Staying warm!

This is our winter picture underneath our sign by the front door of
the mission headquarters. We're staying warm and well. We've been
busy. We're driving to Darkhan tomorrow early am and coming back
tomorrow night. Pray for no snow. Batbold is driving and he's the
best. He's the other counselor in the mission presidency. We hope
you are having a great weekend. We're doing very well. Let us hear
from you.

The end of December- a little late

Hey.....We got back from Khovd this afternoon just before dark. It
was a great trip. It takes 3 hours and the planes only fly 2 times a
week. We flew out Saturday and came back today. We got there just in
time to enjoy their Christmas Party with them. It was a great
experience. They did a Nativity Pageant with teenagers as actors. It
was a very spiritual experience. It was great see their perception of
the story from the scriptures.
Dad and Batbold did some leadership training on Sunday and we checked
on a couple of projects Monday. The branch of the church in Khovd has
built new toilet and handwashing facilities for one of the
kindergartens and we purchased a washing machine and presented it this
morning just before we left. We also made arrangements to ship 10
wheelchairs to the hospital early 2009.
Four of Batbold's Mongolian friends picked us up on Sunday after church,
and took us out into the mountains. It is sooooo cold in Khovd....39
below 0. As you can see, Dad had on his suit and pj's underneath.
Neither of us was really prepared for how cold this area was. We'll
know next time, to be over prepared. You'll notice that the driver
took his jacket off and wrapped the radiator with it. There were 7 of
us in this little Russian Jeep that had been rebuilt almost from
scratch. They had just finished it the night before and we were so
afraid that it was going to break down or freeze up. But, we made it
fine and have some great pictures to share. One picture shows the
inch thick ice on the inside of the window of our hotel room. We sure
did appreciate getting back home to our warm and cozy apartment this
afternoon. The temperature in UB is only 20 below, and must be a
little drier than Khovd, because it feels not nearly as cold. Thank
you so much for your prayers.

Hello

We're doing very well....busy, healthy and happy. Elder Clark was recently called as first counselor to Mission President which keeps us even busier than before. Our translator will leave at the end of December for BYU-Hawaii. This is a picture of our new translator who just came home from mission. It's hard to keep a good translator. They come home from their missions and then make application for college, which is great. Mongolians can receive a scholarship to BYU-Hawaii and work their way through school at the Polynesian Cultural Center. It's a wonderful program. But, it keeps us looking for a good translator about every 6months. They are all very special young women. Our present translator is Tsatsral on the left. The new one is Chintuya on theright. They both have wonderful english. Chintuya also speaks french. We're also including our latest portrait out front of the mission headquarters. We love it here. The weather is quite cold now but we love it and have learned how to deal with it. We love you all and pray for you constantly. We hope that you are remembering us in your prayers as well. Take care and let us hear from you. Our love to you always.

Hats

It was so cold yesterday. We rode to Sukhbaatar Square with the new missionary couple, took pictures, then walked on to State Department Store. By the time we got there, we thought about buying some fur hats. But, couldn't decide which one, so we didn't.The new couple will take the Soderborg's place as the Employment Resource Specialists. They're a lot of fun and we're happy to have them.We saw one of our wheelchair recipients with his chair. He was so happy to see us. He's the one with only thumbs, no hands or feet. Hewas in an automobile accident when he was a young man in the countryside in the cold weather. Before they could get him medical attention, both his hands and feet were frostbitten. He's a great guy, so happy, and full of chatter. Even though we can't understand many of the things he says (Mongolian), we know that he really likes us.

