New Digs

It was fun to talk to everybody on Christmas.  It was also fun that you asked to see the new apartment.  So here are a few quick photos just to give you an idea.  I like the fact that Dad has his music corner, but this time he adds quite a view.  It's funny how the same furniture looks so different now in the apartment!
It's a beautiful sunny day and we have had a blast exploring our new neighborhood.  Take yesterday for example:  We walked most of the day.  First we walked over to the Cinquantenaire park where there are tons of trails.   Then for lunch we walked over to Pauls bakery (wait till you try their hot chocolate!)then walked downtown and did a little window shopping on High Road.  Then to Pita Row for dinner.  Through the Grand Place for the Light and Sound show and over to Rue Nueve for more window shopping.  Took the metro home (oh a bought a mobipass metro/bus card).  Thoroughly enjoying the city life indeed.  I found the bus that will take me to yoga, and I will take the metro to tennis.  Dad is going to try bus #12 to work.  I think the time here is going to fly by way too fast!

done

Last night was our last night as residents of 20 Sijsjeslaan.  We slept one last night on the blow-up mattress which is awesome, so you can still come and visit!  The house is empty now, just have the cleaning up to do, which I didn't think would be too bad but it's horrible.
Just a few closing thoughts for documentation:  We have loved living in this home, where we raised our children, and served, and had happy times as well as some tough times.  I look around and see and feel everybody.  Even though it's empty it still breathes with the life we had here.  I'm sitting in Jake/Steve's room but next time I will just drive by, no longer the place we will call home.
I am looking forward to the next phase, don't get me wrong.  I just had to give a tribute to a great place. Yes, it's only walls, but it protected all those that are dear to me.  So thanks house!  And if you don't mind, let me shed a tear or two....

Because you missed it, and because it was so good

Hi all,
I felt that you might like to read Tom's talk from Stake Conference.  It really was exceptional.  And you all missed it.

Session presided by Elder Teixeira
Presence of Elder Boutoille
Conducted by President Herway

His talk:
I want to tell a few stories.  Then I will be ready to move on to my next calling in the Lord's Church.

When I was called as Stake President the Area President at the time asked me if there was any reason why he shouldn't call me as Stake President.  I told him I had three very good reasons.

First, I told him I am on short term contracts and my present contract expires in six months.  He told me if the lord wants you to stay he will work it out so you can stay.

Second, I told him my ability to speak French is limited.  I can understand, but I don't have much practice speaking the language.  He said you can learn French.  This will be a good opportunity for you to improve your French.

The third excuse I gave to the Area President was that I was an American and the majority of the members in our Stake are Belgian.  He told me you are not an American.  You are a child of God.  That is your true, eternal identity.  You were born in America.  But when we leave this life it won't matter where we were born.  We will have only one identity.  So I was left without any excuses and I was ready to accept the new calling and see what my Heavenly Father had in store for me.

I have learned so much from each of my callings in the Church.  Being Stake President was not the hardest calling I have ever had.  The hardest calling I ever had was as Deacon's Quorum Advisor to the meanest bunch of Deacons who ever walked the earth.

Anita and I had just moved into the Ward in Virginia when I was called to be the Deacons Quorum Advisor.  I didn't know it at the time but they had been through three Deacon Quorum Advisors before me and they had all quit.  They couldn't find anyone who would teach these boys, so they grabbed me as soon as I moved in before I could learn about these boys.

There were 10 of them.  They would never listen to me.  They would laugh and make fun of what I said.  They would throw things at me when my back was turned.  One time they locked me out of the room and wouldn't let me back in the classroom.  They were 12 and 13 year old criminals.

But I didn't give up.  I was determined to teach them.

I finally decided that I had to adjust my teaching style.  First, I had to let them have fun together.  I wanted them to like coming to Church and being together.  Second, I couldn't react to their bad actions.  This is exactly what they wanted.  Third I realized that I had to take advantage of the moments they gave me to teach them the gospel of Jesus Christ.  So I started to prepare the lessons in short 10 second sound bites.  In between their laughing and talking I would throw out an idea and I would keep throwing it at them each time there was a break in the action.

After awhile it started to work.  They knew they weren't going to drive me away so they started quieting down and they began to respond to the ideas I presented.  Finally after about a year I was released and was given a calling in the Elder Quorum.  I thought that was the last I would ever see of those boys.  I was wrong.  I didn't realize how the Lord works.

