Good bye for now Sister Schlünz

July 20, 2017

Good bye dear Sister Schlünz! I had just written about her in my last blog post about "Going home" and indeed she passed away peacefully early this morning at the nursing home. She experienced no pain as she had been promised and at last is reunited with her dear husband who she has lived without now for 19 years. She was 93 years old and very ready to go home.

How does one get so close to somebody they have only known for 7 months and do not speak the same language? That is the blessing of serving a mission...we have the time to visit regularly and can be available at a moment's notice. She welcomed us into her apartment where she had lived for 60 years when we first arrived here. I was so impressed by her friendly, open nature and loved her laugh and her twinkling eyes.

A few months later when it became necessary to go into the nursing home, she did so without complaint, knowing this was the next step and she would be taken care of. She would always say that Christ was with her to comfort her.  She had a roommate and was on a waiting list for her own room but again, never complained. We visited her every Sunday, and she would pat the bed and have me sit there while Gentz sat in a chair and did all of the talking and she would pat my hand and smile and I just continued to love her more and more with each visit.

Finally she got her own room and was so happy to welcome visitors to her little table with water and fruit, once again being able to play the host. Germans are so hospitable!

Then she fell and broke her elbow, having to go into the hospital for a couple of weeks before she could return to her little room. Upon her return, it was obvious that she did not have long to live, and so our weekly visits turned into daily visits. What a gift that was to be with her even more and see how gracefully and peacefully she was accepting these next steps at the end of her life. 

We were certainly not the only ones to visit her as she had so many friends and those who loved her from our small branch (congregation). They had been with her for years..she was like their "Oma" (grandma). She had served faithfully in various callings in the church. 

On one of our last visits, Gentz asked if she would like for him to read her a scripture and she asked for Alma 37:37 from the Book of Mormon: "Counsel with the Lord in all thy doings, and he will direct thee for good; yea, when thou liest down at night lie down unto the Lord, that he may watch over you in your sleep; and when thou risest in the morning let thy heart be full of thanks unto God; and if ye do these things, ye shall be lifted up at the last day." What a perfect scripture for her  and how well she lived that!

She was a missionary for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints from  1947 to 1949. It was a very difficult time for all Germans especially in East Germany where she lived and served. Nonetheless, she faithfully served and rode her bicycle everywhere, depending on the goodness of other members the church to feed her. As she said, she often went hungry as nobody had any money after the war. 

And so, we say farewell to a dear soul who certainly left our lives and the world just a little brighter because of her sweet, gentle spirit. She was unassuming, not wanting a fuss to be made over her, just to be quietly buried next to her beloved husband in the beautiful wooded cemetery near the nursing home. Thank you Sister Schlünz, for loving me even though I could not speak German. For loving so many people in your quiet, mild manner. As we left her room yesterday evening, I kissed her forehead as I always did and said, "Ich liebe dich Sister Schlünz" and the last phrase we heard her say, was to reply: "I love you" in a sweetly accented English and a smile. 

I look forward to hearing that throaty laugh and seeing those twinkling eyes someday when I cross through the veil to the other side where all languages will be the same. And I hope I can be just like you as I bid farewell to this life. Auf Wiedersehen, dear dear Sister Christa Schlünz! What a glorious resurrection awaits you!

Going Home

July 18, 2017
 This week was full of “going home” for  18 young sister missionaries and one elder that we were fortunate enough to be part of in Freiberg. 

It is such a blessing in this mission that when missionaries go home, they  spend a couple of days with the mission President and his wife in the lovely old  town of Freiberg. They are fed delicious meals, attend the temple and go to the special place of Radebeul overlooking Dresden. 

It was here that President Monson, an apostle at that time, rededicated the work of the Lord in East Germany. He promised that they would have the blessings of the temple….the opportunity to be sealed as families, something they had not been able to have up to that point because a whole family could not leave East Germany…someone always had to stay behind.  That was just one of many freedoms that they did not enjoy. Miraculously the Freiburg Temple was built ten years later in 1985 in East Germany before the wall came down. To think about that, it would be tantamount to any Christian church being able to go into North Korea today. Nothing is impossible with God!

It is a lovely spot, with trees and benches and a view of the Elbe River Valley. We all stood together and those lovely missionaries sang “Come ye fount of every blessing”, read the dedicatory prayer President Monson had given and said a prayer. Then we stayed for around 15 minutes, just to experience the quiet reverence that is found there.

