Dear Grandchildren,
The first of the week felt a little tight. As in brain tight along with chest tight. You know, one of those times when a lot is expected and you are not certain that you can deliver without kicking over the bucket of milk or dropping the serving bowl full of salad. The MP was out of the country and he had asked me to assist members of another branch get ready for a temple trip to Germany near the end of January. (The closer temple, Kyiv, is closed during that stretch.) Because these branch people qualify for the Temple Patron Assistance Fund, it was moving a lot of pieces at once — money for passports, where does it come from? what information about costs will satisfy the Area Presidency? call to the Freiberg Temple to determine dates (a very helpful sister spoke English so that I did not have to descend into my fractured, limited German); correcting the original list of participants; telling the branch president that some of the youth do not qualify to go (hard, hard); setting amounts that these poor people have to contribute so that it is clear that they are fully participating in the costs of the trip; etc.; etc. I would think that I had one issue settled and either it would change itself and need more attention or another two items would spring up and demand to be solved. By Thursday, I felt like a limp rag in need of some stiffening. More is to come. Stay tuned.
A branch member who is a refugee suffered injuries and a broken arm a week ago when a drunk fellow turned on him at a gas station in a distant city and beat him up for asking the drunk guy to put out his cigarette during the gasoline fill-up. Refugees have no access to the justice system without hiring a lawyer (the family has little money); wealthier people can buy the testimony of the police; legally the brother is not allowed to work because he is a refugee and so he has to pose as a friend of the station owner in order to receive a salary; and the branch member has a history of heart problems. I felt really sad when I heard the news about his trouble. So on Thursday two of our YVs and I traveled to give him a blessing. You know. The regular four and a half hours on the train, an hour at the home, and then four hours by bus to return. But it was well worth the trip and the time. He was very happy that we showed up, even though he had just been released from the hospital where he underwent surgery to fix the break with a meal plate. And the one YV gave the blessing in Farsi. It was not a long blessing, but was gratefully received. It was also a chance to bond with another refugee member who joined the Church nine months ago. I am going to treasure these experiences.
The brother who has charge of the self-reliance program in the East Europe Area arrived here late Friday morning. With the help of a friend, I took him to Ephesus Saturday. He gave a fireside that evening which he had to speed along because one of the YVs was doing a side-by-side translation, effectively doubling the time of the presentation. Sixteen of us were in attendance. That is good because the Istanbul branch drew 9 from the English group and 6 from the Turkish group. I am not sure how this program will fly in our small branch. It calls for 12-week courses that prepare a person to start a new job or to open a new business. And the program calls for a small group of people working toward the same objective and meeting together on a weekly basis. Well, one non-member wants to start a new business, one member is looking for a job, another is applying for graduate school. And so it goes. Only one person fits within each of the categories that the Church’s program addresses. Group meetings seem to be out of the question. But we have to start somewhere, right? Perhaps the program will work in the bigger branches and we shall eventually be the beneficiaries of their experiences.
We were 33 in our sacrament meeting today, twenty in the hotel room and 13 joining by Skype. Our biggest day yet. And a total of seven genuine investigators. As Grandma said, we are beginning to take on the feel of a real branch. In the meantime, I called a new first counselor since the prior fellow is stuck off in his native Tasmania with only a limited chance that he will be able to return. The man who is my new counselor has been our Sunday School teacher. I released him and sustained his less-active wife as the new Sunday School teacher (to give her credit, she has been coming regularly for the past six or eight weeks). Then I sustained him as her assistant teacher. Before the sustaining, I reviewed with those in attendance how we indicate our support in the Church for people with new callings. I think that it was a totally new experience for many of them to raise their arms to signify their sustaining intent. I shall try to set this couple apart next week.
I love you and pray for you, especially in this special time of year.
SKB
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