Japanese Garden, FHE, District Council, Thanksgiving, Trail Walk

For three weeks we've been trying to get our District together to go visit the Japanese Garden in Balboa Park - we finally made it!  We picked up the two sets of Sisters and met the Elders at the Garden.

We had an enjoyable time walking up and down the paths in between all the flora and fauna.  The sites and sounds of the waterfalls and ponds filled with Koi fish were  peaceful and calming.  But we were mostly entertained by the six young missionaries that we were blessed to hang out with for the morning.  Sister Matsushita is from Japan; we could feel her enthusiasm and love for her country as she shared with us Japanese traditions and memories from growing up.  

We had just dropped off Lalo (one of our YSA's) after FHE on Monday evening when I realized that we had spent most of our time hanging out with YSA's or missionaries that day.  I feel privileged to have this opportunity and blessing.  When we were getting ready to leave for FHE at 6:30 pm, I would much rather have stayed home with my PJ's on, laying on the couch.  But I'm glad we got to go to Game Night.  We brought our Swoop cards, and taught the group how to play.  We had a fun time laughing and trying to beat each other in the game.  (We forgot to take pictures.)

We went to District Council on Tuesday morning.  This is a time for the missionaries to be accountable for the previous weeks missionary work.  There is also some training time, and, their favorite, Role Playing!  They love to Role Play with Elder Hardy, he makes it so much fun for them.

I spent most of Wednesday and Thursday preparing food for Thanksgiving dinner.  We had asked the missionaries in our District and the YSA's if anyone needed a place to go for Thanksgiving dinner.  We ended up with two sets of missionaries and one of their friends.  We invited them to our apartment for dinner.  It was a small group, but we enjoyed talking about our family traditions and sharing our feelings of gratitude.  (Once again, I forgot to take pictures.)

Friday morning we decided we needed to get out.  We found a trail about 15 minutes from our apartment called Sweet Water.  We started at a campground, and thought we were on a trail that was going up a hill to look over the reservoir, but the trail took us to a golf course.  We ended up walking along the edge of the course.  It was nice to get out and get some exercise; we did about 6 miles.  

We took a few pictures of the scenery.

We did some visiting Saturday afternoon. The first house we went to we asked for James; his brother (that answered the door) said he wasn't home.  Then he proceeded to tell us the following:  When we were out visiting the week before, we visited one of James' friends.  While at the friends house, I asked for his phone # and he wrote it down on the paper I had listing all the people we were planning to visit.  Well, apparently this friend told James that he was on our list (must have seen his name when writing his phone #) and that we would probably be coming to visit.  So James' brother told us that when we came to the door, James was going to pretend not to be there so he didn't have to talk to us!  So we told the brother thanks for the info and gave him the chocolates that were intended for James!  

I will end this entry with an expression of gratitude for the Book of Mormon.  Lately, I've been thinking about how grateful I am for the BofM.  My life is changed because of this book.  Not only because Stan and I met in a BofM class at BYU, but there is so much to learn about how to live a righteous life.  There are many prophets and families in the BofM that teach me how to live.  The BofM teaches about Christ, His doctrines, and His eternal plan.  I'm so grateful for the Book of Mormon.  I encourage all to read it everyday.

Marines Corps Recruits and MS events

 This week was a contrast of events - We had the opportunity to volunteer for the MS society fundraising event at the posh Loews Coronado Bay Resort on Saturday & then participate in the Marine Corps sacrament meeting on Sunday with a graduating class plus new recruits in attendance.  In many ways, there were a number of interesting contrasts!

