Most of our district before the show
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After the show...still missing our two office elders. They took off
before everyone got together to take this picture
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Before the show, we all met at our metro station and decided to go to a local Ukrainian restaurant. It is one Paul and I have passed many times. We have noticed it because there is always an Ukrainian dressed barker outside calling people to come into the restaurant. All 13 of us tried to squeeze into an alcove in the back of the restaurant but the sisters and ourselves ended up sitting at our own table. Paul and I had had a late lunch so Paul only ordered a vegetable salad and I ordered chicken soup....very safe food choices. The elders, on the other hand, got a variety a food items including one that, when it was served, we all about died. It was a pig's leg, we think. Two elders had ordered it together. One elder said it was good once he got down through the fat and into the meat but the other elder didn't like it at all. It is always as experience when you order food here....one never knows exactly what will come to your table.
The alcove we tried to fit into but couldn't, especially when
a recently baptized young man came to say good bye to Elder Melchor
and decided to stay for dinner
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Two of our favorite sisters
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Our two elders trying to find the meat
amidst all the fat on their pig's leg
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Because of transfers, our apartment became a place to drop off suitcases. By Tuesday night we had about 10 bags here, waiting to be picked up by those who were leaving Moscow for areas farther away. We are in a very convenient location so it is easy to pick up bags before or after transfer meeting as that takes place at the Central Building.
Only half of the bags left in our apartment for a couple of days |
After the transfer meeting, we had the privilege of having our own Elder Ebling eat one last meal with us before he leaves for home. We had planned a special lunch for our district meeting the day before (one that Elder Ebling had requested - teriyaki chicken and fried rice). At the last minute, he called and said he and his companion would not be able to make lunch. We arranged for him to come the next day to have his own special lunch. He brought the other elder who was going home as well as our own Elder Melchor. Elder Melchor had a couple of hours before his train was leaving for his new area. It was wonderful that we could visit this one last time.......and that they ate all the left over food from the day before. At district meeting, we had planned for 12 and only 8 were able to come. The office elders and AP's were super busy with all the new missionaries coming in that day.
A side note for all you seniors out there: The elder who came to lunch with Elder Ebling said he had been in a district that had a senior couple only once in his whole mission. That is so sad, as these elders and sisters so appreciate what we can bring to their missionary efforts and to their lives. There is such a need for senior couples in all the missions, but especially in Russia.
We attended the sign up night for our new English group on Wednesday night. Our friend Sergey was there. We had met him in our last English group and after the eight weeks of English discussions, he started coming to our institute class on Thursday nights. He is a bit old for that class but we haven't been able to tell him not to come, as he seems really interested in what we are teaching. We were so glad to see him talking with a couple of missionaries for most of the evening during sign ups. Come to find out, he has been having the missionary discussions with them and has attended church occasionally. We have set up a time to have him and these two missionaries over for dinner next Sunday. Hopefully it will all come to pass and be a successful evening.
Our Thursdays are always filled with lesson preparation, senior council, Institute and Pathway gathering. Because it was Halloween, our senior council played a family feud game instead of having a lesson. It was fun as we tried to guess the most commonly mentioned LDS songs, scriptures, Book of Mormon kings, family home evening activities, etc. It got a little heated at time but all in a feeling of fun and friendship.
At Institute, we taught about the importance of General Conference and how to get the most out of listening to it. The lesson went really well with lots of participation from the students. We love it when we feel the spirit directing our preparation and our delivery. My gathering session was a little unique as we had one of our students attend the meeting via Skype. She was home with two bad knees awaiting some surgery, so we set up Skype with her. It was an interesting experience but it seemed to work well for her and didn't interrupt the class at all. There is such a good feeling in our gatherings. We love being a part of them with our students.
This is one of Inessa's classmates
trying to edit Inessa's writing
assignment via Skype.
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The new addition to our class -
The computer with Inessa on Skype
doing her writing assignment with the class
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After class, Vlad played a piano piece for us. He is a concert
pianist who has won many competitions and performed professionally
here in Russioa. He was amazing.
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This had been a little harder week for both of us, as I haven't been feeling well....a really bad cold. We kept a low profile, staying at home whenever we could this week. By the end of Friday, Paul was going stir crazy. It's a good thing we are not under the same stipulation of being together 24/7 as are the young elders and sisters. Paul could at least run some errands to the church and the bank by himself to get him out of the apartment.
Sister Childer and their 3 Young Single Adult leaders |
One of the Young Singles broke our shower head while he was
showering. Here Paul is trying to improvise something to get us by
until we can get a new shower head. He got a little wet in the doing.
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When the Childers left, the doorbell rang and it was the Piersons. They brought us some homemade chicken soup, guaranteed to make me get better. So nice and thoughtful of them. It did taste good after church today.
SPOTLIGHTS FROM OUR LIFE IN RUSSIA
Last Sunday at church, a sister gave me an apple. It was between classes and we were sitting by an investigator named Karina. She is a karate expert and has won many karate titles here in Russia. When she saw the apple, she said she could cut it in half. Little did we know she meant she could split it in half with her finger. By hitting her finger with her fist, the apple split right in half. We should have never doubted her as she had told us earlier that she has split boards and cement blocks with her hand and foot. Quite the lady. Hopefully, her baptismal date will be kept.
We have posted pictures of the many magnificent malls here in Moscow. This is a mall but it is all underground. It is located just outside the Kremlin wall and Red Square. It is two stories underground and as you can see the top of it is a bridge to the street. Amazing.
Note it only comes in a half of loaf. |
At the Ukrainian restaurant, the restrooms were very nice complete with soothing music piped in. I had to take a picture of this child's seat hanging on the wall of one of the stalls. When have you ever seen such a thing provided in a public restroom?
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