Scenes From my Morning Walk

Strangely there is no appreciable smog in this metropolis, but fog often comes our way, and it can deliver some splendiferous effects, as evidenced during a morning walk in the park across the street from our apartment:

More Queen Elizabeth Park ("British" is part of their name)

The wet climate here lends itself to botany - hence many gardens and flower parks - breathtakingly beautiful, even though winter barely ended.  Can't wait for summer.  This is a land of rain, humidity, rivers, lakes, oceans, waterfalls... 

and fountains.

Life just can't wait to break forth.

a pretty flower next to a bush

Spring, a time for all things biological to promote new life.

Beyond this repose lurks the bustling, garish metropolis

They are called Canada Geese, after all.cherry blossoms everywhere

Life bursts forth

Benches everywhere

more life

Some of the trees haven't quite figured it out yet, but their time will surely come.

Cherry blossoms in abundance...

Handfuls of them.

Queen Elizabeth Park, Vancouver BC

This is what we did yesterday. So beautiful

Happy St. Patricks Day

Tuesday night.  Sunday on the way home from church I told Elder Croshaw that he had not had a single accident since he took over the cars.  He had some old wrecks to work through, but nothing new.  Since that time there have been 5 accidents.  Only one was the missionary's fault, but there is still a lot of paperwork to go through.  There is a national insurance company ICBC--Insurance Company of British Columbia who handles all automobile accidents.  The church has a company that handles liability issues, but for collision we are self insured.  The first accident report on Sunday night was that some of the sisters were involved with a hit and run.  The guy didn't realize he was hitting the Lord's missionaries.  Upon closer inspection the imprint of his license plate was in the bumper of the sister's car.  The police are handling it.

I want to include some photos of this beautiful place.  It is spring.  The cherry blossoms are spectacular.  Everything is so green and beautiful.  Here are some of the latest events--Pres. and Sister Burt and Elders Kim, Yokamoto and Porter.  Will try to add more photos from David's phone.:

Finding Fulfillment for Our Mission Call

One of the specifics of our mission call specified is that we are to work with Korean people, of which there are numerous immigrants in Vancouver, BC. Yet, even before we arrived here, our mission president felt inspired to request our involvement in the mission office, wherein he was in dire need of senior couple help. He said he had prayed us here.  As we have gotten into those assignments, we have recognized his inspiration, and therein, we are feeling fulfillment as we are able to contribute to the workings of the mission at the base level.  However, Richmond, location of the mission office and our residence, is fairly distant from Burnaby, location of the Korean Branch and center of the Korean populace, and given that our long hours at the office limit opportunity for involvement in conventional missionary work, we were not sure how the Korean aspect of our call could work out. We were feeling considering attending the Korean Branch on Sundays, but the language barrier and the 40 minute driving distance were dampening that interest.  Then one day, this man,

Cho Hung Wan rode his bicycle into the mission office to inquire about scheduling times of the Richmond ward, which meets in the same building as the mission office.  In broken English and heavy accent, he explained that following their conversion to the gospel less than a year ago, he, his wife Mi Sun (Sunny), and their son Yu Bin had immigrated to BC from Pusan Korea, she having come on a work visa to an awaiting job, but that he was not yet employed.  They had found an apartment they could barely afford in West Richmond (rents here are very high), but they did not have a car.  They had been attending the Burnaby Korean Branch, because he wanted to assure that his wife and son, who did not speak much English could have optimum opportunity to learn the gospel via the Korean language spoken there.  The problem was that bus transportation to Burnaby required 4 separate stops/exchanges, and took over 2 hours, one way.  So, he was contemplating switching their attendance to the Richmond English speaking ward.  Debby had been at the mission office front desk when he came in, but I was not present at the time.  When she told me about this later, it did not take us long to recognize that we were being given a reason and a nudge to attend the Korean Branch.  By providing needed transportation to church, Brother Cho and his family would become our impetus, and help initiate at least that aspect of our mission's purpose.  Where it goes from here is yet to be seen, but we are confident the Lord has a plan.

The  language continues to be a challenge for both of us.  Brother Cho has helped, as we have English and Korean vocabulary lessons during the long rides to and from church each week.  It's a win-win for all of us.  Once at church, we don't understand much, although many of the members speak some English and help translate for us.  They have been very kind and receptive.  They are very fine people, and so smart.  The last few weeks we have used PA listening devices in Sacrament meetings, and Elder Kim, one of the native Korean missionaries (born in Korea but immigrated to Nampa, Idaho at age 15) has translated for us.  I have started to sense the vocabulary coming back, sometimes having entire phrases pop into my head.  Yet, true communication is a way off.  Thank goodness for the Spirit.

Because of work commitments, Brother Cho's wife has not been able to attend church recently.  She is a beautician in downtown Richmond.  Debby, being the good missionary she is, took a risk and

made a hair appointment with her.  It paid off as she was very happy with the results.  And, she was able to have somewhat of a bonding experience at the same time, despite the language barrier.

There is currently only one companionship of Korean speaking missionaries.  They cover a very large proselyting area over much of the lower mainland.  We are on continuous call to go out with them at night when they have teaching appointments in our vicinity.  We've been scheduled for such a few times, but they've had last minute cancellations so far.  It will happen.  In the mean time, they have given us a list of part-member families who we are going to visit.  Hope they speak some English.

