Missionary moments and Fireworks

This past week our tasks began to be so much more routine, so there isn't as much to report. On Tuesday Gary went with the elders to a Wal-Mart to buy vacuum cleaners and floor lamps for the new apartments we are renting. The Missionary Department in Salt Lake wants us to get away from two bedroom apartments housing four missionaries, to one bedroom apartments housing only two (except for Zone Leaders). Another interesting note on that day: Gary's Cousin Faith Allen had written a funny e-mail to the family at large, to which Gary responded. Now Gary and Faith are catching up their lives by writing to each other twice a day since then. (They haven't communicated in over 40 years!)

Wednesday our wonderful chiropractor gave a seminar to us on healthy backs and how we can help keep his adjustments to our back in place better. What a great man!

Thursday Gary's left foot became infected somehow. We were worried for a short time, but with the help of some black ointment, epsom salts and rest the angry and painful redness finally stopped short of the ankle and ebbed away. As of Sunday night it has all but disappeared completely.

Friday Gary drove the Toyota the sisters wrecked two weeks ago to Solesbee's Autocraft in Yorba Linda, following Elder Budge. He got a real education at a large and well-run body shop, where we take all of cars to be 'mended and unbended.' The owner is LDS and gave us a short tour of his operation. Fascinating! He also collects as many translations of the Book of Mormon as he can find and displays them in the customer waiting area! What a conversation piece!

On Friday night, August 7th, we took a night off and went with all the office staff to view the fireworks at Disneyland's parking lot. The Budges have season passes, so they took us to the parking structure, where we caught the tram into Downtown Disney. We ambled down the streets, admiring the musicians and catching the friendly smiles of the passersby. Three times we were stopped and greeted by members of the Church, who visited with us briefly. One couple grew up in Springville, and said their nephew was on a mission in Paris, speaking Mandarin! Another left us with a hearty "The Church is TRUE!" We all went into the Haagen Dasz shop for a treat, which we ate while we sat on a bench and people-watched. Budges wanted us to see the California Lodge Hotel, so we walked into the back entrance, along with other tourists, and gazed at the amazing 5-story high open foyer. It was massive, built with huge timbers and boulders. Quite a sight! We sat on couches and chairs while we listened to a pianist playing Disney tunes. Then we headed for the upper story of the parking structure, so we could watch the fireworks. There were just a few people there, but after we got settled in our places, there was quite a crowd gathered. The fireworks were amazing, with the very loud percussive fireworks actually setting off car alarms. (We were actually closer to the fireworks than the folks in Disneyland proper.) It was a very fun evening.

We spent our p-day on Saturday doing laundry and shopping in Fullerton, with a game night at the senior sisters for all six of us. We played, talked and ate from 6 until 10:30 at night! What a great office crew we have to work with.

Finally, Sunday was a typical Sunday, with a chance to recount our many blessings!

After having been here for six weeks and finding our way around, we are finally beginning to see the details and the beauty surrounding us. Signe often takes walks with the senior sister missionaries, hence the photos you see from your walks. We've also learned that the unusual birds around here are really parrots whose forebears 'flew the coop' from the local aviary and have multiplied unchecked. And much to Gary's delight, jet airliners fly over our apartment much as they did in Springville, except on a lower altitude here -- all beginning a wide circle over our apartment so that they can land at John Wayne Airport south of here.



Monday Gary received an e-mail from the mission president, asking if he had the ability to download the photos of our mission's baptisms to a Power Point format. He successfully came up with a slide show for 12 baptisms, standing alongside those who taught the candidate. Later, a convert of two weeks came to the office to buy the 2006 Toyota Corolla we had for sale. Sadly, her born-again father is kicking her out since she joined the LDS church, so she had to get her own transportation. On Thursday Elder Budge and Gary prepared it for sale. Todaywe felt the healing touch of our substitute chiropractor, Dr. Noh, who is Korean. (Dr. Francis is on vacation all week.) He was different but just as effective in his own way.



Thursday Gary learned from President Watrous that Elder Koerper would no longer be my trainer in Housing administration, but Gary will still have Elder Lee (Korean) and Elder Wong (Chinese) to show me the ropes as Housing coordinator.



After a long day on Friday we drove to the Orange circle to have dinner after Cafe Lucca with our oldest granddaughter Keely and her roommates McKenna and Tiffany. They are in town to lease an apartment in Irvine, where their Utah company is relocating on August 27. We had a wonderful time together, and we are very happy that we will have a member of the family living near us -- right within the mission boundaries!



Saturday we explored the northern part of our mission boundaries: Placentia, Fullerton, Brea, La Habra, and Anaheim. We decided to do our shopping closer to Santa Ana.