What we've been up to

We're having a great weekend. We're having District Conference. Dad has been busy for two weeks getting the calendar of events ready for this to happen. Everything went very smoothly yesterday. You know how he can plan. We had our Saturday meetings at Mission Headquarters/Service Center which is 6 stories and we used every possible meeting room. Our Chapel area was standing room only. He had all the meetings down to a science. He also did several reports and forms for President Andersen to use in his meetings with all the District and Branch Priesthood Leadership. We are involved in the making of history here in Mongolia. We truly believe that we will have a stake organized in Mongolia before we leave next year, or soon after. The groundwork is being laid. Dad spoke in the Sat night adult session. Our theme was "Prepare Every Needful Thing". And guess what he talked about! Family Preparededness! This is the first time he's had the opportunity to really say what was in his heart about being prepared for difficult times to this many Mongolians. 80% of all food is imported into this country. If the shipping industry were to have a great problem, these people would starve. About 10 years ago, they experienced such weather conditions and the lack of imports, after the Russians pulled out that many did starve, and many more would have died if the US and a few other benevolent countries had not stepped in and brought huge deliveries of wheat and other food stuffs. Since we came here, on a small scale, we've been talking about putting aside a little food as often as possible, and trying to prepare ourselves for hard times. But, last night, Dad was able to talk to over 800 people and they were taking notes! We're sure that the world economical situation has affected many people's way of thinking. As Pres. Hinckley said a few years ago, there would be "stormy weather" ahead and we must take heed. This stormy weather can come in many forms and the world economic situation has definitely been stormy. Very few people in Mongolia participate in the stock market, but they are definitely affected by it with the price increases on all sides. The prices of flour and rice have gone up quite a bit since we've been here. All of our favorite brands of milk have been withdrawn from the market and we are having to get used to different kinds. We've learned to like fresh Mongolian milk, but the Dr. says to boil it first. As you could imagine, we have plenty of rice. Many people here feel that they don't have any storage places. We are giving them ideas of places that they've never imagined using for storage. Many have always lived in a portable society with their gers and don't have the mindset to keep extra food on hand, because of having to move it. But, the reality is that many of these historically nomadic people have become quite stationary and have not moved in years. Their mindset is changing slowly. We woke up this morning to a SNOW STORM. The wind is coming from the North at about 16 MPH and the snow is blowing sideways. Our District Conference for today will be held at the auditorium downtown. My main concern is how are we going to get there at this point. I'm not crazy about riding on icy streets with some of these taxi drivers or with anyone else I know who doesn't have a lot of experience in snowy weather. I just checked the temp and now it's 25F and snowing bigger flakes. Guess we'll be wearing our long johns today! Isn't this exciting? PS: I came back to report on the snow. It's finally stopped and everything is so beautiful, still and quiet. People are beginning to walk about, so we guess that life will go on today....Sometimes we realize how completely we have put ourselves into the Lord's hands in coming so far away from home and family, and serving among people who are so foreign with their language and traditions. But, we have complete faith, that we are watched over daily, in all our travels and experiences. We feel the Lord's hand over us many, many times. We've had many choice experiences here. It still amazes us that we could fare so well in an environment which is so different from what we have always grown up with. We have no fear of going anywhere without our translator. We somehow communicate. It's priceless to watch your Dad talk with people who don't speak English and who understand him and what he wants. He has the gift of tongues, but it's not always with words. Sometimes he acts out what he's saying and everyone gets a good laugh. He's so funny. You'd love to watch him communicate with these sweet people.We know that some of you probably fear for our health, because of our age. But, honestly, we have never felt healthier. We have felt stronger, more energetic, and witnessed more protective powers from heaven, than at any time we can remember in the last many years. We know that the Lord is very aware of our needs. We thank you all for remembering us in your prayers. We know that your love and prayers are vital to our daily situations. But, we don't want you to worry about us excessively. We are truly fine. We have been reading a book by Elder John Groberg (he wrote the book & movie "The Other Side of Heaven") entitled "The Fire of Faith". He wrote this book after he was called to return to the South Sea Islands where he had served as a young missionary. He was called to be the mission president in Tonga, then later an Area Seventy over the same area. "The Fire of Faith" is a book about his life after his call to serve as Mission President up to his present age. He stated that "many times we look forward with fear and trepidation to the trials and pain we may suffer in the process of being released from this tabernacle of clay. But, in reality this mortal life---let alone that brief part of it that we call death---is such a tiny split second in eternity that we ought not to spend time or effort worrying about it. I am sure that as we look back from eternity, the only thing we will be concerned about is whether we left mortality gracefully, faithfully, uncomplainingly, having taken upon ourselves the requisite covenants and ordinances and faithfully observed them to the end. Our concern will be whether we left doing good and praising His name up to our last breath. This can only be done as we have true faith in the Lord Jesus Christ." This is exactly how we feel. So let's all be happy and enjoy this life and all that it has to offer, making sure that we have done those things which are of most worth, first.

