Happy Memorial Day- May 25, 2015

I am so grateful to those who sacrificed so that I could have the freedoms I enjoy.   My parents always made certain that we understood that.  I won't be there to put flowers on the graves of my parents and Dad Dixon, but I am happy that Kaitlyn made the effort.

Boy, time sure flies here!  I can't believe we are at transfer time already.  It is such a time of change.  We see new missionaries, scared, excited and tired.  We see the missionaries who are leaving, scared, excited and seasoned.  Many work to the very last minute.  It is hard to let go of the wonderful missionaries who have made such a difference.  Many, many people have had their lives changed by the testimonies of these young missionaries.  I am proud to work with them.

We are working hard.  There is always something to be done.  We don't really have a preparation day any more.  During the week, we are in the office.  On weekends, we are often doing things with, and for, the Branch.  Don't feel bad for us, though.  There are so many others who work this hard, including the young missionaries.  We don't have their energy, though!

We attended several baptisms this weekend.  One, in particular, touched my heart.  It was a young woman about age 20.  Her family came in force to support her.  They were so great about supporting her in something that made her happy.  They were also impressed and pleased to know of the network of support she would have in the Church.

It reminded me of my parents.  They were like that when my siblings and I joined the Church.  I am grateful for my parents.




Our mission is about to enter the I-Pad world of missionary work.  It is exciting, but somewhat scary.  There are so many wonderful things that can be done by using the I-Pad, but there are also many, many things that can detract and even derail good missionaries.  They have received great counsel about being full-purpose missionaries and avoiding those things that could be harmful.  I plan on calling our neighbors, the Wrights, if we run into issues.  They worked on the I-Pad roll-out in New York.

We have spent quite a bit of time moving missionaries to new apartments.  Closing out apartments is not my favorite thing.  Many of them have fallen into disrepair.  The young missionaries don't always understand the importance of reporting things that need to be fixed, so the problems grow.  By the time we move out, some of them are in bad shape.  I am trying to find a way to encourage the missionaries to have the desire to keep their apartments in the best possible shape.

Just a couple of oddities that we have seen in our journeys.  We have noticed that a number of people dangle items from the trailer hitch on their vehicles.  This one is an angry bird.

Can't decide if they spelled it this way on purpose. . . .