This and That

 Our district looks different than it did two weeks ago. Bright young men and women, so determined to work hard and to inspire each other. Our district council took place this morning and lasted for nearly two hours. I never fail to be a little bit in awe of how these young people step up to the plate and lead.

One of the elders was sent home at the same time we went home, with health issues.  He was home a year and then re-upped so to speak.  He was sent to Wyoming for four months, at which point they sent him here.  He only wants to serve, and he is a good missionary.  

Elder and Sister Harrison called from Manchester this afternoon and spent an eye-opening hour with me, showing exactly how they go through the grading process every week, showing me which windows to open, which categories to look at and how to do it efficiently and fairly quickly.  I can only say, the pieces all fell into place and I have felt a sense of peace about it the rest of the day.

SK sat with me so that he could see how it is done and help me if necessary.  He didn't sign on for this, and I told him I won't ask him to do much if he will just take roll and give me moral support.  He will.  Free of the worry of the reports, I began in earnest to study the lesson.  It is a beautiful one, about Jehovah being the God of the Old Testament.  I'm going to give myself two weeks to sort this out.  If it still exacts too much stress, I will call my French friend and politely say "I'm done."

At 5, I met one of our young adults for a walk.  We walked through a park, where everything is greening up.  I marveled in Denmark how the grass stayed green year round. It is the same here. Even in the dead of winter, with snow dusting the blades, it was green as now. The trees seem to be more heavily leafed out every day, and more flowers popping up all over the place.

She is trying to finish her degree, she is not well, and she is a newlywed. They have been married less than a year - her husband was one of our YA reps last year and we adore him. She has an autoimmune disease, Reynaud's to be exact.  It is rare, but she has all kinds of pain and aches and illness that relate back to this.  I so admire that she is trying to power her way through to the degree.  Her husband is very understanding and supportive.

At 7, we got on a zoom call with eight other couples for our monthly (this is new) Zoom Family Home Evening.  It was fun.  The evening was mostly a getting-to-know-you activity, which worked great.  We have one couple leaving this coming home to return to their home in Utah.  They have accomplished so much.  They established a Friendship Center in London where they taught English as a Second Language.  They gathered volunteers to teach and at one time had more than three hundred attending classes on a weekly basis. We'll be able to do that three more times.  

The end of August is looming large and I am already dreading having to say goodbye to this place.

We also met two new incoming sets of seniors, both of whom seem so lovely. SK is still the oldest person in the mission force. But there are three more couples coming in the next three weeks.

It's been a good day.

As we sat watching our Zoom meeting, I glanced out the window and was enchanted with this simple view.