Today is P-Day. Ed and the Elders got up at 5:30 a.m. to play basketball. This is my best time to have an hour to myself. I just want to report that we are doing well. This week, I thought about home a lot more! The Bodell family reunion was being held at the ranch. I love those nieces and nephews, and my siblings... and it was an emotional thing to miss being with them. However, we are glad we came when we did. Our elders really do need us to be here.
I thought we were going to be together 24/7, and that we were going to come in at night and relax and watch movies and read books together. Not so. First of all, Ed is serving in an "executive priesthood" position. Secondly, women are not as "emancipated" as they are in America. The combination leaves me a bit humble. As you can all imagine, I have to bite my tongue at times. However, when I look at it as I did when he was serving as bishop, I am fine. I just look at the many ways I can help him behind the scenes and help the elders and the members, and I know I have plenty to do in my own roles.
Our evenings are very busy. The mission president's wife said to bring lots of movies and books, because we stay in, in the evenings. We have been busy almost every single night since we have been here. This week we had the opportunity of visiting a "humble, humble" member family home on Sunday night.
On Monday night, we went to a Family Home Evening with a couple of member families and some neighbors. It was very special to hear this father talk to his neighbors about how special and important Family Home Evenings are. He talked about the fact that Monday night, families all over the world were meeting and doing the same thing and making their families a priority. I had been assigned to be in charge of an activity for 7 people. I took Rook cards and spoons to play "Spoons". There ended up being 16 of us! YIKES! I know lots of games... but not in French! I was inspired to play "Mathew, Mark, Luke and John". I could put a French twist on those names, and then assign the rest a number from one to twelve in French. It was a big hit.
On Tuesday night, we had date night. We went out to eat, which enabled us to check off one more restaurant that we don't need to visit again. Then we went to the one and only clothing department store in town, for our first time. I was hoping to find a pair of black plain flat shoes, to wear with socks when I walk in the Grand Marche streets (sort of icky). They only have sandals. I will keep looking. We ended up in bed eating a wonderful piece of coconut cake with whip cream for frosting... and being glad that the Africans learned how to bake from the French.
Last night, we went to a funeral sitting for a young man in the ward who had passed away. It is like a viewing, but without a body. We just sat there for an hour and a half, and then gave his older brother our condolences, and left. The funeral is today.
Malaria mosquitoes only come out at night, so we were told it wouldn't be a problem for us. The joke is that every night I keep spraying my mosquito spray all over me and then I say, "OK... It is Malaria Mosquitoe time. Let's go." We take Malaria pills every day faithfully, so we should be fine.
Our food is ok. We are finding a few meats we like, and we can get several fruits and vegetables. Dad is learning to be a good sport about what is available. His overly sensitive nose has learned to accept the strong smells of the area... and all is well.
Wednesday, July 28, 2010
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Our Daily Exercise
The above picture is part of our walk... It is what I thought Africa was going to look like. This lush quiet green area is our favorite 3 minutes of our walk.
The elders daily schedule starts at 5:30 am. They exercise, eat, shower and get dressed. At 7:00 they have an hour of personal study and then at 8:00 they have an hour of companion study. From 9-10:00 they study French (or read the scriptures or Preach My Gospel in French, if they already know the language. Elder Chirwa teaches us French every day. We make our own schedule, so we try to get up before 6:30.
An important part of missionary work is to get exercise every morning. We are trying to walk every morning we can. The first day we drove to the beach and walked. It was ok, but it took 5-10 minutes to drive there and then back. The next day we walked around the streets, but even early in the morning there was a lot of traffic and it was a noisy experience. The 3rd day we decided to take off on one of our dirt roads and off on the trails that go through neighborhood areas. The poor ones are called "quartiers" (Quar-tee-ays) We finally saw the real Africa. The first day was humbling to see how they live, but everyone was very friendly and we realized that this could be an opportunity for us to be out in the areas like our elders are serving in all day, every day. Our morning walks have become a treat that we look forward to. At home we walk on the green belt. Here we walk on the brown belt.
