We had a wonderful day in Elbasan this Sunday...Liz and I were the featured speakers, but it was really Liz that everyone came to hear (we had attendance of 70, which is the highest this year!). Liz did a talk on the inspiring music of Christmas, and passed out short Christmas song sheets that she had made (and had stitched together using her sewing machine...couldn't find a long reach stapler!!). So she'd talk a little about the song, and then we'd sing a few verses. There aren't many Christmas carols translated into Albanian, and even those can be very difficult to sing (something about "prosody"). Then for the finale, she talked about Silent Night (the carol that all the members know well), and then she led the congregation in singing it, and she sang the first verse in English, and accompanied herself on guitar. It was wonderful. After Sacrament meeting, many members came up and said that it was something they'd never forget. And one young woman came up to me and said in English--"You have a beautiful woman!" (I said, "I know".)
After Sacrament, the primary was practicing a song for their branch Christmas program...you'll see about 20 kids in this picture, but only 3 of them are members. The rest are neighborhood kids, and they've been attending primary for many months, ever since the building opened. They can sometimes be a handful, but they love the primary!! -Marty
3 comments:
Thank you for this wonderful blog! We are an LDS family who was been assigned to the Tirana embassy and we will be arriving in April. Thank you for your wonderful insights. We are excited to share in the adventures.
wow, liz! what a wonderful way to introduce Christmas carols. You are amazing! And that young woman was right!--Marty does have a beautiful woman!
I use to love listening to mom sing "Silent Night" and "Oh Holy Night" on Christmas Eve. I hope we get to hear that again this next Christmas!
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