Week 55: Appendectomy

Early Friday afternoon I noticed an I-message from Melanie:

"I've been  up all night with stomach pain and nausea...after googling thinking it might be my appendix...right side pain."

Next message:

"I'm in a bed at the ER."

A CAT scan and a few hours later she was recovering.

Brandon's text:

"Doctor said 2 weeks of no heavy lifting, but encouraged her to walk around a lot to speed up recovery." 

My motherly instincts drew me to the computer, reassuring Brandon (Melanie's husband) that I could come to help with their 4 little boys.  Flights were reasonable.  I could leave the next day.  But I couldn't press the button.  Suddenly I felt peace.  I wasn't sure I would really be needed.

Next text from Brandon:

"The Relief Society [our women's organization at church] said they were going to see what kind of child care they could arrange."

I knew Melanie was going to be ok, her kids would be in good hands, and Brandon would be able to keep working (so he wouldn't have to sacrifice his upcoming vacation).  I turned off the computer.

I am so grateful for a number of things:  Modern medicine; skilled doctors; Brandon; knowing I could go to my daughter's aid if I was needed; the good sisters in her ward who stepped right up to volunteer to take the two youngest boys, pick Ian up from school everyday (kindergarten is a half day), and bring a meal everyday.  Within a half an hour of the Relief Society leader posting a request for help, all the needs had been filled.  So, I am also grateful for this great organization and sisterhood that we share as women in the church.  I know that I will not always be there to help my family, but someone will, just as my Relief Society sisters have always come to my aid when I have needed them.

In Matthew 25: 40 Christ reminds us, "...Inasmuch as ye have done it unto the lease of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me."  Also, in  Mosiah 2:17 King Benjamin states, "... when ye are in the service of your fellow beings ye are only in the service of your God."  I am grateful that the gospel teaches that service should be part of who we are, for the Lord uses us to be His hands on the earth.  Service is never really convenient and usually not easy, but it is a way to show our love for our fellow man/woman, and our Heavenly Father.  Like every righteous thing we do in this life, we are rewarded.  In this case we feel joy for our efforts and a  reassurance that we have done the right thing, and we "lay up our treasure in heaven."  Thank you, Soderton Ward, for serving my daughter!

As we went shopping for this week's zone conference decorations, John had a hard time resisting this Påsk egg!

We ended up decorating with candy-filled smaller eggs filled and Påskris--lovely feather covered stems (supposed to be willows, but I just used what was in the yard).  With snow covering everything, the colorful feathers are a bright promise of spring!

Our friends, the Andersons, went north to check apartments and provide the luncheon for Norrland's zone conference and had one of those "you-know-you-are-living-in-a-foreign-country-when" kind of experiences.  They decided to try out a catering service and ordered roast beef sandwiches and potato salad.  When they arrived to pick up their order the sandwiches were wrapped and ready.  "We also ordered potato salad."  "You ordered roast beef and potato salad, right?  It's on the sandwich."  True to the Swedish way, there was one very thin slice of roast beef along with a generous helping of potato salad on each roll!

Thursday evening we met our young friends from Örnsköldsvik for dinner.  They were spending their week-long school break at the temple.  They certainly hold a special place in our hearts!

Saturday we joined two other couples to visit the Drottningholm Palace Theater.

Drottningholm Palace Theater (opera house) with the Halls and the Whiteheads

Drottningholm is the traditional summer royal palace, and the theater, open to the public with summer performances, is a separate building on the grounds.  Here are my notes:

Queen Lovisa Urika, originally of Prussia, desired to bring culture to her new country, Sweden.  In addition to her impressive library and other cultural accoutrements she established in her palace, she also brought theater to the court in 1766.  The architect, Carl Fredrik Aldecrantz, designed, built and paid for the theater himself.  The royalty couldn’t pay for the project at once, so he was asked to provide the funds himself and in turn was provided a personal room within the theater walls as well as some payment each year.  However, he never was fully reimbursed for his contribution to the theater.

