March 16, 2014

Looking east across the Duna (Danube) to St. Stephen's Basilica.

Again this week we visited more organizations:  Bethesda (a children’s hospital), a home for the visually impaired operated by nuns, a children’s home (for children who need to be removed from families for various reasons), and a home for the disabled.   There are always many needs in these places, so we will be submitting requests this week.   We are very impressed with the people who direct these facilities and care for those who live there.  And in each home, they are very well kept by those living there – very neat bedrooms and common areas.  They are taught well.   At our visit to Bethesda Hospital, we mentioned our US well-known Bethesda Hospital in Maryland.  He told us there are Bethesda Hospitals in Germany and Holland (probably other places as well).  Did you ever know this name came from the healing pool of Bethesda in Jerusalem?  Bethesda means ‘house of mercy’ or ‘house of kindness’ in Arabic or Hebrew. 

Wednesday we attended Zone Conference for most of the day.  We were blessed to hear from President Klinger (‘best stake president in Hungary’ says our mission president – he’s the only one), President and Sister Smith and Elder and Sister Dyches (from Europe Area Presidency). (We met Elder Dyches a couple of years ago when we were in Reno, NV.  He was Chris and Marjie’s home teacher and stopped by to give them some dinner rolls he had just made.)  The theme was teaching with the Spirit.  A few thoughts from the day:

• It is not so important what you say to investigators as how you say it – radiating enthusiasm and happiness.
• We need to help and teach people to find happiness.  If they are not baptized now, they will be much closer to accepting the Gospel later.
• The Holy Ghost is as important to man as sunshine and water are to plants. Take the Holy Ghost away and our church is no different than any other church.
• A convert commented, “The Holy Ghost is like an old friend who had guided me in the past, but has now come to stay.”
• We attend church every Sunday to partake of the Sacrament, renew our covenants and feel the Holy Ghost.
• Baptism is not the end, it is the beginning.
• Elder Dyches told the Parable of the Oranges:  a young man working in Arizona was hoping to be promoted in his job.   However, when an opening came up, another newer employee was promoted.   The first employee asked why.  The supervisor told him, “My wife needs some oranges for a party, please go buy some.”  So the employee returned in about 15 minutes with a bag of oranges.   Then the supervisor asked the promoted employee to do the same thing.   He returned in 30 minutes with 2 bags of oranges.  He had called the wife to see what kind and how many oranges she needed.   She told him her recipe called for a mixture of tart and sweet oranges and she would be serving 30 people.  So he asked the grocer and the two kinds were suggested.  He also asked that since he was buying 2 bags, could he get a better price – and did.  Any question why one was promoted over the other?   This had to do with doing the job with real intent.
• Excuses never produce results.
• We are accountable for what we have been given.
• President Eyring has said, “I know when I teach by the Spirit; I always learn something.”
• “Without the Spirit, no man can know the will of God or that Jesus is the Christ.”  President Joseph F. Smith.
• You will know through the Spirit why you were called to this particular mission.

Saturday, March 15^th is a Hungarian holiday – anniversary of the 1848 Revolution.   Stores were closed.  We walked with President and Sister Smith and Elder and Sister Bagozzi (the office couple) up to Castle Hill. All the way up were fun crafts, Hungarian artifacts and much food to look at, admire and even taste.  It was a bit like going to Swiss Days in Utah (but cooler and fewer people).  

Chimney Cakes --  pastry dough being cooked over charcoal.
They will be rolled in cinnamon and sugar, nuts or seeds.

  

 We saw the outsides of the Royal Castle and Royal Palace – the complex for Hungarian kings completed in 1265. Castle Hill is famous for its medieval, Baroque and 19^th century buildings, many still private residences.  Streets were all very old cobblestone.  We watched the changing of the guards at the Presidential Palace, saw groups in period costumes, went into the Hungarian House (a meeting and cultural place), saw medieval ruins, enjoyed the panoramic view of the city and generally walked around with all the people there for the holiday.  The photos and commentary are below, and we will go back on another day to see inside the buildings.  We arrived home in the nick of time as the day turn blustery and very chilly.

Medieval ruins on Castle Hill

He didn't flinch a muscle!

St. Matthias Church, site of coronations and weddings, over 700 years old!

Looking across the Danube to Parliament.

One of 7 turrets symbolizing the 7 Hungarian tribes that arrived in the Carpathian Basin in 896!

Fisherman's Bastion (Square), built to commemorate fishermen who protected 
the city100 years ago and now a favorite overlook.

I finished two great books this week.  One was Elder Neal A. Maxwell’s biography.  I saw it in the mission home when I got here.  You can imagine how wonderful that book was – learning all about him and his life as he progressed toward discipleship, which was the theme of the book.   I first knew about Elder Maxwell when he was the Church Commissioner of Education.  I had no idea about all that he did before that call – politically, educationally (at the University of Utah} and on general Church committees and assignments.  He was amazing!  Of course I would recommend this book.

