Sights and Heights around Luzern

The following is from a daily journal during a June 2015 trip to Switzerland with my wife, Cindy:

Our official Swiss trip tour has begun.

 

Our only full day in Luzern began with a overview walk by our tour guide, Goobi.  It covered much of what Cindy & I had already seen on the previous day, but of course with a Swiss flair in story telling.  

 

The walk climaxed at the Dying Lion monument with Goobi telling of how the loss of so many Swiss soldiers impacted the families in this area.  It was much more peaceful this morning, as the garden was intended to be, than when Cindy & I visited yesterday.

After lunch, we walked to the Lake Luzern waterfront to catch the ferry on the Steamship Weggis across the lake to village of Stansstad. It rained a bit as soon as we set sail, but we had wonderful views of the homes along the water, the hills and mountains, and the other boats plying the waters.

 

 

 

From Stansstad, we went to nearby Stans and boarded the funicular to reach the cable car to the Mount Stanserhorn station. The cable car is a new design, the CabriO, with a second, open air deck above the main enclosed cabin. This was by far the most popular deck on the cable car.  Feeling the wind, smelling the fresh air (and sometimes cows), and hearing the bells of the cattle was quite an experience.

 

 

 

We reached the station, 6000 feet above sea level, but the admiration of the great views had to wait as a thunderstorm moved in just after we did. We ate lunch there, waiting for the weather to clear, and it did pretty quickly.  Later, several of us climbed the path of the last 227 feet to the summit.  The views were awe-inspiring, and ample evidence of the Creator who gave us this beauty.

 

 

We took a longer but less steep path back to the cable car station for more great scenery and lots of wildflowers.  

 

 

 

Two signs along the route quoted two Psalms.  Psalm 66:5 & Psalm 111:2.  Very appropriate.

 

 

This evening, Cindy and I dined at a riverside cafe for a good meal of chicken and fish, then topped off with Toblerone mousse.

 

We were tired, but before bedtime, were entertained by s French horn street performer in the courtyard outside our room.  At 9 pm.  

Tomorrow, heading into central Switzerland.

Zurich to Luzern

The following is from a daily journal during a June 2015 trip to Switzerland with my wife, Cindy:

This morning we boarded the train from Zurich to Luzern, just a quick 45 mins.  Beautiful scenery as we passed by lakes and pastureland.  

 

Our hotel is a short walk from the tran station, or should have been but for all the activities setting up for a festival this evening.  Supposed to be fireworks, too, over the lake this weekend.   With sunset not until after 9:30, that may be late.

We had lunch near the hotel and had a traditional Swiss dish, Rösti: Thick cut hash browns covered with slices of bacon, tomato, cheese, and a fried egg.  Quite good & filing.

We walked quite a bit afterwards, exploring the city's famous bridges, painted buildings, the old city wall & towers, and the must-see Luzern Lion statue.

Of the two famous wooden bridges - the Mill bridge and the Chapel bridge - I'd say the Mill Bridge was my favorite.  The original bridge was built in the 1400s and rebuilt after a flood in the 1500s.  The rebuilt bridge included a chapel for divine protection against future floods.  Seems to have worked, as this 450 year old reconstruction is still in original condition.  It is thought provoking to see and feel the original timbers and wonder how much has changed since these trees were first cut down and the wood shaped in the beams for the bridge.

 

The more famous Chapel bridge was almost totally destroyed by fire in 1993, but painstakingly restored to its older appearance.  A few charred beams and paintings on the bridge have been left to memorialize the fire.

 

We walked through the old city, and after Cindy did some shopping (and buying), we climbed up to the old city walls.  Several of the towers still are accessible, and climbed up those, as well (actually, I did two, Cindy one). The views from the walls of the city rooftops and mountains was great.

 

The tall clock tower still has a working pendulum clock keeping the time and ringing out the hour for the city.  

 

Our last visit was to the famous Lion statue, carved into the side of a cliff in a small park just north of the old city.  The lion is 33 feet long and 20 feet tall, and commemorates the sacrifice of over 600 Swiss Guards who died during the French Revolution protecting the royal family one August day in 1792.  It is a sad but moving statue of a dying lion, fallen on his shield.  Far from home, these men gave their lives fighting to protect the lives of others.

