Hello to all,
I have learned one thing by living in Angouleme and that is that I am not going to move to Oregon or Washington any time soon. The weather here is very similar to that of the Northwest and I have found that although it is not cold here, I can't take a continued week or more of rain. We are in a situation here where there is some flooding in the very lowest areas of the Charante because the earth is saturated. We did have 4 days of partly sunny weather and it was a welcome sight, but we have gone back into the rainy days again. It is not so much the rain but the dreary sky. I can see why people can get depressed without the sun coming out and warming the day as well as the heart.
We had the four days of the comic book festival in Angouleme and the streets are safe to travel again. Every year at this time Angouleme, the home of some of the original comic figures in France and even in Europe, puts on a 4 day festival for up and coming designers of comic book characters and future video producers. It is very well attended and the city makes a good piece of change hosting the affair. There are a few schools in Angouleme that are noted for their technology in the visual arts.
We had some changes in the branch with the departure of Sister Bouchard to her mission call in Salt Lake City and the Family Research Mission. She did so many things in the branch that it took a while to call people to replace her, but last Sunday many of these people gave strong testimony to the new callings they have and how it has helped them grow and develop. We look forward to even more progress as we put the branch on a footing so that when we leave we will not be missed and the branch will function well without us.
Joanne is having a Sunday experience since she is right now the only primary worker. We have one boy in the primary and some times some visitors, but she never knows what to expect. She tries to tailor her lessons for a wide range of situations. Joanne never knows who will show up and with her limited French she also is concerned with how she will be understood or how she will get the point across. We go over quite a bit of translations before every Sunday.
I think the hardest thing that happens is that we are limited in the words that the average Frenchman knows to express everyday ideas. There is such a difference between teaching the lessons that need to be learned before baptism because we are more conversant with the Gospel language. There are more helps for us as we use "Preach My Gospel" and the scriptures. When it comes down to trying to get across everyday ideas, we get many things lost in translation. In the U.S., we have sayings that are similar to the French, but they translate straight across, so we find ourselves at a loss for words on the simplest ideas. I also get a thought going and then have to pause often as I struggle to continue the line of thought through to its conclusion. This the reason I would like to leave the mission field with the church responsibilities in the hands of the French members. If there is a reason to build the branch, that is the main one.
We have had a very different experience in visiting our 98-year-old member. She feels that she is definitely coming to the end of her days and we are talking a great deal about how the scriptures and the leaders of the church talk about the life after this existence. The last few times with Madeline, we discussed things that she needed to think about that needed to be completed before she leaves this frail existence. We were prompted to go to her genealogy and check out what had been done. When I entered her names into the "New Family Search," we found that the married couples had all their temple work done except the sealing together of husband and wife. She was excited to know that these sealings could be done by someone else on their behalf so that these couple could have the choice to accept or reject the work done for them. We will meet with her again this week to see if there is any thing else we can do for her.
We have a hard time when there is a change in missionaries in Angouleme. We get to have these missionaries a little longer than most because of the small size of the branch and the need for them to stay and get to know and work with the members. Our last Elder stayed for 5 months and entered the mission as a greenie and just left. We have had two missionaries finish their missions here since we have been here and we get very attached to them. It is tough to wrap your arms around them and say goodbye. Joanne is famous throughout the mission for her Sunday meals for the missionaries and we have found that on district meetings it is cheaper and quicker to fix a noon meal for the district then to go out to eat with our two missionaries or the ones that come to Angouleme on an exchange before coming back to our city. The whole district looks forward to see what the treat will be. The new missionary let us know that the missionaries all over the mission know about her cooking and he said he wasn't disappointed to hear he was coming here and enjoying a good Sunday American meal.
Well, that's all from this side of the world.
Love, Elder Dad
Monday, February 2, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Pictures of the New House
Front View
Queen's Chair
Living Room
Kitchen
Office
Our Bedroom
Sewing & Washroom
Upstairs Bathroom
Thursday, January 22, 2009
New House, Etc.
Hello to one and all. It has been a while since I have got in touch with all of you, but we have been so busy with the holidays and keeping in touch with all the members and friends of the church.
The one thing about being in a leadership position is that each Sunday brings a host of new situations. We have had our teachers not show up due to work or sickness and no one knew about the situation. I have learned to improvise and many times have been inspired to start by opening my mouth and the words and the lesson comes forth. We have had many people not come for talks during sacrament meeting, especially those from out of town. I have learned to keep a talk handy at all times. Once I announced a "popcorn" meeting where the members would get up and discuss a topic given by the presiding officer who was directing. All in all, we have had some very exciting meetings with excellent testimonies and related material to inspire us to a better week ahead. There are always problems to deal with, blessings to give, calls to make, and people to set apart.
I have two great men to be my counselors and we get along like peas in a pod even though the peas are different shapes and sizes. Brother Jean-Marie Savreux (1st) is the one who is always organized and has handouts and charts to keep us on track. Patrick Humblot (2nd) knows the members and is always ready to give great advice on how to deal with each person according to past situations and his caring attitude about what he has prayed about. I keep the meeting moving so we don't get bogged down in French details that some how creep in and threaten to make the meeting last more than an hour. We are willing to give and take and when a answer isn't forth coming right away, we are willing to take time in the next week to ask for heavenly guidance. Many times during the meetings, we are speaking about the same idea or person at the same instant. What a great feeling.
We are working with a great team of Elders. Elder Green and Elder Gibbs are very hard working and spend endless hours seeking, teaching, and caring for those who they meet. We have a small branch, but many members are very willing to go out a teach with the missionaries. Their presence, experiences, and language skills help in every way.
The Elders are teaching a 78-year-old man, Jean Bordicheaux, and he is a very wonderful person. He is progressing in the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and he wants to do everything right and even more than is required. We had and experience with him the other night. Due to his flu and vertigo, he collapsed in his apartment. We could see him, but the doors were locked so we couldn't get in to help him. He was able to slide on his back and barely reach the door handle so we could get to him. We had called the fireman and they would have smashed a window to get to him had he not used all his force to open the door. The Elders did a two mile dash to get to him after he called them on their cell phone and Patrick and I came in the car as we were returning from our presidency meeting out of town at the 1st counselor's home. We had the four of us, 4 fireman, 4 EMTs, and 4 policemen in his small apartment. The EMTs were very helpful. After they got Jean stabilized, we stayed another half hour to feed him and get everything in order.
We are working with our Portuguese family and if it wasn't for all of the problems of life that keep coming up, we would be much further ahead. They finally left Joao's father's house because when his brother gets drunk he threatens the children. Finally he hit the children and Sandra and Joao got hold of the social services and they were placed in a hotel until an apartment can be found. We will find out tomorrow what has taken place. The members are collecting furniture for them so that when they move they will have some things. We will go to a second hand store for the rest of the essentials. Sandra has a strong testimony and as soon as all is well, we will have her husband baptise her.
