ROBBY

I love this boy so much!  He is amazingly flexible.  He is working harder than ever before in school.  He is happy to spend week ends with mom and dad.  He is happy to be with friends from the ward.  He comes home from the 60 minute bus ride after school with a smile on his face every day.  He loves to talk with his family back home any time he can.  He loves to watch "Parks and Recreation" on the computer and laughs so hard!  He loves the missionaries and they love him.  He sings "happy birthday" to everyone of them, on the phone, with his dad.

He is learning to surf!

Catching Up

October and November flew by.  Here are some photos to highlight our experiences.  Robby and I went with Bruce to Albany, a town on the southern tip of WA.  These granite rocks were an impressive site.  I loved seeing the countryside - grazing sheep and yellow canola fields.

We had two Sisters arrive in October.  At King's Park with the Assistants and President

Zone Meetings involve inspiration, training, and lots of "modeling" where the missionaries practice new teaching skills in front of each other.  This one also involved some fun, as the Senior missionaries set up a contest for the Zone with the cleanest automobiles. The cars have never looked better! The Southern River Zone leaders were overjoyed to win the coveted trophy (made from packages of Tim Tam cookies, the Australian favorite cookie!)

Zone meetings involve serious training, not pictured here. 

Fabulous sack lunches prepared by Relief Society Sisters in the Doubleview Ward

Four sister missionaries at a Friday District Meeting

The following photos show a bit of transfer week.

On Tuesday - we hold a farewell dinner followed by testimony sharing for the departing missionaries.  This is a tender time for them, and very inspiring to me.  Clearly, they have grown and learned so many new things, and share strong testimonies.  President Lindsay and the Assistants go with them to the airport, usually about 10:30 pm.  This night is getting more bitter/sweet for me, as I have known the missionaries that are leaving, even better as time goes by.







The next morning is Transfer Day!  All the missionaries with new assignments meet in the Mission Office/Chapel parking lot and unload and load suitcases, bikes, (an amazing number of stuffed animals), pillows, etc.  Making sure everyone is with a companion while the changes happen, that they get train or plane tickets, and the right car, and the right phone is mind-boggling.  Thus the Assistants figure all that part out!  President just has to know who the new trainers are, and the new companionships.  It is pretty big.

Following the parking lot extravaganza,  we go to the Airport to meet the incoming missionaries!  This group arrived from the New Zealand MTC, and another two arrived an hour later from the Provo MTC, exhausted!







We do dinner Wednesday evening for the brand new missionaries.  It is so fun to meet them and feel their excitement.  However, Perth is a long way from anywhere, and by dessert they are falling asleep!

These next three photos show the brand new missionaries meeting their trainers (first companions) for the first time! 
  As you can see, the new missionaries are slightly anxious, and the Trainers (below) are looking to see who they will train.  President Lindsay announces both names, and the cities where each come from.  It is awesome.  Mexico City, Taylorsville, Tuvalu, Brisbane, Sydney, London, and South Jordan, to name a few!
  Needless to say, this is quite a week!

New missionaries

Trainers, waiting to meet their new companions

Elder J from Laguna Niguel, CA meet Elder E from Vaiaku, Tuavalu!

hydranga

Finally, I would like to show some of the beautiful blossoms outside the Mission Home this December!

