January 1-31, 2019  A New Year

As senior missionaries, we went to bed early on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day was a quiet day of relaxation and visiting with family via FaceTime and Echo Show.

Since the London Temple was also closed on January 2, we drove to Waddesdon Manor with Marvin and Stephanie Smith who are serving with us at the Temple.  Waddesdon Manor is located about 40 miles northwest of downtown London.  It is a French château built in 1889 for Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild (1839–1898) as a weekend residence for grand entertaining and as a setting for his art collection. It was donated by the family to the British Nation Trust in 1957 and is now one of the most visited historic homes in Britain.  Since it has been well maintained the entire time of it's existence, as compared with many of the historic properties which had to be restored, it is of particular historic interest because it has all original furnishings.  Here are a few of the pictures we took on our visit. 

Waddesdon Manor from the front.  It took about 3 years to build the home.

The front courtyard to Waddesdon Manor.

Waddesdon Manor from the backyard.  Note that the sculptures in the pool with fountain have been covered for the winter.

Elder Marvin and Sister Stephanie Smith with Elder Burkinshaw in Waddesdon Manor's backyard.  Note the sculptures in the fountain pool have been covered for the winter.

At the bottom of the hedge-covered hill in the backyard of Waddesdon Manor, where sculptures in a second fountain pond are also covered. 

The Christmas Wreath on the front door of Waddesdon Manor.

Sister Burkinshaw in front of the Waddesdon Manor Christmas Tree in one of the art gallery rooms.  The painting on the left is the portrait of Mrs Joanna Lloyd carving her husband’s name on a tree, a literary reference to Shakespeare's 'As You Like It', a popular play at the time.  It was painted in 1775 by artist Joshua Reynolds.

This elephant automaton (commonly known as a "sing-song") was one of Baron Ferdinand de Rothschild's most admired treasures.  The base plays a musical tune while the triumphal Emperor, riding the elephant, along with four musicians on the base, move to and fro.   It was reputed to have been made in London as a gift for an Indian official and given by the English East India Company to cement a commercial alliance.

The Waddesdon Manor formal dining room set for eight.  The silver plates, serving dishes and candelabras were polished to perfection.

This portrait of the French king Louis XVI, painted by Antoine-François Callet, was made for display in London in 1783, when France wanted to restore good relations with Britain following the American War of Independence, in which France had supported America.

This chandelier, entitled Porca Miseria (Oh My Goodness) is made of broken porcelain and cutlery and was commissioned for the Blue Dining Room.  Its appearance is the result of both accident and design. The ceramics were dropped on the floor or smashed with a hammer.  They were then arranged and mounted with cutlery and light source.

Gold and silver baubles along with silverware suspended from the ceiling in the hallway between the kitchen and dining room.

Display of swords, pistols, rifles and crossbow.

The billiards room with two Christmas trees decorated with playing cards.

Chess set on the mantle in the billiards room.  We could not find Colonel Mustard or Professor Plum and the lead pipe! ;-)

On Monday, January 14, we went to the Seven Sisters chalk cliff formations near Eastbourne, due south of the Temple on the southern coast along the English Channel.  Here are some pictures from this beautiful location.

While driving to Eastbourne, we spotted this white horse at the top of the hill above. During the 19th century, a chalk figure of a horse was cut into the downs to the west of the village of Litlington. The figure, known as the Litlington White Horse, is one of several white horse figures located outside Wiltshire.

The Seven Sisters is a series of chalk cliffs by the English Channel. They form part of the South Downs in East Sussex, between the towns of Seaford and Eastbourne in southern England. They are the remnants of dry valleys in the chalk South Downs, which are gradually being eroded by the sea.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw with the "Seven Sisters" chalk cliff formations in the background.  The chalk is largely comprised of calcium from the skeletal remains of billions of tiny planktonic algae, which, as they died, fell to the bed of the sea where, over millions of years, they accumulated to form a white calcium ooze on the seafloor. This soft sediment was gradually compacted and hardened to form chalk - a relatively soft but extremely pure rock.

The Seven Sisters chalk formation.  They are named, in order, Haven Brow, Short Brow, Rough Brow, Brass Point, Flagstaff Brow, Bailey's Hill and Went Hill.

Sister Burkinshaw with the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs.  

Unlike the white cliffs at Dover, we are able to walk along the beach here at the Seven Sisters cliffs.  In fact, most of this beach was covered by cliffs but have eroded during the past hundred years.

This pictures of the chalk cliffs show the strata or layers of chalk.  The bright white color of the stone is thanks to the abundance of chalk that makes up most of the cliff face. The features were created in prehistoric times when the land was submerged and seawater pushed the softer chalk to the surface and as the waters lowered, exposed the cliffs.

 Now as the sea pounds the base of the cliffs each day, erosion is slowly taking the chalk back as large chunks of the cliffs wall back into the water. 

For nerds, such as Elder Burkinshaw, this plaque provides some interesting background on the geology and formation of the chalk cliffs.

These bushes of yellow flowers are commonly known as bird's-foot trefoil (Lotus corniculatus) and are a common flowering plant in the pea family.  They provide beautiful color above the chalk cliffs. 

The Belle Tout (very beautiful) lighthouse above the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs.

Beachy Head Lighthouse is 141 ft in height and became operational in October 1902.  For more than 80 years, the red-and-white striped tower was manned by three lighthouse keepers whose job was to maintain the light, which rotates, making two white flashes every 20 seconds and visible 26 nautical miles out to sea. The lighthouse was fully automated in 1983.

Beachy Head lighthouse.

