Elmshorn

Friday August 8th 2014

****consider yourself warned - loooong post!!!****

Today I got up a little early to go for a run. I have always loved doing that in new places, this was no different. I was really just in neighborhoods close to the Backs house, it's like a suburb of downtown Hamburg. It's just fun to see some people in every day life. Plus that running is good for my soul!

We had an adorable breakfast with the whole Back family in their garden. They are so cute, the night before we had been talking about blenders and how I love my blendtec and make smoothies for breakfast a lot. Well this morning included in the spread at breakfast was a basket of smoothies (kinda like a Naked Juice drink) they were delicious!

They had made Quark for us at breakfast. It was a thick yogurt with fruit in it, there was kind of a cream cheese flavor, texture is somewhere between yogurt & cream cheese. It was very good! They also had a fruit I had never tried; mirabellen. It's these little green fruits that are kind of like mini plums. Mirabellen is to plums what apricots are to peaches maybe? That's the best description I can come up with haha I really liked them!

We were sad to say goodbye to the Backs. Such a cool family! 

Before we actually went to our next city, Elmshorn, we made one last stop in Hamburg. There is a family, familie Kosse that Russ was teaching while he was here. A son, Nesho, was baptized while Russ & Elder Bangerter were working with him. We haven't been able to make any contact with them so our last resort was to just show up at their apartment. We didn't even know if they still lived there but it was worth a shot. Turns out they do still live there, we rang and rang the doorbell but no one was home :( luckily we were atleast able to get into the apartment building eventually to leave a note under the door. 

This was one of those families that they worked with a lot and were so close to really understanding the gospel and solidifying their testimonies. Russ & Andrew saw a lot of miracles with this family, special experiences. I'm sure that one day everything will come together & they will be in the church :)

Next Stop: ELMSHORN

Elmshorn is a small city about 45 minutes  outside of Hamburg. This is the city where Russ started his mission. So the last time he was here as a missionary was over 5 years ago! A few months after he finished his mission he came back to visit with his parents, Robbie & Lindsay. But still even that visit was over 3 1/2 years ago! He was excited to get back :) 

Headed to Elmshorn:

Fun side note, in the train station we found a dip-n-dot ice cream vending machine! How have we never seen this in the states? 

Comig in to Elmshorn it was a lot of farm land. We got to the station & then had to take this mini little train the rest of the way:

The train was just two cars long and very slow haha

I really thought Elmshorn was a cute little town. Most of the houses were this style:

It has a very calm feeling. There are some cereal factories here, so apparently a lot of the time Elmshorn smells like cereal! I didn't notice it, it's mostly smelled like rain while I've been here.

We spent the afternoon with members, familie Schwartzkopf. (Haha translated that means "blackhead") They have 2 sons, one (Dimitri) is on his mission in England. The other is Paul who just turned18 & is still finishing school before his mission. He just got his drivers license & was nice to give us rides everywhere.  This family is actually from Russia! They joined the church there over 15 years ago in Siberia. They have an amazing/dream conversion story, especially in Russia! The missionaries knocked on their door, and even though they were busy with 2 little kids they let the missionaries in & wanted to listen. Just 1 month later they were baptized! So fast! They have been faithful ever since. They went to the temple to be sealed in Stockholm Sweden before they moved to Germany. It was a 2 day trip just for them to get to the temple at the time! Now they have been in Germany like 12 or 13 years. They are both school teachers and speak really great English, as does their son Paul. They had made a lunch for us, salad, potatoes and salmon that was so delicious! We also played games with them. Haha sometimes it was hard because things were written in German! The best was we played Settlers of Catan, only it was the Deutschland version! So unlike normal settlers it was already determined where you could build cities, and you also could build famous German landmarks! It was different but a cool version! 

They were a very nice family, they even let us do laundry there! They also had a dryer so that was a blessing.

Tonight we had a dinner appointment with an important sister, Schwester Raezke. She is the sweetest little old lady ever! When Russ called her a couple weeks ago to tell her he was was coming to Germany and wanted her to meet his wife she was so excited that she started to cry! And wow, her memory. Right away she remembered what his favorite food was and told him how she would make that for us! She even remembered that his birthday was coming up! In general she could remember so many details about different missionaries. It was amazing. 

She lives alone, but it's like her house is split into various apartments and her kids & grandkids live in those. She joined the church 10 years ago and really loves the missionaries. She says that she is alone and feels like they are so far from home in a new place and they are kind of alone so she tries to make her house feel kind of like home for them. And it does. She feeds them once a week/does FHE with them. She is so loving and just a happy spirit. Lots of laughing, & so much service.