 

Gardens & Chocolate

The following is from a daily journal during a June 2015 trip to Switzerland with my wife, Cindy:

We spent this morning at the Zurich Botanical Gardens, enjoying our last full day (until next week) in Zurich.  Many types of plants & trees...and school groups.

 

 

It is a lovely morning here, and we are grateful for the wonderful weather.

This afternoon Cindy & I took the Sweet Zurich chocolate tour.  It was conducted by Christina, a London ex-pat living in Zurich, and her daughter Rebecca, who is a student in Dublin (how's that for a summer job).  

 

We were joined by a mother from California & her two kids, and a young couple from Pittsburgh.  We started at the Spungli store, famous for their chocolates, but more so for their Luxemburgli macaroons.  We each got to pick one, and that was not an easy choice (I picked salted caramel, Cindy had chocolate).

 

We next window stopped at a store with chocolates decorated like flowers (except for the Dom Perignon champagne truffles).

 

Our next tasting stop was a family run shop, Honold's.  Their specialty is truffles and hot chocolate.  Unlike the macaroons, we got to pick three.  Quite yummy and aromatic!  While there, Rebecca shared with us the history of chocolate and its introduction to European society.

 

Next, we entered "Chocolate Heaven", Aeschbach, another family chocolatier.  The specialties sampled here were truffles with cherry liquor flavored centers.  They also did amazing things with chocolate animals, containers made of chocolate, and chocolate postcards.

 

 

 

Next door was a candy shop, mainly gummi bear type candy, but far juicier.  The lemon and lime slices were like real fruit.  They make interesting presentations with their fruit candy, such as cheeseburgers with fries, pizza, and sushi (chopsticks included).

 

 

We switched to cupcakes at our next stop at a little local store. Good, with an interesting icing ingredient.  But we want more chocolate.

 

But first, another window shopping stop (featuring marzipan Snow White & Seven Dwarfs), then on to our last stop, which happened to be a place we have stopped at twice before.

 

Conditorei Schober has been around for a couple of centuries, and is famous for its hot chocolate (and their mocha is pretty good, too).  This warm liquid delight was our final tasting.

 

It was a wonderful & tasty afternoon, and we're grateful to God for the cocoa bean.

Strolling through Zurich

The following is from a daily journal during a June 2015 trip to Switzerland with my wife, Cindy:

Our third day in Zurich, just strolling, shopping, a little eating. We started our walk down Neiderdofrstrasse, an old cobblestone pedestrian street through Zurich.  Too early for the lunch crowd, many of the cafes were already open for coffee, tea, or hot chocolate.  We stopped at a well known cafe, Conditorei Schober, for mocha (for me) and hot chocolate (for Cindy).  Tucked in a quiet courtyard, we watched the fellow shoppers and strollers along the street.  

 

We visited some of the old churches in the area (we will likely see these again next week with our group, so only stayed briefly).  Grossmunster, the heart of the Swiss Reformation movement in the 1500s, was built in the 11th-12th centuries.  Its twin towers are a Zurich landmark.  

 

 

Fraumunster is across the river and is home to beautiful Chagall stained glass windows.  Nearby they were doing archaeological digging, and it was fascinating to see the excavations uncovering 1000 year old graves and foundations. 

 

 

St. Peter's is the older of the Zurich churches and its huge clock faced tower dominates the old town.  

 

 

Heading back toward the hotel, we stopped at Lindenhof, a Roman era platform, now a park, overlooking Zurich & the Limmat.  A 2nd century roman tombstone of a young boy is at the edge of the park.  Lindenhof is a social gathering spot for outdoor chess, checkers, and boules.  We enjoyed watching both for a while.  

 

Before we finished our walk, we visited the Zurich Toy Museum which features primarily German & Swiss toys from the past 200 years.

 

It was a beautiful day for us, and a good day to enjoy Zurich.