The other one I loaded on my Kindle to read on the 3-hour train ride, Life’s That Way, by Jim Beaver. This is a true story about a couple (both actors) in CA, married for 10 years before being able to have their daughter.  When she was two, she was diagnosed with autism and two months after that the wife was diagnosed with lung cancer (non smoking type).  This is his (mostly) nightly emails for a year to family and friends through this journey.   It is well written, insightful, sweet, tender, helpful to anyone on this type of ‘journey,’ and very wise.   You would probably know the actors he mentions, but I don’t watch those TV shows.  I only knew a few.  I also recommend this book.

This evening we were invited to dinner at another couples' apartment.  Once again, we are grateful for ours. We did have a very enjoyable time, however.  

We had a 'aha' moment in our reading this week -- that 'enduring to the end' is one of the fundamental doctrines of Christ.  Of course we need to endure to the end, but hadn't thought about it as a principle of the gospel (it's not in the 4th Article of Faith).  That is why the purpose of missionaries is to "invite others to come unto Christ by helping them receive the restored gospel through faith in Jesus Christ and His Atonement, repentance, baptism, receiving the Holy Ghost, and enduring to the end."   It says it right there!!!!

March 9, 2014

Our daily path

As we walk down the hill each morning to wherever we are going, the following are some typical sidewalk scenes. 

Each day this week we met with a president/representative of an organization –the Blind and Impaired Association, the National Disabled Association (in two locations), a children’s hospital, and a foundation that coordinates needs/donations for other charities. So we were on the go. 

Thursday was a 3-hour train ride to Nyiregyhaza on the eastern side of the country to the Disabled Association.   Our interpreter was thrilled; she had never been on a train so new and nice. And it came with an ‘in flight’ movie – Frozen – on her laptop in English!  (Good movie with a nice message.)  The president and the handy man picked us up at the station, drove us around town to see it a bit – newer and less congested than Budapest.  We discussed their needs, they showed us their facilities and then the handy man took us to a place for lunch and waited for us to eat (he had already eaten) so he could take us back to the train station.  

  

We learned that the handyman is retired and works there because “his three children were all healthy and he wants to give back.  Not everybody has healthy children.”  He was an auto mechanic and now repairs everything and when something can no longer be repaired, he uses the parts to build things for the disabled people to use – such as a rickshaw, a peddle car – so that they can participate in activities, games and competitions (they promised to email pictures, but haven’t seen them yet).  They displayed lots of trophies.   There are good people helping everywhere.   

 

On our way back to the station, we noticed a nuclear power plant right at the edge of town.  And, they told us the Lego company is building a large Lego factory there, which will surely help their unemployment situation. 

We have some more appointments this coming week, and we need to prayerfully make some decisions if and how we can help these organizations and now submit some project proposals.

We both took the plunge this week and got our hair cut.   We chose someone who could speak English and I showed her a picture and told her what I wanted.  I have a good cut, but it is exactly opposite of what I told her!  

Saturday we were invited to ride with the office couple missionaries to Eger, a town to the northeast a little over an hour away.  They were going to look at an apartment for rent for missionaries, and it was a new town and experience for us.   The land is very flat and the fields are beginning to be green.  As we neared Eger, there were acres of very neat vineyards, along with many very small (10’ x 12-14’) summer homes where people live in the summer and take care of their fields and crops. 

We walked around Eger – the town Centrum (center) was all a walking plaza.  The day was beautiful, so it was very pleasant.   

Sidewalk tables outside of (guess what) restaurant

We had lunch and then went to a Marzipan Museum.  No, there was no candy!  There were several rooms showing the amazing artwork of this master confectioner, Lajos Kopcsik.  The last 16 years of his 60-year career he has focused on confectioner arts – a few are shown below.  They are made to look like a banjo, pillows, apron, clock, Russian dolls, or a Baroque room, but they are ALL made of marzipan/sugar (painted with tempera paints)!  He is internationally-acknowledged, a Guinness record-master confectioner and has a room full of awards to proof it.  Fascinating!  

Marzipan miniature of a 600-year-old Turkish tower in Eger.

Full-size room all made from Marzipan including the floor.

On the way out of town we saw another nuclear power plant near the freeway.  

Today after our block of meetings at the Pest Ward, we had a Linger Longer – a potluck lunch.  I just found out last night that I needed to make something and since I had bought a bag of apples, I made my mother’s Knobby Apple Cake recipe – complete without  vanilla and nutmeg which I discovered I didn’t have after it was all mixed up. It was fine and one member gave me a ‘thumbs up’ after he ate it.  That’s my favorite dessert recipe.  And speaking of recipes, I tried a new one today -- potatoes and celery root (very plentiful here).  It was very yummy.  

