Missionary Journal

England (February 2010 Weeks 1 and 2)

February Week 1

Monday morning I had my hair done (every four weeks). Then I came home and made an appointment for Walt to see the doctor again. He feels so miserable we didn’t even do laundry today. At 3:00, we headed to the doctor, where she gave him two prescriptions: Diclofenac Sodium (a heavy duty anti-inflamatory) and Diazepam (generic for Valium). He sure felt OK Monday evening as long as he didn’t cough or sneeze.

Tuesday Walt was feeling well enough to get ready for District Meeting. We let Elder Marchione drive to Yeovil and had a good meeting. Unfortunately, the Elders were doing splits and neither of the two elders coming to Weymouth has driven here, so Walt drove the hour home. For some reason, sitting in the car and of course using the clutch and twisting to look over his shoulder were much less than comfortable. No meetings tonight so Walt could take more medication and rest.

As we were leaving Yeovil chapel we passed by a small strip mall. You can tell how very rural and agricultural this area is – the proof is there with the tractor in front of the barber shop. I guess transportation and opportunity come when they come.

Wednesday was a lost day with Walt paying for yesterday. I worked on my Gospel Doctrine lesson and cooked and cleaned.

Thursday I pulled together a casserole and went off to a Relief Society “Knit and Natter” meeting where we were knitting blankets and little hats for premature babies at the Dorchester Hospital. Walt dressed in his suit and we left. He worked on Clerk duties while we were knitting and nattering. Walt came in and spoke with the sisters. (We really do love them.) As he was chatting he started coughing and left promptly saying, “I’ve got to get out of here before I scream.” The sisters looked at him questioningly, and I explained that when he coughs the muscles in his side spasm and he hurts enough to scream.

After we had our potluck lunch, we grabbed Carol White and went to see a sister whose husband just left her. Unfortunately, she wasn’t home, so we took Sister White to the bus stop (Dorchester is three quarters of an hour out from where we were and by the time Walt got back from ringing the doorbell he was looking grey and extremely tired). We went home and Walt rested while I worked on lessons (both Gospel Doctrine and Primary this week).

Friday was low key with Walt resting up for Sunday and me finishing up my Sunday lessons. President Chasteauneuf had BPE surgery this week and won’t be active in Church activities for the next two or three weeks. That means Walt will be presiding on Sunday.

Saturday Walt felt much better (or was grinning and bearing it better), so out we went to visit. We had two visits that were memorable: We met with Sister Kim Shorters and got her promise to be at church on Sunday (actually, we will pick her up) and met with Sister Sandra Scott and gave her a lesson on “The Lord Won’t Give You More Than You Can Take.” Her life has been more than challenging lately: a personal bout with cancer; losing her birth mother; her step-mother’s health is failing; and losing two really good friends to cancer. She feels she is more than ready to stop being tested.

Sunday was good. I normally don’t think of the Old Testament as my favorite book of scripture, but I’ve been learning lots and lots as I’ve prepared my lessons.

This was a question asked right at the end of the lesson. We have so many arks to help us endure to the end and sometimes don’t realize they are there.

Of course, we have church, prayer, temple, scriptures, our homes, and our prophets. We are so blessed to have the technology we do today that brings prophets right into our homes, talks and scriptures at our finger tips, and temples close by. We just need to make use of what we are given and not take them for granted.

February Week 2

Monday instead of being “P” day was Zone Training in Poole. We picked the Elders up at 7:45 am for the drive. District Meeting started at 9:00 am and Zone Training at 10:30 am. Sister Shamo spoke on Goal Setting and Measuring (you, know Key Performance Indicators). We spoke of setting SMART goals: S=Specific; M=Measurable; A=Achievable; R=Realistic; and T=Time Specific.

The Assistants to the President (APs) put on a white board: “Key Indicators for Conversion” and we gave our concepts of definitions for each of those words.

 For “Key” we had: Opens, Master; To Gain Access To; Important; Reveals; Direction; Pivotal; Necessary; Decodes; Main Point; Jesus Christ.

 For “Indicators” we had: Measure; Points Direction; Focal Point; Reveals; Alerts; Defines; Parameter; Identifies; Leads; Guide.

 For “Conversion” we had: Convincing; Change of Heart/View/State; Process; Period of Time; Formal Process of Change; Requisite; Transformed; Adaptation; Transformation; Exchange; Switch; Success; Do Things Differently; No Desire to Do Evil.

We did a Chinese puzzle and took one work or phrase from each to redefine Key indicators for Conversion. Some of the phrases we came up with were:

(1) A pivotal measurement for a change of heart;

(2) Reveals the direction for success;

(3) Jesus Christ leads the change; and

(4) Necessary focal point for transformation.

