January 17, 2016

This week flew by.  We had our office meeting on Monday and then the rest of the week went by so quickly.   How does time do that? 

Tuesday night after work we went to the mall and walked the hallways for a little exercise with the Spencer’s.  We are enjoying our time with them here.  My question then, does it do any good if you walk awhile and then stop at one of the vendors and have something to eat afterward??

Dennis had to have a car repaired and while he waited he went to the Goodwill and look what he found for $6.00. 

He was so thrilled, it hadn’t been out of the box and since we had one he let the Spencer’s have it.

We went to the Temple on Wednesday night with the Spencer’s.  We had a very quick session.  There were 4 women counting the 2 Temple workers that came into the session to help.  It is so peaceful and relaxing in the Temple; but I didn’t sleep during the session.  (too much) 

I heard that our friends are going on a great trip in March.  They are going from San Diego to Hawaii on a cruise and seeing the islands and then back.  It is a 15 day trip and should be lots of fun.  I am happy that they are going to have that opportunity, but will miss having fun with them.  (no envy or malice—only charity, right? Lol)

On Friday the Aldrich’s arrived at the mission office about noon.  We were so thrilled.  Another couple, the White’s, arrived about the same time.  We are so glad to have them here!  It was so much fun to visit with them about their experiences at the MTC and traveling across the great United States.  They are going to live in Arcade, New York (west of us and south of Buffalo)  There are 2 elders in that area and they are so happy to have a MLS couple they can have help them.  They were ready to be moved out of their car and into an apartment.  It is hard to live out of a suitcase.

 

The weather is a little colder, but still no snow.  While we were at church it started to snow and looked like it could get really serious, but as we drove closer to Rochester it got lighter and then quit.  It will probably start up again tonight.  The deer have been scarce since the beginning of hunting season, but they are beginning to show up near the roadside again.  It is so sad to see so many of them killed this way, and I imagine it doesn’t make the car owner very happy about it either.  We stopped to help a lady the other night with her flashers on.  She said that she was waiting for the police as her insurance company required a police report when hitting a deer. 

I think I have lost my taste for pizza here.  It tasted so good for the first part of our mission and we had some once a week or so; but it has lost its appeal at this point.  It’s funny how we go through times when something tastes better to us than others.  (chocolate and candy—will that ever lose its appeal??)

Friday about quitting time a set of missionaries called with a car that would not run.  It sounded like transmission trouble or rear end whatever (you know all those guy/auto terms)  Elder Merrill found a wrecker and told the elders we would bring them a loaner car on Saturday.  So we took the drive to Penn Yan and saw the missionaries.  They were very happy to have something to get around in.  I don’t know how they could be very effective without a car as they have so many miles to cover.  This state is so big; it boggles my mind.  The drive was beautiful and the country side was so pretty, even without the green.  There is so much beautiful farm ground here.  We were listening to tapes about the early pioneers and how much trouble they had farming in Utah (and probably Idaho) because the soils are so different.  The soil here is dark and rich without rock.  However, I think that they have to continually take out trees or they would lose their farms to foliage.  The Smiths spent years trying to clear their farm in Palmyra. 

We had a fantastic Sacrament meeting today.  It was on having a Christ centered family/home.  The high councilor, Brother Sageben, asked the 4 elders in our branch to talk about the good and bad things that had happened in their families.  One Elder said that his dad had to work in China for a while.  He would work 6 weeks and come home 2.  He said that it had been a really hard thing for them, but that it had also made them closer as a family.  One Elder said that his parents divorced about 2 years ago and that had been hard, but that he and his brother and mom had gotten so much closer and that the church and the scriptures had come to mean so much to them.  One elder told everyone that he regretted that he hadn’t spent much time with his parents and family prior to his mission and that he missed the times that he had been able to do things with them, especially his dad.  He and his dad had gone to tournaments for horseshoes.  They are both professional horseshoe players.  (I didn’t realize that was even a thing, but it is)  Brother Sageben warned us of things we must stay away from if we want to have a spiritual, Christ centered family and how quickly Satan can creep in and wage war with us.  (he especially addressed pornography and the effects of it)  He is a young doctor in Rochester at the teaching hospital.  He is in his residency.  He is a heart specialist and I was so impressed with him.  His talk was excellent.  He talked about the 12 point program for addiction and how we should all follow this program because we all have problems.  We are all sinners and need help.  Here are the steps:

