Christmas Time and Family Time

Sunday, December 22, 2013

December has been an unusual month, partly due to the weather, partly due to the long drive to Lexington Park each day for our visits, and partly due to the season which has added some opportunities for activities and service.  We started out last week with a trip to the Washington, D.C. Temple Visitor's Center on Monday night to see the Christmas lights and attend a concert of two LDS performers, violinist Jenny Oaks Baker (who is Apostle Elder Dallin Oak's daughter) and Irish vocalist Alex Sharpe who used to be a member of the musical ensemble Celtic Woman.  It was well worth the trip, and Sister Boone and I both enjoyed the evening.

Tuesday and Wednesday we made more visits in Lexington Park and attended the Wednesday evening knitting class.  We have had two sisters in the wards, one in White Plains 1st Ward and one in Lexington Park Ward, who both lost their husbands to cancer around Thanksgiving.  We have not had a chance to visit Sister Pauole, but we visited with Sister Pratt this week.  We do the best we can to support them in their time of loss.  The best thing we can do is just be there for them and let them do most of the talking as they work through their grief.  It is a little painful in a way to visit with them because it brings back memories of Verlin's passing, but it is comforting to be able to testify that time will heal.

Thursday we went to the Temple, and Friday we helped the same group who put together the food baskets for Thanksgiving, this time filling Christmas baskets for the needy.  The temperature on Friday (the day before the official first day of winter) was much milder than on Thanksgiving.  I think the high temperature Friday was about 65 degrees.  On Saturday, the first day of winter, it was a sunny but breezy 70 plus a few degrees.  This morning the temperature reached 74 degrees before it started to rain and cool down.  57 degrees for a low is not too bad though.  It has certainly been a sharp contrast to what I usually see in Utah in December.

My highlight for the week came Saturday afternoon when I had the opportunity to join my family via Google Hangout and visit with them for about an hour (minus the lost time due to technical difficulties) while they had the annual Hatch Christmas party at Ammon and Abby's house.  I regret not being able to talk to Heidi, Alvin, and Anson's families, who were not there.  The connection was slow for a while and we had to disconnect a few times to try and improve the communication.  In so doing, I lost focus on the fact that I was going to try and invite them to join our hangout.  But I got to say hi to the rest and also congratulate Parker on being baptized earlier in the day.  Most of Melissa's side of the family were able to attend the baptism, which was held in the American Fork East Stake Center.  They also gave Levi a name and blessing at the same meeting.  It was fun to see everyone that was at Ammon's.  Each of the grandkids took a turn at the computer screen so I could see their cute faces and talk to them.  As I blew them kisses and caught theirs in return, it was almost as good as being there with them—almost.  Another plus for me, being around so many people during flu and cold season is a good way to get sick as we have proven from Christmases past.  This year I am pretty confident that I will not get sick as a result of "attending" the Hatch family party.  Thanks for continuing the tradition of the Christmas gathering.  What a wonderful, blessed time of year!

The life size outdoor creche at the Visitors Center.

Don't you love the camels?!

Here's hoping you will do as President Monson admonished and keep the Spirit of Christ in your Christmas celebrations.

The Christus reflected in the window as we stood inside the Visitors Center and looked out towards the temple.

Merry Christmas everyone!

The Worth of Souls

Sunday, December 15, 2013

One of the scriptures I committed to memory this week is D&C 18:10, 15, 16.  "Remember the worth of souls is great in the sight of God.  And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father.  And now if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the kingdom of my Father, how great will be your joy if you should bring many souls unto me!"

Monday was our planning day to prepare for our visits of the rest of the week.  We were not able to work on Tuesday due to continued bad weather.  But we scheduled appointments for Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday and chose to attend the Temple on Saturday so we could get in more visits this week.  It has been very nice that Sister Boone is familiar with the Lexington Park area and knows many of the sisters.  Having worked there for five months before I got here, she was able to fill our days with appointments with a few active sisters and several that she tried to visit often when she was here before.  There were single sisters, widows, a sister whose husband is not a member, and some with health issues that prevented them from being more active in attending their meetings.  Even though their situations are different, they have something in common with all mankind.  They have a need to love and be loved.  They all appreciate visits from us.  They all need to be reminded that they are beloved daughters of Heavenly parents.