Sunday morning our youngest son Tim stopped by to say hello, after spending some fun-filled days in San Diego. We had a good visit, and Signe sent him on his way with a full stomach! (Well, maybe not full, after all he's 6 foot 4.) Gary was asked to accompany the singing in priesthood and also taught the High Priests lesson on missionary work. Later, in stake choir rehearsal, Signe accompanied the choir with her violin on both numbers. We feel very welcome in this ward.

A beautiful walk and a visit

Very full week

This has been a very busy and satisfying week. On Monday found us both feeling a little more settled in our work, and more at ease with our duties. On Tuesday evening Gary went with the Elders to visit Sister Hamley, a less-active sister, who is responding very positively to their teachings and encouragement. Wednesday was our fullest day, with Zone Conference starting at 8:30 in the morning, highlighted by the visit of Elder Cordoba, of the Seventy, as our main speaker and teacher. The stake center where the conference was held is the building where Gary and Signe performed with the Utah Baroque Ensemble in 1996, when we participated wth other auditioned groups in the American Choral Directors Association festival in Pasadena. The day concluded with our first trip to participate in an endowment session at the Newport Beach Temple.

On Thursday, four Elders completed their missions, Gary filled out his first accident report (a sister missionary ran into a post), including contacting the insurance company. In the evening, we took Sister Daniel to dinner, to get to know her and become her friend. The bishop asked us to befriend her because she was adjusting to the passing of her husband, and needed company and support. We found that we had quite a bit in common, not only the fact that we all have lost spouses, but also an interest in model trains and music.

Friday night, we had the senior Sisters over to watch a movie and share snacks. We watched "An American in Paris," with Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron, and we commend it to anyone who likes great music 9George Gershwin) and dancing. It was one of those free Netflix instant movies on the internet; it is a great service, and we frequently unwind by finding a good old movie and curling up on the couch to enjoy it. Try it, you'll like it!

On Saturday, we did our chores, laundry, watched the AC repair man cut a hole in our hall ceiling to see what was causing the drip. He concluded that the leak was in the drain pipe and he is coming back on Monday with a part to fix it. Maybe we can get rid of the bucket that has been catching the drip the past two weeks! In the afternoon, from 1:00 to 5:30 we participated in our second Temple tour with the assigned Elders. Our duties include directing and playing the piano for the hymn singing, setting up chairs, arranging the plates of cookies and mixing punch to serve the visitors after they have taken the tour. Not very demanding, but kind of fun, even so.

Sunday was a very spiritual day, with amazing teachers and concluding with our stake choir practice. Sister Hess is very gifted and skilled in teaching us amateurs how to sing properly, and the result is we sound like a veritable Heavenly Choir! We will be singing for Stake Conference on August 16th. Signe has the privilege of playing the violin obligato for one of the numbers, "Beautiful Savior." And unlike most ward and stake choirs, we will be performing in a mixed configuration, instead of sopranos with sopranos, and basses with basses, etc. Our other number is the beautiful Mack Wilberg arrangement of "My Shepherd Will Supply My Need."

Last Sunday we were assigned by Bishop Cowdell to friendship two members of the ward who had lost their spouses within two weeks of each other. (The sister we will be taking to dinner this coming Thursday.) The Bishop also assigned the Elders to visit a member who has been less active for many years, so this past Thursday night I went with Elders Queen and Wigington to this sister's home. It was Elder Wigington's first experience with teaching, since he had just arrived on his mission this past Tuesday. Both Elders did any amazing job of teaching the Gospel -- just as it should be taught. And they included me at appropriate moments. Next week we are returning for another visit. My feeling is that she would be an excellent temple worker!

Yes, we got an influx of 16 new missionaries this past Tuesday. We’ve had 70 baptisms in six weeks, 10 more than the previous six weeks - so the added missionaries are a blessing. Our president is big on retention, and our challenge is to keep all these new members involved and building their testimonies. The day before (Monday) we lost 11 missionaries who were going home and had the usual farewell dinner for them at the Mission President's home. We six office staff members prepared the dinner and served them. (This will occur at each departure day.) When we got the new missionaries, We gave a short presentation to them in our orientation meeting about finances and apartments -- especially warning them to be wary of mold.

Thursday was another busy day. While Signe did a lot of postings to send to Salt Lake, I was busy auditing monthly gas receipts and sending them to Salt Lake. I had more enjoyment writing 'Baptism letters' to the 33 newest members from our mission labors. (It's one my major responsibilities.) To round out the day, I went with the office Elders to Brea to watch how they changed a rental apartment from a one-bedroom to a two-bedroom. Friday: more of the same, except that I had learn how to get a couple of elders out of mess of their car not starting!

Finally, Saturday was the Orange Stake's Pioneer Day. Signe played in a trio of fiddlers: Irish and Scandinavian fiddle tunes. All of the entertainment was first class, in this stake of abundant musical talent. We ended the week with an episode of "The Duchess of Duke Street" online.

