Two More Temples

30 June 2018

As I post this, we are spending a few days in southern Utah. Sister Marlene Bollinger, our friend who recently left the mission we’re in, has kindly offered to put us up at her home in Enterprise for the weekend.

Yesterday we went with her to the Cedar City Temple (beautiful!) and today we’re going to the St. George, UT Temple! We’re excited that we got permission to travel outside our mission boundaries to attend these two temples — and to connect with friends.

Jim and Mary Mowrer are meeting us to do some sealings at the St. George Temple, today, then we’ll go to lunch and see some sites with them. The Mowrers moved to St. George last year, and it’s been quite a few years since the last time we saw them – so, we’re happy that this trip includes some time catching up with them. We’ve lived in, and, been in the same wards with them, in Texas, Indiana, and North Carolina.

This past Tuesday, our zone had a farewell dinner at the home of Elder and Sister Hinckley. Besides us, there are four others leaving our zone/mission within the next month, so they honored all six of us. The Hinckley’s have a lovely home, and we had a great evening. We look forward to going home, but it is bittersweet to leave all the dear people we serve with here!

​Sister Barry presented Bob with a homemade "brief" case.

Elder Blamires presented me with our real gift - a certificate made by Sister Blamires.

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We love our cute certificate. Sister Blamires said her daughter helped design it.

We’re starting to get the hang of our Wiki projects and are feeling like we know a little more about what we’re supposed to be doing, now. 😉

Because of my broken leg, and even though it’s healing well, we decided to hire someone to do a move-out clean of the apartment for us. (Just before we leave.) A lot of the missionaries here live within a few hours' drive, so they make multiple trips back home with all their stuff. This mission has taught me that I really don’t need some of the stuff I thought I needed. We just have to leave it behind now that we're going because there's no room to take it with us. (And that's with mailing several boxes home ahead of us.) I think we can make do with a lot less the next time around.

Tomorrow is July!! Woohoo!! We are officially in the final month of our mission. Not that we’re counting down the days or anything. . . ☺

Gardens and Festivals

23 June 2018

It’s hard to believe we’re more than half way through the month of June. We’ve started doing a little packing and clearing out of things – preparing for going home the end of next month.

We traded work spaces with the new zone leaders this week and now have brand new assignments we’re working on as well. It’s odd to be learning how to do something entirely different so late in our mission. We’re editing articles and checking links, etc. on some of the FamilySearch Research Wiki pages, so it’s kind of interesting.

We had a great Mission Conference this week with Elder Craig Christensen and his wife. Part of what they shared had to do with what a transformative conversion experience translating the Book of Mormon was for Joseph Smith. 

It’s been a real treat to serve in a place where we have so many opportunities to hear directly from many of our Church leaders.

Last Saturday we finally made it to the Red Butte Garden, here in SLC, and it was beautiful! Fortunately, they had carts that were available for people like me, who can't walk too far, so we got to see most of the garden. Plus, right now, they have a special Lego exhibit. In various places around the garden there are larger-than-life creatures made from Legos.

 

(There is both a snake and a mouse in the last one, but it’s hard to see the mouse.)

It’s a beautiful and tranquil garden, interspersed with giant Lego creatures. What's not to love?!

Later today, we’re meeting up with Loren and Lillemor Hubbard and going to the Annual Swedish Heritage Sommerfest celebration in Jordan Park (here in Salt Lake City.) Should be lots of fun. (Lillemor was born and raised in Sweden and came to the U.S. when she was in her 20s. Loren served a mission in Sweden, and they met while he was there.) One of their sons, Christopher, and his family, are in the Sunset Lake Ward at home – and they introduced us to his parents before we came on our mission. Currently, Loren and Lillemor are working on a side business making and bottling their own Swedish-style soft drinks. They'll have a booth at the festival, today.

We continue to say good-bye to other missionaries we've come to know here, who are heading home at the end of their missions. It's been a joy to get to know them. The world is full of people with such a variety of backgrounds, talents and interests!!