Part way through our second day, we went to visit Rosie.  When we knocked on her door, she called out "who's there?"  Sister Boone told her it was the sister missionaries, and she opened the door for us.  She invited us in and apologized that her house wasn't cleaner.  Sister Boone had warned me that she was a hoarder, but I had forgotten.  She moved a few things to clear a path to the couch and tried to clear a spot for us to sit down on the couch where she had been huddled under a thin blanket before we arrived.  The room was lit with a single light bulb.  The house was cold as ice and so were her hands.  She was wearing several layers of shirts, a sweater, a thin coat and knee-length sweat pants.  She wore a knitted head band over her wispy white hair.  When we commented on how cold her hands felt to us, she explained that she refused to pay her fuel bill because she felt they cheated her when they delivered the last tank of fuel.  She said they only pretended to fill the tank and charged her for a full tank.  So she lives without fuel.  Her face and hands show signs of a hard life.  She is from Vietnam, but had married an American.  He has since left her.  Her children no longer come around.  She said material things do not matter to her.  If someone wants something she will give it to them.  At the same time she lives with the assumption that others are out to steal things from her or cheat her.  When we later expressed our concerns about her to the Relief Society president, she told us that Rosie is a very independent woman.  They try to take care of her, but they have to be careful that they do not make her feel like they are meddling in her affairs or she quits coming to church.

We sat and visited her for quite a while, though she did most of the talking.  Her strong accent made it very difficult to understand, and at times I thought she had slipped back into speaking her native tongue instead of English.  I was touched by the feeling I had in my heart the first time I saw her smile.  Her smile brought light and warmth into the room, and she looked young and beautiful.  I was reminded that she too is a beloved daughter of a loving Heavenly Father who knows and loves her.

Senior Missionary Outing to the Kennedy Center

December 8, 2013

Sister Boone and I decided that we would finally participate in one of the Senior Missionary excursions.  Yesterday we went to Washington, D.C. to tour the Kennedy Center.  The tour was set for 11:00.  We could either drive to the Branch Avenue Metro stop and pay about $10 each to ride the Metro to Foggy Bottom and then take a free shuttle over to the Kennedy Center, or we could drive to the Kennedy Center and pay $22 for parking.  We decided to drive.  That was an easy choice for me because it is Sister Boone's turn to drive this month.  She has driven into D.C. with her brother and daughter a few times now and felt more comfortable driving there.  We arrived about 10:50, with only a couple of detours, one because of construction and the other because we missed our turn. 

We started the tour a few minutes late as we waited for a couple of people to join us.  We started in the Hall of Nations and then planned to proceed from there to the various concert sites.  There was the large Concert Hall, the Opera House, the Eisenhower Theater, and the Terrace Theater.  Each of the lobbies displayed gifts of art from countries around the world.  Before we could see even one of the areas, we were told that those areas were closed for our safety while crews were setting up for later events of the weekend.  She tried to tell us what beautiful views we were missing out on, but this was no consolation.  We turned to go to the only place we could see that morning, the terrace, which we were excited to do.  But when we walked past the desk where the tours began on our way to the terrace, our guide was informed that the terrace was also closed now.  She offered her sincere apology and invited us to come back another day, which we probably will not do.  We saw the only things that remained open for the public--the gift shops--and then headed to lunch.

We got on the shuttle bus to the Foggy Bottom Metro stop and across the street to Roti Mediterranean Grill.  The grill has a stand-in-line type of service similar to Café Rio or Subway.  They did not have enough hot and ready food to feed our group of 21, so some of us had to wait while they cooked up more meat and fill our orders.  For me, this little shop was reminiscent of the one where Alex took Verlin and I to eat doner kebabs almost seven Christmases ago when we were in Frankfurt in 2006.

