Week 6

Our week began in Dresden, to where we had traveled with missionary neighbors for stake conference. Rather than drive back and forth both Saturday night and Sunday morning we decided to stay overnight nearby where the church is located, attend our meetings, and go exploring Sunday afternoon.  The location was both convenient to the church for our meetings and to buses and the train station (Hauptbahnhof). 

Pension 107, Dresden

The pension was charming in its hosts, the room, and the breakfast each morning—a typical German frühstuck with boiled eggs, a meat and cheese platter, herbal tea, and heavenly bröchen. I never buy these hard crusty rolls since I have little self-control but when we stay somewhere else I indulge. Well fed, Sunday morning we walked to the church for our conference session and really enjoyed the wonderful talks (thanks again to excellent interpreters) by our new temple president and matron, a just released long-term early-morning seminary teacher (who had taught for 19 years), and the stake patriarch. 

Dresden Stake Center

I especially appreciated the concluding talk given by our young stake president, who took as his theme Paul before King Agrippa wherein the latter said following the apostle’s ringing witness of faith “Almost thou persuadeth me to be a Christian.” The president then cautioned us as saints not to be as King Agrippa—“I almost got to the temple this week”; “I almost visited my home teaching families this month”; I almost responded to the promptings of the Holy Ghost to help someone in need” . . . and so on. It was a riveting reminder that faithfulness requires more than almost, if we are to become as the Lord would have us.

Opa's little friend, Sara

While we listened John enjoyed a sweet little hand resting on his shoulder from a little girl standing on her papa’s lap just behind while she quietly listened. He hardly dared move for the hour for fear of having tiny Sara’s hand withdrawn, so cute she was. Meeting her family afterwards he found they were down from Berlin—a long drive to attend.

Großgarten across from the church, restaurant behind

After our meeting and goodbyes to many we recognized for their frequent visits to the temple, we walked across the street and through the park to have a bowl of soup before seeing a little of this great old city. The day was a perfect fall day, warm enough that we ate outside at the restaurant, though well bundled in warm coats. We couldn’t have chosen a better weekend to have our Dresden getaway.

Fall-time lunch--we were bundled but it was beautiful

We bought bus tickets to head into the Altstadt and climbed aboard only to discover 10 stops later we were going away from rather than toward the city. Like many mistakes, however, it just added to our adventure, since we saw some charming suburbs we would have missed. Finally, however, we got turned around and boarded a bus heading back into town.

Frauen Kirche

Because our energy is a bit limited, when we are in a new place we often take a city bus tour to provide us an overview of the whole and pinpoint where we want to return should time permit. Once in town we found just such an excursion (with head sets providing English) and enjoyed the 22 stops both in and out of town.

Zwinger Dresden Schloss

Before World War II, Dresden was called “the Florence on the Elbe” and was considered one of the world’s most beautiful cities with both architecture and art treasures. During the war, however, it was almost completely destroyed by massive bombing raids that took place on the nights of February 13–14, 1945, by an Anglo-American force. 

Elbe River View

The raids obliterated much of Dresden and killed thousands of civilians. Over 25,000 perished. The city continued to be bombarded in raids lasting until April 17, 1945, but little was achieved militarily.

Restored Altstadt

 The city was so badly damaged that it was suggested that the best approach might be to level the site. Fortunately that wasn’t done and the Zwinger, the Saxon royal palace, was rebuilt and the Baroque buildings around the palace were also restored, or rebuilt, preserving as far as possible the character of the old city. We were glad it was. This remarkable city figures so much in early church history in East Germany. We have read (and wept) at many of the stories of those early saints who suffered through this difficult period, yet who had triumphed over the hardships during and, for many years, after the war.

Returning home by train

Monday morning we returned home to quiet Freiberg. John and I both enjoy traveling by train, especially German trains. The trip cost 7.20 Euros each and only took 26 minutes. We spent Monday afternoon doing laundry, cleaning our apartment, and preparing for our week ahead.

Tuesday morning at 6:30 we joined all the other missionaries and the presidency in a birthday tradition, this one at the door of our neighbor, Gerry Meyers. Flowers, cake (or fruit), and song were the order of the morning before John and I left for the temple to get started on making the schedule for Wednesday’s work, we prepare a day in advance. We are becoming a little more comfortable with this assignment after having a week’s worth of planning under our belts. 

Early-morning birthday fun

Tuesday was my first opportunity to conduct training for the sisters in our morning prayer meeting. I had originally planned to train in German, which John had kindly translated for me, but I had little time to really learn what he had prepared and besides I realized that several of the English speaking missionaries don’t understand a lot more German than I do and the training was as much for them as for the German workers so I had Sister Metzner (1^st assistant to the matron) translate for me as I taught in English. It worked out well and hopefully will have a positive effect on the work we do as we better remember that each person we perform work for in the temple is a sister who is receiving these sacred ordinances for the first and only time—whichever side of the veil she is on. She deserves the right to hear the words spoken in a reverent, meaningful way.

Thursday, John and I worked with a couple, newly called as temple workers. The sister, spoke about as much English as I speak German (sigh) so my task was interesting. I trained with the matron as my interpreter. It all worked out well, thanks to Sister Husz’s graciousness. She is a wonderful person and we work well together since we see eye-to-eye on the training needed. It is admittedly a little odd to have the Oberin (matron) working so closely with training but we do what it takes to get the job done.

Thursday evening we had a joint FHE with the missionaries in the missionary room downstairs from the apartments we live in where a message was given by one pre-assigned couple before we presented a PPT to introduce ourselves since we were unavailable to do so the first month we were here.

Friday morning I had been assigned the spiritual thought in the joint pray meeting and again had Sister Metzner translate for me because there was simply no time to learn it in German. I felt it was an important message, based on I Nephi 3:6—“And thou shalt be favored of the Lord because thou hast not murmured.”

I had been thinking how important that little verse is in each of our lives, especially when changes are made around us. It is so easy to grumble a little when we don’t like something going on, and one can occasionally find oneself inclined to murmur.

The temple endowment portrays for us a pattern of harmony between our Father in Heaven and those to whom He delegates. Nowhere in the process of the creation, the garden, or the world is there anyone—except Lucifer—who is not “one” with the Father’s plan. No one objects or complains that they don’t like what they have been asked to do. Rather each willingly “goes and does” and cheerfully “returns and reports” under proper direction. I love that pattern and hope to ever more fully come to respond in like manner with anything I am asked to do, that I too may be favored of the Lord.  

Forest bike ride

Our week ended Saturday by our having early-morning opening of the temple. I always enjoy doing so, besides we get off early and enjoy that too. The day was cold and crisp but when we got home rather than going down for a needed nap, we opted to take a bike ride through a nearby forest Pres. Metzner had shown John. It was delightful and we came back refreshed—then had our nap!

Have a wonderful week. We plan to.