Bonjour to you all, family and friends -
A brisk ocean-like breeze has blown in from the coast today, and I can tell that Fall is just around the corner. Hmmm. As a matter of fact, I'm a bit chilly, and just ran to get myself a wrap to wear while I type. After seeing a few homes being built, we realize that insulation is virtually unused in them. We actually loved coming into our shutter-enclosed, darkened house after being out in the summer sun, because it was like walking into a cool cave. But, as the weather cools down outside of these basically rock or cement block homes, we do begin to bundle up more inside and shiver in our boots a bit on the tile floors.
We have been experiencing some "panic attacks," off and on lately, as we realize that we will be leaving here in just a few short weeks. The thought of having to say goodbye to the Branch makes us very sad and leaves us torn with conflicting emotions. Jack's second counselor, Patrick, says that we can go home for a month's vacation, and then return and be just like we were. We actually kicked that thought around for a while--maybe we should come back and get an apartment here, so that we could finish helping our friends, and tie up our dangling loose ends. Don't worry, sanity does have a way of returning as we began to realize that it would NOT be the same. We have been so blessed with perfect places to live, all furnished for our use, practically falling into our laps. We'd most likely not be that lucky if we returned. Besides, people do move on; we aren't indispensable; and others will step up to fill in the gaps that we have left. It's just that you become accustomed to seeing certain people often, and there is a trust and friendship that builds up between you when you've shared problems with them, and their happy or sad times also. It will be hard to leave.
Then again, there is Alain Kaus, whose latent cooking genes have been somehow activated. He is now in the kitchen constantly with me each week, "helping" with the bachelor repas. On the one hand, I like help; on the other hand, he is so unpredictable he drives me crazy. Last week, he brought in not just his one loaf of honey white bread (which has improved in texture immensely from his inedible first attempt), but also two more "dessert" loafs--one of which was studded with chocolate and one made with goopy caramel. He also brought special jams to eat with them, an orange marmalade, and a scary looking banana confiture; plus two jars of nutty or smooth peanut butter, and a jar of Nutella. He then set about cutting up each of those large, square loaves into slices, while my little helper (79-year-old Adele) and I, tried to make the green salad and keep out of his knife-wielding way. Then he was with us, wringing out a piece of mozzarella cheese that he'd brought, cutting it right on top of the lettuce, as we stood back and let him have his way. He brought Jack some Turkish Halva to try (which appears to be a near-eastern sweet treat), but he hasn't been up to opening it yet, because it really isn't very appetizing looking. Then last night at FHE, he brought me a cooking magazine 'Cuisine Actuelle', and seemed to be saying, as he talked and talked at me, that I needed to learn some French recipes. I like that idea, it's just the many translations of words and terms that I need to master first; but that was nice of him--I think.
The Elders have found a new Ami who is very interested in the church, and has come to church the last two weeks. The bad news is that he is also a bachelor and, as Richard sadly shook his head, this is a Branch of 'Celibataires'. He is a sweet little man whose apartment is cluttered with clocks, as that seems to be his passion in life; and he is under a doctor's care, and gets through life's trials with pills apparently. That seems to be France's answer to every body's problem. I sat behind him last week when Jack spoke in Sacrament meeting about the Apostasy and Jesus Christ and the restoration, and he was nodding his head vigorously throughout, agreeing with everything that was presented. He is wanting baptism, but the Elders want him to receive all the lessons first. He came and played UNO with us and won his first game ever played and killed Elder Chlarson with plus 4's every hand. We have a lot of fun together on Monday nights.
Well, that's a little update from us over here for now. Hope all is going well in your part of the world, stay safe, endure well, and we love you!
Sister Mom (Joanne) Gran'ma
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
Monday, August 31, 2009
How Grows Our Garden
Bonjour -
Our summer days are winding down, and we feel like we are almost on borrowed time hoping for a harvest of the gospel seeds that have been sown these past 20 months. I love the analogy of the good seed (from Alma 32) that is planted in our hearts (that has to be a good spot!), that if you do not cast it out with your unbelief, and resist the Spirit, it will begin to swell and grow. When this happens, we begin to see and understand and become enlightened, and the fruit of our faith becomes delicious to us. It's so wonderful to read in the scriptures how the word of God works in our lives.
The actual garden that Jack planted and learned from, did rather well, and we are enjoying the fruits of his labor. We have tomatoes for us and some to share, which is always nice. I actually was a little nervous when he brought in the very first one, because it really did look slightly bizarre. It's skin was strangely transparent, and you could discern veins showing through it, all yellow and greenish in color. I took a knife to cut into it, and was loath to release those fluids into the atmosphere! Eeeek! (I've probably seen too many old science fiction movies, do you think?) I don't know where that one came from since all the others have been fairly normal in comparison. He got a tiny crop of peas and a few beans, and then cleared out the old vines and popped in more beans, which promptly sprouted and just finished flowering, so we'll see what we can get there again.
Sophora Croq was 17 when she became the "black sheep" of her active Mormon family, and was excommunicated for her unrepentant actions. She had a son, fell out of love, and lived with other men, off and on, until she began to see how this was affecting her 5-year-old boy, Jeremie. Her mom brought her to church in Angouleme, a 40 min. drive from where she lived, and we drove out to see her several times after that last year. We were stymied because she was living with someone at the same time that she was making overtures to return to her faith. When she finally sent him packing several months ago, we returned and began to teach her again. Jack started at the beginning with her, using Preach My Gospel, and the day that she prayed aloud was such a great breakthrough. Jeremie loves to pray, but when Jack told him that it was his mom's turn, his eyes got wide with wonder, because she hadn't done it before with him. We all sat quietly with heads bowed, waiting for her to find the words, and I was so surprised when the talkative little boy stayed silent also. After 2 long minutes, she gathered the courage to talk to her Father in Heaven, and said a beautiful prayer, asking for his help to come back into his fold. Her case has been reviewed, and after some personal interviews she will be cleared for baptism. We had a very good lesson with her last time, when Jack had her read aloud all 39 verses in Hebrews 10. It is all about how the Lord accepts repentance, but that it is a sacred promise that must not be reneged on, or it's as if you are trampling the Son of God under your feet. It's a powerful message of having patience and enduring to the end for our final reward. I think she is scared of failing, because she knows it will be hard in many ways, but she seems willing to continue to pray for help, and to ask (as Jack suggested) if there is anything else she needs to do in her life before being baptized again. We hope she keeps the date to keep moving forward.
Joao and Sandra are in a tizzy with their new baby, and his worries about his continuing health concerns have him even more frazzled. We dropped by for our appointment and found the social worker with Sandra in the kitchen, the kids running around the house, and Joao complaining about the temperature he's had for several days which makes him unable to take his medication. He brought out a thermometer, and yelped when he saw that his temperature was normal, and ran to get his shot kit. He came back to where we were sitting, pulled out the needle, and began the process of filling the chamber and flicking the needle with his fingers. He was just pulling up his shirt to plunge that thing right into his liver, when Sandra gave him a horrified shout to STOP! She made him take himself into the kitchen to do it, so we wouldn't have to see it. I knew he'd done it when I heard the loud OW! from the next room; darn, we miss all the fun! They haven't come to church for over 2 months now, and it's always the same excuses: it's too hard on the children, 3 hours are too long for them, the members don't like hearing noisy kids, Sister Metcalfe can't speak French to them (so they did notice that!) Jack talked like a Trojan, countering their every objection: We've all been where you are now with the kids, people do understand your plight and would like to help, and my wife is ready with a lesson and gets help in the translation from the Elders. We had such high hopes with Sandra, but maybe she needs to develop at her own pace, so we don't lose her completely. We need to ask the Lord's help on this, and ask for a change of heart, and more patience and desire for the gospel of Christ in their lives.
So there you have our gardening efforts . . . it begins with the planting, and continues with all the growing pains, and I'm not sure how long the harvest lasts, because those seeds are too important to give up on. You hang in there too, we miss you.
Love,
Sister Mom (Joanne) Gran'ma
Our summer days are winding down, and we feel like we are almost on borrowed time hoping for a harvest of the gospel seeds that have been sown these past 20 months. I love the analogy of the good seed (from Alma 32) that is planted in our hearts (that has to be a good spot!), that if you do not cast it out with your unbelief, and resist the Spirit, it will begin to swell and grow. When this happens, we begin to see and understand and become enlightened, and the fruit of our faith becomes delicious to us. It's so wonderful to read in the scriptures how the word of God works in our lives.
The actual garden that Jack planted and learned from, did rather well, and we are enjoying the fruits of his labor. We have tomatoes for us and some to share, which is always nice. I actually was a little nervous when he brought in the very first one, because it really did look slightly bizarre. It's skin was strangely transparent, and you could discern veins showing through it, all yellow and greenish in color. I took a knife to cut into it, and was loath to release those fluids into the atmosphere! Eeeek! (I've probably seen too many old science fiction movies, do you think?) I don't know where that one came from since all the others have been fairly normal in comparison. He got a tiny crop of peas and a few beans, and then cleared out the old vines and popped in more beans, which promptly sprouted and just finished flowering, so we'll see what we can get there again.
Sophora Croq was 17 when she became the "black sheep" of her active Mormon family, and was excommunicated for her unrepentant actions. She had a son, fell out of love, and lived with other men, off and on, until she began to see how this was affecting her 5-year-old boy, Jeremie. Her mom brought her to church in Angouleme, a 40 min. drive from where she lived, and we drove out to see her several times after that last year. We were stymied because she was living with someone at the same time that she was making overtures to return to her faith. When she finally sent him packing several months ago, we returned and began to teach her again. Jack started at the beginning with her, using Preach My Gospel, and the day that she prayed aloud was such a great breakthrough. Jeremie loves to pray, but when Jack told him that it was his mom's turn, his eyes got wide with wonder, because she hadn't done it before with him. We all sat quietly with heads bowed, waiting for her to find the words, and I was so surprised when the talkative little boy stayed silent also. After 2 long minutes, she gathered the courage to talk to her Father in Heaven, and said a beautiful prayer, asking for his help to come back into his fold. Her case has been reviewed, and after some personal interviews she will be cleared for baptism. We had a very good lesson with her last time, when Jack had her read aloud all 39 verses in Hebrews 10. It is all about how the Lord accepts repentance, but that it is a sacred promise that must not be reneged on, or it's as if you are trampling the Son of God under your feet. It's a powerful message of having patience and enduring to the end for our final reward. I think she is scared of failing, because she knows it will be hard in many ways, but she seems willing to continue to pray for help, and to ask (as Jack suggested) if there is anything else she needs to do in her life before being baptized again. We hope she keeps the date to keep moving forward.
Joao and Sandra are in a tizzy with their new baby, and his worries about his continuing health concerns have him even more frazzled. We dropped by for our appointment and found the social worker with Sandra in the kitchen, the kids running around the house, and Joao complaining about the temperature he's had for several days which makes him unable to take his medication. He brought out a thermometer, and yelped when he saw that his temperature was normal, and ran to get his shot kit. He came back to where we were sitting, pulled out the needle, and began the process of filling the chamber and flicking the needle with his fingers. He was just pulling up his shirt to plunge that thing right into his liver, when Sandra gave him a horrified shout to STOP! She made him take himself into the kitchen to do it, so we wouldn't have to see it. I knew he'd done it when I heard the loud OW! from the next room; darn, we miss all the fun! They haven't come to church for over 2 months now, and it's always the same excuses: it's too hard on the children, 3 hours are too long for them, the members don't like hearing noisy kids, Sister Metcalfe can't speak French to them (so they did notice that!) Jack talked like a Trojan, countering their every objection: We've all been where you are now with the kids, people do understand your plight and would like to help, and my wife is ready with a lesson and gets help in the translation from the Elders. We had such high hopes with Sandra, but maybe she needs to develop at her own pace, so we don't lose her completely. We need to ask the Lord's help on this, and ask for a change of heart, and more patience and desire for the gospel of Christ in their lives.
So there you have our gardening efforts . . . it begins with the planting, and continues with all the growing pains, and I'm not sure how long the harvest lasts, because those seeds are too important to give up on. You hang in there too, we miss you.
Love,
Sister Mom (Joanne) Gran'ma
Monday, August 17, 2009
What Next?
Bonjour everyone - Have yourselves a great day today!
It's when I blew up my breakfast oatmeal that I kinda knew what sort of day we would be having! We had an 11 o'clock appointment with Sister Walter to take her the sacrament, and had to leave by 10 to be on time. As we drove into her yard, we were surprised to see that her car wasn't there. That was very strange, so we got out and knocked on her door to make certain, and . . . NO answer. While Jack wrote her a note, I walked around her large back yard looking at the crumbling out-buildings made of those old piled up stones that you see everywhere; and sure enough, the 'mortar' seemed to be dirt that I could easily brush away with a finger. Her near-dead dog roused himself with great effort, and began to do his duty by barking at us, so we gave him the satisfaction of having "chased us away" by leaving, after placing the note in her mailbox. We'd been back home only a few minutes, when I looked for my bag, and couldn't find it anywhere. My heavy, clunky, ever present bag, with all my stuff: my quad de englaise, my scriptures de francaise, my hymnbook (with translated titles . . . the only way on earth I know what I'm singing), and not at all least - my journal! EEEEK! Yes, I really did leave my bag sitting on the back stoop at Chantal's house; I was sick! Jack said, "Don't worry, don't worry, we'll be going back for it." Then the phone rang, and it was Chantal calling to apologize for getting her dates wrong; she thought we were coming the next day, and to tell us "the news" that she had my bag. I mouthed the "news" to Jack . . . "I NEED my bag!" So he told her we'd come by later to pick it up. Then Carole called us to move our meeting with her back by an hour and a half because she was swamped with work, so Jack grabbed me and said let's go right now. We dove into the car and took off once again to Chantal's little commune, Le Pruneau (love that name); because if you feel naked without your bag, you must have your bag, right? We got to meet her son, a young man in his 20's, who was there to help her fix some water damage from an earlier storm, and told her we'd be back in the morning.
Then, we were off to our appointment with Carole, who is such a different person from the timid, stand-offish woman we first met a year ago. Their place of business is clear on the far side of Angouleme, so it seemed like we'd been in the car for hours. We got off to a good start with my small offering of her personal favorite: lemon bars, a treat she cannot refuse! Jack felt that she needed to understand about opposition and agency, having been the victim of a crime, so we read and discussed 2 Nephi 2, which talks about why God allows his children their agency to act and how they are responsible for the consequences that follow. She read the verses, then reread them, and discussed them with Jack. It is a hard concept to forgive someone who has hurt you or a loved one, but she is trying to come to terms with it. I snapped a quick picture of her and Jack, and she told him that she's gained some weight back, and is up to 50 kilos now. At her low point a few months ago, she was at 47 k.; bound and determined to get down to her "magic" number of 42! Fifty kilos is just over 100 pounds, and she is about my height. Jack and her fiancee, Dominique, worked so hard to get her turned around, to realize that she was "losing" her beauty by becoming a scarecrow, not enhancing herself as she seemed to think. It finally seemed to dawn on her, and she has lately had much more spark and liveliness, and we are so glad for her because health is everything. Carole seems to just drink in the knowledge of the gospel, and is reading the Book of Mormon. When she gave the closing prayer, she said something that thrilled us so much, "Father in heaven, please help me so that I can be baptized." It was great.
