November Be Thankful

All the fall colors in a row, November 6th along the east side of the Conference Center. On the other hand, the block east has trees that are all the same and they have lost most of their leaves.

Changes keep coming - Sister Newman leaves in January and will spend six weeks visiting kids and re-packing to go help out in the Mexico MTC as a mental health advisor. Sister McInelly is leaving this week and will go on another mission soon to Samoa where she will help teachers get classes to improve their accreditation or something like that. We have visa waiters about to go to New Zealand to help with humanitarian projects where they hope to pave the way for getting a lot more senior missionaries serving there. A Mexican sister is here temporarily while she gets an entry permit because she now lives in the US and has to make sure she can return after serving in Mexico. We took her to Rancho Market where there is more Spanish than English spoken and familiar foods. (And the produce is cheaper too! we stocked up and spent under $40)  

When Sister Cisneros heard we had taken someone to Rancho she got very excited because she had been wanting to go there- so we took her and she was so pleased to find chicken feet and other similar items! She was so grateful she made us some soup and brought it to our office, complete with lime wedges and crackers. The photo is some unfamiliar (to us) produce that I was curious about.

I tried getting several people to request tickets help us up our chances for  the Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert without luck. I guess we will join the crowd going to Music and the Spoken Word the next morning where they usually have their guest singer come and they do music from the concert. It would be awfully cool to get to be there to see the dancers and everything live during our one time here.

Our new IFR Manager is none other than Richard Houseman, former mission president in Recife and stake president in MO We are looking forward to having him nearby but boy is he going to be fed by a firehose trying to learn that job. 

When we can get our schedules to mesh for an hour, my friend Melinda and I have been working through a botanical watercolor instruction book (via Facetime), a blessing for my sanity.

We have lots of activities coming up for the holidays with luncheons or dinners for mission, zone, lunch group, Tuesday Activity group - plus we get to be with family for several things. I think the time will really fly by.

When we went to the Bountiful Temple the other day after we had been getting rain, there was a fair bit of snow thought it is just slightly more north and a bit higher elevation - much of it on trees still in leaf which always looks a bit strange. Now the mornings tend to be really chilly and often quite windy. I'm grateful for whoever gave me the little ear covers!

We had another wonderful opportunity to feel the spirit in a good-bye/thank-you luncheon for the three leaving to be MTC presidents. Where else could you work that something like that would be full of testimonies and love? And of course we learned some things - For example, the Philippines MTC has people come from all over Asia - Mongolia, Indonesia, etc.in part because some can't get visas from the US to come to the MTC here. There are about 280 there, capacity is 288 but they are likely to increase it to 310 soon. And they are adding Japanese classes soon. The South Africa one is small, 50 learners, and the president and wife are responsible for everything on Sunday from food to church meetings. Many will come with nothing but the clothes on their back and possibly a small backpack, most will not have been to the temple yet so they will take missionaries there every week (I think its next door). Fernando wants us to come help at the Sao Paulo MTC when their senior couple leave the end of next year. He says they "do the music", whatever that means, and Durk could be executive secretary...Sounds very office-y to me and if I had a dollar for every time we've said we will not do an office mission again we could go to Tahiti. We shall see...

We had an elegant luncheon on the tenth floor of the JSMB, arranged by Sharon (Walton) to say goodbye and thank-you to the three departing to be MTC presidents - Mark Pendleton, Fernando Silva, Dave DeLaMare. Two substitute IFRs are coming on as full-time volunteers for the time being, Jim Urry and Michael Bertasso, to fill in.

  We also got to go to Ogden and see grandson Isaac's Primary program. He was looking very dapper and did a great job singing all the songs and doing his parts. We brought a frozen lasagna and Bethany, so afterwards we visited and ate. It was an early morning for us who are used to 1:00 p.m. church!

Another highlight was our monthly evening devotional where Sister Eubank (head of LDS Charities) spoke. She started by mentioning our mission (in terms of the place) and those who preceded us. One such was Brigham Young of course, who was helping people focus on building the temple despite their poverty, and Eliza R Snow who came to him to say that too many women and babies were dying in childbirth. He asked what she thought they should do and she said to send some women to medical school. He agreed they sent six sisters, largely on many tiny donations. One was Sister Shipp and when she left her husband said, he had no living money to send so he hoped she could find a job. She worked nights guarding the cadaver lab while she studied, having gotten in a semester late to take the place of someone who gave up. She was also ill and pregnant at the time. Five years later all six had medical degrees and returned where they began training midwives, eventually over 500 and the infant mortality rate and changed greatly. Sister Eubank connected this history to her recent visit to Chicago to help efforts to assist expectant mothers. (see photo in previous post where I had been struck by photos at the Pioneer Museum of doctors and nurses)

Martha Hughes Cannon beat her husband in an election and started the public health department,  Also a bit later 1924 Amanda Bagley was a Relief Society president who had two women die in childbirth in her ward and went to Salt Lake to say this had to change, they were too far away from the hospital in SLC to help. Again "What do you think we should do?" and she said there was a large house for sale that could be a maternity hospital. Ended up running Cottonwood Maternity Hospital for 20 years during which only one women died. “Let us not waste our talents in the cauldron of modern nothingness, but strive to become women of intellect, and endeavor to do some little good while we live in this protracted gleam called life."

