Rain is the price you pay for green!

Yes today, the 4^th of June our Anniversary and it is raining. It rains even when it is supposed to be summer. The good news is that it is still fairly warm and mild so no more bundling, just be sure you are water proof when you go out! I am sure that there is a wonderfully religious message in the above title, you know metaphorically? I will let you each make your own application!

Good things filled the past week as always. The variety of our responsibilities keeps life interesting! Last Thursday was institute and Brother Balloch, former President Balloch of the previous Stake Presidency, has devised his own 6 week course for the summer months. We love it. Our little class is disbanded for the break so we can attend this class and reap the benefits. We also brought the missionaries with us so they too could enjoy the lesson and improve their work accordingly. Francine came for the first time! All in all it was a good evening.

Friday we had a very lovely experience. Tamara Tovey, a single mom in our ward, invited us dinner and asked is we could prepare and teach a FHE lesson for her girls. She said they get bored just listening to their mom all the time. She also invited Georgia to come with us. Tamara’s girls are Lucy 6 and Clara 3 years old. We had a delightful evening. The lesson was about noticing the things in this world that tell us that Heavenly Father loves us. The girls were great in discovering and listing them. Little Clara drew a picture of her own curly ginger hair as one of those gifts! Smile!

Tamara is from Russia, she joined the church there as a university student. She then served a mission of her own and moved here and married. She is now working hard in the role as a single mom and doing a wonderful job of giving her girls a gospel foundation! She is a good example to all of us!

Saturday was a very good day too! Remember back in early March when I wrote of our Southmead Ward activity planned and carried out by the YSA in our ward? We held a service auction and Alex, our ward YSA rep won the bid of our offer for a KFC picnic on the Downs. We had that picnic Sat. She kindly invited Georgia, Fran and Hanna. Of course because here in this beautiful green place in which we live the grass on the downs was soggy from a week of rain. It was not raining Saturday however I still decided that since we have a nice picnic table in our flat we would eat in and then go out for a walk. 

KFC is a little different here than at home. The sides are not all the same so I made potato salad and we bought coleslaw at Costco. We had rolls and carrots and of course chips (fries) which came with the chicken. Bill had a funny moment when he ordered two big chicken meals. They could not understand or believe that he wanted that much chicken. In the end our eyes were bigger than our stomachs and we had a lot left over even though we ate and ate. We all went for a walk on the downs and got ice-cream from the ice-cream man and came back to brownies! A good time was had by all and you could not ask for better company! We love this job!!!

Walking to the ice-cream man

Alex, Georgia, Fran and Hanna

A very fun antidote after we were sitting around visiting out of the blue Georgia gets a text from her flat-mate Owen saying “I need fried chicken!” He was home studying for exams and had no idea that there was a KFC picnic going on. Georgia took a baggie with some chicken and fries back to him. We tucked a pass-along-card inside for good measure. He was so surprised and very happy when she showed up with the gift!

Saturday evening there was another baptism at the Downend Ward. Jaime from Ecuador. What a sweet humble young man. The spirit was so sweet at the service. His English skills are limited so one of the talks was given in Spanish and translated for the rest of us by the ward Elder’s Quorum President who is a Spanish speaking return missionary. The miracle of conversion never ceases to amaze me! All of God’s children have their own journey.

Fast and testimony meeting in our ward Sunday was very sweet. There was a strong spirit there and so many baring heartfelt witness. I especially loved sister Herdon’s testimony. She is this adorable little short grandma in our ward. She truly is only about as tall as a 10 year old. She and her husband are from Wales. I am sure that there is not a more Christ like person than she. It is a thrill to know such people.

The missionaries, Fran and Georgia came over for a teach in the afternoon which is always a joy to sit in on. The evening we went to YSA FHE. Lorna finished the lesson from Gospel Principles on the life of the Savior. She bore a very strong testimony and thus invited a very sweet spirit for us all to feel and be grateful for.

I mentioned previously that today is our Wedding Anniversary, we have been married 43 years. When I look back on that day so long ago I realize that at that time I had no idea of the journey we were embarking on. We loved the then popular song by the Carpenters: “We've Only Just Begun” and Perry Como’s song “It’s Impossible”. When we hear those songs now they bring nostalgic feelings though our perspective is much different. 

The Temple President in the Los Angeles Temple who performed our sealing told us to look around the sealing room at the smiling faces of family and friends who love us. He said especially to notice Bill’s two grandmothers. President Evans told us that we think we are happy now, we think we know what happiness is but he assured us that those two wise ladies had a much better grasp of happiness than we did and we too would one day understand. I guess to a degree that day is here! It is the wonderful family that came about because of our union and the grandchildren who we now enjoy. It is the ups and downs of the journey, the dark times and the bright times. And it is the constant support and forgiveness from our Savior that now enlightens hearts and gives understanding to the meaning of what happiness is. maybe it can more appropriately be described as joy!

Ready for the next 43 years!

I love my husband, I love my family, I love this opportunity and I love the Lord!

2 Nephi 2:25 “Men are that they might have joy…”

Last tri-Zone Conference