I was called on to give a different kind of service than usual when we came an hour early to FHE, and set up a barbering station in the kitchen for the Elders. I first tackled Elder Chlarson's hair, which sticks out straight all over his head. It has a coarse, heavy texture that I'd never dealt with before, but he was desperate enough to allow me a free hand and took all the buzzing and clipping and "oopses!' with a determined smile. Then Richard Humblot snuck in, hoping to save himself the 45 euros that a haircut costs him at a shop. His bald pate needed shaving, then I mowed the sides and especially got rid of the heavy, curly forest that grows down the back of his neck. I thought his hair was white as snow, but there are plenty of black ones sprinkled throughout that surprised me. Next came the fussy Elder Hill, whose close cropped, curly, short hair hardly looked like it needed cutting. At first he directed me to just trim some off the sides mostly, but soon he said just take it all, that his hair could never be too short! So, I got after it, and to me it looked the same after I'd finished as it did before; every person is so different from each other! It was his birthday also, so after our lesson he got to blow out the 20 blazing candles on his chocolate brownie cake (what else?), and we all pigged out as we played our rousing UNO games with cheers, groans and great gusto (especially when our resident funny man, Bro. Bourdicheux wins and celebrates triumphantly!).
We honestly never know what's next around here, but the journey has been worth it because of all we have gained along the way. Take care of yourselves, we think about you, and love your place in our lives.
Til we meet again,
Sister Mom (Joanne) Gran'ma
It's when I blew up my breakfast oatmeal that I kinda knew what sort of day we would be having! We had an 11 o'clock appointment with Sister Walter to take her the sacrament, and had to leave by 10 to be on time. As we drove into her yard, we were surprised to see that her car wasn't there. That was very strange, so we got out and knocked on her door to make certain, and . . . NO answer. While Jack wrote her a note, I walked around her large back yard looking at the crumbling out-buildings made of those old piled up stones that you see everywhere; and sure enough, the 'mortar' seemed to be dirt that I could easily brush away with a finger. Her near-dead dog roused himself with great effort, and began to do his duty by barking at us, so we gave him the satisfaction of having "chased us away" by leaving, after placing the note in her mailbox. We'd been back home only a few minutes, when I looked for my bag, and couldn't find it anywhere. My heavy, clunky, ever present bag, with all my stuff: my quad de englaise, my scriptures de francaise, my hymnbook (with translated titles . . . the only way on earth I know what I'm singing), and not at all least - my journal! EEEEK! Yes, I really did leave my bag sitting on the back stoop at Chantal's house; I was sick! Jack said, "Don't worry, don't worry, we'll be going back for it." Then the phone rang, and it was Chantal calling to apologize for getting her dates wrong; she thought we were coming the next day, and to tell us "the news" that she had my bag. I mouthed the "news" to Jack . . . "I NEED my bag!" So he told her we'd come by later to pick it up. Then Carole called us to move our meeting with her back by an hour and a half because she was swamped with work, so Jack grabbed me and said let's go right now. We dove into the car and took off once again to Chantal's little commune, Le Pruneau (love that name); because if you feel naked without your bag, you must have your bag, right? We got to meet her son, a young man in his 20's, who was there to help her fix some water damage from an earlier storm, and told her we'd be back in the morning.
Then, we were off to our appointment with Carole, who is such a different person from the timid, stand-offish woman we first met a year ago. Their place of business is clear on the far side of Angouleme, so it seemed like we'd been in the car for hours. We got off to a good start with my small offering of her personal favorite: lemon bars, a treat she cannot refuse! Jack felt that she needed to understand about opposition and agency, having been the victim of a crime, so we read and discussed 2 Nephi 2, which talks about why God allows his children their agency to act and how they are responsible for the consequences that follow. She read the verses, then reread them, and discussed them with Jack. It is a hard concept to forgive someone who has hurt you or a loved one, but she is trying to come to terms with it. I snapped a quick picture of her and Jack, and she told him that she's gained some weight back, and is up to 50 kilos now. At her low point a few months ago, she was at 47 k.; bound and determined to get down to her "magic" number of 42! Fifty kilos is just over 100 pounds, and she is about my height. Jack and her fiancee, Dominique, worked so hard to get her turned around, to realize that she was "losing" her beauty by becoming a scarecrow, not enhancing herself as she seemed to think. It finally seemed to dawn on her, and she has lately had much more spark and liveliness, and we are so glad for her because health is everything. Carole seems to just drink in the knowledge of the gospel, and is reading the Book of Mormon. When she gave the closing prayer, she said something that thrilled us so much, "Father in heaven, please help me so that I can be baptized." It was great.
I was called on to give a different kind of service than usual when we came an hour early to FHE, and set up a barbering station in the kitchen for the Elders. I first tackled Elder Chlarson's hair, which sticks out straight all over his head. It has a coarse, heavy texture that I'd never dealt with before, but he was desperate enough to allow me a free hand and took all the buzzing and clipping and "oopses!' with a determined smile. Then Richard Humblot snuck in, hoping to save himself the 45 euros that a haircut costs him at a shop. His bald pate needed shaving, then I mowed the sides and especially got rid of the heavy, curly forest that grows down the back of his neck. I thought his hair was white as snow, but there are plenty of black ones sprinkled throughout that surprised me. Next came the fussy Elder Hill, whose close cropped, curly, short hair hardly looked like it needed cutting. At first he directed me to just trim some off the sides mostly, but soon he said just take it all, that his hair could never be too short! So, I got after it, and to me it looked the same after I'd finished as it did before; every person is so different from each other! It was his birthday also, so after our lesson he got to blow out the 20 blazing candles on his chocolate brownie cake (what else?), and we all pigged out as we played our rousing UNO games with cheers, groans and great gusto (especially when our resident funny man, Bro. Bourdicheux wins and celebrates triumphantly!).
We honestly never know what's next around here, but the journey has been worth it because of all we have gained along the way. Take care of yourselves, we think about you, and love your place in our lives.
Til we meet again,
Sister Mom (Joanne) Gran'ma
Friday, August 14, 2009
Reflections
Hello to everyone. We are doing fine and are working to bring some long strivings to fruition. I am convinced that the present day ideas of living together without the commitment of marriage is reeking havoc on France. Couples, for the greater part, are living together and when a major problem arises in the relationship, are going their separate ways even when there are children involved. If the couple doesn't marry and they have children, the state will pay the mother a monthly sum for raising them and the father is off the hook to go his separate way and take little or no responsibility for the child.
We had a case here with someone we know that the father was to take his son for a month during the summer vacation. After 15 days the father had had enough of the fatherly duties and sent the son back to the mother. If the father doesn't claim the child by filling out the necessary papers, the mother is totally responsible and the state then takes on the financial responsibility of 150 dollars a month. Dad goes his way and can continue the cycle all over again.
I am convinced that commitment to each partner in the marriage and to the children we are blessed with is a major contributor to the stability of the child and they will probably follow the example of the parents unless the false ideas of the world take hold. I am also convinced that marriage is not a 50/50 partnership; it is 100% on both sides. When a major problem comes our way and causes a problem, both partners can fight against the urge of pulling away and still overcome the problem.
I do not say that there are not valid reasons for dissolving a marriage, but for the day to day difficulties of life, a total commitment on both sides is needed to weather the storms that come down upon us.
To get people married here in France it takes patience. The documents needed do cost much more that at home and there are medical concerns and a waiting period. So to avoid all that, people just live together and avoid the hassle.
Changing gears drastically, I would like to say that there are few gated communities in France. The reason for that is that each house is gated. Where we live, each house has a wall around it and gates at the driveway and at the door leading into the yard. Some driveway gates only open with a electric door opener. We leave the house with the gate open so I don't have to get in and out of the car to open the gate on our return. Everyone here closes the gates behind them with a key when leaving, even for a short while. There is very little conversation among neighbors in France and when they do talk it is over the fence if it is low enough for them to see each other. We are totally enclosed at our house except for the iron gate out front. Not much opportunity for interaction. Even the church is locked up tight as the property is surrounded by a fence and a gate at the walk-in area and at the drive-in area; so different from at home. I feel that our way is an automatic welcome whereas here it is just the opposite.
In our 2nd summer here we are still amazed at the beauty of this country and the fields are a patch work of different crops and therefore you see a constant variety everywhere. We enjoy the few trips we have within the mission because the landscape changes quickly enough to enjoy every trip. There are greens of every hue and the flowers that bloom here are of every shape and color.
The French take care of their yards and most plant flowers, shrubs, and trees are of different colors. In this area, just about everything will grow, from a certain palm tree to pines. There is a tree here called a monkey tree because monkeys can't climb it due to the way the bark turns upward and it is sharp at the ends. The yards are planted in such a way that something is in bloom all the time and the colors and shapes of the flowers are all different and beautiful.
Unfortunately, in a way, we are seeing the time pass quickly and when the mission home starts making your home bound arrangements it is evident that this part of our life is coming to a close. We love the people here, but know that there are loved ones waiting to greet us at home. It is a little like when we leave this world and are greeted by loved one there. There is a care and love for those left behind, but there is plenty to see and do after this life if we hold to the iron rod.
As I always say to those I know here, Soyez sage, or be wise or be good.
Love
Elder Dad
We had a case here with someone we know that the father was to take his son for a month during the summer vacation. After 15 days the father had had enough of the fatherly duties and sent the son back to the mother. If the father doesn't claim the child by filling out the necessary papers, the mother is totally responsible and the state then takes on the financial responsibility of 150 dollars a month. Dad goes his way and can continue the cycle all over again.
I am convinced that commitment to each partner in the marriage and to the children we are blessed with is a major contributor to the stability of the child and they will probably follow the example of the parents unless the false ideas of the world take hold. I am also convinced that marriage is not a 50/50 partnership; it is 100% on both sides. When a major problem comes our way and causes a problem, both partners can fight against the urge of pulling away and still overcome the problem.
I do not say that there are not valid reasons for dissolving a marriage, but for the day to day difficulties of life, a total commitment on both sides is needed to weather the storms that come down upon us.
To get people married here in France it takes patience. The documents needed do cost much more that at home and there are medical concerns and a waiting period. So to avoid all that, people just live together and avoid the hassle.
Changing gears drastically, I would like to say that there are few gated communities in France. The reason for that is that each house is gated. Where we live, each house has a wall around it and gates at the driveway and at the door leading into the yard. Some driveway gates only open with a electric door opener. We leave the house with the gate open so I don't have to get in and out of the car to open the gate on our return. Everyone here closes the gates behind them with a key when leaving, even for a short while. There is very little conversation among neighbors in France and when they do talk it is over the fence if it is low enough for them to see each other. We are totally enclosed at our house except for the iron gate out front. Not much opportunity for interaction. Even the church is locked up tight as the property is surrounded by a fence and a gate at the walk-in area and at the drive-in area; so different from at home. I feel that our way is an automatic welcome whereas here it is just the opposite.
In our 2nd summer here we are still amazed at the beauty of this country and the fields are a patch work of different crops and therefore you see a constant variety everywhere. We enjoy the few trips we have within the mission because the landscape changes quickly enough to enjoy every trip. There are greens of every hue and the flowers that bloom here are of every shape and color.
The French take care of their yards and most plant flowers, shrubs, and trees are of different colors. In this area, just about everything will grow, from a certain palm tree to pines. There is a tree here called a monkey tree because monkeys can't climb it due to the way the bark turns upward and it is sharp at the ends. The yards are planted in such a way that something is in bloom all the time and the colors and shapes of the flowers are all different and beautiful.
Unfortunately, in a way, we are seeing the time pass quickly and when the mission home starts making your home bound arrangements it is evident that this part of our life is coming to a close. We love the people here, but know that there are loved ones waiting to greet us at home. It is a little like when we leave this world and are greeted by loved one there. There is a care and love for those left behind, but there is plenty to see and do after this life if we hold to the iron rod.
As I always say to those I know here, Soyez sage, or be wise or be good.
Love
Elder Dad
Wednesday, August 5, 2009
Random Thoughts
Bonjour everyone -
We are in the lazy days of summer here in France, and much of the country seems to just close down, as people take their vacations. We have a French native, Elder Del Bel, who just finished his mission. He's in his late 20's, and after joining the church, he decided to serve and was a wonderful missionary, ending up as our Zone Leader. He told us that in his work as a librarian, he was entitled to 16 weeks of paid vacation every year. We could hardly believe it, but he assured us that it was true. School children here seem to get many weeks off for vacation during the year too, plus they also get every Wednesday off, it's nuts.
Living in a real home has changed some things for us, because houses need to be tended. Sister Bouchard loves her mission at the genealogy library in Salt Lake City so much that she is talking about extending. With us leaving at the end of October, if she extends for say, three months into March of next year, that will leave the house empty for quite some time. It has turned into a jungle around here, and we have to beat back the overgrowth of foliage and weeds constantly. Thank goodness we had the Corga's help while they were able. Sandra finally had her baby girl last week, and they plan to return and help us again when they are able. Joao has weekly shots that lay him out completely for his hepatitis, plus he told us that he is HIV positive, and so it would seem that his health is in serious jeopardy. He is very remorseful that he fell away from the church, and made decisions that have left him in this awful physical condition at his young age. Jack has done everything but taken their cigarettes physically from their house (he did threaten to do that too!), to get them to stop smoking, but their habit has them hooked fast so far.
Our experience with the ancient hedge out front has been a saga. Sis. Bouchard said we could do whatever we wanted to in her yard, but I bet she never would have dreamed Jack would take that literally, and tackle the ugly dead part of her hedge out front. He pulled out the sticks that had no foliage, leaving it a kinda shell of its former self, into which he planted new 3 ft. plants to take their place. Then we realized that didn't look good, so he cut off all the branches remaining, which left grotesque spiky stumps, so we knew that they had to go! He started digging around them with a shovel, tied a rope around each one in turn, positioned her car with its undercarriage hook, and pulled those suckers out with that extra added horsepower. It was like pulling out 6 huge teeth by their roots, and he was having way too much fun! We then went shopping for poles and bamboo fencing, because you must cut off the view of your neighbors in France, it's mandatory, I think! Later, at the grocery store, we began talking to a nice English couple in the line ahead of us. Their French wasn't too good, so Jack helped them explain something to the cashier, as she waited for the two Englishwomen ahead of us all to resolve their problem! They were stuck because they had failed to get prices on their bags of produce, so my ever-helpful husband ran back and got that done for them. Everyone was suitably impressed (the Englishman said that he should work there!), but Jack shrugged it off modestly, attributing it to his early boy scout training.