The 12 Steps of the Addiction Recovery Program Sponsored by LDS Family Services

• Step 1—Honesty: Admit that you, of yourself, are powerless to overcome your addictions and that your life has become unmanageable.
• Step 2—Hope: Come to believe that the power of God can restore you to complete spiritual health.
• Step 3—Trust in God: Decide to turn your will and your life over to the care of God the Eternal Father and His Son, Jesus Christ.
• Step 4—Truth: Make a searching and fearless written moral inventory of yourself.
• Step 5—Confession: Admit to yourself, to your Heavenly Father in the name of Jesus Christ, to proper priesthood authority, and to another person the exact nature of your wrongs.
• Step 6—Change of Heart: Become entirely ready to have God remove all your character weaknesses.
• Step 7—Humility: Humbly ask Heavenly Father to remove your shortcomings.
• Step 8—Seeking Forgiveness: Make a written list of all persons you have harmed and become willing to make restitution to them.
• Step 9—Restitution and Reconciliation: Wherever possible, make direct restitution to all persons you have harmed.
• Step 10—Daily Accountability: Continue to take personal inventory, and when you are wrong promptly admit it.
• Step 11—Personal Revelation: Seek through prayer and meditation to know the Lord’s will and to have the power to carry it out.
• Step 12—Service: Having had a spiritual awakening as a result of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, share this message with others and practice these principles in all you do.

Isn’t that great?  Any problem at all can be dealt with using these steps.

After church we went over to the hospital to see one of our home teaching ladies.  She doesn't leave her house (usually) and hasn't seen a doctor in 16 years.  She was in pain yesterday and when she was admitted they thought that she had a blood clot in her leg or was going to have a stroke.  Today she said that they think her problem is diabetes.  Her blood sugar was over 400 and out of whack.  I guess they will keep her a couple more days and help her get feeling better.  

Funny:  One of the sister missionaries got out of her car and her cell phone slide off and landed on the ground and the battery came out and went into the storm drain.  Dennis was able to get it out with a long pole and a piece of sticky tape at the end of it.  Yahoo!  Tape man strikes again!

I have the stray battery now, any other requests?

It is 47 degrees outside and all the snow has melted.  Crazy!  It is supposed to get cold next week.  I can’t believe that the weather has been this nice this long. 

This guy made a neat skating rink out of closet doors he collected from people throwing them away at the curb.  He would stop and pick them up and ended up with enough to make this pond.  They haven't been able to use it yet this year.

This skating rink is a little more professional.  They have leveled the dirt underneath and made the rink with pond liner.  We are wondering is the nets on the end are for playing hockey.

January 9 and there is a tractor in the field--(not sure why) It is a little muddy yet though.

We are happy and healthy.  We had a great week and are enjoying a few minutes at home on Sunday afternoon.  We had our weekly meeting on Monday and it was great!  Things at the office have slowed up a little without the packages arriving for Christmas. 

We went to Batavia after work on Wednesday night to a Book of Mormon class given by Brother Brockenshire.  (he is the one that has written the books regarding the ancient Nephite civilization being here in New York, Ohio, etc.)  It was interesting.  He told us about a young missionary trying to preach about the Book of Mormon to an older Jewish man and how the man told him it couldn’t be true because it didn’t have chiasm’s in it.

Definition of Chiasm:

A chiasm (or chiasmus if you rather) is a writing style that uses a unique repetition pattern for clarification and/or emphasis. Chiasm is pronounced ky′-az-um. Often called the chiastic (ky′-az-tic) approach or the chiastic structure, this repetition form appears throughout the Bible yet it is not well known. The way you approach the Scriptures should be dramatically enhanced as you learn what a chiasm is, how to recognize chiasms, and how to glean a fresh application from these New or Old Testament passages.

Simply put, a chiasm is a repetition of similar ideas in the reverse sequence. The importance of the chiastic structure is found in its hidden emphasis. And it is not insignificant – I suspect there are more than two thousand examples in the Bible!