Being in the temple with the young missionaries was a wonderful experience. Afterwards, we all went to the church right next door and they had a testimony meeting where each one shared what she/he had learned on her/his mission. They had invited friends to attend and some family members had traveled over to Germany to accompany their daughters home and tour a bit. Those were wonderful reunions to behold. They had not seen their parents for 18 months with only speaking on Mother’s Day and Christmas via Skype, so many tears were shed and hugs exchanged and bright smiling faces all around! 

Our wonderful mission president President Fingerle and his dear wife

I was so impressed by their testimonies. I will share about just one…Sister Ha who is from Korea. She played a beautiful piece on her viola: “Nearer my God to Thee” and it was as if the heavens were opened as she so skillfully and masterfully expressed her testimony of the Savior through her instrument. She later shared how hard her mission had been and how she came to depend on the Lord more than ever before. She was the first Korean to ever serve in Germany She knew no English when she came, so had to learn English AND German!  She felt a cultural  pressure to perform well because of this. I don’t imagine that anyone was putting pressure on her..I would say that was from within, but it certainly did endear her to all of us. 

This meeting was all in German, and those of us who wouldn’t be able to understand were provided headphones and our own Elder Skidmore translated beautifully for us.  We would not normally have been able to go have this wonderful sacred experience until we leave ourselves but because of Gentz’s association with Sister Föger who is deaf and her companion, we were invited to be a part for which we were just thrilled. Freiberg is about 5 hours from Rostock, so it is quite a trip, but always worth it to be able to attend the temple. I felt so very grateful for these treasured experiences we are having and that we are in a 

mission that has such a lovely farewell for their missionaries.

With the subject of going home, I don’t think a person ever witnesses these joyous family reunions without thinking of how joyous it will be to move onto the next life and be reunited once again with our family members…our mothers, fathers, children, ancestors who have moved on. What a glorious day it will be to see them all again! Right now, we are sitting daily with our dear Sister Schlünz who I have written about before. She is 93 years old, broke her elbow and is now back in the nursing home just waiting to die. It shouldn’t be too long now as each day she seems to sleep more and more. But she is peaceful, she eats a bit of chocolate once in a while like a good German and often chats and smiles and laughs. I want to be just like her when I am old!! She says that Heavenly Father promised her that she would die without pain and she is ready to go…to meet her husband and her stepson who died before. She is such a faithful soul. When I asked her on Sunday’s visit what she had learned during her long life, she said: “To forgive. Don’t take offense. Give your problems to Jesus Christ. Then she shared a quote by Goethe: “We should live our lives so that the world  is a little bit brighter because of us.” I can say that Sister Shclünz has certainly done that. When I leave her room, I kiss her forehead and say “Ich liebe dich Siste Schlünz” and she says in broken English: “I love you!” I am so grateful to have been able to know this dear, wonderful woman and to have been a part of her life for just a short time.

So, life is good here. The weather is beautiful. The scenery is stunning. The people are kind once you get past the tough exterior and my testimony grows every day that Heavenly Father loves his children everywhere. Prayer works and draws us closer to that Perfect being who has a perfect plan for us! Life is short, so very short, and I hope indeed that all of us can say no matter when we are called home that we can leave the world just a little bit brighter. Tchüss

Why we are serving.

June 19, 2017

 
Well, as of June 12, we have been here for 6 months serving a mission for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter  Day Saints here in Rostock Germany where we were assigned.  We are here as well as over 70,000 other missionaries serving worldwide at their own expense because ..........WHY? It may seem crazy...young men and young women putting their educations and lives on hold for 18 months to two years to serve in another area other than where they live. They don't date, they don't call home, they get up early and go to bed early and they often times learn another language. They wear suits and ties and dresses all day; they get doors slammed in their faces, they get ignored, they get made fun of, they get yelled at. And what about us "Senior" missionary couples leaving the comforts of our homes, our beds, our communities and hardest of all our children and grandchildren to also serve in another area, dressing up, sometimes learning a new language and living in a small apartment getting used to another culture? Why do we do it? And before I make it sound all bad, it isn't! It is wonderful! It is astonishing and we all enjoy the adventure! And Gentz and I happen to be in one of the most beautiful spots on earth we believe! But let me try to explain why we are really here.

