Perhaps something we have not mentioned too much about Ireland is the history. Ireland, perhaps more than most European nations has been repeatedly threatened by war and hard times. When we see the ancient castles and stone walls that surround buildings, it was not because they had an abundance of rocks, nor because they wanted towers for their Rapunzel to let their hair down, but they were built for protection. As far back as the 1200's with the invasion of the Vikings, Ireland has had to protect themselves, sometimes successfully winning and sometimes not.
Random bit of interest: Speaking of Vikings, we asked some YSA friends about a member of the Church in one of the small branches who does not have the clean cut appearance of most of the Saints, (he has a very scruffy long beard and long straggly hair)yet his family is so typical and he seems to have a great testimony. Even though we don't like to stereotype anyone by their appearance---and we see lots of variety here, this was one time we were glad we asked. The answer was, he is a strong and active member with a great job in IT, but his hobby is theater, and he is a extra in the movie series that apparently is widely successful, named "Viking", that is being filmed here in Dublin. So he has to keep his rough appearance during a long filming period.
So this week we have had quite a few times when we thought about the violence this land has seen. On Saturday we went to Glendalough again with a few YSA to make further plans for the big convention coming up. It is a beautiful, very old mountain retreat with a great little round 100 foot tower from the 1200s. The tower door is 12 feet in the air with one window out in every direction. Grandchildren question: Why is this so? 1. Because the people were very tall giants, with very long legs and 12 feet up was just one step. 2. So that Rapunzel could let her hair down from the front door and make it easy for her prince to come up. 3. To keep out the violent people who would come and steal and kill, and they had to let a rope ladder down to get in and out. 4. To make sure they did not get wet when the nearby lake flooded. How did you do with the question? The real answer is #3. :-)
Another time we saw the effects of war was when we took our friend from Romania for a Saturday evening walk through the park, called St. Stephen's Green. It is a famous park and beautifully landscaped and clean. It has many points of interest markers throughout the park, but all of them having to do with war. One sculpture is a memorial to the potato famine days of Ireland in the l840's when England landowners were in control of the land, with the Irish basically working as slaves and not permitted to eat the potatoes that were in storage, to the point that people died by the thousands. Another sculpture was in tribute to the Irish who had helped the German refugees in WWII. And many other interest points were of "the Rising" when Ireland declared its independence from England in 1916 (the 100 years being celebrated now.) It was sobering to think that the city was a city then too, and that the buildings with bullet holes in them indicated the reality of the severe revolution that took place here.
And today, June 6, is D-Day. Our Mission President writes a letter every week and today he shared some insights about this, the largest seaborne invasion in history, which began the liberation of German-occupied northwestern Europe from Nazi control, and contributed to the Allied victory on the Western Front. It was one of the most complex military operations ever undertaken, with 160,000 troops crossing the English Channel on a single day, accompanied by hundreds of warships and aircraft. Recently, a penciled plan written by General Montgomery a month or two before the D-Day landings was published for the first time. The plan was titled "Most Secret" and boiled down to a single piece of paper. It breaks down the armed forces into separate sections, lists the special armored vehicles to be used, and ends with this profound statement: "The keynote of everything is to be SIMPLICITY."
In citing this story, President Donaldson showed parallels with missionary work:
"As we wage war on our spiritual opposition, let us remember that Lucifer is the author of complexity. Our daily plans ... must stretch us but remain simple and within our extended grasp. We can do hard things. A few missionaries still believe that missionary work is hard, and that we can't baptize thousands in the Scotland/Ireland Mission. In Ecclesiastes 11:4, we read: 'He that observeth the wind shall not sow; and he that regardeth the clouds shall not reap.' It is sometimes a difficult thing which is required of us, but when the going gets tough the faithful simply move up a gear."
What a wise and spiritual mission president! We love and appreciate him.
We have had another interesting experience this week. We have been working with an investigator from Zimbabwe who spent time in South Africa and eventually ended up in England as a refugee. He is very bright and well-educated (MBA), and has been in management positions in large firms and had his own business for awhile. When political persecution made it too hard for him to stay, he immigrated to Ireland to find work, and was introduced to the Gospel. We started working with him through the Self-Reliance program, and have had such a wonderful time getting to know him better. After our Self-Reliance presentation in Belfast last week, we were approached by a member of the congregation who has made a lot of money over the years as an entrepreneur, and who now has a desire to create business opportunities for those in need. We immediately thought of our South African friend as someone who could benefit from such an opportunity, and we drove our friend to Belfast and got the two together. The connection between them was immediate and exceptional. Today we sat with them as they worked out the rudiments of a business plan together, and it was wonderful to see their "play it forward" approach to the whole thing. They want to create something that will bless as many lives as possible, based on Gospel principles in a business setting. If someone had told us 6 months ago that we would watch as faith-based entrepreneurism was being put into practice, we would have told them they were crazy. This mission is taking us up paths we would never have dreamed of.
We have had some choice and spiritual experiences, but we also have had a good amount of fun this past week. Friday night we had a fun table games night again, which helps the immigrants feel accepted and like they have a family. Our trip to Glendalough on Saturday with two YSA leaders was really fun. On the way home we stopped at a beach town and had lunch and then a short walk along the beach with gelato cones while we talked about plans for the convention in July, Sunday we had a mix of meetings, ending with a YSA Broadcast Fireside---where nobody wanted to go home until late! Today, (among other harder work things) we were invited to a ward party (where we have been doing the Sunday night class). The party was because it was a bank holiday---and it is summer. It even felt like it! They have some Polynesian families who roasted a pig and they had lots of fun food, games, and visiting. It is surprising to us how many of the ward we knew--and love. Then tonight we had our fun English class again. These students are so smart and so wonderful--all Brazilians tonight. One girl is an investigator and again we can see the gospel light changing her. She is really beautiful.
So you see another week has passed and our hopes to be able to be busy and helpful have been a pretty good success. We cook a lot for a variety of events and are having more success with the climate and recipes. Sometimes people ask us about our grandchildren and they wonder if they (the grandchildren) miss the treats we used to cook for them. One thing we can say for sure is that we miss the grandchildren--and then people know we truly love the gospel and the Lord since we are willing to be gone from our family and serve a mission. Perhaps that is the best message we can give. We DO miss the family and friends and always keep you in our prayers, but we are grateful to have the opportunities that we do to share our faith and testimonies in so many different settings and ways.
We love your letters and support and hope that you are all well and happy. Stay strong and faithful in all things.
Love,
Grandma and Grandpa, Mom and Dad, Lanette and Lynne
The suet ball that hangs from the flower pot will get eaten in one day by the many birds that come.
The yard looks bare here after they took down the trees, but we have been cleaning it up and planting some and will share pictures later.
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