Medical problems ....

If you don't already know...

    we both developed kidney stones, within a week of each other.   We were sent home for treatment and found some more serious medical problems.

   We feel very blessed to develop stone, which required CAT scans which lead to the discovery of more. 

We hope to someday return to the mission field once things are resolved.


Yes, I am feeling very blessed to have kidneys stones at the same time as  my companion.                                          

              

District meeting agenda

 We have two sisters and two elders in our "district" and the sisters were in charge of our weekly "district meeting" lesson.   This is their object lesson:   Above the sisters (2 parts of the pie) bring to the district: INFLUENCE; and the elders bring to the district; POWER and the Seniors bring to the district:  EXPERIENCE AND WISDOM.

On the  reverse side, when all parts come together is a "Perfect Mariupol District".   I LOVE LOVE LOVE my fellow missionaries.

In addition, our District leader asked us to set some goals for next meeting:   1)  communicate one thing our district did well, 2) communicate one thing we can improve and 3) communicate one good thing we did as a "district".   Positive and meaningful feedback is always a "return and report" attitude.

A second goal is to have a baptism by June 1st this one will require divine intervention since we have no perspective baptism on the horizon other than todays.  Which was absolutely wonderful.   Our newest member asked our "Greenie" missionary to perform her baptism.  I had no idea this young man had a sore throat and finally at 8:30 pm he called and said I think I might have strep, what do I do?

Yes, we are focused and working and I am so pleased with the dedication of these missionaries.   Well, after an American Doctor told him what medicines to buy (you can without a prescription) they were headed home after their required tracking time, to put him to bed.   With the Mariupol Mom's loving advice to drink plenty of water and let him skip his 6:30 am alarm and stay in bed until church.  Then we will assess if he should be in attendance or not.

We are focused, but there is no sense in spreading Strep around the branch. 

A new apartment discovery

We knew we had a trap door under the living room rug, but frankly I didn't want it opened for fear of what I would see there and or bring up from the depths. But as it turned out not as badly as I expected when Rick opened it to store a broken microwave that was just taking up valuable space in our kitchen. See for yourself:

garage equivalent

Yes the ladder goes down, from the first floor of our apartment block, this is below ground

See how thick the cement floor is in this photo

Human nature is the same all over the world, the need to "hang on" to things that may have some value in the future.  My guess this is stuff that doesn't even belong to our landlord, but the previous tenants/owners.   Who knows and I dont' really care, but the horror (bug infestation) of what I anticipated didn't happen.  Thank goodness for tender mercies

17 May 2012

Today thus far we shopped at the REENOK ( the open market) and bought $24.00 worth of butter.   I can't buy shortening here, it doesn't exist, so butter it is.  I have no idea how much I bought weight wise but I make a lot of cookies and cakes and breads for consumption and darn it all I hate going back so I bought a lot.   It will be interesting how much time it takes for me to use it all up.  I generally but the big slab in the freezer and bring out what I want when I want it.   My butter lady was really apprehensive of me wanting so much, but she has seen me buy almost half that much before, so it is all good.    She had a good market day.    There are several to pick from but for some reason I picked her and I keep going back to her, it's a friendship thing.

Then the hunt for cheese, I swear if you go to a market stall then everyone around you thinks they need to look at the same stall.   All of a sudden there are people all around me when there was none before.   Funny human behavior like looking up at something and those around you look to see what you are looking at.  That was at the cheese stall, again a big chunk.  I will grate and freeze some since the big chunk goes moldy faster than it can be eaten and I hate to waste any.   I am guessing I bought 3.5 pounds for about $6.00.  

I admit, my husband the gentleman carried the entire load on his aching shoulders.   I did spare him the long potentially butter melting trip home and suggested we take the bus back since we did some excersise to walk to the Reenok.   He deserved his nap today

We buy our drinking water and use our filter for cooking.   Everyone (even natives) knows the water is polluted and most buy water, I doubt they cook with neither clean water, nor use the Clorox as I do to clean the foods.   Oh well, it’s a nuisance and I don’t love it but you have to at least try to help the Lord protect your health here.

Yesterday was a wonderful spring rainstorm, huge.   Now a fun story about our Sister “S” my short term missionary who signed up for 6 weeks and will keep serving and serving until 6 months!!!!!!   Asked a member if he was attended Saturday Baptism.   He said “no, I have to go to my garden area and water; I can only water on Tue and Saturday.”   So, Sis S said, if it rains will you come, yes he confirmed.   Then the heavy soaking rain hit soon after leaving him open to attend.   Don’t even try to tell me that was not a blessing from her mouth to his garden.   I was so grateful for the internal temperature drop in our apartment during this storm, I love faithful missionaries.

I know you can’t see the topography here, but there are uneven surfaces everywhere.   Potholes in the walkways, bumps swollen in the same walkways, stairwells that have no standard height of tread or riser space.   Tiny obstacles everywhere and bare dirt everywhere, and lots of tree shedding seeds, leaves or seed pods.   It’s not super clean walking and people have some unsavory habits.  Hence the tradition to remove their shoes when you go into anyone’s home.      

This place is ripe for falling down, breaking a limb, or getting ran over by a vehicle driving in the walkway or snagging an article of clothing on a fast moving public transportation vehicle and getting dragged. 

I just know that I feel like I have so many guardian angels around me, watching every direction and then some.   I try to be sensible and try to be careful, Rick and I have tripped so many times but we haven’t face planted or even truly fell.  We are being so protected; literally hands are around us all the time to hold us upright.   Rick somehow righted himself after an “obstacle tripped him up” in such a manner that defied is age and agility.  Happens to me all the time, I love it.  

