Week of October 16, 2016

Monday I worked on preparing for my classes this week. When I reviewed the lesson plan for class example, I found that the individual we had used before was no longer available. Also two wives had been removed from the ancestor and the name had been changed for one of the others on the list. The screen shots were no good and the example was gone. I looked at another child in the same family and found there was a lot of work to be done, some with good hints and sources. It is difficult to teach a new concept using an example that does not illustrate what we are doing, so I redid some of the screen shots and the lesson plan. It was a fairly big task getting it prepared but it will make more sense. We’ll just have an attachment to the books we hand out.

I spent a little time on my classes for the family history fair for the stake. When I started I was told there would not be computers available and questionable internet. Now they have moved the classes to the library computer labs, so I need to pace the classes a little slower so people can keep up with me. It is almost harder to teach—much more effective for the students, but slower with everyone on their own computer. I tried working on the handout for a new class, but I got bogged down and decided to let it breathe for a few days.

Tuesday we started our Capstone classes. It went pretty well. We had about 46 people in the class—we split into two sessions the rest of the week so the students can all have computers. We attended mission conference in the afternoon. Pres. Hansen talked about becoming perfect, as in “Fully developed”. It was intended to give us hope for our future outcomes. Pres. Tate talked to us about the hope for the Celestial Kingdom. He spoke about the tendency we have to feel we are not “good enough”.

Wednesday I taught double sessions on how to do descendancy research. The classes both did really well and it was very encouraging. I’m sure they are not all proficient, but it seemed to go well. One lady found a man that needed temple work. She felt bad that he didn’t have a wife, so she looked and found a wife and several children. It was a very touching experience. There was also a lady from Germany we thought wouldn’t be able to find anyone, but we found her a couple of people. I thought it went well.

Since I was teaching all day I was concerned that my legs would get tired and I wouldn’t be able to stand. In the morning I prayed and asked for help that my legs would be OK and not hurt. At the end of the day I was very aware that my legs were not hurting and I had been able to stand without concern the entire day. It was a real tender mercy.

Thursday the classes both did well again. The students wrote up their lesson plans and practiced them on each other. The ones that demonstrated their plans did a great job. After the second class I was drained. We went to the Visitors’ Center and watched the three new Meet the Mormons movies and enjoyed them before going home.

Friday we had our class on memories. After we finished Ted taught Sister Shurtz a lesson plan he had prepared for her. She has been gone with a new grandbaby, so this was our first chance to meet with her. Afterward, the four of us went to dinner and the movie The Spirit of the Game, a movie about some missionaries in Australia that played basketball to help the Olympic teams train. It was good.

Saturday I was able to sleep in and it felt good. At 10 am I went out to the swap meet sheds and hung clothes and put things on shelves. We have some nice stuff, but the shed is quite empty. I’m surprised that we haven’t received more stuff considering all the people that are going home.

In the evening we had Stake Conference. It was a wonderful meeting. Our Stake Presidency discussed the area goals and their plan for implementation. The Vision is to help members “Become and help others to become true followers of Christ”. It is really amazing the vision they have and the spirit they convey to the members. As a missionary I have felt different than other members in the stake, but I am probably more the same than I realize. I need these steps as much as anyone. There was a big emphasis on studying the Book of Mormon and observing the Sabbath Day. It was a good meeting.

Week of October 9, 2016

Sunday was pretty much a normal day. We attended the broadcast, went home teaching, helped a friend with some family history, and went to church.

Monday our zone leaders spoke at the devotional and used an experience I had shared with them. A lady had approached me in the library one day to tell me that when we were training her she was overwhelmed and it all flew over her head. As she has been working on the floor, the training we gave has become a foundation for her and she is beginning to see more and more how everything fits together.

I worked on some family history in the evening. When I went to bed I had an unusual experience. As I was resting in the bed, after the lights were out, I was thinking about a family I have been trying to piece together and find documents for. Some of the documents have been very elusive. It has been frustrating. I seemed to see faces on the ceiling. There was only one at a time and they changed from one to another fairly rapidly. They seemed to be made of clouds—not hard edges like in a photograph but more like looking through a fuzzy mirror. I had the impression that these were the ancestors I was looking for and they were there for me.