The MS society apparently has a fundraising activity this time each year and they have loved inviting many of our young Missionaries & Senior Missionaries to help assist them with the wealthy invitees to this suit, tie, & fancy dress event.  Those that were invited to come were dressed to the T's in their fanciest clothes and arrived walking into the beautifully decorated Resort called the Loews Coronado Bay Resort on Coronado Island.  Many came color coded in Orange & Black and were welcomed walking into the picturesque hall looking at the carefully placed food, vacation, & alcoholic basket displays for the silent auction.  They were then liberally plied with champagne and other alcoholic libations as they made their way to the techno savvy hall for a delicious multicourse dinner & dessert.  Following the sumptuous feast, the program began with large screens & videos documenting how the organization has helped & continues to help those suffering with MS & also the organization's ongoing support for research to help find a cure!  Awards were presented to those who had been most instrumental in helping the organization & their cause. The live auction was then started after a spirited auctioneer discussed one by one the packages offered with their most attractive features, and the bidding was started!  Each of our missionaries was given a filament "wand" that had blinking lights so that when one bidder raised his/her number to bid, the flashing "wand" drew attention to the bidder's bid!  Ohs & Ahs slipped from the audiences mouths as the bidding dollar amount got higher & higher, until the "sold" word bellowed from the mouth of the auctioneer!!  The blinking "wands" then did a final light flashing dance around the successful bidders.  Following the live auction, the fundraising continued as the auctioneer asked for donations starting at $ 10,000, $5,000, $2,500, and so on until the last plea for $ 100.  Cheers & accolades erupted in a carnival atmosphere as the "bidders" numbers were raised for the pledged donations.  All in all, it was a successful fundraiser - gifts were given, donations pledged - many in a very public display.  I thought of the good that these donations would do, but I also wondered about the Savior's teaching in Mathew 6 when He taught "Take heed that ye do not your alms before men, to be seen of them..."  It was an interesting event!!

Now I will describe the event we had this morning (Sunday morning).  Debbie & I were invited to attend a Marine branch sacrament meeting at the Marine Corps base in San Diego.  I was asked to play my cello with another senior Missionary on his guitar - a rendition of "Hallelujah" - so we played the first verse as an instrumental number after which the marines would sing the next two verses (words changed to be more "appropriate") with our accompaniment.  It turned out nice.  The building we met in was an ordinary hall with no pictures on the walls and the Marines were there to escape "boot camp" for a few hours.  They sat in company groups in their fatigues and the recruits with the most time were at the front and the "newbies" near the rear.  Most were LDS, but some had brought friends with them.  Apparently, the Marine Corps gives the recruits a choice to "go to the Church of their choosing" or stay and clean toilets, etc.  Most go to Church!!  As the meeting opened, a member of the branch presidency reminded them to be on their best behavior; heads forward, respectful, and awake - if they found themselves dozing, to stand up and move to the side wall until they are able to stay awake.  Although the noisy jets were taking off & landing every minute or so, the recruits were exceptionally quiet and respectful.  Here they were, just 18-20 years old without family or friends, cell phones, etc and in the most grueling training of their lives.  They were broken down, finding out about strict obedience, and learning about honor, courage, and commitment.  Totally overwhelmed and humbled, many were turning to God, prayer, and priesthood blessings to just survive! After a talk by one of the branch presidency, the sacrament was blessed & passed in a most reverential manner - the rest of the meeting was a testimony meeting with many of the graduates just finishing the program speaking of how God got them through as they prayed to Him almost continually.  They were grateful and optimistic for their future as MARINES!  Many tears were shed in the congregation as they sought help & courage to finish boot camp.  Religion that had been taken for granted in their "former" life, suddenly became real & essential!!  We were told that on other Sunday's in the 2nd hour of the meeting, many sought & received healings from many of their physical ailments through their new found faith in God & through Priesthood blessings - other friends would join them also asking for Priesthood blessings the next Sunday!

This experience reminded me of Alma (Alma 32:6) when he went to preach to the Zoramites and found some success among the poorer class of people that had been cast out of their synagogues for "their afflictions had truly humbled them, and that they were in a preparation to hear the word."

