A Man of Many Talents

Last week we had Austris and his children, Daivis and Lalita, over for dinner and fun. Austris, a good friend, is a cook at a local vegetarian restaurant, and came prepared to show me how to cook rice "the right way". I have now been introduced to the wonders of clarified butter and homemade curd. While we were waiting for the rice to steam, he built the tallest domino tower I've ever seen, which, as you can see from the picture, delighted one and all! Austris, a man with very deep religious convictions, is currently a member of the Hare Krishna faith. He brought some of his Church's traveling leadership to our apartment a couple of weeks ago so that Russ and I could meet them. They also are very gentle, sincere people. We had an interesting, informative conversation - everyone came away understanding each other better by the end. Afterwards, I couldn't help but contemplate what rich, unusual experiences I get to have here on a daily basis.

Rollin' in the Dough

One afternoon I went to my friend Zane Senkane’s house to teach her and the her boys how to make cinnamon rolls. Jekabs (6) and Gustavs (3) , her older boys, used to be a little leery of me - this tall woman whose words were nonsense to their ears. But today they met me at the door with hugs and full-on grins. Gustavs chattered away at me and I was actually able to understand a lot of what he said. I guess the good news is that I can finally understand a little Latvian. The bad news is that I apparently have the vocabulary of a 3 year old. These little boys were so excited to help with the baking – they measured (with supervision!), stirred, and kneaded with great delight. When it came time to roll out the dough and form the pastries, Jekabs learned the string-cutting technique and did a great job, so pleased about his new skill as he cut the tube of dough into separate rolls. We let the rolls raise again, then baked and frosted them. What great little chefs! I wonder how many batches of cinnamon rolls I've made over the past 3 years. Sometime I'll have to "guestimate" it. Must be thousands . . . .

A Day Off

Saturday, May 3
Russ and I left in the morning for Klaipeda, Lithuania, to spend the day with Mindaugas and Zina Pečiuliai. President Pečiulis is branch president of the Klaipeda Branch, and he and Zina have been offering to take Russ and I on a tour of the sights around Klaipeda. Today was the day! We took Elder Gardner with us because he is recovering from a long term virus, and he can't work for a while. Anna Ransheva came with us to translate between our English and the Pečiuliai's Lithuanian. Anna's native language is Russian, but she also speaks Latvian, Lithuanian, and great English. She's an amazing, powerful, humble young woman whom I love dearly. So we toured old churches, outdoor museums, scenic little towns, and a rock museum (not music, the real metamorphic thing.) The rock museum was outdoors, and was really a sculptured garden with odd-shaped and carved rock built into the landscaping - very unique and beautiful.
After a full day of being tourists, we went to the Pečiuliai's favorite restaurant, Joseph's. It was a holiday, so there was quite a line and a long wait to get in. Zina disappeared for a minute, and then reappeared at the front door and waved us in. It was a test of courage to walk past all of the other people in line ahead of us and just sachet in, but we did it and were led to an empty table. Seems that Zina has a friend who works there and she pulled some strings. I forgot my guilt immediately when the food came. We stuffed ourselves, and then left there to go to Lucy's restaurant for dessert. Lucy is a Chinese member of the Church who owns a restaurant (of course Chinese!) in Klaipeda. She had wanted us to come by, and had her house specialty desserts all ready for us when we got there. Lucy and her daughter Meggie treated us like royalty and wouldn't even let us pay for the dessert. I am DEFINITELY getting spoiled - and rounder by the minute - from all this good food.

Ties That Bind

Friday, May 2
After the Latvia's Zone conference today, I caught Russ and Elder Lindstrom in the middle of a tie exchange. They had been admiring each other’s ties and decided to pull a switch right then and there. Ties are the only variety the Elders get in their wardrobe, and there is significant bartering and trading in the mission. Elder Lindstrom is a sweetheart – Russ had admired his tie, and he had liked Russ’s. I’m not sure who initiated the switch, but both appear happy with the trade.

Mmmmm. . . . . šašliki!