Did I mention she is a great cook?! She made Rolladen, which is hard to describe but the best I can do is that it's a thin & tender steak rolled up with another meat inside the roll. The other meat was kind of like a corned beef maybe? I'm really not sure, and she speaks zero English so I couldn't really ask haha maybe I can find it online and learn to make it. A very German meal, rot kohl (pickled red cabbage) which I really liked, cauliflower & potatoes with gravy. Schmect lecker!

She is one of those sisters that loves to cook for others and for them to really enjoy & eat a bunch! Haha I was definitely full! 

Russ loved it! 

There were also two elders there eating with us, Paul Schwartzkopf and Schwester Finnern from the Elmshorn ward. She was super nice (also no english), I really liked the way she spoke haha you could hardly ever see her teeth, fun to listen to. 

She helped cook & serve dinner, just so so sweet. After the fact, we found out that two years ago she had cancer & went through chemo & everything but now is doing great.

I especially liked listening to those two sisters talk to each other. Some of the time they were speakig Platt Deutsch which is a dialect of German that is more old and classic, way different than normal German, it sounded hilarious! They are best friends who always help each other out, share secrets etc. so cute. The best though is when they kind of argue about little details! Even though I can't understand it is just so funny! They are just like ladies in Argentina! Seriously to the T. Haha I really loved that.

It was adorable to watch her pull out her pictures of missionaries. First she grabbed one that was on display on her shelf that had Russ in it:

Then she grabbed her photo album and flipped right to the page with a picture of Russ' family when they came to visit at her house: 

I'm telling you she doesn't forget anything! She even said to Russ "I'll never forget the day your family was here! Your parents & especially your dad refused to let me do the dishes. I said no but he just forced his way into the kitchen and did it anyway!" :)

Also Russ started spinning a pillow (as he often does) and she automatically goes "oh so you're still spinning pillows!"

It was so fun to see these two interact, she adores Russ and he loves her so much.

I can't even describe how wonderful this woman is. It was really tender to listen to her talk about how the missionaries make it so she doesn't feel alone and she loves to serve them. Thanks to Russ for doing a lot of translating so that I could get to know her and tell her thank you. She reminded me so much of sisters in Argentina that were like my "mission mom", I definitely love them and miss them.

We are sleeping here at her house tonight. Her kids in the other apartment are out of town so she is sleeping there and giving us we apartment. Just too kind. 

Alright if you just want to hear about our trip you can stop here. But something else happened today that I need to record.

We haven't had internet for the last 3 days. While we were getting ready to leave the Schwartzkopf's house we used theirs for just a minute to check our flight information etc. I was watching as Russ opened his email and a few emails down the list I saw one from my mom and the title was "Grandma Louise" even before I asked him to open it I had a good idea of what it would say. A message letting us know that my Grandma had passed away and the funeral would be next Thursday, while we will still be in Europe. I immediately started to cry, I kind of held it together for about 30 seconds before I excused myself and went outside. Then the tears were really flowing. 

This is my dads mom, my hero, "Grandma Larsen, Grandma Weez or Grandma Louise". Since before I was born my family has lived next to her and my Grandpa. She was always one of my best friends and a major highlight of my childhood.

I spent so much time at Grandma's house. She always wanted to play games, give us a yummy treat, teach us how to cook, tell us stories about her life, watch the Jazz or just talk about them, we would watch movies with her and she would make her famous popcorn, play with her dog "tippy" that she loved so much, playing in her fountain, sleeping in the backyard,  doing her famous Easter egg hunt, the list goes on & on! Their house was the best. 

She and Grandpa always spent a lot of time in their yard, it was beautiful, they worked so hard. There were flowers and trees and so many vegetables. She had gorgeous rose bushes, lots of them. I loved to pick them with her, so often there would be a vase or just a pitcher on her table filled with her roses. It used to be my job in the summer to go over and help her put out the snail stuff that protected her plants, I loved to help her with anything. A family favorite was picking peas with grandma & grandpa in the garden & then sitting on the patio eating and talking. She loved her family more than anything, and she had a big one! 9 kids and over 50 grandchildren. They were always providing ways for all of our family to get together. I was always very close with my cousins thanks to that. She made each of us feel special and she knew about our individual lives. 

She loved music, and kept her kids on track to learn string instruments, they all still play today and most of the grandchildren as well. Music is just one of the things we do in the Larsen family :) I have great memories practicing, playing together for fun and performing with my aunts, uncles & cousins. Even though we may have complained at the time, we all really loved it. I'm so grateful that even though Grandma didn't play anything herself, she gave that gift to her kids and helped pass it along. It's a great blessing in my life.