Tuesday we had two Tree classes. We will be taking them over in November after the missionaries doing them now return home. The classes are intended to assist missionaries who don’t get the understanding they need in initial training. Some of the missionaries who have been teaching these will be released back to their zones. We will continue to use one who is an excellent teacher. I know it will take some time for the transition to smooth out, but I am looking forward to having more to teach again.

Wednesday we had two classes and also a staff meeting. We were given assignments to revise some of the handouts, and I had the impression that we would move the teaching assignments around a little but still use the same class handouts once they are fixed. My Sources enrichment class is being merged with the Tree class on sourcing. The Tree class will just cover internal sources and my enrichment class will focus on external sources. I think that is a good approach. I just hope I can make it work.

Thursday I worked a bit on a class handout. We had a class scheduled for the afternoon, but when we got there the class had been bumped due to room availability. It made me sad since this was the last class the old group would have taught. It would be frustrating to have your last class cancelled. We did a little research instead.

Friday morning I taught the Unique Searches Enrichment class. We had about 26 people in the classroom that seats 23 so it was over-full. I think it went well. We allowed some time to look for the students’ own records so it was of more interest to them. I didn’t get to do all the things I wanted to, but I think it was important to give them the time for their own records. In the afternoon nnother missionary taught Land Records. She always does an excellent job and the students love her teaching.

Saturday evening we had a pot luck dinner for the missionaries that came out with us from the MTC. There were originally 54 of us so they split us into two social groups. The last couple of months we’ve met together and it has been a lot of fun. (We don’t do a lot—just one activity a month—but it is good to be together.) It was a rather bittersweet evening. We enjoyed wonderful food—most pot lucks are like that. Tonight after eating Elder Briggs opened it up for anyone that wanted to share a thought. Most of the departing missionaries said something. Elder Miller recited a poem that was cute about some Irish men that was funny—the object was that they couldn’t count and keep names straight. He said that’s about how he is with family history—he has trouble keeping the names and numbers straight. It was a fun thing.

Another missionary told about doing family history research in the South. She said when you walk into the courthouse and they ask if they can help you say, “My granddaddy fought in the great War of Northern Aggression.” Then they throw the doors wide open and give you everything they have.

It is sad to see so many going home. It has been a real good thing for me to feel that I started out knowing (even briefly) so many missionaries so I started with friends. Our group has been scattered throughout the mission and Elder Briggs made the comment that when we came we were a real boost to the mission. The converse of that is that when we leave it will hurt a bit. Many are staying at least another six months, but there are many going and I will miss them.

Week of October 2, 2016

Sunday we watched conference on the internet. Our daughter’s family came for dinner. We had parked our car in a lot across the street to save them a spot. The parking is unbelievable since we’re just across the street from the Conference Center. We babysat their younger children they attended conference. It was fun to see them again.

Monday we had a class in the morning then met Heather for lunch at City Creek. We had a good visit. After eating we walked on Temple Square but it was super cold. We stopped in at the Tabernacle then the Visitors’ Center. The other kids really enjoyed walking around looking at the displays. It was fun.

Tuesday I taught a class on FamilySearch Partners and we had 29 stuffed into our room that holds 23 so we turned people away. Shortly into the class one of the missionaries found the other lab was empty (it holds 32) and they allowed us to move the class. It was much better—everyone had a computer and the rows are more spacious so it is easier to walk in to help the missionaries. I thought it went well. I was a little surprised at the turnout, but I was pleased that so many wanted to take the class. 

We had another class in the afternoon in the larger classroom and we filled all but one seat. Several people came early to reserve seats. After class we went to the temple. It was nice not having to rush over to make the session. I enjoyed it.