Saturday, April 26

Brother and Sister Spalvens and their daughter Lydia are the glue that hold the Daugavpils branch together. They are amazing people, and know how to love and serve. The know that we are leaving soon, and wanted to have us over for a meal before we left. The road to Daugavpils follows the Daugava River, which made for a beautiful 3-hour drive this time of year. The leaves are out in earnest now, and everything is the intense Baltic green that I love so much. When we got to the city, Anna (Our friend who came along to translate) directed us to Spalven’s home. They have a good-sized yard, in which they have planted several vegetable gardens, and a greenhouse where they grow their spring vegetables. When we got there, Brother Spalvens was out in the backyard preparing šašliki, a shishkabob dish that is native Latvian. Today it was pork dipped in spiced mayonnaise and put on the skewer. He had a homemade barbecue grill, which was a metal box with ventilation holes in the sides, and laid the skewers across the box full of coals to cook the meat. It smelled wonderful! Sister Spalvens had prepared plates of fresh vegetables – cucumbers, tomatoes, pickles, spring onions – and some boiled potatoes, so we had quite a feast. She also served us some home-canned spiced pumpkin that was delicious with the šašliki, as well as another home preserve known as “mother-in-law tongue.” It was also really tasty. Anna and Lidia did the translating as we talked and ate, so we were able to carry on a pretty good conversation. As we were leaving after dinner, Vera presented me with a jar of each kind of preserves – gratefully received!

Veggies, Anyone? Anyone . . . .

Tuesday, April 22
The Boehms, a Senior Missionary Couple, came to the mission home today. Sister Boehm and I were cooking up a storm when we realized we were missing a few ingredients that we needed, so we sent Elder Boehm to Dairs Veikels (like a 7-11)to pick up a few things. Elder Boehm was gone for quite a while, and we were just starting to wonder what had happened to him, when in he walks, slightly breathless and grinning from ear to ear. He had the following story to tell:
He went to Dairs, but they didn't have what he needed. He continued down the street, and passed by the tirgus (open air market). He thought perhaps he might find what he needed there, and wandered in. He was smiling and greeting people when he spotted a young man watching him. Elder Boehm looked right at him and said, “Hello.” The young man (Caspars) was excited to speak English to an American, so he came closer, and checked out E. Boehm’s name tag. He asked, “Are you from Utah?” E. Boehm said yes. Caspars said that he had talked to our missionaries from Utah before, but had stopped seeing them. E. Boehm told him he needed to talk to them again and listen to what they had to say. Caspars asked E. Boehm if he would like to come with him to meet a couple of his friends. E. Boehm was a little hesitant, but figured he’d go a little way with him. They went to a café, where they met up with 2 more young men and a girl. Caspars introduced everyone, and said of E. Boehm, “This is a good man, and he goes to church every Sunday. We should go to Church on Sundays.” They chatted a while, then E. Boehm told them that he had to leave. Caspars said, “Wait! I need to give you something.” E. Boehm told him that he really didn’t need to do that, but Caspars would not take no for an answer. Out from behind his back he pulled a 12” parsnip, and gravely presented it to E. Boehm, who received it with as much dignity as he could muster, under the circumstances!

The Beginning of the End

Sunday, April 13, 2008
Kadri, Kennet, Piibe Jogi

I found myself looking into the faces of the people in the congre- gation – so many that we’ve grown to know and love – the Chans, the Koivs, the Lepps, Marika, Luda and her baby, the Jogis, the Timokovs – and I was hit strongly with a deep sense of sadness that once we left the mission, we might never have the chance to see these people again. I was struggling with the emotion of this thought when they announced the closing song, “God Be with You ‘Til We Meet Again.” Not fair. The nose turned red, the tears came, and all I could do was bite my lip and try not to sob out loud. More nose blowing and eye wiping during the closing prayer, trying not to look too smeared and swollen for greeting people after the meeting was over. Marianne Timokov, who’s about 7, danced up to me after the prayer, handed me a chocolate candy bar, said “I love you” in her sweet little Estonian-soaked English, and hugged me. That completely dissolved by composure. I think it’s going to be a long 2 ½ months with way too many good-byes.