Sunday, August 18, 2013

Singin' in the Rain

Dear Family,

This past week was supposed to be the beginning of the dry season, but as you can see by the photo, we continue to take our walks and get a downpour while we are walking.  And to think that Utah and Idaho are having problems with fire and drought. 

Our neighbors, the Beechers had their 40th wedding anniversary on Friday.  They spent the day working on an employment survey and talking to young people who are trying to get PEF loans and scholarships before school starts this next month. 

I couldn't help but contrast that with the 40th wedding anniversary which we enjoyed a year and a half ago which our children gave us as a gift.  We loved the Mormon Tabernacle Christmas concert and the dinner and the Anniversary Inn.  It was truly an unforgettable night, mostly because of the thoughtfulness of our children.  

Yesterday was kind of stressful.  We took off in a downpour to go to Diamond to find a new apartment for the elders there.  When we were only a block from our home, a truck pulled out of the driveway and ran into the side of our car, doing damage on the front fender and the two passenger doors.  We had to get the person's information and go to the police station to report the accident.  The police are supposed to come to the scene of the accident, but according to the other driver, they never seem to make it there.  We surely hope that the driver will pay for the damage which he promised he would.

After we looked at the apartment, we noticed a police escort for a whole group of motorcyclists.  The were having some sort of a rally. That reminded us of Becky's facebook page with the motorcycles up there in Sundance.  Then today, on the way to church, there was a section of the seawall road which was blocked off for bicycle racers. That seems to be a Sunday morning event in Guyana. I honestly don't know how they can ride in 85 degree weather for these races without having heat stroke.

We have our Chinese friend James, who is about to get baptized.  He plans to be baptized on my birthday, August 28th. We are excited for him.  He still really struggles with reading and understanding the Book of Mormon.  He says the the language style is such an old style in his Chinese translation, and he never had any religious upbringing before he came here, so it is really foreign to him.  He does have a strong belief in God and feels that he is loved.  He really accepts the Plan of Salvation lesson, that he lived with Heavenly Father before he was born and that he is being watched over and will return to his heavenly home after he leaves this earth.  It has been really enjoyable to teach him.

My last comment is concerning piano.  We have been really discouraged at times with the slow progress which our students are making because the refuse to practice, but this last week was great. Several of them are finally beginning to sight read and figure out how the music should be played without much help. We hope that during our last 4 months we can get them to the point where they are able to accompany the members in church.  

One girl, Rovaughnia, who is not even a member is amazing.  It is as if she knows the songs before she even plays them.  She really has a gift.  I told her that she knew these hymns before she came to earth and that she is just remembering them.  I hope that she, more that any others, will keep going with her music. 

Well, we had better close for now.  We hope, Jacob that you made the move alright.  We pray that you will be able to get all the loose ends tied up before September.  Becky, do you get on skype in your new home?  We would love to see you there. To all the rest of you, thanks for your letters.  We miss the huckleberry fun and Esther, we enjoyed seeing Zachary and his crawling.  
Love, Mom and Dad

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