We’re loving the Work, and the privilege of doing our part in this part of the Kingdom.

Week ending 15 July

It’s been a very full week, ending with a little fun last night (after laundry and shopping during the day). At 6:30 we met at Elder and Sister Budge’s apartment, and along with Sister Healey and Sister Skinner, the six of us played Mexican Train, had all kinds of treats, and watched the Disneyland fireworks at 9:30 outside their north window. The conversations and joking were just what all of us needed after a stressful week. And why was it stressful?

For one thing, President Watrous got really sick Friday, just he was preparing for an influx of 16 new missionaries (and the departure of 12) tomorrow and Tuesday (Transfer day). All of us in the office were either covering for him in some areas, praying for him, or both. Elder Budge’s dictum of “No two days are alike in the office” certainly was true this week. Gary: "He trained me how to deal with a gas credit card that two sister missionaries couldn’t use any longer because it was compromised (phone calls to Salt Lake and such), preparing a 2004 Dodge Caravan to sell (checking tires, fluids, washing the car, etc.), dealing with another missionary car that hit a pillar (insurance and Salt Lake again), going with the Office elders to sign the lease on a new apartment in Newport Beach (near the temple – an area where we’re putting more missionaries), buying three vacuum cleaners for the apartments, ordering supplies for the missionary effort: in the month we’ve been here I’ve ordered (on demand) English, Spanish, German, Russian, Cambodian, Thai, Tongan and Vietnamese copies of the Book of Mormon and pamphlets, getting ready for July’s temple tours, and sending out letters to new converts."

Signe also had fun Saturday afternoon practicing with two other fiddlers in the Orange Stake in preparation for Pioneer Days next Saturday. They are doing Irish, American and other fiddle tunes.

Dr. Francis prescribed water therapy for Gary's back pains, so with the blessing of Pres. Watrous, he is now doing leg and back exercises in the pool, using kicks from the crawl, back stroke, side stroke, breast stroke, and dog paddling. Also very helpful is walking as fast as he can in the shallow end of the pool (3 feet) for a few minutes. He gets winded with all of this exercise, but wants to enjoy it, for it takes the place of his biking and playing basketball.

Week leading up to the 4th of July

Sunday, July 5. It's been a very busy week. Last Sunday we attended Ward Council meeting so that we could talk about less-active and missionary contacts, ward choir practice (we sang in
Sacrament meeting), all three of our meetings, home for 90 minutes for dinner, and back again for stake choir rehearsal for stake conference coming up next month.
The highlight of the week was contacting a chiropractor to take care of our back needs. The mission president's wife, Sister Watrous, gave us the number for Dr. Arthur Francis, who also happens to be a stake president in this area. He treated us like royalty, giving us the most thorough physical exam we've ever had and starting us on treatments. He is a giant of a man, both physically and spiritually.
Tuesday I went with Elder Lee (from Seoul, Korea) and Elder Koerper (from Kentucky) to Newport Beach to rent another apartment for the elders. It was an educational experience: dealing with the management as well as seeing how well the elders in this wealthy area of the mission will be living. (I was ready to move in myself: only half a mile from the ocean.) The end of the week I was taught by Elder Budge how do compile the gas receipts and mileage for our 59 vehicles so that it would be ready for the mission president on Friday -- and to send to Salt Lake. There's a lot of detail involved, but I think I can handle it. The big trick is getting the elders and sisters to submit their gas receipts on time. Signe had a significant challenge this week since her trainer, Sister Peters, finished her 18 months and returned to Canada. But Signe is doing very well with her responsibilities.
Yesterday, Independence Day, was a very full day. We took Sisters Skinner and Healey with us to our Orange Third Ward's 42nd annual July 4th breakfast at Hart Park. Great food and an opportunity for us to meet more members of the ward. Then home to do laundry and to wait for our first visit from family, Edwin and Amy Benson and their family, who were here in the Downey area for Edwin's sister's husband's funeral. (He leaves a wife and 10 children!) It was a short but sweet visit we had with these 8 family members in our small apartment.
Then, with the sisters with us again, we drove down I-5 to the Irvine stake's annual barbecue for investigators of the church. It was a huge gathering of 1200 people, with live bands. They served barbecued chicken, Korean barbecued beef, and steak, with all the trimmings and desserts. We had a great time. Then we drove over to Corona del Mar (Crown of the Sea) to the home of Brother and Sister Hanna, who live on Spyglass Hill overlooking the Pacific Ocean and most the valley to the north. When it came time for fireworks we were able to simultaneously see major fireworks displays from five cities below us and into the distance: Newport Center, the Canyon, Cerrito, and several others, including Disneyland. (This is not counting the many backyard parties people were having.) Truly a spectacular sight. Desserts (again), complete with an ice cream scoop that oinked like a pig!