Swiss water all around

The following is from a daily journal during a June 2015 trip to Switzerland with my wife, Cindy:

One of my early international trips included a flight change in Zurich.  As we approached the airport, we circled Rhine Falls.  It was so amazing from above, I had always wanted to see it closer.  17 years later, Cindy & I took the trains from Zurich to  Schloss Laufen am Rheinfall to see the Rhine falls up close.  We took many pictures from the castle adjacent to the falls; and also from observation decks above, next to, and at the base of the falls. We and our cameras were drenched but survived. The sounds and sights of this waterfall, the largest in Europe, were thunderous and amazing.  We even spotted a rainbow below us in the mist.

 

 

 

We took a boat across the river below the falls. The river makes a 90° left here and across the water are panoramic views of the falls.  We had lunch here:  German sausage, bread and fries.  I had a can of purified river water from the Rhine.

 

 

After we ate we walked along the downstream bank of the river, then up several flights of stairs along the shore, gradually ascending to the top of the falls along the riverbank  pathway.  The railway we took to the falls passes under the castle and crosses the river just upstream from the falls.  We recrossed the river here and hiked the other back up the hill to the castle and train station where our excursion to the falls began.

 

 

This afternoon, after the return train trip to Rhine falls, we took a 90 minute ferry ride on Lake Zurich.  The ferry Uetliberg took us along the lake's west side, then crossed to the east side heading back while making 8 stops on the round trip.  It was a great relaxing day, watching the boats, homes, villages, vineyards, and people enjoying the great weather along the shore.

 

 

 

Thoughts at 60

60 years old.  When did this happen?  

It doesn’t seem so long ago that my Dad turned 60.  My first memory of realizing my Dad was looking old was when he was 60.  He was helping me move some boxes and furniture when I noticed - a little out of breath, hair disheveled, slightly red in the face.  I remember thinking, “Oh my.  My Dad looks old.”

And now here I am at 60.  When I look in the mirror, I don't see 60.  Yes, I see the gray hair, but I don’t see 60.  I certainly don’t feel 60 (though some of my joints might disagree).  

But here it is.  And along with it the acknowledgement that the world is not the same as it was when I was younger.  I see the parents walking their kids to the school bus stops.  These adults are about the same age as my children.  Many of my dear friends at church are the ages of my adult children or their spouses, and some even younger.  We play with the babies of friends we watched grow up when their parents and we were younger.

I am a granddad.  Yet when I see pictures of my grandparents when I was the age of my granddaughter, I have trouble picturing myself in their place.  Weren’t my grandparents old?  How come I’m not?  Then I look more closely at the pictures.  They weren’t old in the pictures.  Some didn’t even have gray hair, yet.  They are me, nearly 60 years ago.

What did I dream life would be like at 60?  I do not think I could have imagined the roads my life has taken, roads determined by my choices as well as the choices others made that impacted me.  However, how many of us live the life to 60 exactly the way we first dreamed it would be?  

Many of those I grew up with never made this far:  Mark, Joe Allen, Diane, Candy, just to recall a few.  

I am grateful for the friends I have had for many years, almost as long as I can remember:  Kathy, Nelson, Cassandra, Colleen, and many, many others.  I am grateful for the digital technology and social media that has allowed me to re-connect or reconcile with friends I might have had trouble finding without it:  Mark, Ann, Barbara, Cathy, Janet, and precious others.  

And many of my mentors when I was young are still around to encourage me:  Paul, Ann,  Rusty, Charles, Jeanette, Jack, and Don.  

I am joyful for my dear family - my wife, my children and their spouses, my granddaughter and the granddaughter on the way, my Dad, my sister, the cousins, aunt, and in-laws with me today whom I love with all of my heart.

I miss my family that are not here today, 

particularly my Mom.  She was always the first to call me each birthday.  I am grateful for the way they cared for me and guided me.  I hope, as part of the great cloud of witnesses watching, my life has been lived thus far in a way that makes them proud.

Once, during a hard time in my life, a trusted friend asked how I endured.  When I hesitated to reply, they gently reminded me to not forget my faith in my God and Savior.  I could not have reached this age and where I am today without my faith in and gratitude to my Lord and Savior who has brought me this far and blessed me far more than I deserve on my own.

I am grateful for 60.