We are members of the LDS (Mormon) Church, which has no paid ministry, no paid youth workers, organists, teachers, secretaries. Instead, from an early age, we are given the opportunity to serve and teach being assigned"callings". In the words of Clayton Christianson, a Harvard Professer: "Because we employ no professional preachers, it means that every sermon or lesson in church is given by a regular member – women and men, children and grandparents. This means that we have the chance to learn from everyone – people in all walks of life who are struggling in their own ways to follow God".  So we are used to serving. We love it. We grow from it. I can't count on both hands how many times my husband along with other men and women in the church showed up to help a family move in or out of their house. Heavy pianos. Appliances. Cleaning out cupboards. Is it a sacrifice? Often, yes, but what we gain is so much more than it can hardly be counted as a sacrifice. The time we give comes back to us tenfold and the love we experience as we work together fills our souls. We grow as we serve. Mormons serve...that's just what we do! "The strong help the weak, and the weak help the strong, and nobody thinks about who is weak and who is strong. It creates an extraordinary spirit of mutual love, because as we work to help others who are in need, our love and respect for those we help intensifies." Clayton Christiansen  

 

And ultimately, we all do it because we love our Lord Jesus Christ and want to help Him build His kingdom here on earth. He is the perfect example for us. What He went through was very hard...he suffered, died and hung on the cross so that we ...you and I could all have eternal life. He suffered in the Garden of Gethsemane, bleeding from every pore, so that He would know how to help us as we went through our trials and challenges and problems in this life. Because of that, we can never say..."No one knows how I feel." He does. What peace this can bring a grieving heart! When we cry out, He is there. He is the living Christ. And so, out we go. We leave our homes, our families, our educations, our comfortable lives to go out and serve. To teach. To heal broken lives. To love. To tell whoever we can that they are children of God and He loves them. That is why we are here. And on days when it gets hard, we remind ourselves that someone much greater than us also had a very hard mission, but He drank of the bitter cup that was His alone and did His Father's will. 

We take seriously the admonition to go out into the world and take the knowledge of the Savior and His gospel to all of mankind. "Feed my Sheep" He said three times to Peter so long ago. As modern day disciples, we too desire to feed His sheep wherever we may be sent or even where we live. We love Him and we hope to somehow through our service  be able to say, Thank you! Thank you for all that you have done for us and now in some small way, we hope to be able to pay back part of that debt we owe you. And oh, the love that is here. The rich experiences! The people we meet! The trials that we see! The triumphs over adversity! The overcoming! The blessings!! The growth!! We thank God every day for this opportunity!

This is why we all serve. This is why we are here, in your neighborhoods, on your streets, in your corner of the world. So, when you see one of these missionaries..old or young take a minute to shake their hand. Look in their eyes. I promise you that you will only see love and a desire to serve. And maybe, just maybe you might want to take a few minutes to hear the message that they have. They've traveled a long way to deliver it.

"Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me." (Matthew 25:40)

Imperfect though we may be

April 27, 2017

Sunday during Sacrament Meeting, I was playing the "organ" as the ever so talented Sister Albrecht was traveling with her husband. I hit my sour notes here and there and cringed at my ineptness, but continued on of course. My dear sweet Gentz was conducting the meeting in German as he does every week because his counselors (who are German) don't feel comfortable doing it yet. He never feels like he is getting the language completely, and freezes up on some words. He keeps doing it week after week of course. Then I was sitting there listening to the talks via the translating headphones and Elder Benitz, young German missionary was translating as best he could (tough job). I looked over at him and he mouthed, "I'm sorry, I'm doing the best I can"! There all three of us were, imperfect in what we were doing, but continuing on. It was another lesson to me of how it is only Satan who gets on us when we aren't "perfect". With the Savior, He is right there, encouraging, loving us for making the effort and inspiring us to improve. I was once again filled with love for my Savior and gratitude for the fact that we are loved in spite of all of our imperfections. We are not only loved, we are given the opportunities to overcome, to be made stronger and to be MORE as we apply his enabling power in our lives.

