Kinshasa Mission Christmas

Beaded Christmas scene from S. Africa

We knew that we'd be traveling for most of December, but couldn't resist the need for decorations and making candy for Christmas.  So, we (no, I) decked the halls of the mission home with a few things that were here and some that we've purchased along the way. The Christmas nativity collection is growing all the time.

Baobab tree, made famous in The Little Prince
Always required reading for French 202 at PC.

Nativity from the DRC

Nativity from Swaziland

A week before Christmas we made our second December trip. This one was to Cameroon to have zone/Christmas conference with the missionaries and do some training in the branches.  We decided to take a new direct flight to Douala offered by Camair-co. We'd had good service with them in the past and thought it would make life easier if we could "fly directly."  Now one of the biggest memories of this trip will be the travel.  We took off from Kinshasa an hour and a half  late on a scheduled 9 pm flight.  We didn't arrive in Douala until after midnight. Since we didn't want our couple out late, we'd arranged for the Bano Palace Hotel's shuttle to pick us up.  They weren't there to meet us and didn't arrive until a phone call and an hour later, so we stood in front of our least favorite airport in our mission (always a zoo, even after midnight) for an hour and finally reached the hotel at 1am.  

Zone conference at the Gaileys' was bright and early the next morning and it was wonderful.  They always make us feel so comfortable and welcome.  These elders are focused, faithful and appreciative. It's always a joy to be with them. We also did some priesthood and auxiliary training with the branches and then it was off to Yaoundé, where our flight was delayed two hours.

 The poor Whitesides, who live a long way from the airport, waited all that time in their truck in front of the airport.  This delay was much harder on them than it was on us.  
But we had another great conference with the missionaries and the Whitesides.  It felt very festive as we sang Christmas songs, did a Christmas reading, listened to the First Presidency Christmas Devotional, passed out our Christmas bag for each Elder and celebrated the birthdays of four of our elders.  
Then we did training with the members. Brent did priesthood training and I did auxiliary training. I'm so grateful that the Lord has blessed me with enough language to teach without having to read or fumble terribly for words. I know that it's the Lord's doing, not mine. The hi-light of the training was when Sister Whiteside bore her testimony in French.  Whatever she missed in language was compensated for by the spirit and the sisters loved it.  Brent, of course, did his training in flawless French and, with years of priesthood leadership experience, he's a great blessing to these new, inexperienced, young Cameroonian leaders.

 

In all parts of our mission the decorations and celebration of Christmas are very low key to not at all.  But Youndé was "Christmastown."  There were decorations and Santa hats all over town. They were in the swing of the Christmas season and it was  fun to share it all with the Whitesides .

Santa was everywhere and had a microphone at most of the stores.  Loud music was playing and even louder DJ-ing was being done. When we drove into the parking lot where the Santa in the big green glasses was, he said, The white people have arrived." and came right over to have his picture taken with us in front of the purple Christmas tree.
 You could also get your gifts wrapped at many handy little gift wrapping stalls in front of the store. Even one street in the center of town was blocked off and had celebrations every night. We did NOT attend.

At the end of our trip the plan was to fly directly home from Yaoundé and arrive the afternoon of Dec. 23. We would have an afternoon to unpack, relax and recover before heading into the busy Christmas week.  However, our plane in Yaoundé kept getting postponed and we ended up sitting in the Yaoundé airport for 8 hours. Because, all that time, they were saying it would leave soon, we didn't have the Whitesides come the long distance back to get us. We were blessed to get two of about ten chairs in the airport and we just stayed put so as not to end up standing for hours.  Finally, Brent went looking for food and found a package of cookies and 2 Fanta orange drinks.  Those and a pack of candy that the Whitesides had given us kept us going. I almost always carry a few things to eat, but doing the quick, direct flights with not many hotel stays, we packed light. Bad idea!  When we finally got under way, we made the 25 minute flight to Douala. Then we were deplaned and sent to a waiting room, which was full of members of the famed Kinshasa orchestra. I wished they'd have played for us for those two hours we waited. But no such luck! Finally, they loaded us and the orchestra back on the same plane we'd been on and completed the flight to Kinshasa.  It was after midnight when we finally got home. What was to be a 2 and 1/2 hour flight ended up taking us 12 hours. Not sure we'll try the "direct flight" again. Such is travel in Africa.

