Birthdays, Birthdays, Birthdays, Birthdays

This is Janeal and Dan at work in the woodshop.

Margaret in her garden with newly planted tree, etc.

(I have got to learn how to get these pictures where I want them in the text!)

A little family sidebar…. We are celebrating four family birthdays over these past few days, but because we are nowhere near any of them we can only send our thoughts of love and joy in their behalf. I apologize in advance—I don’t have pictures for all.

First of all, Carl’s brother, Doug celebrates his Feb 3^rd birthday in Kirtland, Ohio. He and his wife, Mary Ellen, are on a mission at the Visitor’s Center there. They have been there for 14 months now, I think. From all reports there are tremendous events happening like the huge crowds that attended the Christmas Crèche displays at the Visitor’s Center and Mary Ellen being able to conduct an all-Faith choir right inside the Kirtland Temple that brought a spirit of beauty and holiness. They both continue to work hard and help great things to take place in that very special setting. Hope you had a super day, Doug. We didn’t forget you on your day, we just didn’t have any means for communication—no phone, no computer, no nothing, mostly no brain due to jet lag!

Next, our brother-in-law, Dan Shaffer is celebrating his birthday Feb 16 in Garland, Utah. Janeal, his wife, is Carl’s sister. We feel a great deal of love for him and for the great happiness he has brought into Janeal’s life. He has been a super grandfather….Holly’s kids have really connected with him. Then there is all that great woodworking that he does. We have been the beneficiaries of his and Janeal’s work. Not only does he do great work with all the fancy tools, but he has taught Janeal how to create and they have made marvelous gifts for Christmas that are becoming heirlooms. Happy Birthday, Dan, we love you.

Next, Feb 17 is my Mom’s birthday. Though she died in 1993, I still like to think of her and my Dad, and Gerard on their birthdays. It is amazing over the years the number of people who for no apparent reason happen to mention her in our conversation. For instance, they might say, “Your Mom was such a nice lady. I always enjoyed coming to your home and seeing the neat things she did with decorating—like the upstairs bathroom having all those magazine covers all over the wall.” For my remembrance of her on this day, from this far away place—I was working out in the garden today, trying to get an understanding about what to do for things that are growing out of control and just what can we expect to have happen here—when into my mind pops the image of the flower garden that she and Dad created on the east side of our house on Yale Avenue. I can remember how many beautiful colors were in that garden and how as a little girl my Mom was fixing my hair and I looked out the window and got that wonderful feeling of “SPRING” when I saw those colors coming up. To end this little thought journey, I want to acknowledge that some of Mom’s talents are showing up in her granddaughters’ talents.

For instance, our daughter, Margaret, our youngest daughter, has created her own beautiful garden just up from the old family home. There are daises, and tulips and, well, check out the picture.

Heidi, our oldest daughter has carried on a flair for home decoration. Her home has wonderful touches of color, surprise, and ingenious uses of materials---like an old screen door touched with color and hung as a picture. Heidi has given us lots of ideas for the homes we have lived in over these past 20 years as well as earning a degree in Interior Design. Hooray for the women and their creativity!

Feb 18 is our grandson’s Sean’s 9^th birthday. He is Heidi and Greg’s 4^th child. Sean has the most delightful personality. He seems to perceive things that most kids do not even notice—like following an adult conversation and then asking a question about why that particular thing is so. He is very creative in his play coming up with creatures and situations that are unique. Then there is his gentle heart. He wants everybody to be happy and knows when someone needs a hug. We are thinking of you, Sean, and send our love and a hug.

Sunrise in the Galilee

Looking from right to left is the sunrise from the back deck of the Galilee Branch House. What can you say about the sunrise over the Sea of Galilee? This unique little lake is 12.5 miles long and 7 miles wide and only 150 feet deep. Its surface is 700 feet below sea level. Mind you, 700 BELOW sea level. I have heard some say it is the navel of the earth. However, the Dead Sea is lowest spot on the planet at 1,385 feet below sea level. We immediately noted that the sky and the lake blend together on an average day so that you can’t tell where the other side is because there is always sort of a mist in the air. That’s because evaporation takes place at a high rate.

Another interesting fact about the lake is its many names.

“The Old Testament refers to it as Yam Chinnereth (sea of the harp) because of its shape. Matthew (4:18) and Mark (1:16) call it the Sea of Galilee, referring to the region; John (6:1) labels it the Sea of Tiberias because of Antipas’ caption on the west shore; Luke (5:1) names it the Lake of Gennesaret (a Hellenized version of Chinnereth). It is called Kinneret in Modern Hebrew.” --BYU Jerusalem Center Field Trip Manual

Also from the Field Trip Manual are these events of the Jesus’ Galilean ministry.