I feel like Belle in Beauty and the Beast when we walk along the village roads saying “Bonjour”, “Bonjour” and “Bonjour”. And everyone’s countenance changes from a serious look to a big smile and a sincere “Bonjour” back to us. We have decided to quit being critical of the garbage… and be proud of those who take the time to sweep the dirt in front of their homes, and sprinkle water to keep the dust down. Early morning is a special time that we see the women cooking breakfast over their little campfires, children starting to get up and walk around, people brushing their teeth, women doing the laundry, boys carrying piles of sticks home to make the morning fires, and little old women sitting in front of the "houses" watching life go by. I don't have pictures of the people this early. I feel like we would be invading their privacy to take photos of them at this magical time of the day.
If we look closely we can see some special sights...
But our favorite part of the walk is probably the same part of when we walk at home... the time to be alone together and talk. We are enjoying each other immensely.
Friday, July 23, 2010
Our first real "P-Day"
We have been told that there isn’t much to do around here, so you get to be creative and make your own fun. Our last P-Day was one of those days.
President Calle is one of our 2 branch presidents. He speaks a little English and is absolutely wonderful to try to help us with whatever he can. When we go to church, there are only 2 other cars in the parking lot besides our truck. President Calle’s nice SUV is one of the other 2 cars. On Thursday, July 15, we all loaded into our truck or President Calle’s car and headed for north to Diosso. Our city is land locked and there are few roads going in or out, but the one road going north that takes about 40 minutes to drive, and that’s what we did. We drove about 25 minutes and then stopped at a village "boutique" for snacks.
President Calle is one of our 2 branch presidents. He speaks a little English and is absolutely wonderful to try to help us with whatever he can. When we go to church, there are only 2 other cars in the parking lot besides our truck. President Calle’s nice SUV is one of the other 2 cars. On Thursday, July 15, we all loaded into our truck or President Calle’s car and headed for north to Diosso. Our city is land locked and there are few roads going in or out, but the one road going north that takes about 40 minutes to drive, and that’s what we did. We drove about 25 minutes and then stopped at a village "boutique" for snacks.
We stopped at a slave trail museum, but it was only open on weekends, so we didn’t get to go in. We will do that another day.
Then we went on to the “gorge” (Gorges de Diosso) which is a beautiful lookout point that has red rock formations. It was amazing, if you look around the Congo. You don’t see anything else that hints of red rocks.
After the gorge we went to the beach,
where the guys played football. Ed amazed everyone on the first play as he grabbed the ball out of the air and ran a great play.
However, on the 2nd play, he tripped on the uneven African ground and wiped out.
He played the entire time with those 19 & 20 year olds, and had a ball.
The highlight of the day was going to the one and only golf course.
We went over to the only person we could see to see if they had a score card for Morse Travers’s collection. They didn’t. We talked to the man, who seemed to be the only one on the course (working or playing). He said that it costs the equivalent of $40 American to play, plus $20 for the caddy and club rental. I had the interpreter ask if they have twilight rates, like in the United States. He said “No” this isn’t the United States. In my very broken French I explained that we were missionaries and didn’t have very much money. The guy smiled and said in French… “Would you like to play one or two holes for free?” He gave us 6 clubs and 8 balls and the 13 of us headed off to play golf. The elders had a ball. They all caddied or hit or just laughed and ran around like little kids. Several had never played before and thought it was great fun. Ed will now take over a description of the play.
This is my caddy and our zone leader, Elder Chirwa.
After my drive I am actually in the middle of the fairway. Many of you may not think this looks like a fairway, as there wasn't much grass. It made the Kahuku golf course, which we nicknamed the "Eternal Sandpit" look quite plush. It is tough to hit a 180 yard sand iron, so I tried it with a 3 iron.
Looking at this sand trap above, you can actually see the difference between the grass and the sand trap. However, there is really not much difference. If you look below you can see that the grass, or mowed weeds, are sparse. Great form on this golfer, though.
My approach shot was headed for what I thought would be the green. There was a flag there. Little did I know that there would be no grass at all on the green. It was made of hard packed, oiled down dirt. The green actually had little walls around it, because an approach shot would actually roll and not stop on the green. By the 2nd hole, we got the idea that you wanted to hit short of the green and let it roll into the pit.