Sandra is very special. She is a self starter and when she sees things to be done she pitches right in. At the branch meal last Sunday, she got right in with Joanne and helped get the salads ready and the food on the table. She is just what we need in the branch. Her eyes shine with the light of the Spirit and she wants to bear her testimony the next opportunity. Joao is progressing and should be ready to be ordained to the office of a priest before the baptism date.
We have moved into our new home. It is much bigger and we feel right at home. Our rent money will help out Sister Bouchard with her mission costs and we are getting more than our moneys worth. I will have some yard work in the spring that will help me have a good diversion. Instead of the 3 rooms and bathroom in the other place, we have 6 rooms here and two bathrooms. We have room for visitors if any of you care to come and stay. We will use the house with Sandra, Laraine and Heather when they come to visit the area.
All is well. We are healthy and enjoying the work. To give of one's self is a great rewarding part of life. We now have a blog that Chris is taking care of and if we get him more pictures you will see us in action. If anyone back home wants to read old and new letters they can go to Tour de Metcalfe, or you can get to it through philipandjaimeconnor.blogspot.com.
Well, keep looking up so you can always see where you are going.
Elder Dad
The one thing about being in a leadership position is that each Sunday brings a host of new situations. We have had our teachers not show up due to work or sickness and no one knew about the situation. I have learned to improvise and many times have been inspired to start by opening my mouth and the words and the lesson comes forth. We have had many people not come for talks during sacrament meeting, especially those from out of town. I have learned to keep a talk handy at all times. Once I announced a "popcorn" meeting where the members would get up and discuss a topic given by the presiding officer who was directing. All in all, we have had some very exciting meetings with excellent testimonies and related material to inspire us to a better week ahead. There are always problems to deal with, blessings to give, calls to make, and people to set apart.
I have two great men to be my counselors and we get along like peas in a pod even though the peas are different shapes and sizes. Brother Jean-Marie Savreux (1st) is the one who is always organized and has handouts and charts to keep us on track. Patrick Humblot (2nd) knows the members and is always ready to give great advice on how to deal with each person according to past situations and his caring attitude about what he has prayed about. I keep the meeting moving so we don't get bogged down in French details that some how creep in and threaten to make the meeting last more than an hour. We are willing to give and take and when a answer isn't forth coming right away, we are willing to take time in the next week to ask for heavenly guidance. Many times during the meetings, we are speaking about the same idea or person at the same instant. What a great feeling.
We are working with a great team of Elders. Elder Green and Elder Gibbs are very hard working and spend endless hours seeking, teaching, and caring for those who they meet. We have a small branch, but many members are very willing to go out a teach with the missionaries. Their presence, experiences, and language skills help in every way.
The Elders are teaching a 78-year-old man, Jean Bordicheaux, and he is a very wonderful person. He is progressing in the light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and he wants to do everything right and even more than is required. We had and experience with him the other night. Due to his flu and vertigo, he collapsed in his apartment. We could see him, but the doors were locked so we couldn't get in to help him. He was able to slide on his back and barely reach the door handle so we could get to him. We had called the fireman and they would have smashed a window to get to him had he not used all his force to open the door. The Elders did a two mile dash to get to him after he called them on their cell phone and Patrick and I came in the car as we were returning from our presidency meeting out of town at the 1st counselor's home. We had the four of us, 4 fireman, 4 EMTs, and 4 policemen in his small apartment. The EMTs were very helpful. After they got Jean stabilized, we stayed another half hour to feed him and get everything in order.
We are working with our Portuguese family and if it wasn't for all of the problems of life that keep coming up, we would be much further ahead. They finally left Joao's father's house because when his brother gets drunk he threatens the children. Finally he hit the children and Sandra and Joao got hold of the social services and they were placed in a hotel until an apartment can be found. We will find out tomorrow what has taken place. The members are collecting furniture for them so that when they move they will have some things. We will go to a second hand store for the rest of the essentials. Sandra has a strong testimony and as soon as all is well, we will have her husband baptise her.
Sandra is very special. She is a self starter and when she sees things to be done she pitches right in. At the branch meal last Sunday, she got right in with Joanne and helped get the salads ready and the food on the table. She is just what we need in the branch. Her eyes shine with the light of the Spirit and she wants to bear her testimony the next opportunity. Joao is progressing and should be ready to be ordained to the office of a priest before the baptism date.
We have moved into our new home. It is much bigger and we feel right at home. Our rent money will help out Sister Bouchard with her mission costs and we are getting more than our moneys worth. I will have some yard work in the spring that will help me have a good diversion. Instead of the 3 rooms and bathroom in the other place, we have 6 rooms here and two bathrooms. We have room for visitors if any of you care to come and stay. We will use the house with Sandra, Laraine and Heather when they come to visit the area.
All is well. We are healthy and enjoying the work. To give of one's self is a great rewarding part of life. We now have a blog that Chris is taking care of and if we get him more pictures you will see us in action. If anyone back home wants to read old and new letters they can go to Tour de Metcalfe, or you can get to it through philipandjaimeconnor.blogspot.com.
Well, keep looking up so you can always see where you are going.
Elder Dad
Friday, December 26, 2008
Holiday Time
Hello to All,
This has been a hectic time of the year for missionary work, especially for the two of us since we are trying to take care of all the members, amis, and all the activities that the season brings. We had a good Christmas party at the branch (I will leave that to Joanne to tell), Zone Christmas program in Bordeaux, Zone Conference, cooking goodies for the people here in Angouleme, home evenings, Christmas dinner for the missionaries and others who wished to come, and last but not least the genealogy work that is going on at the branch.
I will start with the Zone Conference and the Christmas program held in Bordeaux. It is interesting how different the mission president and his wife are compared to the Merrell's. This couple decided that the missionaries in each zone should prepare and give a Christmas concert for the members and their amis, so they organized Christmas songs to sing and other musical numbers and events for the missionaries to participate in during the program. Each zone held the program in conjunction with a zone conference. We spent some time in a zone development meeting practicing the program, then we were on our own for further practices. However with all the missionary work and branch happenings, we only got in two short song practices.
The program for the three zones was well attended, however it was hard for members and amis outside of Bordeaux to attend, so Angouleme had no one there. An hour and a half drive was a little much to expect, but we did our part. We have some outstanding missionary talent in the zone and members in the Bordeaux area. The Defrancie family in Bordeaux has a father who is a lead tenor in the Bordeaux opera and the rest of the extended family plays various instruments. One of the daughters is presently at BYU. Well all went well. On the way down, we delivered some Christmas goodies to a family in the branch 24 miles south of Angouleme as we were on the way to Bordeaux. It was a short visit, but the real hope is that they know we care. The only problem was that we didn't get back home until after 11:00 PM, with permission.