Jesus taught from Peter’s boat. Luke 5:1-3

Jesus called Peter, Andrew, James and John to be “ fishers of men.” Mt 4:18-22, Mk1:16-20, Lk5:11

Jesus calmed the storm on the Sea of Galilee Mt 8:23-27, Lk 8:22-25

Jesus taught parables of the sower, wheat & tares, mustard seed, leaven, hidden treasure, pearl of great price, and the net cast into the sea. Mt 13

Walking on the sea, Jesus bade Peter to come to him. Mt 14:22-33, Jn 6:15-21

Jesus healed the ill and lame who were brought to him. Mt 14: 34-36

Jesus taught His disciples about humility and forgiveness. Mt 18

After His resurrection, Jesus appeared to His Apostles at the Sea of Tiberias. Jn 21

It is just awesome to think that these experiences occurred here and we are beginning to see and understand the geography of those experiences and how they have been kept in hearts and minds of mankind throughout the 20 centuries since they occurred.

As I sit here typing at my table, the windows are open and I can get up and go look at the sea. The birds are chirping and I get the feeling that I am suspended in time and space. But reality strikes! We must get all the windows cleaned before District Visitors on Shabbot which is Saturday. We are deep cleaning all the window fixtures which are clogged with sand, bugs and dirt. There are two large banks of windows, 28 other windows, plus 2 small louvered windows and a glass double door 6x8’. It will great when it is all finished, but right now I don’t want to get up and get at it! Fortunately, both Carl and I are working on it, but we are ready to move onto other projects like seeing if the neighbor will fix his sewer which is running onto Branch property, removing huge overgrown decorative grass, as well as a black mold problem on the upper level ceiling, to name just a few! But are most important other projects are the visits to the Branch members all over the Galilee area which goes from Haifa to Upper Northern Galilee. That, of course, does not take into account the other outreach projects we are discussing with St. Joseph’s School and a university in Nazareth.

Arrival in Tiberias

Arrival January 27, 2010

As we arrived at 9 Hashomer Street, Tiberias this is what we saw. Now here is a little bit about the Madsens.

The Madsen's whom we are replacing are from Hyde Park, Utah area. He was the Dept Chair in Music at USU for a number of years and was the man who hired Michael Ballam. Pres Madsen has also been a Stake President there for a number of years. Sister Madsen is the author of a number of very popular books including I Walked to Zion and Mothers of the Prophets. She comes by her interest in history from her father who was Leonard Arrington, the former LDS Church Historian. We had some interesting talks around the table because her recent book is The Second Rescue: The Story of the Spiritual Rescue of the Willie and Martin Handcart Pioneers. We talked about our experience about organizing the handcart enactment for the Sesquicentennial Celebration held at BYU in 1997 and our experience of going to Martin's Cove to prepare for that event. Sister Madsen gave us an autographed copy of that very book as she left. From this introduction you can see we have some pretty big shoes to fill as we pick up the stewardship here in Tiberias.

This welcome sign was made by the Hansen's, Michael and Ann, longtime members of the branch, who also brought a beautiful pot of soup and some chewy bread.

The next day Carl got up and took a walk, notice the walking stick and the black leather jacket...was cold, but the sun was shining over the Sea of Galilee and he was happy to take it in.

The Madsen’s then took us on a journey to four sites along the north shore of the Sea of Galilee. More about that on next entry.

St. Peter's Church in Vienna

Still in my backflash in Vienna. Heard from our friend Ron Wood, our neighbor when we lived in Edgemont, Provo, Utah, about being in Vienna himself. This is what he had to say that adds some interesting history about that piece of real estate.

"I go crazy for churches like this. I love Baroque churches, and St. Peter’s is a world-class example, the most lavishly Baroque in Vienna. Second oldest church in Vienna, and on the site of the oldest, which burned down centuries ago.

Well, I wanted to tell you a fun story. I’ve only been in Vienna once, just a few years ago. I stepped by St. Peters at night, as they were about to close. The priest was standing at the door with his GIANT keys. (See photo.)

I tried to make a little joke about the “keys of St. Peter,” meaning the scriptural reference to the priesthood keys. You’d think a Catholic and a Mormon could communicate on that issue! But I couldn’t get it just right in German, and he couldn’t understand it just right in English, so he just agreed, “Yes, these are really the keys to St. Peter’s Church.” I knew he didn’t quite get it, but he was pleasant and accommodated my photo request."

Ron, wished we had the picture....

We were so glad we had a chance to regroup in Vienna so that when flew to Tel Aviv it was only a 4 hour flight and we arrived feeling quite good! We were so happy to see Susan and Dean Madsen waiting for us. We so appreciated the efforts they had made to get there to pick us up. For them it meant a 2-1/2 hour to Jerusalem Center to pick up a van. Then another hours drive to Tel Aviv, then another hour drive to Tiberias where The Galilee Branch House is located. It is a wonderful site with beautiful palm trees and flowers with the Sea of Galilee viewable from two different decks of the house.

