And so we say good-bye to 2016. We have spent the full year here in Europe and love Denmark and the people here. We have said hello to new friends and have said good-bye to old ones. We have gained new family members and lost others. We have learned and grown and stretched in unimaginable ways with our mission service. We will be coming home sometime this spring, and look forward to the next chapter in our lives, even as this chapter is closing. We will miss most, the missionaries. We serve with them; we laugh and cry with them; we love them. They have blessed our lives. They arrive semi-dazed and glassy-eyed, then over the next few months they transform, sometimes miraculously into confident, trustworthy servants of the Lord speaking fluent Danish. Some we see on a regular basis as they serve near Copenhagen. Others we see at zone conferences or chat with on the phone. So, not a day goes by without interaction with many. (And I was afraid that as an office couple, we would not see the younger missionaries!)
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| Typical Day in the Office - A District meeting and then a place for lunch and to say hello. Small office, many bodies. |
We spend a lot of time with the AP's and the office elders. Outstanding Elders. Office elders are a new thing this year in the Danish Copenhagen Mission. The President wanted the AP's to have more time for proselyting, so called one companionship to spend a day or two a week in the office for one or two transfers. With us. We spend a lot of time with these elders as they help with the transfers, travel, history statistics, and a million other details. They also have a tracting area so have to double up on work. They are amazing! At the end of the year, we had a chance to have four of the six, 2016 office missionaries in one place.
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| Elder Allred (Germany), Elder Fairbanks (Utah), Elder Curnow (Colorado) and Elder Shuppy (Utah). Not pictured, Elder Nelsen (Virginia) and Elder Eaves (Texas). |
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| AP's Elder Murphy and Elder Hartmann - stellar young men. Wander in and out of the office all day - with a purpose of course........... They do a lot of the training at zone meetings. Busy. Busy. |
We ended the year with our last Christmas Zone Conference. Beautiful music and inspired training and teaching on the love of Jesus Christ by President O'Bryant.
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Did I mention that feeding the missionaries is a big part of the Senior's assignment?
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| Must be Santa. You should have seen the clogs..... |
We received hundreds of holiday cards and gifts by mail in the office - all to be sorted, packed and delivered to the two zone conferences. Sjælland Conference missionaries were flooded with gifts, but the van carrying the gifts to Jylland was broken into in the night and most of the gifts were stolen. Missionaries were disappointed, but made the most of it all. Good object lesson...........sadly.
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Sjælland Zone Conference, December 2016
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Another "last" for us was Christmas at Tivoli. We went several times. It is now closed for the season and more than likely won't be opened again until after we leave. A little jewel in the heart of Copenhagen.
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Christmas booths, lights, food, music all in one small city block. And yes, the rides continue rain or shine.
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Christmas with our branch
Our last Branch Christmas party - featuring a table groaning with Danish food, Danish Christmas songs, and dances around the Christmas tree with people who have become such a big part of our lives here in Denmark. Wonderfully generous, faithful, dedicated Saints! The Danish have a word for it: hyggelig. It means a warm and cozy time with friends and family.
Wishing all of you hyggelig and a prosperous New Year!
