A Day in Roskilde

Roskilde Cathedral

It’s been several months since I visited Brittnay Jeppsen’s blog, http://thehousethatlarsbuilt.blogspot.com/ so I took a look again this week and

Wow!  Of course our objectives are different and I can only devote an hour or so to mine while Paul says she devotes all her time to the blog.  She is making some money from her efforts and deserves it.  She’s very talented and energetically promotes it.

Now let’s get on with the weekly show.  I hope, after viewing Brittnay’s polished production, you can at least enjoy my “church mouse” effort.  Maybe I’ll dispense with any visual attachments this week and just paint my images verbally.

We have spent a very pleasant day with Kjeld and Rigmor Fischer in Roskilde.  Rigmor and I are Coordinators together in the Temple on Thursdays.  She has been trying for months to get us to spend a Sunday with them.  After many invitations and calendar “mix ups” we finally made it happen today.

As the day began, there was a clear sky and bright sunshine.  Our route to Roskilde by train was the same as our route to Kerteminde for Christmas only much shorter.  This time we were catching the 9:34 am train instead of the 2:34 pm train.  The bus route was the same only we didn’t have the Christmas car traffic delays.  It was a quiet uneventful trip on a sunny but cold day.

The Roskilde Ward meetinghouse is a moderate sized building which is newly remodeled.  The simple white interior allows for much light and on a bright sunny day like today it glowed with a warm feeling of “welcome”.   The many people we have come to know in the ward also added to the welcoming feeling.  We realized another blessing of working in the Temple.  As I mentioned a few weeks ago we have come to know, by name, about ninety-five percent of the Danish members who come to the temple on a regular basis.  The close feelings we have for all of them added to the enjoyment of the day.  We were greeted with hugs like long lost family members.  I would say about thirty percent of those in attendance today can be classified as close acquaintances.  This includes the youth who come to the Temple twice each month to do baptisms.  They have the largest youth group in the stake.  We could visit any of the wards or branches throughout Denmark and be met with the same wonderful welcome.  This is a blessing that only the Temple missionaries experience.  Because we are serving a two-year mission this blessing is enlarged by the increased connection we feel to the temple visitors.  Elder Welldon, whom we worked with on the Street Exhibits, is now serving in this ward.  Not only was the welcome warm and wonderful but the spiritual feeling that existed as a result of the leadership, the members and the speakers and music made for a wonderful day at church. 

We went to the Fischers for a late lunch.  Rigmore served a chicken curry soup with rice and garlic bread.  Because she is Norwegian we were served a Norwegian soft cake for dessert.  It was much like a Danish layer cake and included: a layer of cake, a layer of pineapple chunks, a layer of whipped cream, a layer of cake, a thick layer of strawberry jam whipped cream, a layer of cake, all of which was frosted with whipped cream and garnished with kiwi slices and vertical slices of chocolate mint.

We talked into the early evening hours and returned home about 8:30.  It was a very enjoyable day.  It was well worth the long wait.

I’ll close for now.

Love you all,

Mom and Dad

Ældste og Søster Larsen   

Kjeld og Rigmore Fischer