Jack has quite a fan club going on here, between Madeleine, who thinks he's wonderful because he helps in the kitchen, and does dishes, 'like no Frenchman would!'; and Adele, who hangs onto his every word, and tries so hard to please him as she reads the Book of Mormon with us each week, and tries to understand and answer his questions correctly. She has come a long way, and now prays each time we visit. Her prayers are not quite in our usual format yet, but she is talking to Heavenly Father, so that is good.
Sandra knew from the beginning that what he told her was true, it's just the cares of the world that keep her down; she really wants to be baptized. Carole has gone from being lost in the dark, to letting the light of the gospel open her mind to the wonderful knowledge that God knows her, and loves her, no matter what challenges and mistakes she's made. In her last prayer with us, she asked for help so that she could be baptized . . . we were so thrilled to hear that. Sister Trillaud loves him because he got her to realize that she could pay her tithing, which was all she is lacking for a temple recommend; then came up with the idea to help her set aside the money for it. We've become closer to her by helping the Elders as they take her the sacrament each week. Last Friday though, as the Elders met us at her apt. they were talking on the phone, to HER. "Don't come up! Don't come up! I'm going to the hospital, I'm sick!" she told them. We found out later that she has the Swine flu, and will be in quarantine for a month! Next, there is tiny Sister Walter, who lived upstairs while she went to school to become a nurse's aide. She looks on Jack as an older brother, and they get a kick out of each other's humor. We went to see her at her crumbling down old home at Le Pruneau (I love that name!), and she was given the sacrament (she always kneels down), and an object lesson on the three things we need to do to keep our channel of communication open to the Lord. She does two of them, reading the scriptures and praying, but the third one: coming to church, is harder for her. So, we are her little burr under her saddle to keep her remembering what she needs to do. Last is Sephora, who tripped over the traces at age 18, and was excommunicated. At age 27, unmarried and with an active 5-year-old boy, she is making her way back to the fold of Jesus Christ, and it's not easy at all. But she wants more for her son than the world can give, and she knows her life went sour through her own actions. She has welcomed us in eagerly to teach her again what she had almost forgotten. She has shed tears of joy at the thought that she can be forgiven for her past sins and it has been wonderful to be with her on this journey. Then there is ME, I'm in his fan club too, but I live with him, so I happen to know that he's human, not ready to be translated yet, and he needs me to keep him grounded, which I'm getting better at all the time.
I didn't mean to write a book. I'd better end this now. I love you all, my family and friends, and hope you are all doing well. See you soon!
Take care, Sister Mom Joanne Gran'ma
We are in the lazy days of summer here in France, and much of the country seems to just close down, as people take their vacations. We have a French native, Elder Del Bel, who just finished his mission. He's in his late 20's, and after joining the church, he decided to serve and was a wonderful missionary, ending up as our Zone Leader. He told us that in his work as a librarian, he was entitled to 16 weeks of paid vacation every year. We could hardly believe it, but he assured us that it was true. School children here seem to get many weeks off for vacation during the year too, plus they also get every Wednesday off, it's nuts.
Living in a real home has changed some things for us, because houses need to be tended. Sister Bouchard loves her mission at the genealogy library in Salt Lake City so much that she is talking about extending. With us leaving at the end of October, if she extends for say, three months into March of next year, that will leave the house empty for quite some time. It has turned into a jungle around here, and we have to beat back the overgrowth of foliage and weeds constantly. Thank goodness we had the Corga's help while they were able. Sandra finally had her baby girl last week, and they plan to return and help us again when they are able. Joao has weekly shots that lay him out completely for his hepatitis, plus he told us that he is HIV positive, and so it would seem that his health is in serious jeopardy. He is very remorseful that he fell away from the church, and made decisions that have left him in this awful physical condition at his young age. Jack has done everything but taken their cigarettes physically from their house (he did threaten to do that too!), to get them to stop smoking, but their habit has them hooked fast so far.
Our experience with the ancient hedge out front has been a saga. Sis. Bouchard said we could do whatever we wanted to in her yard, but I bet she never would have dreamed Jack would take that literally, and tackle the ugly dead part of her hedge out front. He pulled out the sticks that had no foliage, leaving it a kinda shell of its former self, into which he planted new 3 ft. plants to take their place. Then we realized that didn't look good, so he cut off all the branches remaining, which left grotesque spiky stumps, so we knew that they had to go! He started digging around them with a shovel, tied a rope around each one in turn, positioned her car with its undercarriage hook, and pulled those suckers out with that extra added horsepower. It was like pulling out 6 huge teeth by their roots, and he was having way too much fun! We then went shopping for poles and bamboo fencing, because you must cut off the view of your neighbors in France, it's mandatory, I think! Later, at the grocery store, we began talking to a nice English couple in the line ahead of us. Their French wasn't too good, so Jack helped them explain something to the cashier, as she waited for the two Englishwomen ahead of us all to resolve their problem! They were stuck because they had failed to get prices on their bags of produce, so my ever-helpful husband ran back and got that done for them. Everyone was suitably impressed (the Englishman said that he should work there!), but Jack shrugged it off modestly, attributing it to his early boy scout training.
Jack has quite a fan club going on here, between Madeleine, who thinks he's wonderful because he helps in the kitchen, and does dishes, 'like no Frenchman would!'; and Adele, who hangs onto his every word, and tries so hard to please him as she reads the Book of Mormon with us each week, and tries to understand and answer his questions correctly. She has come a long way, and now prays each time we visit. Her prayers are not quite in our usual format yet, but she is talking to Heavenly Father, so that is good.
Sandra knew from the beginning that what he told her was true, it's just the cares of the world that keep her down; she really wants to be baptized. Carole has gone from being lost in the dark, to letting the light of the gospel open her mind to the wonderful knowledge that God knows her, and loves her, no matter what challenges and mistakes she's made. In her last prayer with us, she asked for help so that she could be baptized . . . we were so thrilled to hear that. Sister Trillaud loves him because he got her to realize that she could pay her tithing, which was all she is lacking for a temple recommend; then came up with the idea to help her set aside the money for it. We've become closer to her by helping the Elders as they take her the sacrament each week. Last Friday though, as the Elders met us at her apt. they were talking on the phone, to HER. "Don't come up! Don't come up! I'm going to the hospital, I'm sick!" she told them. We found out later that she has the Swine flu, and will be in quarantine for a month! Next, there is tiny Sister Walter, who lived upstairs while she went to school to become a nurse's aide. She looks on Jack as an older brother, and they get a kick out of each other's humor. We went to see her at her crumbling down old home at Le Pruneau (I love that name!), and she was given the sacrament (she always kneels down), and an object lesson on the three things we need to do to keep our channel of communication open to the Lord. She does two of them, reading the scriptures and praying, but the third one: coming to church, is harder for her. So, we are her little burr under her saddle to keep her remembering what she needs to do. Last is Sephora, who tripped over the traces at age 18, and was excommunicated. At age 27, unmarried and with an active 5-year-old boy, she is making her way back to the fold of Jesus Christ, and it's not easy at all. But she wants more for her son than the world can give, and she knows her life went sour through her own actions. She has welcomed us in eagerly to teach her again what she had almost forgotten. She has shed tears of joy at the thought that she can be forgiven for her past sins and it has been wonderful to be with her on this journey. Then there is ME, I'm in his fan club too, but I live with him, so I happen to know that he's human, not ready to be translated yet, and he needs me to keep him grounded, which I'm getting better at all the time.
I didn't mean to write a book. I'd better end this now. I love you all, my family and friends, and hope you are all doing well. See you soon!
Take care, Sister Mom Joanne Gran'ma
Tuesday, August 4, 2009
Going Home
Hello to all of you out there. It has been some time since I have written and so I will overcome my blue funk and get to the news at hand. The first thing is that time is passing so fast and there is so much to do that I am worried there will not be enough time to get it all done. We have good news though with the progress of some of our amis.
We will set the baptism date of Sephora Croq this Thursday. She has made so much progress. With our last visit, we felt the Spirit. Her promise to continue to pray and read the Scriptures is a great factor to her being ready to take on the challenges that are hers now and to progress in the future. I will interview her Sunday and then the Stake President will be here on the 30th for her final interview.
Carole is ready and prays for her baptism to come soon. We need to get her and her fiance married. We will meet with Dominique and Carole to see when the date will be. Getting the family members here that they would like to be present is the problem and we are patient with all that. It has been great to see the change come over her and the major hurdles she has met and conquered over the past year. Each of you would be amazed at the challenges that have faced her, but I know it would not have taken place without the Gospel teachings and the Lord's help. Clement, our young 9-year-old young man, bore his testimony Sunday and wants to be baptized. We need to get his estranged mother's permission or according to French law there will be future difficulties. Even though the father has custody of Clement, the French law allows a mother who is divorced, does not have custody, and has other major problems, to have a consent ability even though she has become disinterested in his real life progress.
The Corga family had a new addition with the birth of a new beautiful baby girl. Joao's health problems are still a problem and his treatment to be cured is difficult on him. They both have cut back on their smoking and it is the only thing holding them back. Sandra is down to 2 a day but this is the hardest thing she has had to do in her life. She has smoked since she was a young teenager and this habit is so tough for her to kick. It makes me want to take on the cigarette manufactures and give them a swift kick.
Our new young family is great for the branch and they both accepted calls last Sunday and were set apart as branch missionary leader and primary president. With their 4-year-old daughter, Jeremy, Sophora's 5-year-old son, and Clement, we had 3 in primary. We have the Corga's two young children to add if we can and we will be up to 5. We had one other visitor Sunday so we are growing. Joanne does such a great job with the help of the missionaries, but having someone there who can be there always and who can speak French will be such a great boon to our progress.
It took a lot out of me yesterday to take 2 missionaries to the mission home for their return trips home. Elder Archer, from Magna, has been here for 4 months and this is the third missionary we have sent home from Angouleme. These are tough moments after we have spent so many good and tough times with him and the others. The other missionary was Elder Green, who served here at the end of 2008 and into April of this year. He was in a city to the south and so we picked him up on the way down to the mission home.
At this time in our mission, it was a sad reminder to us how soon we will be leaving. We love these people with all our hearts and being here for two years and investing our efforts in their eternal opportunities has taken a toll on our heart strings. These are great members and amis and we will leave behind a major portion of our hearts here in this part of France. I know it is a hazard of serving and not being able to bring them home with us, but there are other major projects for us to do and loved ones to see and squeeze with huge hugs when we get home. I have learned the value of a hug since being here. The missionaries do it all the time when they meet. It not only shows your emotions through the force of the squeeze you can give but it puts your mouth to their ear to tell them how much you love them.
We love all of you and are looking forward to showing some of you the sights and the people here when you come. It will be good for you to put the faces and personalities with the names. Until the next time.
Love Elder Dad
We will set the baptism date of Sephora Croq this Thursday. She has made so much progress. With our last visit, we felt the Spirit. Her promise to continue to pray and read the Scriptures is a great factor to her being ready to take on the challenges that are hers now and to progress in the future. I will interview her Sunday and then the Stake President will be here on the 30th for her final interview.
Carole is ready and prays for her baptism to come soon. We need to get her and her fiance married. We will meet with Dominique and Carole to see when the date will be. Getting the family members here that they would like to be present is the problem and we are patient with all that. It has been great to see the change come over her and the major hurdles she has met and conquered over the past year. Each of you would be amazed at the challenges that have faced her, but I know it would not have taken place without the Gospel teachings and the Lord's help. Clement, our young 9-year-old young man, bore his testimony Sunday and wants to be baptized. We need to get his estranged mother's permission or according to French law there will be future difficulties. Even though the father has custody of Clement, the French law allows a mother who is divorced, does not have custody, and has other major problems, to have a consent ability even though she has become disinterested in his real life progress.
The Corga family had a new addition with the birth of a new beautiful baby girl. Joao's health problems are still a problem and his treatment to be cured is difficult on him. They both have cut back on their smoking and it is the only thing holding them back. Sandra is down to 2 a day but this is the hardest thing she has had to do in her life. She has smoked since she was a young teenager and this habit is so tough for her to kick. It makes me want to take on the cigarette manufactures and give them a swift kick.
Our new young family is great for the branch and they both accepted calls last Sunday and were set apart as branch missionary leader and primary president. With their 4-year-old daughter, Jeremy, Sophora's 5-year-old son, and Clement, we had 3 in primary. We have the Corga's two young children to add if we can and we will be up to 5. We had one other visitor Sunday so we are growing. Joanne does such a great job with the help of the missionaries, but having someone there who can be there always and who can speak French will be such a great boon to our progress.
It took a lot out of me yesterday to take 2 missionaries to the mission home for their return trips home. Elder Archer, from Magna, has been here for 4 months and this is the third missionary we have sent home from Angouleme. These are tough moments after we have spent so many good and tough times with him and the others. The other missionary was Elder Green, who served here at the end of 2008 and into April of this year. He was in a city to the south and so we picked him up on the way down to the mission home.
At this time in our mission, it was a sad reminder to us how soon we will be leaving. We love these people with all our hearts and being here for two years and investing our efforts in their eternal opportunities has taken a toll on our heart strings. These are great members and amis and we will leave behind a major portion of our hearts here in this part of France. I know it is a hazard of serving and not being able to bring them home with us, but there are other major projects for us to do and loved ones to see and squeeze with huge hugs when we get home. I have learned the value of a hug since being here. The missionaries do it all the time when they meet. It not only shows your emotions through the force of the squeeze you can give but it puts your mouth to their ear to tell them how much you love them.
We love all of you and are looking forward to showing some of you the sights and the people here when you come. It will be good for you to put the faces and personalities with the names. Until the next time.
Love Elder Dad
Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Summertime in France
Bonjour everyone - I hope you are enjoying the warm summer days that we long for so much during the winter! It has been in the 90's consistently lately, and we had some hunker down days, but then a huge rain storm blew in and cooled us off--it was a nice break.