A plaque overlooking the top of the chalk cliffs which reads,
"Mightier than the thunder of many waters,
Mightier than the waves of the sea,
The Lord on high is mighty." (Paraphrase of Psalms 93:4)
"God is always greater than all of our troubles."

Plaque on the Beachy Head signal tower base.

Sister Burkinshaw in the Beachy Head signal tower foundation.  The tower is now gone but it served for many years for maritime navigation as well as national defense.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw along the chalk deposits of the beach during low tide near Seven Sisters. 

Elder Burkinshaw near the edge of the Seven Sisters chalk cliffs.

Our last January outing was on January 21 to the Imperial War Museum at Duxford which is between Cambridge and London.  Britain's largest aviation museum, Duxford houses the museum's large exhibits, including nearly 200 aircraft, military vehicles, artillery and minor naval vessels in seven main exhibition buildings.

This was an extremely interesting series of exhibits that put perspective into our understanding of the two great wars (WW I and WW II) as well as the development of aviation technology.

The layout of the Duxford Imperial War Museum which consists of six hangars and two conventional buildings which houses historic aircraft and other armaments used during the past 100 years to protect Great Britain and its allies.

One of the original Concorde aircraft.  This particular Concorde was loaded with experimental equipment used when the aircraft was first being developed.  The commercial version obviously had seats for paying customers.

Elder Burkinshaw in front of a model of the Concorde and underneath the wing of a full-size Concorde.

Sister Burkinshaw inside the experimental Concorde with it's desks and displays used to evaluate the performance while the aircraft was in flight.

Sister Burkinshaw with the Concorde cockpit in the background.  This was not a very spacious airplane and anyone over 5'6" would have to watch their head.

One of the interesting displays at Duxford was a captured German V1 aircraft which looks like an unmanned jet loaded with explosives.  The V1 eventually gave rise to the V2 which was a ballistic missile.

This was the launcher with a German V1 flying bomb that was captured in France during World War II.  Elder Burkinshaw remembers a war movie called "Operation Crossbow" about the German V1 flying bombs.

This was the actual Duxford Operations Center during World War II.

The map in the Operations Center along with the clocks and logistics board.

Sister Burkinshaw in the World War II Operations Center at Duxford Air Base.

We attended a 90 minute lecture and took a tour of the British Lancaster bomber which helped degrade Germany and helped end World War II earlier.  

A description of the need for and the development of the Lancaster bomber.

This description of the bombardier's position gives you an appreciation for the sacrifice made by the World War II plane crews.  Probably the most interesting part of the 90 minute presentation came after the statistics were given for the mortality rate of the crews. The experience of one seven man crew was shared which had been recorded by the only one of the seven who returned alive. A powerful tribute and reminder of so many lives that were given to preserve our freedoms.

Elder Burkinshaw in front of the Lancaster.  The hangar was not heated so we were glad to wear our coats while looking at the planes.

The interior of the Lancaster showing the handrails the crew used to move about during flight.   

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw in front of a Royal Navy Helicopter.

Elder Burkinshaw in front of several US aircraft in the United States Air Force hangar at Duxford Air Base.  Again, note the gloves as the hangars were not heated and quite cold.

There was one large building dedicated to the armed vehicles and tanks used in World War II.  This was a camouflaged German Schuhmacher tank.  

The Duxford Imperial War Museum and Air Base provided some real perspective into how close the Allies were to not defeating the Axis Powers and the great sacrifices made by all the men of the armed forces.  One hangar was dedicated to the Battle of Britain in 1940 when Germany tried to destroy the British Air Force to give them unfettered access to the United Kingdom.  Only about 25% of the air crews returned alive.  Of these brave men, Winston Churchill would say  "Never was so much owed by so many to so few."  They were successful in deterring Germany and so Hitler moved his troops eastward towards Russia.  This ultimately saved Great Britain.  By October 1941, Churchill made the following observation after surviving the Battle of Britain.

"The ten months that have passed have seen very terrible catastrophic events in the world--ups and downs, misfortunes-- but can anyone sitting here this afternoon, this October afternoon, not feel deeply thankful for what has happened in the time that has passed and for the very great improvement in the position of our country and of our home?

"But for everyone, surely, what we have gone through in this period  of ten months, this is the lesson:

"Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never, never--in nothing, great or small, large or petty--never give in, except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force. Never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.

"We stood all alone a year ago, and to many countries it seemed that our account was closed, we were finished. All this tradition of ours, our songs, our School history, this part of the history of this country, were gone and finished and liquidated.

"Very different is the mood today. Britain, other nations thought, had drawn a sponge across her slate. But instead our country stood in the gap. There was no flinching and no thought of giving in; and by what seemed almost a miracle to those outside these Islands, though we ourselves never doubted it, we now find ourselves in a position where I say that we can be sure that we have only to persevere to conquer.

"Do not let us speak of darker days: let us speak rather of sterner days. These are not dark days; these are great days--the greatest days our country has ever lived; and we must all thank God that we have been allowed, each of us according to our stations, to play a part in making these days memorable in the history of our race."  (Prime Minister Winston Churchill's address to Harrow School on October 29, 1941)

This is good advice for all of us who will face adversity of one kind or another during this life.  President David O McKay said, "... the thing which a man really believes is the thing which he has really thought; that which he actually thinks is the thing which he lives. Men do not go beyond their ideals; they often fall short of them, but they never go beyond them."  (Chapter 9: David O. McKay: Ninth President of the Church,” Presidents of the Church Student Manual (2004), 155).

May we always have the courage of our convictions.

Elder and Sister Burkinshaw