After we ate, Sister Boone and I said goodbye to the others and returned via shuttle to the parking garage at the Center and headed home.  We tried very hard to follow the GPS closely to get out of unfamiliar territory and onto the highway that we are familiar with from our weekly trips to the temple.  We almost made it without incident.  At one point, we drove onto the freeway ramp on the left side of the ramp and found out when we merged that we had only 2/10 of a mile to move to the right and exit again.  Sister Boone slowed down almost to a stop to wait for passing cars to let her in and then she shot across the last two lanes and off the freeway.  We proceeded on to the next stretch thankful and surprised that we had made it.  A few seconds later, we heard a woman's voice behind us over a loud speaker saying "That was a smooth move."  We looked around to see where the voice was coming from.  Where did that voice come from and was she talking to us was the question of the day.  Sister Boone looked in her side view mirror and noticed what appeared to be an unmarked police vehicle behind us.  We mused about what kind of woman it would take to be a tough female Washington, D.C. detective; obviously one with some grit--and a sense of humor.  A few minutes later, she pulled into the lane to our left and passed us.  Sister Boone pulled in behind her, and her lights went on for just a couple seconds.  100 feet later, she turned off the road to go the other direction.  Was she sending us a warning to be careful or giving us her version of the high five for Sister Boone's "smooth move"?  Sister Boone said that Heavenly Father really knew her well and had compassion on her by assigning her to work in Southern Maryland instead of the metro area where traffic is crazy.  She added that sometimes she is sure that he is having a good laugh at our expense.  She makes me laugh too.

Sometime Saturday night a storm began to make its way across Maryland.  We weren't sure whether we should risk driving an hour south to Lexington Park for church, since there was a winter storm advisory against travel due to freezing rain and snowy conditions.  We decided that we would wait until 12:00 to make a decision.  If it seemed too bad we would just go to church in White Plains.  It looked like it wasn't that bad, so we got on our boots and grabbed our gloves and umbrellas and left the apartment.  When we got to the car and Sister Boone started to clean the windows, we realized that the rain was already freezing on the car and would soon be freezing on the roads as well.  So we returned to our apartment and waited another 45 minutes and headed back out to go to White Plains 1:00 meeting.  As we approached the road out of our parking lot, Sister Boone applied the brakes and the anti-lock brakes kicked in as we skidded to a stop.  We drove at a turtle's pace to the church and arrived about 1:05.  There were only four cars in the parking lot.  It appeared that a few others had been parked there for a little while because they had less snow than the rest of the parking lot.  I guess they forgot to send us the memo about canceling church.  We drove back home and spent the day in our apartment.  I read scriptures, the Ensign, watched videos on lds.org and we watched Music and the Spoken Word.  We later also watched the First Presidency Christmas Devotional this evening to help it feel a little more like Sunday.  Tomorrow we will do some planning and hopefully get back to work on Tuesday after a long break from our visits. We are both anxious to be engaged in the work once more.

Week of Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving Day, Thursday, November 28, 2013

We started out this week, on Monday, the 25th helping with a Community Outreach service project preparing holiday food baskets for the needy.  It was a beautiful, sunny day, but the temperature was quite chilly.  Even though we were in a building, the doors were opened all the time as pallets and cases of food were hauled in for us to sort and distribute into shopping bags.  I started out wearing gloves but threw those in the car once they got too soiled and wet to do me any good.  By noon, we had sorted all of the food and filled all of the bags that were available.  More people came to volunteer their service, and everyone was just standing around waiting for more bags to arrive, so Sister Boone and I decided to go home a little early.

Since we could not do our regular Thursday Temple Day we decided to attend the Temple on Tuesday.  Monday night a storm began to move through the area and we drove to and from the temple in pretty heavy rain.  Wednesday we drove back to the Temple (still raining) to be at the Visitors Center for the annual Mission picture.  They took the picture following the transfer/farewell meeting.  12 elders were going home (one had already gone to catch his plane), and they each had the opportunity to bear their testimonies at the end of the meeting.

Then we went upstairs and gathered together for the mission picture.  Hopefully we will get a copy of the picture.  I am interested in seeing how it turns out.  There were about 220 people in the picture so the photographer took some wide-angle shots, then used a narrower lens and took several pictures (about 20) that he will edit and "stitch" together to make one big picture.  He told everyone they would have to find the best position that allowed their full face to show and then not move or talk until he had taken all of the pictures so that he could connect the faces from one frame to the next.  Do you think it is possible for 190 young missionaries to not move or talk for ten minutes?  It didn't happen.  Hopefully photo shop will do the job.