Then we went over Mosiah 5 verses 2-5 and spoke of the Key Indicators for Conversion mentioned there. Of course, this is at the end of King Benjamin’s address and “he sent among them, desiring to know of his people if they believed the words which he had spoken unto them.” Can you imagine what the world would be if people decided they would do good continually?

Mosiah 5:2-5

2 And they all cried with one voice, saying: Yea, we believe all the words which thou hast spoken unto us; and also, we know of their surety and truth, because of the Spirit of the Lord Omnipotent, which has wrought a mighty change in us, or in our hearts, that we have no more disposition to do evil, but to do good continually.

3 And we, ourselves, also, through the infinite goodness of God, and the manifestations of his Spirit, have great views of that which is to come; and were it expedient, we could prophesy of all things.

4 And it is the faith which we have had on the things which our king has spoken unto us that has brought us to this great knowledge, whereby we do rejoice with such exceedingly great joy.

5 And we are willing to enter into a covenant with our God to do his will, and to be obedient to his commandments in all things that he shall command us, all the remainder of our days, that we may not bring upon ourselves a never–ending torment, as has been spoken by the angel, that we may not drink out of the cup of the wrath of God.

We know that through faith and works we can have the blessings of joy and great knowledge. However, we also know that we must “endure to the end” as we are obedient to His commandments. That sounds like such a simple thing to do, but it seems to be very hard for a lot of people. I’ve certainly heard many excuses for “retiring” from serving and being one with the Saints. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is true and it is our opportunity and privilege to help and serve one another.

D&C Section 81, verses 5-7

5 Wherefore, be faithful; stand in the office which I have appointed unto you; succor the weak, lift up the hands which hang down, and strengthen the feeble knees.

6 And if thou art faithful unto the end thou shalt have a crown of immortality, and eternal life in the mansions which I have prepared in the house of my Father.

7 Behold, and lo, these are the words of Alpha and Omega, even Jesus Christ. Amen.

As missionaries, we have daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, and yearly goals. It is very much like Earned Value Management (EVM) in that looking back at the goals we set and measuring success, we can learn how to be better missionaries.

While we were being interviewed (everybody gets interviewed at Zone Training), we spoke with President Shamo about moving our efforts further out into the Poole Stake since we know all the members (active and less-active) in the Branch boundaries so very well. We spoke with President Martin (Poole Stake) at Weymouth Branch Conference and he suggested we help the Salisbury Branch with cleaning up their branch lists (finding people who are on the list but have moved) and reactivation of less-active members. He said, “Whatever you think you need to do.” Great, we will get formal authorization from President Martin and get started soon.

For your information since I speak about President and Sister Shamo so often, I got this from the Church Website: “Lyle Eric Shamo, 62, and Tracy Jean Bedney Shamo, eight children, England London South Mission; Parkway 8th Ward, South Jordan Utah Parkway Stake. Brother Shamo is a former counselor in a stake presidency, bishop and counselor, ward Young Men president, high councilor and missionary in the Southwest British Mission. Retired managing director of the Audiovisual Department for the Church. Sister Shamo is a gospel doctrine teacher and a former member of a stake Young Women board, counselor in a ward Relief Society presidency, ward Relief Society teacher, Cub Scout leader and ward activities committee chairwoman.”

Interestingly, Brother and Sister Shamo and President Erwin (1st Counselor in the Mission Presidency) met at BYU in the Drama Department. I don’t remember what year it was, but Sister Shamo was nominated as “Best Supporting Actress” and President Erwin won as “Best Supporting Actor” the same year. If you look at the sentence in bold, President Shamo was responsible for production of “The Testaments” movie, the temple movies and all changes to them, the “Joseph Smith-Prophet of the Restoration” movie, and many others reaching over a span of 30 years. We do love them so very much.

Zone Training was over at close to 5:00 pm and we headed home.

Tuesday, then, was our “P” day and we spent time doing laundry and cleaning the house, then Walt presided and conducted the Priesthood Executive Committee meeting in the evening.

Wednesday we were out and about. First a trip to Liz Trueman’s to make sure she is coming along with her talk for Sunday. I printed out several additional talks from LDS.org since she doesn’t have a computer. After that we stopped in Dorchester to see Carol White who was having a single’s open house at her flat. We were there for a couple of hours talking with those attending about missionary work, family history, the United States, England, etc. When we started out the sky was blue and not too cold so I wore my hooded sweater, but took my coat. When we were leaving Sister White’s it was snowing. The snow, however, looked and felt like dry (almost fluffy) hail. It wasn’t heavy, it was wet when it melted, and it didn’t hit like hail but just kind of floated down. It came down so fast that my hood was filled between the flat and the car. Before I got into the car, I turned the hood inside out and dumped it all out. Then we went over to see Kim Shorters again.

