Off to Fiji for the Temple Open House and Public Affairs Seminar

Susan and I have been joking with one another the last few days that it is summer here in New Zealand but we are still waiting for it to come. It rained yesterday, and with just a few exceptions, we’ve wondered where the really warm days of summer are that we’ve heard so much about. But, we won’t complain since most days are very pleasant, of course, with the daily threat of more rain always present. Our skin feels nice and smooth, however, because of the high humidity.

We have heard and seen quite a few pictures from home—in Utah, Minnesota, and New York (where members of our family live)—that winter really has arrived. So, who’s complaining! (Not to mention the frigid temperatures in those places which we’ve heard about.)

We continue to pursue our Public Affairs work here in the Pacific. We write stories for Mormon Newsroom—Pacific, gather pictures for the articles, coordinate the work of the Area Communication Committee for the Area Presidency, and assist the Public Affairs Coordinating Councils for Auckland, Wellington, and now Hamilton, New Zealand. Lots of emails and computer work is involved with all of this. We’ve both been happy that in our former lives, we’d had experience using various computer programs.

Attending the Glen Innes Ward on Sundays has become a real blessing for us. The ward is small and composed primarily of Tongan, Samoan, and Maori members. It takes us about 35 minutes each Sunday to travel from our apartment to the ward building. Our sense is that being strong in the Church is challenging for many, but we do our best to contribute in any way we can to help strengthen one another as members of the Church. We love the people, more and more as time passes. And our Gospel Doctrine teacher, Brother Couch, we think is one of the finest from whom we’ve ever been privileged to learn.

In the second week of January, we joined with our Public Affairs senior missionary couples from Australia and enjoyed a two-day “get better acquainted” retreat on the west coast of New Zealand. We stayed at a lovely complex perched high above the Tasman Sea near Waiuku. The beach there is called Karioitahi and is made of a fine-grained, black sand which feels like a mattress when you walk on it. We enjoyed good food, good learning, and increased friendship while we were together. We also planned our upcoming seminar in Suva, Fiji for all of the Directors of Public Affairs from around the Pacific.

Last week, we traveled to Fiji for six days and enjoyed the seminar and the Open House for VIP’s and Media at the Fiji Temple. The Open House for the general public began the following Monday, January 25. In the first day or two of the Open House, the Prime Minister of Fiji and his entire cabinet, the President of Fiji, and Miss Fiji World all toured the temple. The experience for each of these individuals was memorable, and the Fiji Sun newspaper featured a special section in the paper which was devoted exclusively to stories about the temple. It was particularly delightful that for the press, the Prime Minister said, “I’d love everyone to come and have a look at what you have here,” as he encouraged Fiji citizens to tour the temple.

Because our son-in-law who lives in Utah, Kyle Terry, had led the construction work to build the baptismal font in the Fiji temple in February of 2015, being present to personally see the results of his efforts was most uplifting to us. After our temple tour, we called and talked with him to share our impressions of the good he and his team had accomplished. They originally had planned to do that work in three weeks, but the reality turned into five weeks because of unforeseen circumstances. During that period, our daughter, Kathy, was expecting their fifth child and was home alone doing her best to manage and care for a very young family, which was challenging as well.

We felt like both of them consecrated their lives to complete this important project, and the witness of the Spirit while we were in the temple confirmed that this was so.

Our Fiji Director of Public Affairs Seminar was also equally satisfying. Both Elder Kevin Pearson and Elder Gifford Nielsen spoke to the group. Their remarks were inspiring and instructional. We strengthened and gained many friendships during the days we spent together, and we now feel even more prepared to try and accomplish the work here in the Pacific.

For a brief time, we were also able to visit the marketplace in downtown Suva. As we toured the outdoor shops and booths, we were particularly taken by the gorgeous flowers being sold there. We also were amazed at the many fruits and vegetables offered to the hundreds of customers who were roaming through the buying areas.

During January, we’ve been preparing for and helping with the visit of Elder D. Todd Christofferson of the Quorum of Twelve Apostles and his wife, Katherine. He has visited American Samoa, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, and is headed for New Zealand tomorrow. He had also planned to visit the Saints in Vanuatu, but the deteriorating airport runway there prevented large commercial air carriers from landing there.

We have reached our six-month mark in our missionary service; one year remaining to serve. We have learned much and continue to learn and grow. Susan and I have enjoyed reading in the scriptures each morning and praying together to start our days. We love learning from God’s words, and the words of His servants. And we try to pray for those who we know need God’s special help.

We try also to stay in touch with family and friends back home as best we can. We know of many blessings received, for which we are so grateful, and also of many challenges faced in the lives of those for whom we love and care. We believe in the midst of both of these realities that faith and trust in our Heavenly Father and in His Son, Jesus Christ is the only sure way of life. We are so grateful for the gospel and the plan of happiness which has been provided for each of us.

More Elves Visit for Christmas!

Christmas 2015 is now a Christmas Past. But it was wonderful while it lasted. We said our goodbyes to Heidi who returned to her family for Christmas and then had John to ourselves for a few days, days that were filled with the Christmas spirit.