The branch Christmas party and program went very well and even though 8 of the people we hoped would come either had family sickness, unexpected visitors, or in the case of one of our amis, had some tragic news about a friend so that he was not in the mood for festivities, we still had 30 people out to the program. Joanne spent a great deal of time preparing the meal and it was great.
Our family home evenings for the singles in the branch are good. Eve
n though we don't have any young singles, we do get together with the older group and one amis, Jean Bourdicheaux. We have a lesson and with Jean there we get questions from him and this gives the members a chance to answer him. We have an activity and goodies after. This week it was a good 4 hands of Uno and a cheese feast with French bread. There was plenty of cheese left over from the Christmas meal and in no time flat the cheese was devoured and enjoyed by all. Jean, the 77-year-old amis, enjoys the friendship and has progressed in his knowledge and faith in Christ and even he can see the tremendous change in his life since he started learning and living the principles of the Gospel.
The Portuguese family, the Corgas, have so much to overcome in their move to France: the language, finding work, a place of their own, and just getting into life. Their 5-year-old has to learn a new language at school and make new friends. It is coming, but the transition is slow and painful. Both Joao and Sandra can speak fairly well in French and Sandra has a good grasp of English, so Joanne and Sandra can get along very well. Coming to church is a new experience for them and especially how to deal with the two children. We are making slow progress, but when we think of the training that went on with each of our own under learned experiences, this is hard for people new to the Church.
The Elders have a young family coming to church. Miguel has great faith and his wife Justine has started to understand better the last few weeks, especially as she attends Relief Society and participates. Miguel is from the north of France and Justine is from Cameroon in Africa and has only been here a few years. They have a sweet new born baby girl and there is a lot of love shown to this baby by their parents and the branch members.
Things are good here. We are finding that there is progress in the branch. Sister Bouchard will be leaving for her mission on Jan 4th, so we have three branch positions to fill. We have prayed and will interview two members for two of the positions, but the piano will remain silent until we can find someone to take up that position. The Elders, the members or Mom and I, with good spiritual direction, will just have to find someone to do that.
We will send a few pictures later so Chris can insert them into our blog page.
Love Elder Dad and Sister Mom
This has been a hectic time of the year for missionary work, especially for the two of us since we are trying to take care of all the members, amis, and all the activities that the season brings. We had a good Christmas party at the branch (I will leave that to Joanne to tell), Zone Christmas program in Bordeaux, Zone Conference, cooking goodies for the people here in Angouleme, home evenings, Christmas dinner for the missionaries and others who wished to come, and last but not least the genealogy work that is going on at the branch.
I will start with the Zone Conference and the Christmas program held in Bordeaux. It is interesting how different the mission president and his wife are compared to the Merrell's. This couple decided that the missionaries in each zone should prepare and give a Christmas concert for the members and their amis, so they organized Christmas songs to sing and other musical numbers and events for the missionaries to participate in during the program. Each zone held the program in conjunction with a zone conference. We spent some time in a zone development meeting practicing the program, then we were on our own for further practices. However with all the missionary work and branch happenings, we only got in two short song practices.
The program for the three zones was well attended, however it was hard for members and amis outside of Bordeaux to attend, so Angouleme had no one there. An hour and a half drive was a little much to expect, but we did our part. We have some outstanding missionary talent in the zone and members in the Bordeaux area. The Defrancie family in Bordeaux has a father who is a lead tenor in the Bordeaux opera and the rest of the extended family plays various instruments. One of the daughters is presently at BYU. Well all went well. On the way down, we delivered some Christmas goodies to a family in the branch 24 miles south of Angouleme as we were on the way to Bordeaux. It was a short visit, but the real hope is that they know we care. The only problem was that we didn't get back home until after 11:00 PM, with permission.
The branch Christmas party and program went very well and even though 8 of the people we hoped would come either had family sickness, unexpected visitors, or in the case of one of our amis, had some tragic news about a friend so that he was not in the mood for festivities, we still had 30 people out to the program. Joanne spent a great deal of time preparing the meal and it was great.
Our family home evenings for the singles in the branch are good. Eve
n though we don't have any young singles, we do get together with the older group and one amis, Jean Bourdicheaux. We have a lesson and with Jean there we get questions from him and this gives the members a chance to answer him. We have an activity and goodies after. This week it was a good 4 hands of Uno and a cheese feast with French bread. There was plenty of cheese left over from the Christmas meal and in no time flat the cheese was devoured and enjoyed by all. Jean, the 77-year-old amis, enjoys the friendship and has progressed in his knowledge and faith in Christ and even he can see the tremendous change in his life since he started learning and living the principles of the Gospel.The Portuguese family, the Corgas, have so much to overcome in their move to France: the language, finding work, a place of their own, and just getting into life. Their 5-year-old has to learn a new language at school and make new friends. It is coming, but the transition is slow and painful. Both Joao and Sandra can speak fairly well in French and Sandra has a good grasp of English, so Joanne and Sandra can get along very well. Coming to church is a new experience for them and especially how to deal with the two children. We are making slow progress, but when we think of the training that went on with each of our own under learned experiences, this is hard for people new to the Church.
The Elders have a young family coming to church. Miguel has great faith and his wife Justine has started to understand better the last few weeks, especially as she attends Relief Society and participates. Miguel is from the north of France and Justine is from Cameroon in Africa and has only been here a few years. They have a sweet new born baby girl and there is a lot of love shown to this baby by their parents and the branch members.
Things are good here. We are finding that there is progress in the branch. Sister Bouchard will be leaving for her mission on Jan 4th, so we have three branch positions to fill. We have prayed and will interview two members for two of the positions, but the piano will remain silent until we can find someone to take up that position. The Elders, the members or Mom and I, with good spiritual direction, will just have to find someone to do that.
We will send a few pictures later so Chris can insert them into our blog page.
Love Elder Dad and Sister Mom
Christmas Party
Bonjour to all of you, and to our friends! It's the day after Christmas here and I'm sure you all had a wonderful time with your families yesterday. At home it usually took me a while to wind down after the big day finally arrived, and that hasn't changed. The build up and the anticipation seem to keep me flying high on adrenalin enough to get through it all somehow.
Our Christmas party grew to such huge proportions in our minds (with all those who showed interest in coming) that Jack said to plan for 40 people. So, Patrick Humblot (drop the H, and cross off the T for the real pronunciation of his name!) assigned out the salads to the members (bring one for each table of 6 people!), and the "pain" (bread!) to the single men to furnish (after all what could be easier than that!). I spent most of Friday making funeral potatoes (we don't advertise that name to our elderly members!), until I had 4 large pans filled to the top with cheesy, gooey spuds.
