Sunday March 31, 2019

This week was transfers, which means we were without a car from Sunday evening to Wednesday night.  We had an appointment Monday morning with an NGO located down the street from the chapel. We rode the tram downtown.  In all the time we have been here, we have never had our tickets checked by the tram "police."  Or even seen anyone checking tickets.  That day we were checked twice, and of course it was the day John's ticket wouldn't go through the machine.  We bought the tickets at the kiosk at the bottom of our road and hopped on the next tram.  The magnetic strip on John's ticket was coming off and refused to go into the slot.  We didn't worry too much - as I said, no one ever checks the tickets.  A couple stops down the track, the checkers got on the train and asked for tickets.  Of course they don't speak English.  John tried to explain the ticket wouldn't go into the machine.  They took us off the tram and tried to give us a 26 mark fine.  I kept handing it back to him and saying, "ne, ne."  He kept pointing to the English below the strip that states it is illegal to tamper with the ticket.  Is he thinking we went to the trouble to purchase a ticket, then messed with the magnetic strip so it can't be date stamped?  Then he starts saying "policija?"  And we say, "yes, call the police."  Meanwhile, he's handing John the fine and I'm handing it back.  This continues for a couple minutes until he confers with his buddy, who shrugs and tells us to get on the next tram.  The officer there initials John's ticket and tears a corner off.  How hard was that?  At the very next stop, another checker gets on.  This time it's my ticket because the stamp must match the number of the tram you are on.  Fortunately the passenger next to me spoke English and explained.  He took my ticket and walked away shaking his head.  My new friend rolled her eyes and said "welcome to Bosnia."

The meeting with the NGO was much nicer.  We were meeting to discuss a possible project with them.  They presented us with a poster-size thank you.  We said it was very kind but that we hadn't done anything yet.

Thank you from CVW

This NGO works with civilian victims of war.  We are going to submit a school backpack project that our branch can do as a service project - assembling the school supplies and backpacks.  It should be fairly simple, we just need to get it submitted and approved.

It was a beautiful spring day so we decided to walk part way home.  We just kept going all the way, just under 7k.  We could have taken a taxi but we weren't getting back on the tram.

On one of our walks this week we saw another first - a fire hydrant.

Fire hydrant on a Sarajevo street corner

We need to ask a local about this, but it looks like the hydrant apparatus isn't there until it is needed.  They open the water cover and attach it, then remove it when finished.  We don't recall seeing another one anywhere in the city.

If you have access to the European or Croatian issue of the April Liahona, we are the centerfold story.

Page 1 of Liahona article

Page 2 of Liahona article

Sorry, I've rotated the photos every which way and can't get them to stay right-side up.  The public affairs couple took the pictures and sent them to us.  Not sure if that's why or more likely my in-expertise at fault.  Anyway, this is about the laundry facility we built at the refugee center in Zagreb.

We have a busy travel week ahead.  We are grateful to be here and for all of your prayers on our behalf.

Sunday, March 24, 2019

We just thought winter was over... We drove to Tuzla on Wednesday morning for a project related activity and found winter was still alive and well in the mountains.  Thankfully, the roads were clear and we had a safe trip.

The trees all looked like they had been dusted with powdered sugar

It was a cold day for our outdoor activity.  We met our Red Cross partners in Živinice, just outside Tuzla.  We were distributing the spring garden packets to the five municipalities.  Three of the municipalities came to Živinice to collect the packets for their recipients; the other two were further away and had no transportation or money to travel the distance.  The Red Cross will deliver the packets to them.

Garden supplies waiting for distribution

Fruit trees bundled in groups of 5

Contents of each bag - onion sets, seed packets, gloves and a hand spade

Each recipient received 3 pounds of onion sets, a hand spade, gloves, several seed packets (beans, beets, carrots, parsnips, peas, peppers), 50 pounds of fertilizer, 50 pounds of seed potatoes and five fruit trees (peach, pear, plum, apple, cherry).

Everyone who brought a vehicle lined up to load the goods

It was nice to see them help each other load their vehicles

Fruit trees go on the top of the load

Most of the fruit tress were too tall to fit into the vehicles so they found some pruning shearers and lopped the tops off.  John and I winced every time they whacked about 3-4 feet off the tops.  We hope the trees survive.

Cutting off the tops of the fruit trees

The media was there of course and we had to be interviewed.  I'm glad we aren't able to view or understand the local news.  I think I always sound like such an idiot.  I hope the person translating speaks more intelligently than I do when being interviewed.

Transfer announcements were on Thursday.  It's always a dramatic event and this time was even more so.  The missionaries were at our house for the video conference.

