Well here it is Monday evening again and I am just getting around to the weekly update. Had a lot of errands here in Nairobi today. Sister Bishops medicine arrived at the embassy so we made a trip there after turning in month end reports at the mission office and getting reimbursed for some stuff we had paid for out of our funds. Also, was working on a bit of an issue with the passports as they have a bunch ready to pick up but the new director of immigration or someone down there has decided to require the members to travel back to Nairobi to pick them up. This is a new requirement as Victor has been able to just pick them using a receipt in the past. There is some speculation among the missionaries as to what is driving this as the Minister of Immigration has seemed to give our efforts a fair consideration in the past. Am told that someone at immigration indicated that the Muzungus should just go home and the church can send the money to Kenya and they will hire local divinity graduates to preach the gospel for us. They find it hard to believe that we are here on our own dime and they want to take the money they think the church is paying us and use it to employ local Kenyans. That is just a little frustrating, especially when we think of the good people we work with up country that these people and their wrong deductions just make life harder for. It just seems wrong to make these people each spend a day and 1,000 shillings a piece to satisfy some bureaucrat's weird whim with some new requirement.
The folks in Kilili finally got a good rain last Saturday evening and we drove through a lot of puddles going to church there Sunday. Hope it keeps coming and that the Kyambeke and Ilima areas are getting more moisture also.
We also picked up a couple of mattresses today that we are taking to a family of orphans that the Kilili folks want to help out. Don't know the particulars yet other than that there are six children who sleep in two beds measuring 3 1/2 by 6 feet and are just currently sleeping on some old sacks. Hope these new additions to their sleeping arrangements will help out. We will take a couple of tied quilts from LDS Charities (those ones you Relief Society sisters work on) and some wool blankets that they have contracted to be made here locally. This is one of those fun feel good things to augment what I am sure are very austere conditions.
Halloween is not much of an event here as we didn't see any hype or promos in the stores. There are Christmas decorations starting to appear but I guess that is somewhat understandable as Thanksgiving is an American thing. President and Sister Taylor are hosting a thanksgiving meal at their home on the 27th for the local couples. The meal will be followed by some training. We were also informed at FHE this evening that the Madsen Family who works at the embassy here wants to invite all the couples to a Turkey dinner on the last Sunday of November. They are starting at 3:00 and we generally have a hard time getting back before 4:00 from up country so the jury is still out as to whether Sister B and I will make it. I mentioned to my companion on our drive home yesterday how nice it will be to one day do away with these 6 hour trips we currently wrap around our Sunday Service attendance.
We are watching with interest tomorrows elections wondering where this world is currently taking us and what kind of situations we will return to in another 8 months. It does seem like a lot of hope and assurance was offered in the recent General Conference if we each just try to follow the Savior's example and teachings. Let's all focus on that as we deal with the challenges we are called on to face here in the immediate future. God lives and loves each of us. We miss each of you and look forward to our happy reunion in 8 months. A special note to our children is thanks for your notes and pictures and we are anxiously awaiting those pictures of grandchildren in their costumes that haven't made it yet.
Elder & Sister Bishop
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