As we left the Visitors Center, I took a few pictures of the trees with Christmas lights on them.  We will be working at the Visitors Center three days in December during the Festival of Lights, but it probably won't be much darker than it was this rainy day to get better pictures of the lights.

We had one last appointment in Waldorf that afternoon before our Thanksgiving holiday break.  This was our final visit in White Plains 2nd Ward for the time being.  We had an appointment with the new Ward Relief Society President, but she was not the President when we set the appointment the previous week.  She was just sustained on Sunday, the 17th.  That evening she received a call from the Bishop about a sister in the Ward who incidentally we had been trying to visit but could not find at home.  The reason was that she was in the hospital.  They did not think it was too serious, although she did have pulmonary problems.  The following day things took a turn for the worse.  That was the day we stopped by her house and left a card to let her know we had been there.  That evening she passed away, so we never did get the opportunity to meet her.  She told the Bishop that she did not want to be alone when she died, so the Bishop and his wife, the High Priest Group Leader and his wife, and the Relief Society President were there for her in her final hours.  So Sister Michela started out her first week as RS President helping with funeral arrangements for this member of the ward.  We had a good visit with Sister Michela and told her that we felt confident she was going to do a wonderful job in her new calling.  We let her know what sisters we had been working with and told her a few that we hoped she or others in the ward would continue to visit.

Sister Boone's daughter, Deana flew in on Thanksgiving Day for a visit and I drove to Heidi's to spend Thanksgiving Day and the weekend with her family.  As Alex was also planning on going to Heidi's, I called him as I left the gas station to see if he was on his way and how the weather was.  I was driving in rain and slush, but the roads weren't bad.  Alex had decided that they would not be coming after all.  Reed got sick Wednesday morning with flu-like symptoms and had not improved enough for them to feel good about going.  They were going to see how he was doing in the morning and possibly still come.  Instead they spent Thanksgiving with another couple in the ward who had their travel plans thwarted by the bad weather conditions for their journey.  We were sad that we were not able to see them, but I am glad that they didn't have to drive in rain/snow and icy roads.

I enjoyed spending time with Heidi's family and eating a delicious meal that Heidi and Bryce had worked long and hard to prepare.  I ended up staying with them until the following Wednesday since Sister Boone's daughter was not leaving until Thursday Dec. 5th.  We drove to DC on Friday and visited the Smithsonian Air and Space Museum again so Isaiah could show Bryce the discoveries we had made on our first visit there.  With some persistence, Heidi was able to accomplish a few items on her To Do List such as hanging some Christmas lights on the house.  She started out working on her own but decided that she needed some help with the ladder so she sent Isaiah in to get me.  I went out and saw that she had her handy dandy, heavy-duty, (I mean VERY heavy) ladder extended to its fullest limit (maybe 18 feet) and was trying to set it up against the upper story roof (probably about 20 feet in the air).  I am surprised that we did not let it fall through a window while we tried extremely hard to situate it in the bushes so that we could get close enough for it to stand up against the house.  I finally convinced her that it was just too short and we would probably not be able to put lights on the upper roof.  Once I talked her out of trying to go around to the back deck and setting the ladder up there so she could get on the upper roof and hang over the edge to put on the lights, she opted instead to string them across the soffit of the main level; not nearly as impressive but in my mind much safer.  It looked very nice when she finally finished hanging them and found all of the burned out or loose bulbs so that all of the strands were lit.

When I came home after a week at Heidi's, she sent me with a small set of trees and a table cover that I could use to put up a Christmas tree in my apartment.  Sister Boone had already purchased a small tree and set it up in the living room.  She placed little porcelain snowmen on it and it looked so charming.  I just didn't think she would appreciate my homemade ornaments on her tree.  I didn't really have any idea what I was going to do about a tree, but I knew that I needed to display my little menagerie of Christmas ornaments that the kids had made last Christmas.  I am so grateful that Teresa had the foresight to suggest the ornament exchange last year.  When she proposed her idea, I don't think she knew that it would be my last Christmas with the family for a couple of years, and I was going to need something to keep them close to my heart while we were separated by hundreds or thousands of miles.  Thanks, Heidi for the loan of your little trio of trees.  They look so cozy in my room, and Sister Boone told me they look very lovely.