More news & pics

We are having a beautiful day today. Most of the ice is melted from the sidewalks. There is still snow underneath the bushes and it looks a lot like being at the beach because it looks like white sand underneath instead of snow. The sun is shining and the planes are coming and going so now we can transport missionaries to and from their places of transfer. Today and tomorrow will be transfer day. All of the new Mongolian missionaries came back from the Hong Kong Temple yesterday and will be receiving their assignments. The American missionaries, including a new senior couple will be here by November 6. This is a very exciting time. Dad is fitting right in with his new calling as First Counselor to the Mission President. And, no that does not mean that we are automatically going to extend. But, don't be surprised.The first few pictures are of us at church in Khailaast. We have non-member ger children who live in the neighborhood and come to church without family. This little girl came last Sunday, attached herself to me and was so precious. We have Sacrament Meeting first. As soon as sacrament was passed, she immediately put her head on my shoulder and went to sleep and slept throughout sacrament meeting. It was probably the most peaceful sleep she has had all week. And our friends from Hong Kong, Dr and Sis Bench, who are the medical advisors for Asia Area. We went up into the ger district by the church. Then a couple of Tsatsral and me at the Farewell Fireside. Sister Bymbasuren who was finishing her mission.The group of Elders that Tsatsral and Gantuya were with at the MTC in Provo. Sister Missionaries and me. Us and Elder G, one of the AP's (Tsatsral's boyfriend) Elder Clark putting his coat away. Elder and Sister Clark outside after our snowy day.

More wheel chair distributions

We have been so busy with wheelchair distributions, etc. But, we're really having the time of our lives. Dad looked over at me the other day and said, "Have you ever had so much fun?" We were at a distribution ceremony. To see the faces and emotions of all these sweet humble people as they receive a gift that will tremendously lift their daily burdens is a sight to see. One little teenager who has been unable to attend a day facility for disabled where they can interact with each other and learn crafts, was so thrilled. Now she has her very own place to sit where she can move herself around and be comfortable. Another young man is a senior in high school. He's been using a borrowed chair that was not his size and was delapidated. He was so thrilled. He was doing wheelies in the hallway, just like any other teenager would be doing with a new toy. An elderly gentleman cried till the front of his del was wet. He took our hands to shake them and wouldn't let go. Another said he could tell that we really loved Mongolian people because we were giving them such a wonderful gift. The 100 year old Islamic Khazakh woman gave us her blessing. She blessed us that we would live to have as many years as she and that our children would love and care for us as hers have. One day recently Dad and I were on our way the office and we had to go past this puddle that was covering the middle of the sidewalk. I said which side should we go? He said, "You go one and I'll go the other", so we did. There was a Mongolian standing on the street and he got excited and was waving his arms and motioning for us. We realized that it was not a good thing to separate to go around a puddle. So, we went back to the other side of the puddle and came around it together. He held up his thumbs and said, "San Ban!"We are settling into Dad's new job as first counselor to Pres. Andersen. We are really enjoying it. Now we are seeing another side of the mission here in Mongolia and to be more actively involved with the younger missionaries. Dad was able to speak at Zone Conference in Darkhan last week. We will be doing a bit more traveling with or for Pres. Andersen.