in Uppsala have visited as an assignment. Today it was just one young woman who expressed how welcomed she felt in our little ward. Olivia is so good at making people feel comfortable and carried on a conversation with her. Afterward, we invited her to come back when it was not just an assignment and she again expressed that she felt comfortable there, but made no commitment.

We are enjoying our mission and love helping move the work along even though it is mostly non-ecclesiastic. We take a huge burden from the mission president and make the living situation of the missionaries much more conducive to their study and lives.

We love and miss you all. We love receiving your emails and hope you enjoy this rambling blog.

A Visit from Home Already

This past week we were privileged to have a short visit from Olivia's sister Jennifer and her daughter Jessica, both of whom have played significant roles in our lives. Jennifer came to live with us when we were in Portland, Oregon, where I attended law school, so we became quite close at that time and have stayed close ever since.  As we prepared to pack up the house and leave for our mission, she came and efficiently helped us get through that ordeal. She has been a guardian angel to us.

Jessica came to live with us when we took in Olivia's mother during her final years. She was the primary caretaker for much of that time. Jessica has many talents and is very knowledgeable on many subjects. She even assisted us for one of our Burns' Suppers by playing the bagpipe to pipe in the haggis!  During this visit she was my personal GPS to all the places we wanted to see.

Here they are in front of the front door to our apartment.

We took the opportunity of travelling a little north and visiting some of the sites we don't normally see in our responsibilities, here.  We toured a little of Old Stockholm's many museums, the palace, and a few other places where we could. We even watched the changing of the guard (not quite the ceremony it is in London, but still fun to see. Note: they perform the "about face" like we did in Boy Scouts, not like the US Army. It allows them another opportunity to stomp their feet. Our army is less into such noise, I suppose.)

It is always interesting to see structures that have existed for millennia. Europe and surrounds, including Sweden are full of them. So many that it is impossible to protect them all. For example, farmers have put up with large  mounds in their fields for centuries, but recently it was discovered that many are ancient burial grounds for the Viking era. When the temple was under construction, it was discovered that it is located in a Viking burial area, The government was unconcerned, but the Church has built little memorial gardens to honor them. I will take pictures the next time we are up there.

In Uppsala, where we attend church is the largest cathedral in Scandinavia, as I think I mentioned in a previous blog. Also in Uppsala is the Gamla Kyrka, one of the oldest Christian church building in the country.  In the 12th and 13th centuries they went all out with the structure to honor Christ.

 

One of the more ancient churches was found in Mora, where we stayed prior to driving to the Dala horse works. In the Mora Kyrka we found ancient paintings of the suffering, death and resurrection of Christ as well as a painting behind the alter of unknown, but also ancient origin. It was humbling to see the depth of appreciation these ancient folk had for the plan of salvation.

They all have amazing organs. Many have large, beautiful pipe organs as well as smaller pipe organs that are played for their normal services. In the Domkyrka we were witness to the youth and children's choir rehearsal just prior to the Sunday services. The acoustics were amazing and the young people obviously enjoyed it.  Many of the churches suffered serious fires in those early days when the buildings were only a few hundred years old, then the locals would rally to rebuild them. As we entered the Mora Kyrka, we noticed a display of ancient-looking symbols carved into wood laths. I thought they must be symbols taken from the runes which date back to the coming of Christ, but it turns out that when the church was being remodeled in the 1700s, these were found under the roofing material and were a mystery to the builders. A farmer happened by and informed them that these were symbols identifying the farms of ancient farmers who helped to rebuild after the fire some hundreds of years prior.  I guess we would call them brands! We didn't get a photo of them, unfortunately.

In the Dalarna district are several towns and cities, including Mora. In Börlange we met with a pair of Elders who needed some items for their apartment. They seemed to be obedient, hard-working and of a happy countenance. It was fun to talk to them.

We went on to the works where the famous Dala horses are carved and painted. The two most prominent are next to each other and are owned by the Olsson brothers. Visitors can just wander through and watch the whole process for the most part. Most of the horses are cut out using a template, then sent out to people in the village who carve them into the shape we normally see.