A chiasm organizes themes much like a sandwich: A) a piece of bread on top, B) mustard, C) a delightful piece of meat, C′) another savory piece of meat, B′) more mustard, and finally A′) another piece of bread on the bottom. Chiasms generally focus on the flavorful meat, but the bread and mustard are necessary for a complete sandwich. Some chiasms do not have a mustard layer, other chiasms have lettuce on both sides of the meat, and some have just one piece of delicious meat.
When God inspired the Hebrew and Greek writers to inscribe their portions of the Scriptures, the chiastic structure was often used to add emphasis. He could not use techniques such as bold, italics, underline, indentation, bullets, or font size to help the reader understand what is important because these were not part of the ancient languages at the time. Instead He often used the structural arrangement of repeated thoughts or phrases to accomplish this emphasis.

I thought that was very interesting!  However, the young missionary went home discouraged and began studying the Book of Mormon and found many examples of chiasmic writing in it also.  While we were reading we found several.  It reminds me of how we are taught to teach a lesson with an overview at the end of the lesson to secure retention of the message.

We have been reading the New Testament lately and have really enjoyed it this time.  The scriptures are to help us build our relationship with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.  They helps us to know where we need to improve so we can become more righteous. 

Sister Spencer told us more about her dad.  She said that he was nuts about visiting cemeteries and taking pictures and notes.  He felt pushed to go everywhere he could and do this.  He wasn’t a member of the church at the time.  One day he came to her house and begged her to start doing genealogy/temple work for their ancestors.  She thought that was odd as he wasn’t a member of the church.  She asked him why he would want that and he said, “so I can get some sleep, these people won’t leave me alone.” (I guess the other side isn’t that far away, right?)

We went to Henrietta yesterday with the Spencer’s and went to a restaurant supply.  She found a few things that she wanted and I tried to find a scraper like Chris uses.  I had brought one with me, but lost it at the Christmas party.  I don’t know what happened to it.  We got the ingredients at Sam's Club to make 3 lasagnas; one for us and 1 for each set of missionaries in Batavia.  They had looked at the sign up list for meals for them and there were about 3 for the entire month.  They slyly mentioned—“I don’t see your name here on the list Sister Merrill.”  I told them I would bring them some the next Sunday. (today)  They were pretty tickled.  I made ‘the’ chocolate cake on a sheet pan and gave them shares of it.  I think they should like that.

We are excited to see the Aldrich’s here next Friday.  They are on their way now and are going to take some time visiting with some family members across the United States.  I think that they will be a great addition to the missionary effort here in New York.

We officially passed our 1 year mark this week!  Jan. 5---we went to Tom Wahl's and had a burger! Yahoo!  I guess we should have burned a tie or something, but we like them all.  We shall see when another 6 months have gone by.

Jan. 3, 2016

What a crazy week we had!  We expected 13 new missionaries to arrive in our mission on Monday evening.  We had made a great meal of ham, potatoes, salad, and dessert.  The Spencer’s and Merrill’s were ready and waiting at the mission home with the food prepared and President Francis called and said they would be a little later.  Well, this call became 3 calls and then he and his wife came back with 1 missionary that had arrived from Mexico City.  We had a nice supper and he expected the other 12 around 11:00 p.m.  We cleaned up and went home.  President asked that we have a lunch at the office on Tuesday for the new missionaries.  Well, he called later and said that they wouldn’t be here until Wednesday at noon.  There were 7 sisters and 5 elders sitting at the Detroit airport, wondering what to do.  The church found them all hotel rooms and they were able to stay there for 2 nights.  The Detroit mission president had some of his missionaries go and get them the next day and they got to do work with them.  I felt so bad for these kids—they had their MSF (missionary support funds) cards but not their pin numbers so they couldn't use them.  However, all of them had some type of credit card from home.  They finally arrived before noon on Wednesday.  They were so happy to be where they belonged.  We had a nice lunch (taco soup with chips (because we had so much Mexican food left from the Christmas party) and cookies.  We had our meeting after/during lunch and they were on their way to the Sacred Grove around 4:00.  They met their new companions at the Hill Cumorah and had another meeting and were then on their way to their areas.  I hope they are doing alright.  We saw one of the new missionaries yesterday at Costco (they can eat cheap there and they don’t have to have a membership to go in to eat)  He is from California and said he was freezing.  I hope that REAL cold weather doesn’t do him in.