It was amazing how flat the green/dirt was. It was a very hard surface.
Nice Put. I made it! This hole in the ground reminds me of how when I was a little boy we used to dig holes to shoot our marbles into. There was a metal part at the bottom of this hole that held up the flag.
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Our First Week in Pointe-Noire
What a week! It has been a blur of shopping in the Grand Marche (the huge swap meet, open market where prices are less than the grocery store), 
running errands for the mission and elders,
(this is the shoe shop in the open market)
getting new elders settled in, French lessons, studying the scriptures, laughing with the Elders about funny experiences during the day, Ed trying to fix the water pump and the 220 electricity (which he quickly learning about), Kriss holding on tight while we drive through these crazy roads (Yes, Ed just drove through these 2 rows of taxis and cars... he has to do it often... and I just close my eyes and hang on...),
and getting to spend almost 24/7 with one another.
We have had major problems with our water pump and our electricity for over 48 hours. Ed finally gave up and called an electrician. The electrician called our plumber. A couple of days ago Ed was in the shower covered with soap, and the pump just stopped. There was no water anywhere in the house for him to use to rinse off the soap. Normally he would be the one to go out and turn on the generator, to hopefully turn on the pump. However, he was naked… and still covered with soap. He finally used his wet wash cloth to wipe off. I was just laughing, and we decided it gave a new meaning to “shower power”.
We have to carry lots of things around with us. Our missionary planners, a pen or pencil, our identification, etc. On Wednesday, Elder Gates looked down at his pocket on his short sleeve white shirt and said, “Look… I’m Steve Collins.” I laughed and laughed.
(Note: Steve Collins is our great Kids Are Music friend. When we go on a trip with Steve and need anything, he can always find it in his shirt pocket. Ed doesn’t normally have pockets in his shirts.)
I want to tell you a bit about the church here. We presently have 2 branches. We don’t have a district yet, so the Mission President serves as the District president. For our non-member friends…. A branch is like a ward, but usually smaller in members. However our branches have over 150 active members, which is enough to make a ward. But we don’t have enough endowed members, (which means they have gone to the temple to make covenants with the Lord and to be sealed to their spouse) to make up bishoprics. We only have a couple of endowed male members in each branch. We are hoping to do a temple trip this year, and have families sealed and more adults endowed. Today (Monday), Dad and I will start looking for new sights for a new branch to meet. Then, they will split into 3 branches, and hopefully be able to form a District by the end of the year. As we train more leaders, they will be able to form a 4th branch. This is a photo of the inside of our chapel.
The reason I have told you all of this at this point, is because Saturday we started our search for new apartments for the elders and today we start the search for a big old house or an old school to rent for a church in an area outside of town. It should be quite and adventure. There is no Craig's list, no want ads and no For Rent Signs.
running errands for the mission and elders,
(this is the shoe shop in the open market)getting new elders settled in, French lessons, studying the scriptures, laughing with the Elders about funny experiences during the day, Ed trying to fix the water pump and the 220 electricity (which he quickly learning about), Kriss holding on tight while we drive through these crazy roads (Yes, Ed just drove through these 2 rows of taxis and cars... he has to do it often... and I just close my eyes and hang on...),
and getting to spend almost 24/7 with one another.
We have had major problems with our water pump and our electricity for over 48 hours. Ed finally gave up and called an electrician. The electrician called our plumber. A couple of days ago Ed was in the shower covered with soap, and the pump just stopped. There was no water anywhere in the house for him to use to rinse off the soap. Normally he would be the one to go out and turn on the generator, to hopefully turn on the pump. However, he was naked… and still covered with soap. He finally used his wet wash cloth to wipe off. I was just laughing, and we decided it gave a new meaning to “shower power”.
We have to carry lots of things around with us. Our missionary planners, a pen or pencil, our identification, etc. On Wednesday, Elder Gates looked down at his pocket on his short sleeve white shirt and said, “Look… I’m Steve Collins.” I laughed and laughed.