Next batch to go in the oven

Ok one more story:   We were asked at a recent zone conference to sacrifice something we do to improve our efforts in bringing the gospel to others.    We each were to ponder and make our own selection; I am not sharing mine its private between me and the Lord.   However, one of my missionaries who has the upmost joy in eating my Chocolate Chip cookies, I mean really handfuls and joyfully and smells them and eats more.   Has given up my cookies as her sacrifice.   You don’t think that is a big deal.   Well it is.   Not only do I pay $12.00 for a kilogram of brown sugar so they taste the way they do back home, I cut up two large chocolate candy bars in each batch as chocolate chip cookies.  It is a taste a native Ukrainian is likely not to be able to afford and as a missionary doesn’t have the time and or money to make these cookies.   And they are OFTEN in abundance at our home and meetings.  This is a true sacrifice, a mental discipline that she has offered to the Lord.   Have I mentioned how much I love my young missionaries?   They are amazing.  

Sometimes we are just goofy......

Yes I love my “seasoned” missionary too, I couldn’t be here without him and frankly I wouldn’t want to be here without him.  

Are we healthy we are asked often....   Our backs hurt often, our walking speed is determined by the heat outside, our "senior" status allows us to take an occassional short nap.   Our mental acumen has not suffered.  We eat more healthy food than at home because I want to make sure the missionaries get a balanced meal at least once a week sometimes more and there are always leftovers.  Your read above how we are protected.   Yes we are healthy with intermitten degrees of aches and pains from age or circumstances it matters not in the long run.   We are missionaries and as such are blessed beyond our abilities and even our energies.

MIscellaneous photos..... yeah

Before you see the photos, you need to know a mission wide fast is a wonderful experience.   Today was an announcement our "Dacia" will be baptised in two Saturday's.   That alone was joyful news.

Here are some random pictures of "tire art". You would be astounded to see not only tire art, but "plastic bottle art". Talk about recycling....

 and what I like to call "summer snow"  its really cottonwood seeds and it moves in the breeze almost eerily.....

and evidence of an early spring day ...

and finally a very creative but effective furnitue caster to keep our chairs from indenting our linoleum floors.    And I am not telling you where the red casters come from in the hopes that someone reads my blog and will comment since I haven't a single comment yet.    I know you are looking at the blog, but I don't know what you think....    

It's a matter of faith

Today and tomorrow is a mission wide fast, to bring more of the Lord's children to a knowledge of the church.  As I read the scripture (Священное Писание) I think if Isreal's constant warnings to be stay focused on the Lord, to be obedient and care for one another.

It amazing the same excuses/complaints/feelings are world wide: I have asked my neighbors and they are not interested. or You are the missionaires and you just expect us to do your work for you.

or from the missionaries:

 

No one in the branch wants to have lessons in their home

      (or is that just that they don't bother to ask them to have in their home cuz it's easier at the church?)

How do you expect us to find people when the members won't give us referrals?

Everyone I approach tells me no they are not interested.

Why do we need a number goal of baptism we are doing our best.

Or from inactives themselves they  are a whole other quandry: "I am inactive" as if we should know what exactly not to say or to say to respect their "inactive status".

I am coming to an understanding we are nothing, it's all in the Lords' hands and it a training ground for us to have a prayer in our heart at all times to try to do the necessary right approach, example, or statement of interest. We are the ones that need to learn and the Lord will place them in our paths when we and/or they are ready.

Elder Cannon is so good about making friends with our neighbors, he calls them by names, laughs and speaks Russian to the best of his ability, which is very limited. But the look out for us, they smile and laugh at and with us, they greet us warmly and that is a small example of beginning missionary work. Someday when they are prepared they will remember our badges, our attempts at neighborly love and they hopefully will see the Lords countenance in our faces and the faces of our young missionaires as they come and go from our apartment.

It is babysteps, it is love and it is slower than molasses progress. Is it enough? I don't know, I'm still back on trying to have a prayer in my heart and be ready, just in case there is a humble person looking for the Lord.

Sometimes I love it here, sometimes it is hard. if nothing else I am learning I am not in charge of others attitude only my own. How come I have to keep learning that over and over again?

I hope as you fast tomorrow for whatever purpose, you will include a prayer for the DONETSK Ukraine Mission that we can find the Lord's prepared people and bring them closer to the Lord through baptism.  

Could you be doing something better?

We have "greenie" from Cache valley, delightful man and an eager missionary.   I was telling the elders that I was reading a 5 book series on my Kindle and the series was becoming increasingly violent and while it was a fictional novel it was not appropriate for me a missionary to be reading.  
stop reading this series without finishing the plot.  I told them how I struggled to pick up the book even after I committed to myself I would stop reading it.  It took 3 days of inner struggle before it stopped popping into my head.  (Yes, I am a book loving senior missionary who sometimes reads a novel for pure reading enjoyment).

But my "Greenie" told me his story....  prior to my mission he said I was hanging out playing "something? ( he thought I would recognize but I didn't; and it wasn't applicable to the story anyway) and a priesthood leader called him and asked him "what are you doing?"     Honest young man that he is said ...  "I'm playing..."   and his leader said simply   "Is there something better you could be doing?"

Powerful lesson in that simple question....   

Yes, I stopped the series mid book, yes the desire to "complete" the storyline stopped pestering me as well.   After all there are better things for me to read.