Homecoming

 "No chair empty."  That's a phrase often used by Mormons to describe their goal of keeping their family united in love and faith.  No matter how divided geographically they are on earth, someday, the family will all be together in heaven.  To further that goal of faith and common family values, Mormons send their children all over the world, for 18 months to two years at a time, as missionaries.  It is a joyful experience when the children return home.  Dave and I spent the weekend of April 7, 2018, attending the homecoming speech of our grandson, Grant Flindt, to his home ward in Seattle, after completing his mission to the Czech Republic and Slovakia. 

Our daughter, Lisa, works nights as a nurse, and she slept in on Saturday morning when we visited.  Dave and I enjoyed the chance to talk with our grandchildren, Alyssa and Bryce.  Alyssa showed us a picture she had drawn with pastels.

 Bryce proved to his grandpa that he has outgrown him.

 "Mom's been cleaning all week," the kids said.  Lisa, Kyle, and Grant have invited friends and family to an open house after the Sacrament Meeting at which Grant speaks.

 We took Alyssa for a hike along Lake Sammamish and learned all about her friends and teachers.  "You have to earn the right to be loved as a grandparent," Dave and I remind ourselves.  "If they don't know you, how can they love you?"

 When Lisa was up, we went shopping at Costco for the crates of fruit, cheese, chocolate, and nuts needed to fix a lavish buffet for the open house.

Seattle is a city of a hundred cultures.  Grant and I found the "Little Prague" restaurant, and Dave and I took the family there to celebrate Grant's Eastern European adventure.

The owner told her parents' story of coming to America in the 1970s, when Czechoslovakia was Communist and they could have been imprisoned if the police realized they were fleeing the country.  The owner's mother still bakes "kolache" pastries each week for the cafe, and they sell Czech food at farmers' markets, as well as in their shop.

 The cafe was tiny, and we were the only diners.  We eagerly awaited our dinner.

 My food was delicious--nuggets of pork, served on distinctive Czech sauerkraut which is made to order at a farm in Eastern Washington.  The plate included large sliced dumplings, which tasted like bread.

Alyssa ordered a pork scallop and potatoes.  The Czech Republic is next to Germany, and so some of the food is similar.  It looked like wienerschnitzel to me!

 The glass case in the cafe included five types of pastries.

 We chose a cake/donut with cherry topping.

On Saturday morning, we were at the Stake Center by 8 a.m. for Grant to give his missionary report to the Stake Presidency and High Council, who preside over six or seven wards in northeastern Seattle.  Kirsten arrived in Seattle just minutes before the meeting, since she had given a scientific presentation in Colorado earlier in the week and had to drive back to SLC and then fly to Seattle.  After Grant's excellent presentation to the High Council, we went to Sacrament Meeting at the Flindts' ward.  Grant told his mom he would be speaking on pornography.  She was relieved to find he was kidding!  Grant's talk was about helping people on his mission to gain faith.

Party time!  The house was clean, the food was luscious, and the people came.  We served pulled pork sandwiches, pasta salad, fruit salad, green salad, carrot cake, and brownies.  Each recipe was a family favorite.

Grant's missionary friends stayed and stayed, and Lisa had time to chat with her favorite people from the neighborhood and Church.  Dave and I tended the kitchen, enjoyed the party, and then ran for the airport.