SEPTEMBER 25, 2012

Spring is certainly coming to Melbourne, as evidenced by blossoms popping, the smell of freshly mowed grass, trees leafing out, and the appearance of more ants in our flat.  We are quite comfortable sharing our accommodations with them, but draw the line when they choose to climb on our table.  Then we squish them with our finger, brush them on the floor, and continue eating. 

The saga of the electricity in our flat continues, as one of the 60 watt bulbs burned out, and we can’t get another to work in its place.  We had a very nice old electrician come a couple of weeks ago, but instead of replacing the fixtures, he messed with some wires and managed to get them working for a short time.  Now we have a total of 40 watts lighting our living room.  It gives us a good excuse to not study much.

We think we are finally getting a clearer picture of what our role is here.  We were called to a “member/leader support” mission, and that is what we are doing.  We make lots of food, wash lots of dishes, mop the kitchen floor, empty the garbage, vacuum the carpets, and assist the missionaries and members in any way they ask.  I’ve done some clothing repair for the missionaries, and it seem as the word spreads that I can work a needle, more of them bring pants to be hemmed and seams to be repaired.  They in turn love to help us with any computer/Ipad issue we might have, help us eat leftovers and treats, give us rides places if they have a car, tell us where the good places to eat out are, ask us to help with teaching, and are very solicitous and kind.  Their energy, and enthusiasm is contagious and they are certainly forces for good.

We attended the Melbourne temple last week with the missionaries in our zone, and that was a good experience.  Gone are the days when we can leave home, do a temple session, and be home again in two hours.  We left on the tram before 7:00 am, returning home at 1:30 pm.  Pretty much all we did was a temple session, and walk, ride, or wait for a tram or bus.  I love seeing the countryside, looking at all the shops along the streets, and following where we are on the IPad.  Have I said before how thankful I am to have an IPad.  And, I have an IPad tutor, a kid from Thailand I think, who keeps me up to date and always has something new to show me.  He likes to hang around with the senior couples, and since we are the only couple here, he has become our shadow.  Last Saturday we decided to ditch the Branch for a while and go to the Royal Melbourne Botanical Gardens.  Johnny decided he wanted to come, so he was our guide until he had to leave to catch a plane to go home for a couple of weeks.  The gardens were huge, and consisted of plants brought in from all over the world.  It was fun to see families having picnics, kids running around, ducks in the ponds, and lots of beautiful flowers.  We liked seeing a black swan taking her 5 little babies to the pond for a swim.   Unlike botanical gardens most places, it was free, so I'm sure we'll return there often.

Life is good, and we are looking forward to a senior couples retreat this week.  The missionaries kind of look at us funny when we tell them we won’t be around for a couple of days, since they never get a day off.  Even PDay has lots of string attached, for them as well as for us, as we come back to the Branch for Family Home Evening.  This week I taught them "Popcorn Popping on the Apricot Tree" and the missionaries liked teaching the actions.  They laughed and giggled and had a great time singing and playing Fruit Basket, even though in all the excitement of trying to find a chair, the new missionary twisted his ankle pretty badly.  Guess we'll have to come up with games that are a bit more tame. 

Saturday is Australia's equivalent  to the Super Bowl.  It's fun to ride the tram and talk to some of the Aussies and get their perspectives.   It seems like a really big deal, and there will be lots of beer consumed, I'm sure. There are lots of liquor stores in our neighborhood; in fact one takes up pretty much the entire block.   We live close to the stadium where the game will be played but won't be attending the game.  Hopefully we'll take in some of the Australian Open in February.  

I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact that I'll never get over being homesick and missing home, friends and family.  This morning we were walking to the grocery store, and a baby in a stroller was crying.  I started to tear up thinking about Zada and Jack.  Max just tolerates my unstable emotions, and I’m sure shakes his head in unbelief.  Such is life.  We spent $190 and "topped off" all our prepaid phone, internet, and 3G data, for the next six months or so, so I guess that means I need to stop looking for plane fares back home.  However, we sure hope to have some visitors.  Love to you all,  Sharla

September 16, 2012

It is hard to know where to start or when to finish since everything we do seems like a blur most of the time. We come home (interesting how someplace like this can be called home and how it feels ok) at night, and we are tired, and we have a race see who can get out of our “Missionary Clothes” the fastest. After we are comfortable, we start trying to make some sense out of the day and make some notes about the people we met and who were taught.  It is still very difficult to differentiate them as individuals, other than male and female, and once in a while we even miss on that one. To remember names and to associate names with faces is still an almost insurmountable task; one that we are making some headway, but much slower than we like.

