Sunday, February 21, 2016
Saturday, September 12, 2015
Wednesday, July 29, 2015
Another Day in Paradise
Last week, senior office missionary couples, Croshaws and Spuhlers took a little p-day field trip on the ferry to Vancouver Island, to spend a little time with MLS (member and leader supporter) missionary couple, the Snars, who live in Sidney, home of the ferry port. As island residents, they know their way around and have a few connections...
...such as this great, little member family, who have a beautiful home near Victoria. Knowing we were coming, they invited us into their home, fed us breakfast and serenaded us in perfect harmony. This "photo" is the still of a video that I could not get to upload, featuring one three songs the favored us with. I wish I could share their music with you -- it was a highlight of our day. We are told that this family of Mom, Dad, and five beautiful girls (one set twins) performs routinely for firesides and other island events, as a way to serve others and share their testimonies. They also open their home often for missionary activities.
After that bit of fulfillment, we were off to tour the island, including visits to a few other members and investigators, several of the First Nation (Indian) reservations, a great ice cream parlor...
After that bit of fulfillment, we were off to tour the island, including visits to a few other members and investigators, several of the First Nation (Indian) reservations, a great ice cream parlor...
...and Butchart Gardens, our second tour this month. Never get tired of it. Here, Sisters Spuhler, Croshaw, and Snar, are right in their element with all the other beautiful flowers.
Elder Snar, Elder Croshaw, and Elder Spuhler, sharing the love.
Abundant flowers and green stuff of every kind. In spite of a present drought and water restrictions, the Gardens, being the major tourist attraction for the island, are allowed to water as much as needed.
Even a little purple stuff.
We ended the day back in Sidney to board the ferry back to the mainland. It was a very fulfilling and rejuvenating day
Friday, July 10, 2015
Cindy
Earlier this week I went teaching with the Richmond Sisters—Shahamati
(from Canada, Iranian heritage) and Mathialagan (from India). We went to visit Cindy, a woman from mainland
China. We have been meeting with her for
a long time, and a couple of months ago we were going to ‘reflect’ her. That is the nice new missionary word for dropping
them. This was my second lesson with
her, and I was pretty nervous, never being part of a ‘reflecting’ lesson. By the time the lesson was over, it was clear
that they should not reflect her. So, we
have persisted. The lessons have been
sporadic, and the Sisters teaching has changed as well. I even texted her myself once just to see how
she was doing. Her husband left for China
about 2 months ago, to work their business.
He will be there for an extended period of time. She has a lot of
responsibility because she works and has two young sons 12 and 5. It is understandably difficult handling all of
this by herself. They are in contact
fairly often with FaceTime. A couple of
weeks ago I went to another lesson, this time with Shahamati and Gamble and
McKee (the Sister Training Leader). It
was a good lesson, but we never seem to make much progress. When we would try to talk to her about God,
she tells us—I say ‘tells us’ because she has told us this same thing many
times- that she feels like she has to do everything on her own. If anything gets done, it has to be done by
her, no one helps her, she does not feel like God is there helping her, she is
alone in her duties and responsibilities.
It’s really sad to me that she feels like this. I suggested that we do everything we can, and
the Lord magnifies our efforts and we are able to do much more than we really
could do all by ourselves. This effort
was to no avail. She has maintained that
she does it all by herself. After the
lesson, Sister McKee suggested that they turn her over to the Chinese-speaking Sisters. They both speak English, but
for the times when she just can’t quite describe how she feels, or does not
really understand what the sisters are teaching her, the Chinese sisters could
communicate with her in her native tongue.
I felt at the time like that was pure inspiration. It was what Cindy needed. So that was the new plan.
When we went last night, I went in with Shahamati and
Mathialagan. They were there for about
10 minutes, and the Chinese sisters arrived—Sister Yeung (Hong Kong) and Sister
Edvalson (American Fork—adopted from China).
Then Sisters Shahamati and Mathialagan left. It was a smooth transition. We met Cindy’s parents, who have come over
from China to help her, and will be here until September 30. She says she can’t go to church while they
are here, but she will come as soon as they leave.