They gave me their luggage fees after our meeting at our office.  I couldn’t believe that Delta had charged them twice to get here.  They had taken their bags in Detroit to the hotel.  So they had paid $60 in Salt Lake City and $60 in Detroit.  I pay them back for this charge, but didn’t like paying it twice.  President Francis asked me to call Salt Lake Travel and I did.  They didn’t want to bother with it at all.  The lady told me that it would be up to the individual missionaries to call for their own baggage fee.  I told her, “they don’t have time to do that”.  Anyway—I called for all of them.  I told the lady that we had expected them on Monday and they hadn’t arrived until Wednesday at noon, and we understood that the weather couldn’t be helped.  We also had to pay for 2 nights hotel for at 6 rooms, and we understood that also, BUT, I couldn’t understand why they had charged us twice for baggage.  She didn’t even complain or anything—she just asked me for their receipt numbers and she began refunding the 2^nd charge to their credit cards.  It was so great!

We attended the Temple Wednesday night and it was a nice evening.  It was the first time that I had seen the women’s side of the session full.  That is good! 

Elder Merrill kept busy all week with moving cars around and taking parts to places that needed parts.  On New Year’s Eve we went to Applebee’s with Spencer’s and enjoyed a meal.  Our Stake (Rochester Stake) was having a dance that night and we debated about going—but seeing how much Elder Merrill loves to dance we went home after supper.  The Spencer’s went to the dance and said that it was quite fun.  We are just party poopers, I guess!

On New Year’s Day we had a brunch here of baked eggs and sausage waffles.  It was really good and the Spencer’s and the AP’s came.  (Assistants to the President)  We ate, visited, and played a couple of games.  I had bought left, right, center and then I asked the 2 young Elders how they felt about gambling.  I wish I had of videotaped their faces.  They stuttered and stammered—they were really speechless.  Then I told them that we were going to play the game and pretend that someone would win the money.  We had $30 in $1 bills and played it—Elder Merrill won.  (1^st time—no money changed hands)  they wanted to play again and we used the same money—Sister Merrill won (1^st time—no money changed hands)  We had a great day of visiting and playing other games. 

Yesterday we got busy and took down our Christmas decorations.  (it took about 12 minutes or less)  We cleaned and then we went with the Spencer’s to Costco and then over to Ontario Beach and then to Mexican food like we are used to in Idaho and Arizona.  They like it and we had a good meal.  We were able to study when we got home and afterward Dennis colored my hair.  Hair—it just doesn’t stay like you want it to; it gets gray or too long—just can’t stay how you like it.

Elder Spencer and Elder Merrill on the shore

Elder Spencer caught a fish (dead for quite some time) 

Selfie--not a great look!

We went to church today and it was very good.  The branch members have great testimonies.  One sister told of her children (non-members or inactive) that have asked her recently to pray for them.  She told them, “I have never quit praying for you, but will pray more.”  Isn’t that the truth?  We never quit praying for our families and loving them.  We love our family members so much and want only good for everyone.  (a mother’s worry is never done—it’s our jobs!)

Congratulations to Eliza Merrill and her wedding to Mr. Lucero on Saturday, Jan. 2!  Happy Birthday to Rob Jagielski, Jan. 6 and Max Harris Jan. 9!

Neat thing!  Some people put lights in every window for friendship

Dec. 27, 2015

Last week flew by in a hurry!  We began our week by having our weekly meeting and afterward we had a surprise birthday for President Francis.  His birthday is on Dec. 23.  His sons are here from BYU Provo and they picked up lunch from Olive Garden.  It was very nice and fun! 

We had to purchase things for the mission party last week and Monday evening.  We were busy ‘making a list and checking it twice’.  Elder Spencer is in charge of mail and referrals.  We have received an enormous amount of packages for the young missionaries.  However, there were several that didn’t receive anything and some that had 10 or more packages.  I can see where that would be upsetting for the ones that didn’t get anything.  We have been purchasing gifts for the missionaries that didn’t get a package at all.  There were 11 elders and 9 sisters that didn’t get anything.  We were blessed that we had an anonymous donor that gave us $160 to help with the cost of gifts.  (that didn’t cover it, but really helped)  We also had 2 wards in Utah that sent packages.  One ward sent 6 gifts for guys and one ward sent 5 packages for girls.  That really helped too.  They called and offered to help.  (some people are so in tune to need)  Those packages went to those missionaries here from other countries.