Something that we are having zero problems with is loving these amazing people and learning to laugh with them and enjoy their incessant chatter… at least some of the time. There are so many examples of these new members and investigators accepting with their whole hearts the doctrines of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and committing to changing their lives to comply with that doctrine. Many of them have very little experience with “Christianity” as the world knows it and no knowledge at all of the Apostasy and Restoration.

I cannot speak for Sharla about whether or not this is getting any easier.  I know she has her spells of homesickness, and perhaps it will strike me at some later date. We are both trying hard to get used to a rigorous schedule and get enough down time to rest and regenerate. We sort of thought that we would get a day or two off each week, and with this assignment that is not the case.  We have responsibilities at the Branch and with the missionaries every day of the week; some of those days being 10 or 12 hours.

 I am doing better with all of the walking, and at least one of the pairs of shoes I brought are starting to feel a bit more comfortable.  We have taken a couple pair of my slacks to have taken in because “Sister Fillmore” would not let me wear them looking so baggy.  Either all the walking is paying off, or Mr. Mac did a poor job of fitting my pants properly. I haven’t been cold hardly at all, and I haven’t worn my coat once, but I wear pants rather than nylons and a skirt.   Sharla is glad for the warm stuff she brought.

We are also enjoying the Elders and admire their hard work, the knowledge they have, and what amazing “teachers” they are. We like having them for dinner; a couple of them just left, and they did not disappoint. (By that I mean that all of the companionships have consumed enormous amounts of food.)  I even had one elder a couple of weeks ago eat two huge omelets with all of the trimmings.

We are anxious to see what this week brings our way and we hope that whatever it brings your way will help you to be of good cheer.

September 9, 2012

It is Sunday afternoon; probably most of you are sleeping soundly, anticipating the Sabbath.  Church this morning was pretty good.  I especially liked having one of my favorite and not often sung hymns, "He is Risen," sung as the rest hymn.  I know I am confused, but I'm wondering if in Australia Easter comes in September, which is early spring, here.  Blossoms outside our flat are in bloom, and when the wind  blows in the right direction, their fragrance is very sweet.  The wind gusts pretty much non-stop, and there are areas in downtown Melbourne that we are convinced are wind tunnels.

 

Highlights of last couple of weeks include getting our IKEA furniture put together by Elders Rigby and Lynguen , yet another trip to Office Works to purchase a small file cabinet, and an outing with  Robert, Miriam, and Paul (people Max converted many years ago) to the Dandenong Mountains to see the Cockatoos and to visit the William Ricketts Sanctuary. 

 

They swarmed us for food and only drew blood a couple of times

 

Statues were cast in clay, fired, then attached to rocks. Figures appear to be growing out of the rocks.  This work was done in the 1960's and there are dozens of statues, mostly Aboriginal in nature.

 



We are blessed to work with wonderful missionaries, who carry their Sunday meal to the Branch in their backpacks.  (note the frozen chicken breast and salad.)

 

Elder Staples and Elder Kirklin

 

 

Baptism of 3 Vietnamese

 

 

Family Home Evening Activity at the Branch

 

The missionaries are teaching many Chinese and Vietnamese people, and we are thankful to report baptisms and great conversion stories.  One man named Chris, who has two masters degrees in engineering, committed to baptism after just one lesson.  The field is certainly ripe, ready for the harvest, and we are thankful to be able to contribute in very small ways.  Mostly we smile, talk with the members and investigators to the extent they understand English, make food for almost daily activities in the Branch, and occasionally assist in teaching.   

