tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-83138294087447540672024-03-14T00:42:35.919-07:00With Love Out of BotswanaWith Love Out of BotswanaUnknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger118125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-47020089880073077852012-04-23T20:55:00.000-07:002012-04-23T20:55:18.326-07:00Pictures<div>Here are some fun pictures Dad fixed for me to send. Enjoy!</div><div>Mom</div><div>l. Marea and her Relief Society President, Sister Lasedi and our 4 Kanye Elders.</div><div> </div><div>2. Firewood place</div><div> </div><div>3. A couple of cute little boys in Kanye!</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bKgC7OO3fZ8/T5Yj5xrmvTI/AAAAAAAABOU/maWj7yjKA20/s1600/Lasedi,+Marea,+Elders.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bKgC7OO3fZ8/T5Yj5xrmvTI/AAAAAAAABOU/maWj7yjKA20/s320/Lasedi,+Marea,+Elders.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div> </div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jJlOLnfnnb4/T5Yj5Wo7KhI/AAAAAAAABOM/o-f3qyrDGv8/s1600/Firewood.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-jJlOLnfnnb4/T5Yj5Wo7KhI/AAAAAAAABOM/o-f3qyrDGv8/s320/Firewood.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-bKgC7OO3fZ8/T5Yj5xrmvTI/AAAAAAAABOU/maWj7yjKA20/s1600/Lasedi,+Marea,+Elders.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J9WBfNeXBvA/T5Yj6NrWOTI/AAAAAAAABOc/jscA-N02_rU/s1600/kids+in+church.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-J9WBfNeXBvA/T5Yj6NrWOTI/AAAAAAAABOc/jscA-N02_rU/s320/kids+in+church.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-1609984295706285412011-08-10T21:00:00.002-07:002012-04-23T21:02:57.087-07:00The Final LetterTIME HAS ARRIVED:<br />
<div> We are so happy with Elder and Sister Kimball. The Lord is helping them each and every day and they are learning and doing just fine. We really was worried for a couple of weeks but they have great attitudes and are quick learners so we are pleased. She has even driven the car a few times. They are both great drivers (a little slower then mom and I) but they are doing great. Yesterday the transfer missionaries (8) arrived safely and we showed the Kimballs what we do and they did fine. Today we take our new missionaries to the police to get things certified and to the doctor to start the paperwork to get their residence permits.</div><div> We will probably help them for a few hours than come back to the Motheo Apartments to pack. Mom has already started but I will start this afternoon. We leave here at 8:00 and go through the border about 8:30 then drive to Johannesburg mission office and drop off the car and deliver some things. President and Sister Omer will drive us to the airport and them along with Elder and Sister Bricknell and us will have a late lunch together and visit. Then we will go to the departure gates and check in and wait for our plane to leave. Mike remember that we will be coming in from Atlanta so I don't think it will be in the international part of the airport like Maria came into. It says we will be on flight number DL983 arriving in SLC at 11:50 AM from Atlanta. We have nothing to do in Salt Lake unless you want to set up an appointment with President Monson to get us released and I could tell him that a mission needs to be set up on Botswana. (just kidding)</div><div> We are looking forward to seeing everyone.</div><div>Love Out Of Botswana, Dad</div><div>P.S. Grandma and Grandpa Beus are planning to stay with us Saturday night. Mike and Didi can you share a bedroom with your kids or something for just that one night.</div>P.S.S. We will have internet here all day if anyone needs to say anything. We wish Brayden good luck on the 16th we are praying for him and JaxonUnknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-41502350570598645982011-08-07T20:59:00.001-07:002012-04-23T21:00:28.054-07:00Week # 77 - Papa Lynn<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Week 77</span></span></div><span style="font-family: Times New Roman; font-size: small;"> </span><br />
<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: small;">Dear Family and Friends,<span> <wbr></wbr> </span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span> </span><span> </span>This letter will be short because I am so excited to be heading home that I think I will say too much and you won’t be very spiritual.<span> </span>This has been a great week as Mom and I have moved out of the mission home/office so Elder and Sister Kimball can move in to learn and run things without our influence so much.<span> </span>It is fun to be back where we started and we feel calmer than we did 18 months ago, but I think that is because we have more faith and trust in the people of Botswana.<span> </span>The Kimballs are learning all they need to know and I think they will be just fine.<span> </span>They will do things differently than we </span></span><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: small;">have done them but that is OK because we did them different than what we were taught also.<span> </span>I’m not sure they will keep up the picture board of all the missionaries because it is a lot of computer work and I don’t think that is the things they are the best at learning.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span> </span>I had another surprise trip to Johannesburg Friday evening and stayed overnight and flew back on Saturday morning because we had a passport up here that was needed at 6:00 AM Saturday and I took it down.<span> </span>I get to do think like that all the time.<span> </span>Oh well it all pays the same in the long run.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span> </span>Today we attended the three wards here in Gaborone and it was fast and testimony meetings in each so I had the opportunity to bare my testimony in each meeting.<span> </span>Mom bore testimony in two of the three meetings.<span> </span>It was difficult because of our love for each of them but we got through and several wanted to have pictures with us after meetings.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span> </span>Well it won’t be long now and we will be home.<span> </span>This week we bore testimony in three wards and next week reporting our mission in Unity 2</span><span style="font-size: x-small;"><sup>nd</sup></span><span style="font-size: small;"> ward.<span> </span>We are very excited to see everyone.<span> </span>We love you all very much.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>Love Out Of Botswana, Dad</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-19184891260830425562011-08-05T20:55:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:57:13.117-07:00Thoughts for Today's Reading<div>Dearest Family,</div><div>We are back in the office for a few minutes while the Kimballs are gone so I grabed her computer for a minutes and I wanted to share this with all of you from our reading!</div><div> </div><div>Mormon 8:31</div><div>Mormon refers to "great pollutions" in our day. </div><div>Boyd K. Packer said: :Sadly, the effects of this great pollution are perhaps most evident in the mass media, films, television, and popular music. If we in this nation continue to sow the images of murder, violence, drug abuse, perversion, and pornography before the eyes of millions of children, we should not be surprised if the foundations of our society rot away as if from leprosy."</div><div> </div><div>Mormon 8:34 -35</div><div>President Exra Taft Benson declared that our study of the Book of Mormon should be influenced by our knowledge that Moroni saw our day and wrote with us in mind: "We must make the Book of Mormon a center focus of study because it was written for our day. The Nephites never had the book; neither did the Lamanites of ancient times. It was meant for us. Mormon wrote near the end of the Nephite civilization. Under the inspiration of God. who sees all things from the beginning; he abridges centuries of records, choosing the stories, speeches, and events that would be most helpful to us.</div><div>Each of the major writers of the Book of Mormon testified that he wrote for future generations.</div><div>Mormon himself said, "Yea, I speak unto you, ye remnant of the house of Israel. And Mormoni, the last of the inspired writers, actually saw our day and time.</div><div>If they saw our day and chose those things which would be of gretest worth to us, is not that how we should study the Book of Mormon? We should constantly ask ourselves, "Why did the Lord inspire Mormon, or Moroni, or Alma to include that in his record? What lesson can I learn from that to help me live in this day and age? And there is example after example of how that question will be answered."</div><div> </div><div>Enjoy your reading; ;we are!!!</div><div>Congratulations to Alex! We tried to look up your mission of the Church e-mail but we couldn't even figure out how to spell it.</div><div> </div><div>Don't know if we will be alone in the office again or not; but we love you all and we'll see you next Friday.</div><div> </div><div>Love out of Botswana!</div><div>Mom and Dad</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-69090506494425890542011-07-31T20:51:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:52:19.063-07:00Week # 76 - Granny<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Dear Family,</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Well, Time is marching on so quickly that we are running out of time for training, teaching, talking in church, and visiting with these people that we love so much.<span> </span>We are doing our “last” of everything and it’s really quite sad.<span> </span>We had our final part together with the YSA yesterday and it was so fun.<span> </span>We bought wood out in the country from a little family that sells it for a living and that is an experience in itself.<span> </span>Dad started the fire and got it just right for a good ol’ American wiener roast and they had never even seen and couldn’t imagine how to cook them over the open fire.<span> </span>Dad had made about 18 wiener stick with a good stiff wire he found and some dowels and they worked really well.<span> </span>We had about 75 in attendance and they ate until I thought they would all burst and I think they had a great time.<span> </span>Sister Busi Matswagothata (Bishop’s wife) had put together a really nice memory book and had all of them write us a little note to put in the book along with their pictures and it is really a treasure.<span> </span>We will really miss them and hope we can keep up with their lives through Bishop and Busi.<span> </span>The Matswagothata’s have become way more than friends and we will never forget them.<span> </span>They say they will come to America to visit and we think they really might.<span> </span>We certainly hope so!<span> </span>They invited us to their home this Thursday evening and we are looking forward to going.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span> </span>Today we drove to Kanye for our last time; we really love the Saints in Kanye and they have become like our 2<sup>nd</sup> family.<span> </span>They became a branch about 2 months before we arrived so we have seen them through a lot of baptisms, confirmations, building remodeling and building grounds clean up operations, as well as parties and leadership training.<span> </span>It was hard to speak in their meetings today as, of course, we got quite emotional and the spirit was certainly with us all as we said our fair wells and as we witnessed to them of the truthfulness of the Gospel and pleaded with them to remember our testimonies and to let our testimonies strengthen them until they could be strong enough of their own to ALWAYS stay close to the Gospel and it’s teachings.<span> </span>I met with Sister Lasedi (The Relief Society President) for an hour after church; she is a member of less than 9 Months and trying to be the mother of the ward; and doing an excellent job I might add.<span> </span>Their Branch President is a wonderful <span> </span>7 Ft. Tall Elder (Elder Oketa) with a crippled leg and a dynamic spirit.<span> </span>We left Kanye with heavy hearts, but full of excitement for the future.<span> </span>Marea was with us today and she came back to Botswana with us and is going to help me clean tomorrow and then ride the Combi back to Kanye as she starts school again on Tuesday.<span> </span>She has been out for a 3 week break, but will soon be in full swing again.<span> </span>She is doing excellent in school and getting very good grades.<span> </span>She is happy and fun and we love her.<span> </span>We bought her a bed as she has been sharing a Twin Sized bed with her cousins daughter because she has no place else to sleep except on her grandma’s floor.<span> </span>It was fun yesterday when we took her to the furniture store, she went to the absolute cheapest bed in the store and laid down on it and said (thumbs-up) this one will be just great!<span> </span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span> </span>We plan to pack up and clean and train all day Monday and Tuesday and then move into the small apartment across town where we began our Mission and let the Kimball’s move into the Mission Home so they can start doing all the computer work, answering phones, and everything else that comes up daily.<span> </span>As long as we are here, we keep doing it and they need to be on their own for a few days before we leave.<span> </span>They are wonderful people, fun to be around; having a great experience here so far and they are thrilled to be serving in Botswana.<span> </span>They have served a Family History Mission in their home stake, but have been praying for a Foreign Mission some time in their life and now at age 74 and 75, they have realized their dream and they are just so excited to be here.<span> </span>They were a little less excited after it took them 5 hours at Immigration on Friday, but they are good sports.<span> </span>We are proud of them.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Well, it’s been a big weekend and the week is looking about the same so I’m going to close and I don’t know if we will be able to write any more or not.<span> </span>It’s kind of hard to use the computers when it isn’t our house, but if we get a chance we’ll try.<span> </span>If you need anything, you can e-mail us though as I’m sure we will at least be able to check for messages one day when we come over to do office work with them.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">We love you all so very much.<span> </span>We thank you for your love and support as we have served this mission.<span> </span>We couldn’t do it if we didn’t have that support.