The next morning, we went shopping for last minute things like: 6 bottles of fizzy non-alcoholic apple juice to drink along with dessert; 6 bottles of mineral water and 2 cans of the fruit flavored syrup the French serve with it; and just for insurance, a $3.50E pkg. of TEN 3-foot long baguettes that I've always wanted to buy just once, because they make it look like you're going to a party. The thing was, we weren't sure if JJ (our almost there janitor) got the message through his head about the bread, and Alain's thought process is so unorthodox we never know what we'll get from him. As Jack and I looked at each other in the store. . ."We're getting insurance baguettes!" We hid them in the trunk of the car so we wouldn't hurt their feelings if they brought some too.
Two ladies promised to come early to help me, but neither of them showed, so it was Jack and Patrick and me. We worked together well. We covered the tables with pretty red and gold paper that had a nice satin finish on it, and Jack set them with the salad plates and silverware, while I created centerpieces with greenery off the trees outside and some ribbon and red shiny bulbs. Patrick did a neat trick with the red napkins standing up in the glasses. I popped the turkey rolls in the "oven from h*ll" (which just can't wait to burn everything you dare to place into it), and hoped I guessed right on the setting this time. It's a convection oven, but it's 40-years-old and very cranky, and if you fiddle with it too much, the next time you look it will have turned itself off! That happened this time too, so after my primal scream, I turned it off and started over again, and it seemed to stabilize.
Patrick left for the half hour drive to pick up 98-year-old Madeleine, and Jack went to pick up Adele, who we got to agree to come. The members began to arrive with their salads, and they all needed space to put their creations together. Lucienne (my menace in the kitchen) came with enough salad for an army, and as I began taking out the turkey, which had baked quickly, saw something that she just couldn't abide. One dark meat turkey loaf looked too crispy for her, so she grabbed a bottle of vegetable oil and began pouring oil all over the brown little thing! I begged her to stop, and she did, with a satisfied smile, and a "that's better" look on her face. When she got busy elsewhere, I poured off the oil and patted down that little hummer until he wasn't
shiny anymore. I got the potatoes heating up when Alain arrived in the kitchen with his bread. He had slaved over an automatic bread making machine, and presented me with 2 loaves of undercooked, tough, square shaped, dough blobs . . . I could only stare. What in the world was he thinking? (Well, one of them was studded with dark things, which turned out to be bits of chocolate, to make it more "special.") I took them and told him that we had baguettes to serve to people, at which he looked relieved and then took back the chocolate one!
We had a nice program, the centerpiece of which was, the DVD, "Joy to the World," telling the story of the birth of Christ, and featuring the beautiful music of the Tabernacle Choir. Some of the people we expected to come, didn't, but we had a non-member family there, as well as some inactives, and the number was 30 to the pro
gram and 28 to the dinner. Just after we served dessert, which was plenty of Buche de Noel (cream filled Christmas Logs all fancy and fine), I got a call from Heather who was wandering in a Wal-Mart and wondering if I needed something (4 orange flavored children's aspirin would be nice), so Jack ha
d me take her (via phone) in to meet the members and they called out "Joyeaus Noel, Heather!" to her. That was neat. Then, cute little Madeleine made everybody give me a standing ovation for being a "bonne cuisiniere," and that made it all worthwhile.
Our Christmas day was party left-overs with the Elders and Alain, quiet and simple. We thought about you all, and thanks for the cards and calls and pictures you sent us, we love that kind of stuff the very best. Be safe, happy and healthy, and keep in touch . . .we love you.
Sister Mom
Our Christmas party grew to such huge proportions in our minds (with all those who showed interest in coming) that Jack said to plan for 40 people. So, Patrick Humblot (drop the H, and cross off the T for the real pronunciation of his name!) assigned out the salads to the members (bring one for each table of 6 people!), and the "pain" (bread!) to the single men to furnish (after all what could be easier than that!). I spent most of Friday making funeral potatoes (we don't advertise that name to our elderly members!), until I had 4 large pans filled to the top with cheesy, gooey spuds.
The next morning, we went shopping for last minute things like: 6 bottles of fizzy non-alcoholic apple juice to drink along with dessert; 6 bottles of mineral water and 2 cans of the fruit flavored syrup the French serve with it; and just for insurance, a $3.50E pkg. of TEN 3-foot long baguettes that I've always wanted to buy just once, because they make it look like you're going to a party. The thing was, we weren't sure if JJ (our almost there janitor) got the message through his head about the bread, and Alain's thought process is so unorthodox we never know what we'll get from him. As Jack and I looked at each other in the store. . ."We're getting insurance baguettes!" We hid them in the trunk of the car so we wouldn't hurt their feelings if they brought some too.
Two ladies promised to come early to help me, but neither of them showed, so it was Jack and Patrick and me. We worked together well. We covered the tables with pretty red and gold paper that had a nice satin finish on it, and Jack set them with the salad plates and silverware, while I created centerpieces with greenery off the trees outside and some ribbon and red shiny bulbs. Patrick did a neat trick with the red napkins standing up in the glasses. I popped the turkey rolls in the "oven from h*ll" (which just can't wait to burn everything you dare to place into it), and hoped I guessed right on the setting this time. It's a convection oven, but it's 40-years-old and very cranky, and if you fiddle with it too much, the next time you look it will have turned itself off! That happened this time too, so after my primal scream, I turned it off and started over again, and it seemed to stabilize.
Patrick left for the half hour drive to pick up 98-year-old Madeleine, and Jack went to pick up Adele, who we got to agree to come. The members began to arrive with their salads, and they all needed space to put their creations together. Lucienne (my menace in the kitchen) came with enough salad for an army, and as I began taking out the turkey, which had baked quickly, saw something that she just couldn't abide. One dark meat turkey loaf looked too crispy for her, so she grabbed a bottle of vegetable oil and began pouring oil all over the brown little thing! I begged her to stop, and she did, with a satisfied smile, and a "that's better" look on her face. When she got busy elsewhere, I poured off the oil and patted down that little hummer until he wasn't
shiny anymore. I got the potatoes heating up when Alain arrived in the kitchen with his bread. He had slaved over an automatic bread making machine, and presented me with 2 loaves of undercooked, tough, square shaped, dough blobs . . . I could only stare. What in the world was he thinking? (Well, one of them was studded with dark things, which turned out to be bits of chocolate, to make it more "special.") I took them and told him that we had baguettes to serve to people, at which he looked relieved and then took back the chocolate one!We had a nice program, the centerpiece of which was, the DVD, "Joy to the World," telling the story of the birth of Christ, and featuring the beautiful music of the Tabernacle Choir. Some of the people we expected to come, didn't, but we had a non-member family there, as well as some inactives, and the number was 30 to the pro
gram and 28 to the dinner. Just after we served dessert, which was plenty of Buche de Noel (cream filled Christmas Logs all fancy and fine), I got a call from Heather who was wandering in a Wal-Mart and wondering if I needed something (4 orange flavored children's aspirin would be nice), so Jack ha
d me take her (via phone) in to meet the members and they called out "Joyeaus Noel, Heather!" to her. That was neat. Then, cute little Madeleine made everybody give me a standing ovation for being a "bonne cuisiniere," and that made it all worthwhile.Our Christmas day was party left-overs with the Elders and Alain, quiet and simple. We thought about you all, and thanks for the cards and calls and pictures you sent us, we love that kind of stuff the very best. Be safe, happy and healthy, and keep in touch . . .we love you.