(Note: Steve Collins is our great Kids Are Music friend. When we go on a trip with Steve and need anything, he can always find it in his shirt pocket. Ed doesn’t normally have pockets in his shirts.)
I want to tell you a bit about the church here. We presently have 2 branches. We don’t have a district yet, so the Mission President serves as the District president. For our non-member friends…. A branch is like a ward, but usually smaller in members. However our branches have over 150 active members, which is enough to make a ward. But we don’t have enough endowed members, (which means they have gone to the temple to make covenants with the Lord and to be sealed to their spouse) to make up bishoprics. We only have a couple of endowed male members in each branch. We are hoping to do a temple trip this year, and have families sealed and more adults endowed. Today (Monday), Dad and I will start looking for new sights for a new branch to meet. Then, they will split into 3 branches, and hopefully be able to form a District by the end of the year. As we train more leaders, they will be able to form a 4th branch. This is a photo of the inside of our chapel.
The reason I have told you all of this at this point, is because Saturday we started our search for new apartments for the elders and today we start the search for a big old house or an old school to rent for a church in an area outside of town. It should be quite and adventure. There is no Craig's list, no want ads and no For Rent Signs.
Sunday, July 11, 2010
First church experiences
We have a beautiful chapel. It is just phase 1, so there is just a tiny chapel (in which we fill up every seat) and no Multipurpose room. 
They are hoping to add phase 2, with a full size chapel and rec hall, which they really need. They want to split the 2 branches into 3 branches as soon as we (yes, Ed & Kriss Gates) can find a huge home or a hall of some sort for them to meet in. Pressure! They need it quickly. They are bulging at the seams in this building.
We are also looking for 2 more apartments for the young missionaries, and the Mission President says we can look for something different for us, if we want to. Therefore, we are back in the "real estate" business for awhile.
Our 12 elders are in good apartments and go home each day at dark (6:30 p.m.). They get up at 5:30 and go to bed at 9:30 p.m. They are a great group of young men and we are impressed at what an unbelievable job they are doing. It's hard to believe they were in high school a year ago and they are now real church leaders. They had a missionary activity on Saturday where they taught the lesson on the Restoration,
led the music, etc and then for an activity they had strings strung up in front of the chapel and the members had to hold on to the "Iron Rod," 
and find their way to the "Tree of Life."
The members were blindfolded and the elders pretended to be the voice of temptation trying to persuade them to leave the "iron rod." These are 2 sisters who were "tempted" to go sit down in 2 comfortable chairs and rest... which was following the voice of the adversary. They were so cute when they realized they couldn't make it to the Tree of Life. Yes, their clothes are very interesting, but remember... they are learning.
They had over 50 members and investigators attend, which was more than they had planned on, so everyone got half a banana and some juice for refreshments. Sacrament meeting was fun. We met many of the members and bore our testimonies in French. I must have done very well, because when I was finished it was Dad's turn. He stood up and walked around me, glaring at me, like "Who are you and what have you done with my American wife?" He was so cute, I leaned over and gave him a big kiss up at the pulpit and everybody in the congregation (about 130-140 people) laughed, clapped and cheered. (Not at all reverent for a sacrament meeting.) Then Dad gave his in French. I was way, way proud of him! He is really trying and seems to be getting it, slowly but surely. We are going to another Sacrament meeting of the other branch in half an hour.
Look very closely and see if you can see what they are all looking at.....
Yes! It is Dad's cute little photo book of all our kids and grandkids. The members absolutely loved it!!!
They are hoping to add phase 2, with a full size chapel and rec hall, which they really need. They want to split the 2 branches into 3 branches as soon as we (yes, Ed & Kriss Gates) can find a huge home or a hall of some sort for them to meet in. Pressure! They need it quickly. They are bulging at the seams in this building.
We are also looking for 2 more apartments for the young missionaries, and the Mission President says we can look for something different for us, if we want to. Therefore, we are back in the "real estate" business for awhile.