Thursday was out and about seeing folks and working on Gospel Doctrine. And so was Friday for a while and then home to make a “pudding” (a dessert) for a Primary Social in the evening. We had such a good time. We laughed and laughed until my sides hurt. The social was at Sister Fiona Payne’s home and her husband is a non-member. What a wonderful man!! He supports her in everything she does. Dave Payne is an engineer by education but a teacher by occupation. Honestly, I can’t see him sitting behind a desk and soberly doing engineering work. He is so creative! I’ve spoken of him before – he was the piano playing zombie at the Road Show.

Sister Glenda Mckay was also in attendance (she teaches Primary) and she is a teacher’s aide at the same school Dave teaches at. They were telling us about some of the things they’ve done to stimulate the “6th form” (11-year-olds) at their school. The last thing they did was to simulate an UFO landing on the school playground. Dave was out very early in the morning drawing scorch marks on the concrete with black chalk. He also made a sponge foot (looks like Big Bird’s foot) and dipped it in slime (soft custard with green sparkles) and walked it across the playground. Their IT guy photoshopped a flying saucer into a picture of the playground (showing just behind the trees) and put it on a “simulated” FBI website. Dave also did a fake radio show talking about the incident. When the children arrived at school, they had gotten the local police to send a bobby and car with flashing lights. Shortly after this, they had a scientist (a father of a student not in 6th form) taking samples and looking very scientific. Everything was done so as not to traumatize the children, but even the more skeptic students were thinking seriously about it when they said, “If this really happened, it would be on the radio” or “it would be on the Internet.” Dave said they had more problems with the parents who were dropping their children off than with the children. They had the children write about their feelings. What a kick. I could just see Dave making the footprints and then Fiona brought out the Weymouth Echo (a local newspaper) and they were front page (I did get to see pictures of Dave not only making the footprints but putting the scorch marks on the concrete). Can you imagine something like that being done in Los Gatos?

They also told us about the Narnia exercise they did. They took the three 6th form classrooms and make them into Narnia (our Activities Chairman and now 2nd Counselor in the Branch Presidency) made the wardrobe (complete with fur coats) and doors to Narnia. That room was just filled with flocked Christmas Trees and fake snow. They also hung netting with leaves overhead. I’ve seen the pictures and it looks so real. I’m sorry I don’t have a scanner or I would have borrowed the pictures and scanned them in so you could see them. The next room was Mr. Tumnus’ Cave, and the 3rd room the Witch’s Ice Castle. They took the children through the rooms in small groups and then had them write about Narnia and what they had seen. So very creative.

Saturday Walt wasn’t feeling good (a cold I think) and we spent most of our time at home preparing for Sunday: getting lessons completed, working over the speaking schedule through April and making little tags to give out so people can remember what they are speaking about, and calling everyone to remind them about Munch and Mingle after meetings tomorrow. We didn’t even go to the store to shop for Sunday.

Sunday was good. My Gospel Doctrine lesson was on the Abrahamic Covenant. I found a few maps to show where Ur of Chaldea was. I know it said it was in Iraq but I found it interesting to where it was.

After the meetings we had a great Munch and Mingle with very good attendance. After a rocky start last year, everybody seems to look forward to the 2nd Sunday. We left the church at 2:30 with the Elders, took the tithing deposit to the bank, and took the Elders home. As they were getting out of the car, they asked if they could come to dinner that night. I was a little hesitant since we hadn’t shopped this weekend, but ensured them it would be OK. Walt and I had made a beef stew for the Munch and Mingle from a beef silverside joint (roast) I had bought at ASDA on sale. Walt cut the roast up and put it in the crockpot with just some beef stew seasoning (Delight sent it out from home) overnight. By 6:30 am it was so tender it was just coming to pieces. We took out half the meat, cut up red potatoes, onions, and carrots, added some salt and canned cut tomatoes and kept cooking until 1:00 pm when church was over. That meant I had a container of cooked meat in the fridge. I added some frozen vegetables and shepherd’s pie seasoning, make some mashed potatoes to go on top and cooked a cottage pie. We didn’t have any bread so I soured some milk and made “buttermilk” biscuits. Of course this confuses the folks over here because biscuits are crackers or cookies. My biscuits looked like the scones they make over as compared to the scones I make at home. I made brownies for dessert and served them with chocolate custard and whipped cream. It was a good dinner.

We just love these young men! Transfers are on Thursday and we’re sure we will lose at least one of them. Elder Marchione has been in Weymouth for 4 transfers and Elder Trevisan for 3. That’s quite a long time. Elder Marchione goes home in May.

I love you all and miss you, Jackie