Vingt-Trois (23)—Family, Noel, and a Yellow Jeep…
Bonjour a tous…
We will attempt to write together again…I think we will jump right in after Branson and Sherilyn left. It felt pretty slow for a bit! However, we knew Dad and Mom (Howard & Elsie Loewen) would come for Noel. (Christmas) We were looking forward to having Noel in France; we were with Bart & Annette in Belgium last year. That was a Noel we will never forget!
In the back of our minds, we were thinking about a lady we had met in a café in the center of Lille. This was a random meeting that took us by surprise. We were finishing up a shared slice of Basque cheesecake and espressos when Kelly approached us and asked what kind of church group we were from. Kelly’s grandmother had been a Miller from Ohio! She had noticed the head coverings immediately. We had noticed her for quite some time, watching closely. Anyway, she was very open and friendly and had many questions, and then we asked if she would like to meet up sometime. She exchanged numbers with me (Lydia). We learned she was married to a French man named Damien, whom she met when she came to France to attend university. They have two children, Madeline (8) and Lucien (6). For the next few weeks, I (Lydia) texted with her back and forth, and as Noel approached, we decided to invite them over for supper when Dad and Mom were out.
Dad and Mom arrived after a lengthy flight on the 19th of December. Everything is new and strange when you land in a foreign country! It's like when you get in a different car, you reach for the blinker, and the windshield wipers turn on…This makes for a novel experience when you visit!
That evening, Damien & Kelly came for supper. They arrived and waited in the street for a while. We weren't sure if they were discussing the unusual situation or considering leaving. Tyson walked over to their car, and with a laugh, they mentioned that they weren't sure if this was the right place. They came in and the children quickly met everyone and began to play legos. Damien is a Latin Professor (36), and Kelly (34) is an English Professor. We had a very nice evening together. Kelly had a lot of questions about our work here in France and our beliefs. She seemed very interested in the “Old Paths”.. She mentioned that in Ohio, the church she attended when she was younger went from singing traditional hymns and preaching out of the Bible to bringing in “new age” bands and preaching from “PowerPoint” presentations. It was intriguing to hear two professors express dismay that when a church tries to “Fit In” with new age ways, they lose the feeling of the “Old Paths.”
During our conversations, she became emotional a few times. The first time was when we discussed the “new birth.” She had no prior understanding of what it meant, and it was pretty incredible to explain to someone with no background knowledge and an open mind: "You must be born again."
The second instance was when she told us about her yearly summer vacation in Ohio. The house they were staying at was having some roof repairs being done by a group of plain people. She shared that they would break out into song as they worked, and her eyes filled with tears while recounting this experience. It left a deep impression on her.
We have continued our communication through texting and hope to have the opportunity to be with them again. For now, we pray for them and let God do what he does best.
The following day, we planned to leave for Barr, France. Thierry and Denise had been asking for a while for us to come down and visit. We thought it would be neat to go near Christmas and do some tract work there. So, we waited until Dad and Mom were out so we could take them to meet Thierrys.
On the way, we stopped for lunch at Metz, France. It was hard to find something open as it was Sunday. So, we ended up eating at their outdoor Christmas market. It might be worth your time to look this town up on Google Maps. It is a fantastic town with a church in the center and the most stained glass windows in the world! We kept up our pace and got to Barr around 7 pm.
Metz, France- When it's WARM and summer time :)))
Click here -Metz, France Cathedral with Stained glass
Denise wanted us to visit that evening yet if possible. They live in the historical part of Barr in a charming little apartment. They often feel lonely and long for fellowship. Thierry was really happy when his dad was discharged from the hospital. His father, who had been an atheist for most of his life, had recently found faith after enduring a severe battle with cancer and spending a long time hospitalized. It seemed that God had finally reached him! Thierry had given him a Bible, and to his surprise, his father had been reading it and enjoying it. It is truly rewarding to hear stories of God sweeping away the dust and cobwebs of doubt and transforming lives. We left after a few hours and reached the top of Mt. Saint-Odile just as the snow set in.
The next day, we woke up to Winter Wonderland. We could see the Rhine River Valley, the birthplace of our ancestors, covered in white! It's all nice to see, but how good are the French road maintenance crews at keeping the roads? Well…we had to wait until the snowplow had reached the top, around 11 a.m., before we could get out. Meanwhile, we had a nice breakfast with the other hotel occupants. One of these was a man in his 70s who was obviously German. You might ask how someone can pick this out? I ask you, can you pick someone out that is from California or Mississippi? I make a guess, you can..Dad approached him and spoke to him in Plattdeutch. He responded and was friendly, but his German was quite different. He was a nice gentleman, all by himself, and wished us a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year in such broken English we could hardly catch it! An accent can make a lot of difference in the words we say. We know all about this…Believe me! We made it down to Barr and spent more time with Thierry’s. It was good to visit and sing with them again.
We walked around Colmar, France in the afternoon. It is well known for its beautiful streets!
That evening, we walked around the Strasbourg Christmas market. Definitely, the winner in our mind for the most beautiful Christmas market!
Strasbourg, France- Christmas time..
We decided to travel home by taking the route up the Rhine River Valley through a German town called Koblenz. On the way there, we stopped at a McDonalds for breakfast. Very little was open as it was Christmas Eve. As we drove in, we spotted a bright yellow Jeep Wrangler with deer antlers on it! This rig would fit well in Alabama but looked kind of out of place in Germany! As we were finishing up eating, a tall man approached us and asked us in English where we were from. We were pretty surprised and told him why we were in Europe. He then said he was an American, owned 3 McDonald’s restaurants in Germany, and had lived there for many years. He wanted to show us his vehicle. LOL! Well, we knew then which vehicle it would be! The Bright Yellow Jeep with the antlers! We were very surprised when he opened the back hatch, and he had a Florida flag and another flag laid across the back that said, “Don’t Tread On Me”! I guess you can take the man out of America, but you can’t take America out of the man, even if he has lived in Europe for years!! We walked away with freebies, and he told us, “We had made his day! “
We had a really nice Christmas at home and were very glad that Dad and Mom had come to share it with us!
Enough for now…We hope you are all well!!
Tyson and Lydia
