Elder Breeze in Siberia
One of the experiences of joy that go with being a Mormon is so sweet that I have to mention it early on. It happens to those of us who are in touch with someone who is serving a mission and we get to read the letters (usually emails) the missionary writes home once a week.
The emails I have the privilege of looking forward to each Monday morning are from Elder Stephen Breeze who is serving in the Russia Vladivostok Mission.
By way of brief introduction: My parents, Dewey and Alice Griffin are the parents of eight children, 39 grand-children, and 126 great-grandchildren. Stephen is one of those 126 great-grandchildren. His mother Deann, who was a Griffin before her marriage to Taylor Breeze, is my niece. I don’t really know Stephen and wouldn’t recognize him walking down the street even if he were wearing his missionary name tag. But reading his letters gives me such an emotional attachment and appreciation for what he has been doing for over a year now that I have learned to love him all the way to Pluto and back. Read just one excerpt from an email he wrote after a few months in Russia and I think you will see what I mean:
"The mission has been really great so far. I didn't know so much happiness could come from serving others although the language is really hard and I often feel useless. I'm loving it here and I can't wait until I can freely express myself."
Elder Furhiman and Elder Breeze
Stephen’s hometown is Midway, Utah which is one hour and 16 minutes from Alta, one hour and 15 minutes from Snowbird, and 31 minutes from Park City – three ski resorts famous for The Greatest Snow on Earth. Stephen traded the joys of skiing in the Wasatch for life minus skiing in Sub-Zero temperatures in Siberia. He cheerfully accepted the contrast. On December 10, 2012 he wrote:
"Well, Experienced the coldest day of my entire life on Saturday, -35. Everything froze, my eye lashes, nose, everything, super crazy, on my face. It felt like I was skiing really fast on a cold day. Crazy. We only lasted 30 minutes. We tried to search for potentials but we didn't make it. And the only people on the street were either running or drunk. Super crazy and kinda fun. It's been in the mid -20's today and Sunday, so not so bad."
Before becoming a missionary, Stephen was a college student enrolled at Utah State University. He is an artist and wants to use art in some way in a profession. He may be a candidate for architecture. Shortly after his nineteenth birthday in October 2011, he entered the Mission Training Center (MTC) in Provo to study Russian and prepare to be a missionary. He arrived in Russia in April 2012. His formal academic schedule was interrupted, but his education continues in Russia where he is gaining valuable lessons from real-life situations:
"In the Car ride home, Valodia always insists that he drive us home, Valodia told us Russian history as Russians see it. Turns out they all liked communism, He said that life was simpler and much happier and there wasn't much crime or poverty. He told us he was 16 when the communism fell and he said life was anarchy with no order. He also told us about all the crazy things he did as a Hoolagan .... But he is a new man now."
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Every three months, visas expire and missionaries from the United States have to leave the country and reenter with a new visa.
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| Stephen in Kiev, Ukraine |
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| Stopover in Moscow. Stephen in front of St. Basil's Cathedral on Red Square. |
Reading an email that Stephen sent in December, I was reminded of John 13 in which he tells of the night before the Feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that the hour had come for him to depart out of this world unto the Father. This is when Christ told his disciples, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another.” The email Stephen sent goes like this:
"I love the people here and there are some really great people, but I've got to be honest Russia is a really sad place. We got a gypsy looking lady to go to church and her two kids. That’s when I found out everyone here is really racist. Even the members, which is really too bad because she really liked church but no one would talk to her. She has a long way to go. She doesn't read and she smokes all the time. Even in-between meetings at church she had to go out and have a smoke. But a really humble lady and she believes everything we teach her. It’s just too bad but everyone is so mean to her because of what she looks like."
When I read that I thought, ”That's it. There it is. A perfect example of what the Savior was talking about.” Stephen is not just a missionary; he is also a disciple. He finds joy in serving the Lord and blessing people’s lives with Christ-like love. The people he meets find joy feeling the warmth of a smile of acceptance and Christ-like words of kindness.
And half-way around the planet from them, I am filled with indescribable joy just thinking about the way Stephen is validating an all-time favorite scripture:
By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another. (John 13:34)
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