Our wonderful week with Andrew in Austria

 Andrew came to visit us the week between Christmas and New Years and we had such a terrific time together.  On Sunday afternoon December 26, we met him in Stephansdom in Vienna.  Isaak Falke offered us a ride in his car from Leoben after church.  We enjoyed lunch in Vienna with Andrew and Isaak.  We spent that night in a nice hotel in Vienna.

The next morning we took Judd’s violin into the shop of Henriette Lersch.  (She happens to be a mother and member of our church who is a violin maker in Vienna)  We were very grateful and relieved to learn from her that Judd’s violin was not cracked and that the varnish only needs some cosmetic repair as a result of dropping on a hard floor!

Monday afternoon was magical!  Judd had previously made arrangements with Shane Fellowes (who has organ connections in Vienna), for Andrew to play two magnificent organs! The churches were Herz Jesu and St. Elisabeth.  Both churches have magnificent organs.  Andrew was thrilled for the wonderful privilege to play them.  It was thrilling for all of us!  (See attached pictures)

On Tuesday we drove to Graz and took Andrew to meet Uta Bullman, who is one of our very favorite friends in Austria. Uta had recently joined the church when Judd was serving his mission in Graz 52 years ago.  It has been such a blessing for them to renew their friendship.  Andrew and Uta had a great time getting to know each other.  They are both so open and friendly. (see photos!)

Ruth Korak invited us to dinner that afternoon.  Ruth is an excellent cook and a wonderful entertainer. Jarom Korak, their eldest son was there and Andrew and Jarom had fun speaking Italian together.  Michael Korak is the husband of Ruth and is our branch president. Judd is his counselor.  (Michael is in the U.S.for three weeks.)  Andrew played Christmas carols on their piano  and we all sang along.  Andrew was warmly welcomed by our friends to Austria. He really felt the love and goodness of the wonderful saints here.  And they fell in love with him…

On Wednesday we went to Muerzzuschlag.  This is the city in Austria where Johannes Brahms wrote his Fourth Symphony.  There is a museum there and we were the only visitors!  As we entered, Judd introduced us and mentioned to him that he and Andrew are musicians by profession.  The museum is actually in the same building that Brahms rented a room during two summers while he composed his 4th Symphony.  In one of the rooms, there is a beautiful Streicher Piano that Brahms actually played on. This piano had been in the home of the Fellinger Family in Vienna.  In 1887, an Edison wax cylinder recording of Brahms playing this very piano was made.  When we entered the room with the piano, the man who met us when we entered (who also happens to be a musician himself) asked Andrew if he would like to play this piano!  We were in shock!  Andrew knows some piano works by Brahms and was able to download the music onto his cell phone and play an Intermezzo. It was a once in a lifetime experience for all of us.  For this opportunity to surface…it was not happenstance to be sure.  (See attached photos)

On Thursday we went to the Stadtpfarrkirche  (St. Xaver) here in Leoben.  This catholic church was built in 1444!  The architecture is in the Rococo style and is so ornate!  (Gold leaf everywhere!)  Before Andrew’s arrival, Judd had reached out to the organist there: Herr Doctor Österreich! We met him after the morning mass and he allowed Andrew to play the organ.  It was thrilling once again to hear Andrew play.  It was freezing cold in the organ loft and Andrew said it was really hard to move his fingers!  Andrew invited Dr. Osterreich to come play a recital in All Saints Ashmont in Boston as a guest organist.  Andrew and Judd would also like to come back to Austria to do some recitals.  Lots of dreaming going on…  

On Friday night it was New Years Eve and we met our dear friends Scott and Meretta Barnes (senior missionaries in our mission who drove all the way from Passau Germany) to celebrate the holiday with us.  We went to dinner together then walked to the opera house.  The Opera was Julius Ceasar by Geoge Frederick Handel.  (The Barnes were not admitted into the opera even though they had purchased tickets because they weren’t told they needed to be tested for Corona! We felt super frustrated about that but they were good sports about it!)  We are all so sick of this Coronavirus and all the variants!

Anyway…the opera was absolutely magnificent!  The orchestra played on period instruments and the singers were first rate!  (The only thing I missed seeing were period costumes!)  However, the opera was such a thrill.  Handel’s music is so inspired and we were grateful that we had the privilege of attending an amazing opera in Vienna on New Year's Eve 2021!  

On Sunday Andrew met us and we all attended sacrament meeting in our little branch in Bruck an der Mur!  The members warmly welcomed Andrew.  It was January 2, Fast and Testimony meeting. Almost everyone in attendance bore their testimonies.  The spirit was strong and Andrew wept through the meeting and held my hand.  It was the dearest!  He commented afterwards that now he understands why we love the members of the branch…and they loved Andrew!  After the meeting he played the electronic organ in our building.  Wow!!!  We had no idea that organ could sound that magnificent!  They all want him to come to church in Bruck an der Mur from now on!! 

Even though we don’t usually eat in restaurants on Sunday, we took Andrew and Anneliese Riedner and Isaak Falke to an Italian restaurant after our meetings.  Andrew had to catch the train afterwards and Anneliese drove him  to the train station.  She told us afterwards that he wept and said how much he loves us and appreciates us as his parents.  This warmed our hearts! Likewise, we appreciate you as our son Andrew!

Andrew had some great insights to share with us after attending our meetings.  He suggested we cook every Sunday and feed the church members after the service.  When the pandemic calms down we want to do this!  He told us that throughout the book of Acts you can practically hear dishes clanging in the verses!  The saints were always eating together.  This is a great way to form relationships and establish 

rapport in a congregation. 

Even though we didn’t perform our usual missionary labors the week between Christmas and New Years we were brought closer to our Heavenly Father through the glorious musical experiences that we savored. 

It has been said that music could be considered another sacrament!  What would life be without the blessing of glorious music…especially in our worship services? Our family relationships are eternal!  What a blessing it was to spend these choice days together with a dear son.  The hugs and kisses and loving expressions were truly a tender mercy…our time together was a blessing for all of us.  We don’t get to spend much time with Andrew because of the distance from Boston.  We will never forget Andrew’s week with us in Austria!  Our memories will remain ever precious to all of us…

Just a quick update on last week.  We resumed our usual missionary labors: visiting members, calling members and reaching out to those who have slipped away temporarily!  Judd gave a blessing to a sweet woman who is a beloved friend of Hannelore Bernier and Isaak Falke who are branch members.  Isaak had prepared a nice meal for us. He invited Helga, a sweet woman who is a devout Catholic.  She has many physical challenges and deals with a lot of pain.  She said she would like Judd and Isaak to give her a priesthood blessing.  Helge commented afterwards that she already felt better.  

One of our favorite friends in the branch is Monika Bein.  She is elderly and  confined to a wheelchair.  She cannot attend church and is very lonely.  When we were sharing a message with her and singing for her she had tears in her eyes.  She is such a woman of faith.  We are blessed by her love for the Lord.

The last two weeks have been blessed!  Our hearts continue to be poured out in gratitude to our Heavenly Father for his many blessings to us everyday.