09-10 Dec 2011 Ettal & Linderhoff

 The next morning we headed out for the beautiful Benedictine monastery in Ettal. It was given to the Teutonic Kinghts. It lies within the Bavarian Alps in Germany.  It was built in 1330 by King Ludwig I who was the father of Mad King Ludwig. In 1709 an academy was established and it became a place for education.  The design as we see it today was done by an Italian artist in 1744.  The Ettal community has been known as the heart of the conspiracy against Hitler.  It was a short walk around the monastery which housed a beautiful chapel in the middle.  We had a hard time walking without slipping as there was ice everywhere.

Linderhoff was just a short distance away and is one of many castles built by Ludwig I of Bavaria .  In the winter time it is very icy and white but in the summer and spring I hear it is spectacular with a beautiful garden that was made so that Ludwig could lay in his bed and look out onto flowing falls of water that was pumped from the river below.  Beautiful statues are everywhere.  The inside is also impressive. we were able to see his bedroom, dining room and kitchen.  An interesting story that we were told is that Ludwig was very excentric.  He was very impressed with Versai in France and so 

 modeled his gardens from them.   

The Benedictine monastery is very close to Aberammeragau and Garmisch in Bavaria, Germany.  It was built in 1330 by King Ludwig I.  It began with double living quarters for both men and women and also the Teutonic Knights.  In 1709 a Kinghts Academy was established and became an educational tradition.  The latest design was done by an Italian artist in 1744.  Teh Ettal committee was involved in the Conspiracy against Hitler during the War.

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08 Dec 2011 Munich with the Palmers

 We couldn't pass up a trip with the Palmers, a great couple we met on one of our assignments to Manheim, Germany.  We took an instant liking to them and when they decided to go to Munich, they invited us along.  What a great place to see.  It has lots of history to discover and beautiful scenery to see, because it is near  to the Bavarian Alps.  They drove, which made it even nicer  for us.

First stop on our trip was Munich to see the Christmas Markt.  We rented two rooms in a cozy little Bread & Breakfast called the Edelweis Hotel, left our luggage and toured the marketplatz.  It was great.  Not as big as Nurnburg last year, but just as exciting.  They  had an unusual looking Rathaus that we couldn't see very well at night but it was beautifully lit.  We decided to go back tomorrow during the day to get a better look.

Munich is exciting because of its history.  It is the capitol of Bavaria and North of the Bavarian Alps.  The Monks of the Benedictine order founded the city in 1158.  In 2010, Monocle ranked Munich as the worlds most livable city.  During the 16th Century, Munich was the Center of the German Counter Reformation.  The Marienplatz is considered the center of town and that is where the Christmas Markt took up most of the streets.  If you love hand carved statues, especially Creches, you will love this place.  Almost every store is owned by a Holtzscheider (wood carver).  Beautiful work everywhere.  Lights were strung from tree to tree up and down the main roads.  Lots of booths filled with hand made articals.  We loved our time there.  Took a picture of the brats, we have to remember the good brats with potato latkas  and sauerkraut.

The huge Rathaus looks more like a  church than a government building.  This is  where the Nazi party first began, but was put down in 1923.  In 1933 it became once again a Nazi stronghold.  In 1972 it was the site of the winter Olympics.

Since I am writing this now after being home from our misson for 10 months, my memory has faded from my immediate feelings of our adventure but looking back over the pictures I do remember the following.  The Christmas Mart had such a warm cozy feeling to it.  The food was fabulous and the warm kinder punch was warm and comforting on that cold night.  I suggested eating fish  while everyone else had brats, finding out later, that they were allergic to fish.  My bad.  I guess they had to smell my fish all during the dinner.  We walked around where everything was decorated with color.  Lots of homemade items  and Christmas ornaments galore.                                                       

16 Feb 2012 Missionary Zone Conference

Our theme this quarter is "How To Maximize Your Missionary Experience". Opening song was "Improve The Shining Moments", very fitting. Elder Boone conducted and opening prayer given by Elder Swenson. Our first speaker was Sis. Tiechera, wife of our 70 here. She commented on how grateful she was to serve among the missionaries. She asked us to remember our Missionary call letter. She quoted a standard letter to us that included being given the call by the Prophet, learning of our assignment and the time we were to serve. She said we needed to maximize our call before we can feel real joy. She continued that we were called to be an official representative of the Lord and are to be held to the highest standards. We must follow mission rules and leave behind us the cares of the world. We are expected to invite others to come unto Christ, help them receive the gospel and the Lord will lead us in this work. If we do these things, we will be rewarded for our service. Pray you will be effective, and you will experience more happiness than you ever have. We were asked to increase our knowledge of the gospel and our testimonies will increase. The Lord knows we are a valued person. He will help us become an effective missionary. Preach My Gospel page 10 says that if you lower your expectations or your goals you will become less effective and your capacity to follow the spirit will be diminished. You will be successful if you will love the people and develop Christ like attributes. Our mission will become a part of our families, friends and the people in Europe. The first missionaries had a hard time leaving their families, but they were obedient and their families became stalwart members of the church.

