May 28, 2023

This week was Elder Rowan's 70th Birthday!!! Wow, how can it be that we are getting this old? We are just so grateful that we still have the health and stamina to come out and serve this mission. It was hard to be so far away from family and friends and not be able to plan a big shindig to celebrate. But we are grateful we are close to Tracey and her family and could take the Larson's and go celebrate with them. There are few places more beautiful that Tracey's woods so it was a great way to celebrate. Friday was his actual birthday and we were going to go out to dinner but Thursday we had our 2nd dose of the Shingles vaccine and I ended up having a reaction to the vaccine. It happens, but not usually to me, so I was disappointed that I spent the evening in bed with a 101 degree fever instead of out celebrating. But next weekend (when it is not a holiday) we really plan on celebrating anyway by going out and spending the night at the coast. So watch for more about that next week.

This has been a quieter week but a good week because we actually feel like we know what we are doing much of the time. I have to admit some of that confidence comes from watching the Larson's still struggling with some of the Housing & General Secretary duties and knowing how overwhelmed we felt just a month ago. We keep reassuring them they are doing great and just give it a little more time.

Yesterday we had a sweet experience at the temple. We went to do sealings because we had so many family names to do and were put in a small group with a young couple where the sister was in a wheelchair because she had no legs. They were the cutest couple and so happy to be there. Our sealer was very friendly and talkative and had no inhibitions about asking the sister about her disability. She shared with us that she had been born with Spina Bifida that resulted in her having no legs so she had been that way since birth. The sealer remarked on her positive approach to things and she replied that some days were better than others. That then lead to a discussion with her and the sealer about the promises made in the sealing ordinances and about the resurrection and what her body would be like when she was resurrected. She laughed and joked about being able to hike the Grand Canyon after she was resurrected and I was so grateful in that moment for the restored gospel and the knowledge and testimony we have of our Savior Jesus Christ and what he did for all of us. The hope and happiness in her countenance was inspiring. We went home and looked up the scriptures on the ressurection found in Alma 11:43-44:

"The spirit and the body shall be reunited again in its perfect form; both limb and joint shall be restored to its proper frame..."

"Now, this restoration shall come to all, both old and young, both bond and free, both male and female, both the wicked and the righteous; and even there shall not so much as a hair of their heads be lost; but every thing shall be restored to its perfect frame."

What a glorious promise we have to look forward to for both ourselves and our loved ones!!

This week I want to give a shout out to Social Media!! What, you say??? Before coming on our mission I had no idea that missionaries are encouraged to use social media to share the gospel. In fact we have even been told that during Covid when missionaries could not go out and visit people in person, baptisms did not decline but even went up. That is when the Church discovered what a valuable tool it was. So in our mission we have (2) sisters who are called to be the Social Media Specialists. Their job is to help the other missionaries prepare personal messages about the gospel to share on Social Media. I now have over 50 new friends on Facebook as I have accepted the friend requests from our missionaries. I love going on their pages and seeing what personal gospel message they are sharing. They are AMAZING!! Some of them are better at it than others but these are messages that come from them, not just something they find and share. Such a great way to share your testimony and the message of the gospel! We were taught in the MTC to always ask a question at the end of the posts. Here is a good example of one such post (imagine the pictures):

"This is a flower that my friend gave me! You can see that although most of it is dead, there are some flowers on it that are blooming. A few days ago, no flowers were blooming and I thought it was a total goner. But then after a few days some flowers started to bloom! It kind of got me thinking a little bit about my own journey and how at one point I also felt like a total goner. I was lost and afraid and even felt dead at times. But because of Jesus Christ, I started to "bloom!" Through Jesis Christ, I have found so much peace, joy, happiness, love, and so much more. I continue to "bloom" each and every day as I learn more and more about my Savior!! How has Jesus Christ helped you bloom??"

See, isn't that good? I am so grateful for the testimonies of our missionaries and that I get to share this journey with them. On a side note, my daughters bought me this apron for Mother's Day and I love it. I can wear it when serving meals to the missionaries and have my family right there with us.

May 21, 2023

This week was zone conferences. We were in McMinnville, Albany, and Redmond. They make for a busy week as we travel to each one and conduct vehicle inspections and coordinate the lunches with the local Stake RS Presidencies. They don't sound like they should be tiring but they are. We were very grateful to the Larson's for helping us with the vehicle inspections so that they went a little more quickly. At the zone conferences the missionaries receive instruction from our mission president and his wife as well as the Assistants and Social Media Sisters. I don't think I have posted about our Mission President and his wife. They are President & Sister Phillips from Rigby, Idaho. They both have an accounting background so they are my people! They have 7 children, 5 of whom are adopted and are African-American. They are fantastic! Here is a picture of them.

