Full Heart

Hi All,

My heart is overflowing with gratitude and joy.   The past 3 days have been packed full with work and blessings.   We are MLS missionaries which means that no one gives us any directions.....we thought the Mission President would assign us something specifically, but he basically said, "I don't give senior couples direction.   They must find their way.   You came with the tools you need."   Some people may love that open ended direction, but I prefer at least a general assignment (activation, organize the primary, focus on one branch, or spend time in all branches)    I also don't want to waste any time on our mission and prefer to get busy and not spend a month or 2 weeks "finding my way".   So this is a challenge.  But we have jumped in with both feet and tried some of everything and hope to be guided by the spirit.

I will start with Sunday and go backwards.    At 8:00 AM we left to pick up the elders and  drove to the branch about 30 minutes away.   We greeted everyone with big hugs.   Then I volunteered to go into Primary.   As I said, they had one portable classroom packed with 17 children on small plastic chairs sitting in rows.   The children are 2-9 years old.   I still don't know where the older children go.   I asked the lady who was teaching if she would like an assistant for the day.   She eagerly agreed and began her lesson in Zulu.  She was reading a story from the Children's Book of mORMON stories (like last Sunday);   Every once in a while she asked me what one of the words meant.   She was looking at the stories in English but telling it to the children in Zulu.   Well, the kids sat there for 30 minutes and didn't move.   Finally I asked if she would like me to sing some songs so she could have a break.   She agreed.   I led the children in: Do As I'm Doing, If you are Happy and You Know It,and  Head Shoulders Knees and Toes.   I could tell someone had taught them these songs (a previous senior missionary??) but they hadn't been singing them.   Then I tried to teach Simon Says.   They loved it but never understood the object of the game.   Then the branch presidents wife came in to teach the second block of pRIMARY.  She gave each child a mango...not cut up.   These were from her tree (this is the branch presidents where we ate dinner).   Juice was dripping down their arms and on their clothes but no one minded.  Here no one uses napkins or paper towels.   They carry a roll of toilet paper with them and roll a few pieces around their fingers and give it to guests (or primary kids) to wipe their hands.    When we were at the Branch Pres. house, he walked up to me and asked if I needed a piece of toilet paper.....I thought he meant to go use the bathroom!

The second block of Primary proceeded with another reading of the BOM stories for 15 minutes.    I saw they had a photocopied paper with the steps of prayer (it was supposed to be cut along the lines and make a flip up book).   I asked if we could use them.   I explained to the children the 4 steps of prayer and passed out the papers.   Then I discovered they had no crayons to color it and no scissors for me (or them) to cut it.   The kids promptly waded up the papers and dropped them on the floor.   They had no idea what it meant in spite of my best explanations!   Carol  Archer we need you here for Primary!!!!  Don't anyone say 2 year olds can't sit still for 45 minutes.

On to Sacrament Meeting.....Larry and I spoke.   Larry was assigned to speak on Tithing and Fast Offerings.   They only have one person paying either(now two people because we pay fast offerings here).   I could speak on anything I wanted.   I told 3 scripture stories that illustrated how we could obey Heavenly Father.   No one said a word during our talks.  Reverent.    Afterwards no one made a comment, not one word from the Branch Pres. who assigned us or branch member.   Within a few minutes all were gone.  (Did we offend, were they bored, could they understand????)

After the block Larry and I went visiting inactives with the Branch President and his wife and the RS Pres.  It was so incredibly hot.   We all piled into our car to drive all over the township.   The 3 Africans are very large people.   I sat in the back seat with the other two sisters and sat on one ladies leg because I couldn't fit anywhere.    We were so sweaty and stuck together.   The car air conditioner would just get going when we arrived at the next home.   Getting us out of the back seat was a huge ordeal at each stop.   We visited people non stop from 1:30-5:15.  The homes were humble and as hot as the car.    I will only share 2 things about the visits.    One house we went to had 10 children and a single mom.  The mom sat in the doorway on the floor, they had an old metal grocery shopping cart (like from King Soopers) filled with their stuff that was tipped over on its side and 3 people sat on that, there was a tire rim for one person and an upside down bucket for another.   Everyone else stood.  Second, I LOVED visiting these people and sharing my testimony my love for them.   It was a highlight!!!    I hope we can help them feel HF's love.

Wednesday we had a couple from the Public Relations mission stay with us.   We agreed to help them in this part of the mission.  We attended their presentation and found it to be very interesting.   It was about the Helping Hands Program.    Our branch didn't have the money to transport any of their members to help in any projects.

