Surprise Send-off

 

The science museum incudes a fair bit of natural history 

Durk got a phone call from Sister McCoy saying that the Myers were going to have to leave their apartment in Pawtuket for the new couple assigned there that are arriving this Friday or Saturday. So they could move here if we could get out fast and go to Quincy or go home early or they could go to Quincy for a bit (Again!) So after looking at calendar and talking to Myers it was decided (this is all on Monday afternoon) that we will pack up and be ready to leave the apartment by Friday noon when the Myers will come meet us here and we'll turn over the key and help them haul their stuff in. Then we will drive out to the office for the Quincy key and stay there over the weekend so we can go to the temple with Teo and Soraia and to sealing of Karol and Danilo and their daughters. Then Sunday to a baptism and the end of finance class which will be very short due to baptism. and probably lunch with baptism that will count as final lunch for class plus meeting with Myers to update them on what's what. Then get up next Monday and be on our way home three weeks early! We have talked a few times about whether to volunteer to leave a week or two sooner so Myers could move in and hadn't quite felt to bring it up with president, but here it is. Some quick sorting and cleaning and packing and leaving a lot more food than we planned, hope its useful for the Myers. It feels a bit like having two days to leave Brasil (except we don't have to also do the office work to get 84 other missionaries ready.)

So we decided not to mention it to the missionaries before district council because we aren't really into having a "funeral" or fuss. We did bring cupcakes with sprinkles because it was on President Nelson's birthday (101st!) (Thankfully the dollar store we can walk to had cake mix and frosting in a can and Thorpes left sprinkles)

Each week they list their goals and reports and who they are working with, the closing prayer incudes each by name. This time they put our names on the column with the totals and one new sister didn't realize and thought we found 87 people. Portuguese elders have been getting lots of referrals but the majority are for English class.

The traffic last time we had DC was like a Sunday morning, super fast and easy, this week -
same day and time, terrible - 

That's 3 miles per hour on our way to the church for district council

Since we still hadn't had genuine Boston clam chowder or cannoli, we went to Assembly Row afterwards and we have now had the same clam chowder served at presidential inaugurations (Legal Seafood) and cannoli's from Mike's Pastry. Three cannoli is a lot more than I thought - we've cut them in half but still haven't managed to eat all three. We asked advice on flavors to get classics and variety.

Had to add to the collection of "Durk by large creature" photos, tried to get to one by the life-size T-rex at the museum but didn't make it.

thought I should grab a couple of the views we see all the time heading to the church bldg

Now the trick is not so much to get the apartment cleaned and everything packed in a very short time but to figure out how to eat in an empty apartment and bring food to a dinner at the church by the temple plus a lunch after baptism Sunday without knowing for sure what equipment is in the apt and no misc stuff like condiments and spices and we still don't know for sure what we are to bring or for how many (partly because baptism still isn't official so might be ward lunch or might be just our class...)

Lots of driving needed to return router to internet provider, go out to mission office for key, get to apt in Quincy - and still need to plan trip home! No internet for the next three days either -

Finally! July Zone Conference photo!

 the last weekend added in  at home with internet and laptop :) 

Friday we finished what we could do in the apartment to prepare it and finish packing, Myers came about 11:30 and we helped take their stuff upstairs and then headed to the mission office. Turns out the McCoys had to go pick up a car so they left the key on the mailbox - no need for Durk to be wearing a tie! (No closing meet with mission president or anything either). Then a long drive to he apartment in Quincy. It has really nice views form both sides, water, but definitely not as nice as the Chelsea apartment. We had smoke smells from next door, freeway noise all night, and the third night we had a TV going to 3 a.m. next door. And its a smaller, tighter place with dark kitchen. Made us appreciate Chelsea even more. Plus complicated drive in in and out, the last time we went aroudn several times getting to the right spot to get to bldg. Google maps was going nuts. (And it turns out there were spices and some basics in the cupboards if we'd needed them.)

Quincy view - glad we weren't on a lower floor where it would be all freeway view

Saturday we got up and headed to the temple in Belmont, already a lot of traffic. We weren't sure what was going on with the dinner they had proposed to spend huge $$ on - we donated a chunk so we didn't feel we needed to take food. We hoped Otacilio could come and see Thorpes but he had to work. 