On Wednesday we began getting ready for the party.  The Spencer’s and the Merrill’s cooked 106 lbs. of pork for pulled pork tacos and about the time we wanted to begin setting up tables and chairs a couple of local missionaries stopped by and said they had a feeling that they should stop.  We put them right to work and they were so much help. 

On Thursday the party began at 10:00 and went to 4:00.  The missionaries were so happy to see all the other missionaries.  It was a great time for them.  They put on 2 talent shows.  One that was chapel friendly and one that was cultural hall friendly.  They demonstrated great talents.  I wish I could have relaxed and enjoyed the performances, but I was worried about getting the food on the table and ready at 12:00.  We had chips and cheesy-salsa dip, pork tacos with all the trimmings and then all the senior missionaries brought the desserts.  (anything they wanted)  We had tons of food!  No one went hungry.  Everyone said they liked it. 

Elder Merrill and I like popcorn and had tried some purchased popcorn from the stores here, but nothing was very good.  We bought the really good 50 lb. bag from Sam’s Club and took our popper to the party.  (it was as good as we remembered)  He popped 2 giant tubs full of popcorn and the missionaries loved it!  (I mean those storage type tubs—not little bowls)  When the party was over the youngest Francis boy (just turned 12) poured all the popcorn into a garbage bag and took it home.  He loved it!  Now we have lots of popcorn and Elder Merrill will probably be known as ‘the popcorn King’ because we will have to serve it every where we go.  We were BONE TIRED when we got home and just sat on the couch and starred into space.  We had the Spencer’s come over and we watched Mr. Kruger’s Christmas and played a little Skipbo.  I had thought about making Gritmascoverpo (our Norwegian tradition on Christmas Eve), but decided that it would be something I would just wait for next year. 

We woke up on Christmas and waited until it was late enough to start calling our kids to see how their Christmas was.  I love Facetime.  It was so fun to see the things they were talking about and laugh with them.  It made us homesick, but we just pushed it aside for now and we shall ‘stay strong, be calm and carry on’.

I had invited 7 senior couples for dinner at 2:00 and 5 could come.  The Spencer’s offered to host the party because they actually have room for a party at their home.  We met and ate and then went on a tour of the Tomlinson Inn, walked (without snow) to the baptismal site for Brigham Young, and went to the Tomlinson cemetery.  It was a great day.  The Clark family has been living in the Tomlinson Inn but had moved to Connecticut to be near their son who received a full ride scholarship for music.  They were here for the week and opened up the home for an open house on Christmas day.  I talked Jacob into playing a piano piece for us before we left.  It was amazing.  He had taken familiar carols and put them together in a piece he had developed.  We all loved it!

On Saturday we did a little shopping and moved cars for the mission.  Elder Merrill was given the assignment to get the mission a new luggage/furniture trailer (the old one had come off the hitch when the President was taking missionaries to the airport last week and he didn’t trust it any more) and so Dennis found a newer, nicer one.  The old one is 9 years old and he couldn’t see anything wrong with the hitch, but the church authorized the new one.  He worked really hard to find this one and make the deal on it.  The dealer will give us $500 for the old one, and the Spencer’s want to purchase it.  (we thought it would be good to bring our stuff home, oh-well!)

We received many nice things from our family and friends.  Thank you all so much!  We have had so many blessings!  At church today Brother Lehman came up to Dennis and said, ‘did you drop this on the floor?”  It was a nice German made pocket knife in Christmas décor.  He wanted Dennis to have it.  What a great friend he is. 

Also, Sharon Grafrath (from Batavia) said she called and ordered candy from the Caramel Tree for her daughter in Colorado and talked to Chris for some time and she thought that he was number #1. 

It is a blessing to belong to a family and love each and every one.  That is what heaven is!  We are so blessed.  

Dec. 20, 2015

This week has been a whirlwind!  We went to the Westfall building last Sunday night and our Stake put on a musical event that went along with Charles Dickens ‘Christmas Carole’.  The music was very difficult and the singers were great.  It was very good.  I don’t remember hearing Dickens in that much of a religious way before.  I guess someday I will need to read it and see what it really does say. 