 

Beating the Swiss Jet-lag

The following is from a daily journal during a June 2015 trip to Switzerland with my wife, Cindy:

We arrived in Zurich late morning. After a refreshing stop at the arrivals lounge at the airport for a shower and light lunch, we headed into Zurich by high-speed train. Our hotel is not far from the train station on the Limmat River, swiftly flowing from Lake Zurich and beautifully lined with with large trees. From our room we can see the city and the still snow-capped mountains in the distance. 

 

To help cope with the jet-lag, we went over to the Zurich Zoo. The idea was to be out in the fresh air and sunshine as much as possible for a while. However, as implausible as it seems, everywhere we walked felt like we were going up hill. Seriously, at some point you would think you have to start down. 

 Anyway, we loved watching the animals, but even more so watching the children watching the animals. The zoo is a blend of old style animal enclosure, but appear to be rapidly expanding and upgrading their habitats. One of the newest sections is the elephant enclosure, designed with outdoor and indoor areas. One large Indian elephant, maybe quite proud of his massive tusks, seemed to relish jabbing a younger one in the backside. There would be a howl of protest, then they would return to roaming about and eating, with one perhaps keeping a closer eye on what was going on behind him. 

 

It was a good day, enjoying God's creation - the beautiful layout of the zoo and the creatures within, and watching the parents and children as they also enjoyed the day. 

Getting over the holiday hump

2014 Christmas thoughts:

Yesterday I saw a note on Facebook from a friend that this was the 10th anniversary of her Mom's death.  Another friend just lost his wife to a 5 year battle with cancer.  A longtime friend and fellow traveler is coming home after brain surgery on a cancerous tumor.  Their outlook is uncertain.  

I really do understand how hard the holidays can be.  Even in the midst of the season of, what should be for Christians, overwhelming joy & gratitude.  Many years ago my life as I knew it disappeared on the eve of Thanksgiving.  I spent December that year trying to save my sanity, and was without the ones I loved the most for the first time ever on Christmas.  In 1991 my grandfather died on New Years Eve.  In 2003, my Mom died at only 68 in the first week of November.  Six years later, my wife's Dad died one day from the anniversary of my Mom's death.  A year later two days before Christmas, my mother-in-law fell suffering a severe head trauma (she survived that but passed 3 months later from unexpected complications).  Others I am very close to have suffered this time of year - jailed, hospitalized, separation, death - and I have suffered with them.  

Thanksgiving & Christmas can be hard.  It is easy for me to descend into the dark memories.  But our faith in Jesus and His promise that this life's tragedies are not the end has sustained me.  





Thanks to the Promise of Christmas; faith, joy, and hope scatters the darkness.  God bless you and pour out on you a Very Merry Christmas.

Belfast - Choices & Consequences

This past summer my wife and I made a long anticipated trip to Ireland, visiting both countries on the island - the UK province of Northern Ireland and the larger Republic of Ireland.

There was some concern if we would even be able to make the trip due to last-second cold feet by the management of my employer. Good blessings prevailed when they realized someone was going to have to pay for the trip cancellation and neither our trip insurance nor employer wished to cover the loss. Our blessings were multiplied with our daughter, son-in-law, and 4 month old (at that time) granddaughter staying with us for the week just before we left.

We arrived at the Belfast airport early on a Sunday morning, and within 20 minutes of landing we were in the taxi heading for town. Our taxi driver provided us with our first taste of the Irish way of conversing:
   - Us - “Are you from around here”? 
   - Driver – “No, I’m from a little town just north of here”
     (Note – less than 5 miles distant)

Being so early, our hotel room was not ready, so we had a second breakfast at the hotel (first was on the plane) and headed out to explore. The hotel is very close to the Titanic Quarter of town - the area where the offices and shipyards of the company that built the Titanic, Harland & Wolff, are located.

The Titanic Quarter includes an impressive, multi-story museum (as tall as the hull of the Titanic once stood) that tells the story of the lives that built the ship and the human side of the tragedy. But we didn’t spend too much time there because in the Titanic Quarter you can walk amongst and touch the actual offices, shipyard, dry-docks, and other buildings and vessels that were there when Titanic was designed, built, and set sail.


