Spring is Springing!
My schedule for the rest of our mission is clearly going to be just sending out a blog post about once a month. Too much to do and not enough time to do it! But that also involves summarizing SO many experiences and wanting to share SO many pictures! Since you probably don’t want to see every single one of the hundreds of pictures I’ve taken this past month, I’ll do my best to narrow them down.
But before I do, just a reminder that though these six weeks or so of pictures look like they represent what our life is like as missionaries (and we do get to see some amazing places just by virtue of where we live), most of our daily missionary life looks like this…
But in between our Monday-Friday time at the office doing our missionary responsibilities, and other assignments in our ward at other times, we try to squeeze in as many experiences as we can! Here goes…
At the end of February we had a visit from our Denmark kids/grandkids and it was delightful as always! This was their last visit while we’re here and we’ve been so grateful that our proximity has allowed them to visit numerous times.
We read books, snuggled, played outside, sewed, painted, blew bubbles, made forts, celebrated birthdays, had a proper tea party, and just loved every minute with them—all in between trying to keep up with our missionary responsibilities. Whew!
As February turned into March, we started noticing all the signs of Spring. Even more so than back home in California, it’s so lovely to watch the flowers waking up in succession and brightening what has often been a gray and dreary winter.
It is easy to see why this beautiful land has inspired poets and authors for centuries! Just for fun, I asked AI to write a description of spring in England in the style of Jane Austen. I’m not sure what Jane Austen would think, but I think it describes perfectly what we have experienced here:
"Spring in England is a season of gentle transformation, where the countryside awakens from its winter slumber with a quiet grace. The gardens, once subdued, now burst forth with a profusion of blossoms, each flower a testament to nature's delicate artistry. The air is imbued with the sweet fragrance of lilacs and roses, inviting leisurely strolls and thoughtful contemplation. Birds, with their cheerful songs, flit about the hedgerows, adding a lively charm to the serene landscape. The sun, warm but not oppressive, casts a soft glow upon the rolling hills and quaint villages, creating scenes of pastoral beauty that inspire both reflection and delight. In this season, the heart is lightened, and the spirit is refreshed, as one revels in the simple yet profound pleasures of an English spring."
I volunteered to drive a couple of senior sister missionaries and their friends to visit Kew Gardens, one of my favorite places. You don’t have to twist my arm to go to a botanical garden, and this is one of the best!
Another weekend we made a quick trip over to the Northeast coastline around Great Yarmouth and made a few stops near there—Beccles (where we had the most delicious cinnamon roll!), the Broads National Park (known for its windmills, set among peat bogs and waterways), Burgh Castle (a Roman fort dating at least back to 300 AD!!), and Norwich (home of Norwich Cathedral and also Julian of Norwich—thought to have been the first woman to write a book in English which has survived, read about her, she’s so fascinating!). You literally cannot drive 20 minutes without running into a castle, a cathedral, or some Roman ruins! Just one of the many reasons we love this country!
Here’s a little musical tour of Norwich Cathedral—I love when I get to hear the organ playing in any of these cathedrals. So soul-stirring!
And this is the small church where Julian of Norwich lived in a small room, and it is believed she received visions of seeing the Savior following a near-death illness.
The next weekend we had a lovely visit to the London Temple with our OGC friends from the office. We truly get to work with the BEST people!
Because the London Temple is not really in London (it’s about an hour South), we decided to spend the night and visit a few places that have been on our list: Ashdown Forest (home to A.A. Milne and the inspiration for Winnie the Pooh and the Hundred Acre Wood), Hever Castle (home of Anne Boleyn of head-chopped-off by Henry the VIII fame), and Chartwell (home of Winston Churchill and his family). If that doesn’t give you an idea of the depth and breadth of British history, I don’t know what would!
We had the first of our spring visitors, our longtime friends the Whitcombs. Such a delight to see them and spend a little bit of time showing them a few places we love. 100 points if you can guess what city I took them to. ;)
Another Saturday was spent exploring some local sights—the town of Richmond (near London, along the Thames) and visiting the Battle of Britain Bunker museum.
According to many historians, the Battle of Britain was a turning point in the war, demonstrating that the British could withstand the German onslaught and defend their homeland. It was fascinating to see behind the scenes how decisions were made in the middle of the air war over the skies of England.
Winston Churchill made this famous statement, inspired by the events of this battle:
“Never in the field of human conflict was so much owed by so many to so few.”
A few weekends ago we drove to the Cotswolds, which are about an hour away from us. The Cotswolds is not just one town, it is a region encompassing beautiful rolling hills and many quaint villages in what is called an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty (AONB). We did a short hike along the “Cotswold Way”, above the town of Cheltenham. It truly is an area of outstanding beauty!
It also happens to be an area where Jon has some ancestors, so we went on a little family history scavenger hunt searching for where one line of his 3rd, 4th, 5th etc. great-grandparents lived. There’s something special about knowing a place was home to your ancestors and to feel a connection to their lives in a small way.
These weren’t family history related, but just beautiful places along the way…
We also visited a Church history site called the Gadfield Elm Chapel. It’s a beautifully restored building where an early apostle and President of the Church, Wilford Woodruff, came as a missionary in 1840 and converted 600 members of a local congregation.
Last Saturday we finally visited the counterpart/rival of my cherished Oxford…Cambridge. Oxford and Cambridge are not connected to each other, though they have many similarities. Just google Oxford vs. Cambridge and you’ll come up with all sorts of good information to help you compare the two. We had heard amazing things about Cambridge, but I was not sure if I could love somewhere as much as I love Oxford, though it certainly helped that we went on one of the most beautiful spring days so far.
We started the day with a punting tour down the lovely River Cam (thus the name Cambridge). This gave us a very cool vantage point for the many colleges located along the river and the beautiful bridges along the way.
Just as Oxford was home to many famous scholars, authors, prime ministers, etc. (C.S. Lewis, Tolkien, Lewis Carroll, Stephen Hawking, Tony Blair, Bill Clinton), Cambridge can claim lots of royalty including Prince Charles and Prince William, and many others such as Lord Byron, Tennyson, Wordsworth, Richard Attenborough, Alan Turing, and Sir Isaac Newton.
The town is just as charming as Oxford, and the buildings just as beautiful.
Punting on the river definitely scored some points for Cambridge (though you can also do punting in Oxford, it’s just not such a main attraction), and we loved seeing a new yet familiar-feeling place. But I still think I’m a little partial to Oxford, and because it’s so close to us it will always be on the top of my list for taking visitors there.
Finally…(I bet you never thought I’d get here)…we’ve had a few celebrations, both of which were also farewells. I helped with a bridal shower for a sweet friend in the ward, who also works at the office. She’s getting married, hooray! But it also means she’s moving out of our ward. It was fun to “shower” her with lots of love!
And then we said farewell to another one of our wonderful senior missionary couples. They have been serving in the communications and public affairs department and have been amazing examples of dedication. We will miss them!
We are so grateful for the wonderful examples of sacrifice and service that we see every day around us in the lives of these women and men who have given up so much, and continue to give as they serve for a season here. They are all amazing!
♥ Until next time, we love you! Cheers! ♥
Words of the Week:
Daffs - daffodils, they’ve been blooming in profusion!
Faff - Faffing around is a very British pleasure. It’s taking unnecessary time over something that should be straightforward. A Brit likes nothing more than a good faff.
My favorite shot, of many, was the one where your granddaughter was running to get to you at top speed! The best feeling ever!
Oh, another piece of seeing the simple, lovely and beautiful English life. Thanks for yet another glimpse of what you’re seeing and experiencing and feeling. ♥️ it all!
Love you both!
Heidi