I must confess I am not much of a decorator.  I was grateful to have my husband and children help me with the decorating for the first 36 years or so.  There were a few years there when we were first married that we didn't really worry about setting up a tree when we traveled to San Jose or Montana for Christmas.  And I truly believe this is the first time I have ever decorated a tree all by myself.  It took me several attempts at hanging the ribbon and ornaments before I found something that was satisfying to me.  I took many pictures of it trying to give you a small glimpse of the warmth that it brings into my home far from home.  Oh, what would I do without my family?  I treasure these ornaments that remind me of you.

A Change of Course

November 20, 2013

Monday evening, the 11th, we went to the Stake RS President, Sister Ramon's house for dinner because she wanted to talk to us about how things were going.  She asked us how we would feel about cutting our assignment short with White Plains 1st and 2nd Wards and go back to the Lexington Park Ward where Sister Boone had previously served.  She asked us to think about it and pray about it and she would talk to us again, but that is kind of the direction she is leaning.  She had previously said she would look at sending us there in February, but Sister Boone will be going home shortly thereafter.  Now she wants us to go back beginning in December.  Personally, although I feel like we are just now getting to know and love many of the sisters in these two wards and it will be hard to leave them now, I also think it would be good to get acquainted with the Lexington Park Ward while Sister Boone is still here with me.  She has kind of mixed feelings about it.  She said it was hard to say good bye to the sisters there after working with them for five months, so she would love to be with them again, but at the same time she will have to go through the difficulty of saying good bye all over again.  So now we are trying to decide which sisters we want to see one more time before we are reassigned.  I am afraid that some of them we may not get to see because we have had a difficult time so far finding a time when they are home.

As we have made our appointments this week, I have come to realize that there are many sisters in these wards that I have become very fond of and I am going to miss them.  I didn't even get a chance to take pictures of these friends to keep in my journal, but perhaps I will be able to serve here again next year and see them again.

We have tried to fill our last days of November with meaningful visits and have enjoyed each appointment.  It has been fulfilling to look back and see that there really are some sisters who have made an improvement in their lives and in their church activity since our first visits with them.  Jennifer has been to sacrament meeting every Sunday this month since she made that commitment to her son the first of November.  I think she has talked with the Primary President and Bishop about his baptism.  Wanda has come from a very discouraging, depressing state, in poor health and with no job prospects to where she has now been able to get a partial-tuition grant and get accepted into a program to get an EKG technician certificate.  We invited her to lunch today along with Shelly, a sister in the other ward who is her very good friend and former nursing associate.  Going to lunch with the girls is out of the normal comfort range for both Sis. Boone and me, but I felt it was important to offer this invitation to both of them.  I am glad that we went.  Wanda said she finally feels like there is light at the end of the tunnel.  I think her continued association with Shelly will be good for her also because Shelly has gone through and is still going through some very hard times with health, family, and employment problems similar to Wanda's.  But with much effort, Shelly is working through things.  Her church and temple attendance has been a significant part of her growth and helps her with the desire to keep going and keep trying.  I am hopeful that with Shelly's encouragement Wanda will come back to church.  And Wanda is now being a friend to Shelly as well, trying to help her get into the same EKG training program.  That is where the lasting support is found, not necessarily from the missionaries who are only temporary but from members fellowshipping and loving each other.

I don't know that our visits with these sisters have necessarily made the difference, but I know for sure that the Spirit working in their lives has made a difference.  I am grateful to be a witness of the Lord's love and goodness and to recognize that He really does care about each of his children.  He knows us by name, and He loves us.  I know this to be true.

Mission-Wide Conference

November 15, 2013

The conference call with President Cooke gave me something to look forward to for the next week, as the following Friday, November 15th was a Mission-wide conference with Elder Craig Zwick from the Quorum of the Seventy presiding at that all-day event.

