Dartmouth Homecoming week!

Today is Saturday, August 17, 2019

Zone Conferences have been amazing…all six of them!! 

Tuesday, August 6, it was fun to meet, and visit for five minutes with Danielle, Claire, Lucy and Martine at the airport just as they arrived. we were thrilled to fly back to ‘our’ Nova Scotia where we rendez-voused with friends and missionaries (who are also friends!!!). Driving by our Mission Office with the ‘Office Closed’ sign taped on the door was sad as we reminisced about our memorable year. Richard had many interviews to conduct so I dropped him off at the Cole Harbour Stake Centre, and headed to JJ Choo’s, my hairdresser. I love visiting with both JJ and her Mom, Sister O’Connor, who are native Lunenbergers, and some of my dearest friends in Nova Scotia. After my hair makeover, 23 Brookdale Crescent was calling me and I was relieved to find my hidden key right where I had left it, so breaking in to check on things was easy!! What a big, empty home with a year full of wonderful, happy memories. It is where I learned how to be a missionary. Bubble gum pink, and fuchsia vista petunias that I planted back in May are thriving and making our Mission home look friendly and inviting…oh, we do miss Nova Scotia…Friends Jim and Vicki Cameron invited us to their Garden Party where we visited with more friends, and had a tour of Vicki’s beautiful garden where lush perennials and shrubs grow. I think her favourite were her Star Gazer lilies, some of which had been freshly chomped by neighbourhood deer. Zone Conference August 7 with Nova Scotia Zone was lovely, and it was so great to see our missionaries - young and senior!! Thoughtful Elder Peterman, and Elder Birch, serving in Cape Breton presented me with three full ziploc bags of white, green, and brown sea glass they had collected from Dominion Beach. Knowing what a gift of service this was, I was overwhelmed at their kindness. Oh - I had a lovely tender mercy before Zone Conference even started…after I dropped Richard off at the Church at 7:45am for more interviews, and realizing I hadn’t taken a photo of the Mission Home in its pink splendour, I headed over to Brookdale Cresent. As I pulled in front of our home, I noticed a red Toyota just in front of me…I wondered if it could be Joanne??  As she opened her car door, and I opened mine,  we both wept…what a happy reunion!! She was on her way to the Office for one last cleaning, but felt prompted to come to the Mission Home first. The Lord is aware of our needs, and the deepest desires of our hearts..I know that. 

Arriving back in Montreal, it was so fun to have visitors! Danielle, Claire, Lucy, and Martine joined us for  Mount Royal Zone Conference on Friday August 9th at Papineau Building, but they were independent tourists who hopped on the subway, on busses, and walked all over Montreal exploring, and seeing many things and places we haven’t even discovered. Pdays if we take them, give us little windows of sightseeing, and we did have a few chances to do that with our guests. 

Saturday Baptisms for Nigerians Tanya, and SisterTai were just lovely. Richard baptized Sister Tai.

Monday marathon office meetings is where we visit with our Seniors, our Office Staff, and all our Zone Leaders, Sister Training Leaders, and our Assistants. Usually we are home around six. 

Tuesday, August 13, 2019 beautiful drive to Ottawa with Danielle, Claire and Lucy..(Martine was visiting her friend judogian Lorraine Methot) 

While Richard conducted interviews, the girls and I drove downtown to ooh and aah over the stunning gothic Parliament Buildings,  and tour the senate in it’s temporary new location at the old, old train station, while the ten year restoration of the original Senate is underway.

Touring the Royal Canadian Mint as a child had an impression on me, and Claire, Lucy and Danielle were just as thrilled!! 

A stop by visit with my Uncle Allen Hicks was fun, although I don’t think he had a clue who I was!! Last year he received an award last year for practising dentistry for 70 years!!!

Light show on the Parliament Buildings Tuesday night was spectacular!!

Wednesday, August 14, 2019 Zone Conference…girls participated… and shared lovely testimonies. 