Our 12 elders are in good apartments and go home each day at dark (6:30 p.m.). They get up at 5:30 and go to bed at 9:30 p.m. They are a great group of young men and we are impressed at what an unbelievable job they are doing. It's hard to believe they were in high school a year ago and they are now real church leaders. They had a missionary activity on Saturday where they taught the lesson on the Restoration,
led the music, etc and then for an activity they had strings strung up in front of the chapel and the members had to hold on to the "Iron Rod," 
and find their way to the "Tree of Life."
The members were blindfolded and the elders pretended to be the voice of temptation trying to persuade them to leave the "iron rod." These are 2 sisters who were "tempted" to go sit down in 2 comfortable chairs and rest... which was following the voice of the adversary. They were so cute when they realized they couldn't make it to the Tree of Life. Yes, their clothes are very interesting, but remember... they are learning.
They had over 50 members and investigators attend, which was more than they had planned on, so everyone got half a banana and some juice for refreshments. Sacrament meeting was fun. We met many of the members and bore our testimonies in French. I must have done very well, because when I was finished it was Dad's turn. He stood up and walked around me, glaring at me, like "Who are you and what have you done with my American wife?" He was so cute, I leaned over and gave him a big kiss up at the pulpit and everybody in the congregation (about 130-140 people) laughed, clapped and cheered. (Not at all reverent for a sacrament meeting.) Then Dad gave his in French. I was way, way proud of him! He is really trying and seems to be getting it, slowly but surely. We are going to another Sacrament meeting of the other branch in half an hour.
Look very closely and see if you can see what they are all looking at.....
Yes! It is Dad's cute little photo book of all our kids and grandkids. The members absolutely loved it!!!
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Our New Home
Our home is very nice by African standards. We are very happy with it. It is safe and secure with a big concrete wall around it and a locked gated entrance to the driveway.
It is 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, dining room, living room and kitchen. It has a pretty yard, nice clean tile, very few bugs, indoor plumbing, hot water, a nice white tiled bathroom, a dining room, a living room with interesting sofas, and a cute kitchen. We also have our own laundry room, which is huge. Our bedroom is big and has a desk in it.
Our home is great, but very expensive. We pay for our own rent now. (Before we came, they used to prorate it throughout the couples in the mission, but the president has decided that wasn't fair to the couples whose homes were very inferior to ours. We have to pay a gardener $130 a month and we think the rent is about $2,300 a month. It is much bigger than we need, so we are going to look for a nice little apartment, if there is one.
This is the Elders apartment (the other side of our duplex).
Our home is safe and secure with a big concrete wall around it and a locked gated entrance to the driveway. We have our own laundry room, which is huge.
We are still getting used to all the smells... some are beautiful... some are not. Dad and I say that the thing we are most thankful for at home, that we haven't appreciated in the past, is our trash collection system in the United States. WOW! Huge, huge perk in life!
It is 3 bedrooms, 3 baths, dining room, living room and kitchen. It has a pretty yard, nice clean tile, very few bugs, indoor plumbing, hot water, a nice white tiled bathroom, a dining room, a living room with interesting sofas, and a cute kitchen. We also have our own laundry room, which is huge. Our bedroom is big and has a desk in it.
Our home is great, but very expensive. We pay for our own rent now. (Before we came, they used to prorate it throughout the couples in the mission, but the president has decided that wasn't fair to the couples whose homes were very inferior to ours. We have to pay a gardener $130 a month and we think the rent is about $2,300 a month. It is much bigger than we need, so we are going to look for a nice little apartment, if there is one.
This is the Elders apartment (the other side of our duplex).
Our home is safe and secure with a big concrete wall around it and a locked gated entrance to the driveway. We have our own laundry room, which is huge.
We are still getting used to all the smells... some are beautiful... some are not. Dad and I say that the thing we are most thankful for at home, that we haven't appreciated in the past, is our trash collection system in the United States. WOW! Huge, huge perk in life!
Our new city: Pointe Noire!
WOW! We are really here. Today we bore our testimonies in French! I don't know where to start.