 Along with the architect’s room, his servants room and 22 other small rooms behind the stage provided lodging for the summer French troupe, stage crew, musicians and others who were instrumental in providing the summer’s entertainment.  At that time, there were no bridges connecting the island to other land, so travel to the palace had to be accomplished by boat, which took considerable time, so people tended to stay at the theater for the season.

Architect Aldecrantz's servant's room.  This is about the size of the other rooms .

 When Lovisa’s son, Gustav III, came to power in 1777, he sent his mother away and took over Drottningholm Palace.  During his reign, the theater reached its golden age, as the king desired three performances a day, several days a week.  He was so involved, that he was basically the producer overseeing all performances.   Having grown up with the theater, even participating on stage as a youngster, he developed a passion for all the theater’s aspects, including its power to teach.  He realized theater could help elevate the status of his people and sought to level the social disparity that existed, so he founded the National Theater and the National Opera in Stockholm.  Drottningham’s Theater, however, remained only for the royal court.

Gustav III

 The entire building is made of wood, which was inexpensive and provides superb acoustics.  Some walls and ceiling are painted to appear as plaster, others are painted with floral borders.  The coffee room is adorned with wallpaper, the original still tacked to the walls. (Wallpaper was too valuable to be glued to the walls.) However, the real gem of the theater is the stage itself.

Originally, the wallpaper had a blue background, but it was impressive that it was still tacked to the walls.

 The stage masterfully creates illusions.  From the several trap doors, to the lowering clouds, sliding “wing” scenery changes, and sound effects using a box with rocks, 18^th century audiences were astounded by the state-of-the-art theatrical technology.  Based on theaters of the time in Italy, with consideration for perspective, the stage is long, with a 1 meter rise from front to back, add to the illusion of distance and depth.  Because the theater’s “fourth wall” did not come into existence until the 1800’s, in this theater, the stage and the audience were all part of the same “world.”

Stage...that's a ship on waves in the background

Of course, candlelight was the only source of light for the theater.  Today, the chandeliers and other light sources hold electric candles, rather than wax ones.

Much symbolism existed in theater at the time.  For example, villians would enter from stage left, and the royalty would sit in the box seats on the center right, for all good flowed from the “right” side.

However, when Gustav came to power, he decided to sit right in the center front, leaving the space all around him empty, to be sure everyone knew where he was.  There are two other box seats on each side.  The ones closest to the stage, which actually face the audience, are the “cavalier boxes.”  The single young men would buy these tickets so they could flirt with the girls in the audience.  In fact, the entire audience used the theater time to visit; it was a social opportunity.  The other box, the “widow’s box,” has a lattice covering.  Since attending the theater was not a socially accepted behavior for widows, they could “hide” in this box seat.   The orchestra pit is located on the same level as the house, in front of the stage, just as it often is today.  For modern performances, musicians often use old, time-appropriate instruments.

King Gustav III sat where the velvet chairs are today.  During his reign, no one sat near him.  Note the "painted" curtains in the back.

Widow's box, royal box, courtier's box

A technical, intricate maze of ropes and pulleys under the stage which moves the scenery and trap doors was based on the rope and pulley system on ships.  The original stage crew were sailors.  Using whistles to signal to each other, as they did on ships, the sailors manipulated the system.  No else one dared whistle in the theater—an unwritten rule that still exists.

Mirrors reflected candlelight to add a "spotlight" on the scene.  

A “happy accident” has preserved this theater for modern day.  After Gustav III was assassinated at the National Opera, no one took interest in the palace theater.  The building was used for storage.  In 1921, 130 years later, a historian entered in search of a particular painting.  As he wandered through the building he stumbled upon the stage, recognized it as a gem, and felt that the theater should be opened to the  public.  In 1922 the doors were opened.  Virtually no renovations.  The theater is just as it was in 1766, with the exception of the  scenery “wings” which have been copied and replaced, as the originals were too fragile to continue using.

What an incredible cultural experience it must be to attend a performance in the Drottningholm Palace Theater  today!