Sister Boone's brother and his wife came to town on Tuesday evening and visited with her until Sunday, the 17th.  This left me finding things to do during the week so that I could feel somewhat productive.  Since Sis. Boone was not sure if we could do our usual Thursday temple trip, I decided to go to the temple on Wednesday.  I invited another sister to go with me, but she could not go so I went alone.  It turned out that Sister Boone and her brother and sister-in-law went to a session on Thursday, but they stayed up north and did a little sightseeing as well, so I am glad I didn't try to tag along.  I asked Heidi if they wanted to go to the temple one evening this week since I would have time to babysit, but that didn't work out so we will try again later.

Friday, I again drove up to the temple to attend the Mission Conference, which was held in the Visitors Center at the Temple.  It was a wonderful day.  The meeting began with a reception line to allow each of the missionaries in attendance to shake hands with Elder and Sister Zwick, President and Sister Cooke, and Elder and Sister Harden Eyring (Pres. Henry B. Eyring's brother).  Elder Zwick said when I shook his hand, "Sister Hatch, I remember when your papers came through in Salt Lake."  I didn't take the time to ask him what or why he remembered, but it was nice to know that he did remember.

  Elder Zwick (behind blonde sister missionary), Sister Zwick in pink, President Cooke and his wife (Center), and Elder and Sister Eyring on right.

 Elder Zwick (on left side) greeting the young Elders, Pres. Cooke (hidden) and his wife, and Elder and Sister Eyring on the right.

Elder Zwick told us that our mission calls came from a Prophet and our assignments came from the apostles.  This follows the pattern that was laid out in the Doctrine & Covenants section 112.  They spend many hours each week reviewing all of the applications and making assignments as directed by the Spirit.

Verses 21 and 22 say those they (the Twelve) call "shall have power to open the door of my kingdom unto any nation whithersoever ye shall send them---inasmuch as they (meaning me) shall humble themselves before me, and abide in my word, and hearken to the voice of my Spirit."

The following are a few notes to help me remember the discussions throughout the day.  Elder and Sister Zwick both spoke to us as well as Pres. and Sister Cooke and Elder and Sister Eyring.

Elder Zwick:

·         What am I willing to do differently?

o   I will teach principles the same way I learn them (by the Spirit).

o   Obedience is the first law of Heaven.

o   Simplify and Intensify your teaching.

§  Companion 1:  Choose a principle from Preach My Gospel

§  Companion 2:  Give an example to illustrate the application of the principle (an anecdote or story) and then testify.

§  Companion 1:  Support the principle with a scripture and testify.

o   D&C 84:85  Treasure up…the words of life, and it shall be given you in the very hour

·         Preach My Gospel and the scriptures are all the teaching tools we need to be effective missionaries.

Sister Cooke:

·         Repentance

o   We have a genetic code from Heavenly Father that gives us power to overcome temptation.

o   As we repent daily we can change and have strengthened ability to be more in harmony with Christ's teaching.

President Cooke:

·         President Lincoln said we can't escape history, we are in it.

·         We are in the history of hastening the work of salvation.

·         Compare the work to an ocean wave.  The goal of a surfer is to catch the wave and ride it as far as you can.  Associated with the wave is the rip current and the undertow.  The rip current pulls back out into the sea.  The undertow is the force that pulls out when the wave recedes and then comes back in again on the next wave, keeping the wave going.  (I think this is how he explained this phenomenon.)  Anyway, he encouraged the missionaries to be the constant undertow to keep the wave going or keep the momentum going in hastening the work of salvation.

·         Preach My Gospel Page 115—How Do I Develop Christlike Attributes?

o   Be an example to the wards to bring the spirit of Christ.

o   Matthew 4:19 says "And he sayeth unto them, Follow me and I will make you fishers of men."

o   Mark 1:17 says "And Jesus said unto them, Come ye after me, and I will make you to become fishers of men."

o   Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5:16 says "Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father which is in heaven."

Sister Zwick:

Two desires:

·         That the Spirit may teach us both individually and collectively.

·         That we may learn and be able to understand what the Lord wants us to do.

·         My right and privilege as a representative of Jesus Christ is indicated in Mark 4:16-17.  I will make you to become fishers of men indicates a scripture of action.  We will become fishers of men line upon line, precept upon precept—daily spiritual growth.

