Daily Stuff (and we still love it!)

It has not been a very interesting week as far as things to write about—just the normal things associated with working in the mission office, training new missionaries, picking up a car from a body shop and getting it back to the missionaries, and preparing for the beginning of the month vehicle reports. 

Three weeks into each missionary’s mission, they and their companion come to the Rego Park church for a full day of training. In the morning, the Assistants to the President take care of the training, giving instruction and doing a number role plays with them.  Then, after feeding them pizza (Diane), the senior missionaries take over the training for the afternoon.  This last week, the Johnsons went first and spent about half an hour talking about various aspects of taking care of their apartments.  (Most missionaries have never had any kind of place of their own, and with the younger missionary ages, most have never even lived in a school apartment with roommates, and have always had mother to clean up after them.  Apartment/cleaning training happens at every zone conference also, and I know the Johnsons feel like most training “goes in one ear and out the other”. We don’t envy them!  The church spends $2500 a month on most NYC apartments, plus utilities, and they are too often not taken care of like they should be.)

Next, Sister Petersen, the mission nurse talked to them about how to maintain their health.  A lot of her emphasis, of course, is on eating properly and relieving stress.  (As you may know, many more missionaries now go home early because of emotional issues than because of moral or physical health issues.)  Sister Petersen is wonderful!  She is creative in her teaching, funny and loving, and the missionaries love her, and we wouldn’t trade assignments with her either!

After that, Diane talks about mail (please tell your family not to use nicknames (stud muffin, twinkle-toes, Aunt Jillian, etc.) and include first names), ordering name tags (can only order in languages you speak (and none for your future wife or husband-whole other story)), the referral process, and filling out baptismal records fully and correctly (also a never-ending battle!). 

After, that, I bring up the rear with 90 minutes of hard work on vehicle training.  By that time, most just want to get out of there, so I try to spice it up with videos, a couple of two-companion exercises and a written quiz.  It can be tough teaching, but mostly it goes pretty well and there is a good spirit there!  After their first three weeks in NY traffic or on the transit systems, many of the new elders and sisters really would prefer to NEVER drive here, so I work hard to convince them that it isn’t our place to counsel the Lord!  I always use my story of (unsuccessfully) lobbying hard to be a ward clerk for 20 years, and tell how many times I told people I was excited for my senior mission “as long as I didn’t have to be the car guy!”  The Lord knows what we need (and what we will love!), and He knows what He needs to help in the kingdom of God.  It’s our duty to prepare ourselves to serve wherever we are needed!  I can tell the spirit helps it get through by the written comments on their forms, where it asks, “How do you feel about, and how will you act if you are assigned to drive a mission vehicle?”(My words.)  Many say something along the lines of, “I really don’t want to drive, and I would be nervous, but I will do my best in whatever assignment the Lord gives me, including driving a mission vehicle if that’s what is needed.” 

These are wonderful young women and young men!!  They are the cream of the crop, and, in spite of their lack of experience, limited worldly knowledge, and sometimes even ‘bonehead decisions’ (as my dad would say), I know they are called by the Lord to gather His sheep in the last days!  I’m so thankful that for this brief period in my life, I can use my priesthood keys to help, support and guide them in their work!!  I love it!  I know that the gospel of Jesus Christ is found in its fullness in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and I will do anything I can to help it move forward!  (And I’ll still never catch up to my wife, who is pretty much perfect…!)

Elder Wickham, Elder Williams. Portadown, Ireland 1972

Portstewart, Ireland 1971

Belfast, Ireland 1972, Williams, Locke, Reed?, Jack Forsythe, Sorensen, ?