I recently re read this experience that President Faust shared in General Conference that  thought applied here. He related the following story of a little boy whose mother purchased tickets to a concert featuring the great Polish concert pianist Paderewski. He explained:

“The night of the concert arrived and the mother and son found their seats near the front of the concert hall. While the mother visited with friends, the boy slipped quietly away.
“Suddenly, it was time for the performance to begin and a single spotlight cut through the darkness of the concert hall to illuminate the grand piano on stage. Only then did the audience notice the little boy on the bench, innocently picking out ‘Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star.’
“His mother gasped, but before she could move, Paderewski appeared on stage and quickly moved to the keyboard. He whispered to the boy, ‘Don’t quit. Keep playing.’ And then, leaning over, the master reached down with his left hand and began filling in the bass part. Soon his right arm reached around the other side, encircling the child, to add a running obligato. Together, the old master and the young novice held the crowd mesmerized.”

President Faust then summed up the story with this lesson:
“In our lives, unpolished though we may be, it is the Master who surrounds us and whispers in our ear, time and time again, ‘Don’t quit. Keep playing.’ And as we do, He augments and supplements until a work of amazing beauty is created. He is right there with all of us, telling us over and over, ‘Keep playing.’” 

The Apostle Paul bore his own powerful witness that the Lord’s grace strengthens us in our weakness, as we read in 2 Corinthians: “And he said unto me, My grace is sufficient for thee: for my strength is made perfect in weakness. Most gladly therefore will I rather glory in my infirmities, that the power of Christ may rest upon me” (2 Corinthians 12:9). 

Ah, He is making more of us than we  could ever make of ourselves, isn't He? In the words of CS Lewis, we just wanted a cabin, and He is making out of us a Palace. Above all, He loves us...we are His work and His glory as is everyone on earth. I hope to continually improve and help a few others along the way. I hope that wherever you are in this journey of life, that you just keep on playing, keep on enjoying your life, loving yourself in spite of your imperfections and know that the Master is always nearby, appreciating your efforts and making you equal to the task. Just don't quit!! Keep playing!

Easter Week. Etc.

April 19, 2017

Easter Monday is a holiday over here in Germany. The day after Easter, no stores, banks, or schools are open and people just enjoy the day, often going out for a stroll. Back in the older days, they used to have an Easter parade, but now not so much. Several members of the church and the missionaries and  Gentz and I went on an "Easter walk" along the beach in Warnemude....and we had to wear winter coats, as Spring here is rather chilly and windy, but it was a fun morning! Apparently here with this group the custom is to get some Danish ice cream when finished with the walk:)

 Warnemende is always delightful to visit; it is  right on the Baltic Sea Coast and people are  strolling about and street musicians and "statues" abound like this one with Gentz. It's a charming village and a popular stop for Cruise Ships.

 With our young missionaries on the pier...yes, we have "civilian" clothes on as Mondays are our preparation day and not too much fun to walk on the beach in Sunday clothes:))

                          This is a view of Warnemunde from the top floor (women's bathroom) of the Hotel Neptune. 

                     

Speaking of ice cream and desserts, Gentz and I wanted to host a dinner for those who have nowhere really to go for Easter dinner, and since our apartment is too small, we had it at the church. I'm so sad that we didn't get a picture, but it was such a fun event...Daniel from Ghana was there, Vladimir and his sweet family from the Ukraine, Ignacio, our new move in member from Mexico, Bodo, a German from our English class that meets on Tuesdays, the missionaries and us. Vladimir's sweet wife, Nadia made a lovely Chocolate Torte for which I was ever so happy about as I made some no-bake cookies, that should have been called no "set up " cookies! I'm sure you've all made them..so easy..sugar, milk, oats, nutella, drop them on wax paper. Well, mine just wanted to stick to the paper and after I had frozen them to try to undo the damage and put them in a container to take to church, they were just all glopped together. But we all had a good laugh about it and I went around with a spoon and plopped some no bake cookie on each dessert plate next to Nadia's cake. We had such a good time, we would like to do that more often..minus the no bake cookies. Gentz had made his famous rolls in the shape of a big bunny...his rolls just don't turn out so great over here. Our oven is very small and doesn't heat evenly, so we think we are done with those as well and besides, there are so many bakeries with lovey rolls, why bother? 

If any of you have good recipes that are easy and feed a crowd, send them my way. I looked up German potato pie by Rachel Ray and made it for the missionaries last week but it wasn't so great either. I think I'm just going to have to stick to barbecued pulled chicken and pork and Italian Beef. Good grief! 

