Heder Mission Moments: Mars Hill, the Acropolis, and Meteora

Hello Family and Friends,

We went to the airport yesterday two times and hung out for a good part of the day, we had missionaries coming and going. We said good-bye to four of our amazing sisters, so hard to see them go but they finished strong with a beautiful baptism on Friday night. Mary, the lady from Africa, (Cameroon) was so happy and her four children were there to support her and many members from the branch. Her children are now also having the discussions and plan on being baptized in September. Two of the new converts in the Branch participated in the program. I want to share a little about their lives. The young man who prayed slowly came to the stand and unfolded his paper and quietly and very humbly read a most sincere prayer, everyone paid attention and it was one of those times when you realize the message of the prayer was enhanced because we were all listening carefully and participating in the prayer with him. Normally we would try and avoid a written prayer but in this case it was a real stretch for him and it was a beautiful effort.

Lots of baby steps here with new members as they talk in church and teach. One of the speakers at the baptism was a young man who hopes to serve a mission soon and has a very unique story. He came to Greece because his family would not support his decision to join the church, however in Greece he didn't have the proper paper work for residency and so he went to prison for 13 months. Now here is the cool part, while he was in prison he taught his cell mate and the two guards about the gospel and they were baptized as well when he got out of prison. He is so strong and he gave up his country, family and friends, everything he knew to join the church. That is sacrifice , all he has right now is hope in his future and faith in his Heavenly Fathers plan for him. He is so happy and excited to be in the church, this young man makes you grateful for your life.

So Saturday we spent the day with the sisters that are leaving, we went to the Acropoli and went up to the Parthenon and many of the surrounding sites, temple of Zeus etc. All I can say is, "WOW" and even Brooks who doesn't always care that much about , "rocks with meaning" was well impressed. We followed our GPS to a supposed parking center but ended up on this small street where we finally just parked and spent the day but driving out was the craziest experience of my life, on a road so narrow, with little cafe's on both sides, tourists, street vendors and little old Greek men waving me along because I know I looked confused and terrified, I could have rolled down my window and grabbed a french fry off the plate of a local diner. Bill and the kids left earlier because he was flying the Thessaloniki to speak in church and I was entertaining the sisters going home. Finally I found a road big enough that my GPS could guide me home, but we laugh a lot about the English pronunciation of the Greek street names by the phone voice.

A very nice Greek man (we ate at his restaurant) told us that the government is taxing the local businesses with very high taxe rate (28% of their profits) and if they are honest and pay taxes it's almost impossible to survive. So many businesses that are surviving are not paying taxes. We also heard that an article in " Times" magazine reported that in 2014 that 89 billion went uncollected on taxes by the government in Greece, that explains a few things, huh :) It is hard to see these people struggling and frustrated with their situation.

Exploring Meteor today, my find of beauty with lots of hikes and steps up to ancient monasteries with stunning views. I will definitely share pics.

There is a famiy on Crete that wants to be able to partake of the sacrament, so we are going over to Crete this weekend so President can visit with them, have a small sacrament meeting and organize some member missionary work. The assistants are going with us so they can answer some referrals and look up some investigators. On our P-day we might have to check out a few beaches and see some sites with Brooks since he goes home at the end of next week. The girls and I really don't want him to go, he makes us smoothies every day and definitely keeps us laughing. However Austin is an orphan in Utah ( even though he has lots of friends to visit) and needs a roommate. Brooks will give his mission report on Aug. 30 at 1:00 p.m. At the church on 500 N. and 300 E. He still stays in contact with companions and converts and we have meet many of them over FaceTime as he encourages their growth in the church.

To sum up some fun things that just come with living in a new country. I popped the tire on our car trying to park at the Acropoli building Sunday. There is only one narrow spot that we can use and a sharp rock got to close to my tire, ha. We love little cars big is not better here because we are thinking about how you would park it, lots of Smart cars and tiny Fiats here. I gave one of the gypsy ladies and her baby some money coming out of the store one day, big mistake, now they seem to be waiting for me and follow me to my car etc. oh no! I just feel so bad for them. There are pastry shops everywhere, the chocolate croissants are dangerous and they have these mini chocolate dipped ice cream bars, oh my:) As we are driving down the streets I will be pointing them all out and Brooks just exclaims , no, Mom! The watermelons over here are crazy good and hudge, the peaches are great right now also. The last 3 Sundays Brooks has made peach pies for the company we have had at Sunday dinner. Big hit!

Right now Bill and I are sitting in the Acropoli building waiting to see if anyone comes to YSA tonight.

Hugs and love, LeeAnn

LeeAnn has filled you in with all the gory details of our adventures in down-town Athens this past week. She was mildly traumatized, let's just be clear about that. But within a day, she was back behind the wheel and trying to find another adventure. She will do just about anything and go to any extreme if she has any indication that there is something out there that she has not experienced. I've actually found myself coaching the kids and the missionaries not to mention something that they've heard about anywhere near us--or we'll end up extending whatever adventure we're already exhausted from, as we go looking for the new one.

So the latest adventure was a day-long journey out into the middle valleys and mountains of Greece to a place called Meteora. It's one of those places that you have to drive a long way to see, but then you're glad you did. I'm sure that Lee will send some pics.

The greek name actually means "suspended rock" and refers to some jagged giant stone fins and posts shooting up at the edges of the valley floor at its touch point with the massive mountain range that is the back drop. They're actually grey sandstone pillars and fins reminiscent of red rock formations and fins down in Moab and other parts of Southern Utah. The difference is that these are rising up out of green grass valleys full of lakes and irrigated crops, and on top of about 7 of the formations are ancient monasteries that have been preserved and are still in at least partial operation.

The first inhabitants were hermits who lived in some caves there. Eventually, by the late 1600s, some wealthy patrons had made it possible for them to build actual structures on the tops, though they still had to haul themselves and their goods up the cliffs by way of pulleys and ropes. Now, with some will power, you can climb up chiseled stairways and see the little sanctuaries on top.

As an art major I had to appreciate the ancient paintings and vast ornamentation in multiple tiny chapels. But the complete darkness (or lack of light) seemed to sum up what Marie felt and commented on as soon as we went in the first one: "it's neat, but I don't feel the peace of the spirit here." No photos were allowed from inside, so I can only describe the covering of ancient iconic depictions of hundreds of saints, some biblical stories and then the torture and martyrdom of significant early saints--then the threatened punishments of sinners. I suppose if I was stuck on a small precipice, with nothing but those kinds of images and that kind of eternity to ponder about--rather than the glorious realization of a loving Heavenly Father who gives me a life full of purpose and an eternity worth preparing for--I might start painting some rather dismal things as well.

Tonight we're sitting in the down-town Athen church building waiting for a visitor from Albania; the area director for institutes. He's a Stake President up in Albania and is coming to meet with us about what can be done for the Young Single Adults in Greece. Unfortunately, we tried to get an invitation out on Facebook to the YSAs in the area--and we came down here with treats in hand... and noone has showed up. So we wait for this poor guy who has driven about 9 hours to get here. We'll meet with him and work on strategies to help build the Young Single Adults in the area. Hopefully he won't ever drive down here and get stiffed again.

Just in case you're wondering, it's hot and humid. I don't know why anyone would go to a Mediterranean climate in July or August unless they had no choice. We are surviving, but we are pretty much dependent upon air conditioning to keep us from just melting into so many gelital blobs on the hot sidewalks.

love to all!

Bill O.Heder

Greece Athens Mission