We had our second annual Branch Picnic last week, and had a good turnout at the big shady park filled with tables under tall trees, just like the ones we have at home. Everyone came to relax in their comfy clothes, and play boules (a game where you try to throw a heavy metal ball the closest to a marker). The Elders wore themselves out when they, and a couple of men from our group, got sucked into a pick-up soccer game with some athletic young guys. We had to revive Elder Archer by pouring water on his head. Richard is now divorced from Lucienne, so he invited a young family to come with him, and made sure they had plenty of food to eat. His brother, Patrick had two of his children and their young families with them, plus Jean Pierre and his kids (and their frisky, silly dog Boo-Bah), made for a lot of youngsters running around. We mostly had sandwiches and salads, and Alain's two roasted chickens into the mix, and we passed out our chocolate dessert bars and it was good. Patrick organized a nature walk along the lazy Charente River, where in one particular shallow bend they used to perform their baptisms for the church. Alain picked a bouquet of "Don't Pick These Flowers" from French native flora & fauna beds that were growing along the path, and thrust them at me to carry. Jack told him that if I got arrested for flower-napping HE was taking the rap, not me. I was later able to press quite a few of them in a heavy dictionary we have at home, so we'll see how they do. As we walked, Remy Demolombe pontificated about the world's political messes to Jack (he just nods his head, and tisk tisks here and there) to which Remy smiled and was satisfied. Our big, noisy group managed to disturb a beautiful family of swans from their restful spot in the shallows, but they were patient and waited us out until we got on our way again. It is odd and sad for me not to have been able to talk to the people I've grown to care for here, in any meaningful way. I know I have missed so much by not hearing Jacqueline Demolombe's whole story, as told personally one on one, and she feels it too, as our eyes express what our language barrier cannot.
On Sunday morning, for the first time in 4 weeks, I had children to teach in Primary! It is so daunting a prospect, but I always find a sympathetic helper, and together, with bumbling and lots of humor, we get through it. Today it was Christoph Humblot, who knows some English, who sat in with his 4 year old daughter, Kyana, and translated for me. Then Brother Savreaux brought his two grandchildren, Eva and Julien, ages 7 and 5, with him also, so we had a crowd! What this Primary needs is a good French woman to lead it, and I truly hope that comes to pass one day. I had a 'Prayer' lesson prepared, with a prayer can filled with pictures of things we are thankful for, and things we would ask blessings for; the printed out coloring page from the manual; and a take home project of more pictures to cut and paste about prayer. It adds up to lots of busy work (the less said in fractured French, the better), but it went well, so that was good.
Jack has his fun for the day by going to pick people up who can't seem to be ready when church starts at 9:30. It's frustrating when they don't seem to realize that they are really inconveniencing someone who needs to be at the chapel during the meetings. (You can probably tell this is a pet peeve of mine, but he just wants them to be there so badly, that it doesn't bother him.) Our feeding the Elders lunch each week after church has begun to become an institution, because of all the 'bachelors' we have in the Branch. They began coming too, since we always seem to have enough food for one more. Alain often brings his square bread, that is actually becoming lighter and more edible; and so thus encouraged, he's trying his hand at desserts. He brought in two home made "sugar pies" that had to be chiseled out of their pans. The Fourtina's, home from their three and a half month mission to the Madrid temple, came to speak to us, and stayed to eat afterwards. She was a lifesaver, and brought plenty of extra food, as they brought Madeleine Chauveau with them; so we had enough for the three tables of people that showed up that day.
Well, life goes on, it's kinda nuts, but it's all we have, so let's enjoy the journey, it's worth it. We think of you all often, so don't forget that!
Love, Sister Mom (Joanne) Granny
We had our second annual Branch Picnic last week, and had a good turnout at the big shady park filled with tables under tall trees, just like the ones we have at home. Everyone came to relax in their comfy clothes, and play boules (a game where you try to throw a heavy metal ball the closest to a marker). The Elders wore themselves out when they, and a couple of men from our group, got sucked into a pick-up soccer game with some athletic young guys. We had to revive Elder Archer by pouring water on his head. Richard is now divorced from Lucienne, so he invited a young family to come with him, and made sure they had plenty of food to eat. His brother, Patrick had two of his children and their young families with them, plus Jean Pierre and his kids (and their frisky, silly dog Boo-Bah), made for a lot of youngsters running around. We mostly had sandwiches and salads, and Alain's two roasted chickens into the mix, and we passed out our chocolate dessert bars and it was good. Patrick organized a nature walk along the lazy Charente River, where in one particular shallow bend they used to perform their baptisms for the church. Alain picked a bouquet of "Don't Pick These Flowers" from French native flora & fauna beds that were growing along the path, and thrust them at me to carry. Jack told him that if I got arrested for flower-napping HE was taking the rap, not me. I was later able to press quite a few of them in a heavy dictionary we have at home, so we'll see how they do. As we walked, Remy Demolombe pontificated about the world's political messes to Jack (he just nods his head, and tisk tisks here and there) to which Remy smiled and was satisfied. Our big, noisy group managed to disturb a beautiful family of swans from their restful spot in the shallows, but they were patient and waited us out until we got on our way again. It is odd and sad for me not to have been able to talk to the people I've grown to care for here, in any meaningful way. I know I have missed so much by not hearing Jacqueline Demolombe's whole story, as told personally one on one, and she feels it too, as our eyes express what our language barrier cannot.
On Sunday morning, for the first time in 4 weeks, I had children to teach in Primary! It is so daunting a prospect, but I always find a sympathetic helper, and together, with bumbling and lots of humor, we get through it. Today it was Christoph Humblot, who knows some English, who sat in with his 4 year old daughter, Kyana, and translated for me. Then Brother Savreaux brought his two grandchildren, Eva and Julien, ages 7 and 5, with him also, so we had a crowd! What this Primary needs is a good French woman to lead it, and I truly hope that comes to pass one day. I had a 'Prayer' lesson prepared, with a prayer can filled with pictures of things we are thankful for, and things we would ask blessings for; the printed out coloring page from the manual; and a take home project of more pictures to cut and paste about prayer. It adds up to lots of busy work (the less said in fractured French, the better), but it went well, so that was good.
Jack has his fun for the day by going to pick people up who can't seem to be ready when church starts at 9:30. It's frustrating when they don't seem to realize that they are really inconveniencing someone who needs to be at the chapel during the meetings. (You can probably tell this is a pet peeve of mine, but he just wants them to be there so badly, that it doesn't bother him.) Our feeding the Elders lunch each week after church has begun to become an institution, because of all the 'bachelors' we have in the Branch. They began coming too, since we always seem to have enough food for one more. Alain often brings his square bread, that is actually becoming lighter and more edible; and so thus encouraged, he's trying his hand at desserts. He brought in two home made "sugar pies" that had to be chiseled out of their pans. The Fourtina's, home from their three and a half month mission to the Madrid temple, came to speak to us, and stayed to eat afterwards. She was a lifesaver, and brought plenty of extra food, as they brought Madeleine Chauveau with them; so we had enough for the three tables of people that showed up that day.
Well, life goes on, it's kinda nuts, but it's all we have, so let's enjoy the journey, it's worth it. We think of you all often, so don't forget that!
Love, Sister Mom (Joanne) Granny
Monday, June 29, 2009
Lost Sheep
Hello to all in the outside world. It is getting hot in Angouleme with the temperature reaching into the 90's during the day. Yesterday after church we had a high of 98.6 F. We have an air cooler in the chapel and also the meetings are in the morning so we get the benefit of a much cooler part of the day for our services. The forecast is for hot weather the next ten days. It is not what I call a good time to be out knocking on doors and meeting people in the streets.
It is hard in France to even talk to people about the Gospel of Christ due to the past actions of the government which are the reversal of the U.S. Constitution. As I have said before, the French government has made it very difficult to practice any religion. In France, the government has acted so that the law states"Freedom from religion" and not "freedom of religion." The Catholic Church has gone in debt in France and can't maintain their churches, so the French government has taken control of the ones build anciently, which makes up 97% of the churches once maintained by the Catholic Church. The government has labeled them historical land marks and the persons who do the up-keep are hired by the government agency that controls ancient landmarks.
If the Catholic Church wishes to hold a service in one of the churches controlled by the government, they must rent the church, just like any other private concern. That is why there are music concerts and other activities being held in the churches that are not related to religious services. A good example of this was when we took the missionaries to Poitier for Elder Hill's medical exam. The exam was a part of his visa for staying in France.
Poitier is out of our mission boundaries, but it is the place where people from Angouleme go for their immigrant and missionary visa medicals. We had two exams and they were hours apart so we got to visit the old part of the city and 4 different Catholic churches in that area. One of the buildings was the oldest baptistery still standing in France. It was built in the 11th century and has a large baptismal font where the baptisms were done by immersion. It just so happened that the baptistery was being rented by a business man from Poitier for a luncheon. There was a doorman at the front checking invitations for the catered lunch. A funeral in one of the old churches will run a person a nice sum of change.
The other denominations in France have built and maintain their own churches through member donations. Our church would like to build a temple in France, near Paris, but the French government feels that all church buildings should be open to the public and there are negotiations going on as we speak for a change in the French thinking. The church is making head way in this area. We have just finished negotiations for the donations to be tax deducible, but in doing this, we had to limit the donations to tithing, fast offerings, missionary donations, and temple construction and maintenance. All other donations on your sheet in the U.S have been taken off because the French government considers that their responsibility. A member must sign the donation sheet so that the government knows that the donation was given by the member's free will. Extensive auditing by the government goes on to see that the funds that are donated are in accordance with French law. I feel that this new arrangement will give the church more credibility and gain greater acceptance by the government and will lead to a temple in France soon. There are many influential members of the church in France, and they have been able to help the government understand our teachings and our desire to be financially sound as a church and as members.
We have been doing a lot of work to bring back lost sheep into the fold. Maybe that was the Lord's reason for sending us here. The Corga family has had one problem after another, but we have held fast with them and have been through each problem with them. The French are closing in on themselves. They would like to close the door on immigration even though the Corgas are from Portugal, a European Community member country. We have met each problem head on and, with some American ingenuity, have been able to counter the French government to get the family complete legal status.
Dominique Auje is another project we have been working on for over a year and we are now seeing swift progress in bringing him back. He and his fiance are planning a marriage and Carole is taking the missionary discussions and responding positively.
Sephora Croq is a single mother of a cute five-year-old that we are working with. She kicked out her live-in boy friend and is moving slowly to coming back into activity.
A new brother has moved into the branch. After raising his children with a wife who has been hostile to his conversion, he made a stand in favor of the Gospel and because of this his wife divorced him. He is retired and has moved into the Charente and he has found new strength in the closeness of the branch.
It is good to have success after some very long struggles. We love the Lord and we love the fact that we can be in His service to help others.
Elder Dad
It is hard in France to even talk to people about the Gospel of Christ due to the past actions of the government which are the reversal of the U.S. Constitution. As I have said before, the French government has made it very difficult to practice any religion. In France, the government has acted so that the law states"Freedom from religion" and not "freedom of religion." The Catholic Church has gone in debt in France and can't maintain their churches, so the French government has taken control of the ones build anciently, which makes up 97% of the churches once maintained by the Catholic Church. The government has labeled them historical land marks and the persons who do the up-keep are hired by the government agency that controls ancient landmarks.
If the Catholic Church wishes to hold a service in one of the churches controlled by the government, they must rent the church, just like any other private concern. That is why there are music concerts and other activities being held in the churches that are not related to religious services. A good example of this was when we took the missionaries to Poitier for Elder Hill's medical exam. The exam was a part of his visa for staying in France.
Poitier is out of our mission boundaries, but it is the place where people from Angouleme go for their immigrant and missionary visa medicals. We had two exams and they were hours apart so we got to visit the old part of the city and 4 different Catholic churches in that area. One of the buildings was the oldest baptistery still standing in France. It was built in the 11th century and has a large baptismal font where the baptisms were done by immersion. It just so happened that the baptistery was being rented by a business man from Poitier for a luncheon. There was a doorman at the front checking invitations for the catered lunch. A funeral in one of the old churches will run a person a nice sum of change.
The other denominations in France have built and maintain their own churches through member donations. Our church would like to build a temple in France, near Paris, but the French government feels that all church buildings should be open to the public and there are negotiations going on as we speak for a change in the French thinking. The church is making head way in this area. We have just finished negotiations for the donations to be tax deducible, but in doing this, we had to limit the donations to tithing, fast offerings, missionary donations, and temple construction and maintenance. All other donations on your sheet in the U.S have been taken off because the French government considers that their responsibility. A member must sign the donation sheet so that the government knows that the donation was given by the member's free will. Extensive auditing by the government goes on to see that the funds that are donated are in accordance with French law. I feel that this new arrangement will give the church more credibility and gain greater acceptance by the government and will lead to a temple in France soon. There are many influential members of the church in France, and they have been able to help the government understand our teachings and our desire to be financially sound as a church and as members.
We have been doing a lot of work to bring back lost sheep into the fold. Maybe that was the Lord's reason for sending us here. The Corga family has had one problem after another, but we have held fast with them and have been through each problem with them. The French are closing in on themselves. They would like to close the door on immigration even though the Corgas are from Portugal, a European Community member country. We have met each problem head on and, with some American ingenuity, have been able to counter the French government to get the family complete legal status.
Dominique Auje is another project we have been working on for over a year and we are now seeing swift progress in bringing him back. He and his fiance are planning a marriage and Carole is taking the missionary discussions and responding positively.
Sephora Croq is a single mother of a cute five-year-old that we are working with. She kicked out her live-in boy friend and is moving slowly to coming back into activity.
A new brother has moved into the branch. After raising his children with a wife who has been hostile to his conversion, he made a stand in favor of the Gospel and because of this his wife divorced him. He is retired and has moved into the Charente and he has found new strength in the closeness of the branch.
It is good to have success after some very long struggles. We love the Lord and we love the fact that we can be in His service to help others.
Elder Dad
Touched by Music
Bonjour everyone, from the northernmost point of our, "the South of France" mission. It is almost July, and it's not cool here anymore; just as yesterday in the car after church, the temperature registered 37 cel. (which is 97.6 degrees f.) according to Elder Archer, our on-board expert on most anything!
It's noontime now and the sun is beginning to heat things up, so Jack is out taking a clue from the French by closing our shutters during the day. We're hunkering down for some "indoor" P-day activities, washing sheets and towels for me, while he drove to the bank, and then stopped by to see the Corga's. They didn't make it to church yesterday, and he found Sandra really suffering from the weather with only a couple of weeks left to go in her pregnancy. He drove back to the chapel and picked up a portable fan for her to use to cool herself off, especially at night.