Before the meeting started, I was amazed to see a few senior missionaries addressing the new recruits with instruction on how to address an envelope so that they could send a short letter home to their parents to let them know they were "alive".  Some did not even know how to send a "snail" mail letter!  I am truly grateful for the sacrifice & service of these young men and young women, but I am even more grateful for the sacrifice of the Son of God, whose gifts allow us to repent and to hope for eternal life & exaltation.

Have a great week!

 Music, Tiffany (aka?), & Sister Taylor Talbot

Music

Once a month our mission combines with the Mormon Battalion Historical Mission to put on a program of music and narration.  It is called "Inspire", and this month's theme was "Thanksgiving".  Two to three weeks before the program, Sister Merritt (our mission president's wife, who has a strong music background) gave Stan some music for "All Creatures of our God and King" and asked him to write a violin and cello part to go along with the piano and chorus.  

He has spent hours upon hours learning a program to write music (Symphony).  She would tell him what she wanted, he would try to interpret what he thought she wanted.  He had about four rewrites before he got it close to what she was looking for.  

There was another song, "Gratitude", that she wanted a cello part added in to go with the guitar and a vocalist.  There wasn't any music, just a YouTube video to watch.  So he listened to it over and over trying to add in a cello part.

Last Friday was the Inspire Fireside.  It was well attended, and the music was beautiful and enjoyed by all who attended, even though there was a small glitch at the beginning of the program!  The first song began with a cello and violin solo, with the piano coming in after a few measures.  Everything was wonderful until the piano came in.  I could tell something was off, and Stan looked confused.  After a few measures, Sister Merritt got up from the piano and walked over to the microphone.  She apologized.  Apparently the piano, a digital piano, had been set with the notes transposed to a different key!  After that was discovered and she set it right, the rest of the program was very lovely.  Stan was so glad when that evening was over!  He sure learned a lot from this experience!

Tiffany (aka?)

We had Zone Conference this last week.  ZC's are always a spiritual experience as well as fun to see all the missionaries.  After the conference, Stan had a music rehearsal.  While I was waiting, I saw an Elder that I recognized.  On a previous Blog post, we had mentioned about a lesson that we had participated in over Zoom with a young woman named Tiffany.  She is deaf, so the Elders had an ASL Elder (the one I met in the hallway) join in to do Sign Language so she could be taught.  After this lesson, she chose to go to the ASL Branch, so I hadn't heard anything of her since.  Upon recognizing this Elder, I asked him whatever happened to Tiffany; I was curious if she had been baptized, because she had seemed very interested.  

So he stands back and said he had an interesting story to tell me.  Apparently "Tiffany", or whatever her real name is, has been baptized at least 8 times!  I guess there is a private Facebook group that lists people for the missionaries not to contact.  This Elder's companion was looking on the list in Facebook, and saw Tiffany's picture.  This is where they found out that she has been all over the country and has had the missionary lessons and has been baptized multiple times, upwards of 8 or 9 times!   They had to politely ask her to not contact the missionaries any more!  I've never heard of a "Serial Baptizee"! 

Sister Taylor Talbot

You may recall that we've written about Sister Talbot in a previous blog.  She is a Service Missionary who is also a Paralympian.  She is visually impaired caused by an eye disease called Retinitis Pigmentosa.  Since the age of 2, she has been losing her vision.  She is now 23 and is blind in one eye, and in her other eye, she said it's like looking through a straw with only 5% vision!  She has a guide dog named Fargo, that is by her side most of the time.  I would like to briefly share her story, which she shared at a Fireside that she spoke at this evening.

Taylor began to gradually lose her vision beginning at a very young age.  By the time she was in high school, she became pretty angry and didn't understand why she had this eye disease that kept her from being like her friends. She prayed everyday that God would restore her vision so she could be happy.

One day, while she was reading in the Book of Mormon, she felt God's love for her, and she knew that she didn't need to be healed to be happy.  She knew that God had blessed her with gifts and talents to be able to be a force for good in her life, even though she was blind.