On Christmas Eve day we shopped for food for our Christmas celebrations with the couples. Having been gone more than 15 days in December, the cupboards were bare.  Then, with the help of our dear couples, we stuffed  90 gift bags for the missionaries in Kinshasa, who were to have their zone conference the day after Christmas.

 Christmas Eve the couples joined us for dinner and a little talk about Christmas traditions. Since nobody asked for anything special from their tradition Christmas Eve menu, we had a modified usual Christmas dinner (cheese puff potatoes, chicken  (no ham since it would have cost about  $70) homemade rolls, veggies and jello. . We had the traditional home made candy for dessert. It was so nice to have that touch of home for us. Everybody seemed to have a good time.

We got to talk to all of our children and most of the grandchildren on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.   We had wonderful conversations and shared many special moments with them as we saw them open our gifts to them and heard them tell of their exciting Christmas events and gifts.  We got cute email cards form them and even a new family picture from several. We didn't see Jen's kids until they came back to Arizona, but got to do the same thing with them in January. Family is always an important part of the holidays and we're so grateful when the internet works and allows us to "be with them." Technology is our friend, mostly!

On Christmas Eve we were able to Skype with Ryan's family. This has been a special tradition while we've been away these four Christmases. We read the nativity story from Luke for them , in French. They dress up and act it out. It's always a sweet experience. Their cute, funny little  dog is not pictured but made a wonderful lamb!                                            Another tradition of Ryan's family is to give us a gift of a service project done sometime during the year, rather than a physical gift. They tell us each year during our Christmas time together what they've done "in our honor" as a service. This year, since both sets of grandparents are on missions, they chose to have a missionary theme. They bought candy bars, put thank you notes on them and took them to Temple Square and distributed them to missionaries and workers with a personal thank you. It was a wonderful idea and a great gift to us and the Farleys. 

                   

              

Christmas Day the couples, minus the Billings who were with their students, came back to our home for brunch. Again I got to make  traditional family foods. We did Aunt Marilyn's famous cinnamon (pizza) roll, and wassail with  fruit and croissants supplied by the Moons and Smiths. We also had a young sister from the US who was in Congo to adopt a daughter. They got delayed and her husband had to go home, so she was going to be alone on Christmas.  Nobody should have to do that.  So, she and her little girl joined us.  Again we did the Christmas reading and sang carols and it was a nice morning. We even had some gifts for our couples. I love giving gifts and have missed doing it on our mission.  So this meant a lot to me to be able to do a little something. It was a strange collection of things that would seem very weird in the US, but here, we thought that it would be appreciated and it was. 

 

The rest of Christmas week was to be filled with many activities. We had planned a big all-Kinshasa missionary Christmas conference where we'd do the same things we did in the outlying cities and have  a meal of hoagies,  bananas and cupcakes.  We also had another meeting and dinner for the 16 members of the Zone Leaders' council planned.  But late Christmas night, I began feeling very ill.  I don't remember ever being so sick.  In fact, I left poor Brent to do the Zone Conference and Zone Leader council on his own. Fortunately, we had prepared food and gifts before we left for Cameroon. The sandwiches were ordered from a store, the bananas had been delivered, washed and bleached on Christmas day, drinks chilled and the 100 cupcakes were all made and in the freezer.  For the council I had planned to cook a nice meal, but I was still just too ill by the 28th.  So it was sandwiches, salad, soda and cookies.  It was all left to Brent to do the conferences, the Christmas reading and the gift giving and lunch. As always, he did a flawless job with a little help with the lunch from some of the office staff and Jacky.  But I was of no use.  It was finally decided that I had might have had malaria and I indefinably had an intestinal parasite. It's taken me over two weeks to start to feel myself again.  What a blessing it was that the time between Dec. 23 and mid-January we were home and most things were prepared to carry on without me. Even in our illness, the Lord has been mindful of us as things always seem to turn out much better than they could have been. We're so grateful not to have been traveling and to just be able to stay home and get well. 

We have spent four Christmases in Africa, each one in a different country.  Year one we were alone in Lubumbashi. Year two spent was in Burundi with the Frogleys.  Year three was spent as refugees in South Africa with all our senior couples and the wonderful couples of the area.  And now it was indeed a blessed last Christmas in Africa celebrated in every city of our mission. 