Lots of transfer surprises this time

Sister Fritch is the only one staying in Sarajevo

We are losing five of the six missionaries and going back to one set of Sisters and one set of Elders in the city.  Sort of - Sister Chappell is now in Banja Luka and is being transferred to Serbia but she lost her passport Friday night.  She can't get an appointment with the embassy for a replacement until April 2 so is stuck in Bosnia for now.  She will come to Sarajevo with her companion and they will serve here until her passport is replaced.  So we will have four Sisters temporarily and two Elders.  Sister Fritch will be training a new Sister from the MTC.  Sarajevo was her first area out of the MTC and she has only been here 12 weeks.  She is an awesome missionary to be training on her second transfer.  Our new District Leader will also be training a new MTC companion.

Elder Thompson will go to Zadar and Elder Lee and Elder Thygerson will be companions and Zone Leaders in Beograd.  Elder Christiansen is also going to Beograd and will be training a new MTC Elder.  This has truly been a great 12 weeks with this group.  They work so well together and we don't remember as much teaching going on as this group did.

We did apartment inspections Saturday morning and cleaned the church, then went to lunch together at Klub 1.  We heard they had the best hamburgers in Sarajevo.  They were pretty good but don't think they were the best we have had here.  Our favorite is still the Blind Tiger.  They put ice in our glasses and bring ketchup to the table without being asked.

The five departing missionaries spoke in Sacrament meeting today and sang a beautiful hymn.  It is too long to post the entire song but here's a shorter clip.

We are going to miss these fine young men and women but they already have plans for a "reunity" at our house when they all return home.  All but Sister Fritch will be attending BYU Provo; she will be attending medical school somewhere unknown at this point.

One of our new members is an artist and offered to give art lessons to anyone interested.  Thursday was the first class

Begić teaching art class

This little bowl was our subject

We were working with graphite for the first lesson.  I already know I'm no artist - I can't stand the mess.  The table and floor were covered with graphite dust at the end of the evening.

Sara translating for Begić

There were some talented artists in the group

Begić assured us that we would be able to sell our work in the square by the end of the 12 week course.  He is such a sweet man and so kind to teach us.  And so optimistic that we'll be great artists.  We'll see.

Spring did return by the end of the week,  We walked to our vegetable market on Friday, about 4 miles round trip.  The pretty flowers in the grass have appeared in the back again.

Spring blossoms in the yard

We noticed tiny blue blossoms in the grass this year

Sarajevo is a gorgeous part of the world in the spring.  We're loving the blue skies and the sunshine.

Sunday March 17, 2019

It's been one of those weeks that I totally neglected any picture taking.  There isn't a lot to write about that is very interesting anyway!  Today was warm enough to have the windows open for awhile this afternoon.  It was nice, even with the garden fires drifting in through the breeze.

We were up bright and early Wednesday morning for the drive to Zone Conference in Banja Luka.  There is a tunnel under construction and sometimes the wait is hours long.  We breezed through, coming and going.  Our timing was perfect, not by coincidence, we're sure.  We had the Sister missionaries with us; the Elders took the train the night before.  We had the quarterly safety review and were told we must watch the safety videos on the Missionary Portal - all 5 hours worth - and not just the young missionaries.  So we have been suffering through them the past few evenings when we have a spare hour.

On our way out of town after ZC, we stopped by a partner's office to get a project agreement signed.  We had a nice visit with the president of the women's organization that runs the women's shelter in Banja Luka.  We will be replacing all the doors and frames and purchasing some beds and closets for the shelter.  We arrived back in Sarajevo about 9:00 pm, dropped the Sisters off at their apartment and were in bed by 10:00 pm.  It's a long day when we drive 3 1/2 hours each way and sit in meetings the entire day.

On Thursday the Sisters and I went to visit Mira and Franz.  They live about 30 minutes outside the city.  You may remember we had a branch picnic there last fall.  Mira's friend was visiting so the Sisters delivered a short spiritual message.  Mira always feeds the missionaries when we/they visit.  She made salad and a pasta dish she called moussaka.  I thought moussaka was Greek and made with potatoes, so this must be the Bosnian version?  The Sisters thought it was like hamburger helper (not a great compliment, but I've never cooked with hamburger helper so what do I know?).  It was cheesy and that always makes me happy.

One of the ward members hosted a baby shower for Katrina Garvin on Saturday.  Her baby is due in June and she will return to the U.S. April 8 with their youngest son, who is 4.  The other 3 boys will remain in Bosnia with Hyrum until June, then they will all go home for the summer.  I don't think Hyrum can stay that long but not sure of the plans.  There were several other embassy employee wives at the shower.  Two of them are my neighbors but I had not previously met them.

