Mark opened his mission call by himself in the grove at the Weber cabin, then he came inside to read his call to Richard and me. His friends don’t know yet, and we will host a little gathering for Mark to announce it soon.
He is assigned to the Denmark Copenhagen Mission and will begin his service on October 7.
I am getting pretty close to finishing this little project, which is based on a very famous painting. I know what it will look like when it’s finished, but it’s still a mystery to me how this is all going to come together. What a metaphor for my life.
I planning for a few months of ward conferences, so despite winter telling me to rest, I have a very full season ahead. My first counselor, on whom I depend so much, is carefully watching over her husband in his final days on earth. These years of serving in our stake callings have not shielded us from life’s challenges. My second counselor Susan passed away suddenly in 2022. Among the women in my presidency, which have changed over time, we have faced milestones along with the challenges. We’ve sent 5 missionaries into the world, had 3 children get married, and had 1 grandchild and one great-grandchild born. We have led during a pandemic and experienced two major surgeries with long recoveries. And now, my counselor’s husband is in hospice care.
There are some challenging days ahead, but if I have learned anything through my service, it is that my Heavenly Father will give me the strength to do what he has called me to do. He is doing the same for my presidency and for you.
We listened to Tim speak in church, and here are a few lessons that I wrote down from his talk.
Righteous examples are important.
Prophets are important guides to help us find joy.
And the Lord God hath sent his holy prophets among all the children of men, to declare these things to every kindred, nation, and tongue, that thereby whosoever should believe that Christ should come, the same might receive remission of their sins, and rejoice with exceedingly great joy,
Mosiah 3:13
Joy comes from inviting people to Christ.
Focus on the rulegiver, Jesus Christ.
Remembering personal and family spiritual experiences can help us during trials.
Spiritual preparation helps during physical trials. He saw people who lost everything in a typhoon, yet they trusted in God and remained strong.
The temple is a beacon of hope.
The Church is more than a building or a unit, it is the people. One one island where he served, there were 3,000 people, and only 5 members, and the Lord was with this tiny gathering of Saints, working miracles in their lives.
The Lord blesses us as we turn our lives to him.
As we give more of ourselves to the Lord, we will have joy.
I came across this model that Mark created of his old bedroom. The stacks of books, the curtains, and furniture placement are accurate and made my heart flip.
The eclipse wasn’t the most exciting thing to me this week, but the light was so eerie and we noticed how it made the air feel cold.
Some kids in the neighborhood have a jeep like Tim used to own. This scene reminded me of him. I tracked the typhoon as it passed near Saipan thanks to live satellite images.Richard and I were able to see Itzhak Perlman perform. We had wonderful seats and it was a remarkable experience.
This week as we talked to Timothy, he was in a long line of cars waiting to fill containers with drinking water. Saipan is in the path of a typhoon, and the islanders were busy preparing for the emergency. As we continued our conversation, we were interrupted by the rumbling of power tools as someone drilled plywood over his apartment windows.
It has been four months since Typhoon Mawar pummelled the island of Guam, where he was serving at the time.
I am not worried, but maybe a little weary from his great adventure.
Child is a word that applies to any age when a person is linked to a parent. Even though they are independent and strong, I am glad that I am still allowed to think of Paige, Daniel, and Timothy as my children.
I haven’t written about our older kids in a long time because they are living their own lives, very independent from us. But in my journal of tender mercies, any day that I get to talk to one of them, it makes the list of blessings for the day.
Paige and I have a phone appointment each Wednesday morning. It is something I look forward to each week.
Paige and Mike bought a house in Alabama this spring.
They both work from home. Michael is an accountant, and Paige works as an illustrator, and she has done a lot of digital art for the online Investopedia magazine. She mostly illustrates financial concepts, but she has also done some medical illustrations and more. This summer, her work was featured in a printed version of Investopedia magazine. She also did an illustration for the January 2023 Friend magazine.
Paige and Michael serve in the Primary organization at church. We will visit them later this fall, and it will be our first trip to Alabama.
Daniel lives nearby, and he begins his senior year at BYU this week, studying electrical engineering. He did an internship at L3 Harris (Richard’s company) this summer, so Richard talked to him quite a bit during the past several months.
After graduation next spring, Daniel will pursue a masters degree, and L3 Harris has offered him a job. Daniel and McKenna are quick to serve wherever they are needed. Daniel plays the organ in sacrament meeting and piano for choir, plus he serves in the elders quorum as service coordinator. McKenna served as assistant girls camp director this summer. Both of them help their local grandparents with all their hearts.
Timothy, our missionary, is on a new island, Saipan, a Northern Mariana island. This is country #4 where he has served during his mission, so I bought a new flag to display in the yard. He is excited to be on Saipan, and he and his companion are very busy teaching people. He is happy, as you can see.
He alternates with other missionaries to fly to a small island called Tinian on weekends to support a tiny group of members for church services. Here is a picture of their sacrament meeting last Sunday on Tinian. Oh, my!
We have a video call with Elder Ross each Sunday in the late afternoon, which is Monday morning for him. I have a hug scheduled with him on November 1 when he arrives home.