Friday night, we had a real treat. Yes, I cooked again..this time a chicken broccoli casserole but they don't have regular cream of chicken soup over here, so I had to put something together like it. It turned out all right and we had our little neighbor Katharina over. WE got to know here through the window across the street. I nicknamed her "Clara" when we first moved here and I think just looking over at what she was doing (usually studying, as she is studying to be a doctor) made me feel less lonely for my sweet daughters. Finally, we waved after a couple of months, then we met her on the street, found out her real name and invited her over for dinner. As seems to be German custom, she brought over a lovely plant as a gift with a darling little card she had drawn attached to it. She is only 18, lives about 6 hours away, loves to dance, play the piano and draws the sweetest little pictures. She was just a delight and spoke good English..I think we will be fast friends. We like to think we help her be a little less lonely when she looks out the window and sees us and our lights as well.

Today we said goodby to our young missionary, Elder Keller. He came to Rostock the same time that we did, so we have 'grown up " together. He is such a dear, dear young man and we will miss him! We feel so blessed to be able to share in this work with these young men and women and are so humbled and inspired by the good work they do day in and day out because or their love of and devotion for the Lord. Their work is not easy but yet they don't complain. They get transferred to another area in the mission every three to six months. Gentz took him to the train station where he will travel for 7 hours to get to his new city and we will receive a new missionary to be companion to Elder Benitz this evening. 

 Elder Keller's "favorite" chair in our apartment with the Apple Shorla that he loves (Apple juice mixed with sparkling water)

                              Elder Keller with Bodo and Sigrid, two "Rostockers" from our English Class

I am grateful for the lessons we are learning over here and the nearness of the Savior that we feel; I know He is aware of each one of us and we can receive that "peace which passeth all understanding" as we turn to Him and seek His help and His enabling power. It was so lovely to reflect a little more than usual on the sacrifice that He made for us so that we can all live again someday on Easter.  I gave a talk in Church Sunday about being united with those we love who have left this earth, and for those who suffer so with infirmities in this life. All tears, all grief, all pain and disappointment will be wiped away as we join with the choirs above who sing Alleluia! to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Ghost! I'm so grateful for the knowledge that I have that this life is temporary and that we are eternal beings. From a talk given by Elder Clayton in the latest General Conference he stated: "Because of God's holy plan, we know that birth and death are actually just milestones on our journey to eternal life with our Heavenly Father. They are essential parts of our Father's plan - sacred moments when mortality and heaven intersect." How very true!! And again, from a Church Leader, Neal A. Maxwell, "Death is a comma, not an exclamation point! Because of what Jesus did that Easter Sunday so many years ago, this is true.

 

Have a wonderful Spring wherever you might be! 

The Prince of Peace

April 7, 2017

Find peace in a troubled world by learning more of Jesus Christ. This Easter season, learn principles of peace from the #PRINCEofPEACE. at Mormon.org. The theme "Prince of Peace: can help us each implement eight core principles of peace into our lives (faith, compassion, forgiveness, repentance, gratitude, scripture (God's word), prayer and hope) and draw closer to the Savior. From the words of Isaiah 9:6. "...and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counselor, The mighty God, the everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace."

Peace is something we all search for in this world of ours today. There are wars everywhere, rumors of war, countrymen disagreeing with one another over political and religious views, families quarreling and the hearts of men failing them. Where is peace?  Jesus Christ said in Phillipians: My peace I give unto you; not as the world  giveth give I unto you, but the peace which passeth all understanding." I love that..the peace which passeth all understanding.  It is there...always available for us. We can have peace in our lives no matter the news. No matter the illness. No matter the death of a loved one. No matter the disappointment we may suffer in business or financial matters. No matter the betrayal of a spouse. No matter the addiction of a child. No matter how lonely, frightened or sad we might feel. There is peace. That peace which passes all understanding. All of men's understanding. All of my understanding. And all of yours. So, stop what you are doing. Turn off the news. Take a few deep breaths. Tune in to your heart and your soul.There are several other great videos representing those core attributes on Mormon.org...I've posted  one of them here.... Compassion... about a family whose child died of a brain tumor and what they did to deal with their grief and help others. Have a lovely Easter Week filled with Peace!