We took a historical, guided walking tour where we peered into the Harland & Wolff drawing rooms where the ship was designed and walked the length of the shipyard where her hull was built and first floated (at the time Titanic was built, Harland & Wolff was the largest shipyard in the world). We saw the massive dry-dock where Titanic and her two sister ships were finished. One of my highlights was touching the great iron dry-dock doors which had been submerged for most of the last century yet still sturdy and impressive today. And lastly I boarded the S.S. Nomadic – the actual tender that ferried passengers, including Margaret “Molly” Brown from the French port of Cherbourg to Titanic just four days before Titanic’s final night. Nomadic has been restored and looks just as she likely looked to the passengers on that spring day 102 years ago. She even sits in same dock where she was built. The restoration included in the 1st class Lounge, a Loo complete with a genuine Thomas Crapper working toilet. And “Yes”, it worked.

While the company which owned Titanic, White Star Line, was of English/American ownership and the crew that sailed the famous ship was nearly all of English nationality, Titanic was built in Ireland by the Irish. For many years Belfast did little to advertise its connection to the great ship – perhaps from shame, perhaps from shock, perhaps embarrassment. It was only after 70 or so years that Belfast seemed to acknowledge its role in the building of history’s most famous and tragic ship. And the building of the Titanic was a role the Irish took pride in. They say in Belfast, “She was fine when she left us.”

In many ways, the reluctance of the Irish for so many years to honor their role in the story of Titanic reminds me of the consequences we all face from decisions we make each day. Usually our poor choices directly lead to harmful, perhaps even tragic consequences. But more often, we are left wondering if the suffering we see around us or to us is from our own choices, or a cascade of many poor choices of which only a few are caused by us.

There are unintended consequences to choices we make. We have to live with that. But we also have to choose how we live with the consequences forced on us by others.

It is true that Titanic could’ve been built better. It is also true its crew could have sailed slower or taken a different course while sailing through high-risk weather and sea conditions. Which decision led most to the deaths of more than 1500 souls?

The Irish in Belfast have chosen to no longer hide from their past but to embrace the good in what they built. The Irish acknowledge that while the ship had flaws, the decisions and work completed in Belfast did not alone sink the Titanic – others made choices that had more significant and direct impact. They have acknowledged their past and have chosen not to bear the shame or guilt brought on by others.

I have made and likely will make decisions with unintended consequences. And I will also live with the consequences caused by the choices of others. My choice will be to acknowledge where I am wrong, seek mercy, and freely give mercy to others.

Overwhelmed

Little Katie,

Welcome to our family, dearest one.  Before you were born, I wrote to you about how I have looked forward to you and prayed for you. I tried to prepare your Daddy that when your Momma was born, she stole my heart, and I expected you would do the same with him.  

I am pretty sure you have.

And from the moment I first saw you, I have been overwhelmed.

Overwhelmed by love and joy.

We saw your Momma a few hours before you were born.  She reminded me very much of your Grandma before your Momma and your Uncle Daniel were born.  It was the first indication of being overwhelmed as I am so proud of your Momma and love her very much.  

Later, we were all waiting for you - Nana, Grandma, MaMaw, and me.  We were all anxious and couldn't sit still with the excitement.  The waiting room played a little lullaby each time a baby was born, and when we knew it was close to your time to come and we heard the music, we all jumped and ran to the hall hoping to see you.  But we had to wait a little while longer.

Finally, your Daddy announced your arrival - Catherine "Katie" Rachel Riddle. (I rememberer when your Momma was born, I walked out to the waiting room where your great-grandparents waited and told them.  33 years later, your Daddy was able to tell us with his smartphone.  Someday, when the next generation comes, how will their arrival be announced?)

We held you the next day, sharing time with each other as well as sharing the joy.  Preciousness in my arms and in my hands.  Overwhelmed again.  

Your Momma liked to be sung to when she was little, so I sang to you one of her favorite songs.  I'm sorry I couldn't finish it, but my heart was so overwhelmed with love and joy that my voice could not continue.  We'll have lots of moments for songs.  

