Week of June 19, 2016

Sunday was Father’s Day. I couldn’t find the card I’d bought for Ted—it was in a really safe place. I managed to fix him a nice meal and he had calls from the kids. I made cinnamon rolls for a sick friend and left out the cinnamon so I sprinkled it on top. I think I’m losing it.

Monday we had a new group of missionaries. They are a really sharp group. We discovered a few errors in our handout for the class—I believe it is a never-ending task to get them right. Things change so fast.

Tuesday we had a full day of classes. Ted taught and did a good job. I worked on revising documents and doing a little family history research. After class we went to the temple to do baptisms. I had memories from my childhood of doing baptisms in the Salt Lake Temple. I remembered the font in the middle of a very large room, sitting on the backs of the oxen. The room with the font now is not large at all, being just big enough to hold the font and a few benches around the sides. I was really glad to have the opportunity to do these.

In the evening we walked to the Brigham Young Park to enjoy a concert. The air was wonderful and felt so good in the shade. I didn’t know any of the music, but it was a beautiful night and the walk was short and sweet.

Wednesday I taught Historical Records. It went well and the class did a good job of keeping up. I enjoy teaching this particular class and I am grateful I have been assigned to do it. (I haven’t done it for three months.) We were out by around 3:30 so I did a little research before going home. My friend and I walked to Smiths on 6^th Avenue to get some fruit. She would have walked longer, but it was enough for me. I also went to say goodbye to a lady we have home taught who leaves Thursday.So many missionaries have finished and are going home.

Thursday I taught the Partners class on Ancestry.com and MyHeritage. We had received word that MyHeritage was no longer going to have their newspaper collection unless they could successfully renegotiate their contract, but I couldn’t remember the date that would happen. As it turned out, when we did our newspaper search, we got mixed results and the missionaries were unable to find very much when they did their own searches. It turned out the newspaper collection stopped yesterday. We will need to revamp that section of the lesson. Change is the only constant.

After dinner we met a friend and went to the Tabernacle. The Tabernacle Choir presented the concert they will do on their upcoming tour of Europe. We sat on the front row and took extra bench space so our friend could rest her leg on the bench. (She is wearing a leg brace for a broken knee.) We all really enjoyed the concert and the walk home was good.

Friday we started late since the rest of the zone was on Temple & Research day and our class didn’t start until 9 am. We held the class in the Training Lab of the JSMB where new missionaries are trained. They have two different configurations on the computers so it makes it difficult to give instructions. The students needed more help than usual so I was up and down helping a lot. It was mostly navigation issues, but once a student gets lost it is difficult to get them back with the class.

The afternoon class was on Honoring Our Immigrant Ancestors. After the class the teacher provided us with a template to create our own “banner” for an ancestor. These banners are about 2” by 9” and are a very brief bio of an ancestor with name and immigration information, who created the banner, and usually a picture or symbol representing the ancestor. I used Christian Hogensen, my 2^nd great grandfather from Norway, and told about his conversion and early life in Utah/Idaho. It was fun. I stayed after everyone else had left and worked on it.

After I finished the banner, I finished organizing the research I’ve been doing in Sweden. The names have begun to be confusing to me so I am having trouble keeping track of where I am and what still needs to be done. I made a list and devised a numbering system that is not wholly satisfactory to me, but it will work. I am now able to see who I have records for so at least I can tell where I am and what still needs to be done.

We planned to attend another concert in the park, this time a Scottish bagpipe band and Highland dancers. Our friend with the leg brace wanted to go, so Ted helped us get the walker down the stairs then he went ahead to the park to get us some good seats. I walked with our friend and had a good visit. Ted found her a chair on the front row with a chair for her to rest her leg on. The concert was really nice and we especially enjoyed the wonderful outdoor air.

Saturday I slept in a long time and it really felt good. I went through my Swedish research notes some more. I think I am nearly ready to get back into revving up the research again, now that I know what is missing.

Week of June 12, 2016

Sunday we went to the broadcast, our choir sang in church, we did Preach My Gospel with the missionaries, and we went home teaching. It was a good day.

Monday Ted and I spoke in the mission devotional for 3 minutes each. There were two other couples and two single sisters as well. It’s a pretty tight schedule, but it was an uplifting, meeting. We were supposed to tell about ourselves and share a spiritual experience. I shared that while I have been doing Swedish research there have been several times when I have lost track of a person or a family. At those times I have prayed for help finding them. Almost without fail, I have found the trail again within a short time, usually while looking for someone else. It has been a really good experience in having the Lord’s help in my life. We had another staff meeting to finalize plans for our classes this week since we are introducing a new curriculum. I spent time in the afternoon reviewing my notes and making sure I knew how to present the material so I didn’t run across issues that weren’t pertinent.

