November 28, 2012
Where, oh where,does the time go?  This was the first time that we didn't meet our goal to blog every Sunday night.  I should say, "me instead of we" since it was my turn (as in Sister Downs) to blog. It is always a little challenging to think back over the week and pick one or two experiences to share in a blog.  We try to take a different couple each week for a "temple walk" around the outside of the Sacramento Temple and talk with them about the blessings of going to the temple.  I love this special time!  I don't know who benefits more from our "temple walk", our guests or ourselves.  We hope that by this March there will be  5-6 members who will be going to the temple for the first time.  This past Sunday we had 22 "gradulates" from our first,large, "Daily Dose" class.  7 or those 22 had missed only 2 or less of the 24 classes.  In this course, we recognize any effort made to grow and improve but for those 7 we made special little seals that showed that they were outstanding in their dedication to attend "Daily Dose".  They were all so proud!  To come consistently to class for 3 months is a really big deal because it is very difficult for islanders to make AND keep long term commitments.  Most of our "students" have had some type of training in English speaking but theystruggle the  most with the pronunciaton of words and being able to take their thoughts and put them into English that makes sense.  We hope we are going to be able to start an additonal class on Wednesday evenings right after Daily Dose that uses the scriptures as the foundation for learning English.  It is a truely inspired program called "Teach Ye My Words" that the church has written.  I think this  course, in addition to Daily Dose, will raise the bar for them so that they will be able to converse confidently in English to meet their daily needs and learn to read, pronounce and then learn how to write how they feel about what they have read.   If you can't understand what you are reading in the scriptues plus not being able to apply to your life,  it certainly kills your motivation to do so.  I have always been a "Plan B" person in realizing that Plan A seldom works out so in order not to go stark, raving mad, one has to be willing to roll with a Plan B and do so graciously and with a good spirit.  Well,, this missionary couple has now learned to roll with not only B but often times C through G.  We used to spend hours planning out our day and who we were going to see and what we would share with them.  Most of our fellow members do not have phones or computers to email and confirm appointments. They also seem to forget things easily so between  their forgetfulness and OUR increasing senior moments of forgetfulness, we all just wing it and hope the Spirit will guide and direct us to whomever or wherever He needs us to be.  We have all the members divided into geographical areas and so we start out in a cerain area and just scour the area until we find someone home.  We are never at loss for things of the gospel to share so we have little checklists as  we visit to  see what topics of the gospel we have or have not shared with them.  When we have days that all our plans go bellyup, we look at each other and say "I need a beer"!  I am happy to say A&W frosted root beer mugs are alive and well here in Sacramento.  Great to uplift the spirits, awful to put on pounds.  We had a wonderful Thanksgiving! We spent the holiday with Amy and her family in Walnut Creek. We also got to spend some time with our son-in-laws family who we think are wonderful!!  We were playing a game with Sam (10) and Oliver (7) and it was one of those strategy games that you have to think really hard which John and I do not do very well anymore.  Sam was having pity on us and was helping us with our strategic moves and Oliver says, "Hey Sam, how come you're not helping me?"  Sam, not missing a beat, says, "Oh Ollie, I only help the elderly."  Wow, that was one, humbling moment.  YOU know you're getting older but  when your grandson puts you into the "elderly" catagory, you really feel old!  All of our other children had a family reunion at our jeff City home and we got to skype and see them all!  We were so pleased that they all made sacrifices to be together.  We have a strong testimony of the work we are doing in sharing the restored gospel.  Sure love ya!