Yesterday was Women’s Day, a holiday here where men are to give women flowers. We learned that it is actually an international holiday. Did you know? Flowers were for sale everywhere the last two days.  Stands are set up at bus and villamos (street car) stations, on the squares – along with those selling books, belts, bras, panties, pussy willows, embroidery or any other item they think tourists might buy. Also, in the (underground subway) metro stations, besides the permanent stores, there are always other wares for sale or in this case, a musical band of Romas (Gypsies) -- Hungary's version of a mariachi band. Their music was actually very fun. 

All is well here.  We love you all.  The Gospel is true and we are so grateful for it.

March 2, 2014

Our interpreter, Timi Rusz, and the director of one of the shelters, Eva Toth, with a donated washing machine.

Minden jo’ itt Budapesten.  All is good in Budapest. 

We had visits this week to the four locations of a temporary family in crisis shelter to which appliances were donated.  The appliances are small, apartment-size because that is the size the families will probably have when they leave the shelters.   These families are assisted to find employment, share in the care for the facilities inside and out, follow schedules for use of the common areas, pay some for their stay and generally learn skills that will benefit them when they return to living on their own.  The buildings were very old, but we were impressed with the cleanliness and care given to them by the families.

Erika Urban and Elder Miller with donated refrigerator.

We had a very nice visit with Erika who on her own started the homes several years ago.  She and her colleagues are providing a wonderful and needed service to these families in crisis; and they were all very grateful for the appliances and mattresses. 

In one location the children presented us with a poster –‘ koszöneük’ (we thank you) surrounded by their signed hands.

On the way home from the last visit we stopped to see Hero’s Square – statues of famous men who made their mark on Hungarian history. 

We also walked past the Liszt Academy and stopped to pose with Mr. Franz Liszt himself. Can you see how big his hands are? Good thing he was a pianist.

After a busy week, on our Saturday P-Day we went to visit Szent Istevan’s (St. Steven's) Basillica. This is the oldest Cathedral in Budapest, and one of the three tallest buildings in the city. Now the law is that no building can be higher.

We climbed the stairs to the top of the dome where we could walk out for panoramic views of Budapest.  It was a beautiful day; I only took a picture on one side because the sun was too bright on the others (fairly bright on this side, too).  Budapest is an architectural paradise.  You can see the old along with the new.  In the back, you can see the Parlaiment buildings. About the center is a black glass, modern building.  We walked there, the Bank Center, housing such companies as Citibank, the Bank of China, other banks,  several investment companies, and Amgen Pharmaceutical.

From that area we walked around in the ‘high rent district,’ and passed the US Embassy, which has fences and guards.  I could only take a picture from across the square.  (We actually pass several embassies in our neighborhood on our walks, but they don’t have fences or guards.)

We met two other missionary couples for lunch –Hungarian goulash and bread – on Vörösmárty Tér (Square), the famous, tourist (and expensive) area of Budapest.   Of course, there are several McDonalds, along with two H&M’s, many shoe and clothing stores-- all the name brands and a few interesting ones like Stradivarius, Heavy Tools and Brand Bible.

Afterwards we headed to do some grocery shopping at the Arena Mall (a new place to discover).  It is gigantic!  Perhaps we got a bit carried away since we ride buses and subways to and from.  When we got home we weighed our bags and had 50+ pounds!  And Elder Miller’s Fitbit reported that we had accomplished 20,077 steps for the day!

On the bus ride home, a lady asked us if we are Americans.  We told her what we were doing and asked if she knew the Mormon Church.  “Oh yes,” she said.  “I live here and in Sacramento.  When my boys were growing up they had Mormon friends and I didn’t ever have to worry about them.  The Mormons teach good things.”   We did give her a Pass Along card and our card.  She did not give us her name. Interesting, she said she loves the west – Arizona and New Mexico, especially Silver City. I told her that is where my mother was born, she would be pleased.   She said she went to the mayor to tell him that he should be promoting the sites around Silver City because it is good for tourists.   And now, she says many European tourists go there. 

Today we attended the Buda Ward, which was in Hungarian. Later in the day we went to a ‘program’ (teaching discussion) with the elders as they taught a woman and her boyfriend they had contacted earlier in the week. It was a bit crowded in their home; they only had the sofa and one chair, so someone was standing.  He seemed interested, said they would read in the Book of Mormon and come to church this week.  

We are grateful for the Book of Mormon.  We have just started it again.  We are grateful for the testimonies of Nephi, Jacob and Isaiah -- their witness and teachings of Jesus Christ truly make this book 'another testament of Christ.'