<span> </span>Thanks for allowing us to spread our wings and fly; we love each other and we love serving together.<span> </span>We have been so richly blessed and we pray for that same blessing for each of you.<span> </span>We’ll see you in “a few”.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Love,</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Mom and Dad, Grannie & PaPa <span class="il">Lynn</span></span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-51204888984311985322011-07-28T20:50:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:51:05.180-07:00Book of Mormon Reading Challenge<div>Dear Family and Friends,</div><div> I don't know how many of you are keeping up with the Book of Mormon challenge that started on the 27th of May 2011 but if you are staying on schedule you will be reading of the actual appearance of the Savior to the people on the American continent. The challenge of readng 77 days at 7 pages each day you should be reading page 428 through 434 today. You know that I haven't mentioned this very often but today is special with the appearance of the Savior and his teaching contained in those pages are wonderful. I know that the next four days will be full of great and wonderful things and I am excited to read them but I am staying strictly on schedule. I hope you are reading pages 428 through 434 today.</div><div>Love Out Of Botswana, Dad, Papalynn, Brother, and Friend</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-59747340059213188862011-07-25T20:49:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:49:42.435-07:00Quote of the Day!<div>Dear Family,</div><div>Another quote for the day; this time about 3 Nephi 10:12</div><div>Elder M. Russell Ballard taught: " <strong>We, like the Nephites, must follow our prophet</strong> if we hope to find safety, peace, prosperity, and happiness: <span style="color: #cc0000;"><strong>"It is no small thing to have a prophet of God in our midst</strong></span>. Great and wonderful are the blessings that come into our lives as we listen to the word of the Lord given us through him. When we hear the counsel of the Lord expressed through the words of the President of the Church, our response should be positive and prompt. History shows that <span style="background-color: #ffff66;">there is safety, peace and prosperity, and happiness in responding to prophetic counsel."</span></div><div> </div><div><span style="color: black;">We Love You and we'll see you in A FEW!!!</span></div><div> </div><div>Mom and Dad, Grannie & PaPa <span class="il">Lynn</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-43095881045358453422011-07-24T20:46:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:47:16.515-07:00Quote of the Day<div>Dear Family,</div><div>Just another great quote that goes along with our daily reading!</div><div> </div><div>3 Nephi 6:12 Prosperity and Pride! Quote by Pres. Eyring</div><div>"A little prosperity and peace, or even a turn slightly for the better, can bring us feelings of self-sufficiency. We can feel quickly that we are in control of our lives, that the change for the better is our own doing, not that of a God who communicates to us through the still, small voice of the Spirit. Pride creates a noise within us which makes the quiet voice of the Spirit hard to hear. And soon, in our vanity, we no longer even listen for it. We can come quickly to think we don't need it."</div><div> </div><div>3 Nephi 6:15-18 satan tempted them to willfully Sin against God! </div><div>Satan, who rebelled against God in our premortal existence seeks to stir up rebellion among the Saints of God. The danger of willful participation in sin has to do with the voice we choose to follow. King Benjamin warned: "And now, I say unto you, my brethren, that after ye have known and have been taught all these things, if ye should transgress and go contrary to that which has been spoken....."I say unto you, that the man that doeth this, the same cometh out in open reellion against God; therefore he listeth to obey the evil spirit, and becometh an enemy to all righteousness; therefore, the Lord has no place in him, for he dwelleth not in unholly temples."</div><div><strong>In connection with this, Elder Neal A. Maxwell observed: </strong><em>"Surely it should give us more pause than it does to think of how casually we sometimes give to Satan, who could not control his own ego in the premortal worls such awful control over our egos here. We often let the adversary do <strong>indirectly </strong>now what we refused to let him do <strong>directly</strong> then."</em></div><div><em></em> </div><div><em></em> </div><div><em><span style="background-color: #ff6666;">PLEASE MAKE SURE THAT EVERYONE OF OUR GRANDKIDS UNDERSTAND THIS FOLLOWING QUOTE;</span></em></div><div><em><span style="background-color: #ffff66;">IT WOULD MAKE A WONDERFUL FAMILY HOME EVENING LESSON!</span></em></div><div><em></em> </div><div><strong>Elder M. Russell Ballard explained the danger of heeding Satan's temptations:</strong></div><div><strong>"</strong>In the premortal world before we left the presence of Heavenly Father, He warned and cautioned us about new experiences we would have in mortality. We knew that we each would have a physical body of flesh and bone. Never having been mortal before, we had no experience dealing with the temptations of mortality. But Heavenly Father knew and understood. He charged us to control our mortal bodies and to make them subject to our spirits. Our spirits would have to master the physical temptations that our bodies would encounter in a temportal world. Spiritual power over the influence of Satan comes to us by keeping the commandments of our Lord, Jesus Christ.</div><div>"Satan will seek to tempt us at times and in ways that exploit our greatest weaknesses or destroy our strengths. But his promises of pleasure are short-lived deceptions. His evil design is to tempt us into sinning, knowing that when we sin we separate ourselves from our Heavenly Father and the Savior, Jesus Christ. We begin to move away from Heavenly Father's promised blessings toward the misery and anguish in which Satan and his followers languish. By sinning we put ourselves in Satan's power.</div><div>"The battle for your souls is increasingly fierce. The adversary is strong and cunning. However, <span style="color: #333333;"><strong><em><u>you have within your physical body the</u></em></strong></span> <strong><em><u>powerful spirit of a son or daughter of God</u></em></strong>. <strong>Because He loves you and wants you to come home to Him, our Father in Heaven has given you a conscience that tells your spirit when you are keeping the Lord's commandments and when you are not</strong>. <span style="color: #ff6666;"><strong>If you will pay more attention to your spiritual self, which is eternal</strong></span>, <span style="color: #33cc00;">than to your mortal self, which is temporary</span>, <strong><u>you can always resist the temptations of Satan and conquer his efforts to take you into his power."</u></strong></div><div><strong></strong> </div><div>Have a great week. We are SUPER BUSY but Happy! I love you Dad. He is such a great man and the missionaries all love him.</div><div>He uses his Priesthood righteously and I'm so proud to be his companion.</div><div> </div><div>Love,</div><div>Mom</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-35571179503533629332011-07-17T20:42:00.002-07:002012-04-23T20:46:07.996-07:00Week # 75 - Papa Lyn<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JR-pjYFnoFs/T5Yh05mgDDI/AAAAAAAABN8/PsqoGqeRRFs/s1600/Helping+Locals.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-JR-pjYFnoFs/T5Yh05mgDDI/AAAAAAAABN8/PsqoGqeRRFs/s320/Helping+Locals.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oEP5cZthIXs/T5Yh4PZETkI/AAAAAAAABOE/wntHenrJZTY/s1600/Marea+12+Jul+11+Botswana.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-oEP5cZthIXs/T5Yh4PZETkI/AAAAAAAABOE/wntHenrJZTY/s320/Marea+12+Jul+11+Botswana.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dear Family and Friends, <wbr></wbr> <wbr></wbr> </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> I have lots to talk about in this letter so I am starting a week early. Mom sent her letter a few days early this week and many of the things that she wrote about are in the process. We picked up President and Sister Omer at the airport here in Gaborone on the 4:40 PM flight. We went to dinner at my favorite restaurant and had a great visit and a great meal. They are so wonderful and they will be great for this mission. We knew how much we have enjoyed President and Sister Poulsen that we have been concerned who the Omers would fit in. He has been throughout the mission doing interviews to get acquainted with each of the missionaries and Botswana is his last three zones to interview. We have been blessed to have them here at our mission office/home and everything went very well. We don’t have to worry if they can fill the shoes of the Poulsens as they will do just fine.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Because of flights and distance President Omer ask if I would have Francistown missionaries come down here to Gaborone for their interviews as well. It meant only having four elders and four sisters come in two cars and then we wanted the Risers to come as well so they came earlier than the Francistown Zone. We had a good day Friday with each district come in for interviews and they were each on time and the interviews went really well. In the afternoon Elder and Sister Riser got here and so after interviews my sweet wife had dinner for the three couples, President and Sister Omer, Elder and Sister Riser and ourselves. It was a great meal with enchiladas as the main course and everyone had as much as they wanted and it was fun to set around and just talk until it was time to take President and Sister Omer back to their hotel for the night.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> The next morning we had changed the interviews to be a couple hours earlier so we could take them shopping to a couple small markets in front of the River Walk Mall and then over to Botswana Craft. It was fun and the women really enjoyed it. After that Mom and I left everyone (Omers and Risers) here in our mission home/office and we went out to the border to get Elder and Sister Kimball and Elder and Sister Oborn across the border. We didn’t know if they would need us but it really helped and they were happy that we were there. It usually takes about 4 ½ to 5 hours to come from the Office in Johannesburg but it took them 10 ½ hours. They got lost twice and went the wrong way in some very important places that totally took them the wrong way. Later as they followed us from place to place I know it must have been the fact that they were not use to driving on the left side of the road. However the driver Elder Oborn has been in England on his first mission and he has been in South Africa for about a month and he is so causes that he can’t follow anyone very well. I take always take great precautions when someone is following me that I have never lost anyone until yesterday in broad daylight. It was frustrating to say the least. Elder Oborn was driving but just didn’t have a clue as how to follow. Sorry this sounds so negative but we were all late for everything because of this. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Sunday we picked up Elder and Sister Kimball at the Mottheo Apartments (where we started here in Botswana about 17 months ago) then went past the Mondior Hotel to get President and Sister Omer and Elder and Sister Oborn to follow us to Gaborone West chapel. We were on time because I had allowed a little extra time for them to follow us. They all had an opportunity to speak in the YSA ward Gaborone West 2<sup>nd</sup> ward) with President and Sister Omer taking the greater amount of time as it should be. Then we stayed there and attended Gaborone West 1<sup>st</sup> ward (the family ward)and they all spoke again. Mom and I had arranged for us to attend a baptism at the Broadhurst building at about 12:0 but again Elder Oborn didn’t pay attention and followed the wrong car. Gratefully President Omer had his cell phone I called and they finally got behind us about ten minutes later. When we got to Broadhurst the baptism of three was over but we did get to be there for the music while they were dressing and then got to hear each of their testimonies which were wonderful.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> After all the different meetings we went to we came back home here to have dinner. The roast was tender and great and we had funeral potatoes with all the trimmings. My sweet wife has al talent in fixing meals. They all loved the food and we all had a great time. We could barely fit eight of us around the table but it worked fine. We just set around and talked for the whole afternoon and no one wanted to leave. We finally had ice cream and cookies and then lead them back to the hotel and apartment. I didn’t mention that Elder and Sister Riser left at 5:00 AM Sunday morning to get back and do a visit in the Serowe group and their way back to Francistown. The next morning we needed to take President and Sister Omer to the airport to fly back to Johannesburg and while there we pointed Elder and Sister Oborn down the road to the Tlokweng borer to drive back to Johannesburg. We found out they made it back just fine. Then about noon we picked up the Kimballs to get them some groceries so they could eat at their apartment. We ended up coming back to our home and did a little training and talking over dinner then he asked if he could drive home with us with him as we needed to bring back the car. Sadly he hit a curb and bent a rim on the car and broke the hub cap. I think it was caused by driving too fast so when he slowed down he does just fine. We picked them up for the next couple days but after learning the way from the Motheo Apartments he now drives the car they brought up from South Africa (this is the car we will take back to South Africa on the 11<sup>th</sup> of August).</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Tuesday we took them to Mafikeng to learn where the Elders flat is and we did an apartment inspection and also where the church is in Mafikeng. They had a good experience crossing the border both going to and coming back from Mafikeng. On the way back we did an apartment inspection in Lobatse and showed them the church there as well. Both Monday and Tuesday was a holiday as it has been Presidents day here in Botswana, so Wednesday we did all the preparations for the immigration papers for the Kimballs. Thursday we did apartment inspections for the entire Botswana East zone which included Mochudi and all the flats here in Gaborone. Friday we went to the power office to get them acquainted with things there and then we went to the main mail to show them the post office and did a little shopping of the tourist items while there. While having lunch back at the mission home I received a call to do a second interview back at Mochudi so we did that in the afternoon.