It was such a joy to see you come home with Momma & Daddy, to take you out of your car seat, and to see you in your Momma's arms.

When your Momma and Uncle were born, I can remember telling others that their birth made it a joy to be alive.  Thank you, little Katie, for reminding me of overwhelming joy and love.

We prayed over you and your Momma and Daddy when you came home.  Our prayer to our Father was a thank you for delivering you, a precious gift, for taking care of your Momma while you were born, and for your Daddy who is caring for all of you.  We prayed that our Father will give your Momma and Daddy wisdom, to give all of you those special moments of rest and peace, to send your Momma and Daddy mentors that they can look to, and who will provide wise words and encouragement, and we asked that our Father's blessings will pour down upon your family and will give all of you a multitude of years of joy.

It was hard to leave you and go back home, but God sent me an encouragement from a friend, reminding me of how God has blessed us through you and how you have reminded us of how good it is to be overwhelmed.

Love you, my little one.

Always.

PaPaw

Not the way I would have done it

I haven't travel blogged in a while. I need to change that.

I like to travel (although one of the ironies of this is that I don't like being away from my family and close friends). Fortunately, my wife Cindy likes to travel, too. One thing we have had to consider when we travel is how easy it will be to get around without relying too much on walking long distances or over rough / steep terrain. You see, Cindy has arthritis, and a form that is frustratingly persistent and, at times, almost crippling.

So we plan accordingly. On trips over the last couple of years, we plan rest breaks, if not for both of us then at least for her. Trips over the last two years to Bavaria and England have included times for her to rest, and I will explore a bit on my own.

Alternatively, we break sightseeing into manageable segments - driving or mass transit for a bit, followed by shorter walks to enjoy the sights or villages. This has worked quite well, but took a bit of tweaking to get it right. A few years ago while in Rome, we planned to see the Appian Way and also surviving portions of the ancient Roman aqueducts. The two are on the same side of the city, but required a longer walk than expected to get from one to the other. And it turns out, both the beginning of the walk - the key stops on the Appian Way - and the end of the walk - the aqueducts - were both near the Rome mass transit system. We could have broken this day into two even more manageable segments. Needless to say, Cindy was not very happy with me at that point of discovery. But it has led to better planning since then.

Where am I going with this? Sometimes what I end up doing is not the way I would have planned to do it.

Much of our travel includes historical sights. We have seen the amazing results of plans and prayers fulfilled - the Coliseum, the Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, the canals of Amsterdam. On a recent visit to Italy to visit a missionary friend, I stopped at the Bologna San Luca Basilica. In one part of this church (and I have also seen this in other church buildings around the world) are "thank you" tiles or bricks. These are placed there by pilgrims or parishioners who are thanking God for answered prayers. They read something like, "Thank You, Jesus for answered prayers," "Thank you St. ____ for prayers answered in the past and in the future," or "thank you for interceding on my behalf for answered prayers." They approached God with a want or desire and received what they asked for.

But history is also full of monuments to unfulfilled wants and unfinished plans. Battlefield monuments to lost causes and dreams. Memorials to executions and tragedies. Cemeteries. One cemetery in the Cotswold region in England got our attention because of the sadness reflected on one the grave markers. It was a statue of a woman laying on the grave of the one she loved, a look of disappointment and a look on her face of longing for never to be fulfilled dreams. Prayers not answered the way they would have wanted them to be answered.

Recently I heard a preacher, Patrick Mead, speak on how we handle prayers and when they are not answered the way we want. He spoke from John 4:46-48 - "As [Jesus] traveled through Galilee, he came to Cana, where he had turned the water into wine. There was a government official in nearby Capernaum whose son was very sick. When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged Jesus to come to Capernaum to heal his son, who was about to die. Jesus asked, “Will you never believe in me unless you see miraculous signs and wonders?”" (NLT)

Patrick noted that the official didn't appear to be coming to Jesus to follow him but only for what he could get from Jesus - a healing for his son. I understand that - there are few prayers I offer to God that do not include prayers for God to heal my wife and take away her pain. And it is frustrating because I do not understand why Cindy has to hurt, or as Patrick said, "Why doesn't God run the universe the way I think it should be run."

