Week 42 - March 15th - 21st, 2015

Sunday, March 15th to Saturday, March 21st, 2015

This week started out in a really special way, Melanie's 63rd birthday!  To be with her here is a wonderful blessing to me.  Her spirit and enthusiasm, kindness and love is unsurpassed among women.

The one and only birthday she will celebrate here in South Africa.  I tried my pitiful best to make it a good and memorable one for all of the right reasons.  She appeared to enjoy her day, especially at church when the Relief Society sisters sang 'Happy Birthday' to her.  But she did say that when they sang the last new verse to this 'How Old Are You Now?'  She simply told them that believe it or not she was older than any and all of them.  She doesn't seem older to me though.

I think the highlight of her day though was definitely the video calls to and from home.  She is not only a terrific wife, she is an extraordinary Mother and Grandma as well.

On our P-day we had some basketball pictures printed for the boys of Seshego which we began passing out on Friday later in the week.  They seemed to be excited about them.  We hope this project helps accomplish some good somehow, sometime.

This is an example of the pictures we have taken.  Now a few over 40 from a roster of 60-70 boys that come from time to time, about 15-20 per week.

These 11-13 year-old helpers sort of struggle with each other to see which of them can help us carry things back and forth to our car before and after our time together.   We have fun with them all.

Worked with a few of the group Elders trying to help them with finding employment.   This seems to be quite a challenge for many of the young men and particularly those who are here with us from Zimbabwe who don't have proper working credentials for South Africa.  Zimbabwe is up the road a couple hundred Kilometers from us here in Polokwane.

We were blessed with the most majestic, giant, rain, thunder, and lightning storm and show this week.   It was just simply amazing to see the power, the sound and the downpour.   Helped cool things off a bit too which was nice.   The ground here is quite porous so even when it rains heavily the water is absorbed or runs off into a fairly efficient storm drain system of pipes and ditches.

Melanie and I finished teaching our group mission leader the Temple Preparation lessons this week.  Now Thabong, 27 and single will be ready for his interview and temple trip.   He never knew his dad until he met him briefly earlier this year and has no relationship with him.   His mother died when he was 14 so he and his younger sister and brother went to live with his mother's sister, his aunt.   He has been a member for about a year now and his life has really been changing since he was baptized.   We are so grateful to have been able to be a part of this with and for him.

When we taught him about doing the temple ordinance work for his deceased mother and grandparents he seemed to be elated and excited.   We told him that they were probably grateful that he joined the church and was preparing for the temple so that they might have the opportunity for their own ordinances to be completed as well so they could continue on their path of progression toward eternal family life together with him!

A few more home visits with members this week all topped off with our Saturday visit with our beloved paraplegic brother Jimmy Letsoalo.   We come away from his care center feeling uplifted, recharged and more desirous to share his love, the Savior's love with everyone as well as he does.

A very, very happy week here in South Africa!  

They even have their own carnival with hawkers and grifters just like at home.

Very large, fire-ball sunset one night this week.