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Saturday we went to a wedding of one of our YSA couples and it was wonderful and almot started on time. It was only a half hour late instead of two hours late as some have been. Between the wedding and a special meeting with President Hall our Roodepoort Stake president I got a call to do two interviews in Molepolole. So my sweet wife fixed us all a sack lunch and we headed for Molepolole and after the two 2<sup>nd</sup> interviews we did an apartment inspection and showed the Kimballs where the church building was in Molepolole as well.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> 24 July 2011 Sunday: Today was be a bit different as the MTC President and his wife spent the last couple of days in Madikwe game reserve where Mom and I took our three sons when they came to visit and they came to visit us today. They have two of their girls with them and we are meet them at the River Walk Mall and took them to church in Broadhurst. We also have the PEF couple in town and they are came to dinner at our house as well. We are very glad that everyone wasn’t here all at once. We had the first dinner with Elder and Sister Kimball with resident and Sister Christensen and of course Mom and I. It was fun and they stayed until about 2:00 and we drove them to the edge of town to make sure they knew their way to the border.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> At about 5:00 we got a call from the perpetual education fund couple who we thought was coming with everyone else and we had to fix another meal. Then at 7:00 Kgosy and Miepillo came and wanted to eat as well. It is now 8:30 and I don’t think anyone else will be coming to eat. But I guess some missionaries could come even yet for about another hour. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Well the day is about done and we are about to finish up a few things and get ready for bed. Before doing so I need to explain something. On or about the 2<sup>nd</sup> or 3<sup>rd</sup> of August we are going to do what we did in Ukraine. We will be moving out of our home here in Botswana rom the mission home/office and change places with the Kimballs. They will move here and we will spend the last week in the Motheo Apartments. We want you to know if you need to get hold of us we will still be checking our e-mail every day right up until the 10<sup>th</sup> and then the 11<sup>th</sup> we will most like not check it as we will be driving to Johannesburg and heading home. As of that same day we will be changing homes, cars, and cell phones. Our phone number then will be 00267-7138-0266 instead of 00267-7132-0394. The last number will be the Kimballs and if you call it they can get hold of us.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Love Out Of Botswana, Dad and Mom</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-23559739983418049522011-07-17T20:41:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:42:05.592-07:00Thought for the Day<div>Dear Family,</div><div>The last 4 days have been just as Crazy & buzy as I told you they would be but our new Mission President is wonderful and his wife is amazing also. We hit it off with them so good that we ALMOST wish we were going to be here longer so we could serve with them. The Kimball's are a little more Mature than we thought they would be and we are a bit nervous about them taking over here; but we have faith that the Lord Qualifies whom He calls" so we are sure they will be up to the task when the time comes. They don't know computers much at all, and neither one of them wants to drive but said they will both try in a few days. A new couple from the office in JoBurg brought them up on Saturday and it usually takes 5 hours. Somehow they got lost 3 or 4 times and we ended up meeting them at the Border to help them through after 10 hours and I'm not sure where they had been and they didn't know either. Well, I'll write more later but it's time for us to go to bed but I did want to share something from my reading today before I hit the sack!</div><div> </div><div>President Ezra Taft Benson observed that "the record of the Nephite history just prior to the Savior's visit reveals many parallels to our own day as we anticipate the Savior's second coming." Only those with firm testimonies and full conversions were able to remain steadfast prior to the Savior's appearance in America. The same is true in our day. Only those with firm testimonies and full conversions will be able to remain steadfast prior to the Lord's Second Coming. A careful study of 3 Nephi 1-7 will help you understand how your testimony of Jesus Christ and conversion to His gospel will give you the sustaining strength you need to stay true to the Savior during the challenging days in which you live. </div><div> </div><div>President Hinckley counseled the youth of our day on how to avoid being led away from the truth. "To our young people, the glorious youth of this generation, I say, be true. Hold to the faith. Stand firmly for what you know to be right. </div><div>You are the best generation we have ever had. You know the gospel better. You are more faithful in your duties. You are stronger to face the temptations which come your way. Live by your standards. Pray for the guidance and protection of the Lord. He will <strong><u><em>never </em></u></strong>leave you alone. He will comfort you. He will sustain you. He will bless and magnify you and make your reward sweet and beautiful. And<strong><u> you will discover that your example will attract others who will take courage from your strength."\</u></strong></div><div><strong></strong> </div><div>Love You All,</div><div>Mom and Dad, Grannie & PaPa <span class="il">LYnn</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-26944999687766402952011-07-15T20:39:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:41:01.126-07:00Thought for the Day<div>Family,</div><div>Here's a quote I came across today while I was studying.</div><div>President Hinckley: <b><u>Concerning the importance of family prayer:</u> </b>"I feel the morning and evening practice of kneeling together---father, mother, and children. This, more than soft carpets, more than lovely draperies, more than cleverly balanced color schemes, is the things that will make for better and more beautiful homes."</div><div></div><div><b><u>And then for all of my Aaronic Priesthood young men</u></b>, Elder Oaks had this to say: "Through the Aaronic Priesthood ordinances of baptism and the sacrament, we are cleansed of our sins and promised that if we keep our covenants we will always have His Spirit to be with us. I velieve that promise not only refers to the Holy Ghost but also the ministering of angels, for 'angels speak by the power of the Holy Ghost; wherefore, they speak the words of Christ.' So it is that those who hold the Aaronic Priesthood open the door for ALL Church members who worthily partake of the sacrament to enjoy the companionship of the Spirit of the Lord and the ministering of angels."</div><div></div><div>PaPa <span class="il">Lynn</span> and I are proud of you for ALWAYS being worthy to pass and bless the Sacrament. Imagine what a blessing you are to the people in the audience when you WORTHILY administer the ordinances of the Sacrament each week. You will always be blessed for using your Priesthood in service of others. Always be worthy to go to the temple so we can go with you!</div><div></div><div>Love You ALL</div><div>Mom and Dad, Grannie & PaPa <span class="il">Lynn</span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-67596069015970679992011-07-12T20:38:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:39:41.158-07:00The Cout Down<span style="font-size: x-large;"><span style="color: red;">O</span><span style="color: #cc0000;">N</span><span style="color: #990000;">E </span><span style="color: #660000;">MO</span><span style="color: #663300;">N</span><span style="color: #cc6600;">T</span><span style="color: #ff6600;">H </span><span style="color: #ff9966;">F</span><span style="color: #ffcc99;">R</span><span style="color: #ffff99;">O</span><span style="color: #ffff66;">M </span><span style="color: #330099;">TODAY</span><span style="color: #333300;"> </span><span style="color: #003300;">W</span><span style="color: #006600;">E </span><span style="color: #009900;">W</span><span style="color: #33cc00;">I</span><span style="color: #33ff33;">L</span><span style="color: #66ff99;">L </span><span style="color: #99ffff;">B</span><span style="color: #33ffff;">E </span><span style="color: #66cccc;">H</span><span style="color: #00cccc;">O</span><span style="color: #339999;">M</span><span style="color: #336666;">E </span><span style="color: #000066;">!</span><span style="color: #333399;">!</span><span style="color: #6600cc;">!</span><span style="color: #6633ff;">!</span><span style="color: #6666cc;">!</span><span style="color: #9999ff;">!</span><span style="color: #ccccff;">!</span><span style="color: #ff99ff;">!</span><span style="color: #cc66cc;">!</span><span style="color: #cc33cc;">!</span><span style="color: #993399;">!</span><span style="color: #663366;">!</span><span style="color: #330033;">!</span></span>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-36476645079510098382011-07-09T20:36:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:38:12.420-07:00Week # 73 - Papa Lynn<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dear Family and Friends, <wbr></wbr> <wbr></wbr> </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Another two weeks and it is my turn to write again. We have had a good week this past week. We have had a change of replacements for us here in Botswana. We thought the Robison’s were going to replace us but their MTC date has been changed so President Omer called a meeting with his counselors and we are now being replaced with Elder and Sister Kimball from Arizona. They are as I write setting in training at the Prove MTC. If all goes as planned they will be here in Botswana a week from today. We have arranged housing for them from the time they arrive until they will move into this mission home/office on the 11<sup>th</sup> of August just after we pack up and move out. We will leave quite early that morning and the Kimballs will move in.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Because they arrive here on the 16<sup>th</sup> of July we will have 3 ½ weeks to train them. We hope we have everything organized enough that they should be able to step in without very much of a skip of a beat. Of course all depends on organizing every day to make things happen as they should and how fast they learn. I think the only worry I have at this point is how well they can use the computer. We have put most everything on the computer and hopefully they will be able to just carry on. We will know a lot more in about 10 days after we have done some preliminary things with them. We are looking forward to showing them the city of Gaborone in detail so they will be able to pay all the bills, get to the immigration offices, make it to church and find each of the missionary flats. Then we will expand to the villages and smaller cities; Lobatse, Kanye, Molepolole, and Mochudi. Again the church buildings or where they hold meetings and the missionary flats again. Bill paying in these areas and what else needs to be learned.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> We are looking forward to a very busy week this week. Marea (notice change of spelling on her name) is going to come Monday and help do some cleaning Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday. She wants to earn some extra money and so we can pay her much better than she can earn anywhere else and it will help her a lot. We are helping her to open a checking account so she can keep better track of her money and not have to worry about it being stolen. She will catch a combi to get here on Monday and she planned to take a combi back on Wednesday but just about an hour ago I was called to do a second interview in Kanye so we arranged it for 4:00 Wednesday afternoon. That will again help her and it won’t be out of our way at all. She completely (with help) cleaned the kitchen last week and this week we are going to have her clean windows and do cleaning in out bedroom and bathrooms and even do some weeding in the yard. Of course all of this will be done with our help. She is a joy to work with as she really does know how to work.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> On Thursday evening President Omer and wife are arriving and we will have dinner with them and it will be our first time to meet them. We are really excited as I feel we will truly love them. I have been impressed with the two or three presidency meetings I have been on the phone with him that he is really good. He listens and even complements good ideas and said he is getting a real feel for the mission from his three counselors. President Atkinson serves in the Northeast and I serve in Botswana and his other counselor is a local South African and isn’t involved with the everyday happenings of the mission but is more of a go between for the mission to the stake presidents. There six stakes in Johannesburg and we are a part of one of them the Roodepoort Stake. The next day which is Friday President Omer has interviews with the Botswana East and Botswana West zones and rather than him travelling up to Francistown on this first visit I suggested that the missionaries from there come down to Gaborone and have their interviews on Saturday. He really liked the idea as he couldn’t get any flights to match his schedule. The Riser’s our Francistown couple will come down on Friday with the Francistown zone and stay over with us here in the mission home. That evening we will have dinner here in our home with the Risers, Omers and us.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> After the Francistown interviews on Saturday the Kimballs will arrive and we will all get acquainted with them and probably go out to dinner with the four couples. Then they will stay at the same place we started our mission about a year and a half ago, the Motheo apartments. Sunday we will most likely have all four couples attend the same meetings and then Mom will fix dinner for all four couples again. After that the Risers will head back to Francistown and the next morning Mom and I will take President and Sister Omer to the airport to fly back to Johannesburg. That is when the training for the Kimballs will start.