On Sunday we attended the Young Single Adult ward then went to the “Come and See” Fireside that is a monthly gathering of all the missionaries in the Auckland area with their investigators. A young woman who has recently joined the church told of her conversion story and the great changes in her life as a result, finding true happiness and peace after a life filled with negative experiences. We enjoyed listening to several Christmas musical numbers from different groups…the islanders can really sing!

The following day we had a wonderful Family Home Evening in the home of Brother and Sister Riwai-Couch from our ward. They invited us to come so that John could sing for them and play the piano while we all sang carols within a lovely Christmas program organized by Sister Couch. We shared memories of Christmases past and enjoyed visiting with their family members and their exchange student from Russia. They served a delicious dessert buffet, and the Spirit throughout the evening was very sweet.

Then the party began when Brent and Stacey, with their three teenagers, Riley, Jamie, and Sidney, joined John and us! I think that, in all, they experienced every adventure and activity that New Zealand has to offer! At least every one that they could fit in to their packed schedule! It was very fun to follow them around and participate, at least from the sidelines.

While we continued to work at the office they all traveled to Hamilton and Hobbiton (Lord of the Rings village) and the surrounding area, returning on Christmas Eve. Christmas Eve dinner was our traditional clam chowder, plus potato cheese soup and croissants, fresh fruits, and a Yule Log dessert (cake) we were all too full to enjoy! Then Barry led us in our annual reading of the nativity scriptures and accompanying carols. We opened our Christmas pajama gifts and “bedded down” for the night. This was actually quite a feat in our small flat (apartment), but we all managed to have a bed of sorts except for Riley who braved our not-so-comfortable sofa.

Christmas day was filled with the usual: many wonderful gifts, laughter, gratitude, phone calls and Facetime with dear ones at home (who were enjoying their Christmas Eve), and lots of food—ham, “funeral potatoes,” fresh fruit, homemade rolls, homemade apple and pumpkin pies…which, again, we were too full to eat! The main difference in the day was our evening visits to a few beaches an hour north of our flat. The weather was a little cool, but it was pleasant enough. (At home in Utah, we would have been looking out at the snow-covered landscape, not going to the beach!)

The following day was another national holiday…Boxing Day, which we learned (from Mr. Wikipedia) originated in Great Britain 800 or so years ago. Since the servants had to serve their masters on Christmas Day, they celebrated Christmas the day after and received a box full of gifts from their masters. (At least, that’s one version of this day that most people on the street here didn’t seem to know its origin.)

We spent the day enjoying our “hometown” of Takapuna…the shops, the beach, and the restaurants. It was a fun day, but that night we sadly had to say goodbye to John, putting him on his plane to fly home. We enjoyed his visit immensely, as well as Heidi’s.

With the Pacific Area Office pretty well deserted for the next week (it is not only their Christmas and New Year’s holiday week, but also their summer vacation), we took the opportunity to fly to the South Island for a few days with the kids. We saw breathtaking vistas, sparkling clear lakes, towering mountains and fjords, glaciers and waterfalls galore. The teenagers jumped into space from the top of cliffs on bungee cords and canyon swings. We cruised the Milford Sound and kayaked into the mouth of a glacial river. We took a backcountry jeep tour of movie “sets,” and the kids took a horseback trek through the hills.

We stayed a few nights at a delightful and serene farmhouse on a 2800 acre sheep and cattle ranch surrounded by beautiful paddocks and mountains, and another night in a house high above the vast lake spread out in front of our view.

We flew back and enjoyed a day in the Rotorua area, exploring a Maori land of geothermal geysers and hot pots, ending the day with a delightful Maori dinner and show.

Barry and I returned to the (empty) office on New Year’s Eve day to take care of some pressing business. Brent’s family continued to explore the area, returning later that evening just in time to “eat and run” to catch their plane home.  What a wonderful, once-in-a-lifetime adventure they created for us by taking the time and making the effort to visit. It is a long way from home and costly to come. But Christmas would have been quiet and lonely without them, so we were so grateful they all came.

Since our return, we have been very busy at the office, arranging for upcoming events, visiting Church leaders, writing articles, and attending Public Affairs team meetings among other things. It is great to dive into the work again and look forward to a new year and all the new experiences we know we will have.

We hosted four young elders at dinner and had such a great time with them. One was from Australia, one from Utah, one from Tahiti, and one from New Zealand (waiting for his visa allowing him to go to his Utah/Wyoming mission). We were able to encourage them in their work, express our admiration for their willingness to serve, and remind them that they need to prepare to keep the faith and serve, not only while on their missions, but lifelong.

We showed them our family picture and told them that the decisions they make do not just affect them, but have a lasting impact on their families, future wives (one each!) and children they might have, and on all those whose lives they will touch. It was sweet.

We love the gospel of Jesus Christ! We are so grateful to enjoy all the blessings our membership in His Church on earth brings. We desire to do our best to serve Him and His children well while on our mission and for the rest of our lives. We fall short too often, but we recommit ourselves to do better.

We give our thanks to all you dear family and friends for your gifts, your letters, your cards, your thoughts of love and Christmas. We were abundantly blessed and loved hearing about you and yours.

May each of you seek and enjoy these same blessings. We love you and pray for your welfare and happiness. All our love, Susan and Barry