Memorial Day Weekend at Central Park

This past week was a pretty typical week-before-transfers week, and since it was also combined with week-before-month-end-vehicle-reports, I kept busy.  The highlight, though, was the four hour walking tour of Central Park yesterday!  We invited all the senior missionaries, and about ½ were able to come.  We all loved it, and we are all recovering from it today!

I thought the meet-up strategy, which is completely common to New-Yorkers like Jay, was interesting and different from what we westerners are used to, so I’ll spend a little time (probably too much) on that.  We had groups coming from three different areas: Rego Park, Flushing and Brooklyn.  We all rode the subway in, and the meet-up worked perfectly!  Here were the instructions for the Rego Park people (us, Sister Shapiro, and the Congers (who drove to Rego, parked at the church and went from there with us)): “_{We'll be meeting at the Roosevelt Av station on the Manhattan-bound platform.  According to the MTA website, the Manhattan-bound R won't be stopping at Woodhaven Blvd (our stop) this weekend, so you'll have to take the Forest Hills-bound R to 71-Continental (the opposite direction from Manhattan), go up and over to the other side, and then take the Manhattan-bound train to Roosevelt Av.  We'll meet at the back end of the platform at the Roosevelt station, so while you're waiting for the R at Woodhaven, you can walk to the front of the platform (puts you on the front of the train), which will put you at the rear of the train on the other side (when headed towards Manhattan).”}

So, we left home at 9AM, walked to the station, got on the first train headed the opposite way we wanted to go, then got off and got on a train headed to Manhattan, in the last car.  Jay planned to meet us at the Roosevelt Ave station, so with us being in the last car, he could see us (and us him).  Then, if we were on the F train (the one we ultimately wanted) he would get in at the stop and we would proceed to Manhattan together.  However, if we were on the R or another train, we would get off at Roosevelt, and we would catch the next F to town together.  You with me so far? (It worked out perfect, since the train we caught was an F, and it got to Roosevelt Station at 10, the meeting time!)

Here are the instructions for the Brooklyn people: “_{Those coming from Brooklyn can take the F to 57 St (front of train).  We'll all meet at 10:30 on the street at the south-east corner of 6 Av & 58 St.  Call Elder Williams on 206-966-1929 if needed. Other trains from Brooklyn (N,Q,R) also stop at 57 St, but on 7 Av, so they would then walk over to find us, or they can change for the F at 34 St (but it's easier to walk from 7 Av, passing beautiful Carnegie Hall).  The D stops along 6 Av but doesn't reach 57 St, but they can easily change to the F at several stops along the way.”}

Anyway, it all worked out perfectly, and we all met up at 10:30, a block from the south entrance of the park.  (Sorry to bore you with all that detail, but I thought it was interesting (and hey I’m an engineer)! From there we went on a fascinating walking tour of the south half of Central Park, with Jay sharing the history and interesting events.  He loves New York and its history, and we got a real feel for the park through his comments!  As usual, he had a stack of pictures of different features of the park from the 1840s though today.  The really amazing thing about the park is that it’s made for walking, with a goal of seeming to be far from the city, and it does a great job!  In spite of all the people, it’s beautiful and quiet and green!!  We were so glad to see it today when it’s safe and clean-- such a contrast from the pictures Jay showed us from the early 80s when it was totally run-down, dirty, and a haven for almost every illegal activity.  Or during the great depression, when it was the home of many many shanty towns.  It was a great and memorable tour, and all of us are so glad we went!!  (And will be even more so when we can walk pain-free again…)  I’ll add a few pictures, but none can do the tour justice! (Click on pictures to enlarge.)

Looking south down 6th Ave from park entrance

(L to R) Jay & Sister Shapiro, Adams, Congers, Williams, Fairbanks (couple

Jay and I home teach)

Jay said there are 36 bridges, all with different designs and materials.

This one is cast iron.

Belvedere Tower on highest point of park (1869)

Resident hawks, come back each year for nesting season

(red circle above is location)

Strawberry Fields, commemorating John Lennon's death just

across the road at the Dakota building

Crowded subways! Elder Conger's (checked shirt) face is

showing how we all felt on the way home.

Now, Memorial Day.  I never had the opportunity to serve in the military (high lottery number during the lottery draft years of the Vietnam War), but I’ve always sort of wished I had!  I think I would have liked the tough-guy part and the brotherhood part, although I can’t even imagine the horrors of actual war!  My father was in the army and was a paratrooper, and was sent to Japan right at the end of WW2 (if I have my facts right), then got turned around and sent back to the US pretty quickly.  I do admire and respect the sacrifices soldiers and their families have made and continue to make, so we can have freedom!  What a blessing it is to live in this great country, and without all those sacrifices and blood spilt, it would not be great!!  I am forever thankful for those who have sacrificed their lives, limbs and health for my freedom!!! God bless you!