Wednesday we had a packed room again for my Sources class. I assumed we would move to the other lab, but we weren’t able to get it so we had people in the aisles. Before class started I heard a lady compliment to her friend. That made me feel good. I had decided to teach using real examples from my own tree then have them look on their trees for a similar source and practice attaching. This was a last minute change so it wasn’t as smooth as it could have been, but I thought it went very well. We are thinking we will teach one class on just internal (FamilySearch) sources and one class on external sources. I can see the value in both approaches. I really enjoy teaching it so I hope I get that opportunity.

In the afternoon we had a class on Correcting Relationships. The computer didn’t do what it was supposed to for some people, but it was a good class. There had been an accident on the freeway—a tanker had dumped ammonium nitrate and traffic was closed both directions for several hours. Some of the students were late arriving and I’m sure some were concerned about getting home. It was going to rain in the evening so my weekly walk with my French friend was shortened.

Thursday the class was full and overflowing as well. There wasn’t room for me in the classroom, so I worked out on the floor. I met a couple after lunch to help with family history. What I had prepared was not what she needed. I gave her the information I had, but she mostly wanted some suggestions on how to involve people. I gave her what I could but it was mostly off the cuff.

Friday was our Temple & Research day. We spent most of the afternoon at the library doing research. Ted worked at attaching sources to his American family—I spent most of the time attaching sources to records for Finnish families and resolving some merging of people.

In the evening I went to the French sister’s apartment to make the dessert for the Branch International Dinner on Saturday. I am on the French committee and was assigned to do the desserts. She helped me mix kefir (a milk based culture) with frozen fruit. The original plan was for us to pour it into cups over Vanilla Wafers and put a berry on top then put it in her refrigerator, but she had something come up and may not make it to the dinner, so we just mixed the berry/kefir blend and put it into containers to store in my refrigerator.

Saturday morning I put the cookies in the cups, sweetened the kefir mixture and poured it into the cups. The biggest challenge was that some of the cookies floated and I had to force them to the bottom again. I didn’t put the fruit on top yet, hoping it would set up again before evening. Ted and I drove to Ogen for my aunt’s funeral. It was so good to see the cousins again and we were able to have a good visit with two cousins I haven’t seen for years. It was a lovely funeral. One of my cousin’s daughters was a pallbearer which was unusual but very sweet. It was so good to hear the many wonderful things that were said about my aunt. Funerals are wonderful occasions to learn all the best there is about people.

After returning I finished the desserts and we attended the international dinner. It was lovely. There were about 12 countries represented so it was difficult to choose what to eat and I ate more than I should, but it was fun. It was a good activity.

100 Years Old - Utah State Capitol Building

We found out there would be a fireworks display in the evening to celebrate the 100^th anniversary of the State Capitol Building. After the dinner we walked up to watch the fireworks from across the street. We sat on the wall in front of an old building. When the test firings went up they seemed really close, especially with the wind blowing our direction. When the actual display started I thought I got something in my eye and had to shut it for a minute. After a few minutes a fireman came to have everyone move back to the building. It was only about 20 feet further away and probably not much safer. I have never been so close to a fireworks display. They were literally right on top of us. It was spectacular but a little scary. I even got a little ash on my jacket. Afterward we enjoyed a nice walk home. The night air was refreshing.

Week of September 25, 2016

Sunday we went early to hear the Tabernacle Choir dress rehearsal they do before every broadcast. It is just the same as the broadcast except there are no pictures on the TV monitors. After the broadcast we took my sister to the airport and dropped her off. We drove to Orem to attend church with my sister Sue since we were having dinner afterward with my brother Wayne and his family who had come for the reunion. We enjoyed a good meal and a good visit.

Monday we had a class in the morning then I met my brother and his family to do some family history afterward. I helped his daughter find some family names she didn’t’ know about and my brother worked with a missionary to find the parents of Margaret Morgan. It was fun.

Tuesday we had another class. I did some work on the Finnish records. I’d found a man who had 20 children with two different wives. I knew that several children died as infants, but when I did some more research I found only 3 of the 20 lived to be adults. That would be so heart breaking for anyone. 