·         Steps to becoming:

o   Faith—Don't limit yourself by what you think is your capacity.  Let the Lord define and expand your capacity and He will.

o   Obedience.  2 Nephi 31: Press forward with steadfastness in Christ.

o   Act on personal revelation.

Lunch at the Stake Center next door.

Enjoying a lovely lunch of Chicken Parmesan, mashed potatoes and gravy, vegetables, rolls, and cake.

 We sang happy birthday to the missionaries with birthdays in October, November, and December

 Time to wrap it up and head back to the Visitors Center...

 ...and 5 minutes later the room looked like this...many hands make light work.

 Elder and Sister Zwick visiting with Sister Dutton.

Genuine representatives of the Savior.

Afternoon Session:

Sister Eyring:  Obedience is the 1st Law of Heaven.  It was this law that allowed Christ to give His life for us.

Elder Eyring:

·         Remind the Bishops and Ward Councils about the power and influence of the Temple Visitors Center in teaching the people.  Challenge them to come here and bring investigators here (to the Visitors Center).

·         Remember the strength of the Prophets and what they knew.  Mosiah 8:17-18.  They (the things the prophets reveal) are the means that man, through faith, might work mighty miracles.

·         Trust.  Don't look back, look forward with trust.

Elder Zwick:  Am I Willing?

·         The mission will only be as strong as its weakest servant.

·         Elder Zwick helped build the 1st chapel in Bolivia.  Four elders working in three small cities for 17 months prepared the people so they could have a branch established there and have a chapel.

·         To keep spiritual growth going

o   Fast and Pray

o   Goals- Write down some things you can do

o   Pray that Heavenly Father will accept your very best

o   Repent when you don't do your very best

o   Meaningful companionship study

o   Continue to look like a missionary (even after you get home)

o   Keep the routine of a missionary

§  More scripture study

§  Learn compatibility with companion

§  Have a schedule

§  Prayer

§  Rely on others

§  Preach My Gospel as your guide

·         Earned Trust:  Levels of growth:

o   MTC level of understanding

o   Missionary Routine

o   Obedience

o   Exact Obedience

o   Know That We Know

o   Treasure Up—Growth is equal to dependence on the Lord

·         Helaman 5:4 The strongest building that can weather the storms has a strong foundation

·         The Law of Sacrifice for full-time missionaries is perfect use of the Lord's time.

·         Omni 1:26  Come unto Christ—Partake of salvation—Offer your soul—fast and pray—endure to the end.

A view of the temple at the close of the conference.

Not the Normal Routine

Nov 7-8, 2013

The Temple and "Homemaking Night" 

We took a sister from White Plains 2nd Ward with us to the temple on the 7th.  It was fun to get to know her a little better on our hour drive.  That night we attended White Plains 1st Ward's weeknight Relief Society meeting or whatever title they give that meeting these days, which we had signed up for the previous month when we were working with their ward.  Sister Boone made a holiday jar and I attended the crème brulee (burnt cream) class.  I don't know what interested the sisters more, tasting this heart-stopping custard (ingredients heavy cream, egg yolks, and sugar) or playing with the torch to burn the sugar on top prior to eating it.  When I got home, I looked up the nutritional information and confirmed my suspicions; this is not something I want to become addicted to.  A 1/2-cup ramekin (custard cup) contains about 400 calories, 19 grams of saturated fat and 285 mg of cholesterol (calculations varied by source).

Conference Call With Pres. Cooke

How We can Hasten The Work

Sister Boone and I left before Homemaking meeting ended so that we could be home in time to call in for another conference call with President Cooke and the other senior missionaries.  He told us about the Washington D.C. North Mission's increased focus on "hastening the work of salvation".  I feel like we are living in a historic time as far as missionary work is concerned.

A few months ago (just a short while before I left for my mission) a special broadcast (Hastening the Work of Salvation) by the Church was presented in which our leaders shared with us how each one of us could take part in this important work to share the gospel message with the whole world.  Pres. Uchtdorf said "There is a way for everyone…to participate in this great work.  We can each find a way to use our own particular talents and interest in support of the great work of filling the world with light and truth." 

