Saturday, November 05, 2016

Dear Family

I think I talked to everyone this past week. It was great hearing how all the family is doing. I enjoyed the Halloween costume pictures. I’m glad all you grandkids are doing well in school!!

We have got tons of snow. Before leaving for work on Friday Dad had me come and look out the kitchen window. It was still dark outside and the Volga street lights were on. You could see the snow by the lights coming down so hard and it was swirling and whirling all around because of the wind. Both of us wanted to stay inside.

When it was time we bundled up and headed out. We were both plenty warm enough and with the snow being deep we didn’t worry too much about ice. We made it up the stairs and were in the entry way to the apartment complex the Mission Office is in. There is a narrow opening going up a small hill. The snow and drifted into, almost, knee high snow on one side. The other side was thick black ice. We stuck on the snow side and Dad let me go first. He said he wanted to catch me if I fell but I figured he just wanted me to pave the way through the snow for him. Thank heavens it’s been melting but there are puddles everywhere.

President and Sister Ottesen like to go for walks in the morning although I think its more Sister O spear heading this endeavor. When they walked on Monday President O almost fell about 10 times. One of those times he tweaked his back and has to lay low for a few days. See what exercising will do for you! Sister O got some Yak Tracks and said they worked really well on the ice. She could stride right out. Dad and I have some but we haven’t been able to get ourselves to venture out. They left for Kazan on Thursday and President lay in the back seat in the van the whole way. The roads are bad enough I’m not sure how much good it did him.

Sister O and I had Ramon drive us to Ikea on Wednesday. I bought a couple of fry pans for the apartment and Sister O was hunting for things to give the Volunteers for Christmas. Then we made a stop at the Metro store for groceries. I did find me a coat. I have a spring one and a deep winter one and I needed something in the middle. I’m glad I found one. We were gone most of the day.

Friday was a holiday for the Russians and Monday is also. It mostly just us in the office with the AP’s there for a while. We had district meeting at 12:00 so everyone came to share lunch at 11:00. Everyone was supposed to make something. The sisters made homemade (not from the box, imagine that) The Elders brought a potato salad and the AP’s brought Ice cream. I made a taco soup the night before. It turned out great. It has hamburger, onion, salt and pepper, taco seasoning, powdered ranch dressing mix, corn, and beans. Everyone loved it. Since I didn’t have many corn chips left I cut and fried up some flour tortillas they were a hit.

One of brand new Volunteers, Elder Kennedy, gave our district training on Friday and he did an excellent job. He was so quiet when he first got here so it’s great seeing gain so much confidence. He taught us about Charity.

So today we had lunch with the Krievov’s, (we bought them McDonalds; their choice) our branch president and his wife and son. His two girls were leaving with their grandfather to go to a theatre to watch a movie for the first time in their lives. They have never gone to the movies before. They tell us that neither of the grandfathers plays with the kids much. They tell us they look to Dad and me as an example of being a good married couple and good parents. Maria told me that she was expecting again and it’s a boy due in April. They have two girls and this new son will make 2 boys. We congratulated them and they said we were the only ones. Their parents and siblings and the neighbors all think it’s a bad idea to have another kid.

As a reward for the Volunteers working so hard on their language the Ottesen’s are taking all the Volunteers to a Ballet. The Saratov zone goes this month to Swan Lake and The Toliatti and Samara zones go to Swan Lake on December 15^th after zone conference. I’m really excited for it.

As a Christmas gift for the office staff we and the Ottesen’s are giving them each two tickets to the Nutcracker. We get to go also.  We didn’t expensive seats; they are 400 rubles which is a little over $6. The theater is beautiful.

Friday night I did laundry and made chocolate chips cookies. After we had lunch with the Krievov’s, we came home and Dad headed to the market while I started making Spaghetti. I decided on that for the dinner with the volunteers because I could make it ahead of time. I also made breadsticks. Then I made a pasta salad to take to NovoK tomorrow. After church, we will have a meal together at the branch.

From President Ottesen’s letter to his volunteers

Learning German as a 19 year-old missionary was unbelievably difficult for me. Period. And my 4 years of high school Spanish seemed to make the ordeal more difficult. I was not only the slowest German-speaker in my MTC district---I was also the only Elder who spoke broken German with a bad Spanish accent. I confess I had never before felt so inadequate………

There are many ways the Lord makes “weak things become strong.” The process starts with us seeing our weakness and coming to Him with the weakness. The steps? Recognition. Humility. Prayer. The Lord told Moroni in Ether 12:37, “Because thou hast SEEN thy weakness thou shalt be made strong, even unto the sitting down in the place which I have prepared in the mansions of my Father.”

Note that (in Ether 12), God is not offering to change Moroni’s weakness---he is offering to change Moroni.

As you give up your weakness through this grace-seeking process, I believe it is inevitable that you will learn bonus virtues like meekness, patience, long-suffering, and probably gratitude. It just happens. All those virtues will of course make you more like your Father in Heaven.

Well, I eventually learned to speak the impossibly difficult German language--but ONLY through His grace. I need to add that it took time. It took meekness. It took such effort. But it was a miracle to see my once (and very public) language weakness become an actual strength. It was simply amazing to me. However, I noticed that the Spanish accent never totally went away.

I know He is there. He knows you are here. In Russia. He put you here. With all your weaknesses. I believe that nowhere in your life will His love for you be more evident than when you watch Him turn your weaknesses into strengths ---and, in that process, I promise He will make you more like Him.

I love you all. We didn’t take any new pictures this week so I’m sending some random ones.

Love,

Mom