Monday we had a good day.  Each day now we get tons of packages in for the missionaries.  We hold them until someone is going that way or they are coming to the office.  We are not holding everything until Christmas Eve (this week—can’t believe it!)   After work we went (us and the Spencer’s) over to the Smith Farm and they had a nice program there.  They had a short DVD, caroling and games.  We didn’t have the hot chocolate and cookies.  We left that for the ones coming.  It was a nice evening with a slow drizzle.  (umbrellas are great here)  Afterward we went over to the Hill Cumorah and saw their display of nativities.  It was nice, but we have seen so many more at the Visitors Center and Stake Center near the Temple in Idaho Falls.  Then we took Spencer’s to Nima’s to be initiated.  They liked their pizza pie!

This couple represented Father and Mother Smith in the log home

I found someone at the Hairzoo to cut my hair and took me in after work.  It was nice to get it shaped up a little bit.  She cut it quite short in the back, which was probably what I told her.  It does feel good to have it under control again.  (I really miss Becky and Jill)

We celebrated our 44^th anniversary with the Spencer’s on Wednesday at the Cheesecake Factory.  Guess what we shared??  Of course, Bang, Bang, Chicken and Shrimp.  We are such creatures of habit.  We always order what we know and like when we go out.  It was a special time and we enjoyed it.  

KISS, KISS

We went a day early because we had a Temple appointment with the Haggerty’s on Thursday evening.  Bill fell and didn’t feel like going to the Temple so Leslie came and we did a session with her.  It was very nice.  I did one of her family names and she asked me afterward if I had any trouble with the name.  I said, ‘no’ and she said that especially gave me that name because it was Bill’s aunt and that the aunt didn’t like her.  She had done her baptism a year earlier and she felt that the aunt wasn’t happy about it and kept making Leslie feel weird.  She waited a year to do the endowment to see if she felt differently about things.  LOL   I asked why the aunt didn’t like her and she said that she had divorced Bill a few years ago because they just couldn’t get along.  They were divorced 2 years and then their daughter-in-law invited them out to supper and they both came at the same time.  They worked out their differences and remarried.  Crazy, huh?

We went shopping on Friday after work to get things for the Christmas Eve party for the mission.  We are feeding 200+ people pulled pork tacos .  I think I will be happy to have that party over.  I don’t think it will be that hard, but it will be LOTS of work! 

We had a baptism for a young woman on Saturday in Batavia.  She has been taking the lessons for a while and decided to be baptized.  She is very pretty and her family came from Arabia.  She has 2 really cute little boys and her husband is nice, but decided not to join.  They were a great support, however.  The baptism was very nice.  After the talks the Branch President welcomed her into the branch and said that he normally gives new members a quad.  However, this time was different; because she was young and had good eyes and because she had some lessons with Brother Stephenson and the Elders –Brother Stephenson was going to give her his wife's small quad.  (his wife passed away in Sept.)   It was so touching—this little gal sobbed when he handed her those scriptures.  They meant so much to her.  I was so glad that we had been in attendance.  

Elder Detlor, Elder Longhurst, Yasmeen and Justin with the kids, Elder Gibby and Elder Scott

President Francis with Bill Haggerty after the baptism

After the meeting we went out to Albion and did home teaching there.  We also got more ingredients for the party and then went home. 

Well, I am going to report on our Christmas ‘giving’ present.  We ended up unwrapping everything (for us) so that we would know who to give things to.  Today was our last day before Christmas at the branch.  We had so many nice things to give away.  (that was such a great idea our kids had)  We had to think about each gift and if it would be gladly accepted and used by our intended recipient.  We gave out many gifts today and I think everyone loved it.  We had 2 CDs, 4 Christmas DVDs, 5 Nativity DVD, 6 ties/gloves, 7games, and so on.  It was fun!

We are reading the New Testament now each verse seems to have such a familiar ring.  I have loved reading about the life of our Savior, especially at this time of year.  We are so blessed to have this information and be able to learn more about Jesus and our Heavenly Father.  Isn’t it interesting that Jesus says that if we know Him, then we also know Heavenly Father.  (Not that they are the same person, but that they are unified in their looks and actions) 

We have received some cards from our Grant ward members and we love reading them and hearing about their lives.  We love and miss them!  I still can’t believe Julie Browning is 75!