So we are reading in Alma 32, discussing faith. Faith is a difficult word to describe, and
there is also the language barrier. She
wants to do everything in English, because English is the language of
Canada. The sisters gave her an English
and Chinese Book of Mormon, but her husband took the Book of Mormon to China
with him on this last trip. She wants it
all to be in English. So we are talking
about faith, and belief in God. She
again brings up that we are all on our own, no one is there to help us,
etc. Sister Edvalson then says to
her. It is like your little boy. He wants to do things all by himself. You let him, but you watch over him. You make sure he is safe. He continues by himself, but you (Cindy) are
there, and she holds her hand out with her palms up, showing how Cindy would be
ready to catch him if he were to fall. Then,
she compares this experience to the way our Heavenly Father watches over
us. He watches us as we perform our
tasks. He is there, even if we don’t’
know. He is standing by, and is ready to
catch us if we fall. It was the most
amazing thing. I saw the understanding
come into Cindy’s eyes. She got it! She said, I heard what you said and I am
happy. It was soon time for us to go,
and she asked them to leave her an assignment, like a teacher. They asked her to continue reading Alma 32,
but she said it is too big. So Sister
Edvalson suggested verses 27-29 and verses 42-43. Then she said, why don’t we read it together
in Chinese, then when you are studying it during the week, you can read it in
English. Cindy agreed, and read it
herself. It was brilliant. Cindy was a different person. She suggested that we meet next week at the
same time. She was the one suggesting
when we meet. It felt like she was
finally progressing. I thought of this scripture:
D and C 90:11 - For it shall come to pass in that day, that every an shall hear the fullness of the gospel in his own
tongue, and in his own language,
through those who are ordained unto this power,
by the administration of the Comforter,
shed forth upon them for the revelation of Jesus Christ.
Hearing the gospel in her own language made all the difference. I don’t’ know where things will go from here, but it was a breakthrough. The church is true. These young missionaries are so inspired. Loving life in Canada.
Hearing the gospel in her own language made all the difference. I don’t’ know where things will go from here, but it was a breakthrough. The church is true. These young missionaries are so inspired. Loving life in Canada.
Tuesday, June 30, 2015
Some Quality BC Time with Esparzas
The Esparza segment of the posterity (Leslie, Alex, Lola, Mila, and Yet-Unborn Baby Girl,) visited BC last week, and we spent some quality time in some beautiful places here in the Vancouver area, most of which was recorded in pictures. I had a plan for an organized post that would thoroughly explain it all, so organized that I was not finding time to get it posted. So, Debby took the bull by the horns and just posted all the photos from my phone, leaving the rhetoric to me. So, it may not be organized, but it will be complete - long (lots of photos,) but I'll try to keep the verbage to a minimum
On the first day, before Alex arrived (separate flight,) Mom and Grandma went for a pedicure, So Grandpa got to take the girls for a while. We picked up A&W (big up here) burgers and poutine (Canadian french fries-with Mozerella cheeze and gravy,) and went to a park. Here's Mila begging for more poutine.
Lola just wanted to play in the gravel and on the toys, in what we thought was a park, but turned out to be the playground of a school, which soon let out for recess. We were thronged by young Chinese kids who were very interested in these two little light-skinned girls. So, I started taking pictures of them together, and it wasn't long before a teacher was right there, advising us in no uncertain terms, that we could not be there and I could not take photos. So we had to leave, Grandpa feeling like some kind of perv.
Next day, after Papa Alex arrived, we boarded a ferry bound for Vancouver Island...
...and there, we took a little stroll through the Garden of Eden, aka Butchart Gardens...
Something about this place makes you want to push a stroller under a flowering arch.
Lola seems right at home here in Heaven
Even though this is almost as far away as they can get from their S. Florida home, and still be in the North American Mainland, they all acclimated well to Pacific air and time zone.
Mila, however, missed pretty much the whole garden, as she had better things to do.
If we are in Heaven, where does this stairway lead??
A single stock from the ground provides all this green stuff. Wish it worked that way back in our arid Idaho desert home.
Looking across Victoria harbor at the Empress Hotel
Red double-decker tour buses - a little taste of London, here in British Columbia.
This is how you know it is not London - the Totem pole on the lawn of the provincial government building is from the Haida First Nation (Indian) tribe. Even though it is on an Island, Victoria is the capital city of BC.
Back over on the mainland, you can hop on this carriage and ride all over Stanley Park in Vancouver
Looking across the harbor from Stanley Park at part of the Vancouver skyline
Part of our walk through Stanley Park involved this little train game, so we wouldn't get lost in the woods (Lola's idea.)
Just putting dogs on notice that the Canadian geese militantly own this park. They hardly get out of the way for humans, unless you have a shotgun in your hands.
Down on the beach, however, this dog had other things to chase.
Speaking of dogs, it's not all fun and games, and the park police are not kidding. $2,000! - mortgage the house, sell the kids.
Lawn Bowling anyone? Sorry, members only.
The sun lovers of Vancouver. Problem is, the water is anything but warm this far north.
Back at home, in the park across the street from our apartment, these girls love to swing.
Waiting to head back to the US, Mila, annoyed by the bustling traffic on the street,
gave them a piece of her mind. Bye bye Esparzas.
So, we've now had visits from VanderLouws and Esparzas, and we look forward to the Colin Croshaws in August, Delgadillos in September, Chipman's in November(?), the Matt Croshaw's whenever they can, and to friends in between. Life is good. Our work is fulfilling and we are happy.
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