We are sad that the Corga's have missed some really great moments that we've had at church lately. Last Saturday was Angouleme's Musical Fete (festival), and in honor of that, our Branch organized our own little "members of the branch fete". It was funny to hear Jack singing at the top of his lungs in the upstairs shower, the song he was trying to get up the nerve to sing that day; I guess he thought the water noise covered up his noise! The four Americans started it off with the newly popular golden oldie, "Come Thou Font of Every Blessing," with Elder Archer pounding out the music on the piano for us. Then, Bro. Savreaux handed out words to the old favorites he was going to play on his saxophone, and Bro. Bourdicheux broke the ice for everyone by booming them out, so that a joyful feeling of good memories spread through them all. Sis. Demolombe sang from the pulpit in a sweet voice, and Bro. B. asked if he could do it too! So he came forward and sang his old favorite which seemed to be about love, birds and flowers. Then Jack had the best 99-year-old church member in the whole world come up (she'd been looking forward to this for weeks), and she sang a little song from her long ago past. Everyone clapped for an encore, and surprised her so, that all her songs fled from her head as she got flustered. Good thing Patrick Humblot remembered the song she sang last year, and came to her rescue. She sang that for us and sat down, content. Jack decided to throw caution to the wind. He got up and sang "Old Man River, and got a big round of applause for his effort. Bro. B. thought of another song to sing, and seemed to love the attention he got as he stood straight, and sang loudly, using large arm gestures . . . he was a hoot. Sis. Demolombe urged me up, so I sang an old girls camp ditty "The Poor Old Slave" (with its tongue-tangling 3 verses), and "A - You're Adorable" slowly, hoping they would pick up on the alphabet part of the song. We then ate the wonderful desserts they always show up with, and it was a good time for us all.
Then yesterday, thanks to an idea we got from Laraine's ward, we had a sacrament meeting about the hymns we love the most, and why. Jack gave them a week to think about their favorite song from the hymnbook, and then they could come up one at a time to tell us about it, and Bro. Auje would lead us in singing the first verse. Both Bro. Savreaux, and Sis. Demolombe love "Oh My Father," because of the beautiful teachings therein. Jacqueline said that as she was being taught by the missionaries, she knew about Jesus Christ, but hardly nothing about her Heavenly Father, and that is why the song opened up a whole new spiritual world for her. Richard Humblot is always touched by "I Stand All Amazed." Bro. Nadie Parris (a faithful, but divorced ex-missionary in France) was "grateful" to whoever was inspired to have this program, because he said that every day of the week he had good thoughts as he pondered the song he would choose. His choice was, "Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd." Bro. Auje gave a short discourse on the power of music to convey the spirit; and how even people in the middle ages (b. 1091) "Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee," could express the gospel message as well as someone born in our lifetime (b. 1945) "As Zion's Youth in Latter Days." Bro. Bourdicheux said he loves the brightness of "Count Your Blessings" (which is good because the Elders sing it to him a lot when he gets depressed and overwhelmed by his problems)! Our new Bro. Dano loves the vim and vigor of the song, "Ye Elders of Israel"--Oh Babylon, Oh Babylon (I love it too, because I get to sing it with the Elders a lot in our meetings)!! Patrick really likes "Families Can Be Together Forever," and we sang both verses. Then, Jack got up, and he too claimed a piece of "Oh My Father," because of the wonderful truths it teaches about the gospel and the pre-existence. He also claims the song "Come, Come Ye Saints," as the anthem for enduring to the end. But, his favorite song in France is, "Souviens-To"(Remember Me), which is so beautiful and emotional, about our life in heaven before we came here to live on earth. Time was almost up, so he asked if we could sing all 3 verses to this one. Bro. Auje, a very cool, self-possessed seeming man, got up to lead us, and the tears began to stream down his face during just the first verse; it was very emotional for us all.
The spiritual side of our life is mysteriously touched by an element of beautiful music, which inspires our emotions, allowing us to experience unforgettable moments of wholeness; we are so blessed by the hymns of the church and their wonderful sermons in every song.
Love,
Mom (Joanne) Gran'ma
It's noontime now and the sun is beginning to heat things up, so Jack is out taking a clue from the French by closing our shutters during the day. We're hunkering down for some "indoor" P-day activities, washing sheets and towels for me, while he drove to the bank, and then stopped by to see the Corga's. They didn't make it to church yesterday, and he found Sandra really suffering from the weather with only a couple of weeks left to go in her pregnancy. He drove back to the chapel and picked up a portable fan for her to use to cool herself off, especially at night.
We are sad that the Corga's have missed some really great moments that we've had at church lately. Last Saturday was Angouleme's Musical Fete (festival), and in honor of that, our Branch organized our own little "members of the branch fete". It was funny to hear Jack singing at the top of his lungs in the upstairs shower, the song he was trying to get up the nerve to sing that day; I guess he thought the water noise covered up his noise! The four Americans started it off with the newly popular golden oldie, "Come Thou Font of Every Blessing," with Elder Archer pounding out the music on the piano for us. Then, Bro. Savreaux handed out words to the old favorites he was going to play on his saxophone, and Bro. Bourdicheux broke the ice for everyone by booming them out, so that a joyful feeling of good memories spread through them all. Sis. Demolombe sang from the pulpit in a sweet voice, and Bro. B. asked if he could do it too! So he came forward and sang his old favorite which seemed to be about love, birds and flowers. Then Jack had the best 99-year-old church member in the whole world come up (she'd been looking forward to this for weeks), and she sang a little song from her long ago past. Everyone clapped for an encore, and surprised her so, that all her songs fled from her head as she got flustered. Good thing Patrick Humblot remembered the song she sang last year, and came to her rescue. She sang that for us and sat down, content. Jack decided to throw caution to the wind. He got up and sang "Old Man River, and got a big round of applause for his effort. Bro. B. thought of another song to sing, and seemed to love the attention he got as he stood straight, and sang loudly, using large arm gestures . . . he was a hoot. Sis. Demolombe urged me up, so I sang an old girls camp ditty "The Poor Old Slave" (with its tongue-tangling 3 verses), and "A - You're Adorable" slowly, hoping they would pick up on the alphabet part of the song. We then ate the wonderful desserts they always show up with, and it was a good time for us all.
Then yesterday, thanks to an idea we got from Laraine's ward, we had a sacrament meeting about the hymns we love the most, and why. Jack gave them a week to think about their favorite song from the hymnbook, and then they could come up one at a time to tell us about it, and Bro. Auje would lead us in singing the first verse. Both Bro. Savreaux, and Sis. Demolombe love "Oh My Father," because of the beautiful teachings therein. Jacqueline said that as she was being taught by the missionaries, she knew about Jesus Christ, but hardly nothing about her Heavenly Father, and that is why the song opened up a whole new spiritual world for her. Richard Humblot is always touched by "I Stand All Amazed." Bro. Nadie Parris (a faithful, but divorced ex-missionary in France) was "grateful" to whoever was inspired to have this program, because he said that every day of the week he had good thoughts as he pondered the song he would choose. His choice was, "Dear to the Heart of the Shepherd." Bro. Auje gave a short discourse on the power of music to convey the spirit; and how even people in the middle ages (b. 1091) "Jesus, the Very Thought of Thee," could express the gospel message as well as someone born in our lifetime (b. 1945) "As Zion's Youth in Latter Days." Bro. Bourdicheux said he loves the brightness of "Count Your Blessings" (which is good because the Elders sing it to him a lot when he gets depressed and overwhelmed by his problems)! Our new Bro. Dano loves the vim and vigor of the song, "Ye Elders of Israel"--Oh Babylon, Oh Babylon (I love it too, because I get to sing it with the Elders a lot in our meetings)!! Patrick really likes "Families Can Be Together Forever," and we sang both verses. Then, Jack got up, and he too claimed a piece of "Oh My Father," because of the wonderful truths it teaches about the gospel and the pre-existence. He also claims the song "Come, Come Ye Saints," as the anthem for enduring to the end. But, his favorite song in France is, "Souviens-To"(Remember Me), which is so beautiful and emotional, about our life in heaven before we came here to live on earth. Time was almost up, so he asked if we could sing all 3 verses to this one. Bro. Auje, a very cool, self-possessed seeming man, got up to lead us, and the tears began to stream down his face during just the first verse; it was very emotional for us all.
The spiritual side of our life is mysteriously touched by an element of beautiful music, which inspires our emotions, allowing us to experience unforgettable moments of wholeness; we are so blessed by the hymns of the church and their wonderful sermons in every song.
Love,
Mom (Joanne) Gran'ma
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
My Love/Hate Relationship with Computers
You might have noticed that I haven't written for a while; this is to let you know that I am in the repentance process, so hang in with me. Let me tell you how we spent one of our P-Days in May.
Computers and I are adversaries at best, and enemies at worst, and my sad tale will tell you why. Having labored over a letter for four hours (DOES ANYBODY ELSE DO THAT?), I was just about finished when Jack warned me that we had to get ready for FHE. So, I signed off and scrolled up to the top, where two buttons called to me: SEND & SAVE DRAFT. Hmmmmm. I knew that I should push send, but then again, shouldn't I save it first? That sounded so reasonable that I did push the save button, and POOF! the letter vanished into outer darkness.
Ohhhhhkaaay. I sucked it up like we learn to do in this life, put on my "I'm fine!" face, and went to Family Home Evening which can get quite interesting if certain people are there. We had eight in all, and after a good gospel discussion, Jack asked them if they wanted to play boules outside, or Uno? UNO!!! What a bunch of wild boys, they all want to be the winner so bad, even Sister Walter! I sat next to our new Elder Hill, and he didn't cow-tow to me like our departed Elder Gunter famously did. Then Alain Kos started mocking Elder Hill, saying that he was fat (he's not), but he didn't take it kindly, and mumbled to me how he should just go over and smite him some. No wonder Alain had all of his upper teeth knocked out in fights in the Foreign Legion . . . seeing that skinny face of his convulsed in open mouthed laughter was a sight to behold.
Elder Archer and Jack get along great because they think alike on missionary work. But this competitive Elder tries very hard to get the best of Jack whenever he can. This time he thought if he and Elder Hill sandwiched Jack between them, they could work together to beat him coming or going. Elder Hill was not above peeking at his cards if he could, and they caught him three times shouting Uno before he remembered to say it; but he won two games, as did both Sister Walter (who is a great sport putting up with all their boyish exuberance) and I. Then came the best part, what we all wait for . . . dessert. We had leftovers from the Branch brunch, and even some of Richard's often dubious concoctions (a sauce of mashed apples, pears and oranges) he begged us to finish--wasn't half bad.
Back at home, Jack said I should start my letter over while it was still fresh in my head (after all, now that I know what I am saying, it will zip right along). Uh huh. Can you possibly guess what happened to it again, several hours later? I'm not even going there, it's too painful.
I'm sure that's all you can take for now, so I'll write again soon. Take care of yourselves, and remember that we love you.
Sister Mom
Computers and I are adversaries at best, and enemies at worst, and my sad tale will tell you why. Having labored over a letter for four hours (DOES ANYBODY ELSE DO THAT?), I was just about finished when Jack warned me that we had to get ready for FHE. So, I signed off and scrolled up to the top, where two buttons called to me: SEND & SAVE DRAFT. Hmmmmm. I knew that I should push send, but then again, shouldn't I save it first? That sounded so reasonable that I did push the save button, and POOF! the letter vanished into outer darkness.
Ohhhhhkaaay. I sucked it up like we learn to do in this life, put on my "I'm fine!" face, and went to Family Home Evening which can get quite interesting if certain people are there. We had eight in all, and after a good gospel discussion, Jack asked them if they wanted to play boules outside, or Uno? UNO!!! What a bunch of wild boys, they all want to be the winner so bad, even Sister Walter! I sat next to our new Elder Hill, and he didn't cow-tow to me like our departed Elder Gunter famously did. Then Alain Kos started mocking Elder Hill, saying that he was fat (he's not), but he didn't take it kindly, and mumbled to me how he should just go over and smite him some. No wonder Alain had all of his upper teeth knocked out in fights in the Foreign Legion . . . seeing that skinny face of his convulsed in open mouthed laughter was a sight to behold.
Elder Archer and Jack get along great because they think alike on missionary work. But this competitive Elder tries very hard to get the best of Jack whenever he can. This time he thought if he and Elder Hill sandwiched Jack between them, they could work together to beat him coming or going. Elder Hill was not above peeking at his cards if he could, and they caught him three times shouting Uno before he remembered to say it; but he won two games, as did both Sister Walter (who is a great sport putting up with all their boyish exuberance) and I. Then came the best part, what we all wait for . . . dessert. We had leftovers from the Branch brunch, and even some of Richard's often dubious concoctions (a sauce of mashed apples, pears and oranges) he begged us to finish--wasn't half bad.
Back at home, Jack said I should start my letter over while it was still fresh in my head (after all, now that I know what I am saying, it will zip right along). Uh huh. Can you possibly guess what happened to it again, several hours later? I'm not even going there, it's too painful.
I'm sure that's all you can take for now, so I'll write again soon. Take care of yourselves, and remember that we love you.
Sister Mom
Sunday, May 31, 2009
Where Did April and May Go?
Hello to all,
We have been so busy that I can't understand where the months of April and May went, but they are gone and we are way behind in our writing. I feel like the butcher who backed into the meat grinder and got a little behind in his work. We are sorry that we missed a few birthdays, but we promise to catch up.
We are still working with the Corga family, and they are striving to keep the commandments--especially the Word of Wisdom. They both have been smoking for a long time and it has been hard for them to stop. This week, they asked for a priesthood blessing and since that day they have made great progress. They are the best of friends with us and we love them so. Their little 22-month-old girl, Beatrice, calls out frere, frere (brother, brother), when ever she hears my voice, and today they are getting used to sitting fairly quiet in Sacrament meeting.
We are teaching a young woman, Sephora, in her late 20's who has said she has made a mess of her life up until now and wants the direction of the Church in her life. She has a 5-year-old son, Jeremie, who doubles our young primary. We had such a great meeting with Sephora last week and there were some tears of joy shed as we talked about the importance of the Savior in our lives and the special part that Jesus can can play in our future.
The weather has turned hot in the afternoon with clear blue skies. With the good weather, Joanne got the bug to get the yard as it should be. I took out the dead hedge in front. There were six dead plants that made up the hedge with roots that had to be dug up and then severed from the fir hedge plant. It was a two day job. Two of the plants had to be eventually pulled out with a good rope and the car;
then new plants put in, and because a 16 foot area was exposed to the neighbors (which is a definite no, no), I put in a bamboo fence with poles painted green like the shrubs. It now looks neat as a pin.
I need to talk about one other thing that is unique here in France and that is the shopping carts. First, to get one you must invest 1 Euro to unlock the cart from all the others outside the stores. You get the Euro back when you return the cart and lock it up with the other carts again. There is a slot in your cart where you place the Euro and the force of the Euro in the slot unhooks the cart.
The carts themselves are different than those in the United States in as much as the two wheels in front and the two
in the rear will turn. This make it difficult to steer your cart since you must control four turning wheels instead of just the two in front for you in the States. When the carts get filled, they are unwieldy or, in this case, unwheeldy. The carts need your arm and leg strength to get them to go in the direction you desire. One good thing about the four wheel drive is that if you are standing still and someone is coming at you, it is easier to dart out of the way in any direction at a standing start.