bougainvillea

Tender Mercies

Part of what I do here in the mission is help missionaries with health concerns.  Of course, the Church Missionary Department has an excellent web site to provide answers to just about any question I receive.  And we have an Area Medical Advisor, who is a retired physician, called to serve as the doctor to help the missions in the Pacific.  He is located in Auckland, but answers my calls immediately.  Thank goodness.  And the phone does ring.  I am getting pretty good at answering questions about colds, stomach aches, sore throats, fevers, head aches, sleep problems, in-grown toe nails, back pain, shin splints, and more recently, heat stroke.  I pray every day for the Spirit to guide me so I will ask the right questions and offer helpful answers.
  Two stories with happy endings.   A few weeks ago, on Monday afternoon (Preparation Day), I received an emergency call from an Elder.  "Sister Lindsay, my companion just knocked out his front tooth while we were playing basketball and it is bleeding a lot, what should we do?"...Having never dealt with this before, I heard myself ask, "Do you have the tooth?" " Yes ".  Then, after quickly determining they were stopping the blood with their shirts I told them I would call Elder Innis, a Senior Missionary, who was a dentist in his former life.  Elder Innis answered immediately and came to the rescue.   The tooth had to go back in immediately, and the Elder needed to get to a dentist asap.  And Elder Innis would take care of it!  Yes!  I am pleased to say, that so far the tooth is happy, back in place, and our Elder has a winning smile, once again.  With his permission, I share the following photograph.

Check out the root on that tooth!  We are using this photo as the poster for Please Be Careful on P day!

   In the same week, I received a call late in the evening, that a brand new missionary (from California, and in Australia for 9 days),  had fallen off his bike and scraped up his face.  An angel, member, was nearby, helped clean him up, stopped the bleeding, and drove him home.  He just happened to have triple anti-biotic cream in the First Aid Kit his mother had put together for him before he left for the MTC, a month ago.  Precisely, what my medical information said to do.  Bruce and I went to visit him the next morning, and he was dressed, and doing companion study.

I saw this Elder this week, and he looks almost all better!  Thank goodness.

  Thank you for all your prayers for the missionaries!

Sisters

I gathered the Sisters for a day of "Specialized Training".  We met at King's Park for a wildflower walk.  Western Australia has one of the most spectacular displays of wildflowers in the world.  And September is peak season here in Perth.  After a delightful walk through the gardens, we headed to the Mission Home for training and lunch.  It was a lovely day!

wildflowers in King's Park

wildflowers in King's Park

I heard these Sisters speaking Tongan, and when the photo was snapped they kissed me on the cheeks!

on quilts, enjoying muffins and juice

at the Mission Home

Bikes

Ok, so I look a little nervous, you should have seen Bruce's face!

I told Robby I was going to ride a bike to the Mission Home and he warned me it would be totally embarrassing.  I just rode around the chapel.  The Sisters ride all over!

Mining and Missionaries

   We traveled North, to Port Hedland, which is largely a mining town.  Six ships loaded with Iron Ore  leave the harbor each day. Each ship is filled with 10 million dollars worth of Iron Ore.  The process to mine the ore, haul it, load it on the dock, load it in the ships, move the ships in and out of the narrow harbor, and keep it all going is an engineering feat.  Let alone the required humans to man the trucks, machinery, and equipment 24/7.  Although it is difficult to participate and live the Gospel in this environment, wonderful people are.  And the church organization is there to serve, inspire, lift, and aid.  The Branch receives life sustaining support from a valiant Senior Couple.  They clearly love the area and the people.  They are an inspiration to me of magnifying your calling.
     We just finished three days of saying farewell to four dedicated departing missionaries and welcome to eight awesome arriving missionaries.  These dinners, devotionals, and testimonies, are some of the dearest experiences for me.  Here are photos from the past week.

A giant boat in harbor.  When it is fully loaded, only the top half of the boat will be visible out of the water

Young Elders placed this "keystone of our religion" in their flat, and the Senior Couple living there now, have left it there.  I love it!

Zone leader council breaks for lunch

Opening hymn for Farewell Devotional - The Assistants keep Robby in line :)

Farewell to a fabulous four

Transfer day is a sight to behold

President Lindsay works and prays hard to assign companionships

As I was snapping photos, they all came running!

Arriving prepared to "embark in the service of God"

Just before dessert ( Pavlova and German Chocolate Cake)

 

Mission life

Our missionaries.  I tag the birthdays for the month and call them on their birthday.  Bruce and Robby sing to them.

Wonderful Sister Missionaries! 