 

[cut out with band saw]                                   [carved by village folk]

They are then brought back to the workplace and dipped in paint, dried, sanded again and painted again, then hand painted. Of course, the women had to have one. I wanted one of the several kinds of knives and hatchets they sell there. They are exceptionally sharp, tempered and shaped for maximum effect. Actually, Jessica bought one of the hatchets and I was sorely tempted, but we will go back when it is closer to our departing date... Olivia, don't look at me in that tone of voice!

[Outside the Nils Olsson works]

We also visited Falun, because it reminded us of Fallon and we were feeling a little homesick. Of course, Jessica saw a steeple and had to see the ancient church building there. Like most of the others, it is ornate and reflected the feelings of the wonderful people of the past who loved Christ and wanted their church to reflect their adoration.

[Falun Kyrka]

We finally had to distract Jessica whenever a steeple came into sight as we were running out of time and couldn't see every church in every town. :)

Falun is better known for its copper mine. It became more or less an open pit mine after it collapsed in the 1700s, leaving a huge pit where the mine had been underground. Luckily, it happened on a holiday and no one was in the mine at the time. It continued to serve as a mine from the 10th century until 1992 - a millennium. 

They still mine minerals today as they have since the 16th century used the tailings to create the red pigment used on so many of the buildings from small farm housed and barns to the mansions in rural Sweden. It is considered to have great preserving properties and is still available in stores today.

While travelling through the rural woods we came upon a little village that called out to the women in the car. "A troll village! Brad you have to stop and turn around." We discovered a little village all built by a man now in his late 70s. It was certainly a fun place at one time, but no longer well kept. However, it held great charm for the women. It turns out that he still rents out the little homes during the summer. One communal bath house and bathroom, didn't seem all that charming to me, but Olivia wants the children and grandchildren to stay there when they come to visit. I will be in the motel in Mora - pick you up in the morning.

[Välbäckens Holiday Village]                                      [In front of larger house] [By trolls & animals]

We had to travel back to the apartment Monday night so our visitors could be at the airport early the next morning. It was a packed, fun adventure as it was as new to us as it was to them. Thanks for the visit, Jennifer and Jessica. Come again!

As soon as we dropped them off, we hurried to the mission home for our monthly meeting with our wonderful mission president and his wife. We are invited to the office meeting each week, so we get the report of the progress of the mission as well as the inner workings of what it does to keep the mission functioning.  It makes us grateful that we can play a small part in relieving him of tasks so he can be more involved in the work of the mission.

We spent the rest of the week looking at the apartments of some of the missionaries in the local area, hauling their junk that has been left by prior missionaries and recycling it. Recycling is a religion here. We understand that much of the electrical power is supplied by the combustible waste which is segregated from plastic, metal, glass and other recyclable materials.

Saturday we were invited to Elder Clouse's birthday party. The office elders and APs had created a video and the sisters had passed a birthday card around for people to sign. The Clouses are very popular because of his humor and her calm demeanor as well as innumerable other virtues. They even prepared pork steaks, biscuits and gravy, and cupcakes. Olivia and I made a pinata of a Swedish fish and filled it with gottis (candy) which delighted the young missionaries. Like most of my pinatas,  it took a jackhammer to break it open, so when one of the elder's pounded it off the twine, they took off the blindfold and one threw it to another who batted it like a baseball and it finally broke open. They all gathered up the candy like Mexican children and then wore the pinata like a hat.  Great fun.

  [Elders Halterman & Johanson]   [The birthday boy at age 66]        [Sister Trotter takes a swing]

[Elder Chugg and the broken pinata]

Wonderful time in our little ward today. They are implementing the Self Reliance program in small groups in the ward, so the bishop asked if we would facilitate the English-speaking group. We got to know many of the ward members better and to look confused by the language. One of the sister missionaries can interpret almost a fast as the speaker can talk, so Sacrament Meeting is a little less confusing.

In all, a wonderful week. We love and  miss you all and hope your lives are blessed and happy.  In reviewing Elder Nelson's talk today I was reminded that we have the privilege of knowing joy in all our circumstances. We do find joy in our service here.