Sister Mom
Sunday, December 14, 2008
Paint Dry
Hi Everyone,
We are about to Christmas and everything is going full bore here in Angouleme. The branch is gearing up for the annual Christmas party and as of today, we have 30 people coming to the feast and festivities. We are working to bring others and who knows, we might have to put people on our knees to squeeze everyone in. The work is going like a house a fire. We are blessed that the two Elders that are here now will stay together for another 6 weeks. We had 9 amis at church today. I must admit that two of those are our perennial "dry Mormons," but the numbers are up. If we keep this pace up, the dream of our last branch president will come true, as he saw shoots of flowers blooming at the branch.
It was exciting to see families coming to church. One of the amis has a baptism date at the end of January and our Portuguese sister told me today that she knows the message of the restoration is true. All we need to do is get over some hurdles and break out the white clothes and fill the font with warm water. Sandra's (our Portuguese sister) husband-to-be is an inactive member of ten years, but he is back and hugged me today and said when he saw me today he was happy. He said that there is more love between the two of us than his own family. This is what it is all about. It is not about numbers, but the love of Christ being spread by the Gospel message.
I have a wonderful 2nd counselor and will have our 1st counselor next week. Both these brethren are from the branch and will be the leaders when we are gone and the branch will be able to stand on its own two feet. With two prospective priesthood holders coming into the fold, we will be growing the branch and the leadership potential. This is a great blessing the Lord has allowed us to see by asking us to stay here during our entire mission. We love these people and would feel it a blessing to spend the eternities with them in the Kingdom of God. It is a little hard to type while weeping with joy.
If we could only get more of the older couples to realize that there are blessings out in the mission field that they will never experience at home. If I could only get you retired couples to get off the couch and come out here with us, you would struggle, cry, struggle some more, and cry, but in the end the results are well worth it.
We went today to see our shy Sister Adele, and she agreed to come to the Christmas Party. Joanne was holding her hands and whispering, "oui, oui, oui" and she then said yes as she saw pure love in Joanne's face. These blessing wouldn't have come if we stayed at home. The souls of these people are precious in the sight of the Lord and He needs someone out here to reach out to them for Him.
Now for my latest French experience. You have all heard the expression, "That is as exciting as watching paint dry." Well, in France, that is an occupation. French federal highway officials do exactly that. Every year, just like at home, the lines along the highways and bye ways get dim with the weather's toll. Well, here in France the nation has not heard of the fast drying paint that we use in the States, so you will see men out on the streets and highways, painting the lines back on the roads by hand or by machine. Ah, you think it ends there, but it doesn't. A group of gaily green clothed men then set up cones along the newly painted area and sit or stand and wait until the paint is dry. The painting truck stops and waits also. One of the men, who must be the supervisor, gets down and tests the paint. When he is satisfied that all is well, he gives the signal for the cones to be taken away and the truck to paint the next 50 meters.
We came upon two men that had painted a line of about 10 meters at an intersection. The truck was blocking off one end of the line and a cone was place on the other side. One of the men must have been a new supervisor because he did not have the sophistication of the others we had seen. Instead of kneeling down and gazing at the paint and then using his index finger to test the paint, this one used his foot to test it. How barbaric can someone be? This testing paint is as important as tasting wine or cheese with a discerning palate and to use the sole of your boot is just uncouth. Only in France can the waiting for paint to dry be such a national obsession. Well, that's all for this week. Keep and enjoy your faith in Jesus. We love you all and our prayers are with you. We feel yours for us. Thank you.
Elder Dad
We are about to Christmas and everything is going full bore here in Angouleme. The branch is gearing up for the annual Christmas party and as of today, we have 30 people coming to the feast and festivities. We are working to bring others and who knows, we might have to put people on our knees to squeeze everyone in. The work is going like a house a fire. We are blessed that the two Elders that are here now will stay together for another 6 weeks. We had 9 amis at church today. I must admit that two of those are our perennial "dry Mormons," but the numbers are up. If we keep this pace up, the dream of our last branch president will come true, as he saw shoots of flowers blooming at the branch.
It was exciting to see families coming to church. One of the amis has a baptism date at the end of January and our Portuguese sister told me today that she knows the message of the restoration is true. All we need to do is get over some hurdles and break out the white clothes and fill the font with warm water. Sandra's (our Portuguese sister) husband-to-be is an inactive member of ten years, but he is back and hugged me today and said when he saw me today he was happy. He said that there is more love between the two of us than his own family. This is what it is all about. It is not about numbers, but the love of Christ being spread by the Gospel message.
I have a wonderful 2nd counselor and will have our 1st counselor next week. Both these brethren are from the branch and will be the leaders when we are gone and the branch will be able to stand on its own two feet. With two prospective priesthood holders coming into the fold, we will be growing the branch and the leadership potential. This is a great blessing the Lord has allowed us to see by asking us to stay here during our entire mission. We love these people and would feel it a blessing to spend the eternities with them in the Kingdom of God. It is a little hard to type while weeping with joy.
If we could only get more of the older couples to realize that there are blessings out in the mission field that they will never experience at home. If I could only get you retired couples to get off the couch and come out here with us, you would struggle, cry, struggle some more, and cry, but in the end the results are well worth it.
We went today to see our shy Sister Adele, and she agreed to come to the Christmas Party. Joanne was holding her hands and whispering, "oui, oui, oui" and she then said yes as she saw pure love in Joanne's face. These blessing wouldn't have come if we stayed at home. The souls of these people are precious in the sight of the Lord and He needs someone out here to reach out to them for Him.
Now for my latest French experience. You have all heard the expression, "That is as exciting as watching paint dry." Well, in France, that is an occupation. French federal highway officials do exactly that. Every year, just like at home, the lines along the highways and bye ways get dim with the weather's toll. Well, here in France the nation has not heard of the fast drying paint that we use in the States, so you will see men out on the streets and highways, painting the lines back on the roads by hand or by machine. Ah, you think it ends there, but it doesn't. A group of gaily green clothed men then set up cones along the newly painted area and sit or stand and wait until the paint is dry. The painting truck stops and waits also. One of the men, who must be the supervisor, gets down and tests the paint. When he is satisfied that all is well, he gives the signal for the cones to be taken away and the truck to paint the next 50 meters.
We came upon two men that had painted a line of about 10 meters at an intersection. The truck was blocking off one end of the line and a cone was place on the other side. One of the men must have been a new supervisor because he did not have the sophistication of the others we had seen. Instead of kneeling down and gazing at the paint and then using his index finger to test the paint, this one used his foot to test it. How barbaric can someone be? This testing paint is as important as tasting wine or cheese with a discerning palate and to use the sole of your boot is just uncouth. Only in France can the waiting for paint to dry be such a national obsession. Well, that's all for this week. Keep and enjoy your faith in Jesus. We love you all and our prayers are with you. We feel yours for us. Thank you.
