Sunday was Special

What a refreshing, special Sunday we had. This weekend was Stake Conference for us and for all 68 stakes in northern California.   President Eyring represented the First Presidency at the broadcast from SLC. Following the conference, President Dillender of the San Francisco West Stake generously spent an hour with us sharing his thoughts about the two units we serve in his Stake (the Chinese branch and the Filipino Ward.) It was a very worthwhile hour for us. And we are starting to get a workable routine.

Later that afternoon, Tanner Apeland, a young man from our home area, drove up from Salina, CA where he is attending college and playing basketball for the school .He and his teammate, Seth, joined us for dinner. Tanner is a great person with a fun personality; so it was frosting on the cake to have some time with him. We felt pretty special that he would take the time to drive an hour and three-quarters here and  another hour and three-quarters back so he could see us. We'll always remember his visit.

We've Reached the Four Week Mark!

Four weeks ago today, we entered the MTC in Provo, UT. It seems like a LONG time ago and we've learned a lot in the meantime.  However, we have SO very much more to learn. Little by little the pieces are coming together to give us a clearer picture of what is most important and how to divide our time among the five assigned units.

Wednesday we were at the mission home in Oakland for "Departures and Arrivals." President and Sister Wade took all of the new missionaries up on the terrace of the temple where we viewed the Bay. President Wade then related that he had had a vivid dream two years before his call as a mission president in which he say a bay and cranes by the water's edge. He just sensed that the dream was not a usual dream and that someday he would be in the setting he had viewed. At first he thought that would be Sydney, Australia with the Opera House by the water, but by the time he received his mission assignment, he didn't even need to open it to know where he was being assigned. He said that the view we were seeing from the temple terrace was the exact view he had seen in his dream.

Marcella

At first I was a little disappointed to only have one student attend the Advanced English class on Tuesday night.  The one student was Marcella and Tuesday evening was the first time I had met her. She had originally come to the US from Viet Nam and her English was very good.

Our lesson centered around vocabulary and phrases commonly used when going out to eat at a restaurant. The dialogue proved no problem for Marcella.

Near the end of class, Tom challenged her and the two young elders with a couple of American idioms. Rather than presenting the two we had planned  that went with out theme for the night (ie. "bite off more than you can chew" and "a piece of cake") he offered "rode hard and put away wet." Of course we discussed together what that referred to and its common meaning as an expression.  Then I inquired if Marcella had ever felt like she had been ridden hard and put away wet.  She immediatley began to cry.

Elder Lee handed her a tissue and she commenced to tell us how she had been unfairly fired from work.  As she opened up, there was a warmth and feeling of commpassion for her that was felt by us all.  Elder Chan spoke to her in Mandarin for quite some time. Although Tom and I couldn't understand what was being said, we could feel the gentle, loving spirit that was there. When they were through conversing, Marcella wrote her phone number in Elder Chan's planner and asked him and his companion to teach her the gospel. I don't believe that ever would have happened if the normal number of students had been attending that evening.  All the other nights we just talk about English and have fun together in the class with the vocabulary and activities. It turned out to be a very special evening. We all feel great warmth for Marcella and we desire to lift the burdens she has felt. We're anxious to share with her the gospel which will bless her life.

I Will Learn!

Todays many posts are so disjointed. I will learn how to add more than one picture at a time. You can see that I finally got the idea. Please be patient with me. It will get better. I promise. Hopefully you can get an idea about our very basic apartment.

Home Sweet Home

Our Assignment.

Wednesday, the 12th of January 2011, Tom and I arrived in Oakland, CA. We drove directly to the mission office and met President David Wade. He was about to leave for the temple with a group of departing missionaries and invited us to go with them. So we quickly changed and joined the group.

After dinner we met with him to discuss what he'd like us to do in the mission. President Wade is about our Susan's age. He's young, very bright and pleasant to interact with. He and his wife and three children have been here about a year and a half. During that time he has developed an amazing grasp of what the different units need and what talents the various missionaries bring. He had 6 priorities for us.

1st: Support the Chinese branch and help teach them English.
2nd: Support the Filipino ward.
3rd: Help the El Camino Ward (Spanish).
4th: ...the Bay Ward (English)
5th the Golden Gate Ward (English)
6th: Become ham radio certifed so that the mission home office in Oakland can stay connected with the San Francisco peninsula in the event of an emergency.
Oh yes, and we are to inspect 6 missionary apartments at tranfer time.

No doubt it would be easier to be assigned to ONE unit and to totally immerse ourselves in its concerns. This will require a lot of thought and divine help to know where and how to spend our time and energy.

Yesterday we attended our first English class. There were 11 students. I was very impressed with the diligence and engagement of the advanced group. It was very energizing for me to be with them and to help out a bit. Next Saturday, I get to teach the class. I can hardly wait.

Today, Tom and I attended the Filipino ward (Serramonte) first and then went to a different chapel for the Chinese branch (San Francisco 7th). All the meetings at the Chinese branch are in Mandarin, although many there speak Cantonese as well. Headphones were essential for the two of us.

What a welcome we received at both units. The Blairs, who we are replacing, were much loved. We have very, very big shoes to fill.

The MTC- the good, the bad, and the ugly

Susan drove us to Provo to begin our training at the MTC. There were many good things about last week: we were assigned to the Marriott Hotel in downtown Provo; so every day we had clean sheets, towels and the suite was spiff. We enjoyed it. Our classes were good, The young teachers were fun, skillful teachers and very energetic. We met lots of nice people and really bonded with one couple in particular. Paul and Sue Traxler from Colorado drive us to the MTC each morning, ate every meal with us and drove us back in the evening. They were very kind to us.

Paul and Sue Traxler-going to Vancouver, BC

The cafeteria offered so many options and I had to try them all: so I am more round now than when I entered the MTC. That is bad. And now on to the ugly. The first day at the MTC I wore dress boots, the second day I was in professional heels and by the third day I was wearing ugly flats. It didn't take me long to wear down. As a matter if fact, I purchased two pairs of shoes at the MTC emergency clothing outlet. Yup, my feet needed relief.

Friday night, Susan, Trent and girls came to pick us up. We went to the Carl Bloch art exhibit on BYU campus. The paintings were spectacular. I'm so glad Susan suggested we attend.

Saturday morning all the Banks clan were up early to say goodbye. It was a tender time. We flew to Portland and had lunch with Karen, JR and girls. And then we had another goodbye. Two is too much for one day.