Sister Booth, from Ottawa told us that she has been providing Zone Conference lunch for 21 years!! And she added that she has not repeated her menus! She even uses cloth tablecloths and has cute centrepieces!! Anyone want to be on my Zone Conference meal preparation when we get home??..it would be so fun!!! 

Thursday we had a Pday, and spent the day playing at Lake of the Two Mountains at Oka Park where we enjoyed a beautiful sandy beach…Claire and Lucy loved jumping, and sliding on the massive astro jump water circuit. Such a fun day together!!

Friday back to the airport to bid farewell to our dear ones, and then for our flight to Newfoundland.

Zone Conference…we have three couples serving - the Bingham’s in Corner Brook, Myrer’s in St. John’s, and Newsome’s in Bay Roberts, as well as ten young missionaries.

Air Canada had oversold their flight back to Montreal so we had to coax and pray to get me on the flight!! I suppose if we hadn’t coaxed it would have been one way to not be able to speak in Sacrament Meeting the next day!!

We were thrilled to hear about the family bikeride/hike in Waterton on Saturday.Thanks for all the great photos…it is on my to do list to have several blown up!!

Our Sunday ‘speaking circuit’ has begun..yesterday we spoke in the combined YSA Branches. Dad gave his entire talk in French…amazing!! He bore his testimony in English, and I did the reverse…spoke in English and bore my testimony in French. Next week we speak in our Mount Royal Ward, as well as in the Mandarin Branch, (where hopefully there are translators!!) 

Excited to welcome our next wave of visitors…Aaron, Jennie, Isabelle, Luke, Maxwell, Charlotte, Jane and Peter tonight!!!! 

We hear wonderful experiences all the time from our young missionaries.   Grab a Kleenex or two as you read the following  experience shared by one of our sweet sisters:

“A really special thing that happened this week was meeting the sweetest little haitian grandma. She was walking on the sidewalk and we decided to go help her walk to wherever she was going, because our lesson had cancelled so we had some extra time. She was walking home from Church and had 2 more blocks to walk. We held her bag for her and she held onto my arm and we started to walk. We couldn't`t go very fast, it`s never taken me so long to walk 2 blocks before, but I learned so much. It wasn't`t the best weather to be walking in and I had remind myself what would Jesus do if he had been here. So I kept smiling and kept walking. I learned the importance of patience, remembering the Saviour, and taking time to enjoy peoples company and really just listening to them. I don`t know how much of an impact if any we had on that sweet old lady who just wanted to sing to “Papa Eternal”, but it left an impact on me. There was a theme we saw last week. That theme was take time to smell the roses. Not literally, but just to take time to be here for the people and not to just teach lessons. Be here to help old ladies walk home, and to help people carry their bags. But most importantly make sure the people here know that we are here for them. To listen, to talk, to help, to be their friend. ”

Isn’t that such a lovely experience that makes you want to be better…me too!!!

“Become One in Christ and Go Forth in Faith” 

has been ringing a true chord as we have presented our vision, and theme for the next two years. Six of our eight Zone Conferences are complete with Montreal  and Quebec City Zones to finish this week. We have been so impressed (again) by the caliber of our missionaries. They seem to be brighter, harder working, more committed, more obedient, happier, and generally on a raised bar. Comments they make as we train are outstanding, and we wonder if we are teaching them… because they certainly have deep testimonies, and amazing understanding  of gospel principles. It is a thrill, and actually exhilarating to interact, and listen to them. Our testimonies of this great gathering work grow daily. 

Cleanliness, dejunking,  and ‘how to clean a shower’ were my first trainings, and I think the magic of lysol toilet bowl cleaner was something new to them!  Hopefully soon they will all have clean tubs and showers!!

I’m going to post this …. It seems to have grown exponentially !!! 

Thanks for reading…we pray for all our dear loved ones, and for dear friends back home.

With Much love

Richard and Gayle, Mom and Dad, Grandpa and Grandma