Thank you again to all who reached out to us over the holidays. We are so blessed to have so many wonderful friends and family members supporting us. We love you!
First, our grandson Luke will have his 9th Birthday on the 17th, and the lucky birthday boy will be cruising the Caribbean that day, so Happy Birthday Luke! We can’t wait to hear about the fun you had.
Happy Birthday on Tuesday to Denise Garrett and Lori Hedin, two of my very dear friends. If I were home, we’d be lunching for sure. Next year we will make up for it!
Our New Year’s Day was spent at our flat, with Ron cooking his traditional pot of black-eyed peas and ham. It is tradition in the South (USA) that eating black eyes on New Year’s Day will bring good luck all year. Both the Elders and the Sisters, as well as a senior couple came over to share them with us, so if the Birmingham Mission explodes with baptisms in 2018, you’ll know why. J The Elders loved them . . . the Sisters tolerated them. Ron was tickled when Amanda phoned him to find out how to make them because the grandchildren were asking for them. Grandpa’s New Year’s Day tradition was missed. It made his day.
We received word on Tuesday that my mother took another fall and broke her other hip on New Year’s Day, much worse than the last break in the other hip in September, and much more painful for her. She had surgery and is back in rehab, and we are taking one day at a time. I would appreciate your prayers for her.
We mourn and rejoice at the passing of our dear President Monson. He was such a great example of service, and ‘walking the walk’, not just ‘talking the talk’. The rejoicing comes with the thought of the great reunion he had with his dear wife whom he has missed so much since her passing. You can imagine the busy morning we had at the office Wednesday when we woke up to the news. The pre-written news announcement of his passing comes to us from headquarters in Salt Lake, and we must get it out to our first contact countries, and the translation if necessary. For us it was Ireland, Netherlands, and Dutch-speaking Belgium.
Malcolm was out again Tuesday through Thursday with wisdom tooth surgery, so other than Wednesday we had another slower than usual week. We used the extra time together to do some gospel reading and study, organize our mission photos, as well as began watching the series “Downton Abby”. I have seen it, but it is a first for Ron, and we are enjoying it. I can’t believe how much more I pick up after living here for nearly a year. When they talk about Guy Fawkes, I know what they mean. When they talk about Manchester, I know right where that is. And before we come home, I want to tour “Highclere Castle” for real (where Downtown Abby was filmed).
We had a good weekend. Friday night we went on a date! We went Five Guys for dinner and then to ‘Jumanji’ at the cinema. Saturday night we did our Home Teaching to one of our families, in that we babysat the three little girls so Dad and Mum could have a night out. We made “Hugs” for the parents with the girls (thanks, Alisha, for the idea!), watched a DVD of their choice (Trolls), read stories, and sang songs. The parents were so grateful, and so were we, as it filled a void for us. We do miss the kiddos at home.
Today was the first Sunday of a new year, and the pews at Church were full. I love New Year’s resolutions. We had 23 Primary children in all . . . a record! The four new Sunbeams were amazing, and all went well. We are all excited to teach the children this year more about the theme “I Am a Child of God.” After all, when we understand that simple principle from a young age it can influence our path in life in such a positive way.
Testimonies were born today, as usual on the first Sunday of each month, and there seemed to be general theme of kindness. I guess it wasn’t just me who was affected by our Bishop’s remarks at Christmas. I wonder if that humble man realizes the impact he is having.
Thank you for you continued love and support! I am so grateful for all I am learning here. We feel so blessed to be serving and experiencing all that we are. Our lives will be forever changed. We love you, miss you, and pray for you.
Cheers from England!
Ron and Marie
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