These three of the motorcycle loads we saw in one day. The problem with pictures is that they really can not show how the loads look as we pass them or they pass us. We could not figure out what were in the blue boxes – they did not look like there were insulated for carrying something that needed to be kept cold. I am not sure the woman carrying the bookshelf had any way of seeing where they were going. I think she just had to stare at the back of the case.

20 May 2008 – Tuesday

I went to the gym to try and get off the pounds I have managed to gather over the last 4 or 5 days. How easy it is to put them on and how hard it is to get them off. I guess that weight is like sin in many ways. While riding the bike at the gym I started watching ‘We are Marshall’ about the university that lost their whole football team in a plane crash and what happened after that. It was so interesting that I had to finish watching it at the apartment. The moral that we must not let tragedy stop us from living. It is right to mourn but there is a time to stop mourning and to start living. We honor the dead by living the best we can in their remembrance. If they loved us, this is what they would want us to do.

After that we read from the A&P and as we finished and I marked where we stopped by writing the date, I got goose-bumps on my arms as I realized that we have less than two weeks more here in Indonesia. It does not seem possible and is almost unreal. How can 17 months have passed so quickly? Where did they go?

I started cleaning out some of the drawers. The accumulation of 17 months has to be gone through and divided between take home, give away or throw away. Much of it ends up in the trash. Pieces of my life – things that at one time seemed important but now seem to lack meaning are discarded. Pages of a calendar that no longer make sense.

We went to the office by taxi and when we got there we found that the Selatan branch was having an activity to clean the chapel and grounds. I was touched by the fact that so many of the Indonesian Saints gave up a holiday to come to the church as families and clean. Their willingness to serve is unwavering.

We worked on a number of tasks including cleaning up and labeling more files. I worked on my vocabulary and now only have two more tests to write and I will be finished. Mary worked on getting more of the cards that we are giving to members so they can contact us if they come to Utah.

Elder Subandriyo stopped by and said that the decision has been made to give up on getting PEF into Indonesia. That is sad news but now he will get going on how to use the scholarship fund that has been set up in his daughter’s name to help the Indonesian youth to get an education or to learn a skill. I will work with it when we get home and hopefully build it up to a point where it will allow 10 or more young people a year get a better education. He also talked to me about the government Job Training program and I had to tell him I had not done anything with it. It is something that I must get done before we leave. So I guess that is what I will do tomorrow or Thursday. I plan to continue helping establish this program even after we have returned home.

Bob wrote to tell us about Tyler and Ryan’s up coming high school graduations. We are sorry we will miss them but we know we are doing what we need to do. Not that anything is going to fall apart when we leave, but we were called to serve for 18 months and we will do what we can until then.

Us with Elder Cheney and Elder Suseno. This is the street that the elders live on. Notice all the plants – they are usually outside even the humblest homes. Looking the other way you get Jakarta’s answer to Doug’s Auto Shop. No shop only a wide spot in the otherwise narrow street. Their tools are their hands, their inventive minds and a few tools in a couple of bags that can be seen by the tire.

Another feature of the street that the Elders live on is the carts that bring fresh fruits, vegetables, household goods, and just about everything else you might need. Also there are merry-go-rounds, performing monkeys, and other entertainment. I included one more picture of the auto repair shop that shows more clearly their tool box.
19 May 2008 – Monday

It was a errands day. We picked up printing – hopefully for the last time before heading for the Jakarta Raya elder’s house to give it a final examination. We have not been there for many months so we were happy to see that Elders Cheney and Suseno are keeping it up. One thing I always look at is how they keep their closets and both of the elders had neat ones. This is one of the few and maybe the only missionary houses that have air conditioning in the bedroom. Some Indonesian elders do not like sleeping in an air conditioned room but Elder Suseno seems to enjoy it. I know that Elder Cheney does.

Next we went to the bank so I could deposit some US dollars to make sure we have enough to get us through the last couple of weeks. It was much easier than I expected and it turns out we can use our BCA card at some ATMs in Hong Kong. What ever money is left over here, we will probably give to the scholarship fund.

Now that we had enough money, we went to pick up my new hearing aid. I am not sure it do any good, but I certainly need something because there are many things I just do not hear or at least not well. The hardest thing about the aid is getting it in. For a while I was not sure I would ever do it right but I finally got it right. I am sure Pak Anton was relieved.

Our final errand was to go to Sogo to get orange juice, the makings for meatloaf, and of course BreadTalk. I am going to miss both the fresh orange juice and the great BreadTalk treats. But we have to sacrifice something to go home.

We spend out afternoon going through things and recovering from our trip. I am afraid we are starting to think of leaving more often. It is natural since we spend part of most days doing something related to heading home. Hopefully the Lord understands.