The fact is, from what I learned from Patrick's message, God is more interested in the lives of Cindy and I, and how we live it than in the physical condition of my wife. I understand that, but it doesn't mean I have to like it. The reason God isn't moving like lightening when I pray for something is that He isn't panicked. I'm the one who is panicked. While I am certain that pain is not something God is putting on us, healing of the body is not one of God's highest priorities. Healing of the spirit is.

Right now, Cindy is recovering from a cold and I am trying to avoid a seasonal sinus infection. In his talk, Patrick asked why few of us are upset that God has not answered prayers for a cure for the common cold? Yet, sometimes when I pray for a cold to heal and find it doesn't right away, it can be a bit disappointing. So imagine the frustration when I pray about Cindy's arthritis? A college friend is being treated for cancer - What about cancer? Another friend was laid off at age 65 - What about jobs? Another close friend is married to a loving spouse who is addicted to prescription drugs - What about physical addictions?

God is not panicked.

And so, Cindy and I plan and live our lives with what we have. We live our lives, not as memorials to what we do not have, but as monuments to how God has blessed us.

Mother's Day

I am a Facebooker. And over the last few days, many of my friends have "challenged" each other to post a picture of our Mothers in honor of Mother's Day. I have mixed feelings on these many requests.

It has been 8 years since I last was able to celebrate with her and she departed this world for the next, and I still miss her.

This will be my dear wife's first Mother's Day without her Mother.

I also recall a conversation with a friend who lost her adult son just a few weeks before Mother's Day.

I have two wonderful children, wonderful step-children to my wife who loves them as her own. We twice lost additional children to miscarriages.

I am grateful for my Mother and my Mother-in-law, and we celebrate and honor our Moms and the children that made the women we love "moms".

But the weekend won't be the same for the two of us, nor for many other children and mothers.

God bless us and renew us.

Florence and friends

I had the opportunity to travel to Florence Italy on November 18-22 for the purpose of visiting with Andrea Gallman and some of her fellow team members at Avant Italia.

I arrived in Florence early Friday evening on the 19th. The Avanti Italia (AI) building is located in a Florence "suburb" of Scandicci, about 4 miles from the center of Florence. The building is located in a residential area and houses the school, offices, common areas, and living quarters in the 3-story structure. The directors, David and Debbie Woodroof, their daughter Emily, and one of the Harding University-Florence (HUF) employees living at the AI building have cars for transportation. The AI team uses the cars for Sunday travel to church, but the AI team use mass transit or walk for the majority of their local transit needs.

When I arrived, I met several of the team members – David and Debbie, Emily, and one of the married couples working there, Eric and Jessica Smith. I had dinner with Andrea and her roommate, Angela Withrow who is from the Dallas area and whose family attends the Waterview Church of Christ there (I later discovered she knew my in-laws from Highland Oaks Church of Christ in Garland, where she used to live). Also at dinner were several students and faculty from Harding University-Florence.

Although separate organizations, HUF and AI frequently support one another. For example, they attend church together at the Florence Church of Christ, and occasionally share Sunday evening dinner and Bible studies. This past October a fire at the HUF villa forced temporary relocation of the female students to the Avanti Italia living quarters. Imagine expanding the living arrangements set up for three young women to handle approximately 15 additional college coeds.

On Sunday I attended the Florence Church of Christ with the AI and HUF team members who were in town. There were about 50 people there, some local and many associated with AI and HUF. Two families I met are former AI missionaries who have stayed in Florence after completing their AI commitment. An interesting cultural note about Sundays: Nearly all of the AI and HUF students meet at a nearby Café Bar for morning coffee (usually latte or cappuccino) with an Italian pastry prior to heading for church. This seems the norm for most Italians going to a church on Sunday morning. The building that the church uses was formerly a 19th century Orthodox family chapel, domed and circular in shape. The service begins with about 15 minutes of song requests – both in Italian and English. Other than these few introductory songs, all the service is in Italian. All guests are introduced individually (anyone remember when First Colony Church of Christ or wherever you attend was small enough to do that). The Lord’s Supper table sits in the center of the room.

