Weekly Update 6-14-09

It's 4:20am here but after a few hours sleep I kept thinking of all that we needed to do today so finally gave up trying to stay in bed. We only have the usual 4 trips scheduled this week but there are a bunch of things that need to be done here in town also to accommodate our return to Idaho in 7 days. We need to get to the Saret Center for TB tests and haircuts as that is probably our last chance for those until we get back from the reunion in Texas. That might seem like a strange thing to be worried about while in the Mission Field but it is hard to shake the habit of backward planning after 30 years in the military. That has often clashed with the easy going attitude of the Kenyans here so I have done a lot of pacing and cultivated a bunch more grey hair. President Mbondo recently was demonstrating to his congregation how he could tell that I wasn't happy when my plans were falling apart by mimicking my pacing. Have to admit it was rather humorous to see a short African mimicking some long Mazunga strides especially when he nailed it so well. We host FHE this evening so I need to get my companion back to the flat so she can make sure it meets her standards before the event. That means I will solo to the service center to pick and drop then make some deposits at the bank for the branches. Not sure what all our visits up-country will entail this week but we would like to spend most of our time saying goodbyes but will probably spend some time with keyboard and what I refer to as LDS English. Me and the mamas sing along with some of the LDS Hymns on CDs and review simple prayers in English. I have also recently got a branch missionary to help me translate the Sacrament Prayers into Kikamba which I have laminated and given to the students so they can follow along when the priesthood read it in English. I am hoping it will add to their Sunday experience by attacking a little of the language barrier.

As I indicated last update our little truck only missed one day going up-country this week. Tuesday in Kilili was rather uneventful except we did get all the paperwork finished for the baptisms the previous weekend and they had even gotten Erastus finished up as well. He is the young man whose family was involved in a medical emergency so had missed his baptism on Saturday. Wednesday the Assistants and I were in the Kulunga hills to interview the English speaking candidates there. Thursday in Kyambeke Sister Bishop taught keyboard while I worked with the Branch President to finalize the applications for baptism there. The English students there have quit making the long trek to class now that they have been baptized. Friday at Ilima saw Sister Bishop working with her keyboard students while I spent some time working with Anastacia. She had avoided the interviews on Wednesday because she was fearful of not being able to communicate her feelings in English. She does understand okay and I am hopeful of buoying her courage enough to get her to interview with President Taylor while he is visiting Ilima for Branch Conference on the 21st. Jennifer will also visit with him then as she was still struggling with Tea at the Wednesday interviews. President is planning to baptize them on the 27th along with some 8 year olds from the Branch. We did have a few ready for the joint baptism for the 3 Kulunga Branches on Saturday. There were 2 eight year olds and 37 convert baptisms. It really stretched the limit on the availability of white clothes for baptisms. A couple of the young men were in size 16 shirts whose short sleeves reached to their wrists. These guys aren't too used to getting the best anyway and their desire to be baptized certainly overcame any concern to be seen in clothes that were so obviously too large for them and they didn't mind sharing towels as we were a little short on those also. Peter, an older gentleman we were working with at Kyambeke, did not show up even though he had passed the interview requirements on Wednesday so we left some clothes and are hoping he had just misunderstood the time and date and that they were able baptize him yesterday.

We were in Mitini for the inaugural service there yesterday. I had hauled 15 loaner chairs from Nairobi up each of the 4 days we had passed through there last week. We then borrowed a table, another 10 big chairs and 20 youth chairs from Kyambeke after the baptismal service that we dropped on our way home Saturday. Still there were more people than sitting accommodations for the service yesterday. According to President Kaseve there was close to 200% attendance and after our last baptism their numbers were up to 80 members. I taught an investigator class about the Restoration with 22 attendees. The members had resurrected 4 benches from what the previous tenet to the facilities had left and the group was crowded together on those. I will get some materials to the young men serving as branch missionaries there and they will have to continue teaching and make contact with the Mission Office when the investigators are ready for baptism. The lead missionary in that group is Macarius, who we just baptized in mid May. He is excited for the opportunity to share his testimony with his fellow villagers. We can't help but be a little concerned as to the future of the church there with us not being backfilled right away if at all but then we remember that this is not our program and just trust that we have come close to accomplishing what was needed to equip these good people to carry out the Lord's plan on their own.

Well, will sign off and get started on the rest of my "to do list" for today. My companion has a plethora of items that have to be done before our departure in 7 days. My list is not quite as big as hers but I try to help out to alleviate her fears that we just can't get everything to fit the constraints we are working with. To that end I finished off the ice cream on hand making our last mango smoothies last week and I am trying to make sure all the cookies are gone too so that any food left-overs we have to haul to the other couples is at a minimum. A scout is helpful right.

We do have 4 more trips up-country this week which means just 8 more trips through the deviation mess at Athi River. The light at the end of the tunnel is getting much bigger. Looking forward to visiting with everyone on the other side of the world shortly.

Love ya,
Elder & Sister Bishop