FreibergTempelMissionAshbysAufgabe

May 19, 2017   We were so excited to finally be on our way to serve our first mission together

Freiberg Germany Temple Mission

It seems like we had been planning and working on the preparation part for a very long time. We had been in Sandy loving and caring for my Mom until February of last year. There were many things to take care of after she was finally able to join my Dad. I know she is delighted that we've come. Second on our mandatory list was to celebrate the graduation of our last "child" from university. We were so thrilled that May 5 arrived with that wonderful event! Sooo...

After several days of temple training, May 15-18, in the Salt Lake Temple, we were ready to fly to our German assignment on May 19. Thank you, David, for the last morning's pack finish and for the drive to the SLC Airport to begin a very long flight direct to Amsterdam.

World Map Vision - Beginning to End

We waited for 8 hours to join our flight to Dresden, Germany, and then we were picked up by the most wonderful people - our Mission President and his wife, Gunther and Anneliese from Austria. We immediately felt as if we were being adopted into a caring family! They took us to the only grocery store open after 10 pm in Freiberg and helped us wander through many unrelated aisles and unknown foods. Shopping complete, we were driven "home" and shown where we would live on the third floor largish studio apartment for several very warm months. Sister Erlacher insisted that we take our things upstairs (he, of course, helped us upstairs with our rugged  international luggage) and then join them for a late "supper" before bedtime - warm soup with hand-made Austrian gnocchi.

Good Night, Moroni

After a good night's sleep, we were excited to open our eyes to the beautiful Angel Moroni beckoning people to the temple. I have heard from several sources that many people who live in the neighborhood feel that they are safer with this holy house and it's angelic guard.

We will be living in missionary accommodations for many months. There are several English-speaking couples who live here together with many German Temple workers - some of them who will be here for a year or so, many who come to work for only weeks or months. It's a great meeting place for lovely neighbors in a very warm, third floor hallway as we whish through on the way to our morning temple prep meeting.

Two Burners in the Middle

Freezer Shelf Tops Refrigerator

The apartments are of various sizes with various furnishings. They are all very new and carefully maintained. We have been living in a larger studio which is sometimes used as a more temporary home for those not staying as long as we will be. We will probably be moving into a little larger place in August when another couple leaves for home. We have one closet half size for us to share - a little tighter even than our smaller master closet at home. We have a complete kitchen with two electric burners, a microwave and a smaller refrigerator.

 We began with only one desk, but as our date for moving became later, they were kind enough to bring in a separate table with a chair for us. It's wonderful how many family names researched in the SLC in the Library as we served there on a CSM Mission have now been finished and prepared for their work on these two flat surfaces!

 Work Space in Front of Beds

Our two beds are in the center of the room - Lee must be able to put his extra foot in length some place - I'm not sure where. We are able to pick up clean bed and bathroom linen each week as we go downstairs to use our 1/2 day in the laundry for our belongings - we begin after our 3 pm temple assignments are over. Our Friday assignments last until 9 pm. It has been a wonderful place to live. Even though it's been in the 90+ temperatures up here, we are delighted to have a fan we probably run most of every day and night. We'll include a couple of photos of the next apartment after the August move.

In the beginning, we were able to walk in only minutes to a small neighborhood grocery for our daily food needs. We had to remember not to buy too much - the delivery "mule" balked with more than few things to carry in our purchased reusable bags - Sarah, you'll be proud of our bag usage! We have now been able to rent a car, and so we are able to purchase a few more things - still carried up three flights of stairs at the end - and not have to walk over every other day. We do go walking in the afternoons or evenings after we finish our temple work day. It's a pretty long day - if glorious. Imagine, I'm being alarmed to be up tat 5:45 am and preparing for our 6:58 am prayer meetings. It's been wonderful to be asked to lead the music each morning. There are so many wonderful musical testimonies shared every day.

6 AM Moroni Greeting

Yes, you saw the designated morning time reference! The preparation time includes a quick "run" to the temple through a wonderfully cool tunnel first down and then up three flights of stairs. There's not much time wasted in deciding on which temple clothing to wear. The Dansko and Alegria shoes I brought for my plantar fasciitis and the long standing in the temple are close to walking 10,000 steps or more each day! Thank goodness for that help. I am so thankful for replaced knees -  no way could I be serving here, three flights of stairs down and up (I often show daily 15 - 16 flights of  stairs) or in standing in the temple from 7 - 3 each day. Such blessings!

Because Lee worked so regularly and diligently memorizing ordinances of all kinds in German in the Draper Temple, he is able to assist our patrons using their own language. Speaking as a 50-years-ago German major, that's amazing! Many of the words we use therein are not often learned or spoken in daily German life. I'm still working hard! (A couple of times I've been asked where I learned my English - that's what you ask a native German speaker.) However, when we have many Czech, Slovakian, Hungarian, and Bulgarian guests, some of whom drive pretty rough roads to arrive a in total of 20 - 30 hours, they prefer English ordinances, so we are able to help there a lot. Of course, many Germans also speak English well, but they aren't comfortable or don't prefer to do that. For us, however, it's a great opportunity to review our ordinances in English. I often think of the United Nations of languages as I move from one close booth to another, from German to English and then back again. This temple is an amazing magnet for much of Eastern Europe plus Germany. The Frankfurt Temple has been closed for a long time now, and it doesn't seem apparent yet when it will re-open. That means that we receive many Germans and Austrians with their groups.