Elder Dad
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Our Other Anniversary
Bonjour, to you all . . . you are all family, and I miss you a lot right now especially.
Last Wednesday was the anniversary of the day we went into the MTC last year (is it still called "HUMP DAY," as in "over the . . ."), man, oh man, how these last few months have galloped by. I can't even remember Summer, it went so fast. I think the big difference is the added responsibility of Jack being called as Branch President; it really takes time and effort to keep things moving along smoothly for the members. Just last Sunday, the speakers he had lined up for Sacrament meeting didn't show, so he called on his 2nd counselor, Patrick Humblot, and the two missionaries, and he finished things off, and it went well; but no one saw all the sweating and fretting that preceded the meeting! All of our little elderly sisters are doing well, and we still see them often. Sister Adele, our Sunday night visit, is deep into the Book of Mormon (2Nephi), wading through the Isaiah chapters, and underlining things for Jack to explain to her; sometimes he just says, "Uhhhhhhh," and smiles weakly at the prospect of picking apart some of those image-filled verses. He used to do most of the reading, but now she won't let him, and buts right in if he forgets. She is such a hoot. Also, from not even trying to pray aloud, she has gone to offering a short, slightly jumbled, but sweet prayer by herself (Jack used to guide her through it each time she would try, because she would get so flustered that she'd open and then close without any in-the-middle stuff!). Last week she touched us by thanking Heavenly Father that we could be a family. I was blown away when he told me all she'd said; her own family is totally fractured and absent from her life. Anyway, it's moments like this that I treasure and hold to myself, and know why we'll be here our whole mission.
Now, lest you think all is smooth sailing with us, let me tell you the rest of the story. Sister Bouchard, our 81-year-old Relief Society President, (now Jack has to find a new one in a branch of 3 active sisters) got her call to the Genealogy Library in SLC, and has to be there Jan. 5, 2009. She asked us to move into her home while she is away, so we went to our landlady, Mme. Labadie, to give her our one months notice. "Is someone coming in your place?" No. "It's in your contract to give me two months notice." French law requires one month. "Well, you used much more water than was your share, and I'll have to be paid for that!" Hmmmmmmm.
This is the first we've heard of any water restrictions in France. We wash clothes to be clean, and bedding occasionally, and even ourselves several times a week. Is this excessive? Then, when she made mention of us paying for the extra maintenance it took to get our heater to fire up right, I thought WOW, this is crazy. This is the woman who, as we sat down to take this apt. with Sister Bouchard at our side (she was the one who noticed the "for rent" ad and called us immediately to go see it), slyly said, "Now, the rent will be $600 Euros a month." We didn't catch that, but Sister B. did! "No, no, madame, the ad said it rents for $560!" and looked at her steadily until she conceded that was right, and wrote it that way. This is the woman who actually clapped her hands for joy when Jack told her he had bought a replacement toilet seat for the flimsy, thin plastic thing that had just finally broken a bolt (and didn't charge her for it). This is the woman we heard yelling at someone through our connecting wall, and him shouting at her that there NO prophets in the world now! This was shortly after Jack gave her the wonderful Easter Liahona which was all about Christ and the prophets of the restoration. Maybe she's just gonna miss us when we're gone! Well, we will see what happens next, life is a kick isn't it?
We have an appointment, so talk to you later, take care,
Love,
Sister Mom (Joanne)
Last Wednesday was the anniversary of the day we went into the MTC last year (is it still called "HUMP DAY," as in "over the . . ."), man, oh man, how these last few months have galloped by. I can't even remember Summer, it went so fast. I think the big difference is the added responsibility of Jack being called as Branch President; it really takes time and effort to keep things moving along smoothly for the members. Just last Sunday, the speakers he had lined up for Sacrament meeting didn't show, so he called on his 2nd counselor, Patrick Humblot, and the two missionaries, and he finished things off, and it went well; but no one saw all the sweating and fretting that preceded the meeting! All of our little elderly sisters are doing well, and we still see them often. Sister Adele, our Sunday night visit, is deep into the Book of Mormon (2Nephi), wading through the Isaiah chapters, and underlining things for Jack to explain to her; sometimes he just says, "Uhhhhhhh," and smiles weakly at the prospect of picking apart some of those image-filled verses. He used to do most of the reading, but now she won't let him, and buts right in if he forgets. She is such a hoot. Also, from not even trying to pray aloud, she has gone to offering a short, slightly jumbled, but sweet prayer by herself (Jack used to guide her through it each time she would try, because she would get so flustered that she'd open and then close without any in-the-middle stuff!). Last week she touched us by thanking Heavenly Father that we could be a family. I was blown away when he told me all she'd said; her own family is totally fractured and absent from her life. Anyway, it's moments like this that I treasure and hold to myself, and know why we'll be here our whole mission.
Now, lest you think all is smooth sailing with us, let me tell you the rest of the story. Sister Bouchard, our 81-year-old Relief Society President, (now Jack has to find a new one in a branch of 3 active sisters) got her call to the Genealogy Library in SLC, and has to be there Jan. 5, 2009. She asked us to move into her home while she is away, so we went to our landlady, Mme. Labadie, to give her our one months notice. "Is someone coming in your place?" No. "It's in your contract to give me two months notice." French law requires one month. "Well, you used much more water than was your share, and I'll have to be paid for that!" Hmmmmmmm.
This is the first we've heard of any water restrictions in France. We wash clothes to be clean, and bedding occasionally, and even ourselves several times a week. Is this excessive? Then, when she made mention of us paying for the extra maintenance it took to get our heater to fire up right, I thought WOW, this is crazy. This is the woman who, as we sat down to take this apt. with Sister Bouchard at our side (she was the one who noticed the "for rent" ad and called us immediately to go see it), slyly said, "Now, the rent will be $600 Euros a month." We didn't catch that, but Sister B. did! "No, no, madame, the ad said it rents for $560!" and looked at her steadily until she conceded that was right, and wrote it that way. This is the woman who actually clapped her hands for joy when Jack told her he had bought a replacement toilet seat for the flimsy, thin plastic thing that had just finally broken a bolt (and didn't charge her for it). This is the woman we heard yelling at someone through our connecting wall, and him shouting at her that there NO prophets in the world now! This was shortly after Jack gave her the wonderful Easter Liahona which was all about Christ and the prophets of the restoration. Maybe she's just gonna miss us when we're gone! Well, we will see what happens next, life is a kick isn't it?
