Good days in rain and shine!

Monday Nov 4

Monday was a good day. We spent the morning polishing and posting last week’s blog and then off to adventures. We decided to take the bus to go visit Temple Church down in the city center. We first walked down to the shops at Clifton and had lunch in a tiny little café called the Marmalade. We had read that it was a good place for lunch and indeed it was. The sandwiches were delicious. Then we got back on the bus to the church. This church is a late medieval building that was badly bombed during the 2^nd World War. It has been left in this gutted state as a memorial to those citizens in Bristol who were killed by the bombing between 1940 and 1944. It is quite a sobering memorial. I am sure we have no idea what that was like to be attacked on their own shores! The building was originally built as a Knights Templar building in 1200 something, but had been rebuilt in the 16^th century and then destroyed in the 20^th century!

Temple Church

We had FHE again with Georgia and Rebecca. We enjoy them so much. They are very intelligent young women. They continue to be interested, we will see. They did say that they loved coming because when they left our home every time they feel like they want to be better people. That is a good thing don’t you think?

Tuesday Nov 12

 OK things are really behind, here it is Tuesday of the next week and I never finished writing about last week. I am going to have to summarize.

We had a very good week, busy with two trips to Taunton, one was to address their ward council and present to them our desire to help them reach out to their Young Single Adults. The meeting went very well and we are invited back to accompany them on a ward ‘reach out’ next Wednesday and to come speak in a Sacrament Meeting in December.  Wednesday we had a good District meeting, last before transfers so it was good-by to some. Thursday we got some odd jobs accomplished and prepared our Institute lesson. After class there was a YSA bonfire and fireworks for Guy Fawkes day! It was cold but fun. We got a little smoky!

bonfire night

Friday was a great day! We went to Oxford for a Senior Couple outing. Of the 41 senior missionaries in our mission 36 attended including the President and his wife. Elder Sorenson who is YSA Missionary in Oxford gave us a great historical presentation about Oxford and then we all donned our rain coats and took our bumbershoots and headed out into the pouring rain for a walking tour of the city. With all of those black coats and umbrellas we looked like a funeral procession! Part of the outing was an inside tour of Christ Church College. Wow! The Bishop from one of the Oxford’s Wards works as head of security there so we got a behind the scenes tour. It was great! I kept expecting Inspector Lewis or Sargent Hathaway to pop out any minute. We got to go into the High Library which has one of the oldest and most prestigious collections of books and manuscripts in the world. The culminating event was High Tea in the dining hall which is the Harry Potter dining hall. (The movie set was made to look just like it anyway) We sat at high table and had hot chocolate and scones with clotted cream! We felt like Dumbledore or McGonagall  should be sitting with us. We traversed a marble stair case that was in the first Harry Potter movie, so fun

We had a wonderful adventure but also got soaking! It was the coldest day since we have been here and very wet. I will get used to it, I will get used to it!

Is there a funeral somewhere?

Part of the original city wall of Oxford

Look like Hogwarts stairs?

The door in the wall that inspired Alice in Wonderland stories

High Library

Dining Hall Christ Church College 

Now for the highlight of the week! Hanna Hung was baptized on Saturday! It was a very sweet event. We were unable to announce it to the Ward because she decided after church on Sunday last week but still many came to support her. She was just beaming! When she came out of the water and I wrapped a towel around her she kept saying “that was so quick”. I told her to get dressed and come sit and feel the spirit and listen to the rest of the program.

 There were of course refreshments after and everyone spent time visiting and welcoming her. My brownies were a hit. Boy am I glad they sell Ghirardelli Triple Chocolate Brownie Mix at Costco!! We took her out to dinner afterwards, just the three of us and we had a delightful time!

Sunday morning was a glorious sunny autumn day! Hanna said that was a good sign! The confirmation was lovely and sweet and exactly right. She came down off of the stand just beaming. She told me she had been scared for some reason before the ordinance but the wonderful warm feeling that came over her made her feel so good and so right! I am sure that some of you saw the pictures she posted of the event. I am so happy that we will be here as she finishes up this school year. We are happy to be here to give her support and encouragement.

What a wonderful privilege it has been to be a little part of this miraculous conversion process. It is a real joy to be with this sweet daughter of God as she has taken such a courageous step! She not only converted to the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints but to Christianity! Thank you all for your prayers in her behalf. Especially to our little grandchildren who have so faithfully included her in their prayers!

Yesterday, Monday again, we ran to the mall and did laundry and had FHE again with Georgia and Rebecca. I decided to actually give a lesson out of the Family Home Evening manual. We had an enjoyable evening. Then today we went out to Taunton again and then made many calls to try to visit YSA but were unable to visit any today. We did schedule 2 visits for next week and had quite an adventure trying to find a young lady that was new in the area. We were in this awesome little town. The houses did not have numbers on them just names. We were looking for Chapel Cottage. We never did find it. Oh well it was an adventure!

our last district meeting

Tomorrow is Transfer Day so we get to drive all over the country again, probably 4 hours plus in the car. Two of our favorite missionaries are being transferred out of our district. I kind of feel like I did when I sent my own kids away on their missions as these sweet dedicated young soldiers of God’s Army leave for their next experience. Just in case you did not already believe this, The Lord knows exactly what he is doing by sending these bright, fresh, strong, faithful, hopeful young men and women out to carry his gospel to the inhabitants of the world! Oh my own sons and daughters! Dedicate your child-rearing to preparing my wonderful grandchildren to carry forth this work and bring to pass the purposes of God! I bare my testimony of the divine nature of my assignment! I am so thankful to be a part of the ‘hastening of the work of salvation!’

Speak no Evil, Hear no Evil, See no Evil