Someplace Cool and Green and Shady

Forest Hills Inn (now condos)

Yesterday, Jay took us, along with Sister Petersen, on a walking tour of Forest Hills Gardens.  This is a wealthy area of Queens with beautiful old homes and lots of trees and park areas.  It is beautiful with lots of trees.  There was so much green and very little traffic!  It was very calming and hard to believe we were in the middle of Queens.  The area near the train station has brick streets and lots of archways.  I felt like I was in Europe.  There is a large tennis club there where they used to hold the US Open before they started playing in Flushing. Jay, who used to live in the area, was like a regular tour guide pointing out landmarks and relating the history of the neighborhood, along with his own experiences there.

Tourists and "guide".  Sister Williams, Elder Williams,
 Jay, Sister Petersen

In the afternoon, we attended the baptism of a new girl, Yelleni, who has been attending Primary in our Branch.  Lots of the Primary kids were there and they sang “When I am Baptized”.  We were pleased that so many of them came to support this new friend.  I was able to gain more experience leading the children singing without a pianist.  I had the song on my iphone so we used a small portable speaker.  It wasn’t ideal but was good practice for when Sister Harris, our pianist, is released from her mission in August.  So many new experiences here and things to make us stretch!  

Afterwards was the traditional light meal and visiting.  We are getting to know and love more people.  There are so many wonderful people here, all doing the very best they can to love and to serve others.

Today was a very pleasant Sunday.  Marc had an entire family of 6 investigators come to his Sunday School class.  He had to do some quick lesson changes on his feet but said it went well.  The visitors even participated and made a few comments (which was good because usual class members didn’t say much with strangers in the room). 

Primary singing time today went well, with the kids very much engaged.  One girl is deaf so we do a fair amount of signing as we sing.  The other kids love to learn and Arianna beams when she is able to “sing along”.  I couldn’t have known a year and a half ago that I would be not only leading singing in Primary, but teaching songs in ASL and Spanish along with English! 

Now that we are past the half-way mark of our mission we feel a greater sense of urgency to do all that we can to serve the Lord to the best of our ability.  We don’t want any regrets about not having done enough when we are finished.

This past week we finally were able to meet a family, the Darcys, who Marc has been trying for months to get an appointment with.  The father (not a member) is from Ireland so Marc is eager to talk with him a little.  They are busy people and the Mother, a less-active sister who grew up in Utah, has been sick and has cancelled the last couple of appointments.  We decided to drop by with a care basket of soup, banana bread, etc.  We weren’t expecting to actually see them but they drove up as we were leaving.   What nice people!  The son plays rugby and says he wants to play for BYU someday. (My first thought was, “Then you’d better attend seminary!”) We didn’t talk long but there was a good feeling there.  I wanted Brother Darcy to talk more so I could hear his wonderful Irish accent.

We are constantly reminded of the blessings that come to us as we serve and to our family.  Answers to prayers seem to come more readily and we are so grateful for those many tender mercies.  

Forest Hills Gardens

Felt like we were in Europe

Sunday dinner at Sister Petersen's 5/21/17

Susquehanna, PA

I told Diane that I’d write the blog this week as her Mother’s Day present. (There were other presents, too, but my contribution was pretty much just the debit card…) Yesterday, my friend Jay and I, and Elders Adams and Conger went to the priesthood restoration site all day while our wives spent the afternoon together, and my only communication from my bride was, “Don’t worry, Sister Adams spent more than I did!”  (We all thought it was pretty funny except Elder Adams.)

The trip to the site was great.  It rained pretty much all day, but was still a great day! Even though everything was reconstructed in 2015, it’s still sobering and it calms your spirit to know that 180 years ago Joseph, Emma, Oliver Cowdery and others walked the same area and saw the same river and woods. 70% of The Book of Mormon was translated here, in addition to the priesthood restorations and baptisms. I didn’t take much time to think about it while at the sites (being with 40 other boys of all ages), but as I think about it now, I feel a surety that the things Joseph testified DID happen in the way he said!  I’m so thankful to hold the priesthood!!  I’ve held it for 53 years, and when I look back on all the experiences I’ve had simply trying to magnify my priesthood callings, it amazes and thrills me!  (OK, I promise not to use an exclamation point for a few sentences…)  I often say that all we really need to do to become what Heavenly Father wants us to become, is accept the callings that come and do our best to magnify them.  I still believe that.

(If I was going to use another exclamation point this early, it would have been there.)

Pretty much one-room house. Always amazes us how small the beds are! This is a double.

70% of the Book Of Mormon translated here,

and 15 sections of the D&C received.

River is between monument and hills. We loved the colors of trees

and the fog among the trees!