Her family loves track and field - her parents and three younger siblings all have been involved in track.  Taylor has been running track events since she was very small, so when a friend of hers suggested she apply to be in the Paralympics, she thought he was crazy!  She has also always wanted to serve a mission, but wasn't sure how that would fit into her life.  After much thought and prayer, she felt that she should go ahead and apply to be in the Paralympics.  During this time, she was called into the Stake Presidents office.  He told her that the Lord wanted her to serve a mission, but that it would be a mission unique to her.  She was called to serve a full-time Service mission to represent Jesus Christ and the Church combined with her sport.  She has been been running races as a Paralympian and serving as a representative of Jesus Christ ever since.  She has raced in many countries throughout the world.  Because of this, she spends a lot of time in airports.  She tells a story of a time that she was waiting at a gate for her flight, when someone came up to her and asked about her belief in Jesus Christ (they must have noticed her missionary tag).  So Taylor began to explain her belief in Christ.  While they were talking, someone overheard them and joined in the conversation about Christ.  She said that soon a big group of people had all joined in the conversation and many were bearing testimony of their belief and love for Jesus Christ.  She said that she has had many opportunities to share messages of Jesus Christ and His Gospel in her travels.  She even gives Firesides in some of the places and countries she has traveled with the Paralympics.  She has been a Paralympian for two years and a missionary for one year.

This year she has felt the strong prompting that she needed to change her focus from running track to participating in Triathlons, through the Paralympics.  I won't go into all the reasons and promptings and miracles she has experienced in making this change, but I want to share some of the lessons she has learned from being a triathlete.

As a visually impaired person, Taylor said it's impossible for her to do a triathlon by herself.  So the paralympic triathletes are given a "Guide".  This person is a qualified athlete who has been versed on the rules of  what they can and cannot do as a guide.  Taylor shared with us all the parallels she has made with her Guide and with the Plan of Salvation.

She shared with us that the Guide is always with her throughout the entire race.  The Lord, Jesus Christ and the Holy Ghost are always there for us.  She said that during the swim portion of the race she is tethered to her Guide.  There is a cord tied to each of their upper thighs.  The Guide told her that she wouldn't be able to see or hear during the swim portion but that she would feel a gentle tug to keep her going the right direction; just as the Holy Ghost gives us or prompts us with gentle feelings when we are getting off course.  During the cycling portion, the Guide would take the front position on a tandem bike and Taylor was the stoker on the back.  The Guide would speak to her in a normal voice telling her the direction they were going or when they needed to make a turn.  Taylor had to tune in to her voice, and shut out all the other sounds around her.  This is an example of what we need to do to hear the Spirit speak to us. When they transitioned to the run, they were tethered at the waist with a short cord.  The Guide was not allowed to pull or force her along, but gently would lead her and speak to her in a soft voice, saying, "Come to me", until Taylor followed her direction.  Taylor shared that the Savior is always with us, saying, "Come Follow Me".  He will lead us to the finish line; back to Him.  Our part is to follow and keep His commandments and listen to the voice of the Holy Spirit.  I loved listening to her stories and how she ties her experiences into the Gospel teachings.   

She will be leaving us to move to Arizona for the Triathlon training later this month.  She wanted to have a Farewell party so we opened up the Institute Saturday evening with some food and activities to celebrate her new adventure.  She will soon be transferring to the mission in Arizona.  Hers is a unique mission by sharing the Gospel in giving Firesides and speaking in conjunction with her sport.   

She has been an inspiration to many and we're grateful that we had a short time to get to know her.  She is a pretty independent young woman, and looks forward to her new adventures.  

Here's a picture of her faithful companion, Fargo.  See if you can zoom in and see his missionary tag!

This is a picture of our YSA Ward after Taylor spoke in Sacrament meeting.  She is loved and supported by this group.  I know that as the people in Arizona get to know her, they will love her, too.

Halloween, Charcuterie tray, Celebration of Life, and more!