 



Our Kitchen is Very Small 

 

We were able to rent the trolly for $50 to help us bring the file cabinet 3 blocks back to the Branch.  No one seemed to give us a second glance. 

 

 

Our flat is small, and getting the things we need sometimes can be a bit of a challenge, but we manage public transportation pretty well, and we walk a lot.  Sometimes the Zone Leaders give us a ride.

 

 

Flinders Station

 

 

Melbourne Central

 

There are many historic sites in Melbourne, and the architecture is a great mix of old and new. 

 

Depending on the day, we are adjusting to missionary work and the new culture into which we've been immersed.  We do know our Heavenly Father loves us and each or you, and that Jesus Christ is our Savior and Redeemer.  We are thankful to feel safe and that we have the physical, financial, spiritual, and generally the emotional strength to serve here. 

 

 

September 2, 2012


YOU KNOW YOU LIVE IN AN EFFICIENCY FLAT WHEN:

1.      You have a total of four light switches.

2.      There are four doors, one of which is a sliding door and one is the closet door.

3.      There are 15 total knobs/handles in the entire flat, plus of course, two door knobs.

4.      From your kitchen chair you can access all of the cabinet drawers (4) the microwave, the refrigerator, and all of the lower cabinets (3.)

5.      Sitting on the throne, you can do your business, as well as operate the washing machine, spit in the sink from brushing your teeth, and sort the clothes from the clothes hamper/bag if you like.

6.      You improve leg flexibility, as you train yourself to swing your leg around the corner bed post that you must pass to get to the bathroom or the living room;  otherwise you CLUNK your leg every time you pass and it hurts. (Missionaries are not supposed to swear.)

7.      Physical dexterity and balance is also improved, because on the far side of the bed, there is about a 6 “ space between the bed and the wall.  You quickly learn to get out of bed in the middle of the night very carefully, otherwise you might hit your head or your foot on the cement or plaster wall.  You also have to maneuver around the radiator heater and big old fan that are in the egress.  You might think, why don’t you move them?  Reason being, there is no place to move them.

8.      There are a total of four wood windows in the entire flat, all of which have peeling (probably lead) paint, have dirty moldy screens, and which may or may not open in case of an emergency, but which help maintain a consistent humidity level in the flat.  It probably would be very easy to break out if necessary.

9.      You have 4 dinner plates, which is plenty, since there are only two kitchen chairs.  When 2 guests come, a small desk chair is available, and one person stands at the end by the refrigerator, facilitating easy access to food that is kept there during the meal, because the table is so small.

10.   Energy is saved, because the TV doesn’t pick up any stations, so doesn’t get turned on.

11.   A car vacuum is adequate to vacuum the whole place.

12.   Two of the four light fixtures accommodate two bulbs each, but only work at 50%, saving additional electricity.  

13.   Six small pictures, framed in $2.99 IKEA frames, and two pillows is all the interior decorating needed.

14.   There are two sinks, a single small one in the kitchen, and one in the bathroom that could easily be mistaken for a urinal trough.

15.   An element of luxury is 16 electrical outlets, three 4 banger power strips, and one lengthy power strip with a cord that reaches anywhere in the flat.

16.   Nine foot ceilings provides for an open and spacious feeling.

17.   An electric wall heater, two transportable radiator type heaters, and a small space heater help maintain a comfortable climate, and double as the clothes dryer.   

August 26, 2012

It is amazing what a difference a week can make!  First of all, we are both finally sleeping at night and waking up refreshed and ready to conquer the world.  Our familiarity with the area has increased from 1 city block to 3 or 4, plus we are familiar with a couple of tram and train lines.  We know the names of all the missionaries we are working with and sometimes can remember names of 10 - 12 Chinese students.  We attended our first Zone Conference (good, but very long) had one pair of missionaries to our flat to dinner, and I went on a 6 mile run along the Yarra River without getting lost.