I had lunch with Andrea, David and Debbie, two other of the AI team members, one of the former AI team families, and Kyle Thompson, assistant to the director of HUF. I had dinner with Andrea, Angela, and Peter McGraw who is from Memphis. That evening, I met the rest of the AI team (who had been traveling for the weekend): Ryan and Laura Stephens from Memphis, and Ermenita Zyka (an Albanian who has been with the Florence Church for about 5 years, recently graduated from University of Florence, and now works at AI).

Monday morning, after saying goodbye to Andrea as she and the rest of the AI team left for their final week of Italian language school, David and Debbie and I headed for a Café Bar for breakfast and fellowship.

David and Debbie gave me a little of their background and of the church in Florence, AI, and HUF. The Church of Christ there dates from the mid 1950s, and AI grew out of the English language ministry at the church. AI has existed as a separate organization since the 1970s, and HUF was established in 1980 (celebrating their 30th anniversary this semester). David and Debbie both worked for Harding University, David in the Media Department and Debbie teaching Sign Language, before they came to AI as the directors in early 2008. Neither spoke Italian before arriving. They consider their work as God sending them as they resisted at first this drastic career change and coming, but several “coincidences” persuaded them that this opportunity was God doing everything short of pushing them through the open door.

The present team Andrea is a part of includes three single women, two single men, and two married couples. David and Debbie use their role as directors to help keep the house and the team running smoothly. To help the team work together, they teach team dynamics and use what I would call their own unique Golden Rule perspective. For example, if someone is having a bad day, David and Debbie remind each team member that everyone of them has bad days and for each to remember how they wanted to be treated when they were the ones having the bad day. David is also responsible for keeping the house and computer systems in working order, and both help facilitate the new team members through the Italian bureaucracy.

The theme is, “This is Italy – expect things to not go as expected!” We are used to “instant results for many of our services in the US, but in Italy you have to wait in a line for almost everything. Everyone pays their utility bills are paid at the post office (no online bill payments or mailing the check). Renewing the annual health insurance (and other annual government paperwork) takes 10 months of processing. So David and Debbie help the new AI workers through this culture shock.

Andrea, along with all of the new AI workers, go through 3 months on Italian language school when they first arrive. They choose to use only Italian to communicate with each other throughout the day until dinner time to help reinforce their lessons. The school is upfront about using the English Bible as the resource for teaching English and advertises its English classes strictly by word of mouth from former students and the team. Lessons are free to all who enroll. David and Debbie consider it a testament to the past team efforts that this method of advertising is so effective. There is never a shortage of students. Now that the new AI team has finished their Italian language lessons, they will be able to spend the entire work day teaching English.

It appears that while the school is successful in re-introducing the Bible to the English students, it is not as successful with regards to students being baptized into Christ at the Florence Church. This is, for the most part, because of the Italian culture that places Catholicism as much as a part of the individual’s heritage as their family is. It is difficult for adult students, even with their deeper knowledge of the scriptures, to separate themselves from this heritage any more than they can separate themselves from their family. However, it seems to me that the school believes that the seeds for growth have been planted through each student, and through the children’s programs that many of the AI members organize.

AI also uses the American holidays to help teach American culture to their students. For example, this past Thanksgiving (for which they were preparing while I was there) they had over 70 Italian guests for an American Thanksgiving dinner. Andrea read the story of Thanksgiving for the assembled guests.

David and Debbie feel that Andrea is adjusting well and the team is working together well.

I was blessed to have been able to spend time with Andrea and the team that weekend, and having known Andrea since she was 8 years old, I am very proud of her.

Andrea has a blog as do several of the other AI members:

Andrea - http://lavitainfirenze.blogspot.com/
Lindsay Walle - http://lindsaywalle.blogspot.com/
Peter McGraw - http://peter-mcgraw.blogspot.com/
Eric & Jessica Smith - http://receivingsight.blogspot.com/
Ryan & Laura Stephens - http://avantistephens.blogspot.com/
Emily Woodroof - http://dafavola.blogspot.com/
Angela Withrow - http://angela-withrow.blogspot.com/

God bless,
Alan