We have an appointment, so talk to you later, take care,
Love,
Sister Mom (Joanne)
Friday, November 28, 2008
Scarlet Letter
Hello from Angouleme,
We are busier than ever with all the goings on at the branch. We will have our 1st coun. soon as our branch member was waiting on the Stake Presidency and visa versa. Now I have put the two parties together it should happen during our next visit.
Our Sister Bouchard received her mission call to the Genealogy Mission in Salt Lake and she is as giddy as any young person could ever be. I had the privilege to sign her acceptance letter as is required. To send the first missionary from this branch in decades is a thrill. She will be leaving on Jan. 5, 2009 and we will be moving into her house and paying her rent instead of enriching someone else. She has a big house and we will have plenty of room although we have nothing to complain about where we are now. We will probably rattle around in the new place. She is happy to have someone she can trust to take care of her place.
We are headed to Bordeaux this weekend for Stake Conference and Sunday I will drive a 9 passenger mini bus for the members. The Sat conference will be held in the stake center and on Sunday we will be in a large conference hall. It will be good to take a different route to Bordeaux tomorrow to see some new things since we don't have to be there until the early afternoon.
We have noticed that in France there is a Scarlet Letter. It is displayed on many cars here in our area and I was afraid that the old custom that was around in the colonial days was coming to France. I asked one of the members what it means to go around driving with a large red "A" pasted on the back of a car. He said that it was placed there to warn all the other drivers that these people were potentially dangerous. It signifies that they are amateurs and they have just passed their drivers test. The red "A" will stay on the back of their car for two years instead of the previous one year. We were also told that the police take strict notice of the speed and driving habits of the cars with the red". It is not bad enough for everyone to be on the lookout for you but to have the local police and the national gendarmes looking for you makes it twice as nervous for the new driver.
If the amateur driver gets a ticket during those two years they must pay the $1,500 to take the driver school all over again and go through the process once more. I think that all the young people in our country should thank their lucky stars they don't have that cost and that type of scrutiny.
Joanne is getting things ready for a family here as well as the missionaries to join with us for a thanks giving feast. The family is providing their home and the regular cheese, bread, drinks and veggies but we are bringing turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, apple pie and rice crispy squares. I'm not much help except for peeling what's needed.
Our investigator, Sandra is coming along. There is so much to do to help them put their family life in order, but the family is so willing that it will all take time. They are filling out all the necessary papers to find housing, work, and to get themselves onto the rolls of the French government. They are very anxious to get away from Joao's drinking brother. The brother, parents and our little family all live in the same house. After they get into their own place we will get them married and then finish the teaching of the basics and Sandra will be baptized. It is so great to see her want to follow the principles of Jesus even with all the problems she is facing. All their problems makes our look so small.
We love you and you are always in our prayers. Keep growing in love and especially in the light of Christ.
We are busier than ever with all the goings on at the branch. We will have our 1st coun. soon as our branch member was waiting on the Stake Presidency and visa versa. Now I have put the two parties together it should happen during our next visit.
Our Sister Bouchard received her mission call to the Genealogy Mission in Salt Lake and she is as giddy as any young person could ever be. I had the privilege to sign her acceptance letter as is required. To send the first missionary from this branch in decades is a thrill. She will be leaving on Jan. 5, 2009 and we will be moving into her house and paying her rent instead of enriching someone else. She has a big house and we will have plenty of room although we have nothing to complain about where we are now. We will probably rattle around in the new place. She is happy to have someone she can trust to take care of her place.
We are headed to Bordeaux this weekend for Stake Conference and Sunday I will drive a 9 passenger mini bus for the members. The Sat conference will be held in the stake center and on Sunday we will be in a large conference hall. It will be good to take a different route to Bordeaux tomorrow to see some new things since we don't have to be there until the early afternoon.
We have noticed that in France there is a Scarlet Letter. It is displayed on many cars here in our area and I was afraid that the old custom that was around in the colonial days was coming to France. I asked one of the members what it means to go around driving with a large red "A" pasted on the back of a car. He said that it was placed there to warn all the other drivers that these people were potentially dangerous. It signifies that they are amateurs and they have just passed their drivers test. The red "A" will stay on the back of their car for two years instead of the previous one year. We were also told that the police take strict notice of the speed and driving habits of the cars with the red". It is not bad enough for everyone to be on the lookout for you but to have the local police and the national gendarmes looking for you makes it twice as nervous for the new driver.
If the amateur driver gets a ticket during those two years they must pay the $1,500 to take the driver school all over again and go through the process once more. I think that all the young people in our country should thank their lucky stars they don't have that cost and that type of scrutiny.
Joanne is getting things ready for a family here as well as the missionaries to join with us for a thanks giving feast. The family is providing their home and the regular cheese, bread, drinks and veggies but we are bringing turkey, gravy, mashed potatoes, apple pie and rice crispy squares. I'm not much help except for peeling what's needed.
Our investigator, Sandra is coming along. There is so much to do to help them put their family life in order, but the family is so willing that it will all take time. They are filling out all the necessary papers to find housing, work, and to get themselves onto the rolls of the French government. They are very anxious to get away from Joao's drinking brother. The brother, parents and our little family all live in the same house. After they get into their own place we will get them married and then finish the teaching of the basics and Sandra will be baptized. It is so great to see her want to follow the principles of Jesus even with all the problems she is facing. All their problems makes our look so small.
We love you and you are always in our prayers. Keep growing in love and especially in the light of Christ.
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Hello from France
Hello to all,
Every time Windows decides to change the format of something, it causes havoc with my brain because I am thrown out of the usual and into an area where there is not enough familiarity to wrap my brain around things. I have just spent the better part of two hours figuring this whole thing out so I could send a message. Up to that point, we didn't have time to spend and so no messages went out to everyone.
We have been very busy meeting with the Saints and taking care of the needs of those who are far from the chapel and have no means of keeping in regular contact. It is great to serve those who need the help because of age or sickness. It gives real meaning to the Savior's words,"When you have done it unto the least of these my brethren, you have done it unto me."
I am very pleased to have a counselor now because he is very competent and has a desire to do the work and he is French. It is tough to know all the words and the slight differences in meanings, but to have someone by your side who does makes all the difference in the world. Patrick Humblot is the exact meaning of inspiration.
We are getting ready for our genealogy activity at the branch today and it will be great to introduce the members to the wealth of help that comes with the new program of the church in genealogy. I have worked with New Family Search, and the added new information that is already in the data base is amazing. As you merge duplicates, it adds the new information of others to your line and expands your genealogy family tree most of the time. Since this situation has happened, I have been in contact with others who now see the connections to us and our family.
The members here are excited to have the library back on line. After six months of working, it is exciting for me also. We are now opening up the genealogy library on Thursday afternoon and evening. Joanne and I will take the afternoon session and Patrick will handle the evening session. He has the genealogy bug the way I do. We will use this Internet connection and advertise the genealogy sessions to the people in the city to see what contacts we can make. The Elders have made contact with a single woman from Ethiopia and she is planning to be baptized within a week or two. It is hard to get the final interview process done since we are the furthest city from anywhere. Almost makes you feel you are in Cokeville. Our stake president is 5 hours away and so is the mission home. We are felling like we are out in the frontier.