Second Day Vienna

In this picture we are still in Vienna. Had to prove that we actually did get to taste that fabulous vanilla torte with hot chocolate. Can't tell you how good it tasted.... We were so cold and it tasted so good and warm and wonderful. I wish I had the same thing right now!

This plaque commemorates that Mozart lived in our same hotel for a year and composed ....a...I can't read it now. But anyway Mozart composed and slept here!

Backflash to Vienna

You will have to excuse me as I jump around for the next few entries. I was just able to download some pictures of our stay in Vienna so now you get to see them.

Typical of our style of travel--we bring everything we think we will need and then some! One whole extra suitcase for Carl's equipment for videography. Thank goodness for Aaron who drove us to the airport and took home the overage. Also for the willing van driver at the other end who searched diligently for the Pension Nosseck which was right on the main walkway for the opera circle. Picture 2 is our first breakfast in Vienna in their lovely dining area. I was relieved they didn't serve bangers like they do in England. Instead we enjoyed yogurt, cereal, and delicious bread and hot herbal tea and then headed across the street to attend Mass at St. Peter's church. It was bitterly cold both outside the building as well as inside. How do you heat a stone building that is 40 feet tall and wide and has nooks and crannies with marvelous architectural features that are aging rapidly? We were very interested in the service as Carl has never attended a Mass and it has been 40 years since I have. It was sparsely attended, but we noticed the devout ministrations of the priest and his helpers...don't know what they are really called. The priest did look like Tom Plummer, but he said he had not flown over for the day to make us feel at home. Right after that we caught a taxi to the LDS ward in Vienna and joined the International Branch which was fortunately in English. It was delightful to speak with a high school girl from the Phillipines studying languages here. Carl spoke with another Filipino, Andre, who had just completed a contract with the UN and was going to stay on to get his master's and keep looking for a wife. It was ward conference so the Counselor in the Stake Presidency taught Sunday School and also gave a talk in Sacrament meeting. He is a native Austrian and grew up attending church in this same building. It was such a contrast to see a very historic and grand church in the morning, sparsely attended, but nonetheless devout and then in the afternoon meet in a very functional building with nothing grand in it, but friendly people happily talking to one another and planning for their meetings ahead. As the meeting ended Andre was kind enough to help us get back to our Pension on the subway and we invited to dinner with us so we could talk longer.

Later that evening we attended a Mozart chamber music concert. It was in the salon area of the building that Mozart studied and lived in during part of his time in Vienna. Again we were able to walk to it because of where we were staying. The musicians were very skilled and the ensemble among them helped me hear things I hadn't noticed when I heard this same music at the U of U so many years ago in a music appreciation course. Hooray for the "real" thing!

Cooks Say Shalom to Galilee Branch

Prior to our leaving Utah we attended a temple session with Paul and Connie Cook who were the first couple to inhabit the new Galilee Branch house at 9 Hashomer Street in Tiberias. They send their love and wish they were coming with us. Michael Hansen, a Galilee Branch member and former Branch President, drew this picture. He and his family greeted us in Galilee with wonderful hand drawn welcome posters, balloons and food. The Madsen's, the couple we are replacing, tell us that the Hansen's are one of those special people whose love and service is just a part of their lives.

Shalom from the Holy Land

We are in Jerusalem! However, it is quite a story in getting here. It is one of the stories we will have for the future. Because we used our faulty bathroom scales to weigh our suitcases, our bags were overweight. Fortunately, the airport official at the curb helped us by running to get our tickets while we lightened our load back into our car which Aaron took care of for us. After a delay and a change of planes in Salt Lake, we were not able to make our connection in Washington, DC to Vienna, Austria so we were rerouted to JFK airport where we were received by a pick pocket who took all the American money we had for our hotel! This we did not realize until we were ready to board our flight to Vienna. We did not and still do not know how to report it. I have tried to find a phone number online for JFK security and get the parking lot security. If anyone knows, please let me know. We tried to sleep on the overnight flight, but sleeping is something we don't do very well even under the best of conditions.

In Vienna, we were extremely happy to see that all our bags arrived given the plane changes. We look quite the sight with two huge carts with all our bags. We never travel light and this was no exception, but we just seem to NEED all this equipment. We will post the picture once we learn how. The taxis were happy to see us. Fortunately, we found a company that had vans and though our driver did not speak English we were able to finally find our hotel called the Pension Nosseck which is right in the heart of the "opera district?" This made it easy for walking around and catching subways. It was a relief to flop into bed and regroup for the following day.

Shalom from the Holy Land

Am trying to get this site up and running and have already lost one posting. Still learning....