My brother had asked me to look up some information on a supposed mother of Margaret Morgan. I checked a couple of things but wasn’t able to find an answer for him. I found that the source on the record that tied her to our Margaret Morgan was for a Margaret Morgan born 15 years after ours. I also found a history of Margaret Powell by a granddaughter that gave a brief history of Margaret Morgan. It said she only had one sibling. The family in Family Tree has five children, two Margarets and two Davids, each of which overlap the others in their lifetimes. I was able to find some parents that probably belong to our Margaret Morgan’s mother, but they don’t belong to the mother in Family Tree. We need to find the sources for the correct lady then fix the Tree. I emailed my brother to let him know what I’d found and so he could take care of it.

Utah State Capitol Building

I copied the handout for my class on Wednesday then headed over to Temple Square for the Salt Lake City bus tour our zone was doing. We rode for about 1 ½ hours in an open air bus around the city. It felt so enjoyable to be in the open air. When we got back we stopped to say goodbye to our Finnish friends then went to dinner with Elder and Sister Shurtz. We have been their home teachers and friends while we’ve been here. After we got home we went to help a friend move things to her car. She leaves for home tomorrow.

University of Utah

Wednesday I taught my IrfanView class to a full room. They did well and I enjoyed it. One of the ladies told me that one of her coworkers had said that when she found I was teaching the class she was glad because she thought I was a good teacher. That made me feel good. I did a little work on the Finns again before the afternoon class on temple submissions. I was able to complete the work on one of the families.

Thursday we had another enrichment class. In the afternoon we had a group discussion about Certification of Family History Consultants with Mike Sandberg. Afterward he recorded the experience of one of our missionaries in the Capstone class. It was very rewarding to hear her comments and what it has done for her to learn this technique for helping others. (Capstone classes are taught to missionaries getting ready to go home as a preparation for their possibly serving in family history callings in their home congregations.

Friday was another enrichment class on City Directories. It was really good and I learned some good things. After class we drove to Provo to attend the Provo City Center Temple with my sister Sue and her husband. It is a beautiful temple and we enjoyed being there.

Saturday we had tickets for the morning session of General Conference. Our seats were in Plaza 1, the farthest section to the right at the very front, right where all the General Authorities and their families came in. It was amazing. We had to look at the speakers’ profiles, but we enjoyed seeing so many of the people we’d only seen at a distance before. It was an amazing session and I really enjoyed it. In the afternoon we watched the second conference session on the computer. It was also really good. I’m grateful for the opportunity to hear from our leaders. In the evening Ted attended Priesthood Meeting at the church across the street. I listened to part of the meeting while I did some things at home. It was really good.

Week of September 18, 2016

Sunday we met a lady at church that said she wanted to join the Church. She had just arrived in town and had met the sisters at the visitors’ center. Ted and I walked back with her to reconnect with some sisters after Sacrament Meeting so she could be taught more. She was going to stay at the homeless shelter and she really needed sleep, but they didn’t open until later.

Monday we had an inservice class on doing research in Scotland. It was really informative. There is just not enough time in the day to do everything it would be nice to do. We attended a Tree class on adding and editing. We will be taking over the teaching of Tree classes in November so we want to attend all we can before then. Tree classes are somewhat of a review of the initial training we received when we arrived. Some missionaries like to take the classes to better understand what they were overwhelmed with the first time.

Stained Glass Window in Process

 Tuesday after an inservice class our zone went to visit the art institute at Thanksgiving Point where they make windows for many of the temples. They are also making a series of around 56 windows for a Roots of Knowledge display at UVU in Orem. They were working hard to finish the windows because they have an open house in November. It was really fascinating to see the process that they’ve gone through and the making of the windows. We were not able to get pictures of any temple windows, but we saw several for Paris and Rome.