Camp Luka Water Project with Cooks and Moons

While Elder Cook and Brent had things to do on the Saturday of the stake reorganization, the Moons, our Humanitarian couple took Sister Cook, their daughter, Marie and I to see a water project in Camp Luka.  It's a very humble part of the city of Kinshasa and the project is a great blessing to bring safe water to people who live in very meager surroundings. There is no power or water in this area of the city.

Water for washing food and other uses comes from a contaminated river a long distance from this place.   So the water brought from this well is a source of health and life to the people who live here.

 Whenever we go to an outlying area the children begin to gather. They love to see "musungus" and love, love.love having their pictures taken. They squeal with delight when they see themselves in pictures.  I used to wonder why they wanted their picture taken.  We don't give them the pictures. Now I have come to believe that it just makes them feel that in these masses of humanity they count. They're important the there will be a record of their being here. 

After visiting the well, we went to see a school where the church built a latrine.  It appears that the latrine was built some time ago.  It was still functioning and was the only facility for this little school.

The school master told us of his great need for materials and asked us to provide desks and school supplies, however the church doesn't do those projects. We concentrate mostly on supplying health care needs.  This school services 250 students, but that's only a fraction of the children in the neighborhood. Most of the children spoke no French, which is a strong indicator that they don't go to school. None of the teen age girls hauling water spoke any French, only Lingala. 

Near the school as a medical clinic.  It was the only source of medical care for many hundreds who live in this area.  There was a kindly nurse who runs the clinic. She was happy to show us her one-room clinic. There were posters talking about health care, hygiene and sanitation.  She teaches the children in the school. Elder Moon asked how families learn hygiene. The school master said it was hard because they must go door to door. People wouldn't leave their daily tasks to come to a class. Then he said "when you have no food, it's hard to worry about how to wash it when you do get it."

Seeing how clean water improves life in this land makes us so grateful for the church's humanitarian work.  We feel proud when we see the efforts of the church to make a difference. 

The Seventh Stake, Mokali, is created in Kinshasa

On Sunday, December 16, 2012  Elder Carl B. Cook created the Mokali Stake  in Kinshasa  DRC.  Members of the new stake came from the Masina and Kimbanseke Stakes.  At the meeting to announce the stake division there were more than 6,000 people in attendance. That number represents 93% of the membership of the two parent stakes. In order to accommodate the numbers attending, the special conference was broadcast into the halls and all the classrooms of the building. Tents were set up on the grounds of the chapel and were filled to capacity. Chamberlain MBONGOPASI was called as the first Stake President of the Mokali Stake.  President Thierry MUTOMBO of the Masina stake and President LONO of the Kimbanseke stake remained in their callings.

This stake is located in a densely populated area of the city teeming at all times of day with thousands of people .It will most certainly grow quickly and be a strong stake. 

Elder Cook was accompanied by his wife, Lynette and their recently returned-missionary daughter, Marie.
It was a pleasure for us to spend some time with the Cooks and to share this experience as the Mokali Stake was created.

 

We witnessed the creation by Elder Soares of the Binza Stake just three weeks ago and then this week the creation of the Mokali Stake by Elder Cook. The church is growing!! The Lord's hand is over Africa.

PS. As a personal note, did we ever think that we'd be speaking before 6,000 people? And that we would be doing it in French? Never!

Christmas Celebration and Piles of Dirt

We flew from Gabon to Pointe Noire. There Brent planned to have a priesthood leadership training and I did an auxiliary training. We also had  a zone conference and Christmas party with the eight American missionaries and the couple who are assigned there.   It's always an uplifting time when we're with them.  They work hard and have a lot of fun doing it. We had a great experience with these elders and the Wheatleys.  They are all hard working, kind and devoted to teaching and loving the people in Pointe Noire. We love them dearly!

The house in construction and the gate to Wheatley's home.

 The Wheatleys live on what is unquestionably the worst street that any senior couple has ever lived on.  It' a rough dirt road with many ruts and hills and lots of construction going on that make it difficult to navigate. Next door a man is building a new house and it's always a bit of a challenge to pass it and get into the driveway of the Wheatleys' house. Just as we were finishing our meeting we heard a huge truck that was making beeping back-up sounds in front of their home. Then we heard the sound of dirt sliding out of the truck and we all ran out to see what was happening. 