Departing dinner for a dear Senior Couple

I am always in awe when I see the Sister Missionaries on their bikes.  In cute skirts, no less!  I dropped in on two sister missionaries for their companion study and it was so fun for me.  They were all dressed, had their flat cleaned up and were dutifully studying together.  We shared some scriptures, read from the white handbook, and prayed together.  I brought them some sweet rolls and we all felt a lift.    We had to say farewell to a Senior Couple.  She was very ill.  They served 9 months, and baptized a family, which was a great blessing for all.  We were very worried about the Sister making it home without suffering from incredible pain.  A priesthood blessing was given and a promise that she would travel peacefully.  That blessing was fulfilled.  The Lord loves His missionaries! 

More firsts: transfers, leaving, coming, school, seminary

 This was a wonderful week in the Mission.  On Tuesday we hosted five of the missionaries who completed their mission and left that evening at midnight.  We enjoyed a lovely dinner with them, and a powerful testimony meeting. President Lindsay, Elder Robertson, and Elder Webley accompanied the group to the airport, and stayed with them until they left.  Wednesday, those three and Shari went to the airport to welcome our one incoming missionary - Elder Segi from Samoa.  He comes with a great testimony and humility.  We had another lovely dinner, and Elder Segi and his new companion, Elder Keers stayed the night in the Mission Home.  It is wonderful to have the missionaries here.  Robby and I got up (5:30 am) for our second day of Seminary, returned by 7:10 am and had time to have breakfast with everyone.  I thought it was another small miracle, and a tender mercy from the Lord.  I would never have imagined we could time it that easily.  President Lindsay makes great scrambled eggs.

Missionaries on our front lawn, saying goodbye to five who have completed their full-time service

too early to smile

Welcome Elder Segi!

   Robby is liking the International School of Western Australia.  He has made friends with students who have lived all over the world - Germany, Norway, Rio de Janeiro, Dubai, Jakarta, India, Japan, and Columbia - to name a few countries and cities!  Rob says they are all nice to everyone.  So far, he likes his teachers and is talking about Chemistry, Physics and Spanish class the most.  So I think that means he is liking them the most.  He laughs a lot about his art class.  He did draw a picture of a saxophone, with fire coming out of it.  I have yet to see it.  I drive Robby to school every morning, and he rides the city bus home.  He picks up the bus down the street from the school, rides to the main station downtown, changes to Platform 9 and 3/4's and gets a bus that brings him very close to our home, arriving just after 5pm. He comes in happy every day, so far!   I can't tell you how awesome I think he is.

First real Preparation Day - King's Park

First birds we saw in the park!

beautiful view of city and Swan River

We were counseled to just be mom and dad when out with Robby and the President loved his few minutes in levis

Pollyanna in Perth

Every morning when my alarm goes off at 5:30 am, I say to myself, "if you miss the joy, you miss the whole thing!".  Elder Holland used this quote from Robert Lewis Stevenson, to inspire us during the MTC training.  It seems to be working for me!
Here is a list of some of my favorite things about living in Perth -
-missionaries, of course!
-Robby is here and continues to have a fabulous attitude
-seeing the BLUE Indian Ocean every morning as I take Robby to school
-the heater in my Toyota Corolla - it works immediately, on the way to Seminary
-my Totyota - it is small, easy to control, feels like a sports car to me
-the bright colors of all the birds
-my plug in hot water kettle that heats water in seconds for my Milo every day
-Milo (hot cocoa)
-Driving on the left side! Really!  I feel so capable.  Or like a London cabby.
-the word "lovely" - everyone says it all the time - the gas station attendant (who had a "lovely" nose    ring), said, "Have a lovely day!"

A "pretty BIG state"

First Zone Conference

First Week photos

zone leaders are respectful of the mission home!

First Zone Leader Council

Elder and Sister Neely, us, Elder Ellingson, Elder Su'a, Geralton Branch

no worries, I just had my first kangaroo sighting