Roots of Knowledge - Signing of Declaration of Independence

Wednesday we had an inservice class on research in England. My sister Cathy who is visiting for a family reunion wanted to attend classes while she’s here, so we did. After the class on England there was a discussion with Mike Sandberg who does Find, Take, Teach. He had us share experiences then discussed what they are putting together to “certify” family history consultants. It is a list of activities that consultants will do in order to become qualified to help others. It was really interesting and did not come close to being completed. They scheduled another time next week to meet again so his group could move forward with their initiative.

In the afternoon there was a Tree class on Memories. Afterward we looked at a few records but we really didn’t find anything. We met my sister Sue and her husband Roger for dinner in the evening. We enjoyed a good meal and a visit. We stayed way too long so we were late getting home, but it was fun.

Thursday we had the thought and scripture and prayer for devotional. Ted wasn’t feeling well so he came home after that. At the library my sister found a death certificate for one of her husband’s aunts that gave her correct parents’ names. She was really excited. We then went to a meeting with some of the FamilySearch engineers. They work in the Record Hints and Historical Records searching area. They told us how searches work and why different pieces of the tree work differently. They gave us insights into what’s coming and what they are hoping to accomplish. It was really fascinating.In the afternoon we attended the Historical Records class for Tree. It was quite good. When it was over Cathy made the comment that this was exactly what she needed. I’m so glad.

Friday we attended a class on Record Seek, a program that creates sources from other websites and puts them into FamilySearch. It was really interesting and looked like it would be a good idea to use it for some things. We went to The Lion House for lunch and enjoyed it. We sat next to two of my cousins and had a brief visit with them. After lunch we went on a tour to the top of the COB, 26 floors up with an amazing view of Salt Lake City. It was fun. We spent a little time in the library then went to visit my uncle and aunt in town. There were cousins at both houses so the visits were even more fun than expected. We got home just in time to grab a bite to eat then headed over to a concert in the Assembly Hall. It was a couple playing duets on the piano. I enjoyed it, but I was really tired. The weather had turned cold and rainy so it was good to get back indoors after returning home. It was a fun day.

Temple Square from 26th Floor of Church Office Building (COB)

Saturday we had thought we’d have to work at the sheds, but the couple that was scheduled changed plans to do it. Cathy and I went out to help anyway and hung clothes while an elder cleared up some bags of dishes. (Cathy wanted to experience the mission life for a few days.) I was amazed at the number of people that came during the specified time—it hardly ever happens when we are there.

After we changed our clothes we drove to a luncheon with the Hales cousins to celebrate Grandpa and Grandma Hales’ 100^th wedding anniversary. It was really fun. My aunt set it up and had prepared several vignettes from Grandpa’s journal for people to read during lunch. It was so good to visit with those who came. All of the cousins weren’t there, but there were some from each family and many I hadn’t seen in a long time.

Hales Cousins Celebrating Grandpa and Grandma Hales' 100th Wedding Anniversary

My aunt had got tickets for us to Women’s Conference. We got back to Salt Lake just in time for me to pick up my notebook and go to the Conference Center. I went to the closest row to the front that I could. The seats were amazing. They were in the second section from the right, just where all the General Authorities come when they enter the room. We (my sister-in-law Jaada and two of her daughters) saw several of the leaders as they came in. At the start of the conference, the entire First Presidency came in. They could not have been 30 feet away. It was amazing. When the prophet left, he paused to wave to everyone. It was very touching. He looks very weak, but he was able to walk in and out on his own.

As I was entering the row we sat on I was behind a family with two women and two young girls. When one of the women turned around I recognized her as Sister Julie B. Beck, former General Relief Society President. We saw several wives of General Authorities. Sister Beck’s secretary came by a couple of times trying to set up a golf date. She explained that after she was released her son-in-law bought her a set of clubs so she could learn to golf. She said she does well with her grandchildren because they don’t know any better. At the end she bumped my shoulder slightly and immediately put her hands on my shoulders to apologize. She left them there for several moments while she visited with someone. It was touching to me. She visited briefly and wished us well. I realized she was a very normal person. On the way out we ran into Maryellen Smoot, another former president who my sister-in-law had been working with on a recent RS meeting so she stopped to introduce herself to Sister Smoot. It was an exciting evening.