We are getting used to the oddities of our little flat, which is very little.  Two of the light fixtures only work part of the time, the tv doesn't work, and the shower turn on knobs are outside of the shower, so adjusting the temperature creates a bit of a challenge.  It seems that the oven works part of the time.  It took 45 minutes to bake a pan of brownies, yet a roast was cooked to a crisp at what was supposed to be a low temperature in a couple of hours.  We are in close proximity to a tram line, a "footie" field, 440 meter track, a farmers market, supermarkets, a mall, lots of shops, hundreds of mostly Asian food restaurants, and less than 3/4 of a mile from a huge IKEA store.  I've really enjoyed all the walking, and I think Max is losing weight, because he's had to tighten his belt another notch.  It seems people on the street don't make eye contact with anyone else, but if you ask a question, they are extremely friendly and eager to talk and help in any way.  We met a man the other day who had a small pet bird perched on his shoulder.  He said he had rescued it, because it got kicked out of the nest.  The bird was colored in brilliant shades of blue, yellow, and green and was very tame.  It only had one foot; maybe why it was kicked out of the nest.  I think he called it a lourakeet.

This weekend we  attended the baptisms of 4 Chinese students and 3 Vietnamese students.  We hope that since most of the students will return to China, that their faith and testimony will remain strong, and that they will be able to help build up the Church in their country.  It is amazing to witness the teaching of the students, and though we mostly sit and try to stay awake during the Chinese discussions, sometimes we are asked to bear our testimonies in English.  We spend lots of time visiting and interacting with the students, and they are very kind to us.  They are studious and interested in learning English, so they can pass a competency test.  I teach an English class once a week, and the skill levels of the students differs to a very wide degree.

Even though we have been here less than two weeks, we feel that this missionary assignment is the best in the Church.  The Chinese students are great, but we also get to interact daily with 16 dedicated and faithful  missionaries.  We are amazed at how hard they work and how much teaching they do.  It's like having our own grandsons with us every day.  We loved watching them crowding around the mail desk at Zone Conference, hoping for a package from home, and then getting excited about really small things....like a Pez dispenser, Chex Mix, or a key chain.  Make a young missionary happy and send them a package.

Thanks for your prayers and faith on our behalf, and please keep it up.  I know a power beyond our own pulled us through that first week.

Hello you all !
This is the other half of the companionship from down under. My first comment is: "yah, what she said."  It has been/is a bit overwhelming but we trust that we will learn and improve in some way most days and that we will some how be able to serve the Lord by serving these missionaries and the Chinese Branch.  Today is Sunday the 19th, so we will get to attend the branch for the first time. Branch President is Chinese but Cantonese speaking, not Mandarin and we hear that becomes a bit of a problem some times. We might, probably won't ever know.

It is so amazing to actually be here. We are slowly getting acclimated and we hope that continues to improve.  Sleep has been hard to come by.  Waking up, especially Sharla at 2 or 3 in the morning. This morning we both were awake about 4:30. (maybe Sharla even earlier.) No place to take a nap at the Branch and so when we get home and eat dinner, what ever that might be, we are about worn out, but not to anxious to go to bed at 8, so hopefully that will get better, not worse.

The weather has been cool or cold and rainy.  It is 49.5 F right now at 6:45 AM. We have not been totally soaked yet but Sharla got pretty wet yesterday on a run and then later at a local Farmers Market.  We are not having any trouble spending lots of Money. I forgot to call Capital One and so they put a hold on my credit card.  Oh well, I will just use a different one.

We think about family and friends very often, we have had one face time experience on the ipad and that is amazing and it was a great way to connect. Hopefully it will prove to be a very good way to keep up with family.

Friday, August 17, 2012

Whew!  So many things have happened in the last couple of weeks, and we are now "down under" enjoying some Australian hospitality. 

We spent a week in the Provo Mission Training Center learning how to teach the Gospel of Jesus Christ, with the focus of the training coming from "Preach My Gospel."  We were assigned to a group with 4 other senior couples, and together our young trainers motivated and inspired us.  I loved walking the grounds of the MTC and seeing all the missionaries; probably my favorite time all week was on Wednesday, watching them get dropped off.  A "host" missionary was assigned to meet every greenie at the curb, help them with their luggage, and bring them into the MTC.  I didn't see any sad farewells; rather quick good-bye hugs at the curb, then enthusiasm and eagerness to get started.  Mealtime was also an experience, as 2000 plus starving young men and women gobbled down enormous amounts of food.