Tuesday we started our new Capstone curriculum. The lady I sat next to was very disappointed that she did not get the other classes that she had expected. She is going home this month, so she doesn’t have a second chance. I copied the handouts from Capstone 1 to her flash drive for her, so she was grateful for that. We received notice Monday night that the Presiding Bishopric needed the lab at 10:30, so we had to cut our class by half an hour. It went pretty well. There is room for improvement, but it is hard to say whether the shortfalls were due to hurrying or to unnecessary material. We were able to include one of the sections we’d planned for Wednesday so I could have the entire class time.

I spent some time doing some Swedish research and felt like I made some good progress. I need to find a way to show how the families connect to each other because I am finding it a little difficult to keep track of them. Some of them change their names each generation or church book depending on which farm they are living on. They also tend to have repeated names every generation. It is very confusing. I also need to be able to see what still is needed to finish families.

Wednesday I presented the class on Descendancy research. It went well and most people said they understood what was going on. I taught and demonstrated for two hours then they had an hour to do research on their own family tree in preparation for writing a plan on Friday. Most of them caught on and were finding people—or at least they appeared to have done so. I felt very encouraged. I need to shorten the demonstration and give them more time for their research. I felt really drained afterward, physically and spiritually. The students responded favorably and that’s always good.

In the evening I walked with my French friend. She told me she enjoys practicing her English. I taught her “take off your shoes” and “lean against the wall” while we were talking about my class. I told her my feet really hurt so I took off my shoes. She suggested that next time I lean against the wall to support my back. We came home through the Kimball Cemetery where Heber C. Kimball and many of his family are buried. It is a peaceful little place with very aromatic trees. And it is near our apartments.

Thursday I worked on finding birth and death dates for some of the people I’ve found. I made a few updates to my handouts, prepared notes for Friday’s class, and did some more research.

Friday the class didn’t go as well as I’d hoped. We were supposed to take the work we’d done Wednesday to find a person and write a plan to teach someone else to find the person. This is part of the Find, Take, Teach program where the family history consultant does advanced research to help someone have a positive first experience in family history without spending hours of time researching. We wanted them to practice with their own family tree. The ones who had done the worksheet Wednesday and were ready were able to move quickly to the plan. It turned out that many of the students we thought had found an ancestor to use did not understand or they couldn’t find the person again in spite of their notes. It seemed really chaotic. We spent quite a bit of time helping them one on one to find people and to help them get their plans written. We then spent a few minutes with pairs teaching each other from their plans and I think that went well. We finally had one man demonstrate his plan before the class. Most of the students felt the class was of value and I felt good about it overall.

I spent the afternoon updating some handouts and then doing Swedish research. I had one of the staff experts look at the records I had and give me some direction. We looked in some church accounts and found records that helped to prove the marriage timing for a couple. Plus I learned a lot about the way things worked. Apparently, the only recourse after the church books run out is the tax lists, so I need to go back to those and see if I can find a father for some of the ends I have come to.

Saturday we had our first turn at the swap meet sheds accepting donations. We had a couple of people that cleaned out their apartments and brought furniture and lots of stuff to donate. Our neighbor brought several pictures from her apartment—she feels it is totally bare. She brought a deck chair which we kept and took back home. It was sort of fun visiting with the people and seeing what was being donated. There are so many missionaries going home this week that the mission is really going to be hurting soon.

Week of June 5, 2016

Sunday at church we had an assignment to host in the foyer of the Joseph Smith Building. There are four congregations that meet in the building on Sunday, but the general public is not supposed to come in. We let them walk around the lobby and they are invited to attend meetings. It was a fun assignment and we were able to visit with several people that came in to “just look around”.

Monday we had a staff meeting to discuss the upcoming Capstone classes. This is a big change in our program and people have some real investments in how it should be presented. I am doing the piece on Descendancy Research and there was some discussion about how I planned to do it. Some have done it a different way and don’t see that there can be more than one approach to the process. I’m sure it will turn out OK, but the process of getting there is straight uphill.