We had a wonderful Portuguese temple session, Marcella said she had never in her time in the area seen so many such a full Portuguese session, we must have had pretty much everyone in the branch with a recommend and some that were no longer in that branch. Teo and Soraia receive their endowments, then afterword we all went ot sealing. They were sealed, then Karol and Danilo and then their children were brought in to be sealed to them. I think its my fist live children to parent sealing. 

After fewer photos than I expected we headed over to the the chapel where they had quite a set-up. Poor RS had to do the work but it was very nice - they had salad, macaron (pasta, this time tortellini), the obligatory white rice, then stroganoff - not American type but tasty, and cake and brigadeiros. 

In the Belmont building by the temple

On Sunday the Thorpes were still there (they are the ones who were before us and worked a lot with those who went tot he temple and came out for the sealings) so there was much excitement. Myers were also there meeting everyone. The Primary said a thank-you and in RS Cris was very emotional and said I had helped her a lot - and we would need to get lots of photos (but then she wasn't able to be around afterwards for class or baptism, probably because she spent the whole day before with setting up, fixing things for the reception plus at the temple). 

View from Belmont leaving temple

Since I had been scheduled to speak on Fasting on Sept 21st. I volunteered to move it up and then it got changed form 15 to 5 minutes so I did a lot fo cutting. When I arrived they said 10 and I said, nope, can't adjust the Portuguese. Fortunately, five minutes turned out perfect with the other talks timing. (Ailton asked for the long talk, need to send it to him)

We had a special one from (?) stake primary about her experience in the branch a couple of months ago. Their presidency came to support Sister Green when she spoke and as she struggled to find and follow the talked and prayers and felt the spirit, during the sacrament song she had a major spiritual experience that lifted a many-years burden (from a family complication) off her. She felt she needed to come and share it. She searched a long time to figure out what sacrament song we had been singing at the time and learn more about it. It was a good lesson on the power of the Spirit and how language isn't the most important thing.. Iones came up and asked "where did that Portuguese come from?" and many complimented me, I have to keep telling them Durk has taught me to read pretty well but that doesn't mean I speak it!

We had a very short concluding "lesson" for Autosuficiencia where we asked them to tell something they learned or a benefit of the class, but it turned into a "thanks for the Merrells" which was a bit embarrassing. 

Those who made it the last class, missing Cris and occasional student Danubia, a few others never did come, Teo and Soraia made it a couple of times and Soraia's background of a banking family gave her some good insights to share. I think we averaged about 8 participants.

Marcos, who lives about 50 minutes from the chapel,  He leads the music in sacrament mtg and chooses the songs, "Star Student" became his thing.

Otacilia, who benefitted a lot not just from the finance information but getting to know the others as well as the spiritual aspects of the class. Now she should have more time to have Covenant Path lessons, maybe after church -

Marcella is always so loving and happy and was welcoming, loving and excited to know us from the first day we came. Her hubby is Admir, the new Sunday School president I think.

Then we all ran to the baptism of Wendel, where of course I had to play piano and at the last minute Durk was asked to conduct - Marcio wasn't able to be there. 

Food after, I had made the other giant batch of pao de queijo before we left the apartment since I had all the ingredients, left a few more for Myers since they wouldn't all fit in a big ziploc to take to Quincy, got up early and cooked them all and took, they went really fast! We bought six bags of the mix to take home and plan to make them for our Empty Nesters, Christmas with family, etc.

After everything was finally done we found a room and met with the Myers to go over all the stuff in the binders we had collected information in, Durk mostly branch lists and me info on people we worked with (or tried to) and inspections and ZC lunch. Hopefully it will help them get going fast!

Finally made it back to the Quincy apartment after some google maps glitches and looping around and around - to get ready to depart for good Monday morning. Lots of hugs but we're a bit glad there was all the fuss about Thorpes so a little less on us. 

Lurdhina, primary president (all these pics show that my most crumple-proof packable dress was the only one I had that last weekend)