Katrina opening her shower gifts

Here's the one picture I took this week!  Garvins have four boys now and are expecting a girl.  They are so excited.  Too bad we will never meet the baby - we will have returned home before they return to Bosnia in the fall.

Preston Rhees, age 11, spoke in Sacrament meeting about obedience (continuing with the 3rd Article of Faith theme this month).  He gave the sweetest talk.  He told about his dog Winnie not being let off the lease because she isn't obedient.  She also is locked in the bathroom at night because she likes to sleep on the couch when no one is looking.  If she were obedient and didn't sneak onto the couch, she would be allowed to sleep somewhere more comfortable than the bathroom floor.  He tied that all in with human obedience and the gospel and did a super job.  His school teacher (not a member) came to listen to his talk.  She was very impressed that children so young are able to speak in public like that.  After Preston talked, his dad Rhett spoke about the Atonement.

We went to dinner Friday night with Rhett and Camie to celebrate our birthdays.  Camie's birthday is the day after mine.  So it was a late celebration for both of us but we had a nice time.  We tried a new restaurant in Dobrinja called Sendi.  The food was very good but a bit pricey.  The dessert was the best part - chocolate!

Read all about it

Just in case you didn't catch the article in the Deseret News faith section on Saturday, we were mentioned in it.  I was interviewed by Tad Walch over the phone.  We had a very long conversation and exchanged some emails but not much of what we spoke about was included.  In all fairness the article wasn't about Bosnia or humanitarian efforts per se, but the cooperation between our church and the Catholic church.  It was an honor to be mentioned in the same article with President Nelson.

https://www.deseretnews.com/article/900059557/pope-francis-meets-with-president-nelson-in-the-vatican-catholic-mormon-rome.html

I don't know how I forgot to write about our cow project last week, but I did.  It has been one of our favorites.  We visited three of the recipient families again to meet the calves.  All the calves have been born now; one died during birth.  Out of the 10 calves, only 3 were female.

This cute couple got a male calf and had already sold it when we visited.  The calf was taking all the milk from the mother and they still had to feed it.  They received a very good price of 1150.00 (about $660) Bosnian marks for the male calf.  With that money they can have their cow inseminated again, buy seeds for their garden and still have a little of the money.  They are so happy and appreciative for the donation.  She hugs and kisses me and says to come visit anytime.  We asked if we could write a story about them for the humanitarian newsletter - she said we could bring the TV station if we wanted, she would tell everyone about their good cow!

This nice lady also has a male calf.  He is still residing with his mother in the barn.  This is the house with the barn under their home.  It's a pretty small space so it's probably more of a shelter than a barn.

This little guy was very affectionate

I would love to have this family's idyllic setting.  It is so picturesque and serene.  There is a stream running through the property.  They raise ducks for the meat and eggs.  There are many large shade trees on the property and everything was neat and tidy.  I know their life hasn't been and isn't now idyllic but the beautiful surroundings should bring them a little peace.

Domestic ducks in the yard

It's a girl!

This lucky lady got one of the three female calves.  The family is tickled pink!  The calf was pretty skittish and wouldn't put her head up to get a good photo of her cute face.

This has been such a happy project and we have thoroughly enjoyed it.  Even the two municipality employees that escort us on our visits told us we are like family now.  They treated us to a nice lunch of roasted lamb (much better than our last lamb lunch) and roasted veal.  We are so blessed to be serving here and meeting all these wonderful people.

Thursday was International Women's Day.  I have to admit I was not aware of the day before living in Bosnia, but it is a BIG deal here and all over Europe.  Today in Sacrament meeting the Primary sang The Dearest Names.  I spoke in Sacrament meeting but not about women or mothers.  Our theme for this month is the third Article of Faith:  "We believe that through the Atonement of Christ, all mankind may be saved, by obedience to the laws and ordinances of the gospel."  I spoke a little about obedience and what gospel ordinances are, then focused mainly on the Sacrament.

Primary children handing out paper flowers they made for the women

Women of the Sarajevo Branch

We spent the first part of the week in Zagreb.  Most of Tuesday was spent at IKEA with our Red Cross partner.  We designed a new kitchen and selected the cabinets, counter tops, sink, and appliances.  I had a great time - I love this kind of thing.  Especially when I'm not spending my money!  We are renovating a small, ugly kitchen at the refugee family center just outside Zagreb.  The refugee families, mostly the women, will use the kitchen to prepare baby formula and their traditional foods.  There is a main kitchen and dining area in the building where food is prepared and provided to the residents, but they are not allowed in there.  It may not be completed before we come home but it warms my heart to know how much better this will be for the women and children.  It also provides a small space for the women to gather and socialize with each other.