Joanne and I are still meeting with the Corga family and they are fighting so many problems. No job, having to go back to Portugal to have money sent here, dealing with situations that are foreign to them and not having their own home, makes life pretty tough. We can empathize with them 100%. They are working hard on their stop smoking program, but with others smoking where they live makes it extra hard on them. They are a neat young family that wants the best for their children and they want to be part of the Gospel plan as they see it an advantage to their lives and the lives of their two children.
We are getting ready for stake conference at the end of the month and we will rent a mini-bus to get everyone there for the Sunday session. It will be great for everyone to be there together and to come back having attended as a whole branch, instead of just those who could drive their own cars. We will come back more unified for the experience. The conference will be held in an assembly hall in Bordeaux so there will be enough seats for everyone. The stake center in Bordeaux is not large enough to accommodate this large and spread out stake.
We hope and pray for all of you back home. We are planning many activities for the Christmas holidays here. It seems strange to realize that this will be our second Christmas away from all of you.
Take care and know that we love you all very much.
Tuesday, November 4, 2008
Our Progress
Hello to all,
We have finally made some progress on the Internet connection at the chapel and we now have the link to the church genealogy site. We are back on line and we now can hold our long over due Saturday session and prepare the member and friends on the genealogy program of the church. Our branch 2nd counselor, who is as big a genealogy bug as I am, will be the facilitator. He almost danced a gig today when I told him that everything is connected and ready to go.
We had two church officials come today and while one was doing a full inventory, the other was helping get us connected. He was able to use his laptop and information from the French church headquarters in Thoriy to find that one of the connector boxes had gone dead. He carries spare parts in the van and in no time had the Internet up and running. All the frustration over the last 6 months went down the drain and happiness was the end result.
Our Portuguese family is making some strides. Juan is still looking for work, but with the help of one of our members, he is now signed up and is waiting for the call to go to work. But their friend in Portugal, who was taking care of transferring their mail to France, up and died suddenly last week and their bank account couldn't be accessed from France. Sandra prayed all Monday after not making connections with anyone in Portugal. This morning she got a call from a friend and that friend was able to forward her mail and access the bank. The Lord works in mysterious ways.
We had a great Sunday School lesson with them last Sunday about the Plan of Salvation. This sister drinks in the Gospel as if she was the most thirsty person on earth. Her eyes never leave you as you unfold the scriptures and truths of the plan of Heavenly Father. Today as we took a coffee substitute to her home, she said that because of the loss of her father recently and her husbands brothers all the information made sense; especially the part that all mankind will get to hear the Father's Plan here or in the life to come and will make a choice on whether to accept or reject the commandments of Christ so that when the judgement comes we will all be on equal footing.
They still need to find a place of their own so they can be a family, instead of sharing a house with so many others and having all the distractions that are going on, but as we take the challenges one at a time. With the prayers of all and the help of our Heavenly Father, all will get done.
We had a hard time saying good bye to Elder Giles. He said one day that he cried twice on his mission. Once before he boarded the plane after saying good bye to his mother and once in his first city in France when he had no idea what anyone was saying because they were all speaking so fast. Well, he cried once more as we hugged and I said my farewell to him. He sobbed and said he didn't want to leave. I told him he had to take the next step in his life and that this experience would be a great help to him. I told him that I loved him and that he needed to go home to progress further. I wept also because he was raised without a father and he and I bonded well together. I said to him just before I released him, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."
We have sent two good missionaries home from here and it is rough to spend 6 months with them and then to let them go home. It is different when they continue on their missions because we see them again at Zone Conferences and other situations, but when we send them home it gets tough.
Our new Elder is Elder Green. We have known him before and once he said that he missed peanut butter. The next time we got together we bought him some good American peanut butter and he was in heaven. We will buy him another jar tomorrow and give it to him as a welcoming gift.
Love you all from Angouleme,
Elder Dad & Sister Mom
We have finally made some progress on the Internet connection at the chapel and we now have the link to the church genealogy site. We are back on line and we now can hold our long over due Saturday session and prepare the member and friends on the genealogy program of the church. Our branch 2nd counselor, who is as big a genealogy bug as I am, will be the facilitator. He almost danced a gig today when I told him that everything is connected and ready to go.
We had two church officials come today and while one was doing a full inventory, the other was helping get us connected. He was able to use his laptop and information from the French church headquarters in Thoriy to find that one of the connector boxes had gone dead. He carries spare parts in the van and in no time had the Internet up and running. All the frustration over the last 6 months went down the drain and happiness was the end result.
Our Portuguese family is making some strides. Juan is still looking for work, but with the help of one of our members, he is now signed up and is waiting for the call to go to work. But their friend in Portugal, who was taking care of transferring their mail to France, up and died suddenly last week and their bank account couldn't be accessed from France. Sandra prayed all Monday after not making connections with anyone in Portugal. This morning she got a call from a friend and that friend was able to forward her mail and access the bank. The Lord works in mysterious ways.
We had a great Sunday School lesson with them last Sunday about the Plan of Salvation. This sister drinks in the Gospel as if she was the most thirsty person on earth. Her eyes never leave you as you unfold the scriptures and truths of the plan of Heavenly Father. Today as we took a coffee substitute to her home, she said that because of the loss of her father recently and her husbands brothers all the information made sense; especially the part that all mankind will get to hear the Father's Plan here or in the life to come and will make a choice on whether to accept or reject the commandments of Christ so that when the judgement comes we will all be on equal footing.
They still need to find a place of their own so they can be a family, instead of sharing a house with so many others and having all the distractions that are going on, but as we take the challenges one at a time. With the prayers of all and the help of our Heavenly Father, all will get done.
We had a hard time saying good bye to Elder Giles. He said one day that he cried twice on his mission. Once before he boarded the plane after saying good bye to his mother and once in his first city in France when he had no idea what anyone was saying because they were all speaking so fast. Well, he cried once more as we hugged and I said my farewell to him. He sobbed and said he didn't want to leave. I told him he had to take the next step in his life and that this experience would be a great help to him. I told him that I loved him and that he needed to go home to progress further. I wept also because he was raised without a father and he and I bonded well together. I said to him just before I released him, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant."
We have sent two good missionaries home from here and it is rough to spend 6 months with them and then to let them go home. It is different when they continue on their missions because we see them again at Zone Conferences and other situations, but when we send them home it gets tough.
Our new Elder is Elder Green. We have known him before and once he said that he missed peanut butter. The next time we got together we bought him some good American peanut butter and he was in heaven. We will buy him another jar tomorrow and give it to him as a welcoming gift.
Love you all from Angouleme,
Elder Dad & Sister Mom
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)