First of all, a little about Pointe Noire. Our city is a "city" in that there are lots of people and lots of taxis and traffic. However, there are literally only about half a dozen buildings that are taller than 4 stories. There are a few main paved roads. All the other "roads" are made of sand and are very, very bumpy! (Like 2 & 3 foot deep wash outs). There are a few grocery stores (small) and everything else seems to be very small shops, from the size of our kids bathroom to the size of our living room. Things are stuffed into them!
The prices are usually very expensive (except for dried fish and rice, which the Africans live on.)
We have found OK frozen chicken (with bones and skin on), OK Orange Juice (no pulp), jelly, good butter and fabulous baguettes (long skinny loaves of bread baked fresh all day with a crispy crust that Dad loves). They don't have fresh milk, so we have the choice of powdered milk or something like a canned milk. I have gotten used to the milk, but Dad is still trying. The sugar & flour come in little 2 pound bags. There is good jelly. We had all the Elders over on P-Day to watch a temple movie, and for a treat we had peanut butter and jelly on baguettes. They hadn't had peanut butter for a long time, so it was a big hit.
Most of the people live in very, very, very humble homes. These photos are of the neighborhood 4 of the elders live in. They have one of the few homes in the area with water and power.
Most of them are smaller than one of our kids bedrooms with no electricity or running water. They have outhouses with a deep hole in the ground... and they carry their water from the nearest well. I haven't been in one of them yet, but when I have, I will give you more details. The homes are mostly made out of corrugated tin and some are cinder block or left over wood. They are built with a common wall. Absolutely no building codes here!!!
First of all, a little about Pointe Noire. Our city is a "city" in that there are lots of people and lots of taxis and traffic. However, there are literally only about half a dozen buildings that are taller than 4 stories. There are a few main paved roads. All the other "roads" are made of sand and are very, very bumpy! (Like 2 & 3 foot deep wash outs). There are a few grocery stores (small) and everything else seems to be very small shops, from the size of our kids bathroom to the size of our living room. Things are stuffed into them!
The prices are usually very expensive (except for dried fish and rice, which the Africans live on.)
We have found OK frozen chicken (with bones and skin on), OK Orange Juice (no pulp), jelly, good butter and fabulous baguettes (long skinny loaves of bread baked fresh all day with a crispy crust that Dad loves). They don't have fresh milk, so we have the choice of powdered milk or something like a canned milk. I have gotten used to the milk, but Dad is still trying. The sugar & flour come in little 2 pound bags. There is good jelly. We had all the Elders over on P-Day to watch a temple movie, and for a treat we had peanut butter and jelly on baguettes. They hadn't had peanut butter for a long time, so it was a big hit.
Most of the people live in very, very, very humble homes. These photos are of the neighborhood 4 of the elders live in. They have one of the few homes in the area with water and power.
Most of them are smaller than one of our kids bedrooms with no electricity or running water. They have outhouses with a deep hole in the ground... and they carry their water from the nearest well. I haven't been in one of them yet, but when I have, I will give you more details. The homes are mostly made out of corrugated tin and some are cinder block or left over wood. They are built with a common wall. Absolutely no building codes here!!!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Our Arrival in Point Noire, Republic of Congo
We have arrived and all is well!
After another night on the airplane we finally arrived in the CONGO! How great it is! We were met by the branch president and two of the elders. We had to go through immigration. The officer asked my address, and I must have looked stricken, because I don't have an address. Then he saw my nametag, and smiled and pointed to my badge and said "Missionary" and waived me through. We got our luggage and then stepped outside.
It feels like Hawaii... humid and warm, but it looks like an African city. It is different than Tijuana or Jamaica... it is just a very busy small city with thousands of blue and white taxis and blue and yellow minibuses and very narrow roads. A few of the roads are paved, but most are just dirt roads.
We have a small turquoise Toyota pickup.
I wondered why it had so many scratches on it. I now know why. Dad describes driving in the traffic as reminding him of driving the bumper cars at an amusement park. He is holding his own, but it is quite an experience.
We went out to eat for our first night with some of our elders. We are getting 3 more this week for a total of 12! They are darling and excited to have us here. Most of them speak some English, but one is totally just French.
Subscribe to:
Posts - Subscribe to RSS feed