We arrived just in time to see the truck dumping the last of the sand and rocks in the middle of the road, making it impossible to get the Wheatleys' car out of their yard. When they saw us the driver hurried and  drove away.

 

Stunned,we stood for a minute wondering what the plan had been for the Wheatleys to use the road. Then we realized that they had the only car in the neighborhood and nobody else cared about a pile of sand and rocks blocking the road. They'd just walk around it. 

We began to wonder how we'd get to the planned training or even get to the airport the next morning. But the elders, without much hesitation, shed their ties, went around the neighborhood borrowing shovels and went to work. They shoveled sand and rock feverishly. They laughed, sang and threw a little sand on each other and within half an hour a small path began to emerge on the side of the road.

 Elder Wheatley wasn't very sure that it was going to work to drive on that little space and thought maybe we should move more sand and not just push the remaining  sand and rocks out of the way with the truck, forging a path as we went.   But Brent, a real lover of a driving challenge, jumped into the truck and off he went. The first try without 4-wheel drive didn't succeed, so he backed up, put it in 4-wheel drive and went right over the remaining sand and rock and was soon past the blockage.  

With a mighty cheer the elders "high-shoveled" each other.  We were all thrilled with the way another African obstacle had been surmounted. 

           These missionaries are awesome!

        Love, love, love 'em!

A Historic Moment-The Creation a Church Branch in Gabone

After many years of waiting, legal recognition was finally given for the church to enter Gabon. On Sunday, December 9, 2012 a small group of members in Libreville gathered  in the home of a friend of the church for the creation of the first branch in the country of Gabon.

With the approval of the First Presidency and the Quorum of the Twelve and under the direction of the Area Presidency, President Jameson announced to them that the Libreville Branch of the church was now created.  With great enthusiasm  the 15 members raised their hands in support of this historic moment for which they have been waiting.  It was a great blessing to be a part of this event with this sweet group of faithful saints.

President Armand and his counselor, Michael Moody, where then sustained and the work of the church officially began in this small corner of Africa.

With a little training and encouragement  the new leaders begin the task of helping it to be truly established and bringing others to share in the joy of the gospel.

The members will meet in the Moody home until a suitable rental property can be found. This cute little family from the US is going to be a great strength to this infant branch.

 Like the beginnings of the church in the time of the Prophet Joseph there was only a small group of members there, but we have faith that, like the church in times past, the numbers will grow and be a great blessing to this lovely little country of Gabon.

Our "African" San Diego Birthday Weekend

The first Monday of Dec. the Smiths invited us to their apartment for FHE with the couples.
We were going to see the pictures of the Moons' trip to Luputa, where I've always wanted to go and won't get to see.  However, it turned out to be a little surprise party for my birthday. These sweet senior missionary friends add so much to our life here.  We love these couples!

 

 Some weeks back Brent told me that he had planned a "San Diego Birthday getaway" for me. I knew immediately what that meant. We were going to be in Libreville, Gabon. We had recently received permission to create the first branch there.  It's a nice African city, which we have dubbed "San Diego à l'Afrique."  It is really a pleasant place, in a very African sort of way.  We stayed in a hotel on the beach and if you stretch your imagination a little  (no! a lot) you can think that you're in San Diego. However, it's definitely not the Hotel Del Coronado, even though it's about the same price to stay there.

  Meridian Hotel on the Beach in Libreville, Gabon.

The city is the nicest, cleanest and most comfortable in our mission. The Security man, who accompanied Elder Holland in November, was also there to assess the city. He was very impressed with its security.  We were amazed to see almost no barbed wire and generally there was no heavy security outside of properties.There were many Europeans and  people walked the streets without apparent concern. Those were all good signs that this is a safe and healthy city.

I actually sat in the lounge chairs, listened to the ocean and read for while when Brent was in meetings. In the afternoon we visited an arts and crafts marché and bought a solitaire game that I've wanted. The grandkids will love it. I must admit that I'm actually a bit addicted. We watched the sun set over the ocean and it was a beautiful evening. We talked with our kids too.  This was a birthday that is completely unique and I will not forget.