A place at the table

Tonight was my first English Stammtisch of my time here. The word stammtisch literally means a tree trunk table. In German it is a place where everyone knows your name (like the TV show Cheers). I saw a bar in Berlin that was called Stammtisch. I was told that it is the bar where all the locals and regulars go. In our case, it is an evening where local Wittenberg residents can come and practice their English with anyone who happens to be traveling through. Tonight it was just Beth and myself, but there have been teachers and travelers and tourists and students. 

We were a small group, but it was full of laughter and conversation and a lot of learning! The picture is a little dark, but from the left is Margot, Micheline, me, Beth (my Deputy Director for Wittenberg English Ministry), and Thomas. Our conversation rambled from Luther to asparagus to Hollandaise sauce to how busy it will be in Wittenberg in 2017. That will be the 500th anniversary of Luther nailing the 95 Theses to the Castle Church door. They are anticipating 300,000 visitors for the Evangelical Church (the German state church) activities. It will certainly be a big year for this quiet, beautiful town.

In the morning, I spent several hours at the Luther House museum. I took notes but apparently not any pictures. Interestingly, the one picture I did take was of Luther's table. It is here that he spent much time having conversations with students and visitors about theology and life and the church. They were called Luther's Table Talks. 

I am working on my sermon for Saturday so spending time walking through the museum helped me understand the history here a little better. A big part of that history is the Market Plaza. It is a large open area in the middle of town. The white building is the historical location of the town government. There are many events held in the Market Plaza. Towards the end of the day, they were setting up for a concert. Friday, May 1 is a holiday in Germany so all the shops will be closed, but there will be activity in the Market Plaza.

The town is also getting busier with visitors for the dedication of the Lutheran Church Missouri Synod's Wittenberg Project. They have renovated the old boys Latin school near the Town Church to be a center for study and conferences as 2017 approaches. You can learn more about the project here: The Wittenberg Project. There are a lot of events happening throughout the weekend for the dedication, including a concert by Lost and Found on Saturday evening. (They were in Grand Forks not long ago!) 

And for those of you who know that my passion/weakness/therapy is knitting (& crocheting), I found 2 yarn shops in town! I managed to get out with only one skein of yarn, but I'm sure I will go back. I found some sock yarn that stripes itself in the colors of the German flag. It's probably good that the shops are all closed today for the German Labor Day!

Auf Wiedersehen! (Goodbye in German)