Thursday we fed and helped the elders.

Friday at 10 AM the missionaries arrived to type and print a baptismal program.    These young elders were no better than we were on the computer, so it took awhile.    Then mission president called and said he and his wife were in town and wanted to meet us at the Mall.   We raced over and meet briefly with them.  They are outstanding people and we love being with them.   They had a tight schedule so we only had 30 minutes with them. 

WE immediately drove 30 minutes to meet with another branch president from a branch we hope to work with.    We had been visiting 10 minutes when he mentioned a sister from his branch who was in the hospital and he was concerned about.   We said, Let's go see her.   So we picked up her 3 daughters and then we all drove to the hospital (back to near the mall).   It took 30 minutes for the hospital staff to find this patient---we were so glad the branch president was with us and could speak Zulu....we never would have located the sister.    Larry and the branch president gave her a blessing.   Larry tried saying her name again and again and again for the blessing...I think they finally just let him go on with the blessing. 

We left the hospital and raced home to get the IPAD and our lessons for FHE.   We drove out to the township to the branch presidents home.   Larry gave the lesson (the IPAD didn't work so we did the lesson without it) and I did the game.    There is no room inside their home, so we sat outside in plastic chairs .   That was great, except I needed a table to put the cards down for the game.   We were able to make the chair work.    I wanted to do a "treasure hunt" but there was only dirt, the dog kennel and the mango tree so I did another activity.   We played the game with them over and over...until 9 PM.   It was pitch black outside but we were still playing.   We had so much fun.    They are a special family.  

We stopped at the store at 9:30 PM only to realize that the stores close at 6 PM.   We were in charge of the refreshments for the branch baptism the next morn at 10 AM.

Early the next morn we picked up the cookies, drinks, cups etc. and hurried to the baptism.  Because our branch had no baptismal font , the baptism needed to be at the chapel in Richards Bay.    Larry made arrangement for the branch (32 people) to attend the baptism.   This required renting a mini bus.    The font wouldn't fill fast enough so someone rigged up a fire hose which worked for 10 minutes and broke.   Then the elders hauled buckets of water from the kitchen sink, down the hall to the font.    When they finished, there was water everywhere.    We had a lovely opening.   Then the branch president announced, "Everyone outside for pictures"   the entire branch went outside and they took pics for 20 minutes....back into the chapel for a talk on baptism in Zulu, then  the baptism,. a fabulous talk on the Holy Ghost given in both Zulu and English---for us. She spoke for 10-15 minutes on "receiving the holy ghost".   No speaker at the baptism (or Sacrament meeting) ever uses a note!    Nothing written!

Larry and I served the refreshments.    Then we all waited or 1 hour while the bus came back to pick up the branch members.   The bus refused to come back and get the members until they finished their other business (whatever that was).

WE went home and prepared our Sacrament Meeting talks.   Then I began cooking dinner.   We were hosting all 10 missionaries for dinner at 6:00 and we were having the district leaders for a meeting at 5:30.   

We had the most fabulous evening with these outstanding elders.    They ate and ate.    We were able to encourage and cheer them on.   This is a very difficult area and several elders were extremely discouraged.    I felt that everyone left buoyed up.  Missionary work is very challenging.  We need to prepare our children and grandchildren.

The elders shared stories, shared ideas, looked at our family pictures, tood so many pics of each other and goofed off!   At 9:00 they didn't want to leave and we didn't want them to leave.  

I heard an idea at the MTC that has worked so well:  I have a large candy jar in our home.   Next to it is a notebook.  I have asked each elder, whenever they come, to write a Tender Mercy they have received that day from the Lord,
(in the notebook),   then they can take a piece of candy.   At first they said they couldn't think of a tender mercy so I said, OK, but no candy.    Pretty soon they came up with things to write.   Then one elder said, If I think of 2 tender mercies, can I get 2 pieces of candy.   I said, Sure.  Now they come in and go over to the notebook and begin writing.    When we received 6 new elders on Tuesday, the "old" elders eagerly explained the concept to the incoming elders.    Last night, an elder said it made him aware of the good things that were happening that it was one of his favorite things to do!  Reading these comments from the elders is a highlight for me.

We love the gospel of Jesus Christ.   We love our Savior.   We love serving his children in South Africa.   The church is true!

Love Elder and Sister Todd