I finally remembered to take a picture of Mary and her newest companion – her pump. I do not imagine that most women are going to want to have a hernia operation just so they can get one of these beauties. We are always happy to take people to have their patriarchal blessing. Some day I will remember to take a picture of Partriach and Sister Jaba who are very warm and kind people.

While waiting for the Patriarch to give the blessings we went to the Pottery Shop outside of Ballito that Sister Mann found. They have lots of things to see besides the pottery they sell. We thought the striped cat on the shelf with the zebra patterned pottery was a nice touch. The big pig did not even open it’s eyes when we walked around it and took pictures. Wish I could nap like that. The cat and the artist share the same water cup – hopefully the artist does not drink from it.

The shop includes a playground for children and has a gorgeous view of the ocean. It had a better view before they started building homes down at the sea shore. We bought a bowl and vase decorated with a guinea fowl feather pattern.

06 March 2010 – Saturday

We were up by 5:30 and got ready so we could take three members of the Esikhawini branch to get their patriarchal blessings.  We picked up sister Tanya Mathe and then the Mavundlas and headed off to Ballito. The weather was perfect and the landscape along the way is gorgeous. There are Kilometer and K of green cane fields between K after K of tree plantations. Here and there are homesteads, sometimes with three generations of buildings – round mud and wattle huts, round concrete homes, and then the new ranch-style house – all on the same lot, side-by-side.

As usual we got there early but Patriarch Jaba is always ready. We dropped off the three members and continued on to Ballito where we did some shopping – I had to get a new charger for my cell-phone because I left mine down at Pumula Beach. We also found they had real, made in the USA Bugles. Now if they just got in some A&W diet root beer I would be in heaven.

After shopping we went out to the Pottery Gallery that is just off the M-4 and spent a couple of hours looking at the animals, buying a couple of pieces of pottery decorated with Guinea fowl feathers designs, and having a piece of freshly made carrot cake. We then found a quiet place to just sit and read until we got a call that the Patriarch was done. On the trip back to Esikhawini, everyone got good naps except me…I must say that I was jealous.

We then went to the chapel where Mary gave three piano lessons. She did not seem to get tired so maybe she is almost fully recovered. When we were finished we hurried home so we could unload the groceries we bought in Ballito before going to dinner with the Griesmers.

We had a wonderful dinner and visit with them at the Thai Wok down in the Tuzi-Gazi waterfront. Elder Griesmer loved the sweet and sour stirfry with prawns that the Mickelsen’s discovered the last time we ate there with them. The Griesmers had a good afternoon of visiting members in Engwelezne. It gives them a chance to meet with the people in their homes which is a special part of being missionaries. They are actually called to be the Employment Resource couple for the mission which is what we did in Indonesia.

After bidding goodbye to them we went back to the Richards Bay chapel to make copies of the Home Teaching message for the branches. We found Colwyn Baldwin there putting in some of the cabling for the new computers that recently arrived. We are hoping that no one breaks in and steals them as they have done in other chapels in the mission.

When we got home there was a fax from the Esikhawini elders for a baptismal service they will have tomorrow. Two members of a large family is being baptized and hopefully the rest will join them in the near future.

We got a call from the Bartholomews and we talked about everything that is going on in the branches. They may be living in Utah but their hearts are actually here in Richards Bay. Sister B said that she felt that all they needed was to come home for a couple of months between missions and then head out again. Her children are capable of taking care of themselves and each other while their parents are needed in the mission field. I wish more couples would understand this and not use the needs of the family as the reason for not going on many missions. With 30 to 50 High Priests in a ward and 200 to 300 in the Stake, who needs another one…but how much they are needed to guide and train the twigs and branches in so much of the world. BTW Mary is hinting at another mission more often – so I do not think it is any longer if we are going out again but when and then where.

So it was another busy but wonderful day serving together here in South Africa.