Four years later I was called to be the Bishop of these boys.  They were Priests now.  So I was their Priest's Quorum President.  It was my job to prepare these boys to go on missions.  I realized why I was given that calling as Deacon's Quorum Advisor.  I knew these boys and they knew their Bishop.  By the time they left the Priests Quorum they knew the gospel of Jesus Christ and understood clearly what they needed to do with their lives.  They knew the joy of serving others.  They all served missions.

Brother and sisters this is the way the Lord works.  Don't give up on Him until you have learned the lesson He is trying to teach you.  Be patient and wait on the Lord until you have received the blessing from Him for your faithfulness.

I have learned something from every calling I have had in the Church of Jesus Christ.  What have I learned from this calling?

I have leaned some French.  One of the first times I sustained anyone in French was in the Mons Ward. The Bishop at the time was Don Kroenen if you remember Don.  He was a sweet little Canadian who loved everyone.  Since Mons is bi-lingual Ward I presented the names for sustaining a new Elders Quorum Presidency first in French then in English.  I was feeling pretty proud of myself for speaking in both languages.  So I asked the Quorum which was better, by French or my English?  To which Don replied, "I don't know President.  They are both pretty bad!"  Thank you for being so kind and patient with someone who can't speak French or English (according to Don).

I have learned that the faithful members of the Church here in Belgium are celestial beings.  No one will ever be able to convince me that they are not.  I have a testimony of this fact.  You are amazing.  I am so grateful for how good you have been to me.  How patient you have been with me.  How supportive you have been of me.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart.

You are not perfect.  No one is.  But you are as good as it gets.  They don't get any better than you.  It was a privilege and joy to be your Stake President.  I enjoyed every minute.

My favorite part of this calling was the Temple Recommend interviews.  As I listened to your answers to my questions I realized your faithfulness and your sacrifices to keep the commandments and following the Savior.  I was able almost to feel the love your Heavenly Father has for you.  He loves you very much.  He wants you to see that each trial, each problem you must overcome is necessary for your growth and progression.

I won't get to exhort you again as your leader so I am going to take advantage of my last chance.

Keep going to the temple.  Keep going to the temple as Ward families with your youth and your loved ones.  I love the temple.  I don't begin to know everything that goes on in the temple.  Most of what takes place in the temple occurs on the other side of the veil where we ca't see it.  But it is real.  These people are real.  The work you do for them has a tremendous impact upon them.  My wife keeps a list of every name she has ever done temple work for.  She expects them to meet her when she leaves this life and thank her for what she did for them.  She has the right vision of this work.  Don't let anybody or anything keep you from going to the temple often.  You will be blessed.

Do your HT and VT.  Visiting the members in their homes every month representing the Lord Jesus Christ is one of the greatest blessings you will ever have.  It is the essence of the gospel of Jesus Christ. It is the best way I know to develop the pure love of Jesus Christ.  You will receive revelation for those you visit and you develop a love for them as you serve them.  You need this blessing.

I have loved this calling.  You have made it so easy for me.  I gained so much from your testimonies, your sacrifices, your examples and your strength in living a celestial law in a telestial kingdom.

I want to thank Anita for her patience and support.  I want to thank my brothers Marc, Mike, Xavier and Andre, (and Yvan, Patrick and Jorge before them).  I always looked forward to our Presidency meetings on Wed night.  We were truly one.  It was a great feeling.  I think this is what I will miss the most about this wonderful calling.

I testify to you that we are brothers and sisters.  We all have one very important thing in common.  We have a Father in Heaven who knows an loves each of us.  His work and His glory is to bring us back into His presence.  He has a plan for us to return to Him and live with Him forever.  This plan is the gospel of Jesus Christ.  It is called the plan of happiness.  It is the most important thing in my life.  It has brought me so much joy.  It has brought me more blessings than I could ever have imagined possible.  It has brought me you.  I will always be grateful to Him for this precious gift.



I hope you enjoyed.  Now onward...

Squish Squish

For all those out there that have mowed the lawn at 20 Sijsjeslaan.  I want you to know that the last mow has been completed by moi!  With the ORIGINAL lawn mower no less.  The last two pictures were before the mow because I
 wanted to capture the beautiful leaves.  I also took a picture of Julian's house with the FOR SALE sign in her front yard.  I noticed today that it is Vercocht!  That didn't take long.  They must have been asking the right price.  The Nelis family has not decided if they are going to sell or rent.