Comings and Goings

We had a week of comings and goings. On Tuesday we assisted in welcoming the new missionaries at the airport and shuttling them from there to various destinations. It was especially good to see the two we had met in the MTC. We took several of them to the migration registration and were able to get ourselves registered even though the last time we tried it we were turned away because we didn't have an appointment. It just depends upon who you ask, I guess.

Parking here is a challenge; especially true at the migration office. I ended up driving to a mall nearby and parking in the covered parking, promptly getting lost trying to walk back to the migration office and walking my legs to the knees. Finally, I saw a familiar billboard only to realize that it was familiar because I was walking in a circle. After asking for directions, I managed to get back to the office in time to register and haul the missionaries to old Stockholm.

In old Stockholm there are lots of photo opportunities, but not much time. They all got a picture of the 3 Kroner City Office building shown in the background here. No one seemed to know the significance of the statue they gathered around, but it was picturesque.

They had a nice lunch at the YSA center in downtown Stockholm, then off to the mission office where they slept through a safety video about driving mission cars. They were so fun to watch as they fought off the effects of jet lag and lack of sleep and stayed so positive about their future here.

Now it is Wednesday and I am trying to wrap this up before Sunday comes around again and I will be even more behind.

We had a great experience watching General Conference, as I am sure most of you did. The testimonies of the speakers were uplifting, interesting and powerful. We watched the Saturday morning session on Saturday evening at 6:00 PM. Sunday morning we watched the recorded Saturday afternoon session and then, after lunch I watched the Priesthood session while Olivia watched the General Women's Conference. We then watched the Sunday morning session at 6:00 PM. On Monday we needed to take some things to the Elders and Sisters in the Uppsala area, and found that they were planning to watch the Sunday afternoon session that day, so we invited ourselves to watch with them. They had planned to have breakfast on Sunday morning with the members who came to the church building, but someone else had prepared a meal, so we had breakfast with them before watching the last session - at 4:00 PM! It was great fun. We were all cheering at Elder Rendlund's talk. He purposely pronounced Göteborg in Swedish, rather than Anglicizing it. By the way it is pronounced ewe-teh-bory, just like it is spelled ;).

Watching these amazing missionaries makes me want to be like them when I grow up. They are organized, fearless, happy and they speak the language. We took a pair of sister missionaries back to their apartment after a meeting. One has been in the country less than a month and her trainer has been out 12 weeks. They both teach and practice Swedish on one another. They told us that after being in the country 2 weeks they could understand everything their investigator was saying and that within a couple of weeks they could comfortably converse. One of the elders we watched conference with came out the week after us and is already teaching in Swedish. They are bold and God blesses them for it.

Our friends, Elder and Sister Clouse, happened to be in Uppsala the same day showing their daughter, son-in-law and grandson the sites. We joined them at the Domkyrka (pronounced dome-shir-ka, just like it is spelled). It is the largest cathedral in all of Scandinavia. Much of it is ancient and many of Sweden's ancient luminaries are buried inside it. It is awe inspiring in so many ways. Behind it are several runes with ancient writing on them from the 11th century.  There is a lot to see in this country.

We are officially in the country, having received our Migration cards. Today, we applied for our personnummer (like a Social Security Number - they always ask for your personnummer) and when we get that number, we will be able to apply for a Swedish ID card which is best of all. They do love their bureaucracy.

Today was a milestone. I drove all over the city and did not receive a single honking horn from someone I had somehow offended! Parking here is done with a shoe horn. The spaces are so little and it takes major maneuvering to get into and out of them. As a result, I put the first major scrape on the front bumper of the mission vehicle we drive. Trying to get out of a parking garage, I didn't see a concrete abutment and left some blue paint on it. Ugh! I thought they would fire us and put me in a desk job, but the office staff just shrugged it off.

Well, I'll sign off for now. We are loving our mission, especially working with these inspiring missionaries. We hope all is well with all of you. You are in our prayers and we appreciate that so many of you have told us that we are in yours and your children's prayers. We are truly grateful.