November 4, 2012

How many times before a beautiful symphony do we hear the words, “This concert was made possible by a gift from………………..” When I hear that, I wonder if maybe it sometimes should be said, “This concert was made possible by hundreds of gifts from God…………..” This past concert I was thinking just how important just one of those many gifts really is and that gift is “hands.” Yes, hands. As I watched the piano soloist, the string musicians, the brass, the percussion and even the maestro, I thought of how silent that hall would have been without hands. And speaking of the hall, could there have been a hall without hands to build it with its intricate columns, cornices, the sweeping stairways, the inlaid floors, and the hand-woven floor coverings?

Is it possible to calculate all of the hands that it took to create all the parts of the instruments, the mother’s hands that raised their children to not only play beautiful music but to appreciate the importance of making it a part of their lives. Oh, did I forget the composers who wrote the music with writing utensils guided by hands. I could go on forever but I guess by now you are seeing how important hands are.

Do we ever stop to think about all the things our hands make it possible for us to do. They are just one of the many things we take for granted until we have something as minor as a paper cut or as major as a broken wrist which make it difficult or impossible to use our hands.

 

I love all the metaphors associated with hands: loving hands, healing hands, waving hands, gentle hands, kind hands, praying hands, working hands, helping hands, clapping hands, raised hands, shaking hands, outstretched hands, clean hands, Hand of the Lord, holy hands, hands that hang down, and hands that lift up. Hands can be used for either good or ill. Is there anything that we can do that can’t be done better with the help of hands?  Hands are just one of God’s many miracles. I’m sure that to each of us there are many more miracles which we could name if we really took the time to ponder. And that is what is really important…………..taking the time to ponder and show gratitude for all that we have been given. Quoting  Elder Ballard in October Conference, “great things are brought about and burdens are lightened through the efforts of many hands anxiously engaged in a good cause.” We have witnessed over and over and even this last week on the east coast the importance of “many hands.”

Another Halloween has come and gone. Halloween is not a big holiday here in Ukraine. I saw some carved pumpkins in front of a restaurant. I saw one sign on the metro advertising a Halloween Party on the 27th of October, and on Halloween day I saw only one person of thousands dressed in something that might have been a Halloween costume. Therefore, I decided to add a few pictures on this blog of my favorite trick-or-treaters back in the USA.

Halloween decor outside a restaurant

 

Hal and Owen

Evan and Charlie

Sylvie, Jack and Annie

Caden, Sara, Molly and Beckham

Nick and Olivia

On Halloween I worked in the temple and after went to Babi Yar with a few friends that have recently moved to Kyiv. As you all know, Babi Yar is the name of a deep ravine in the northern part of Kyiv.  The name is known today as a symbol of the inhuman fascist genocide of originally Jews, but also gypsies, concentration camp prisoners, communist underground members, and Ukrainian patriots. The total number of victims was about one-hundred thousand. In 1976 an official monument in memory of the murdered Soviet citizens was built, and in 1981 a monument in the shape of the Jewish Menorah was set up much closer to the scene of the tragedy. The cold, dreary Halloween Day added to the solemnity of the area.

Looking down the head of the 2 mile ravine

One bright spot at head of ravine

Sunset at Babi Yar

Monument at Babi Yar

Menorah Monument

Babi Yar

On the way to the office on Thursday I decided to take the bus part way to pick up ticket orders and was fortunate to sit down next to a beautiful lady and her baby from Indonesia.  She was on her way to find a place to buy souvenirs for her office staff and I was on my way to Independence Square where they have a lot of what she would be looking for so I showed her the way. Nadia Said is a diplomat for Indonesia in Sophia, Bulgaria and her husband is a diplomat for Indonesia here in Ukraine. She was here visiting him for two weeks with her baby and three year old son. She was such a wonderful, gracious person and I was sorry to hear she was leaving on Sunday. She said she would be coming back soon for another visit and would give me a call. She would be a wonderful person to get to know more.

Nadia Said

Saturday I convinced Gary that he needed to go with me to find out exactly where Marshrutka #527 went. We see that particular bus go by our house several times a day and I was just curious what would happen and where I would go if I ever mistakenly got on it. It went  down to Khreschatyk, past the Philharmonic, past the Parliament Building and the Art Museum, past the Famine Museum, past the Lavra, the World War II Museum, the Arsenal, the Botanical Garden and then it headed across the Dnipro River. I told Gary to pretend we were just on an afternoon ride around the city (with fifty people on a bus with about 20 seats). I was really wondering if we were ever going to turn around. I was glad that I had been to most of the places we were passing so I knew where we were. About the end of the city limits we finally turned around and headed back to Artema, the street where we live. It was about a three hour ride and sure enough, we did find out where bus #527 went after it passed our apartment. I’m sure this bus route was around long before the metro was built. It is amazing that it is still a part of the circuit but I have to admit it was fun to see things above ground rather than always  wondering what is above you when you are underground on the metro.  

  

Crossing the Dnipro on the martrushka #527

Quote of the week by President Dieter F. Uchtdorf: 

"When I think of the Savior, I often picture Him with hands outstretched, reaching out to comfort, heal, bless and love. And He always talked with, never down to, people. He loved the humble and the meek and walked among them, ministering to them and offering hope and salvation.

This is what He did during His mortal life; it is what He would be doing if He were living among us today; and it is what we should be doing as His disciples."

Kyiv Temple on October 31, 2012