Grandma also loved chocolate. I'm pretty sure that's where I got my addiction :) One of her hobbies and talents was making fine hand dipped chocolates. Wow. So yummy. That's also why I love really good/high quality chocolate - it's what I grew up on! In their house the entire downstairs kitchen was built with chocolate making in mind. That's what she did down there. She made all kinds, they were always in tupper ware all over the counter & in the cupboards. Living next door as a kid was a dream! Anytime I wanted some chocolate...just go see grandma!

Very often I would help her make chocolates, or just watch her make them so quickly & they would be so pretty as well! She would give them away, make huge batches for cousins weddings, (our wedding as well) everyone loved them. Haha at one point our stake president had a special box for her at the stake offices that said "Louise Larsen Stake Candy Specialist". She taught me to enjoy chocolate haha she would get mad if you just put the whole chocolate in your mouth. You have to take little bites she would say so that you really taste & savor every piece! Not only to savor chocolate but also life! 

She was the greatest friend. She was always telling me about her best friends, who she'd been through thick & thin with and they were still friends through their entire lives. She helped teach me how to be a good friend. More than that, she was truly my friend. We would spend hours together sitting at the table playing cards or just talking. I loved to ask her & grandpa questions about their lives, and they would share the best stories! 

Grandmas house was always one of my favorite places to be. Our family would spend just about every Sunday night over there. Other families of my dads siblings would be there often as well, which was always so fun. But because we lived next door we were there every week. Such great memories.

As I got the news of Grandmas passing I went outside to cry and be alone. I prayed and reflected on her life, my memories, I really was feeling sad to not be at the funeral. Then I looked up and what did I see straight ahead? 

A beautiful rose bush. For a long time roses have made me think of her. So it was just a happy tender mercy to have those beautiful roses smiling at me. As of to say, it's all ok Ellen, I'm happy. 

And I know that's true. 

It was another tender mercy that right after that when it was time to leave the Schwartzkopf's house they gave us two giant bars of delicious Milka chocolate! How could I not think of her right? One has hazelnuts, which Grandma was the one who taught me to try and like nuts. The other has a truffle texture, it's very similar to the truffles she makes...which if you've ever had one - you know what I'm talking about! It was also nice to be able to call and chat with my dad a little bit. He is the best. 

I will definitely admit that I am sad to not have her in my life now. I miss her. I have missed the old times for a while. My grandpa passed away while I was in the MTC, I also got an email from my mom telling me about that, just like today.

Since he has been gone she misses him terribly and has had a lot of health struggles. She moved in with my Aunt Leisha in Kaysville and her house was sold about a year & a half ago. (Luckily our good friends the Goddards bought it). Russ & I would often go up on Sunday nights to visit with her, always playing cards or sometimes doing her nails for her. There was always a lot of laughter, haha, she's a funny lady. I'm so glad Russ was able to get to know her, she really likes him. Her and grandpa first met Russ when we were dating before my mission. She was always telling me how handsome he is :) A couple weeks before I left on the mission grandma pulled my mom aside and said "I'm really worried about Ellen. What if she goes on her mission and loses that boy?!" Haha luckily that worked out just fine. It was really important to me that even though she was already in bed most of the time she was able to be at our wedding. Seeing her in the sealing room was very special to me.

In the last few years she would often talk about how much she misses grandpa, and that she's lived a full life & is ready to move on to the next phase.

So I am genuinely excited for her to be back with so many loved ones again, her parents & siblings, friends, some of my cousins, her son Wayne, and especially grandpa. I wish I could have seen that reunion.  Also for her to not be in a struggling body must feel so great. She was 91 years old, almost 92! I'm so grateful for the plan of salvation and to be  sealed as families. Of course I know I will be with her & grandpa again, and that will be a joyous day! For now, yes I miss her, and I always will. It reminds me of when I was very little, 3 or 4 years old maybe. Grandma & Grandpa were called on a mission to Texas. I cried and cried and was so sad they were leaving. I remember just sitting on her lap never wanting them to leave. We were reunited after that mission and we will again be reunited after the mission of this life.

I miss her. But I won't forget her example, how she worked hard all her life, the things she loved and taught me to love. I'll be forever grateful for the strong family that they built. Honestly the thing that makes me most sad is to miss the funeral & that time together with all of my family to really celebrate her life and be together. I missed my grandpa's funeral because I was on my mission. Just 3 days ago I was actually thinking about the two of them. Many times grandpa had told me and also Russ about the time that after WW2 grandpa was in the army and was in Germany and was riding down the Rhein River on Hitlers Yaht! Pretty crazy story. But we were by the Rhine the other day and I was thinking about grandpa, then I had the thought of how I was so sad to miss his funeral but was so glad that I would for sure be able to be at my grandmas funeral. Spoke too soon I guess. Just unlucky timing. I send all my love to the family! I wish I could be there with you! I know it will be a beautiful celebration for one of the most amazing people I have ever been lucky enought to know!