Happy birthday Kelly Hart (last week); Happy Anniversary Chuck and Janet (last week; and good luck and quick recovery to Barbara Hart (for her knee replacement last week)

The wind caught my umbrella and popped it inside out

Dec. 13, 2015

We had a great week!  We had Elder Schwitzer, from the Quorum of the 70, come to our mission to visit Monday-Wednesday.  He came to Buffalo on Monday and was there for their Mission Leadership Counsel and then a Zone conference.  On Tuesday he came to Rochester and had a Zone conference with the Palmyra Zones and Rochester Zones.  It was really good.  He talked about several things with the missionaries:

First, he discussed how Satan changes things that are wrong to appear right.  How making words appear good and not bad.  So many things that have been wrong in past years are now acceptable and approved.  That was so true—especially looking at society and how things are degrading so much.

Second, he talked about bring the 1 back to the fold.  He showed the picture of Jesus with the lamb about his neck.  He told how Christ had directed the Apostles to go leave the 99 and go after the 1 that was lost.  We are all asked to do this—help recover those that are lost.  He mentioned that how a lamb of that size would probably kick someone’s head pretty badly when they tried to get them onto their shoulders and carry them away.  He suggested that this lamb would have been injured, afraid, ashamed, depressed, or hurt.  This lamb couldn’t make it back to the fold on his own.  He had to be carried and helped.  Our brothers and sisters are the same—they need us to carry them and help them back.  It was very interesting! 

Third, he talked about the Book of Mormon and how much education Joseph Smith had when he translated it.  Joseph Smith didn’t have much more than an elementary education, yet he brought up the following incidents that are in the Book of Mormon:

1.      Military strategic plans

2.      Operations of government

3.      Jewish custom and rights

4.      The prophecies of ancient prophets

5.      Scriptural writing styles and then different prophet writing styles

I’m sure I didn’t get everything from this portion, but it was very eye opening.  He quoted so many scripture and explained things in a way I hadn’t thought of before. 

After the meeting, the missionaries left and we fed them a luncheon with 12 people.  I made Chicken Waikiki and we had salad and dessert.  Sister Schwitzer was so friendly and we all loved her.  She told of experiences of being in Russia as the Mission President (wife) and how she had been afraid and that the Lord had strengthened her.  We can do hard things with the help of the Lord!

We went to the Temple with the Haggerty’s on Friday night and the on Saturday we went over to Seneca Lake Camp with the Spencer’s.  We had a good time there.  The weather was around 60.  They loved it!  We went across the stream down by the amphitheater and when I went to cross to the next rock I stepped onto a rock with lots of moss.  It was so slick and I fell down onto my knee and I was afraid that I had messed it up, but I was alright.  I got a little wet, but that didn’t slow us down.  (my pants were a little green)  We went on to Sauder’s (the Mennonite store) and looked around.  They have things I haven’t seen before in regular store. 

We then went over to the Whitmer Farm in Fayette.  We had a great tour there and heard so many things about the restoration of the church.  It is a wonderful place to go and learn about the translation of the Book of Mormon.  

We went over to Batavia after we got home and went to the Haggerty home to help them get ready for the Branch Christmas party.  It was a huge Turkey dinner and there was SO much food!  Sister Lehman and some of the Primary ladies had chaired the night and had gone all out!  It was very nice and there were so many people that I didn’t know or recognize.  We had several investigators and some that were family members of the branch members.  I think it was very successful.  There was a part of the program that was especially fun, Elder Merrill was one of Santa’s helpers and passed out presents to the kids.  He did a good job and one little girl was so sweet and gave him a gift. 

We have so many blessings!  We live in a wonderful country that had freedom of religion and allows us to make choices for ourselves.  We have the gospel in our lives and that enriches everything we are or do.  We have the most wonderful family; extended and immediate.  We have all the necessities of life and to spare.  We have the love of our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ and they WANT us back again.  How great are our lives??

We pick up a sister for church each week and we thought it was weird how the landlord had cut the bushes.  They are cut down low and some of the bush is left going through the fence. LOL  Also there are lots of stray cats in the backyard and someone has bought igloos for them to live in.  

Someone got a little (alot) carried away with Christmas gifts to us.  Thank you so much!  What a wonderful idea; the 12 days of Christmas and 1 for us and the others for friends here.  