Tuesday we had two enrichment classes. In the evening we attended a Concert in the Park, a series offered by the Church during the summer at the Brigham Young Park. There were four outstanding singers doing Broadway music. I really enjoyed being outside.

Wednesday I taught an enrichment class on Sourcing. We had been told a youth group was coming in at 11 am so we planned to end a few minutes early. Just before we started the scheduler came to verify that we would be out by 10 am. Apparently, there had been a time change late last week she forgot to tell us about. I did a rush job, cutting to what I thought were the most important concepts. It really threw me off balance to find out at the last minute.

I told the students I would work with them on the floor after class if they needed help. One lady wanted me to help her create a source for her grandfather’s sister so I said I would be happy to help. It turned out she did not have the source. She wanted me to find the obituary for the lady, an Italian in California with uncertain information. We looked for a while with her asking me where to look next. I finally said I would be happy to help attach a source, but we needed to find something a little easier. It took quite a while to finish. Another challenge she had was that she didn’t like the word “Citation” in the source. I told her that was the correct word because we were citing where something was. I think she thought I said “site”, so she was OK with it after that. After that I went downstairs to do Swedish research for an hour before going home and found several children in a family.

After I got home I went for my weekly walk with my friend. She wanted to walk on the Avenues so we went up 2^nd Avenue and walked to M St. I needed to get home so returned on South Temple. I enjoyed it but it took much longer than I should have given it. We always have a good visit and I like that. When we walked by the 20^th Ward chapel a man who was vacuuming invited us to come in and see it. Apparently, it is an historic site. The stained glass windows in the chapel are really beautiful and the wood furnishings were nice. We also took a peak at the Cultural Hall. There was a stage, a basketball floor, and a carpeted seating area at the end with a couple of seating groups there. Very unusual.

Thursday I planned to go to the international floor to find someone to review some birth records I’d found to make sure I had the correct people. When I got there I met a lady who had planned to attend the Sourcing class but had not. She said she would appreciate some help some time. We sat down right there and created a source for the material she had. She’s a quick learner and it was fun to help her.

I attended a library class on Descendancy Research to see what they taught. They said nothing about how to do it, just why and the benefits. In the afternoon I taught an enrichment class on Unique Searches and I thought it went well. I used some ideas from a class at Rootstech to start the class and I think that helped set the stage. At one point in the lesson I was saying something that I don’t recall, but it was pretty good stuff. I had a distinct impression that the Spirit was teaching through me. What a sweet experience.

After my class I went downstairs to the international floor and sat near to one of the consultants. When he finished talking with a guest I asked him to look at my records. He confirmed that I had found the correct birth records, which was exciting. At one point I looked where I thought some records should be and could not find them. I prayed fervently for help finding the family. I looked another place and there they were. What a blessing it has been to do this research and feel the Lord’s help with me. I continued to search and found some more families. I was able to find birth records for all the children. I would like to find some death records and follow the families through the years.

Friday I wasn’t teaching so I entered some of the people I’d found on Thursday into the system. I got most of them in. I need to add the death and marriage dates when I get them. I also need to add sources.

Brigham City Temple

After lunch my sister and her husband picked us up and we drove to Brigham City to the temple. On the way we passed an accident on the other side of the road. Some hay had been dumped and caught fire. Traffic was really backed up. We heard it was about 14 miles back. The temple is beautiful and very simple. After the session a lady showed us around. There are some mirrors set up in the main foyer that reflect a painting of Christ down the hallway. The Peach Blossom motif is used throughout the temple. There are a couple of paintings of birds in the Matron’s office that were painted by Pres. Boyd K. Packer. That is really a special addition. I was touched to be there and felt a good spirit there.

Saturday there was a block party at the library. I was able to see the Scottish bagpipe band. It started raining so most of the entertainment was moved inside. I stayed and did some research, getting some great help from a lady. She helped me understand who all the people were on a record I had found. She also referred me to some microfilms. On one I found the marriage record for a great grandfather and his wife. That was nice. On the other there were tax lists. I found a brother but not the father we had hoped would be there. I was really excited about the information and tools she pointed out.

In the evening our social group met at Crown Burger for dinner. We were supposed to have a pot-luck, but the rain moved us indoors. We enjoyed a good visit with the other missionaries.

Week of May 29, 2016

Sunday the Tabernacle Choir Broadcast was special honoring the armed forces. I felt so touched and so grateful for our country, even as messed up as everything is. I am grateful for the blessing of living here and having the freedoms we have. And I am grateful for all those who sacrificed so much to defend that freedom. They had all the veterans stand and I was proud of Ted and his military service.