The language issue is one of the most challenging aspects of our mission yet.  We really want to get there, but we are confident that there is purpose in our being here, and miracles will take place either way.  We are willing to work to see the Lord's plan proceed, and we know that He will assure that happens regardless of our limitations.  Of course, we will much appreciate all of your prayers for the quickening of our minds and strengthening of our wills.

Thursday at the Office

So this morning President Burt called and asked if I could change two of the elders' itineraries.  They were scheduled to return home on May 2, a Saturday.  Pres. Burt would not be available to go to the airport with them, and one of them has been an AP (a really excellent AP) and he wanted to be able to be there when they left.  So I emailed our Church Travel contact, Emily, and explained what the President wanted and could she change their itineraries to early morning on Thursday, April 30.

A short time later,  I received an email from Emily with the new itineraries.  I guess when a mission president makes a request it is done.  I called the president back told him the travel days were changed and all those details.  I asked him if he would like me to contact the parents to let them know of the change in travel.  He said yes.  He wanted to call the elders himself.  I called Elder Atwood's mom and told her I had a little present for her--her son would be coming home two days early.  She was surprised.  She thanked me for this, very pleased, and told me that Elder Atwood's brother is due to graduate from the U on Saturday, May 2, and they just didn't know how they were going to do both things on the same day.  She said they had been praying for a solution.  Wow.  That all knowing, all powerful, all loving Being did it again.  Prayers are answered.  Heavenly Father knows and loves us and is aware of the smallest details in our lives.  I am so grateful to be a part of this amazing, true church.

Gas Prices

Just saw on the news at the gym that gas in Vancouver, BC is the highest in North America-$131.9 (maybe it's not .9).  Anyway, it comes up to about $4.99 a gallon.  We get gas at Pt. Roberts, WA, which is within Canada for about $3.06.

Vancouver Harbor - If you ever take an Alaskan cruise, you will likely board the ship from this spot.

Yesterday was P day, so we ventured into the big city.  Vancouver, BC is a huge, modern metropolis consisting of Vancouver proper (northeast) and a bunch of large suburbs, cities in their own right to the east and south, each with city centers, tall buildings, lots of people, etc.  Thank Goodness for GPS.  Together all these cities consist of what's called the Lower Mainland.  Our mission headquarters and our apartment are in Richmond, just east of Vancouver and just north of the US border.  Richmond is home of large numbers of wealthy Chinese immigrants who have benefited from China's new-found capitalism - lots of large homes and high-end cars.

To the north and east of the Lower Mainland are a number of other smaller towns, all within our mission, extending clear up to the Yukon border on the north and not quite to Lake Louise on the east.  Overall, the mission is 1 1/2 the size of Texas, but 90% of the population is in the Lower Mainland, so that is where most of the missionaries are assigned.  We do have some missionaries up north in Prince George and Terrace areas.  As vehicle coordinator for the mission, I have become acutely aware that we have over 110 cars in the mission, and that the weather/road conditions up north require 4-wheel drive vehicles.  I suspect we are one of the few missions in the world where sister missionaries drive 4-wheel pickup trucks, the other Canadian missions excepted.  Being young, inexperienced drivers, they are not without their share of accidents, which I also have to deal with.

Debby has mostly been  involved with communicating with missionary parents and priesthood
leaders.  Even though our President has assigned us to work in the mission office, our mission call
noted that we were to work with a fairly large number of Korean immigrants in this area.  We
were not quite sure how that would play out, but it has started with a visit to the mission office by a Korean member who recently joined the Church in Korea and emigrated to BC with his wife and 6 year old son.  In broken English, he explained to Debby that they have been trying to attend the area's only Korean Branch in a town called Burnaby, but that not yet being employed, he cannot afford a car, and Burnaby is far enough away that it requires 4 bus exchanges which takes 2 hours one way, to get there, and then another 2 hours back to their apartment in Richmond. Because of this, he was considering attending the Richmond ward because it is much closer, but he was troubled that his wifand son, who don't speak much English, would not be able to learn the gospel as well in an English speakinge ward.  So, Brother Cho and his family became our reason and purpose to attend the Burnaby branch and become involved with the Korean people.  We have picked them up on the past two Sundays for the 40 minute drive to Burnaby.  The Korean members are so strong.  So committed. So smart.  They  have been very kind to us limited Korean speakers.  Two of the men in the HP quorum were baptized in their youth in Yung Dung Po Branch in Seoul, in 1969, the same time frame I served in that branch as a young missionary. I probably knew them as children, and I knew the elders who baptised them.  We attended the Vancouver temple with the Korean branch last week.  They have their own Korean sessions.  We used the English translation devices.  The goal is to shed those some day.

Tonight, we had these two sweeties over for dinner.  They are Sister Yeung from Hong Kong, and

Sister  Tsai from Taiwan.  They are here teaching the gospel to Chinese people.  They are so diligent and exude the Spirit.  We get to see them frequently as their teaching area is the same as the location of the mission office.  I also especially appreciate them because they ride bikes, and I don't  have to worry about a car in that companionship.

All is well.  We are gradually acclimating to the cool humidity and the new hours.  We are happy to be here and to have this opportunity to serve the Lord.  We feel blessed in this.  We are gratified in knowing that you all are also being blessed for your support of our mission.  Our family means more than ever to us now, and eternally speaking, nothing else in the world matters more to us than all of you.  We look forward to our next reunion.