 Here it is the end of the week again; I know we were busy but I can't remember what we did! Oh well, here goes.  Monday turned out to be a practice afternoon with Sister Merritt (Mission Leader Spouse) and some of the young Missionaries to prepare for an "Inspire" night at the MOBAT (Mormon Battalion), which is a night of inspirational messages and music.  Sister Merritt found a vocal rendition of "All Creatures of our God & King" and wanted me to add cello & violin parts.  This required me to come up with the parts & then print them out with a software program called "finale".  There is a learning curve with this program, & I was pulling out my hair trying to get it done in time for the practice, but only got about 3/4 the way through before the practice, only to find out that her mind & my mind had different versions in "mind".  I guess I was having trouble reading her mind!!  Hopefully the next practice will be better!

Monday night was a "Halloween fun" night with the YSA's.  We ended up playing games with the YSA's at the Church.

We had an opportunity to meet with our Missionary district to counsel together & role play.  Debbie played the "good friend" and I played the "disruptive friend" trying to come up with random tough questions for them to explain in a gospel context. This was a lot of fun trying to trick and fluster the Young Missionaries 😁.  I guess that the Lord's hand was in this as well, because one of the Sisters said that the very question that I asked them came up when they were teaching one of their friends a gospel lesson this last week!!  Debbie then proceeded to wow them with a Charcuterie tray for treats that she had diligently prepared.

Later on that day, we had a very heartwarming new member lesson with one of the newly baptized members of our Ward; Eric.  Eric is the very epitome of a golden contact - he is humble, teachable, focused on Christ, and becoming a life long disciple of Jesus Christ.  I truly believe that he is one of the many "choice" spirits that God reserved to come forth in this difficult time on earth.  He asks intelligent questions & listens to the Spirit - something that we are all trying to do.  What a great blessing it is that the Savior would trust us to help spiritually guide one of His children on the covenant path!

For most of the rest of the week, we received permission from our Mission Leader to fly back to Utah to attend the funeral of a dear Brother-in-Law who died this last week - Mike Munsee, husband of Debbie's sister, Dixie.  Although Mike had been sick quite a bit over the last few years, it was still a shock to receive a text that he had passed away peacefully.  Mike was a great example of service that he gave to many people - he was honest, hardworking, & loved & cared deeply for God & his neighbor.  He had a trucking service & parts business for many years, and his employees had become a second family to him.  The "celebration of life" service was beautiful and his casket was taken to the burial site on one of his favorite trucks! We will miss him! The best comfort we had was the strong spirit that was there, testifying to us that God's plan of happiness extends life beyond the veil and that death is not the end, but that our Spirits return to that God who gave us life, to await the Resurrection when we will receive our bodies back, but glorified, perfected, & immortal. The scriptures tell us that not a "hair of our head" will be lost.  Those who have chosen to repent & follow Jesus Christ on the covenant path will be in a joyful place.

After arriving back to Chula Vista, we had an opportunity Saturday night to host a Senior Missionary Family Home Evening.  Our theme was "gratitude" and after a wonderful potluck dinner, we had songs of gratitude with Guitar, cello, and piano numbers, followed by a testimony from departing Senior Missionaries & verbal messages of thankfulness.  There is a wonderful bond of love that develops with our fellow Senior Missionaries - we are all striving to do the most fulfilling work there is - to invite others to come unto Christ.  We are so grateful to be a small part of the Lord's merciful army!

We also loved giving rides to and from Church for the "friends" that the Missionaries are teaching.  Today, while giving Antoine (a Haitian young single adult just 4 months in the United States) a ride home, he asked us how he can be baptized into the Church!  We encouraged him to continue to read & pray about the Book of Mormon, and keep meeting with the Missionaries.  We believe that these choice young people are being "found" through the hand of the Lord - miracles are alive & well in the Lord's Church.

Hurrah for Israel!!

Have a great week!