We filled the 24 hours after we arrived home from the MTC until we left for the airport with fun family activities:  an evening at the North Salt Lake Splash Pad Park playing tag, running races, getting wet in the rain, eating yummy food, and visiting.  Saturday morning Rachelle and I had a last long run around Bountiful Pond and celebrated with a Keva.  Then  the adults and Whisenant kids went golfing and to lunch at Rio Grande.  Seems we tried to cram in all the good food possible. 

Kam took us to the airport, and waited to make sure we didn't get hung up in security.  It was sure hard to wave good-bye to him from the other side of the scanners and walk towards our gate.  While waiting for our plane to leave for Los Angeles, I shed lots of tears watching the video Tyler put together of all our grandkids and kids giving us advice. 

The airbus from LA to Melbourne was huge, service was good, and fortunately we had a seat between us for the 18 hour journey.  We both slept soundly for a few hours, thanks to Ambien, and when we woke up, watched the sun rise on the south pacific. 

Passing through customs and quarantine was stressful, because we had so much stuff.  A little Beagle  sniff dog sniffed all our luggage for contraband and thankfully wagged his tail, giving approval for us to emerge from the caverns of the Melbourne airport, where we eagerly anticipated being greeted by missionaries.  Problem was....no one was there to greet us. We looked at each other, shrugged, and I headed for the nearest ticket counter to purchase a ticket home, while Max went in search of help.  He returned soon with Sister Lifferth, who was waiting at a different location.  Her warm smile, hug, and greeting warmed our souls, and we knew we had at least one friend in Australia.    We met President Lifferth, crammed our luggage and ourselves in his Toyota Camry, and headed to the mission home.

The Lifferths treated and fed us like royalty, helped us get  our "Working with Children Permits,", introduced us to other missionaries, and drove us to an area where kangaroos grazed on the hillside.  We walked among those funny critters for an hour or so watching them scrutinize us and hop around on two legs.   Heavenly Father certainly has a sense of humor and was in a really good mood when he created them.  Sister Lifferth effortlessly  prepared dinner for 10, as she had invited 4 people Max met and converted 50 years ago to join us.  It was fun to get reacquainted with them.

Our assignment is to work in the Melbourne Chinese and Vietnamese Speaking District with 16 missionaries who are mainly teaching students.  We spend most of our time in an LDS "church center," which encompasses the second floor of a highrise building in downtown Melbourne.  This area is a hub of activity from about 11:30 AM till 8:00 PM every day of the week.  The floor has a chapel, 2 medium size meeting rooms,  a small kitchen, office, clerk's and branch president's office, library, ping pong table room, lounge area, and 4 small teaching rooms, totaling about 10,000 square feet.  It is a very open area,  (no place to go take a nap) and generally between 10 - 20 assorted investigators and missionaries are in the area teaching or hanging out.  Our job is vaguely defined; general description is to teach an Institute and English class once a week, provide treats and meals for some of the activities, and be a mature presence, hopefully assuring that no inproprieties exist between missionaries and the very cute, enthusiastic, Chinese female students who are being taught the Gospel.  It seems there is an average of 3 - 5 baptisms per week from this district, and we have also been asked to try and help with retention and tracking these new converts, many of whom return to China.  The Gospel is taught in Chinese and Vietnamese, but the students all speak English to some degree, so we can communicate with them. 

We live in a very small flat, walk or ride the tram everyplace we want to go, and have only branched out a bit.  Generally we are comfortable, warm, and well-fed.  For a couple of old duffers used to having everything conveniently our way and being surrounded by family and friends, this experience has so far been overwhelming and hard.  Sister Lifferth told me that when the Chinese don't all look the same to us, we will know we have "arrived."  We know the names and backgrounds of most of the missionaries in our district, and have become acquainted with a couple of the Chinese students.  Everyone is kind and eager to help us.  We are thankful to have a week under our belts and know that as each day passes, we will become more comfortable with our assignment as missionaries and our life in Melbourne.