Susquehanna River

While we went to Susquehanna, PA, Sister Williams, Sister Conger & Sister Adams planned to go to Old Westbury mansion and garden to see it while the flowers are out.  However, due to the rain, they just went out to lunch and, since there was one practically on the way, dropped by Dress Barn to see if they had anything nice.  They apparently did, although I have yet to see what I bought Diane for Mother’s Day…

Friday evening we had our branch Mother’s Day celebration, and it reminded me that a year ago this activity was my first exposure to our branch socials, and it was kind of a shock to me.  As I have mentioned, the socials here are all about spending time together (and definitely not about schedules or super organization).  I think I prefer the ones here if I’m seeing things through my gospel eyes, and not my ‘get-in, get-out and get on with life’ eyes.  Friday night was scheduled to start at 6:30 PM.  We were 20 minutes late due to Saturday night rush hour (which we don’t even have in Seattle), and there were only 3 cars in the parking garage under the building. Then, the program started at about 7:45 PM, and they brought out the food and had dinner at about 8:30 PM. We finished eating at about 9PM, after which they started games to be followed by dancing. We had to sneak off at 9-ish, so we could get up at 5AM for the 7AM trip to Susquehanna, but I was kind of glad because it’s hard to do Latin dance when you are so stuffed you can hardly walk!  They love being together, and they love each other, and even the teens seem to like being there (although on their devices, of course)!

May 9, 2017

I didn’t put a tribute to Diane of Facebook or anything, so I feel bad.  I’m so glad I fell in love with her 43 years ago!  At the time I thought it was mainly her looks and her pink corduroy tailored suit, but I’m sure that even then I sensed her love of the Lord and of the gospel!  And that (not the pant suit) has been an anchor in our lives and the lives of our family ever since!  She is a keeper, and our whole family is blessed by her goodness and desire to do what’s right!!  She has a lot in common with my mother, who has always been the quiet strong rudder that sets the direction and tone of the family (although I think Diane is cuter, no offense, Mom!).

More Mission Stuff!

My (Marc) turn to write, so here goes!  Last week was pretty normal—busy, hard work, fun & fast, and meaningful! 

Friday evening another senior couple, the Congers, came over for dinner and conversation.  We just ordered in Chinese food and talked.  They had just returned from one of those traumatic experiences of mortality, so it was a great time to talk and process everything. Their son had recently had a serious heart attack, and ultimately the family had to make the decision to take him off life support and watch him leave this life.  It was a sad experience made worse by the fact that he and his family don’t currently have the assurance of their faith and the gospel to soften and establish an eternal framework to the experience.  The heart attack was a total surprise, but as often is the case, the Spirit had been working on him the last few weeks of his life enough that he had returned to church for the first time in 20 years and even born his testimony several weeks before he died.  Unfortunately, none of his family attended with him to share that sweet experience.  I am so thankful to know that Heavenly Father loves us, knows us well, knows our hearts, and to know that only He can judge what this mortal son would have done if he had lived longer!!  It’s amazing to me what a sweet experience a funeral can be when softened by faith and knowledge!  I will never forget how much I enjoyed my father’s funeral, and how much the family enjoyed being together and honoring him and his life!  Truly, the Lord has taken away the sting of death!!

Saturday we invited Elder Franco (from our home stake) and Elder Winters over for dinner.  We have so little room in our apartment that we need to bring a little table from the study and rearrange the living room to make room for four, but it’s worth it.  (And not just to make my wife happy with me!)  Elder Franco’s father is the branch president of the Spanish branch in the Kent Stake, and since we attend a Spanish branch here in Flushing, it was fun to talk.  Diane made good old American hamburgers and potato salad and the elders couldn’t get enough!!  Funny how small things like good food can make people happy!  (Especially men!)

Elders Franco and Winters. (Preparation day at home for me, so no tie.)

I told all the missionaries in my last zone conference presentations that one of my goals is to become a “hugger” by the end of my mission, and asked the elders to help me.  It’s made big difference!  Many of them remember, and I’m getting more and more comfortable with the man-hugs (three claps on the back seems to be the norm).  I do love these missionaries, and it’s good for me and them to learn to show it in this way!  (We’ll see if I revert in civilian life…)  Kind of hard to believe that we’ll be going home in 7 or 8 months!

This Saturday, my friend Jay and I are going to the Priesthood restoration site in Pennsylvania with a bus full from our stake in NYC.  The stake organized the one-day trip for priesthood holders and potential priesthood holders to commemorate the restoration in May of 1829, and I am excited to go!  We leave at 7AM and return at 7PM, so it will be a long, full day.

Tuesday night, we (Jay and I) have scheduled our first sit-down appointment with a family we home teach, and we are excited to see how it develops!  She is a ‘non-practicing Utah Mormon’ and he is a “practicing Roman Catholic from Ireland’ (her words), and they have at least one teenage son at home.  The last three months we’ve been working up to this visit via notes on the door, cookies on the porch, and voicemail messages, so we hope it comes off.  (We think it will because the fulltime sisters were told, “not this week because the home teachers are coming.”)  The sisters have been trying to establish contact, too, without much success.  Hopefully it will be a good experience for the Darcys, and begin to establish a bridge between them and the gospel.  [Later note: It fell through, so we keep trying...]

We still love our mission, and still feel useful and needed!  (Sometimes I catch my companion studying other missions on-line, planning for senior mission #2!)

Flushing

Flushing

Flushing

Sister Williams making food for a Zone Conference