I especially loved hearing the messages that Sister Phillips shared at these zone conferences. The theme for zone conference was "Looking for Christ" and Sister Phillips message revolved around the talk by Sister Tracey Browning from October 2022 Conference called "Seeing More of Jesus Christ in Our Lives." We watched the bible video on the "Road to Emmaus," where Christ appeared to (2) disciples after he had been resurrected. There is so much in that story from Luke 24 for our missionaries to apply to themselves. Will they recognize the Savior when they see him? How can they learn to know him better? Once the (2) disciples realized who he was they ran to tell others about him. Are our missionaries excited and anxious to tell others about Christ? We also reviewed the story of Zacchaeus from Luke 19:1-10 when Zacchaeus, who was short of stature, climbed a tree so he could see the Savior. What efforts are we making in our lives so we can "see" the Savior? Our Assistants also shared some great thoughts. I especially loved the thought from Elder Williams about Being S.A.F.E. It stands for Being "Spiritually Aware of Faith-Building Experiences." If we recognize the times the spirit has been with us to guide and help us it will help us through the hard times to hang on to those memories and experiences we had.

Our last zone conference on Friday was in Redmond, OR which is very close to Smith Rock State Park. Smith Rock State Park looks like it belongs in Utah and is one of the best rock climbing locations in the country. We decided we had to see it since we were so close so we took a little detour on our way home.

On Friday Sister Phillips thanked us for all we did and said that she and President Phillips had been worried about the other couples leaving. But she said that they were very happy and grateful because the transition had been "seamless" and we were all doing a great job! Our goal is to try and make their lives easier as they serve all of our missionaries so this was music to our ears!!!

To celebrate this good news we headed out early Saturday morning to show the Larsons another fantastic set of waterfalls! They have only been here a month and have seen 15 waterfalls now! This time we took them to Multnomah Falls and some of the other falls surrounding it. It was a beautiful day, perfect temperature, and I even got to eat my favorite Hazelnut Crusted French Toast at the Multnomah Falls Lodge! It has been a long week and we were tired after. Grateful for the Sabbath and a day of rest. :).

May 14, 2023

Happy Mother's Day! I have heard from all of my children so it is a good day even if we are not with them. Last night we met Tracey & Tom in downtown Portland and went to a fun restaurant known for desserts. It was called Papa Haydn. It was like we were on a double date with them! So fun! I don't think we have ever done that with them before. I should have gotten a picture of Tracey & I together but I only have this one outside the restaurant before they got there.

Today we are having dinner at our house with the other senior couples to celebrate Mother's Day together. Elder & Sister Stewart go home tomorrow and we will miss them. They have been so kind, fun, and helpful. This is their 3rd mission. What an example of service and dedication they have been. They served as humanitarian missionaries in Jamaica, then MLS/Office missionaries in Canada, and now here as the Housing Coordinators. They say this is their last mission but we will see. They are the couple standing in front of us in this picture and the Larson's (the ones who will be with us for the next 18 months) are on the other side.

We have done quite a bit of driving around this week. We delivered cars to Forest Grove & Albany, and then went to Silver Falls State Park with the Larson's yesterday. In our travels I love to see all the pretty flowers. Here are some pics of some beautiful Azaleas and the waterfalls at Silver Falls State Park. In this area there are groves of hazelnut trees and fields of "hops." And then of course there are the wineries. I don't know if I have mentioned that before but there are hundreds of wineries in this part of the state with the accompanying grape vines. We saw some plants yesterday that at first sight we thought were grape vines. But then we noticed that they were bushes and not growing on a vine. They were in rows in giant fields. We did some research and discovered they were blueberry bushes! I can honestly saw I never knew how blueberries grew before. Now we do! Oh yea, I also have to mention the Crimson Clover. We drove by all these fields that were green just a few weeks ago and now there were red flowers on them. We couldn't figure out what they were so we stopped and took pictures so we could identify them. They were Crimson Clover, just like the song by Tommy James! Turns out they grow them in the fields between crops to help retain the nutrients in the soil. See how much we are learning!

It was a busy week with Transfers this week with missionaries coming and going in all directions. It made for a fun time in the office. We still have some "reassigns" waiting for their Visas but about 6 of them got to go on to their final destinations in Peru & Columbia. Elder Rowan had to take (2) of them to the airport at 3:00 am one day. We only had (3) new arrivals this transfer but in June we will get about (15). For transfers we meet with the new missionaries and I tell them about their Missionary Spending Cards and Elder Rowan talks to them about their driving cards (called TIWI Cards). Then the next day Elder Rowan gives a little presentation on the privilege of driving while on their mission. Sister Larson and I also prepared dinner for the new arrival group (about 15) and lunch the next day (about 18) when they met their new companions and headed out to their teaching areas. One of the missionaries serving in our area was without a companion for about 1/2 of a day so Elder Rowan got to be his companion during that time. The Elder was in the office with us and joked that it was like "Bring your child to work day!." But we marvel at how hard our missionaries work, at the rules they keep, and the love they have for what they are doing!