The escalators here have no steps on them when it comes to grocery stores--they are long, flat moving walk ways up and down. The carts can fit on them and the walk ways are grooved as are the cart wheels so that once you get on the walk way the cart wheels fit in the grooves and you stay fixed in the braked position until your front and back wheels hit the pavement again.
Well that's all folks.
Elder Dad
We have been so busy that I can't understand where the months of April and May went, but they are gone and we are way behind in our writing. I feel like the butcher who backed into the meat grinder and got a little behind in his work. We are sorry that we missed a few birthdays, but we promise to catch up.
We are still working with the Corga family, and they are striving to keep the commandments--especially the Word of Wisdom. They both have been smoking for a long time and it has been hard for them to stop. This week, they asked for a priesthood blessing and since that day they have made great progress. They are the best of friends with us and we love them so. Their little 22-month-old girl, Beatrice, calls out frere, frere (brother, brother), when ever she hears my voice, and today they are getting used to sitting fairly quiet in Sacrament meeting.
We are teaching a young woman, Sephora, in her late 20's who has said she has made a mess of her life up until now and wants the direction of the Church in her life. She has a 5-year-old son, Jeremie, who doubles our young primary. We had such a great meeting with Sephora last week and there were some tears of joy shed as we talked about the importance of the Savior in our lives and the special part that Jesus can can play in our future.
The weather has turned hot in the afternoon with clear blue skies. With the good weather, Joanne got the bug to get the yard as it should be. I took out the dead hedge in front. There were six dead plants that made up the hedge with roots that had to be dug up and then severed from the fir hedge plant. It was a two day job. Two of the plants had to be eventually pulled out with a good rope and the car;
then new plants put in, and because a 16 foot area was exposed to the neighbors (which is a definite no, no), I put in a bamboo fence with poles painted green like the shrubs. It now looks neat as a pin.I need to talk about one other thing that is unique here in France and that is the shopping carts. First, to get one you must invest 1 Euro to unlock the cart from all the others outside the stores. You get the Euro back when you return the cart and lock it up with the other carts again. There is a slot in your cart where you place the Euro and the force of the Euro in the slot unhooks the cart.
The carts themselves are different than those in the United States in as much as the two wheels in front and the two
in the rear will turn. This make it difficult to steer your cart since you must control four turning wheels instead of just the two in front for you in the States. When the carts get filled, they are unwieldy or, in this case, unwheeldy. The carts need your arm and leg strength to get them to go in the direction you desire. One good thing about the four wheel drive is that if you are standing still and someone is coming at you, it is easier to dart out of the way in any direction at a standing start.The escalators here have no steps on them when it comes to grocery stores--they are long, flat moving walk ways up and down. The carts can fit on them and the walk ways are grooved as are the cart wheels so that once you get on the walk way the cart wheels fit in the grooves and you stay fixed in the braked position until your front and back wheels hit the pavement again.
Well that's all folks.
Elder Dad
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Birds
Hello to all from Angouleme,We have just gone through a period of rain and now that the sun is out for a few days, Mother Nature has put on he best dress as all is in full bloom. After being in Cokeville for 29 years we really forgot what beauty really can be like. There are so many different flowers
here in the yard that at times it boggles the mind at what colors and smells there are here in France. Outside the office window are three trees that are entirely different in size and in shape. I have watched the trees flower and the leaves change as the season has progressed.As I sit here typing I can also hear a myriad of tunes played by many different birds
in the yard. It is so good to hear the blending of the birds calls here so that it sounds like a symphony with all the various instruments playing in harmony. This is a far cry from the crow's caw that was the only ear splitting sound coming from the trees in Cokeville. It is the difference between classical music and heavy metal.
We are enjoying the branch membership so much that I know that leaving here will be a major emotional situation that I am not looking forward to experiencing. We are progressing and the branch is growing. One retired member returned to Angouleme, an English couple contacted us about moving hear in June, and our member who runs a growing construction company just hired a return french missionary. This missionary has a small family of wife and two children, with a new one coming soo
n.We are still working with Sandra Corga. She is having a rough time trying to stop smoking and she has asked for a blessing to help her. We will gather the brethren on Sunday for that. Carol is progressing and we have encouraged her to pray. Praying is something new for the people here because they have never had a conversation with their Heavenly Father. Either they only know prayers that are memorized or they have abandoned religion altogether because of the bad reputation it has had in the last 40 years. To get people to
realize that they have a Father in Heaven who loves them is a concept as far removed from them as quantum physics is to the average citizen. The public's view of Heavenly Father is also new to them. Someone that is a resurrected glorified being as is taught in the Bible is so strange a concept and so different from that taught by the Nicene Creed that is the present belief and has been for centuries. It is so different yet appealing to those who will listen that they want to pray and have a meaningful conversation with God as James talks about in the Bible, but it takes time for them to grasp the idea.We are in good health. We have been in good health throughout our mission even with the damp weather here in this part of France. The weather is like that of the Northwest with overall temperature stability without the constant rain. We do have rainy weeks, but in between a 5 day period of rain are weeks of good weather in the 70's and 80's.
We are doing well and the time is flying by. People are telling us that they want to boycott the end of our mission and go on strike so we can't leave. Our hearts are pulled in two by the love we have for these people and the future of seeing family and friends at home.
Love to you all,
Elder Dad
Sunday, May 3, 2009
Week of Supreme Service
Hello to you all from Angouleme,
This week was a week of service and for me it was a supreme effort. If you didn't know before, I am not a pet lover, not because I don't like animals, but because they restrict your movement so much. I like to take off when ever the desire hits me and with a pet you are in need of someone to watch over the pet.
Well this last week was our turn to help a family that have a dog, fish, two cats, and a hamster. We thought we lost the hamster one night, but we found him burrowed into the very back of his little home filled with cotton batten. Panic struck with the thought of trying to find him. I don't do well crawling on all fours through the house any more. The dog was the only one who could not be left alone, so Joanne and I decided to keep Booba in our garage. We could feed the rest each night at the home of the family.
The first thing I had to do was build a confined area in a corner of the garage so that this fairly big dog couldn't run wild in the garage. She is a little over a year old and is a strong dog. The 9-year-old boy and 13-year-old, slightly built girl can easily be dragged when the dog is on a leash. This dog is strong enough to take a small child on a wild ride on skis on the packed snow.
Once the enclosure was made, we had the dog delivered on Friday. I spent the rest of the day building up the enclosure so she couldn't get over the barrier and filling in the holes in the walls where she could force her way through. Once that was done we knew we could sleep through the night.
The mornings were something else. Early to rise and out with the leash. With the dog out front and dragging me along, we head out down the street. She would pull me along and then stop all of a sudden to sniff and then off again. I do have admit that she walked and pulled fast enough to get my heart rate up to where I knew I had a good exercise. I am the only person I have seen in France that took some plastic bags to clean up after the dog. After a good brisk walk it was back in the yard. The whole yard is enclosed with a fir type bush that is about five feet high in the front and seven feet high on the sides and back. I have a tennis ball and she does chase after it but has no concept of bringing it back for another throw, so that game was short lived.
When we headed out the door, the dog went into the garage enclosure and, lucky for us, was able to stay put without any noise until we returned. It rained much of the week so she was reluctant to go out in the yard. Once the sun came out she would stay out, but when she got excited, which was often, she would start to dig in the grass. I tried to stop her from doing that but to no avail and in the enclosure she would go.
At the end of the week, she was better and on Saturday she even went into the enclosure without being told to do so. It freaked me out because I couldn't find her in the yard and I couldn't believe she could get out. All of those panic feelings went through my mind. I even thought that someone took her, but I soon got rid of that feeling because they would bring her back after 5 minutes since that is all the time it would take for her to take over their lives.
Today the service project was over and the dog went happily back with her owners without even saying a word of praise for our patience and concern for her. I guess that is true service when you do something without a reward.
Everything is fine here and the time is flying by. We had 27 people out to church today and the Elders were able to bring back a family that had been inactive for close to a year. After the meeting, they said they would be back next Sunday. It is good to see progress, even when it is just a little.
We love you and pray for your well being.
Elder Dad
This week was a week of service and for me it was a supreme effort. If you didn't know before, I am not a pet lover, not because I don't like animals, but because they restrict your movement so much. I like to take off when ever the desire hits me and with a pet you are in need of someone to watch over the pet.
Well this last week was our turn to help a family that have a dog, fish, two cats, and a hamster. We thought we lost the hamster one night, but we found him burrowed into the very back of his little home filled with cotton batten. Panic struck with the thought of trying to find him. I don't do well crawling on all fours through the house any more. The dog was the only one who could not be left alone, so Joanne and I decided to keep Booba in our garage. We could feed the rest each night at the home of the family.
The first thing I had to do was build a confined area in a corner of the garage so that this fairly big dog couldn't run wild in the garage. She is a little over a year old and is a strong dog. The 9-year-old boy and 13-year-old, slightly built girl can easily be dragged when the dog is on a leash. This dog is strong enough to take a small child on a wild ride on skis on the packed snow.
Once the enclosure was made, we had the dog delivered on Friday. I spent the rest of the day building up the enclosure so she couldn't get over the barrier and filling in the holes in the walls where she could force her way through. Once that was done we knew we could sleep through the night.
The mornings were something else. Early to rise and out with the leash. With the dog out front and dragging me along, we head out down the street. She would pull me along and then stop all of a sudden to sniff and then off again. I do have admit that she walked and pulled fast enough to get my heart rate up to where I knew I had a good exercise. I am the only person I have seen in France that took some plastic bags to clean up after the dog. After a good brisk walk it was back in the yard. The whole yard is enclosed with a fir type bush that is about five feet high in the front and seven feet high on the sides and back. I have a tennis ball and she does chase after it but has no concept of bringing it back for another throw, so that game was short lived.
When we headed out the door, the dog went into the garage enclosure and, lucky for us, was able to stay put without any noise until we returned. It rained much of the week so she was reluctant to go out in the yard. Once the sun came out she would stay out, but when she got excited, which was often, she would start to dig in the grass. I tried to stop her from doing that but to no avail and in the enclosure she would go.
At the end of the week, she was better and on Saturday she even went into the enclosure without being told to do so. It freaked me out because I couldn't find her in the yard and I couldn't believe she could get out. All of those panic feelings went through my mind. I even thought that someone took her, but I soon got rid of that feeling because they would bring her back after 5 minutes since that is all the time it would take for her to take over their lives.
Today the service project was over and the dog went happily back with her owners without even saying a word of praise for our patience and concern for her. I guess that is true service when you do something without a reward.
Everything is fine here and the time is flying by. We had 27 people out to church today and the Elders were able to bring back a family that had been inactive for close to a year. After the meeting, they said they would be back next Sunday. It is good to see progress, even when it is just a little.
We love you and pray for your well being.
Elder Dad
Thursday, April 23, 2009
Moving On
Hello to all of you out there,
The work is moving on and there are some good changes coming from Angouleme. The branch music director has started a choir and we are getting more participants every Sunday. The only problem that I see is the fact that when the choir sings for sacrament meeting there will be more in the choir than in the congregation. But if we continue to grow and bring in new members and those who have been less active our music director will have added a great dimension to the branch. We are planning to have them sing for our stake visitors and for the branch music festival.
We have finally got the Corga family into a home not far from where we live. We have been so busy that we have not had the opportunity to go see the house, but we are invited tomorrow. It is so good to see them out of the hotel room that they have been in for the last two months and know that their life we be more on the normal side. With Joao first month of work coming to an end, it will be good to see him earn a pay check and the family will be on the road to recovery.
Spring is here and the farm fields are brimming with growing crops. It is strange to realize that for the second year we are seeing the crops growing. The other day we noticed the first cut of hay. That is hard for those in Cokeville to take. There is a plant that produces cooking oil and it gives off a bright yellow flower. It is quite something to see the fields blooming on the hillsides with this vibrant canary color.
We are doing well and our health is good although with the cool mornings and the warm afternoons we a sporting the beginnings of a spring cold. If that is all that happens, we will be in good shape.
My gardening skills are better here than in Cokeville. The last time I had a garden there it was killed off by two late frosts that made it impossible to start over a third time with the short season. Here we have peas, beans, tomatoes, and Joanne's spinach. The plants have sprung from the ground with the last three day rain and the warmer weather the last week.
Joanne is getting ready for her third talk in church this Sunday and this is the time that I see stress in her life. The French is coming, but it is not where she would like it to be. Joanne understands much more than she can answer to. Giving talks in French is not something she feels comfortable with. Her French is good when she reads and the members and amis of the church pay a great deal more attention to her talks than most because they want her to succeed.
Well we pray for everyone at home and love you all. Please spread the news of our goings on and the joy we have in serving these great people.
Love,
Elder Dad
The work is moving on and there are some good changes coming from Angouleme. The branch music director has started a choir and we are getting more participants every Sunday. The only problem that I see is the fact that when the choir sings for sacrament meeting there will be more in the choir than in the congregation. But if we continue to grow and bring in new members and those who have been less active our music director will have added a great dimension to the branch. We are planning to have them sing for our stake visitors and for the branch music festival.
We have finally got the Corga family into a home not far from where we live. We have been so busy that we have not had the opportunity to go see the house, but we are invited tomorrow. It is so good to see them out of the hotel room that they have been in for the last two months and know that their life we be more on the normal side. With Joao first month of work coming to an end, it will be good to see him earn a pay check and the family will be on the road to recovery.
Spring is here and the farm fields are brimming with growing crops. It is strange to realize that for the second year we are seeing the crops growing. The other day we noticed the first cut of hay. That is hard for those in Cokeville to take. There is a plant that produces cooking oil and it gives off a bright yellow flower. It is quite something to see the fields blooming on the hillsides with this vibrant canary color.
We are doing well and our health is good although with the cool mornings and the warm afternoons we a sporting the beginnings of a spring cold. If that is all that happens, we will be in good shape.
My gardening skills are better here than in Cokeville. The last time I had a garden there it was killed off by two late frosts that made it impossible to start over a third time with the short season. Here we have peas, beans, tomatoes, and Joanne's spinach. The plants have sprung from the ground with the last three day rain and the warmer weather the last week.
Joanne is getting ready for her third talk in church this Sunday and this is the time that I see stress in her life. The French is coming, but it is not where she would like it to be. Joanne understands much more than she can answer to. Giving talks in French is not something she feels comfortable with. Her French is good when she reads and the members and amis of the church pay a great deal more attention to her talks than most because they want her to succeed.
Well we pray for everyone at home and love you all. Please spread the news of our goings on and the joy we have in serving these great people.