Sis E asked people to share a bit about how they find peace in the mission and how it brings peace to others. some notes: "not caught in the hurly-bury of small things" "no FOMO (fear of missing out) anymore" - (seeing friend go off on trips, etc) because growing closer to Christ and feeling joy in service, "Service makes you more sensitive to the Holy Ghost" Our  whole mission is a holy place.   

Sis Eubank told a great story about using JustServe.org to bring a community together - a large planned community with divisive HOA, head of it looked at hurricane coming and set up a JustServe link and sent to everyone - when calls for help came, soon they were being answered - teens using a boat to take someone insulin, etc. and they became knit together. DC 31:3

Anytime you feel like helping out, or have a family gathering and wonder what to do, etc., you just go on there and look for something you can do to help others. Or you can put in projects you know of that need help. It's really an awesome site.

We know have another full-time mental health person who is doing the reviews for reinstatements (when a missionary goes home early and wants to return) and she is awesome and things are going faster. She spoke of how impressed she is that the church is willing to do so much to help these missionaries out who are struggling with emotional/mental issues - providing much counseling without charging them for one thing. 

Zone devotional (Susongs) - tied study of Jeremiah to Elder Holland's "Safety for the Soul" talk 2009, Matt 24:24, JST Matt 1:22, Luke 21:26. Lehi saw mists of darkness over everyone, faithful or not - some interesting stuff in the Bible Dictionary about Jeremiah and the Lord's relation to minds of his servants - They highly recommend the bible video about Jeremiah, 

They changed out the new displays in the conference center for the Christmas Season, 

Durk really enjoys walking through every day (it's our "short-cut" - gets us out of the heat or cold for a bit of the walk home) and talking to the young sister missionaries in whatever language he can.

and they said the Plaza would open in November, I've been waiting for the chance to see something completed since we are always in constructions everywhere (though we can actually use the front entrance to the apartment building now!) They brought out fencing the other day so I think they will open the completed side and fence off where they are still working. So we will be able to go out on it but not use it as a way to get to the JSMB. We did learn some interesting things from the Director whose office is near my desk. They had to cut down the number of flags and height of the poles because of noise! There people who study this, and so many flags in the wind make a really large noise. Also they are working on a policy about which flags because there is a lot of controversy - if you put up flags of every country that has members of the church for instance, well, that includes Russia and China and other places that some people get unhappy about. And they will rotate what flags they have up.

President Holmes likes to jump in and do something different. Our mission devotional was on balance, a note about spiritual preparation but mostly eating well and getting exercise - had a physical therapist - he said not to worry too much about exactly how you exercise, you only screw up if you do too much or nothing. Every 30 minutes you've got to get up and move, even it its just walking around your chair and stretching.

The Archibalds who work in Prison Ministries   gave the zone devotional. One experience they had serving with a YSA ward was when one of their members was from Peru whose family lost their home and everything they had in an earthquake. The students decided to raise money and go build them a new home! and they did , they went and got it built to the point others could complete it. They reminded us of how the Hoy Ghost is with us but like a dimmer switch - we need to remember to keep it on high. Where is your sacred grove? Sister A has a spot up the canyon that she goes to and calls the pond the Waters of Mormon. Now in Prison Ministries they get to see hearts changes and share that with students they work with, that no matter where you are or how you feel, the Savior listens and is there.

Neeleys, in their devotional reminded us of the talk about being stone throwers or stone catchers - or bridge builder, also repeated the great line "don't judge me because I sin differently than you do" -- You can't throw stones while washing feet.

A group consisting mostly of the senior missionary screeners/processing people we eat lunch with went to see the theater release of the beginning of season 3 of The Chosen. Then we spent the next lunch talking about it. I thought it was well worth paying to see on the big screen. Seeing the apostles being told they would pair up and go out teaching made me think of other early missionaries who had very short time to prepare (like many of those sent out by Joseph Smith), also how important that they had hear the Sermon on the Mount before they left, and how wonderful to see the changing and growth that is occurring in those who follow Jesus. It made me realize how much this mission has strengthened my testimony of the Savior even though we mostly are doing computer clerical-type work.

The lunch group is one of our favorite parts of the mission, (as I've probably mentioned many times) and even though it is now an entirely different group than when we stared, it is still thoroughly enjoyable - sometimes hilarious, sometimes faith-building. 

Thanksgiving was hosted by my sister Christ here in Salt Lake, Bethany and Glenn were there and their cousin Sam, "other Megan" and her crew also. It was the easiest Thanksgiving I've had in many years, just brought a pan of sweet potatoes! The mission had a meal for those without a place to go, Durk's cousin texted to make sure we had a place, lots of opportunities :) Even better, Jenny's family traveled to Missouri to celebrate with Drew and Evan. Apparently they all had pie for breakfast and dinner every day. Much game-playing and park-going ensued as well. 

Hard to believe we are down to TWO MONTHS left! We are starting to think about what we can use up before we leave and what we need to quit buying.