MOM’S MEMOIRS – IRENE LOUISE (NEE KUCKKAN) MUELLER
(Continued)
 
Mom’s Autobiography – Chapter 21 – In Book, Page 50

Birthday Parties, Mhlangas, Furlough 1972, Oslo, Norway, Tourists from Janesville, Wisconsin, Copenhagen, Furlough House, Plans Change

In a letter I wrote on April 29, 1972, I said: “Stevie and I had quite happy birthdays. I had a party for him. I baked a cake and put five candles on it. Stevie opened his gifts, we played games, ate, and drank mineral water (soda). The children decorated the verandah and lounge, and it looked real nice. I had quite a happy birthday too. The Janosek family was still here from Malawi, being here for the World Seminary Conference, so we celebrated a little in the evening at home. They gave me a beautiful gift. Debbie, Dick, and Tim all sent us beautiful birthday cards which made Stevie and me very happy.”

In the same letter I said, “Dick is teaching at the Bible Institute and Seminary this morning. He teaches there Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday mornings, and some afternoons too. Last weekend he went to Kitwe (200 miles) on the Copperbelt to be with the people he supervises there. There were about fifty people in church, he said. Just now one of the evangelists, Mr. Mpofu, has come to meet with him. Mr. Mpofu is the evangelist for the Mtakwa and Kapopo congregations.” (We want to mention that we as a family always enjoyed going to Kapopo. Mr. and Mrs. Mhlanga, and their family, were wonderful Christian people. They were very hard-working people. Mrs. Mhlanga, when there was communion, would wear a white kerchief on her head with a cross embroidered on it. The church with its manure-covered (to make a smooth, hard, dry surface) mud benches and floor were kept clean. I can still see dear Mrs. Mhlanga sweep the dirt verandah in front of the church with her root broom. Mr. Mhlanga’s grave is just near Dr. Schweppe’s grave in Lusaka. On the gravestone is inscribed, “Moses Gasela Mhlanga, Member of the Lutheran Church).”

We were so busy that we hardly had time to think of going back to the States on furlough, but on May 24th, we took off from the International Airport in Lusaka for our

FURLOUGH TO THE UNITED STATES – 1972

Dick, Susie, Stephie, Stevie, and I flew to Oslo, Norway. Norway had always intrigued me as a child, and we were actually there. We slept in a hotel in beds with “feather ticks”, ate a huge breakfast – fried potatoes, sausages, bacon, huge delicious strawberries, etc. We went on a tour, and saw a very high ski jump where the Olympics had been held. We also decided to go to a museum, and saw the Polar ship Fram (we actually were on it and looked down into the hold of the ship). Before the Titanic, the FRAM was the most famous ship in the world. “Roald Amundsen”, a Norwegian, beat “Robert Scott”, an Englishman, to the South Pole in Antarctica in 1912. All five members of Scott’s group died of hunger and cold. Scott’s diary was found near his body. We also were excited to see real Viking ships in the Museum. History and archeology are intriguing to me.

We also went to Frogner Park. What can I say about that? There were very tall pillars of stone with carvings of naked people, young and old. Actually, it was quite fascinating; in fact, if you ask Susie the name of that park, she will tell you right away. She was twelve years old then.

Oslo has a wonderful fiord. We decided to get on a boat and go and see the Kon Tiki raft in a museum outside Oslo. Before we got on the boat, some people kept staring at us. Finally, the man came up to us and said, “Do you mind if we take your picture? We would like to take a picture of a typical Norwegian family.” They thought we were Norwegians, and why not? Our children had very white blond hair, the girls’ hair flowing all the way down to their waists. We laughed and said, “We aren’t Norwegians, we’re Americans, but you can take our picture anyway if you’d like”. We found out that the people were a doctor and his wife from JANESVILLE, WISCONSIN! And they knew Dr. and Mrs. Quandt from Jefferson, Wi. Dr. Quandt was Dick’s parents doctor. The Janesville doctor did take our picture, gave it to Dr. Quandt, who gave it to Dick’s parents, who gave it to us!!!! It’s a small world!

Anyway, we enjoyed being on the boat with them going down the fiord, and did see the Kon Tiki raft. It was all lit up. It is made of balsa-wood, and how in 1947 Thor Heyerdahl and five others made that trip on that raft from Peru to the Polynesian Islands is a miracle. The Norwegians made that trip to test Thor Heyerdahl’s theory that the islands of Polynesia were settled by Indians from America.

We did go to Copenhagen, Denmark, before we left for the States. We went on a launch trip on one of the canals. We wanted to see Tivoli Gardens which our Debbie, Dick(ie), and Tim had seen, but it was closed at that time. We had been there another time, but then it was closed too.

Then we flew over the Atlantic Ocean and landed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin on May 29, 1972. This time there was a furlough house which the Women’s Missionary Society provided for missionaries. What a godsend! All we had to do was go there with our suitcases, and food, drink, sheets, pillows, towels, etc. were provided. And it was furnished! Our children wanted to sleep in the attic rooms. Missionary and Mrs. Harold Johne and their family occupied some of the space, but we didn’t mind. They were on a lecture tour.

Our daughter, Debbie, was graduating from Dr. Martin Luther Prep, so Dick’s mother and we went to the concert and graduation. It was wonderful to be with all our children and relatives again.

We did intend to go back to Africa after our furlough. We had left our possessions in the mission house. But as time went on, the Lord had other plans for us. As it turned out, we knew His plans were the right plans. We bowed to them, even though our African people and mission work were so dear to our hearts. Please pray for your pastors, missionaries, teachers, and all who work for our Lord in the United States and all over the world.

This is MY STORY from my birth April 17, 1930 until June 7, 2007 (our 54th anniversary). We still miss our mission work in Africa, but were blessed to go back in the year 2003 for the 50th Anniversary of the Zambian mission and 40th Anniversary of the Malawian mission of THE LUTHERAN CHURCH OF CENTRAL AFRICA.