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> It sounds like we have it totally organized but there are always things that change and I’m sure this next weekend will have many changes before it is over.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Last night we had a fun evening. Kgosi and Maipolo the couple we went to the temple with back on the 15 of February came over for dinner again (they do this quite a lot) but we had foil dinners cooked over coals in the front yard in a half barrel. It was fun and we changed them or rolled them over every three minutes for about 40 minutes and they were done and not burnt and tasted wonderful. They thought it was a fun way to cook and enjoy a camp fire at the same time.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> I will close for now but tomorrow is Sunday and I will probably add to this letter.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">It is now Sunday, <wbr></wbr>July 10, 2011</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> We went to Lobatse and attended the block with them and they had a baptism after church where a 16 year old girl and a man were baptized. It was great to be a part of all of this. Just before sacrament meeting in Lobatse my phone rang and the G-West elders locked their car keys in their car but it was at church so they said they could wait until we came back to Gaborone to help them out. It wasn’t very much longer and got a call from the G-West sisters and they also locked their keys in their boot (trunk) and they said they were at church so I told them we would be there after meetings in Lobatse. It worked out well because G-West has two wards in the building and they usually attend both wards each Sunday. They had a baptism where four were baptized so we also attend them a well. I got to play hero and retrieve the keys from each of the locked cars and return to the elders and sisters. It is a good thing I have a spare se for each car here in Botswana.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> This afternoon we had a young couple come to visit to talk about marriage and schooling and in general I just think they want a reason to come and visit. They came at 4:00 and left about 5:15 so it wasn’t long but I am getting hungry because it has been a long time sense breakfast. So I will close with my love to each of you. As of tomorrow we have exactly one month until we climb on a plane and head home. The year and a half has slowly turned to months and now they are becoming only weeks. We have a lot to do before we are ready to fly home as we have a lot of training that needs to be done with the Kimballs.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> The Gospel is so true and we love serving. We only hope our Savior will accept our work. We pray for our family and friends every day.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Love Out Of Botswana – Dad and Mom</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-89111925739452574492011-07-06T20:35:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:36:13.293-07:00Our Replacements<div>Dear Family,</div><div>We don't want anyone to panic, but we just found out that our scheduled replacements have postponed their arrival until the 28th of AUGUST!!! We are a bit paniced as we hard it all worked out to start training them the 25th of July so they would know everything about transfers, immigrtion, paying end of the month bills and first of the months bills, doing reports, etc. etc.</div><div>President Poulsen was even trying to get them to move their arrival date UP a week; but we don't know what happened as we really don't correspond with them at all, but we looked into our internet schedule of arrivals from the MTC yesterday morning and saw that they are now scheduled to arrive in Johannesburg on the 28th of August.</div><div>Dad called President Omer as we weren't sure if he knew or not, and he didn't so the two of them are trying to put their heads together and see what else they can come up with. There are other couples in the mission that could be switched here but they are pretty settled where they are so President is going to do some looking and talk to the couple that is due to arrive next Monday and see who he feels would be the best to take our place. We are kind of on HOLD trying to find "we don't know who" and "we don't know when" a place to stay like we did the first few weeks we were here. It's hard to find an apartment for only a month and hotels are extremely expensive for that long so as soon as we know who is coming and when so we can product their ID information and Passport and whatever else the Hotel needs before they will let us book it; we will quickly try to find them a place to stay. We are sure something will work out but we really don't want to have a "sleep over" here at our place for a whole month while we are trying to pack up and clean out and etc. We love you and we are coming home!</div><div>Love,</div><div>Mom</div><div> </div><div><div>Mike, and Family </div><div>(Mike wrote back to me but Dad said I left too much unsaid and that I'd better address this letter to everyone. Sorry if I paniced anyone out!</div><div> </div><div>No; our "come home" date is not changing. Our flights are already booked and we told President Omer that we have everything scheduled for you to get off work and that you are the one picking us up at the airport and he was very understanding. We just have to switch him and his other Counselors into a fast mode and they are having a Phone Conference Call type Presidency Meeting tonight at 8 PM. to see which couple, either one in the mission already or the one coming next week will be best to replace us. The couple coming in next week (The Kimball's) are a little older (70"s) and President Poulsen thought they might not be able to handle things here but they are from Tempe Arizona and look pretty sharp from their pictures we got on our computer program and we really feel comfortable with them taking our place. In fact, when we saw their pictures, I immediately felt like I wished they were the ones that President Poulsen had chosen, and I was less excited about the Robison's that he did choose. So I'm actually hoping that they all talk about it tonight and decide on the Kimball's <br />
. I figure with a name like Kimball; we can't go too far wrong and they will be able to do the work. I'm not sure President Poulsen realized that Dad will soon be 69 and I'm not nearly far enough behind him. We love you and we are coming home on schedule.</div>Love, Mom & Dad </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-64769315465543239802011-06-25T20:29:00.002-07:002012-04-23T20:32:28.760-07:00Week # 71<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-EjCF00R3pLs/T5Yenb0sEuI/AAAAAAAABNk/9cNcX3O5Frc/s1600/Mrs+Obama+Protection+2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dear Family and Friends, <wbr></wbr> </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> It seems that every two weeks come very quickly. Lorraine and I take turns writing so I don’t have to write every week. She often does every week but I don’t mind because I enjoy only once every two weeks. We take turns on our prayers as well each day. I pray on every day that doesn’t have a T in the day of the week and she takes all the days that do have a T in them. It works out to be every other day except for Sunday and I say the morning prayers that day as it follow her T day and she says the Sunday night prayer because it is just before Monday which doesn’t have a T in it. We have used this method to share our prayer time for many years. She says the morning and night prays on her days and I say the morning and night prayers on my days. Of course she doesn’t say my personal prayers that I have alone every day and she does as well. Most of the times on Fast Sundays we talk about what specific thing we want to include on our prayers we offer on fast Sunday.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> We always have lost to pray about as we receive so many blessings here in Botswana serving as missionaries that we can’t really count them all. This week’s miracle has to do with getting missionaries out of the border (which is part of immigration). Last transfer which was the 18<sup>th</sup> of May we had a very difficult time getting our missionaries through the border. The reason is because they have passed their 90 days and hadn’t received their residence permits. We have been told we can stay here without extending their time but they didn’t tell us they couldn’t leave the country as we would be illegal in trying to do so. We had four missionaries that fell in this category last transfer and two made it through without any problem but two had a different border officer and she caught it so they had to come back into Gaborone to the police to pay a fine and bring them a receipt. It was terrible as it took 4 hours to do this and get them out of the border.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> This transfer we had 7 fall in this category. Two left on Tuesday as President Poulsen wanted them to come down to early meetings the day before transfers and the other five went out on Wednesday. This transfer day was the 22 of June just 5 weeks after the last one because of receiving a new mission president the week that the normal 6 weeks transfers were supposed to happen. Mom and I decided that we need to go out with them to the border which is a 40 minute drive one way just to help them or at least see what we could do. Our prayers were answered as those two along with the other two that were within their 90 days got through the border without any problems at all. The next hurdle was to get the remaining five out the next day. We feed the missionaries before they leave so it means an early morning both of these days. We get up about 4:30 to exercise and prepare for the day and get breakfast ready for those leaving Botswana. A huge morning and then to follow them to the border adds even more to do. Those going out on Wednesday all got through the border without any problems. Again we see the hand of the Lord in this great work. Each a little miracle for us but it is what the Lord wants to happen.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> It has been a very busy week because of it being transfer week. I try and get things ready about a week before transfer week just to make transfer week itself a little easier. But there are too many factors that make it not run smoothly. President Poulsen has given me access to the transfer scenarios as it happens for weeks before the actual transfer day. This is good because it helps me to get paperwork ready for those coming in from South Africa. The only problem is that many times when it involves brand new missionaries the Lord has a different person or persons that need to come to Botswana. So I have to make last minute changes in all that I have already done. And it doesn’t run quite as smoothly because of these changes but I know that I need to do what needs to be done even if there are some changes. So all in all with Lorraine making meals for coming and going and I have lots more work in transfers we really do keep overly busy for a couple of weeks. I am sure that the same thing will happen with a new mission president as well. Within a week we lose a mission president and gain another. They overlap from 5:00 PM until 8:00 AM the next morning. It will be up to the assistants to train the new mission president and let him learn the ropes. When he comes to Botswana on the 14<sup>th</sup> of July will be the first time to meet he and his wife in person. On the 1<sup>st</sup> of July we are to have a presidency meeting with him on the phone as we have done in the past with President Poulsen. I think I am automatically released as a counselor when he arrives but President Poulsen asked that we (his counselors) make this phone call. I may serve as his counselor but because of our short time left he may not call me to serve. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Today and yesterday something special has been happening here in Botswana, our United States first lady is in town. There sure has been a lot of hustle and bustle here in Gaborone. The traffic has been terrible. Last evening I need to go to Game City a department store that is close to us and when I got to the main road it was stopped traffic. I turned around in the center of the road and headed back home. Later we found out she and with her two daughters a niece and her mother had been out to Mokolodi a very small game reserve about 15 kilometers out of town south toward Lobatse which is our main road to everywhere. We had Sydney and two of her friends (all from the Peace Corps) stay overnight because they had an invite to attend a tea thing this morning with the 1<sup>st</sup> lady along with 350 other people. We were not invited and I didn’t have my feelings hurt at all.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> I was asked to visit one of our missionaries in Mochudi this morning to take the news that his grandmother had passed away yesterday. This visit is one of those things that happen because we are so far away from the Johannesburg mission office. President Poulsen asked me to visit him and said he will call him later in a couple hours to make sure he had taken it ok. When I talked to him he wasn’t surprised as his grandmother hadn’t been well for quite some time and he was expected she would die soon. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">On the way to Mochudi we saw army tanks on most big intersections and police on almost every side street. We think they are there because ofwas all related to the visit of the 1<sup>st</sup> lady and had nothing to do with Elder Bernards grandmother passing away. I just read this part to Mom and she said I hope the family catches the fact that you are just kidding about who the tanks are for.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">We get hit with so many different things throughout this mission. An example is that just this evening the missionaries said the G-West chapel has really been dirty for the past few sacrament meetings and the ward members aren’t cleaning. When the missionaries clean it then it looks good on Sunday morning for all the meetings. I asked them when they have time to clean the chapel. They said that if we don’t clean it then it doesn’t get cleaned. I called President Hall our stake president and he said I will handle this in the next few minutes as the missionaries are not supposed to clean, that responsibility is up to the Bishop to assign it to be cleaned by members. Sometimes between our missionaries wanting to be kind and hardworking and the bishops take advantage of them. They are busy enough doing missionary work that they should not be cleaning buildings.