Looking forward to seeing friends and family when we go home next month!

Big Changes

16 June 2018

There were two big changes this week: On Tuesday, June 12, Bob and I were released as the zone leaders of the Digital Imaging Processing Zone in our mission. This kind of change is always bittersweet – but the new zone leaders, Elder and Sister Chin, will be wonderful. We have grown to love each missionary in our zone . . . and this moves us one step closer to saying a final farewell to everyone when our mission ends next month.

And, the other big change is that my physical therapist transitioned me from a walker to a cane this week! I’m happy for this change, and at the same time, still a bit wobbly. I definitely don’t feel as stable with a cane as I did with the walker. But, it’s good to be at this point. Perhaps it won’t be too much longer until I’m walking on my own, again, without any assistive devices.

There are six missionaries going home from our zone by the end of July, so we’re having a combined June/July farewell social on the 26th of this month. Elder and Sister Hinckley have kindly offered to host all of us in their home. It will be a “mostly” pot luck dinner in the evening. (Usually we just schedule a conference room for an hour or so during the day, share some treats, and bid farewell to those who are leaving us – so the location for this one makes it extra special.)

We serve with such dear, sweet people!!

Elder and Sister Cooper, from Pittsboro, NC, who are serving here in this mission with us, (and who I served in the Raleigh Temple with) spoke in sacrament meeting this past Sunday, and I’ve been reflecting on their words all week. Their topic was “ministering” and they both gave us some good things to ponder. Sister Cooper was kind enough to share her talk with me, and I want to pass along just a little of what she said.

She referenced this painting (above), which hangs in the MTC in Provo, and is also on page 132 of the May Ensign – and she talked about the difference between a shepherd and a sheep herder. You can see in this painting that this shepherd is standing quietly in the meadow while the sheep are moving toward him. He knows each of his sheep. And, they know him (they know his voice), and feel safe with him. They are drawn to him and follow him without compulsion.

A sheep herder, on the other hand, “pushes” the sheep from behind. Force (sometimes in the form of barking, snarling dogs) is used to compel the sheep to go where the herder wants them.

Clearly, the example set by the Savior is that of the Good Shepherd who draws us to him without force. Sister Cooper made the point that the ministering program of the Church offers each of us an opportunity to be true “under-shepherds” as we follow the Savior’s example. We can invite others – not to follow us, but, to follow us to the Shepherd.

She also made some great analogies from Psalm 23, but, perhaps I can share those another time.

Follow the Prophet

9 June 2018

I was able to go into the office for a couple of hours this week and tie up a few loose ends. I might be able to go in more next week – possibly ½ days, most days. Have to take it a day at a time, though.

I heard good news from my orthopedic surgeon, Dr. Hunter, on Thursday. My staples were removed, and more x-rays were taken, and he said, “You’re a really good healer!” (I think credit goes to the Word of Wisdom for that!) Everything is healing just the way they want it to, and I go back to see him in a month. In the meantime, I’ll continue with at-home physical therapy, and will transfer to out-patient physical therapy at some point - maybe in a couple of weeks. The big goal now is to get my leg strong enough so that I can transition from using a walker to using a cane.

We’ve seen several people posting that they’re doing the social media fast President Nelson challenged all the youth to do. His talk at the special fireside last weekend was wonderful! I liked this graphic that someone made to sum up the challenges he presented to the youth of the Church:

Several years ago, Bob and I took a trip that ended up including a (non-intentional) two-week media fast (not just social media, but TV, etc. as well). It was amazing to experience how much more creative and aware I felt after that time away from it. We just don’t realize how much of our thinking and doing is influenced by “other” voices – and not necessarily in the best ways. It’s good to be aware, and to choose for ourselves the things we most want in our minds and in our hearts. (Ties right in with the counsel many prophets have given to read The Book of Mormon every day.)

We’re getting very excited to be back in NC soon!