Dear Family,
Here is our official letter we received this week from the Russian 2nd Counselor in the Europe East Area Presidency:
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Dear Elder Copeland,So, it is now official! We will be moving to Frankfurt a week from tomorrow! We are very excited about this next eleven months, but found it is going to be hard to say good-bye to so many people we have met here and worked with. I cried all the way through the email that Vlad, Kyle's manager for Jeneusse sent us, I cried today in Ramenskyoe when we said good-bye to our little Russian newly baptized friend, and was almost brought to tears trying to tell the woman who was so kind to us every time we went out there I bought her a gift while we were in Madrid, and she seemed thrilled. Anyway, we have so many more good-byes, it is going to be difficult, I can already tell!
I am pleased to inform you, that recently Brethren approved your reassignment to the Europe Area. You will continue your service as an Area Auditor for Europe Area.Please work with Elder Yost to determine best timing for your travel arrangements. I understand that Europe Area is scheduled training for Area Assistant Auditors in the next couple of weeks. It would be great if you could be there to participate in this training. We would be grateful if you could work with Elder Yost to learn more about those plans.Let me please express how much we appreciate the great work you have accomplished in our area. We will miss you very much. we are however confident that Europe Area will be significantly blessed with your leadership capacity and as an Area Auditor!With love and sincere appreciation,Elder Samaykin-----------------------------------------------------------------------
Here is the letter I wrote while I was on the plane coming back from Madrid so I would have it ready to send today.
Dear Family,
We’ve had a wonderful time in Madrid for our Visa Trip and are now on our way back to Moscow. Our heads are kind of swirling with all we have to do this next week in order to leave next Monday for Germany. I can’t believe they wanted us to go there this coming Wednesday after only being back in Moscow for only two days, but we knew there was no way we could be ready that quickly with handing over responsibilities and visiting all the people we’ve been fellow-shipping and becoming friends with while we’ve been here. Plus, thinking of moving AGAIN sort of just makes my stomach churn! Obviously, it isn’t like moving from your own home, but we’re still not sure if another couple will be moving in here, which would make it so much easier. Then I would leave things the way the prior couple left them for us. They even left food in the refrigerator and cupboards. Our landlord is the best! I really hope they will figure out something to keep the apartment for a Senior couple. The trouble is, not many are coming now, and the ones who are coming will be moving to the same apartment as the people they are replacing. We’ll just have to see!
The people in Frankfurt are so organized, however. We have been so impressed! They said they will be there to pick us up, help us move in, and already have the apartment ready for us. Plus, they are having a AAA Conference in Madrid in two weeks, so they already have our air tickets and hotel figured out for us to go back there AGAIN! Pretty funny that we’ve never been there before and now will be there in Madrid twice in a month. We will get to go to the temple again, which we are thrilled about!
The temple was definitely the highlight of the trip—such beautiful grounds, inside one of the most beautiful Celestial rooms I’ve ever seen, and such good people! They invited us to a going away party the night we came in, so we met about 12 couples who are there from various places in the states and are on a temple mission there in Madrid. Such friendly, great people! One Spanish woman was being honored for working there for, I don’t know how many years, I think in the office, but they were releasing her because others wanted the opportunity. Tears were streaming down her cheeks the whole night. I thought how wonderful that so many people want to work there!
We stayed in Temple Housing for one night. It was quite the experience. They divided the men and women, so George and I had to stay in different rooms. I had a mother, daughter, and older woman who was making a green smoothie at 11:30 p.m.! George didn't get a bit of sleep with the men coming in at different times and then snoring so badly, he could't even fall asleep!
We, also, got to go out to Toledo and Segovia, Unesco World Heritage Sites, which were amazing. We met many people and could talk about why we were in Russia and we felt so excited to have that ability to do that. So different than when we are in Russia.
We met for our tour in front of the Madrid bull-fighting ring. Barcelona has made it illegal there and converted their bull-fighting arena into a huge, beautiful mall. It is still legal to have it here in Madrid.
Toledo
A little display of the Nuns who make marzipan in Toledo.
Segovia - Raised Roman aqueducts that could be as old as the first century A.D.
Back in Madrid
Going to a flamenco dancing evening was unbelievable! Those dancers work so hard! We had fantastic seats and literally could touch the stage. George thought we were going to watch “flamingos” dancing, but realized the mistake when the music, clapping, and clicking of the feet began. It was quite an experience watching them!
We, also, went to the Prada Museum—absolutely amazing—one of the best in the world for religious paintings, as well as historical. I find it very interesting to see how much you can learn in a picture that no words could explain. Gpa George, again, was a good sport, even when we stayed over three hours there! He definitely wanted to impress Joyce because she knows him well and that art museums aren’t his favorite. (I think he actually enjoyed it a little, too!)
Well, I don’t know if I’ll have much time to write again soon until we reach Frankfurt. Tomorrow we are going on the 2 1/2 Trip to Ramenskoye to tell the people bye there. We have really learned to love those people and wish we could have gone more often out there to be with them.
We send our LOVE ❤️ to all!
Gma Laura
P.S. Those of you who know families of some of the senior couples out here, please don't say anything to them since we are going to announce this Tuesday night at Senior Council. We don't want them to tell their loved ones here in Russia until we get a chance to let them know.
P.S.S. Also, so sorry for those of you who were planning a trip to Moscow. We can still do some great things in Germany and the area round about it. If you still want to come back in future times, we can definitely be great tour guides here. Hah!
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