Week of September 11, 2016

Sunday we attended the blessing of our new granddaughter. Our son-in-law gave her a beautiful blessing and there was a good spirit there. Afterward we had a lovely breakfast and a good visit. When we returned home we caught the last part of our regional conference. In the afternoon we went home teaching to the Shurtz family and Sister Reeves. All leave in October, so we will be getting new assignments after that. I will miss the Shurtz. They are some of the first people we met at the MTC in our group and we have very much enjoyed their friendship.

Happy Grandma and Darling Baby!!

Monday we had a staff meeting in the morning to discuss our Capstone classes for missionaries going home. I think it will work well. I spent the afternoon doing research. I was able to get some help from our Finnish sister. In the evening we had our Hail and Farewell dinner. There are so many missionaries going home in the next two months it is unreal. I think we only had about 9 or 10 new ones and probably around 40 going home. It was sad to see so many good friends standing with those leaving.

Tuesday we had our first Capstone class. We will meet with everyone on Tuesday morning then split into two groups the rest of the week. We had about 60 people this morning. Ted taught two classes and did well. We finished early so we raced to the temple for the noon session. After the session we attended mission conference. The weather has turned cool and I am enjoying it being cooler than it has been.

Wednesday I did some research when I wasn’t helping missionaries. I didn’t have to teach, but the classes really don’t need a lot of help for most of the work. I have been trying to unravel a several generational family and I’m trying to get it done before our Finnish missionary leaves. She looked at a couple of things for me during breaks—she is such a sweet lady.

Thursday I taught Partners in Capstone. It went well except the class was so full and the clip-on microphone wouldn’t pick up my voice so I had to talk really loud to be heard over the rumble of voices. I wasn’t sure I would make it in the afternoon, but the class was smaller and I was able to use a laser-pointer to point to things on the screen so I could stand at the podium. It is sad to me to see so many of my friends from our group in the audience, Elder and Sister Aromaa from Finland, Elder Wheatley (my new-found cousin), and missionaries we have trained as new missionaries all getting ready to leave in the next few weeks.

Friday as we left our apartment I discovered we had a voice mail from Elder Barber asking me to call as soon as possible. The missionary that was supposed to teach had called him around 7 am to say she was taking her husband to the hospital and would not be there to teach. He wanted me to teach the Sourcing class. Fortunately, I had the class outline in the packet for the missionaries and I’d taught it a couple of times so I was able to step in and do it. I think it went well. We had some real beginners in the class and Sourcing is definitely an Intermediate class so we had some struggles. We ended with a video by Elder Renlund quoting a scripture from Ezekial about the waters running out from under the doors of the temple and increasing as they go. We used this to introduce the Find, Take, Teach session next month. I had invited a couple of sisters who had been in the class last month to share their experiences. It was an amazing experience and the Spirit was so strong it was hard for me to talk. It was a very positive way to end the week.

The other trainer arrived during lunch. Her husband was home and doing well—actually he had gone back to the temple to finish his shift and thank the people who had helped him. She was a little shaken but she taught in the afternoon. It was a totally different class. We closed with the same video and a couple of testimonials that were amazing.

After class I visited with our Finnish missionary for a bit. She was trying to help me find a family that has eluded me. She told me that she thought I was a very Finnish American. She said I was humble and reserved like the Finns. It was much better the way she said it all, but I was flattered by the compliment. I will truly miss her and her help but also her friendship. She is a real sweetheart.

In the evening I attended a meeting for an international dinner we are having at Relief Society. I am on the committee for France and will be making the dessert. One of the sisters had a bunch of frozen fruit in her freezer that she wasn’t going to be able to use before she goes home, so that will save us a few dollars.

Saturday we got together with our zone for a potluck at the home of one of the Church Service Missionaries that has finished her mission. It was really fun visiting with everyone on a more social note.