Love,
Elder Dad
Monday, April 6, 2009
Worth of a Soul
Hello to all of you in this wonderful world,
This morning, when Sandra Corga came to pick up Joao from his mornings work, we talked about general conference that we all participated in yesterday in Perigueux (some 80 miles south of Angouleme). Sandra had her hands full with her daughter, Beatrice, but she was able to hear one talk and parts of others and was impressed by the spirit. She noticed the picture of Sandra and Keith and the children on the frig and said that she wanted a family like that. I said that there were only three things that were stopping her from having her family sealed to her in the temple of the Lord. One was getting married. Sandra and Joao and Joanne and I are going to the city hall tomorrow afternoon to fill out the necessary papers. After a two week waiting period they will be husband and wife. One problem solved. The next question was to set a baptism date, and so she picked Jono's birthday on the 31st of May as the date. She is working hard with her promise to stop smoking and was showing us the gum she was chewing as a way to accomplish that--along with prayer. The final hurdle is to endure to the end. This young mother has impressed me with her determination to do what is necessary to accomplish her goals. With the help of the Holy Ghost and the church teachings and the members, I know that we will be back here in a year to witness a sealing in the Madrid temple.
Some might say that we have paid a high price to bring one person to the waters of baptism, but I also know that we, as a couple have consecrated, all that the Lord has blessed us with to bring souls unto Jesus. This family is worth all the energy we have expended and more. Staying home would have never brought us in contact with this beautiful family, and we would have not have experienced the pure love of Christ that we share with them. We have spiritually adopted them into our family and we would have paid the last penny in our account to see this wonderful blessing come about.
For those who don't know how this feeling fills the soul to over flowing, I yearn that they might experience it some day. The worth of a soul is priceless, and we have seen the change come over this family as they have let the commandments of Christ enter into their lives and make a mighty change in their outlook, love, and willingness to serve others. I know why we were sent here for our entire mission. Without the time to spend with these souls, we could not have seen the change in their hearts. It has taken love, patience, and, above all, time to help them experience a change of heart.
We are experiencing so many wonderful happenings in Angouleme, and have had the privilege to meet and love some wonderful people. Staying home would not have giving us the opportunity to stretch our souls and get out of our paradigm. Being in the box is no longer something we want to do with our lives. We have a desire to consecrate our time, talents, and all else we have to the Lord and His work. Yes, I know that our Heavenly Father could get it done all by Himself, but in His wisdom, He has allowed little old me to grow and love through service.
I love you all and I am so happy to be with Joanne here in Angouleme to give what little I have to offer.
Elder Dad
This morning, when Sandra Corga came to pick up Joao from his mornings work, we talked about general conference that we all participated in yesterday in Perigueux (some 80 miles south of Angouleme). Sandra had her hands full with her daughter, Beatrice, but she was able to hear one talk and parts of others and was impressed by the spirit. She noticed the picture of Sandra and Keith and the children on the frig and said that she wanted a family like that. I said that there were only three things that were stopping her from having her family sealed to her in the temple of the Lord. One was getting married. Sandra and Joao and Joanne and I are going to the city hall tomorrow afternoon to fill out the necessary papers. After a two week waiting period they will be husband and wife. One problem solved. The next question was to set a baptism date, and so she picked Jono's birthday on the 31st of May as the date. She is working hard with her promise to stop smoking and was showing us the gum she was chewing as a way to accomplish that--along with prayer. The final hurdle is to endure to the end. This young mother has impressed me with her determination to do what is necessary to accomplish her goals. With the help of the Holy Ghost and the church teachings and the members, I know that we will be back here in a year to witness a sealing in the Madrid temple.
Some might say that we have paid a high price to bring one person to the waters of baptism, but I also know that we, as a couple have consecrated, all that the Lord has blessed us with to bring souls unto Jesus. This family is worth all the energy we have expended and more. Staying home would have never brought us in contact with this beautiful family, and we would have not have experienced the pure love of Christ that we share with them. We have spiritually adopted them into our family and we would have paid the last penny in our account to see this wonderful blessing come about.For those who don't know how this feeling fills the soul to over flowing, I yearn that they might experience it some day. The worth of a soul is priceless, and we have seen the change come over this family as they have let the commandments of Christ enter into their lives and make a mighty change in their outlook, love, and willingness to serve others. I know why we were sent here for our entire mission. Without the time to spend with these souls, we could not have seen the change in their hearts. It has taken love, patience, and, above all, time to help them experience a change of heart.
We are experiencing so many wonderful happenings in Angouleme, and have had the privilege to meet and love some wonderful people. Staying home would not have giving us the opportunity to stretch our souls and get out of our paradigm. Being in the box is no longer something we want to do with our lives. We have a desire to consecrate our time, talents, and all else we have to the Lord and His work. Yes, I know that our Heavenly Father could get it done all by Himself, but in His wisdom, He has allowed little old me to grow and love through service.
I love you all and I am so happy to be with Joanne here in Angouleme to give what little I have to offer.
Elder Dad
Saturday, March 28, 2009
Not Something I Like To Do
Hello to all of you;
We are doing fine and the weather has been great, but we need some rain or the farmers here are going to be in a world of hurt. It is interesting that everyone who isn't a farmer loves the sun everyday, but we who have worked Mother Earth know that too much of a good thing for everyone else does
n't feed the population.
We have planted a small garden with beans and peas and hope to put in a little lettuce, spinach (for Joanne), and some tomatoes. The Corga family has been helping with the yard and spring cleaning. We have finally found a way to make their stay permanent and legal according to the confusing laws of France and the European Union. The two entities do not match up with their l
aws and the French demand that they meet both rules. We have a member who is a plumber. He will hire Joao and we will have them work for us the first month (which they have), and then he has work for them at his home and in his business. They only have to work 15 hours a week for 200 hours total to qualify for assistance and medical benefits.
With a work con
tract, Sandra Corga, is going to march triumphantly to each office she has been fighting for the past year and win one for her family. Sandra is a real fighter and this will be a great victory for her as she can now meet all the crazy laws here. The problem is that the laws conflict and counter act one another, but victory is in sight.
We went to the funeral of the son of a member last week and as most of you know this is one of the least enjoyable things for me to do. I have almost decided to not show up for my own funeral. We traveled to the small village where the service was to take place and the day was cloudy and windy. The member, Sister Demolombe, was so happy to see us. I, as the branch president, get to do things that the rest of the missionaries can't do and that was to give her the traditional kiss on both cheeks. This is a very important symbol of love and close relationship especially for the older people of France. It was a privilege for Joanne and I to be counted as family. Remi, the husband is not a member of the church, so he had a Catholic service for his son.
The service took place in the small Catholic church in the village. The churches of France are very cold inside, even on the hottest days, but the love of the villagers made up for the cold temperature.
France has lost many clergy and so the service was taken care of by the villagers. I feel that their display of love for the family made the service have a more of a caring feeling. The other thing I noticed was that all the villagers who took part in the service were older than me. The youth of France has given up on most religions and the Catholic church is suffering from a lack of young members. I thought of what is going to happen when these good people of the village die and there is no one to perform their services.
My thoughts went back to our last Stake Conference here in the Bordeaux Stake and the youth choir that sang. There was a marked difference in the number of members in the choir and the ages of the members. Although the people at the funeral had good voices, there were only 9 of them and they were all aged. In contrast, the youth choir at conference came from the Bordeaux area and numbered 45 and showed the vibrant future of the church here in southwest France. I marvel at the Saturday meeting held at stake conference here. The members out number those of my home stake and these members come from places often a 100 miles away. The singing during the priesthood leadership session always gives me goose bumps.
The other thing that is very noticeable in the service held here, was that it was not on a personal note. Everything was scripted and done from rote memory. The personal touch for the family was lacking and, for me, I think the service is for the living more than for those who died. In that aspect, the service was cold as far as remembering the son and the love that was shared by the family. We were given a place of respect in the walking procession to the cemetery as we were placed in the third row behind the wife and children and the parents and sisters. Holding an office in the branch or wards of France is a very respected position and it is very humbling to me to be in that position.
The only personal note was made by one of Francise's two sisters that are members of the church. Marie Lore is married and formerly lived in Minn. but now lives in San Antonio, Texas and Marie France lives in Thaiti. They both flew from their respective homes to be with their Mother and Dad and show their love to their brother. Marie France took the opportunity to take the microphone provided at the grave site service to pay her respects to her brother and give a short testimony on the Resurrection and the importance of Jesus in our lives.
We met with the extended family in an open roofed area of the local elementary school in the village. It now serves 29 small villages in what is now called a commune. France has had to do that because the number of children per French natives is one child per family. As we snacked on cookies and orange juice, I thought that this was so different from the Relief Society providing a meal after the service in a warm chapel. Joanne made soup for the family and we took it to the Demolombe's home the next day, along with two loafs of bread and some cheese. Marie Lore had to explain that this was the way it was done in the church back in the states and elsewhere. They were grateful for our show of love to them. I have found out even more that this it is what it is all about, LOVE.
Well, we have many new amis to teach and the Elders are keeping busy as well as ourselves. We will keep you up to date on the progress in Angouleme.
Love,
Elder Dad
We are doing fine and the weather has been great, but we need some rain or the farmers here are going to be in a world of hurt. It is interesting that everyone who isn't a farmer loves the sun everyday, but we who have worked Mother Earth know that too much of a good thing for everyone else does
n't feed the population.We have planted a small garden with beans and peas and hope to put in a little lettuce, spinach (for Joanne), and some tomatoes. The Corga family has been helping with the yard and spring cleaning. We have finally found a way to make their stay permanent and legal according to the confusing laws of France and the European Union. The two entities do not match up with their l
aws and the French demand that they meet both rules. We have a member who is a plumber. He will hire Joao and we will have them work for us the first month (which they have), and then he has work for them at his home and in his business. They only have to work 15 hours a week for 200 hours total to qualify for assistance and medical benefits.With a work con
tract, Sandra Corga, is going to march triumphantly to each office she has been fighting for the past year and win one for her family. Sandra is a real fighter and this will be a great victory for her as she can now meet all the crazy laws here. The problem is that the laws conflict and counter act one another, but victory is in sight.We went to the funeral of the son of a member last week and as most of you know this is one of the least enjoyable things for me to do. I have almost decided to not show up for my own funeral. We traveled to the small village where the service was to take place and the day was cloudy and windy. The member, Sister Demolombe, was so happy to see us. I, as the branch president, get to do things that the rest of the missionaries can't do and that was to give her the traditional kiss on both cheeks. This is a very important symbol of love and close relationship especially for the older people of France. It was a privilege for Joanne and I to be counted as family. Remi, the husband is not a member of the church, so he had a Catholic service for his son.
The service took place in the small Catholic church in the village. The churches of France are very cold inside, even on the hottest days, but the love of the villagers made up for the cold temperature.
France has lost many clergy and so the service was taken care of by the villagers. I feel that their display of love for the family made the service have a more of a caring feeling. The other thing I noticed was that all the villagers who took part in the service were older than me. The youth of France has given up on most religions and the Catholic church is suffering from a lack of young members. I thought of what is going to happen when these good people of the village die and there is no one to perform their services.
My thoughts went back to our last Stake Conference here in the Bordeaux Stake and the youth choir that sang. There was a marked difference in the number of members in the choir and the ages of the members. Although the people at the funeral had good voices, there were only 9 of them and they were all aged. In contrast, the youth choir at conference came from the Bordeaux area and numbered 45 and showed the vibrant future of the church here in southwest France. I marvel at the Saturday meeting held at stake conference here. The members out number those of my home stake and these members come from places often a 100 miles away. The singing during the priesthood leadership session always gives me goose bumps.
The other thing that is very noticeable in the service held here, was that it was not on a personal note. Everything was scripted and done from rote memory. The personal touch for the family was lacking and, for me, I think the service is for the living more than for those who died. In that aspect, the service was cold as far as remembering the son and the love that was shared by the family. We were given a place of respect in the walking procession to the cemetery as we were placed in the third row behind the wife and children and the parents and sisters. Holding an office in the branch or wards of France is a very respected position and it is very humbling to me to be in that position.
The only personal note was made by one of Francise's two sisters that are members of the church. Marie Lore is married and formerly lived in Minn. but now lives in San Antonio, Texas and Marie France lives in Thaiti. They both flew from their respective homes to be with their Mother and Dad and show their love to their brother. Marie France took the opportunity to take the microphone provided at the grave site service to pay her respects to her brother and give a short testimony on the Resurrection and the importance of Jesus in our lives.
We met with the extended family in an open roofed area of the local elementary school in the village. It now serves 29 small villages in what is now called a commune. France has had to do that because the number of children per French natives is one child per family. As we snacked on cookies and orange juice, I thought that this was so different from the Relief Society providing a meal after the service in a warm chapel. Joanne made soup for the family and we took it to the Demolombe's home the next day, along with two loafs of bread and some cheese. Marie Lore had to explain that this was the way it was done in the church back in the states and elsewhere. They were grateful for our show of love to them. I have found out even more that this it is what it is all about, LOVE.
Well, we have many new amis to teach and the Elders are keeping busy as well as ourselves. We will keep you up to date on the progress in Angouleme.
Love,
Elder Dad
Friday, March 27, 2009
Baptism in Angouleme
Bonjour everyone -
I sure hope all is well in your lives, as we think of you often, but we have had plenty to occupy our time and energies here, especially lately in our small Branch of the church.
The 58-year-old son of one of the most faithful members I've ever met died last week, and it has been hard on her to lose him, because, of her three children, he was the one who didn't become involved in the church when she was converted and baptized, some 40 years ago. He became a doctor, but when he began to develop the symptoms of diabetes, he went into denial and would not seek treatment until it became too late; loosing first his sight, and then just recently his life. His two younger sisters, both temple married, with active families, flew in from Tahiti and Minnesota for the funeral; and Jacqueline clung to them, as well as to us, for the support she needed. She considered us as family too, (her LDS family), and insisted that we be by her side as we attended the Catholic funeral in the small village where she was born. It was a very interesting experience, in an ancient building made of stone, on a cold, blustery, sad, rainy day; and when Jacqueline's youngest daughter leaned over to tell Jack how glad she was that a priesthood holder was there with them, we were especially glad we were there too.
