JANUARY 2 - FEBRUARY 20, 2018 FREIBERG, GERMANY

TEMPLE GROUNDS IN FEBRUARY

     I haven't posted a blog for a few weeks because it has been a slow time for us.  Our Winter snowfall has been way less than normal.
Last year about two feet of snow was on the ground in Freiberg.  January and February were full of snow.  This year we have a skift occasionally, and it is usually gone the next day.  The good thing about that is that we are able to still go outside and take a walk without worrying about slipping on the ice.


     We have had some beautiful full moon evenings.  The temple looks beautiful with Moroni shining, brightly lit up by the temple lights and the moon.  Notice how green the grass is!

MORONI AND THE FULL MOON

 











In Mid-December we turned in our two door car and were able to lease a four door Nissan turned in by a released
missionary couple, the Freemans. It is nice to have a little extra room, but the trunk space is still very small.  It's okay for just the two of us, and our occasional passengers, but for a family, or for much luggage, the space is quite limited.

OUR NEW FOUR DOOR NISSAN

Bill has found something  to do with his time  when we are not in the temple.  He has had a lot of enjoyable hours putting puzzles together.  He got a puzzle of Neuschwanstein Castle from Lanette for Christmas.  That got him started, and from there he has done puzzles of ships, Paris' Eiffel Tower, a toy store puzzle, and one other.  He is still working on the Eiffel Tower. Sometimes another missionary will stop in and they work together on the puzzle.  The hours he has spent doing this in the temple missionary room are about the only times we are not together.  It's good to have a place to go when we need a little space,

PUTTING TOGETHER THE EIFFEL TOWER - 1000 PIECES

or a change of scene from our one room apartment.


     In January, another missionary couple came to serve in the Temple with us.  William and Ruth Ann Parker are from Highland, Utah.  They both served as missionaries in Germany in their youth.  They later dated and were married.  William is a retired OB-GYN doctor, and Ruth Ann is the mother of 10 children.  She was a temple worker in the Mt. Timpanogos Temple for several years before coming here to serve.  The Parkers are our next door neighbors, and we have enjoyed

WILLIAM & RUTH ANN PARKER

getting to know them and introducing them to Freiberg, and the legalities involved in coming here.  Last week, Ruth Ann was hospitalized for three days with what they thought was a small stroke.  It affected her speech for a few hours.  She is now back with us, and all the tests seemed to show that she is okay.  We are so grateful.  She is a lovely person.


We attended two baptisms this month.  The first was the baptism of three men from Iraq, who came to Freiberg as refugees.  Included, are a father, his son, and a friend.  They speak Arabic, and we have missionaries from the Berlin Mission who have learned to speak Arabic.  The baptism and Holy Ghost talks were done in Arabic, and translated into German for the rest of the people attending.  These brothers have done baptisms for the dead in the temple, and are being taught German by the sister missionaries serving in our Branch.  It was an interesting baptism.

   

LOGAN GETS BAPTIZED

 The other baptism was of the eight year old son of our Branch President, Dario Dzierzon.  His name is Logan, and he is a sweet little guy.  I played the piano at his baptism because I am the Primary pianist.  The  Primary children all sang the "I Like To Look At Rainbows."  It was a very lovely, well attended baptism.  Logan's Mother is Trisha Dzierzon, and she is from the United States.  She saves my life in Primary by telling me in English what pages the songs are on, etc.  I am very grateful for her.  She and Dario met when they both served in the same mission as young people.



     We American missionaries tried to celebrate Valentine's Day here, but we kind of failed.  We were all going out to dinner together, when Brother Parker came out of their apartment and said his wife was having trouble being able to put her thoughts together to speak.  Bill and Brother Parker gave her a blessing and  then Larry Bonner and her

VALENTINE'S DAY AT OUR APARTMENT

husband took her to the hospital.  We also found out that we couldn't get into the restaurant we wanted to go to, or any other place, because they were all booked up with reservations.  So, we ordered pizza, and Bill, Ellen Bonner and I went to the missionary room to eat our pizza's and watch the movie "Australia."  It wasn't a very hearty celebration, but we did remember the day, and I can say that I am very thankful for "MY VALENTINE, BILL."    The German people don't really celebrate Valentine's Day, but you do see Valentine's decorations in the stores.


     Thursday, February 8th, the temple was full of about 17 Berlin Germany Mission missionaries who were attending endowment and sealing sessions before being released to return home.   They are called "finishers."  The Mission President and his wife bring them to the temple, take them out to a nice restaurant for dinner, they stay in a hotel,, and have a special testimony meeting in the chapel.  Bill and I were invited to attend this meeting by Sister Jennabee Wacker, who is soon to be released.

SISTER SHEFFIELD & SISTER WACKER - SUNDAY DINNER

She served in Freiberg for a while, and we had her and her companion into our home for dinner several times.  Sister Wacker and Sister Smith, played their violas in the testimony meeting and asked me to accompany them as they played "A Child's Prayer."  It was beautiful with the harmony of the two parts.  Jennabee is a talented viola player.


     Yeah! another missionary couple has come to serve in the Freiberg Temple.  Gordon and Kathleen Lindsay arrived last Saturday.  They are from Provo, Utah, where Gordon recently retired as a Professor of Public Health at BYU.  His wife, Kathleen sang in the Tabernacle Choir for 7 1/2 years.

GORDON & KATHLEEN LINDSAY

I think she is a talented musician.  Right now they are experiencing jet lag.  They served in the temple for  four months in Provo before coming here.  Kathleen is really into genealogy research, and has found many, many of her German ancestors.  She and her husband both speak some German.  We look forward to getting to know them better.


     Bill and I are presently Baptistry Coordinators.  The past two weeks we have been super busy in the baptistry.  The children in Germany have been out of school for two weeks for winter break.  February is, also, a month where they celebrate "carnival" or "Fasching."  It is a combination of what we know as Mardi Gras, and Halloween.  The children dress up in costumes like we do at Halloween, and I guess many of the adults drink lots of beer.  One Bishop brought his youth to the temple on the day of Carnival, to get them out of the atmosphere  that prevails during this celebration.
     We have had many groups of youth, Young Single Adults, & whole families come to do baptisms.  The countries represented are Austria, Germany, Russia, Poland, The Czec Republic, Croatia & Hungary.  Bill and I go home very tired some days, but are so happy for the many baptisms that are done.  I enjoy being in the baptistry, but you do work hard cleaning up.
     SERVING HERE IS STILL WUNDEERBAR!

NEUSCHWANSTEIN CASTLE - 1000 PIECES

MIGHTY SHIPS - 500 PIECES