And the reason my title is 'squish squish' is because at the turn by the pond I did fall in.  Actually put a grin on my face.  So apropos.  Wouldn't have been right to make the last mow without a dunk into the pond to top it off.  I think Steve and Felicia were the last ones to have the honor to clean out the ponds.  No wait, it was Jed and Nicole in August!   I don't think anybody is going to miss that chore!  And the portugal girls and Taft/Luke were the last to swim in them. (unless you count me falling in today, then I was last!)
Oh, and they took out the stump of the willow tree, and just left a pile of compost.  Thanks Bryn for giving that fabulous tree a good-bye hug!

After 25 years at 20 Sijsjeslaan

View from the side of the apartment

The view from the street side

Discussion with the Landlords...since the apartment is on the corner, we get both the head on view and the side view.  This room is not huge, but it is sufficient.

This is the guest bedroom

the small small deck off of the kitchen...and also you can see the breakfast bar.  That is the landlord enjoying the view  on the terrace.

So long American washer/dryer.  

The kitchen galley.  In the background is the front door entrance and foyer.

Tom measuring the windows in the Master Bedroom.   I have to make/buy all the drapes.  Notice they are definitely floor to ceiling windows.  I hate to cover them too much, but you have to have them for the sunlight/noise absorption.  

The kitchen again, but you can see the landlord standing on the small terrace off of the kitchen.

Home sweet home for 2 and 1/2 years.  23 Ambiorix Square.  B.10.1 (building B, floor 10, apartment 1).  It is the apartment on the top floor and if looking at the building, the one in the far left corner.
This will make it official in my mind.  Working for NATO and not the US Govt. anymore,  and living smack dab downtown in an apartment, I think the feel will truly be more European rather than American.  We are actually excited about the adventure!

Momentous

From June 20, 1977 to TODAY:  Oct 31, 2013.  First and last day that Tom works for the US Government.  36 plus years.  His first boss was Don Drain.  The last boss is Peter Scaruppe. And as Tom put it:  lots of weirdos in between.  He started  with a temporary position at GSA.  President Carter had a freeze on government hiring.  I remember while I was in the hospital after the birth of Dan that Tom came in the hospital room and announced he had officially been hired as a permanent employee. (luckily they counted the temporary months).  His first job was to decipher the IFB(invitation for bid) and to train and teach others how to put them together.  He didn't stay long with GSA and applied and was accepted into procurement with the Navy (buying airplanes).  A lady at a training was saying: "the secret to going where you want to go and live where you want to live was to get into a line of business that every company/business needs."  He hadn't consciously gotten into something like that, but he realized procurement was exactly that line of business.
Congrats Tom.  Good job!
Tom had 5 days of use or lose leave.  He had to be home on Sat for a Stake meeting.  He also had to report to work today on his last day, Oct 31.  To use up the 5 days, we took an overnight to Bonn, then back for the stake mtg.  Then off to Normandy/Brittany France until today.  We stayed in a manor home and a chateau.  We ate lots of great food and enjoyed history and scenery.  We biked and hiked.  And we talked and talked and remembered and reminisced and reflected.  And truly, there was a rainbow at the end. No actually make that a double rainbow!

Manor home near Alencon.  

Fougere

Chateau (hotel) near Fougere

Vitre

Brittany Coastline near Cancale.  The colors are stunning.

Jumiege Abbey

Double Rainbow at the end of the Journey

Thanks for the Present

Thanks to all of our kids....we took advantage of your Christmas gift and spent Conference Week-end in the Ardennes! In the background you can see the castle in Bouillon.

It was a beautiful day and the Fall colors were just coming out.

We took a hike in the hills.  After our hike we dropped down to the water and had a rest on the bench and soaked in the view.  See Dad on the bench?

Just over the Belgian border in the small town of Sedan France.  Tom is in the courtyard of the Castle/Fort and behind him is the hotel where we spent the night.  It is one wing of the castle.

We played two games and we each had a win....oh yea!  I won the second game because he hit the 8 ball in the hole!

Lit up at night.  Always fun to walk around the small village.  We ate dinner at Lucifer's Grill where they served Italian pizza cooked from a wood fire.  Appropriate for Conference Week-end we thought.

On the walls of the castle (did I say it is the largest medieval castle in Europe still standing?)

Just one wall of the castle.  It was HUGE.

The inner courtyard, but again, only a small section of it.

One entrance to the fort.  I think the walls were 35 meters thick.  Massive.

So thanks everyone for a fabulous Christmas gift.  The great part?  We already have the gift for this Christmas.....so we still have another week-end coming up to enjoy.  It's a perfect gift and we thank you all!