This broadcast explained the responsibilities on different levels for the ward leaders, stake leaders, and missionaries and how they work together as one.  Here are a couple of quotes.

"Stake presidents and bishops exercise priesthood keys for missionary work in their units. Mission presidents exercise keys for missionaries and convert baptisms. When priesthood keys are exercised in unity, leaders serve together and the powers of heaven can bless their work."

"Under the direction of the bishop, ward council members fully engage to help each investigator and new or returning member progress. The ward mission leader directs and coordinates these efforts with the full-time missionaries."  I didn't really get the full impact of this message when I listened to the broadcast the first time."

President Cooke told us in our conference call that no longer is the vision and mission of the Church separated into three parts:  Proclaiming the Gospel, Perfecting the Saints, and Redeeming the Dead.  It is all one work, and it will be most effective when everyone is working closely together.  We have had a great surge in the number of full time missionaries over the last year, but no longer is missionary work to be viewed as a great effort by full time missionaries assisted only at times by ward members when they can find time to help.  Now the keys of missionary work are in the hands of the Stake and Ward leaders, and the full time missionaries are here to help them.  Additionally, (and I find this part really exciting) there is greater emphasis on introducing family history work to investigators and members alike.  This can be a powerful way to fulfill the responsibility of redeeming our dead while at the same time building and strengthening testimonies of Jesus Christ and his gospel and thereby bringing others to Christ.

On Friday, Sister Beckes and Sister Divine, the other Women Auxiliary Specialists in the mission, called and asked if they could visit with us about the new emphasis in our mission, which they feel has basically put us out of a job.  They were concerned that the shift to have the Wards and Stakes be responsible for the missionary work would take away their assignments of finding and teaching, and they wanted to know what we have been doing in our Wards and see if they have just been focusing on the wrong thing to this point.  They drove down from Silver Springs, and we sat and visited for about an hour.  I think they left feeling like they have not been doing things all that much different except that their Stake Relief Society President has not worked with them to the same degree that Sis. Ramon has with us in giving us assignments and helping us see how we can serve the Wards.  Their Stake President actually said to them when they contacted him with a question "I didn't think you were still here."  That made them feel rather unappreciated.  We told them that we plan to continue to receive our assignments from the Stake Relief Society President until such time that we are given different directions by our Mission President.  Although some days we wonder if we are making a difference and if we are really doing what the Lord expects of us while we are out here, I'm sure that there is a purpose for our service, and as we serve faithfully and prayerfully we will be blessed and so will others.

A Fun Visit

November 11-14, 2013

On Monday and Tuesday, the 11th and 12th, Sister Boone and I had appointments with a few of the sisters who work in the Primary that we don't get to know at church or had previously not been available for visits.  Each visit was enjoyable and uplifting for us.  Mollyanne is one we had tried to see previously, but she and her husband travel a lot.  She grew up in the Episcopalian faith and married a Catholic boy.  A few years later she was baptized, but her husband was not.  Still, there is such a spirit of love and faith in that home that was uplifting to us as we visited with her and her sweet mother.

The first time when we stopped by when she was out of town, we saw their beautiful big house on the banks of the Potomac and knew we would just have to come back and see her another day

Mollyanne's husband is a toy train and old toy collector and she also has some collections (bears, tea sets, and odds and ends).  He does way more collecting than she does.  They go to train shows all over the world.  I wish I could have had the same degree of tolerance for Verlin's hobbies as she has for her husband's affinity to spend large amounts of money on his hobby.

First thing when we arrived, Mollyanne asked her husband if he would take a few minutes to show us his train collection while she finished getting lunch ready for her mother who stays with them sometimes.  He has a room that is almost completely full of trains (these are the old electric train sets).  Three and a half walls are covered with shelves full of trains, and under the train table are 130 boxed sets that have never been used.  Then he has more than that in another room, and even more in the attic.  We had to get a couple pictures before we left.  

The most interesting piece to me, yet a little disturbing, was this life-size kangaroo that Mollyanne brought home from one of their trips.  (I had to make these pictures a little larger to appreciate their total awesomeness!)