Dec. 4, 2015

Dec. 5, 2015

On Monday, Nov. 30, we had our office meeting and following it we held a birthday luncheon for Sister Workman and Sister Spencer.  I had lots of left overs from Thanksgiving and they actually tasted pretty good.  Sister Francis made barbeque chicken and I made ‘Mormon’ potatoes; with the left over rolls, pies, and jello--it was a feast. 

We went to the Temple on Thursday night with the Haggerty’s.  We did sealings and it was very peaceful and calm there.  There really is a tangible spirit while doing sealings.  Those people can either accept or reject this wonderful blessing.  Sister Haggerty had some of her relatives work done, and it is a special thing to do this for someone you are related to.

Dec. 1 was the first accident of the month for Elder Merrill.  Please learn how to back up without hitting other parked cars!  How does an Elder back into a parked car with his companion behind him guiding the way??  Makes me wonder—was this how it actually happened? 

We are all excited to have the Steve and DeAnna Aldrich come to the mission in January.  I know that they will be able to help in many ways.  The senior couples really do so much good in the mission field.  They are called as MLS missionaries (Member Leadership Support) and so they aren’t’ asked to proselyte (but they can).  They help with the ward/branch and help fellowship, support the young missionaries, do what the Bishop asks and find ways to bring back those that are less-active.  The MLS missionaries here do such a great job.  They have found many creative ways to help others.

Sister Spencer told me about her father joining the church.  The kids of the family were first to join during their late teens and early twenties.  Their mother was later baptized and their father held back.  He was baptized at 84.  He was asked to speak after his baptism and he told of how he had watched his family and the things they did and how it hurt him each time his wife went to the Temple without him.  He said how sorry he was that he stayed on the outside looking in.  A good friend to Sister Spencer was at the baptism and hadn’t been baptized either.  She heard that short sentence and asked the missionaries to baptize her also.  She didn’t want to be on the outside looking in either.  Sister Spencer says that her father loved to tell people that he hadn’t been a member for 1 hour before he had his first convert.

Last Sunday a brother from our branch asked if I would talk to him privately.  I said sure.  He began by telling me that he really wants to go on a mission, but that his wife doesn’t.  He then proceeded to tell me that he doesn’t love his wife and that their marriage was just a marriage of convenience.  He said that he had a son and was single and she had a daughter and was single, living with her parents.  They married to help their children.  They have been married 35+ years and have other children (and they are married in the Temple).  I listened and then told him that I didn’t think that she would want to go with him on a mission if she didn’t feel that he loved her.  I suggested that he work on looking for things about her that he liked and then find ways to show love and support for her.  I don’t see how anyone could come on a mission as a couple and have a good experience without love for their companions.  I told him that he needs to build a better relationship at home and then she may want to spend 24/7 with him.  We all need to look for the good in our companions.  It is so easy to see ‘the mote’ (criticize our spouses)  when we really have a ‘beam’ in our own eyes.  I am so blessed to have a companion that treats me with love and respect.  It has been a great experience to share so much time together.  (However, our desks are not side by side, lol)  I have been so impressed with how quickly Elder Merrill has caught onto the computer programs and how efficient he is in doing his job. 

Addie cut her own hair this week.  I had to laugh a little (sorry Jill).  Jill cut her bangs to the skin 2 times.  She was probably Addie’s age or older.  She hid behind an overstuffed chair and chopped them off.  The first time I was shocked and she didn’t seem to be bothered by the look.  The 2^nd time I took her to the mirror and asked, “is this really what you want to look like?”  She took a good look and started to cry.  She didn’t do it again.  (well now she cuts lots of hair; must be getting it out of her system)

The AP’s (assistants to the President) are coming over tonight for dinner.  We are going to have shepherd’s pie.  Hope they like it.

We went to Bergen today and had lunch with some of the senior missionaries.  We had a good time and a good lunch at a diner out of the way.  Great P-Day!

Elder Merrill, Elder & Sister Woodhouse, Elder & Sister Workman, Elder and Sister Spencer

Elder & Sister Woodhouse, Sister Merrill, Elder & Sister Workman, Elder & Sister Spencer

It looks like our new shop is coming along pretty well.  It is fun to get the pictures of the progress.

Happy Birthday Karsten Jagielski!  He is 16.  We are so proud of you!