Description
It Was Mette
Quite often you will hear me say, “Can You Imagine?” This story is one of those.
Jens Christen Christensen was born 6 Oct. 1834, in Tollerup, Hjorring, Denmark. He was the son of Christen Christensen and Kirsten Marie Jensen. When a young man, he learned the trade of a blacksmith and farmer.
He met and married Mette Marie Nielsen, 29 July 1860. It would appear that shortly after their marriage, Jens was called into military service where he “spent about one year in a military training camp.”
In 1861, Jens and Mette joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. They were living in Sindal, Denmark when their first son, Thomas Christen, was born 4 Mar. 1863. Then in 1864, war between Denmark and Germany broke out and Jens was called up.
“It was then that his military training served him well. Because of the prejudice held against the Mormon’s at that time, life would have been very miserable for him had it not been for the stripes on his sleeve. His service while in the army was very commendable. He was a scout of note and was placed in charge of four other scouts, who were to take orders from him. He was both daring and clever, and well respected as an officer.”
The war ended about ten months later and Jens returned home to discover that his wife and son had emigrated to Zion with other Latter-day Saints. On the voyage across the Atlantic, Mette’s little boy, Thomas, passed away and was buried at sea. Why would Mette leave without Jens and make such a journey? Because she had received a report that he had been killed in the war. She believed he was dead. And now for Mette, she had lost both her husband and her son.
Jens had no way to contact her. His only recourse was to follow her, but how? He had not the means. So, he teamed up with his brother and came up with a process to make inexpensive scythes for farmers in a time when quality steel was very hard to get. By spring 1865, he had enough money to go to America.
After six weeks on the ocean and crossing the plains in the Millen Atwood wagon Company, the brothers arrived in Salt Lake City.
“Jens was anxious to see what the city looked like. While walking along the street he noticed a woman sweeping the door yard. She was looking down and her face was covered by a large sun bonnet. She did not see him and, at first, he took no notice of her until after he passed by, then he realized that there was something remarkably familiar about the woman. He turned to look at her, as he did so, she looked up at him. Going on, he glanced back again, and she was still staring at him. He decided then to go back and see who owned the face under the bonnet.”
It was Mette. Can you imagine her joy? It turns out that Mette did not actually live in Salt Lake. She lived miles to the north in the small community of Plain City. She was only there that day on an errand—dare we say—an errand from the Lord. Theirs was a happy reunion.
Jens and Mette settled in Hyde Park, Utah where three more children were born to them. The blessed couple would live out their days there true to the faith, forgotten for the most part by history, but reverenced and adored by their posterity.
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