We stayed at the mission home one night while in Zagreb.  While we were there a senior couple from Logan that had served in Tuzla in 2014 stopped by for a visit.  We met them again on Thursday for lunch in Sarajevo.  They were disappointed to find their favorite restaurant is no longer open.  Many things have changed in the past 5 years.

We see many people out preparing their gardens for spring planting.  That means it is burning season again.  We returned from church today to the lovely smell of wet grass and branches burning.

Neighbors behind our house burning off the garden waste

Along with the Rome Temple dedication today, we were excited to hear the announcement of the re-dedication of the Frankfurt Temple in September.  Frankfurt is the assigned temple for this mission and it has been closed almost 4 years now.  It is about the same distance to the Swiss Temple but it is so much more expensive for the members to travel there.  Such a blessing to have temples inching closer and closer to this part of the world!

Cooking lessons

Friday was Independence Day in the Federation of Bosnia (Republic of Srpska celebrates in January).  It's like our 4th of July but there's no real celebrating here.  I asked our friend if there are parades or fireworks or anything special about the day.  She said "I think no."  It seems to be just a day off for most folks and some of the stores are closed.

Because it was a day off for Iris (branch member), she agreed to come to our house and teach us how to cook some local cuisine.  So the Sisters and I learned how to make burek and cheese pie.  Now I can impress you all with my Bosnian dishes when we return home!

Betty Crocker (aka Sister Fritch) and Martha Stewart (Sister Landon) doing prep work

The genuine cook would make their own dough but we purchased phyllo dough.  Iris said many people use the prepared dough now, as it is so much faster.  The burek filling was ground beef, shredded potatoes and onions, seasoned with salt and lots of pepper.

Iris showing us how to fill the phyllo dough

We all took a turn filling the dough.  Iris is much better and faster than we are.

The pan is full and ready for the oven

Burek can be made in any shape.  Iris usually makes her own dough and rolls it out so it is very long.  Then she fills it and twists the dough around the inside of a large round pan.  We have seen a variety of shapes and sizes in the pekaras (bakery).

While the burek was cooking we made cheese pie.  It is layers of the phyllo dough with a cheese mixture between the layers.  Iris used fresh cheese (cottage cheese), sour cream, eggs and a little milk.  It is the Bosnian version of quiche.

Layering the phyllo and cheese

Ready for the oven

Ready at last!  It was worth the wait.

Apple pie is the same concept as the cheese pie - layers of phyllo and pie filling.  Iris says they call our traditional pie crust "lazy pie" because it is so much easier than making phyllo from scratch.  I have never been good at crust making but think scratch phyllo would be daunting for me.  Pre-made, purchased phyllo sounds just right for my baking skills.  We sent burek home with the Sisters and we ate the last of it for dinner last night.

The Banja Luka Sister Trainers were here early in the week for an exchange.  They were using the Brewers car so on P-day our Elders took our car and they all went to Mostar for the day.  There is an investigator in Mostar they are teaching when they can.  It is two hours away and it would be very difficult for him to attend church.  But we always want to share the gospel and the Elders think it gives them a legitimate reason to keep returning to Mostar!  There is a member living in Mostar that we have tried to find since we arrived in the mission.  The Sisters finally found her at home.  She said she didn't want anything to do with our church anymore and slammed the door in their face.  Such a disappointment.  This is an older woman who has been to the temple.  She moved from her previous branch in Zadar sometime before we arrived.  We wonder what makes such a drastic change in faith occur.

I was the birthday girl on Wednesday.  We had district council at our house that morning.  The Sisters baked a chocolate cake for me and the Elders brought drinks.  We ate some of the cake then I put it in the freezer.  They don't know that's what they're having for dessert today - we certainly didn't need to eat the rest of it and it saved me making another dessert for Sunday dinner.  John took me to dinner at 4 Sobe Gospođe Safije (4 Rooms of Mrs. Sofia).  We've been wanting to try the restaurant for quite awhile.  It is very fancy and certainly an occasion restaurant.  It isn't like Applebees or someplace you might just drop in for dinner any night.

One dining area of 4 Rooms of Mrs Sofia

Very fancy with linen napkins and crystal glasses

We went to dinner early and had the restaurant to ourselves.  John had a steak and I had a pasta dish with veal medallions.  The food was very good and we had a nice evening.  The missionaries all asked what I wished for my birthday.  I told them it is the same wish I have every birthday - that I get to have another birthday next year!

We're been having a spring thaw this week, but know that winter can't be over yet.  It has been nice enough to walk outside again and we have enjoyed some nice long walks around the neighborhood.  The trees have buds and we see the gardeners out preparing the land for planting.  Bosnia is a beautiful place to be in the springtime.