Thank you Daniel, John, Leroy and Ember!

Jack here - When I came to LU, I told the Gemeinde (the Mennonites here call themselves a Gemeinde (Communty/Fellowship), not a Kirche (church)) that one of my desires was to improve my German. The first day I sat in on a class co-run by Ruth and Greg - and I learned a lot. The second day I went downstairs to Greg’s advanced class and learned more.  But, by the third day, I realized that Friedenhaus did NOT need another student. Nor, did they need another helper with the classes - there are volunteers, both from the congregation and from young Germans from the area who are not Mennonites. They also did not need an English teacher, a bookstore manager, a marketer (more on that in another blog), and certainly not a consultant.  What they needed was an OPA!

The women who come to the classes sometimes have pre-schoolers who can't stay home while mom is in class. Their siblings are often in kindergarten or school, but they are either too young or haven't been able to get into a kindergarten. Germany has had the challenge of so very many children suddenly that the waiting lists for kindergarten (free, if you can get in) are often over 200. What Friedenshaus needed was someone to watch the kids while their mothers are in class.  One problem is that the only place to supervise the kids is a narrow hallway - but we make do with what we are given. On Monday, one of the kindergartens did not have class and our little gathering swelled from an average of 2-4 to 6 children (ages 18 mos - 6). Here's T (a regular) with M and his sister C who joined us for a morning of chaos and play. 

One morning a delegation of regional Mennonite pastors was meeting in the basement, so volunteer Hans Peter and one of the mothers helped me care for the kids for a while in the upstairs hallway - slightly larger than a closet. Here we are with three regulars . Sometimes two hours can be really, really long . . . 

The point of this blog is to thank my grandchildren for helping me relearn how to play with small children. Spending time over the past 14 years playing with Daniel, John, Leroy and Ember was great training for time with these kids. Of course, D, J, L and E all spoke English - and most of these children don't speak either English or German. They don't even speak the same language sometimes! But, with patience and good humor, we make it through the two two-hour sessions each class day. 

On Sunday I explained to the Gemeinde my role and invited folks to give me any used toys, dolls and board-books that their families no longer need. I emphasized that they should not be new - they will become used very quickly. These kids play HARD with toys - so no beloved family treasures - they are not coming back after this spring. And the congregation has come through - with more promised to arrive. One of the challenges is that the building is so small, there is no room for storing the toys and books at the church. But, we now live right beside the church, so our hallway has now turned into the library and toy storage facility. (Location, location, location!) 

Good times in the Ludwigshafen Mennonitengemeinde basement hallway!!!