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Life is good and we are strengthening our testimonies by reading 7 pages of the Book of Mormon every day. I have truly felt the spirit and so far I haven’t missed a day and I am staying on task. I hope each of you that have committed to do this are reading every day. On the 4<sup>th</sup> of July we will be at the half way point. I promise that it will be a personal blessing and your families will grow from it as well. One of our children has written and how it has helped them in the family to argue and fight less in their family. It has already helped and strengthened my personal testimony. May we each in our own way strengthen that which we know to be true through reading, studying, and through prayer. We have the testimonies but we need to strengthen them every day. I know that the Lord will bless us as we strive to do those things that we have been asked. I love serving Him and I get blessings every day. You as my family is one of my greatest blessings and I want you to know that.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">In closing this letter I want to express my love to the love of my life, my sweetheart and best friend. She is a wise person and many times I feel she receives inspiration more than I do. I really have to be totally in tune before I can receive the inspiration that she receives at night when she is sleeping. She says that her mind is clearer at night and she certainly does come up with some great inspiration, many that we try to put into effect. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt; text-indent: 0.5in;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Love Out Of Botswana, we will see you in less than 50 days. Dad</span></span><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HKu_5gLpWVg/T5YeoRilFmI/AAAAAAAABN0/p85bO9EEb3s/s1600/Mrs.+Obama+Protection+1.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-HKu_5gLpWVg/T5YeoRilFmI/AAAAAAAABN0/p85bO9EEb3s/s320/Mrs.+Obama+Protection+1.jpg" width="320" /></a></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-74997537363806637592011-06-19T20:28:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:29:04.261-07:00Week # 70 - Granny<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 115%;"></span><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Dear Family,</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Things have been really crazy this past week and we have been on the road every day. We are preparing for another transfer and for a new Mission President so we are trying to make sure EVERYTHING is in “tip-top shape.” We did apartment inspections all over Botswana this past week and that is not my favorite things to do, but Dad takes the lead and does the complaining, I just hand out the candy bars if things pass. One of our Zones this transfer had extra nice clean apartments so we are throwing a good old American wiener roast, potato salad, and smores party tomorrow on their preparation day for lunch. We are going to try building a bon fire in an old barrel that we have here at our place and hope none of the neighbors complain too much. If it works, we want to do it again for our YSA just before we leave as kind of an entro-to an American camp out that we’ve told them all about. They’ve never heard of a wiener roast nor a smore, so Dad is putting together some wire sticks to roast with and going to put enough together tomorrow to see how they turn out. He found some really stiff wire (had to buy the whole roll) and some dowels so hopefully it will all work and we’ll be able to have a couple of fun parties even though it’s winter time here. It actually gets up to about 75degrees during the day so we are planning mid-day activities and hoping for the best. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Some of our missionaries have been asking to go to the Jwaneng Diamond Mine that is 2 hours from Gaborone so President told us to go check it out and see if it was worthy their time on a preparation day and see what it would cost them to pay for their own gas and take a day and go. We took our Zone Leaders with us on Friday and left at 6:30 in the morning to get there for the 9 O’Clock tour they offer and it was quite a fun day. It is the richest diamond in the world and it was pretty amazing to see their operation and all of the huge machinery that it takes to mine diamonds. I can’t say the tour was real efficiently run, but we enjoyed ourselves. They said it took 2 hours and with all of the wasted time waiting for a escort vehicle to lead us down into the mine, waiting for a host to come and tell us all about it before we left, waiting for someone to bring us keys to go into the vault where we could actually see some of the diamonds they have mined there, and then waiting to go through the detectors before we could leave the property to make sure we hadn’t picked up any diamond, it actually took 4 hours. I’m glad I went once, but if the missionaries are going, I don’t plan to go along with them. The tour was free and they have a small game drive you can go on afterwards that is also free so we certainly can’t complain about the cost. It was a fun day and we saw Zebra’s, Warthogs’, Wildebeests’, Hartebeests’, Impala, Springbok, Giraffe’s, Roan Antelope, Ostrich, & even a monkey along side of the road on the way home. Not too bad for a Free Game Park! I think the missionaries will want to go see the diamond mine as well as the Game Park as some of them haven’t seen anything around here except a baboon and some monkey’s and maybe a warthog. We have been very blest to get to go to all the places we have been because most of the missionaries don’t get to do any of that. In South Africa there are lots of Game Parks though so the Elders get to go there when they are serving in other areas, but the Sisters only serve in Botswana!</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">We just got through hosting our YSA get together that we have every month. They absolutely love to come and we have more and more new ones all the time. I think we must have had close to 60 tonight and they played games and we fed them bread and jam and hot chocolate. They ate and ate and even started asking for “doggie bags” but I told them to eat all they wanted, but I didn’t do “Take Away.”</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">We really do love them and they love having a place to just come and talk and laugh and enjoy each other. We have noticed they are even pairing up a bit and we had another two weddings announced today so hopefully getting them together to have a good time is making a difference in their social life. We moved our time up from 5 O’Clock to 4 O’clock because it is dark by 5:30 now and we thought they would leave earlier to get home on their public transport; but they were still here at 7 O’clock so it was kind of a long evening but that is alright too.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">We have transfers again on Thursday so wish us luck. We have 9 Missionaries that are out of time so I’m sure getting them through the border will be another nightmare. We are going to see if we can push Stix (our Immigration guy) to please spend some time at Immigration on Monday and Tuesday morning before they have to leave on Tuesday Afternoon and see if we can get some permits or waivers or something that will work better at the border this time instead of taking 5 hours and paying P950 in fines. Wish us Luck!!</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">I typed up a few fun things to share this week while I was thinking of things to write. I’ll add them to this letter.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"> </span></span><br />
<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-family: arial black,sans-serif; font-size: small;">More fun Info from Botswana</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">It’s really hard to find corn chips here. Occasionally we find some really spicy chili hot ones, but this week we found some plain ones to dip in Salsa (which we can’t find either) but I do find a canned Mexican Style Diced tomatos, peppers, and chilie mix that tastes almost like Salsa. The salsa substitute that we buy costs almost $2. for a 410 G can which is a normal size can like corn or green beans come in which isn’t too bad, but the Corn Chips were almost $7.00 per bag for an 250 g bag which is about 8 oz. Needless to say, we bought them anyway & they have been tasting pretty good today.</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">Canned foods are hard to find much of and they usually cost quite a bit. I have been hunting for green beans and haven’t found them very often, but I did find them this week and just picked them up and bought 8 cans as there was no price on the shelf. When I got home and looked at my receipt, I had paid about $2.25 per can and it too is just the normal vegetable sized can. I won’t be feeding those to the missionaries!!!</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">The cheapest tuna we can find is about $1.75 a can but we always buy it anyway as dad loves Tuna. We can usually find frozen vegetables so we have plenty of those. Sometimes they even say McCain on the label.</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">Today we got a chance to go to South Africa to visit our one District so while I was there I thought I’d try to buy a new Mascara since my last one is all but gone. I found some Maybelline Black, just like I wanted and it was 110 Pula, which is almost $17.00 but I bought it. Every other brand on their shelf was much more.</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">We also found Pretzels which we can’t find in Botswana, they were $7.00 US for an 8 Oz. bag, probably expensive since I remember getting them in a huge bag at Smith’s for about $2 or $3. Tomatoes, on the other hand are always very cheap here. I think I only pay about $2.00 for a bag with 8 or 10 tomatoes in it. They are usually very green when I buy them, but they ripen up quite nicely on the kitchen cabinet and we put them in or on everything. Dad is even learning to like tomatoes on lots of things if I don’t slice them very thick.</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">We bought watermelons 3 times lately and they seem quite plentiful right now; so we thought it must be the season for them to be grown in everyone’s garden. We have only found one good one. It was seedless and cost about $6.00 and was about the same size as the smaller seedless ones at home. The 2<sup>nd</sup> one we bought was seedless but absolutely tasteless and only pink and the 3<sup>rd</sup> one we decided to try one with seeds but it was white inside and had a million seeds and was stringy so we just threw it away without tasting it. Since they each cost about $6 or more, we decided to forego the watermelon for our usual bananas, they are always pretty good and plentiful. We have found a few Fugi apples lately and they are small, but really good and I don’t know how much I paid, they were by the bag and I bought 2 bags. Oranges are pretty good here; they have the little Clementines and another thing they call Naartjie’s and another one called “easy peeler” and they are all pretty good. They have tons of really hard to peel ones that I think people must juice out and they are really cheap and we see ladies carrying them home in big bags on their heads all the time. The little stands along the streets are full of them right now, but don’t taste too good to me so I avoid those and go for the easy peeling kind. </span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><br />
</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">That's it for this week.</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">We Love You All</span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size: small;">Mom and Dad, Grannie & PaPa <span class="il">Lynn</span>, <span class="il">Lynn</span> and Lorraine</span></span></span></div></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-45665957635321775992011-06-19T20:19:00.004-07:002012-04-23T20:26:49.828-07:00Pictures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jETfAxdUJHA/T5YdO90CX6I/AAAAAAAABM0/c-vj3-c3OA4/s1600/17+Jun+11+Debswana10.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jETfAxdUJHA/T5YdO90CX6I/AAAAAAAABM0/c-vj3-c3OA4/s320/17+Jun+11+Debswana10.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uyKDoyD8ofY/T5YdZTJz_0I/AAAAAAAABNc/-qBW8Qpxi5s/s1600/17+Jun+11+Debswana5.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uyKDoyD8ofY/T5YdZTJz_0I/AAAAAAAABNc/-qBW8Qpxi5s/s320/17+Jun+11+Debswana5.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-11747373140025812862011-06-12T20:17:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:19:46.232-07:00Week # 69 - Papa Lynn<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dear Family and Friends,<span> <wbr></wbr> </span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>Two months from today we will be home but who is counting?<span> </span>I guess that perhaps I am but as the same time we are keeping very busy.<span> </span>Today we go the Molepolole Branch for their branch conference.<span> </span>President Hall our stake president has asked that Sister Morgan and I attend all the conferences that are a part of our areas to cover.<span> </span>We cover Mafikeng in South Africa and Lobatse, Kanye, Molepolole, Mochudi as branches and G-West 1<sup>st</sup> ward and Broadhurst along with G-West 2<sup>nd</sup> ward the single young adult ward all here in Botswana.<span> </span>It Keeps us going and today will probably be the last time to attend Molepolole as our rotation takes about 8 weeks.<span> </span>We get to know a lot of people but at the same time we don’t get to know then very well.<span> </span>The Church is really doing well here in Botswana and I am sure that soon we will have a stake here.<span> </span>There are always little things that we try to correct a little at a time like when people get up to pray because they haven’t been in the church very long they say “Let us pray” before the prayer.<span> </span>I have carefully mentioned this in several talks in different wards and branches but the new members come in faster than I can take care of this.<span> </span>All in all they are becoming stronger and doing things the way we do them back in our part of Zion.