Second speaker was Elder Tiechera. He said that the Lord loves us and knows us better than we do ourselves. He knows our shortcomings and blesses us with what we need to overcome them. He trusts us. He sent us here to make a difference in peoples lives. He talked about the parable of the talents. We are each given talents according to our capacity. We need to maximize our talents or our responsibilities. We made the choice to be here. He expects us to make something of what we have been given. When we are called, we become responsible for that calling. He talked about his life when at 26 yrs old he was called to be a 70 from Portugal. Before that time he had been Stake President for three years. His first assignment was to accompany President Hinkley on a special tour. He received a call from the first Presidency and said that President Hinkley could not be there, but Elder Faust came in his place, along with Elder Holland. They all met in a Lisbon, Portugal hotel. Elder Faust told him that wherever he goes he will have Apostolic authority. When you go you are the Lords missionary. He asked the questions, "Have you made your mssion a better place since you have been here?" "Is your relationship with the Lord better today than when you started?" If you can answer those questions in the affirmative, your mission will have been a success. The Lord has called us here to bless someone. We must set ourselves above the world in thought and activity. We need to change the way we think. It is a much more enduring process. We must move away from sin. Repent everyday, the results will be, that we will feel God's love and his forgiveness.

Elder Boone talked about the flower spoken of by President Uchdorf at General Conference. He said there is a German legend about a little blue 5 petaled flower. When God was forming the flower, it was the last one to get its name. It looked up at God and said "Don't forget me." and God said, "That shall be your name." Elder Boone introduced our next 5 speakers that explained what each petal meant,

Sister McBride said we must never forget to be happy, NOW. She talked about Charlie and the Chocolate Factory. How Charlie hide in a few of his candies a golden ticket that if found would be the winner of a tour of his factory and a chocolate bar everyday the rest of their lives. She said the candy bar itself lost its meaning and all that was important was the golden ticket. Everyone is looking for that golden ticket instead of concentrating on our self worth, our talents our service and our sacrifices that we are doing now. Learn to love ourselves so that we can love others.


Elder Bradley spoke about the way, the why and the how of the gospel. The scope of it is beyond our comprehension. He told a story about a small boy who asked his mother the question, "How old is God", the mothers response, "Why don't you ask God?" so the little boy left and came back a while later and asked, "How old is Infinity?" We can not imagine Infinity, but that is how long and how much our Father in Heaven loves us. Scientists have found 170 billion galaxies and each one contains billions of stars, and that is just what they can see. Think of the purest all encompassing love you have ever imagined. God loves us infinitely more. How can we better love him? He quoted from D&C 66:3 "Verily I say unto you, my servant........, that you are clean, but not all; repent, therefore, of those things which are not pleasing in my sight, saith the Lord, for the Lord will show them unto you." He is saying that we must repent of the little things everyday and live the commandments. He also quoted from Alma 5, which talks about a mighty change that must take place in our hearts to be spiritually born of God. From II Peter 5 he talked about the importance of having faith, virtue, knowledge, temperance, patience, charity and brotherly love towards all men. The last scripture he gave us was D&C 121:45. When Joseph was asking for help from the Lord. The answer from the Lord was "Let thy bowels also be full of charity towards all men, and to the household of faith, and let virtue garnish thy thoughts unceasingly; then shall thy confidence wax strong in the presence of God; and the doctrine of the Priesthood shall distill upon thy soul as the dews from heaven."

Sister Bradley spoke on loving ourselves. Her words were moving to me as she spoke of the trials she had to go through as a child in an abusive situation. How she was able to pull herself up from despondence. She joined the church and was able to feel Gods love for her. I was so engrossed in her words that I forgot to write any thoughts down about it, but I got the feeling that even though we go through horrendous things in our lives the Lord will help us overcome our feeling.

Sister Wells talked about being patient with ourselves. She and her husband served their first mission in the African South East area. She said god knows our perceived weaknesses and helps us with them. Changes can be measured. Don't be discouraged, it is Self Centeredness that brings on discouragement. Thinking only about ourselves makes us become discouraged if we do not perceive ourselves as being perfect. The scriptures say to be patient in our inabilities. Be humble and temperate in long suffering and above all be patient with ourselves. Recognize the good in ourselves. Ask for the blessings of the Lord. Do what you are asked and the Lord will take care of the rest. Recognize that you have done a good job and given it your very best. We all have weaknesses and strengths. Our offering will be good enough. ACTIVE WAITING IS BEING PATIENT. Talking negatively about ourselves will hinder the spirit from helping us.

Elder Wells spoke about finding happiness in the little everyday beauties around us. A Father reading to his son is more important than an Economic Summit. God loves us because we are his child. Blessings are given, trials may come our way, there is nothing we can do to make God stop loving us, but being prideful and seeking the honor and praise of man, keeps us from receiving the help that we need.

We adjourned to the cultural hall for lunch. Subway sandwiches and three kinds of soup. Lentil, chicken noodle and potato. Afterwards we heard from two new couples missionaries who just came in and then testimonies from 2 outgoing, the Vorwallers and yours truly. What a sad day for us, our last Zone Conference and our last day to see everyone. Our daughter and two sons will be here in Germany on Sunday, can't wait. The next blog you will read will be our twoweek travel adventure before we leave for home on March 12. More adventures coming, you never know where we will be heading to.