I don't know if I was naive or what, but the one thing I did not understand before coming on our mission was about how much we would learn and be instructed on becoming a better disciple of our Savior, Jesus Christ. I think I thought that at zone conferences, training meetings, etc. that the missionaries would be taught the "Mechanics" of how to be better missionaries. But instead what we have seen is that they are instructed on what it means to be a disciple of Jesus Christ. They are learning how to change their hearts before they can go out and help change anyone elses heart. As we have studied the same material they are encouraged to study, I can tell you that my heart is being changed too! This week we studied an excellent talk by President Thomas S. Monson given in October 2015 conference. It is called, "Be an Example and a Light." So good!! He said, "Each of us came to earth having been given the Light of Christ. As we follow the example of the Savior and live as He lived and as He taught, that light will burn within us and will light the way for others." He then goes on to tell us how we can develop attributes that will allow our lights to shine. These missionaries, and me too, will be changed forever if we work hard to develop these attributes and become better disciples of Christ!

May 7, 2023

Yesterday it was official! We have been out on our mission for 2 months now! We can't believe how fast the time has gone. We are loving it! We love how much we are learning spiritually, how much our testimonies are growing, and how much love we are developing for our missionaries! This was the last week for Elder & Sister Weed so we are flying solo now on our job duties. Lucky for us they live locally and are happy to be a resource for us. They are amazing and have taught us so much by their example. We are so grateful we get to continue our friendship with them. Sister Weed talked about how hard it was going to be to take their badges off and what life would look like afterward. No one would recognize them as disciples of Jesus Christ but then she was reminded in the Book of Mormon that we are instructed to "Live After the Manner of Happiness." If we studied and tried to live all that that meant, we would still be recognized as disciples of Jesus Christ. That is what we need to strife for.

The (2) young sister missionaries, Sister Smith & Sister Nichol will be the next to leave our office. They go home Monday and Wednesday. We will miss their fun energy in the office as they will not be replaced. They are so agreeable and eagar to help in any way they can. They decorated for Cinco de Mayo, they take off & put on license plates for Elder Rowan, they send out letters, make the calendar for the President, you name it and they can do it in the office. I will miss their, "Sister Rowan, is there anything we can do for you today?" The Stewarts will be the next to leave in a little over a week. They went home for a family wedding on Wednesday so we got a little taste of what it will be like in the office when the Larson's and us are on our own. It was quiet! But we've got this and we will do great!

This week we had MLC and it was our first time to prepare a dinner on our own. Sister Larson and I will be doing them together going forward but this time I spearheaded it since she had not been here for a meal yet. We served about 40 and had Chicken Stuffing Casserole, green beans, salad, rolls, & strawberry shortcake. It went well but I do admit to being tired after it was all over :). Elder Rowan got rid of another 13 cars for sale and picked up the last (2) that will need to be traded. By this time next week the GREAT CAR EXCHANGE may be done! Hooray! 50 new cars received and 50 old cars gone! It was baptism by fire!! On Friday we had the Spanish Zone Conference. We have about 20 missionaries called to the Oregon Salem Mission - Spanish Speaking and another 10 Spanish speaking missionaries here waiting for Visas to go to another country, mostly Peru & Columbia. Since it was Cinco de Mayo they decided to have fun with it. We decorated for it and the missionaries even had a pinata! The mission presidency counselor over it arranged catering for it and we had street tacos. It was a fun time!

This week is transfers and we have now been here long enough to have gotten attached to some of our local missionaries. The Assistants to the President are in our area and spend a lot of time in the office. They are incredible young men! They work so hard and keep track of everything in the mission. They have been so helpful to us, especially Elder Rowan as we have learned our duties and managed the GREAT CAR EXCHANGE! I don't know what we would have done without them! They are Elder Williams & Elder Hyde and they are awesome leaders. Elder Hyde is being transferred and we will really miss him.

We also have (2) other missionaries, Elder Reil & Elder Bain that our in our area. Elder Rowan has had a lot of fun with these missionaries and even got to play pickleball with them twice this week. Once on their "P"day and again the next morning for their morning exercise. Elder Reil is being transferred which I guess we will just have to get used to. At least we will get to see them at Zone Conferences. Elder Bain is on the Austism Spectrum although he does not have a diagnosis. He reminds me a lot of Rachel. It has been awesome to be here and see how kind and accommodating the other missionaries are to him. They are living what they are preaching!

There is so much going on with our family while we are away. I wish I could post pictures of all of their activities. Ryan & Amy are getting ready for their MCO concerts next week and Parker is getting ready to graduate on May 31st. He is working on his mission papers and we may have another missionary in the family soon! Rachel was here last week and Chris was busy this weekend taking care of our house. He turned on the sprinkler system and got everything set up for the summer. We are so grateful for him!! Matt was in Guatemala two weeks ago on a Humanitarian Project and Chelsea graduated with her Masters in Multilingual Education. Isabel went to church Prom and met her goals in running the 800 in track. Tracey is still working on her Masters while managing the running part of the Track Team and Alyssa & Danica are busy with volleyball & basketball. We are close enough that we got to watch Alyssa's volleyball games yesterday and hope to make it to a track meet this week! We are trying to get out and enjoy our neighborhood. We are learning about all the flowers that are grown her locally that we don't have in Utah. Our new favorite this week is the Camilla.