<span> </span>I would think that with the Prophet and the great leadership we have back home that we must be doing the ordinances and other things right so we try to pattern things here the way we do them back home.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>No wild and furious stories to tell this week.<span> </span>We had President Poulsen come to Botswana Thursday evening and we were privileged to go with him along with Sister Poulsen and took our four sisters that serve here in Gaborone out to dinner at the Red Lantern (Chinese food).<span> </span>It was a fun evening and the next day we had Leadership Training Meeting and we have always been invited to them.<span> </span>In the afternoon after this meeting President and Sister Poulsen headed for Francistown for their last visit there as well.<span> </span>They are having a two branch conference combined that is their annual conference.<span> </span>Yesterday they had some training like Sister Morgan and I have put on for Mochudi and Kanye.<span> </span>The stake pretty well takes care of training for the rest of the branches and wards here.<span> </span>They are also supposed to take care of these two but because they are dependent branches we help with them with their training.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>We have another transfer coming up in ten days that will be our last one along.<span> </span>We will have a couple that we are training to take our place for the next one which will be on the 9<sup>th</sup> of August.<span> </span>We think the new couple will be here the last week of July.<span> </span>The transfer on the 9<sup>th</sup> of August will be President Omer’s first transfer sense his arrival on the 28<sup>th</sup> of June.<span> </span>That change will take place soon as President and Sister Omer arrives at 5:00 PM on the 28<sup>th</sup> and President and Sister Poulsen leave at 8:00 AM the next morning.<span> </span>They have talked several times on the phone and on skype on matters that President Poulsen thinks he should be aware of.<span> </span>As a counselor to President Poulsen I don’t know if I will be asked to be a counselor to President Omer.<span> </span>All of President Poulsen’s counselors will be automatically released upon his leaving the mission.<span> </span>I don’t know if President Omer doesn’t ask me to continue if I will still be asked to do 2<sup>nd</sup> interviews for baptisms.<span> </span>We will see.<span> </span>I think he should keep a counselor up here in Botswana because it is so far away from the main part of the mission.<span> </span>It has worked very well for me to serve as a counselor to President Poulsen.<span> </span>We have gotten along very well and I feel that I have given him great support and help.<span> </span>He has commented several times that having a counselor up here has been a blessing to the mission and the missionaries up here in Botswana.<span> </span>My sweet wife has been a great support to me in everything that I have been asked to do.<span> </span>I guess we bless each other as we clean house together.<span> </span>She prepares most of the meals and I do most of the dishes but while I do them she puts things away and wipes everything up so we finish about the same time.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>Many years ago I was truly inspired to ask a sweet young lady (your mom) to marry me and I proposed to her on the foot bridge crossing Indian Creek behind the grade school in Kuna, Idaho.<span> </span>The miracle of this is that she said YES and then we went and I asked for her hand in marriage of her mom and dad.<span> </span>They were in bed but we got permission to speak to them and I asked for the hand of their daughter to be my wife.<span> </span>I proposed on the 24<sup>th</sup> of July 1964 and we were married about seven weeks later in the Salt Lake Temple on the 14 of September 1964.<span> </span>I got home from my mission to England on the 12<sup>th</sup> of June 1964 and we thought because of our dating off and on all during high school and writing to each other during my mission that a short engagement was long enough.<span> </span>Oh we truly was in love with each other but as we look back on that time now we really wonder what gave us the courage to make that big step together.<span> </span>We know it is the plan of our Father in Heaven that when you fulfill your assignments such as a mission and you are lucky enough to find that right person then the next natural step is marriage.<span> </span>Our love has grown over the years more and more every year.<span> </span>Of course it grows as we have had children together.<span> </span>Lori was special or first born and she entangled our love even deeper and we had enough to share with her.<span> </span>Then Sherrie was special and she came along and again we had love to spill over to her as well.<span> </span>Cindy was special as she was the third of our three girls and we shared our love with her as well.<span> </span>And then we was over joyed with my first son Mike and he was special as well.<span> </span>He was the apple of my eye and quick to learn and all boy, our love continued to grow and cover our whole family.<span> </span>Then there was Roger eager to learn and grow and loved spilled over to him as he was special as well.<span> </span>We were ready for another girl and sure enough Kricket came along and what a cutie and love grew again because she was special.<span> </span>Bryce came with his prayed for brown eye and we thought our love was to its fullness because he was special.<span> </span>But later Harold came home and we grew and shared and loved him as well as he was special.<span> </span><br />
<span> </span>What more could a couple like Mom and I ask for only to have great and wonderful sons and daughters in law each very special and the love began to multiply and flow over and over.<span> </span>I have often said if we were to choose between our own children and those whom they married it might be a hard decision.<span> </span>The result of each of these marriages has brought about even more joy and love as we now have grandchildren each very special.<span> </span>Some are now older and some are young and that doesn’t make any difference because we love each of them in their own way in the period of life they are in.<span> </span>We are even more blessed as we have one great granddaughter that is special and what a joy she is.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>As you can see and understand as you read this letter we are from a long line of love.<span> </span>Moms and my parents are very much in love and they came from a long line of love so I only pray that this love carries over for more and more generations and it becomes a longer line of love.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>Count your many blessings and name them one by one or multiply them and count as far and as long as you want and the blessings keep coming.<span> </span>Thank you each of you for your contribution to the long line of love.<span> </span>A celestial family is the goal and keeping the commandments along with temple marriage is the path for each of our lives.<span> </span>I can’t count all my blessings but I know that my family is the top blessing on my long list.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"><span> </span>I know that the Plan of Salvation is the plan that Jesus Christ, our elder brother, presented to Our Father in Heaven and we chose to be a part of that plan.<span> </span>We shouted for joy and we were very enthusiastic and committed to come to earth and live in this period of time.<span> </span>Because of or enthusiasm we were chosen to live in these the latter days and to have the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the central point in our lives.<span> </span>Let’s take advantage of this testing period in this Plan of Salvation by being what we should be in this life each day.<span> </span>As much as I love my family, who would think I would have any left for my Savior but I do and I want to please him every day.<span> </span>I love Him and I know He love me and each of us.<span> </span>This is my testimony in His Holy name, even Jesus Christ, Amen</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Love Out Of Botswana, Dad</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-49016119806905761372011-06-11T20:16:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:17:46.460-07:00Thought for Sunday<div>More on Scripture Study!</div><div>President Ezra Taft Benson explained how the scriptures can be a powerful way to bless us and answer the difficult questions of life: Quote--"Often we spend great effort in trying to increase the activity levels in our stakes. We work diligently to raise the percentages of those attending sacrament meetings. We labor to get a higher percentage of our young men on missions. We strive to improve the numbers of those marrying in the temple. All of these are commendable efforts and important to the growth of the kingdom. But when individual members and families immerse themselves in the scriptures regularly and consistently, these other areas of activity will automatically come. Testimonies will increase. Commitment will be strengthened. Families will be fortified. Personal revelation will flow."</div><div> </div><div>Thanks to all of you parents for teaching your children the importance of reading the scriptures individually and as families. There are so many reason why our family is so blessed and happy and loves spending time together. It's because we are all TRYING to keep the commandments and make ourselves worthy to return to live with our Heavenly Father TOGETHER FOREVER!!!</div><div> </div><div>We are forever grateful for each and every one of you!!!</div><div> </div><div>Have a great Sunday together!</div><div> </div><div>Love,</div><div>Dad and Mom, PaPa <span class="il">Lynn</span> and Grannie</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-42647917566511960192011-06-10T20:15:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:16:36.742-07:00Thought for the Day<div>Dearest Family,</div><div>Since we are working hard on our Scripture Challange that Dad gave us all, I found this quote in my Book of Mormon Institute Manual and thought I would share it with you. I have a couple more also, but I'll try to share only one each day!</div><div> </div><div>President Spencer W. Kimball spoke of the power of scriptures to help us draw nearer to God: Quote-- "I find that when I get casual in my relationships with divinity and when it seems that no divine ear is listening and no divine voice is speaking, that I am far, far away. If I immerse myself in the scriptures, the distance narrows and the spirituality retunrs. I find myself loving more intensely those whom I must love with all of my heart and mind and strength, and loving them more."</div><div>I find it quite interesting that this quote was taken out of a Book (or a talk, I'm not sure) that President Kimball wrote and it is titled "What I Hope You Will Teach My Grandchildren and All Others of the Youth of Zion."</div><div> </div><div>We love and treasure each of you so very much. </div><div>Have a wonderful weekend!!!</div><div> </div><div>Love,</div><div>Mom</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-25323124459757683892011-06-09T20:13:00.001-07:002012-04-23T20:15:25.960-07:00TRULY A MIRACLE:<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <o:OfficeDocumentSettings> <o:AllowPNG/> </o:OfficeDocumentSettings> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:WordDocument> <w:View>Normal</w:View> <w:Zoom>0</w:Zoom> <w:TrackMoves/> <w:TrackFormatting/> <w:PunctuationKerning/> <w:ValidateAgainstSchemas/> <w:SaveIfXMLInvalid>false</w:SaveIfXMLInvalid> <w:IgnoreMixedContent>false</w:IgnoreMixedContent> <w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText>false</w:AlwaysShowPlaceholderText> <w:DoNotPromoteQF/> <w:LidThemeOther>EN-US</w:LidThemeOther> <w:LidThemeAsian>X-NONE</w:LidThemeAsian> <w:LidThemeComplexScript>X-NONE</w:LidThemeComplexScript> <w:Compatibility> <w:BreakWrappedTables/> <w:SnapToGridInCell/> <w:WrapTextWithPunct/> <w:UseAsianBreakRules/> <w:DontGrowAutofit/> <w:SplitPgBreakAndParaMark/> <w:DontVertAlignCellWithSp/> <w:DontBreakConstrainedForcedTables/> <w:DontVertAlignInTxbx/> <w:Word11KerningPairs/> <w:CachedColBalance/> </w:Compatibility> <m:mathPr> <m:mathFont m:val="Cambria Math"/> <m:brkBin m:val="before"/> <m:brkBinSub m:val="--"/> <m:smallFrac m:val="off"/> <m:dispDef/> <m:lMargin m:val="0"/> <m:rMargin m:val="0"/> <m:defJc m:val="centerGroup"/> <m:wrapIndent m:val="1440"/> <m:intLim m:val="subSup"/> <m:naryLim m:val="undOvr"/> </m:mathPr></w:WordDocument> </xml><![endif]--><!--[if gte mso 9]><xml> <w:LatentStyles DefLockedState="false" DefUnhideWhenUsed="true"