Bro. Bourdicheux has had some amazing experiences as he got closer to his baptismal date. Because he is living on his pension, Elder Green thought that he'd not have to pay tithing on that money, but that was not true. Then also, Bro. B had staged a mini protest against the French government for taxing his retirement, by not paying his taxes! They came after him for it, so a chunk of his monthly check goes to repay the government until this Oct., making things tight for him, and making him question how he could handle the payment of tithing? When Bro. B. dreamed at all, they were usually terrible nightmares that woke him up and left him shaken. But, last Sunday night, after he prayed to Heavenly Father long and hard for an answer to his question, he dreamed a dream. He said, if someone had been in the room with him, they would have heard him talking out loud to a voice that came to him. "Who are you?" he asked the voice. "I am the voice of Him who is on high; I live on a planet far from yours, but I am always near; your life has been spared 4 times, and that is the end of your blessings." Bro. B. asked, "Should I pay my tithing?" And the voice answered, "Yes." Then the dream vanished. He never remembers dreams, but this one is embedded into his memory, and just thinking about it makes him light as a feather!
He got a call from the son of his deceased best friend in Paris, and told him about the dream; to which the man said, "That's just a figment of your imagination!" Then, Bro. B. told him that he was going to even pay tithing, and the man shouted, "See, all they want is your money!" to which he sadly shook his head and said, "You will never understand, my friend." He related this all to Jack on Monday afternoon, while it was still fresh in his mind.
On Wednesday, we went to his apartment with white shirts and pants for him to try on, and they were all too small, until we had him try on the one temple baptismal, zip-up front suit we had. Finally, they got that zipper up over his belly (he can't suck it in) and it is going to work! The only other thing he needed was some white underwear, so we will pick some up for him. Bro. B. closed our little visit with the nicest prayer (just a simple conversation with his Heavenly Father) that I've heard in a long time; it was great.
Jack went to pick up Bro. B. on Saturday, and made the mistake of asking how he was feeling; which set him off onto a recital of all his many maladies! "I got my hair cut yesterday for my baptism, and it wa
s hot in the salon. Then, I came outside, and caught a chill; I've been sneezing all morning, and have the sniffles and I feel terrible. Maybe I should wait and be baptized in April?" "No." said Jack, "you need to be baptized today." "Even if I'm sick?" "You will be fine." "Are you sure?" "I'm sure you'll feel better after you are baptized." "Really?" "Yes." "OK, if you say so." He came, and changed into all white clothes. We somehow got through the slowest filling of a font ever (first it was too cold, then it was steaming hot), but when the moment arrived, lo and behold, it was suddenly perfect, and we all breathed out a sigh of relief.
Bro. B. carefully followed Elder Green down into the warm water, with a big smile on his face, as he looked up into the happy faces of all his new friends. They spoke together for a moment, and then the Elder raised his right arm to the square and said those simple, but significant few words of the baptismal prayer. We all held our breath as Bro. B. didn't hold his nose as he was immersed--would he come up sputtering? No! He came up smiling wider than before, and looking back at Elder Green, he asked if he could go under again! We all laughed, as he was told that one time was enough since it was perfect. After dressing, they came back into the chapel, and Jack asked Bro. B. if he would bear his testimony to us. He told how, for a split second as he came up out of the water, he saw a symbol of two things that he really loves: birds, and to dance. He saw a bird dancing, so that is why he wanted to go under the wat
er again. He thanked the Elders who taught him the gospel, Elders Gibbs, Green and Gunter, for making him realize that Jesus Christ is not just a pretty story to help children get to sleep at night, but that He is his Savior, and that he needed to be baptized into His church. We had some refreshments, and he told me of the 4 times in his life that he almost died, and how he knew that he had been preserved for a purpose. We drove him home, and he thanked us with a smile for his new underwear, and said he'd always remember us each time he puts them on.
We came home and crashed and slept hard, and the next day Brother Bourdicheux was confirmed a member of the church, and it is a real good feeling to have him with us. It was all worth it. Take care!
Love,
Sister Mom (Joanne) Grandma
I sure hope all is well in your lives, as we think of you often, but we have had plenty to occupy our time and energies here, especially lately in our small Branch of the church.
The 58-year-old son of one of the most faithful members I've ever met died last week, and it has been hard on her to lose him, because, of her three children, he was the one who didn't become involved in the church when she was converted and baptized, some 40 years ago. He became a doctor, but when he began to develop the symptoms of diabetes, he went into denial and would not seek treatment until it became too late; loosing first his sight, and then just recently his life. His two younger sisters, both temple married, with active families, flew in from Tahiti and Minnesota for the funeral; and Jacqueline clung to them, as well as to us, for the support she needed. She considered us as family too, (her LDS family), and insisted that we be by her side as we attended the Catholic funeral in the small village where she was born. It was a very interesting experience, in an ancient building made of stone, on a cold, blustery, sad, rainy day; and when Jacqueline's youngest daughter leaned over to tell Jack how glad she was that a priesthood holder was there with them, we were especially glad we were there too.
Bro. Bourdicheux has had some amazing experiences as he got closer to his baptismal date. Because he is living on his pension, Elder Green thought that he'd not have to pay tithing on that money, but that was not true. Then also, Bro. B had staged a mini protest against the French government for taxing his retirement, by not paying his taxes! They came after him for it, so a chunk of his monthly check goes to repay the government until this Oct., making things tight for him, and making him question how he could handle the payment of tithing? When Bro. B. dreamed at all, they were usually terrible nightmares that woke him up and left him shaken. But, last Sunday night, after he prayed to Heavenly Father long and hard for an answer to his question, he dreamed a dream. He said, if someone had been in the room with him, they would have heard him talking out loud to a voice that came to him. "Who are you?" he asked the voice. "I am the voice of Him who is on high; I live on a planet far from yours, but I am always near; your life has been spared 4 times, and that is the end of your blessings." Bro. B. asked, "Should I pay my tithing?" And the voice answered, "Yes." Then the dream vanished. He never remembers dreams, but this one is embedded into his memory, and just thinking about it makes him light as a feather!
He got a call from the son of his deceased best friend in Paris, and told him about the dream; to which the man said, "That's just a figment of your imagination!" Then, Bro. B. told him that he was going to even pay tithing, and the man shouted, "See, all they want is your money!" to which he sadly shook his head and said, "You will never understand, my friend." He related this all to Jack on Monday afternoon, while it was still fresh in his mind.
On Wednesday, we went to his apartment with white shirts and pants for him to try on, and they were all too small, until we had him try on the one temple baptismal, zip-up front suit we had. Finally, they got that zipper up over his belly (he can't suck it in) and it is going to work! The only other thing he needed was some white underwear, so we will pick some up for him. Bro. B. closed our little visit with the nicest prayer (just a simple conversation with his Heavenly Father) that I've heard in a long time; it was great.
Jack went to pick up Bro. B. on Saturday, and made the mistake of asking how he was feeling; which set him off onto a recital of all his many maladies! "I got my hair cut yesterday for my baptism, and it wa
s hot in the salon. Then, I came outside, and caught a chill; I've been sneezing all morning, and have the sniffles and I feel terrible. Maybe I should wait and be baptized in April?" "No." said Jack, "you need to be baptized today." "Even if I'm sick?" "You will be fine." "Are you sure?" "I'm sure you'll feel better after you are baptized." "Really?" "Yes." "OK, if you say so." He came, and changed into all white clothes. We somehow got through the slowest filling of a font ever (first it was too cold, then it was steaming hot), but when the moment arrived, lo and behold, it was suddenly perfect, and we all breathed out a sigh of relief.
Bro. B. carefully followed Elder Green down into the warm water, with a big smile on his face, as he looked up into the happy faces of all his new friends. They spoke together for a moment, and then the Elder raised his right arm to the square and said those simple, but significant few words of the baptismal prayer. We all held our breath as Bro. B. didn't hold his nose as he was immersed--would he come up sputtering? No! He came up smiling wider than before, and looking back at Elder Green, he asked if he could go under again! We all laughed, as he was told that one time was enough since it was perfect. After dressing, they came back into the chapel, and Jack asked Bro. B. if he would bear his testimony to us. He told how, for a split second as he came up out of the water, he saw a symbol of two things that he really loves: birds, and to dance. He saw a bird dancing, so that is why he wanted to go under the wat
er again. He thanked the Elders who taught him the gospel, Elders Gibbs, Green and Gunter, for making him realize that Jesus Christ is not just a pretty story to help children get to sleep at night, but that He is his Savior, and that he needed to be baptized into His church. We had some refreshments, and he told me of the 4 times in his life that he almost died, and how he knew that he had been preserved for a purpose. We drove him home, and he thanked us with a smile for his new underwear, and said he'd always remember us each time he puts them on.We came home and crashed and slept hard, and the next day Brother Bourdicheux was confirmed a member of the church, and it is a real good feeling to have him with us. It was all worth it. Take care!
Love,
Sister Mom (Joanne) Grandma
Monday, March 16, 2009
Oh, What a Beautiful Morning
Hello from France;
We are experiencing some great weather here in Angouleme and we are loving every minute of it. In the last 10 days or so, we have had only one bad day. We have been out in the yard taking care of all the work that was pretty well neglected by Sister Bouchard. The Corga family have been coming over an
d giving us a hand. We have been digging out all the weeds around the rose bushes, cutting the grass, and getting our little garden area ready for planting.
Two things that I have a hard time with when it comes to France is the pruning the trees and bushes and the grass. Sister Bouchard had Remi Demolombe come over and prune the bushes, roses, and small trees. He, like all other Frenchmen hack away at the bushes and trees until they look like nude sticks, but they s
eem to always come back in the spring. We will work on Sister Bouchard's dying hedge out front by pruning all the dead branches and then planting some new hedge bushes. The hedges last about 15 years and they get trimmed every fall to keep them square and neat.
The grass here would make an American go around the bend and off the deep end. The French let everything grow in the grass. Just as long as they plant flowers it is allowed to grow in the grass. Once the flower has died
it is time to cut the grass. No such thing as getting all the weeds out and grooming your lawn to look like a carpet. The nearest thing to a carpet lawn here is a patchwork quilt.
We spent a great time with our 99-year-old sister, Madeleine Chauveau. Joanne prepared a meal and a birthday cak
e for us to share with her. Since we had a late meeting in Bordeaux, we brought the Elders with us and she really enjoyed the time spent. I told her that the firemen said it was against fire regulations to put 99 candles on the cake, but she blew out the nine that were on the cake. She is a great sister and has a strong testimony of the Gospel. The members called a
nd sent flowers and even our past 1st counselor from Bordeaux came with his good wife to visit not long after we left.
We had a change in the Stake Presidency here and so we got to go to Bordeaux for Saturday and Sunday meetings. We rented a mini-bus and Joanne took the car because we had so many amis that came with us. I have a to say that Elder Kerr, our regional seventy from Scotland, has become one of my favorite speakers. I love his accent and the powerful messages he gave to all of us. He speaks with authority and power. His testimony rocks the world.
We will have a baptism the 21st of March. Our 78-year-old brother, Jean Bordicheux, is one of a kind. In the 7 months since the Elders met him, he has grown in faith and love. He has changed before our very eyes and he feels the difference in his approach to life. He is someone who thinks things through, prays for guidance and then puts the principles of the Gospel into practice to see how they work in his life. He says that all his practice has been true to the scriptures and the lessons received.
We hope to have all our amis and members there so the amis can feel the spirit and the members to realize that the missionary work is going forward. This is not a church for sissies. It is put up or shut up. I like the scripture where it says that Jesus would rather have us hot, but not lukewarm, for if we are lukewarm, He will spew us from His mouth [Rev. 3:15-16]. We need to recognize that we have made promises and it is up to us to keep the promises made. We often forget those promises and lapse into being lukewarm. It is like the coals of a fire, as long as they are in the mist of the hot burning fire they stay red hot, but once they get away from the heat of the Gospel light they go black. All we need is to be nudged back into the heat of the light of Christ and into active participation and we light up again.
We love you all and we realize that we must do all we can to help others wile we are here. There is still plenty to do on our part and with those we are working with.
Love to you all,
Elder Dad
We are experiencing some great weather here in Angouleme and we are loving every minute of it. In the last 10 days or so, we have had only one bad day. We have been out in the yard taking care of all the work that was pretty well neglected by Sister Bouchard. The Corga family have been coming over an
d giving us a hand. We have been digging out all the weeds around the rose bushes, cutting the grass, and getting our little garden area ready for planting.Two things that I have a hard time with when it comes to France is the pruning the trees and bushes and the grass. Sister Bouchard had Remi Demolombe come over and prune the bushes, roses, and small trees. He, like all other Frenchmen hack away at the bushes and trees until they look like nude sticks, but they s
eem to always come back in the spring. We will work on Sister Bouchard's dying hedge out front by pruning all the dead branches and then planting some new hedge bushes. The hedges last about 15 years and they get trimmed every fall to keep them square and neat.The grass here would make an American go around the bend and off the deep end. The French let everything grow in the grass. Just as long as they plant flowers it is allowed to grow in the grass. Once the flower has died
it is time to cut the grass. No such thing as getting all the weeds out and grooming your lawn to look like a carpet. The nearest thing to a carpet lawn here is a patchwork quilt.We spent a great time with our 99-year-old sister, Madeleine Chauveau. Joanne prepared a meal and a birthday cak
e for us to share with her. Since we had a late meeting in Bordeaux, we brought the Elders with us and she really enjoyed the time spent. I told her that the firemen said it was against fire regulations to put 99 candles on the cake, but she blew out the nine that were on the cake. She is a great sister and has a strong testimony of the Gospel. The members called a
nd sent flowers and even our past 1st counselor from Bordeaux came with his good wife to visit not long after we left.We had a change in the Stake Presidency here and so we got to go to Bordeaux for Saturday and Sunday meetings. We rented a mini-bus and Joanne took the car because we had so many amis that came with us. I have a to say that Elder Kerr, our regional seventy from Scotland, has become one of my favorite speakers. I love his accent and the powerful messages he gave to all of us. He speaks with authority and power. His testimony rocks the world.
We will have a baptism the 21st of March. Our 78-year-old brother, Jean Bordicheux, is one of a kind. In the 7 months since the Elders met him, he has grown in faith and love. He has changed before our very eyes and he feels the difference in his approach to life. He is someone who thinks things through, prays for guidance and then puts the principles of the Gospel into practice to see how they work in his life. He says that all his practice has been true to the scriptures and the lessons received.
We hope to have all our amis and members there so the amis can feel the spirit and the members to realize that the missionary work is going forward. This is not a church for sissies. It is put up or shut up. I like the scripture where it says that Jesus would rather have us hot, but not lukewarm, for if we are lukewarm, He will spew us from His mouth [Rev. 3:15-16]. We need to recognize that we have made promises and it is up to us to keep the promises made. We often forget those promises and lapse into being lukewarm. It is like the coals of a fire, as long as they are in the mist of the hot burning fire they stay red hot, but once they get away from the heat of the Gospel light they go black. All we need is to be nudged back into the heat of the light of Christ and into active participation and we light up again.
We love you all and we realize that we must do all we can to help others wile we are here. There is still plenty to do on our part and with those we are working with.
Love to you all,
Elder Dad
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