Monday was Memorial Day. We started with a hike up City Creek to the road down to the capitol building and home. It took nearly two hours but we really enjoyed the nice weather and the scenery. The noise of the creek nearby was really soothing. After we got home , I did a little family history for a few minutes. I was amazed—I found a whole family for one of Ted’s ancestor’s children, including birth and death dates for many. We then drove to the cemetery to find Grandma and Grandpa Farnsworth’s graves. With some help from the office we went right to them in seconds. It was a touching experience to be there.

Ted in City Creek Canyon

We went to a movie in the afternoon. When we got home we decided to go out to the gazebo to play games. Another missionary joined us for a while. When the young elders finished their meeting a couple joined us then another couple of them came. We had to change the rules for one of the elders, but it was really fun.

Tuesday I taught my Beginning IrfanView class. We had 19 in attendance. The registration was full, but some didn’t show up. I thought it went well and I got good reviews. I’m not sure they are very reliable since we all like to speak kindly of each other. I worked on preparations for my next classes, but they aren't coming together very well. I did a little research after I got worn out on the classes. The family I was looking at had moved to Norway, so a sweet lady helped me understand how to do some basic research in Norway and I found most of the birth records for the family I found on Monday so that was good. I also found a marriage record for an ancestor that has been elusive.

Homemade arrowheads

Wednesday we had an Advanced IrfanView class and I learned a lot. It was great. We had many of the same group that had come Tuesday so it was an interesting experience. We spent time after class helping the students that wanted one on one help and that went well. When we got home I went walking with Sister Tauzin. We went up to the capitol building then cut down into City Creek Canyon. We walked up the opposite side of the canyon, coming out on 9^th Avenue since I had forgotten the way up to Grandma Farnsworth’s. We walked down by her house then went back down the path to City Creek. It was a bit strenuous but very enjoyable. I always enjoy our conversations.

Thursday we had another enrichment class on the Wiki and it went really well. The teacher conducted more of a conversation than a lecture, having the students look up information about one of the countries and reporting what they found to show them how to use it. After class I spent some time talking with another trainer about my approach to my upcoming classes and got some good suggestions. After that I was able to put it together and I finally feel good about it. 

Elder Olsen in reconstructed cabin

 Friday was our T & R Day—Temple and Research Day. We slept in and it felt really good. We spent most of the day at the library doing research. I did a few things on my class preparations and I’m starting to feel good about them. I was able to find birth and death records for several of the people I had found and put in some sources. I also attended a class on finding Swedish place names that was really good.

Jasper, the Fire Truck, with lots of freeloaders

Saturday we were out early to help set up the Swap Meet. We were planning to attend a mini-mission reunion for Farmington New Mexico Missionaries in Cleveland, Utah where one of the couples lives. We had received a text from another couple asking if we would like to ride with them. It meant we had to leave earlier than planned because they were taking a tour of the desert in the area. We made arrangements and were on our way by 8 am. We enjoyed a good ride and a good visit through some beautiful country down through Castle Gate and Price. The couple felt it was inspiration that suggested they invite us to ride with them. They want to get started in family history but have no clue where to begin. I suggested they come to Salt Lake and I would help them get started then introduce them to Danish and English experts that could do more for them.

Jail House in Oville; oops, forgot to fee the prisoner!

In Cleveland, we visited a bit then drove out to the rim of The Little Grand Canyon. It was amazing. I think it is every bit as impressive as the big Grand Canyon and probably less commercialized. We took several pictures and just enjoyed the scenery. After lunch we toured several cabins the man has renovated. He has an old fire engine that works so he took us for a ride around a few blocks with us standing on the back. I was terrified the entire time and kept thinking how totally dangerous it was. He has rebuilt a couple of homes complete with old furniture and decorations. There is a school house, a jail, a store, a blacksmith’s shop, and a couple he is still working on. The buildings have a sense of peace and wholeness in them and it felt good. He has several old pieces of farm equipment around as well.

The Little Grand Canyon

He is an amazing person. They bring up a couple of Navajo children each year to attend Scout Camp and Girls’ Camp and give them an experience that is totally different to what their lives are like most of the time. He has just teamed up with a man in the area that wants to do something of value with his life and they are really trying to help the Navajo people. His heart is still with them. It was an amazing day and one that I will remember for a long time. 

Missionary friends at The Little Grand Canyon