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.