Kim and Lotte were waiting for us when we arrived at our little chapel in Odense in February. This is our back parking lot.
We began our Kim King adventures the minute we drove down our little cobblestone driveway by the church. Kim and Lotte (his fiance) brought chocolates with marzipan and a cord to charge our new voice in a box (GSP, or is GPS, or GWP- I hate accronymns). Within days, I received a phone call from someone who spoke very fast, inviting us to dinner. I said, "yes", but I had no idea who it was. He asked me if we liked to eat lots of food, or not very much, because he would love to serve a feast if we were up to it. I told him that we would love to eat anything he prepared. Then he told me that he would give us directions to his home at church on Sunday. I still didn't know who was calling. Noone gave us directions in the Odense first ward, I was worried. Then after the Odense Second ward meeting, Kim appeared with directions to his house for dinner.
Kim and Lotte welcomed us to a dine with them in a cozy home with twinkle lights and candles. The food was a feast. What a lovely surprise.
We had little yellow potatoes, pork with bacon like cracklings, gravy, several kinds of fruit drinks. We toasted to the evening and our friendship, had great conversation about Denmark and all kinds of places that we could visit in Odense. We ended the meal with a creamy danish cake, something like a trifle. It was great fun, a warm welcome to Odense.
Every week or so we talk to Kim or he visits us at the center. We have had a little family night with him at our home with American Food- Hamburgers and french fries and he has turned to us when his mother was rushed to the hospital with a serious illness. He called us to pray for him when he lost his truck driving job.. and we celebrated with him when he got a new job driving trucks to deliver party rentals and jukeboxes. He has led a very interesting life and is willing to share all his stories with us. This is a picture of Kim with his fiance's son, Stepan and their little black stray cat.
At Easter time, Kim invited us to a new adventure. Although Kim is a Mormon, he still has strong ties with his neighborhood church. He often helps them with their activities, and special events. We ate another great meal with his family, and then Kim, Elder Wilberg and I walked down a little road full of old Danish cottages and daffodils to the church.
Then we came to his beautiful white Danish Church..called HojbyKirken. It was surrounded by a garden cemetary full of spring flowers. We were greeted by a kind Priest dressed in a black buttoned down robe with a white ruffled collar.
He taught us, with the rest of the Easter worshippers, about the last supper. This was the beginning of a three day message beginning with Gethsemane and ending on Sunday with the resurrection. We attended the Friday meeting. At the end of the sermon, Kim helped with the lighting of the candles, and the Priest lowered a curtain down over the painting of the Savior. It represented the beginning of the sad road to the crucifixion. Then we were to file out of the chapel, without speaking. It was a very dramatic way to begin the story of Easter.
It was fitting that, when we left the chapel, we entered the tidy cemetary decorated with tiny ceramic birds and spring flowers actually growing in the little individual garden spots for each family.
The Danes often use large boulders, carved with family names, for tombstones. This little church garden cemetary would be a perfect place to be resurrected. Thank you, Kim, for another fine day in Denmark. We are looking forward to the next thing you have in store for us.
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