28 August 2009 – Friday

We were happy to hear that the Mickelsens slept well last night. Both commented that their bed here was better than the one they have in their own boarding. We told them we could tie it on the top of their car and they could take it with them to Swaziland and then home. After about 1 second of thought we decided that would not work.

We fed them some breakfast – Elder Mickelsen liked a cereal we had called Caribbean from Simply Cereal that Mary has been eating lately. She experiments with different cereals and this one has 30% fruit and nuts baked with oats that produce crispy clusters of cereal – it is quite good and a small amount if filling.

As the Mickelsen’s were driving out armed with a map that we hoped would get them to a road they knew, the gardening crew showed up and for the next couple of hours cleaned out the weeds and mowed the lawn. They were supposed to come last week but every three weeks works for me.

Once they were gone we headed out to run some errands including buying what we need to feed the elders on Sunday. We will break the news about the cut back in dinners when we see them. While I was waiting for the butcher to cut a brisket, I had a chance to talk to the manager about how they hired employees and what they were looking for. He mentioned that what he was looking for were employees that wanted to work hard and had an interest in the success of the store. He told about a security guard in Petoria that he felt really cared about the company so he helped him get promoted and today he is a manager in one of their stores. This is something we need to teach our young people about getting a head by doing more than just doing what they are expected to do;.

Among the other things we did today was to buy cleaning supplies for Port Durnford’s Helping Hand project that is on for tomorrow and deliver them to President Machaka. Check with him that he had a place to stay in Joburg when they go to get married in December because elder B found out that there was no openings at temple housing. He said he had people there that they could stay with. We attended Esikhawini’s Youth meeting and found that brother Mathalane had it under control. While Mary watched the activity, I did some minor maintenance that needed doing. While I was doing that, I found the tool to open the soap dispensers – it had been in the supply locker the whole time we were trying to get them open. When I showed it to Elder Mokopotsa we both had a laugh because he had tried to figure it out also.

I also got to help the elders with a problem with one of the bikes, a question about driving lessons, and with Elder Richey how we were going to get two new converts up in Kosi Bay ordained to the priesthood. Elder Richey and his new companion Elder Maremela – we now have elders Maremela and Musemare which I know I will have a hard time remembering where the ‘mare’ goes – brought Mary two brand new keyboards for her students. A parting present from Sister Klingler. I would have been a little more effective this afternoon if I had not left the phone sitting on the counter at home. But we did manage to get quite a few things done without it.

I have been spending part of our time at home putting photo albums of pictures from our mission in Indonesia on Facebook. There are many Indonesian members and missionaries on Facebook and I think they will enjoy them. I ended up looking very quickly at most of the pictures we took on our mission and in that way kind of re-lived the experiences that they were a part of.

Visits to water projects, couple conferences, Intensive English Classes, District and Zone meetings, sight seeing trips, and visits in member’s sometime very humble homes all came flooding back into my mind as I viewed the pictures. Journals and photos allow those of us with very poor or very short memories – a problem I have always had – to have a way to recall the important spiritual as well as trivial moments. Hopefully they will allow children and grandchildren to share them also.

27 August 2009 – Thursday

It was one of those days where things get changed but everything works out OK.

It was pretty much a normal morning around here – we did start neatening up the house because the Mickelsen’s were coming. Nothing major to be done, just putting away some (make that a lot) of the things that we tend to let stack up and getting out towels, etc.

While we were doing this, we got a call from Elder B asking if we could get together to do some planning. We thought this was a fine idea so we packed up the car for our day and then went to their boarding. It was great to see sister B out of the hospital but she still has not regained her strength. I think this will just take some time. The main thing we talked about was Sunday night dinners for the elders. We decided to cut them back to every other week – that is the 1^st, 3^rd, and 5^th Sunday of each cycle. After the B’s leave we may cut it back further but if we are the only couple here, we might like having the missionaries over that often just to feel their spirit. We also talked about what we would do with some of their stuff if no new couple came to RB. It is good we have a large 2 car garage. They gave us a braai that they only used once in the 23 months they were here. I think we will use it more often once summer comes.

After we left the B’s we went to lunch at the mall – as always I ate too much. We left from the mall to head out to Port Durnford to do English class and youth. We made a quick stop at president Machaka’s shop to get some information and then headed down the road to PD. Along the way we got a call from Thandi Nzama saying that her mother was getting out of the hospital but all her rides fell through. To keep it short, we spent the next two hours getting them home. Hopefully she will be able to eat and get well.

We had to cancel youth and it seems some of them did not get the message. We stopped by the chapel but they had all gone home. We did get to see Ayanda and told her that we can not have Youth next Thursday because we would be in Durban but we can have it on Wednesday. She said she would let the youth know about it. She had already memorized Psalms 100 but we told her she had to wait a week.

On our way home we stopped by Bungumuse’s and talked to him about doing a drawing for us. This is a way he can earn some money. He wanted to know all the details right then, but we had to tell him we did not have them yet. He is a very nice young man but strung just a little tight.

We then zipped home so I could grab something to eat before going to the RB chapel for District Council meeting. Before the meeting the Mickelsen’s gave the branch presidents – at least those who were there – a presentation about PEF. I knew most of what they presented but it was excellent for the presidents and those who did not understand the role of the PH leadership in the process. I am afraid that most of them just sign where indicated without fully interviewing the youth. I did not realize that one of the things that they had to certify was that the person seeking the loan was ambitious and was working at a job. I mentioned that I did not know a single South African high school or college student who worked. It is part of their culture that in most cases if you are going to school you should not have to work. Hopefully some day this will change because I think that is one of the strength of America. The work ethic is instilled in the youth from an early age.

After the presentation we had our meeting. Brother Mathalane finally reported on his mission. He talked about how he grew not only spiritually but also learned a lot about how to deal with people and their problems. It is excellent training for when he becomes a PH leader.

The rest of the meeting was used for taking care of district business including moving the District Youth activity until after the B’s go home. We talked about Helping Hands and other things. It is amazing how quickly an hour can go by. Since they did not know how to get to out house, the Mickelsens talked to the return missionary until we finished with the meeting.

When the meeting ended they followed me home and I had them park their car in the garage so it would be safe and not gather any more rain then it already had. Mary had hot chocolate and rusks waiting for us so we enjoyed them while we sat around and talked. I can not write too much about the Mickelsens on this blog because they read it so I will save all the good things we have learned about them for my personal journal.

Just kidding Mickelsens! The Mickelsens are fun to talk with – they served a mission in Florida and seem to have had some great experiences. This mission is quite different for them as is ours but that is one of the advantages of serving more than one mission as a couple. We would have never visited either Indonesia or South Africa if we had not been called to serve our missions there. Even if we had visited, we certainly would not have grown to know and love so many wonderful saints.

As I have often mentioned, one of the blessings of being on a mission is getting to know the other couples and the young missionaries. You share an experience with them that will continue to be a bond between you for the rest of your life. Elder Mickelsen offered our family prayer when we finally quit talking and headed off to bed.

While writing this I thought of King Benjamin’s “When you are in the service of your fellow beings, you are only in the service of your God.”