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</style> <![endif]--> </div><div class="MsoNormal"><a href="" name="_GoBack"></a><span style="mso-tab-count: 3;"> </span>This took place Sunday the 18<sup>th</sup> of April 2010</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>I need to set the stage a little for this as we are serving in the South Africa Johannesburg Mission and serve in the Botswana Mission Office.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We arrived a couple months before Elder and Sister Olson were to head home.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were assigned to work especially in the Young Single Adult Ward with Bishop Matswagothata to help out the best we could, and to learn all we needed to know from Elder and Sister Olson in running the mission up here in Botswana.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Two other important factors take place to help understand how this truly was a miracle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>There was a couple’s conference scheduled for the 21<sup>st</sup>, 22<sup>nd</sup> and 23<sup>rd</sup> of April 2010 and Elder and Sister Olson were scheduled for a personal trip to the Okavango Deltawhich is in the northern part of Botswana on the 26<sup>th</sup> through the 30<sup>th</sup> of April.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This would give them time to stay in our mission office slash mission home for one more night before they drove down to Johannesburg to fly home on the 1<sup>st</sup> day of May.</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Now I have set that part of the stage I have one more item to cover.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Sister Morgan and I were pretty much on our own during these two months and we visited most of the branches during that time.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Sunday before the mission couples training we went to the Mafikeng Branch which is just across the border into South Africa but is still in one of our Botswana mission zones.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We left early on Sunday morning and attended their block meetings and a baptism.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were getting ready to leave and I took our passports and papers for crossing the border out of the car to make sure we had everything and just as I was doing that one of the Elders called me and I turned around to talk to him and I put the packet on top of the car which contained our passports and all the other papers to cross the border.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were in a hurry to get back to Gaborone and get things ready for the upcoming couple’s conference.</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>Just as we arrived at the border and parked I went into a shock mode as I remembered even before I looked realizing that I had left the packet of papers on top of the car at the church and here we were at the border with the car.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I looked between the seats where I kept them and of course they were not there.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I jumped out of the car knowing they weren’t on top but I looked in the boot (trunk) and I just knew they weren’t there either.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I got back in the car and Mom and I talked a few minutes and decided to call the Elders back in Mafikeng to see if they had found them.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They looked and didn’t know where they were.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They looked up and down the street and asked the branch president and the packet was nowhere to be found.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t know what to do so we called Elder Olson and explained our situation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could tell he was very upset and he told me that we would have to go to Johannesburg and serve there for several months while we waited for replacement passports.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I could tell that it would mean real problems for the Olson’s as they had this trip to Okavango Delta planned and paid for and then they were scheduled to leave for America on the 1<sup>st</sup> day of May. There was no way a replacement couple could come and learn all they needed to learn to make it so they could even go home on schedule. We decided that first of all we wanted the Lord’s help and so fervently we prayed for help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t even know what kind of help we needed but we knew we needed help.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the strongest prayer thus far on our mission that I had prayed.</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;"> </span>We didn’t know what to do so we went into the South Africa side of the border and they weren’t going to let us cross but they finally agreed to let us pass but that Botswana immigration or border people would never let us into Botswana without having our passports.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So South Africa let us pass and we headed to the Botswana border about a kilometer farther north.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When we went into their office we had a strong prayer in our hearts and we told the immigration officer in charge exactly what happened and she wouldn’t budge.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She said we had to have passports and that was final.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As we were trying to convince her the lady across the long narrow room (the departing side) came over and asked what we wanted.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>She was the same lady that helped us and stamped our passports as we left earlier that morning leaving Botswana.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After talking for more than an hour with those two ladies and also the head immigration officer they finally said we could cross and they gave us a piece of paper that we had to take to the immigration office the next morning back in Gaborone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We could hardly believe that they were letting us back into Botswana without our passports, it truly was a miracle and we knew that our prayers were answered in a matter of an hour not weeks and months later.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After we got through the border I called Elder Olson and he couldn’t believe that we were back in Botswana.</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">We arrived back to our hotel room at the Motheo Apartment in downtown Gaborone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May I explain that when you are in a foreign country your passport doesn’t have an address where you are staying and only has the state you live in back in the United States.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If some honest person found your lost passport he wouldn’t know how to find you to return it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We were still in awe when we received a call from Elder Olson and he said you will not believe this but a trucker in Mafikeng found your packet and he will be here tomorrow morning at his trucking firm right here in Gaborone and will bring them to us.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We can pick up your passports and paperwork from him about 8:00 in the morning.It just so happened that some of the paperwork which was with our passports in the packet was a driving permit for us to be able to drive across the border.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On that letter it was signed by Elder Olson with the name of the church and address and phone number down after his signature.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The trucker had to look hard to find, us but he did and found us through Elder Olson.The wonderful part about miracles is that they can be extended beyond what we even pray for.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We prayed so fervently to be allowed back into Botswana knowing that we would have to stay in South Africa until our replacement passports could be applied for and months later received from the United States, if they didn’t let us through the border.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We knew we would have to miss the couple’s conference that was happening later that week but we weren’t worried about that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But with the second part of this miraculous miracle we did get our passports back and all was as though we didn’t lose them at all.</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">Passports on the black market are worth a premium and usually are not returned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Often they are stolen because of their value.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was the greatest feeling that next morning when we actually held our American passports in our hands, it was worth every pula I gave to the truck driver as a reward for finding and returning our passports.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We realized we had been blessed and that we had received an answer to our prayers and we recognize this as one of the most greatest miracles of our lives.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>May Miracles Never Cease!</div><div class="MsoNoSpacing" style="text-indent: .5in;">Love Out Of Botswana, Dad</div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-41154314087431701832011-06-09T09:11:00.000-07:002011-06-09T09:11:35.663-07:00Amazing Pictures<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SpqRZN0_yZA/TfDv68GaoxI/AAAAAAAABH0/D_a3NxyUzQ0/s1600/P1020024C.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-SpqRZN0_yZA/TfDv68GaoxI/AAAAAAAABH0/D_a3NxyUzQ0/s320/P1020024C.jpg" width="320" /></a></div><br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-US5TgaaUYf4/TfDwlePwZ2I/AAAAAAAABI8/HjeHLy6clTM/s1600/P1020143C.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="240" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-US5TgaaUYf4/TfDwlePwZ2I/AAAAAAAABI8/HjeHLy6clTM/s320/P1020143C.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-23592621230933050932011-06-04T20:11:00.002-07:002012-04-23T20:13:02.532-07:00Week #68 - Granny<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Dear Family,</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">It seems like it was just May 1<sup>st</sup>, now already it is June and time is flying so quickly. We have been traveling a lot lately and I think I’m a little tired of it but we get to stay close to home this week so we are happy. We were actually supposed to go back up to Francistown for an District Conference with Pres. And Sister Bricknell as the Visiting Authorities but we are needed in one of our Branches, Molepolole, as they are having their Branch Conference and the Stake President asks us to attend those. We told the Riser’s we couldn’t come up their Conference and then we found out that Bricknell’s aren’t able to attend either so we aren’t feeling quite so bad about missing their conference. We were in Joburg yesterday to the temple with our YSA couple and we ran in to President Bricknell at the Mission Office and it was great to have 5 minutes to talk to him and hug each other and then we were on our way. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Let me tell you a little bit about our couple, Tabego (Tabo for short) and Gorata (said Horata, like Gaborone with an “H”) are 24 and 23; he has been a member for several years and served a mission in Uganda and she has been a member for 3 years. She is the only member in her family and his mom and an older sister and a younger brother are all members. Tabo and Gorata meet at the Church a couple of years ago and have been dating some for the past few months. They wanted to get married but couldn’t pay the Labola. Bishop Matswagothata has been talking with them together with their parents and both parents thought they shouldn’t get married until he could pay the Labola, but they are taking a stand and trying to do things the Lord’s way so they braved it and went against both families and decided to just get married with no reception, no wedding gifts, a borrowed dress, no traditional wedding feast and no celebration at all. They were married at the District Commissioners (like a judge), then took a Taxi to the church house where Bishop Matswagothata married them in the chapel with a few YSA friends and his mom and Sister and husband and a few other Ward members that came to wish them well. Gorata asked me to bring some cookies and there was punch in paper cartons served in the Relief Society room on a table with a wrinkled table cloth, no flowers, no decorations, but lots of pictures and hugs and they signed all of their legal documents and we put them in the car and headed for the temple. They were suppose to get their documents from the District Commissioner at 9 O’clock that morning, but there were 10 couples there to be married and because they were going to the church to be married, he told them they had to wait until he married all the others before he would sign their documents. We were at the church at 8:45 anxious to head to JoBurg, Tabo and Gorata arrived at 12:15 and they were married and out the door of the church by about l O’clock. It took about an hour to get to and through the border and we were suppose to have them to the temple by 3:30 (not possible) Bishop called and changed their appointment to 5:30 which was the last available time so needless to say, Dad drove a bit over the speed limit all the way there and we were blessed by our GPS that took us straight to the temple despite 5 O’clock Downtown JoBurg traffic (miracle and many tender mercies) and we arrived at 5:25. I think we hit every green light on the way and only came really close to smashing into the back of one car. So we felt blessed and our evening session was wonderful. Dad and I were their escorts and it was really wonderful to get to go to the Brides room and the Grooms room and hear the wonderful talk about the blessings of the temple, how to take care of our garments, and the privilege of being in the temple. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Dad and I spent the night at the extra missionary flat in Joburg and our new couple spent the night in Patron Housing at the temple. I made sandwiches for us to eat as we traveled and gave them Banana Bread, fruit, and some other goodies for them a lunch box as there is nothing to buy there at the temple housing. We got through the temple so late, that we couldn’t even take them out to eat, so we just dropped them off and we went to our flat for the night. Tabo’s mom and Sister and husband were coming to the temple for the sealing, but they had trouble at the border so they called and asked us to move their sealing from 11:00 to 1:00 which we were able to do and it’s a good thing because they just barely made it for the sealing at 1:00. The sealing was beautiful and this sweet couple is so in love and truly know they have done things the right way, despite the opposition from their families. Even Tabo’s mother (who is a member) is against the way they did things because her parents aren’t members and they are saying that Tabo shamed them all because he didn’t “bring anything to the table” for them to go negotiate with her family for the price of their daughter. Tabo’s grandparents told him they are ashamed of him for not paying the price for his bride and both families have said they will never consider them married. However, they are sealed for Time and Eternity in the House of the Lord and we all know how much that means. Gorata cried and cried to me and said she was so happy and that she knows they did it the right way and that she knows she is a Daughter of God and that she has value even if her family considers that she is worthless since she hasn’t been bought.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">After the session, we went out on the temple grounds and Dad took some wonderful pictures of their beautiful day in the temple. Tabo’s mom and Sister and her husband were very supportive that day and it was nice to have them there. I think his mom is just being bullied by her parents; she has to be happy that they were married in the temple as she is a great member and Primary President in one of our wards here. