I can't believe me! Here I have gone and done it again. And I thought I was pretty committed! As I look back and think about the last week, it has been an interesting one. There is always something going on around here and I guess it starts to sound a little boring I think, but there are things that I want to remember, so I do need to tell about them here since I am not really writing in a journal. Sort of a different kind of journal, but this is where I want to record mission events.



This last week, as usual, had it highs and lows. The lowest was when two Elders came in for an interview with the President. One had ripped the anterior cruciate in his right knee and was on crutches. When one Elder is down, it really puts two down, because they must be together all the time. So the healthy Elder was a bit weary of waiting for and waiting on his companion who was on the crutches. To top it all off, they stopped behind a school bus that had put its STOP sign out and got rear ended. Really rear ended. So anyway, Dad was assigned as Elder Barth's companion and off they went to the body shop here in town to get an estimate and the other elder had his interview. Good news on the estimate. Dad loves Mullins Body Shop. His estimate was $2700. Elder Barth had another one and it was for $4200, I think. So the car will be fixed here.



But the sad news, the elder on crutches was headed home. The day he arrived, his eyes looked like a deer in the headlights. I personally did not know what he was doing here. You just kind of pick up on kids real easy in that first meeting, especially after they have spent a few weeks at the MTC. He has been miserable and so the basketball accident was quite a handy excuse to get it on out of here. They came in about 10:30 and after calls to a stake president, bishop, parents, SLC to get a plane ticket, back to the apartment to pack up, and he was on the plane at 6pm. I just wonder what will become of him now. He seems like a little lost puppy. I mean a big lost puppy. My heart was heavy as he left. Missions are just not for everyone.



Last night we had a Senior Conference. there were 35 of us there at the mission home for a lovely dinner and then the President and his wife spoke to us. It was kind of about heroes and she talked about the Willey and Martin Handcart Companies. I have read that book but do you think I can remember the name of it! She has really learned to continue speaking through the tears. She gave some beautiful stories of people in the book. Read it if you have not.



Then the Pres talked about his father. Van Komen is a Dutch name and our Pres was born in Holland in 1944. But the story of his father was amazing. His father was baptized at age 12 under cover of night in a canal that the missionaries had dammed up. Too many people against the church to do it in daylight. He was also in the 1944-1945 winter that he called the starvation winter where 25,000 people died of starvation.

I am back in and trying to fix the damage. I don't know what happened, but it would not post, so I will try and rewrite and post again.

There were thousands more who suffered the effects of starvation. Father was called upon to provide food for the saints in his area. He had left the herring business and gone into the furniture business and it sounded like he made quite a lot of money. Took gelders amounting to about $30,000 and got a truckload of potatoes on the black market and brought them, under cover of night, to the church to feed the saints one meal a day. Then was called to feed the saints later on and spent hundreds of dollars for a few pounds of lentils, again underground, to feed the saints. They actually came to Utah in 1949 and that is where pres grew up. He is such a humble man. I wish I had a recording of his talk last night.

I went to the chiropractor today. Sure wish I could find a good hands on person to work on my back. I got out of the car yesterday and thought I had been stabbed in the back. I could not move. Then I sit back down and get up again and it is fine. But it happened about 5 more times today, so I went to see someone. He is a good old pop and crack kind of chiro. He did a digital scan of my back and sure enough, all the places it hurt showed up as hurting places on the print out. It is just hard to find a good therapist right off. But I think he did some good, so will see him again on Thursday and hope it is OK and begin my search again. Dad is still hacking away. Better some days and then coughing like crazy the next. He would like to get rid of his cough. That is his only symptom. No cold or fever or anything else.

But All is Well and hugs and loves and kisses to all.