Sept. 1-7, 2019 The Royal Flush

This week has been filled with more Apartment Inspections, meetings, Institute, Cooking and finally getting a Parking Space Rented. That is our little blue car parked in its new spot next door to our apartment.  So glad to have this taken care of.  Vienna was voted the #1 best city to live in in the World for the second year - and yet they won't let foreigners park in their city!   We have had a break in the hot weather this week and we are hoping for a nice Fall.  We did  not realize how humid it would be in Vienna.

This is what lunch looks like after a District Council provided by the Young Missionaries.  They take turns bringing and preparing the lunch and I have been filling in with fruit and dessert.  I am not going to change the good thing they have going of sharing the responsibility, even if lunch is ramen noodle soup or muesli cereal with yogurt.  They don't buy fruit for themselves very often and so they really enjoy it.
We learn so much from them and really enjoy the time we get to spend with them on Monday's.

 We take a picture of each companionship when we finish the apartment inspections.  Sister Daynes and Sister Mogensen are two of our favorite Sisters and had the cleanest apartment of all that we have visited.  They radiate and have a wonderful spirit in their apartment.  I cleaned a lot of toilets and washing machine dispensers and removed mold in bathrooms and showed each of the missionaries  how to do it and what needs to be done to stay ahead of the mold.  It is a real problem here.  Old Buildings and lots of humidity.

Roman Soldier

 We got to go with one of the District's on their P-Day outing.  We went to the Time Travel History of Vienna Museum.  It was so fun.  You start in a 3-D theater and watch a 15 minute show on the history and sights and sounds of the city.  It was so real, down to the rats around your feet.  We wore virtual reality googles in another room, saw animated people, and ended in an original bomb shelter used during WWII.  It was so real with sirens, lights out and the floor moving from the bombs.  It was a great museum, well worth going to. 

 Missionaries playing the part of Franz Joseph and his wife Sissi.  Photo opt in one of the rooms.

Because we went as a group we received one free group picture.  It was a great way to end the tour.  We had a lot of fun and also learned a lot about Vienna.  It was so interesting to put it in perspective that they were ruled by the Habsburg Empire from 1278. Vienna was the capital of the Austrian Empire and later Austria-Hungary, becoming one of Europe's biggest cities.  Beginning in the 18th Century reconstruction began and extensive building began.  It was turned into a baroque city and many palaces were built in the inner city with housing growth in the suburbs. The end of WWI was the end of Austria-Hungary.  In 1918, the Republic of German-Austria was proclaimed.  By WWII the empire was much smaller with a new form of government. It is currently the capital of the Republic of Austria.   From 1945 until 1955 Vienna was controlled by the Soviet Union, France, Britain and the US with a center zone controlled by all four. You could not travel between Districts without proper papers.   On May 15, 1955, the country regained its political independence and sovereignty with the Austrian State Treaty.  The city has over 17,000 Diplomats.  Because of their presence and Austria's neutrality, Vienna became an important center for espionage. 
Russ served is mission from 1970-72.   It had not really been that long since they had become the Country that they are today.  They rarely left the District they were assigned to live in and serve.  Today, the missionaries cover the entire city and really have no idea what has taken place in the past 50 years. 

 Some of the art from the building boom of the 1800's.  The History is everywhere you go.

I love the buildings and the charm of the horse drawn carriages. 









So, speaking about all the Royalty and history, lets look at the Royal Flush - - - - -

 We call this the Austrian Throne - Not named by me but by missionaries long ago.  No one likes this model and the old ones are horrible.  I won't go into detail, but you can see first of all how tall it is     - fitting for a throne.  Stool needed since feet don't touch the ground.  Upon closer inspection, you see why there is a built in toilet brush at every toilet, even in the portable potties.  There is the Royal shelf with NO WATER and then the little flush hole.  I now know why the necessity of the brush and why IKEA has a 10 x 10 ft. section of just toilet brushes.

I am sorry for the slight diversion, but it is such a big part of life here, I just had to share my personal story of the Royal Flush.











Saturday was transfer calls.  There is always a lot of anticipation and anxiety over who will stay and who will go to new assignments.  We have even started counting time based on transfers.  They are every 6 weeks and that time goes really fast.  We will be having two Sister Missionaries, Sisters Breinholt and Griffith who we served with in Freiburg coming to Vienna next week.  We are so excited to be serving with them again.   Our mission has so many wonderful places to serve it is a wonderful experience for the missionaries to go, see and serve in so many different areas.  We feel very blessed to have served in Germany with assignments in Switzerland and now to be in Vienna Austria.  We have seen so many amazing places and met so many wonderful people.

We watched the 95th Birthday Celebration for our Prophet, Pres. Russell M. Nelson tonight.  It was held Friday night in the Conference Center in Salt Lake City.  It was one of the best music performances I have heard.  It is well worth your time to watch and listen and learn a little about this amazing man who had a career as a heart surgeon and became a world renowned Doctor and teacher to other Doctors around the world.  He has served his Father in Heaven faithfully his whole life and is a father of 10 children.  He answered the call to serve as an Apostle and for the past 1 1/2 years has been the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  In that time he has traveled over 90,000 miles, visited many countries and people and has an energy and drive that no one can match.  You can view the Celebration at:  https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org  

Our time here continues to be one of learning and patience.  I read a quote today by David Butler a speaker at Time Out For Women, "The devil is the only being described as busy . . . so if we are being busy all the time . . .maybe we should be more like Jesus . . .he napped, he retreated to the wilderness!!  We need to recognize the PRESS in our lives and step away sometimes....We need to find our place of retreat!  Wherever it is God will meet us there.  We need to make appointments with God to get out of the Press of the world.

What we really need is rest . . .we need to reset our world.  We need the prince of peace to give us peace.  We are promised if we come unto Him He will give us rest ...to give us strength to take with us into the coming days of our lives.  Our lives are filled from edge to edge . . .we need to make margins so God has a place to talk to us.  Meditation creates an open canvas for God to write what He wants.  Stand still...so we can hear God.  We need moments of sitting with Him!  When we have these moments we will eave differently."

Our mission is giving us this time to have God write in our margins.  Sometimes we get a little distracted and busy with the wrong things.  Life does happen and when you go to the T-Mobile store to pay your Internet bill - so you can stay connected to family and friends back home - and they don't do what they say they will do and you have to go to three different Banks to find one that will take your money to pay the bill - because that is how they do things here - you get a little lesson in patience and slowing down and it is OK because you just do what you can each day and that is enough.  Russ keeps telling me to slow down and enjoy the journey.  I am trying every day.  In a Tim McGraw song he sings, "love deeper and speak sweeter."  I know as I continue to serve and grow closer to my Father in Heaven and His Son, Jesus Christ, I will be able to love deeper and to speak sweeter and leave a different person.  I am so grateful for the strength Jesus Christ gives to me and helps me each and every day of my life.

The Man, the myth, the legend, Joe Thompson - aka Santa Clause, the Balloon Baffoon and Home Teacher Giant will be leaving Arlington Texas after 40+ years.  He will be missed by so many.  He has made Birthdays and Christmas magical for so many children and adults.  He has a gift with people.  He will be relocating to my home town of Twin Falls Idaho - wishing you a safe move and bright days ahead.  Life will definitely be at a slower pace in Idaho and will be good for your soul. Happy Trails to you until we meet again....

Viel Liebe,
The Grimmett's