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">After the pictures, we jumped back into our car and headed back to Botswana. We did stop with Tabo and Gorata and bought them a McDonald’s hamburger (rare treat because we don’t have McDonald’s in Botswana) and then we drove like crazy to get home. We took them to their humble little house they have just rented. We drove through Shanty Town and followed directions to their place and when we pulled up to the house, we said “Is this your place?” and they said “no” there’s a little house behind that is ours. We made some really positive comments about their home being their Castle and always loving and taking care of each other and then we pulled away and came home. I think dad and I both wished we could rent them our servant’s quarters that are behind our house; but we can’t. I did tell Gorata to be careful and not walk in that neighborhood alone “EVER” and hopefully she will take my advice. </span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Hopefully I will never forget all the things I’m learning here in Africa. We are so blessed in America and especially as Member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Hopefully I will remember how blessed I am for being born into the church and for being born into the family I have who have taught me all about my Heavenly Father and about His plan for me. Hopefully I will remember all of the blessings I have that begin with being married for Time and Eternity to a worthy and wonderful and patient Husband; for being blessed to be the Mother of 8 beautiful and amazing and faithful children who have chosen delightful and faithful spouses and have been sealed in the Holy Temple of God. How can I ever forget any one of the wonderful 36 grandchildren that I have been blessed with; each of whom truly know who they are and are living lives worthy to be called His Sons’s and Daughters and some of whom are now choosing their Eternal Companions and will (and have already) bless us with more posterity and blessings. I love your Father; he makes my life wonderful and he is so good to me. Marrying him was the best decision I have ever made and I am eternally grateful to my Heavenly Father for blessing me with the privilege of being his Eternal Companion. I am so thankful for each of you kids; thank you for ALL you do for Dad and I and for all of your love and support as we serve these missions. We have learned so much out here and we hope that we can share our knowledge with you so it can make your lives even better and happier. We are so blessed as a family and our biggest blessing is that we have each other “For Eternity”. LET THERE BE NO EMPTY SEATS IN OUR HEAVENLY HOME.” Take good care of each other for us. We will work especially hard because of you!!!</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><br />
</div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">WE LOVE YOU ALL</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">MOM AND DAD, GRANNIE AND PAPA <span class="il">LYNN</span></span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-64187654426180855822011-06-03T20:33:00.002-07:002012-04-23T20:34:27.120-07:00Week # 72 - Granny<div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Hello to All!</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span> </span>Another week has passed so quickly and we now have a new Mission President which we haven’t had the privilege of meeting yet; but Dad has talked to him a couple of times on the phone.<span> </span>President Omer asked Dad to stay on as a Counselor until we leave; so we will carry on as normal and try to do everything he wants done and help him get adjusted to Botswana when he has time to come up.<span> </span>He plans to come up on the 15<sup>th</sup> and have interviews with all of our missionaries here at our home just like President Poulsen did; so I think he is planned to carry out the 1<sup>st</sup> month or so with the schedule President Poulsen used; and then perhaps make some changes to do things “his way.”<span> </span>We are anxious to meet him and his wife and get to serve with them for this transfer and then hopefully we’ll have someone else trained to take our place.<span> </span>He isn’t quite sure which couple he is going to use to replace us so we’re just waiting until someone arrives and then we will go to work teaching them about the amazing Branches and Wards here in Botswana.<span> </span>He will love the people here and enjoy working with them. But he doesn’t actually get to know them very well unless he does things a lot different than President Poulsen.<span> </span>This mission is so large that it is impossible for one Mission President to get everywhere and spend any time there when he arrives.<span> </span>President Poulsen was so busy taking care of almost 200 missionaries that he rarely had time to even be here on a Sunday for a Branch or Ward meeting.<span> </span>I guess we won’t actually know if anything changes much because I’m sure President Omer will still be getting his feet wet by the time we have to leave and it’s amazing how quickly things change when you leave the Mission and someone else takes over.<span> </span>We will soon be forgotten and life moves on for everyone.<span> </span>That is one thing we’ve learned from our other missions is that we are all totally replaceable and the next couple will probably do it better!</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;"><span> </span>We did a lot of traveling again this past week.<span> </span>Dad had a 2<sup>nd</sup> interview to do in Mafikeng (back in South Africa) so we took a day and went down there.<span> </span>We made the bad choice of going on Friday and it was a Botswana Holiday (Sir Seretse Khama Day) our President so we got stuck at the border for almost an hour.<span> </span>I think ALL of Botswana was traveling by car or walking across the border that day and he had to be in Kanye by noon so we left early in the morning and it’s a good thing.<span> </span>We were at the border (a 2 hour drive) by 9 O’clock that morning, but we lost an hour there so we were still 30 minutes late for his appointment on into Mafikeng.<span> </span>The interview was only 30 or 40 minutes and then we headed right back across the border and he was still late for his appointment to fix a baptismal font there.<span> </span>However, when we went to fix the font, we found out that the Hardware Store in Gaborone had sold us the wrong length of cable to fix it with and he couldn’t fix it anyway so that was a total waste of 3 hours travel and rush.<span> </span>But we did get to pick up Marea and bring her to Gaborone with us for the weekend.<span> </span>She needed to earn some money so we let her do some cleaning for us and she is a great cleaner.<span> </span>I told her we’d pay her by the hour and she jumped on that and went right to work.<span> </span>She got in 3 hours on Friday (she and I did the whole kitchen, cupboards in and out and the whole bit) and by evening the whole kitchen felt cleaner than it ever has since we moved in.<span> </span>It was nice!</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Saturday she cleaned and cleaned all day while I cooked and prepared for a YSA Sisters Conference I was sponsoring today.<span> </span>I had about 30 Sisters come along with Bishop Motswagothata and his wife Busi come and we listened to the YW Conference tape which none of our sisters have ever heard and then had Chicken noodle soup and rolls, cookies and ice cream to close our fast.<span> </span>It was really a great day together and I prepared some fun handouts to go along with each of the talks so I hope they all felt Spiritually fed as well as Physically fed.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Marea stayed for the meetings with us and then she jumped on a Combi and headed for the bus station to catch a bus to Kanye while we cleaned up the house and the yard from the party and said our good bye’s to everyone.<span> </span>Bishop and his wife stayed around for quite a while, they are so fun and we really love them and enjoy it when they come over.<span> </span>Mike and Roger and Bryce got to meet them so I know they understand how much we love them; I wish all of you could just meet them; you would love them also.<span> </span>Hopefully they will get to America some day to meet all of you and see that you are as wonderful as we tell them you are.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">So now it’s evening and I’m beet but it’s been a wonderful week and we’ve had a stream of visitors all evening including some missionaries who heard there was soup left over to a couple coming over for some Marriage advice (they came alone but we sent each of them home to talk things out together and tried not to take sides or give much advice.)<span> </span></span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">We know you are all busy at home; enjoy your busy summer and send us lots of letters and pictures about the kids and all that is going on.<span> </span>You make my day when I come to the computer early in the morning and there is a letter or pictures of any of you.<span> </span>It’s even a better day if there is more than one letter so keep the letters and notes and pictures coming; they mean a lot to us.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Love,</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: 14pt;"><span style="font-family: Times New Roman;">Mom and Dad, Grannie & PaPa <span class="il">Lynn</span></span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8313829408744754067.post-45330088199048778322011-05-30T20:06:00.000-07:002012-04-23T20:10:56.553-07:00Week # 67 - Papa Lynn<div class="MsoNormal" style="margin: 0in 0in 10pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Week 67</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Dear Family and Friends, <wbr></wbr> 30 May 2011</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> I am happy to say that this past week has been a little different. Today we got back form a 2140 kilometer trip. We left last Thursday the 26<sup>th</sup> of May and went as far as Francistown and I had a second interview that was a tuff one. We then stayed with Elder and Sister Riser from Roosevelt Utah that are serving up in Francistown. They are the replacement for Elder and Sister Cardiff. They are great and are full of lots of new ideas. They are on the ball and keeping very busy. We stayed overnight with them and then the next morning Elder Riser and I took the keyboard to the Francistown building and put the keyboard stand together. Then went back and picked up Mom and Sister Riser and went to look at the purposed building of the Francistown branch and the purposed building for Monarch if is gets split off of Francistown. Then off we went to head or Kasane. We arrived at Kasane about 5:00 PM and Sister Cornelia Rotenbach who is the same gal that took us on the boat safari last December when we were then for the couples conference took us to her home where we stayed for two nights.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> We hurried and changed and she took us in her Toyota all-terrain vehicle and she didn’t tell us where we were going or what we would do when we got there. We headed almost straight east for 9 kilometers and ended up in a beautiful valley called Leshuna Valley. Cornelia said only the local people know about it as they want to keep it special and untouched. After getting the valley we saw many elephants, kudu, Cape buffalo, impala and other animals. We found a spot in the open and she parked and said here we are. She got out and took a shovel out of the back and prepared a spot for a fire. We had a great evening watching the stars in the heavens that were so numerous and very bright. We had a wonderful braii and spot lighted several animals close to camp. We could hear the animals in the background all evening. We had an elephant walk so close to us that we could see it from the light of the fire we were using to cook. Cornelia was a little nervous as she said you never know what an elephant in the wild will do. I walked on past so there was no problem. We didn’t get back to her place until about 9:30 so you can tell we had a great evening in the wild.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> The next morning we got up early to go on a game drive into the Kobe National Game Park. It is a game park that doesn’t have any boundary fences so the game is able to go anywhere they want. We saw lots of animals and I took many pictures. The evening we went on a boat tour of the Kobe river, and I got lots of pictures again.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> We took Cornelia to dinner at an India restaurant. The first time Mom and I have had India food here on our mission. It was good and Cornelia loved it as she has eaten there many times. The next morning we went to church at a members home and there was 8 in attendance plus the Riser’s and us so we totaled 12 people. Elder and Sister Riser spoke first and Mom and I also spoke. Of course we didn’t know that we were the speakers until we got there. It went well and we love traveling and meeting people of the different wards, branches and even this group. I think the early morning game drive on Saturday must have given me a cold (my first sick day in this mission). I am recovering and hopefully I will be over it soon.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> We left directly after church and headed back to Francistown and I felt so impressed to go back on the second interview that I had last Thursday night. I am so glad that I did because there was clearly a miss communication between me and the candidate becoming ready for baptism. The second time it went really well. Mom and I stayed that night in Francistown and got up early this morning and got back home here in Gaborone about 2:30 this afternoon.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> It was a fun trip and we had great missionary experiences in meeting and working with members of the Kasane Group.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;"> Just for your information I have read my 7 pages each day and even read them on the day they were supposed to have been read. Lori wrote and said she liked the book mark that keeps track of where you should be while you read. I am sorry if this letter is unorganized as this is the way me head is working with it being all stuffed up with this cold that I am fighting. Well I will close with my love to each of you.</span></span></div><div style="margin: 0in 0in 0pt;"><span style="font-size: small;"><span style="font-family: Calibri;">Love Out Of Botswana, Dad</span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0