In Schmitten… Again

Matthew Huish
April 4, 2010

I was in Schmitten last weekend for the European Leaders' Meeting. This weekend I've returned to Schmitten, this time to support STF during their Parents' Workshop and the following days prior to the witnessing teams returning to their mission cities. I'm spending a fair amount of time in this corner of Europe.

I guess it's good for me to show my face so that many of the parents -- especially those whose children will continue their participation on STF -- may be able to familiarize themselves with next year's STF director. I've been able to have many discussions over the last 24 hours with many parents, all of which were rather pleasant.

Mrs. Thery, a mother from France, approached me and recalled that 9 years ago she drove me to a hospital during a workshop when I had broken my nose. I had been wrestling with my dear brother Markus Hinterleitner when our heads collided. Blood sprayed everywhere -- it was pretty cool -- but what she remembers most is how calm I was about the incident. I honestly didn't remember this mother, so it was sweet to see how she had remembered.

Another blessed couple, Mr. and Mrs. Perry (also from France), had earlier given a testimony which included a reference to an STF/blessing workshop in Germany in 2004; that was a very precious experience for them and they thought the workshop was fantastic. They approached me later during a break and wanted to confirm if I had attended that workshop. I recalled that I had indeed been on that workshop, however my memories had a distinctly different flavor -- I had thoroughly disliked the workshop!

Speaking of memories, if you're an STF graduate, or if you're related to an STF graduate, you may have special feelings for this song I recorded, offered by the current STF participants to their parents during today's workshop:

You might be surprised to discover that this choir had only one rehearsal, practicing for about half an hour the same morning as the performance! Credit goes to Headquarters' own Kathleen Moloney for directing this monumental choir or varying skill.

I'll keep you posted about the workshop -- tomorrow's schedule promises to be exciting with the inclusion of a special guest speaker from Devon…