Transfers & Thanksgiving

Sister Russell has departed for home and Sister Strein was sent to Leicester (for you Americans, that's said "Lester"). Now we have Elders in our ward instead, and Elder Clark was so excited when he heard he was being transferred to our ward he could hardly contain himself. We are just as excited to have him come, and his companion, Elder Halaufia, is great too. We hope they have great success and love the work here.

It's always exciting when we have investigators come to Family Home Evening and Institute. You really think about what you are teaching and how you teach it. The members of our classes are all on such different levels, but somehow it all works out. Best of all, some who have been fairly inactive have been coming regularly and even volunteering to do extra things to make the gospel come alive for all of us.

We had such a great time with the senior missionary couples in our mission at the home of President and Sister Ogden. The food was unbelievably good and such a great touch of home. As long as we couldn't be with our dear families, this was a good alternative. It is wonderful to talk to other missionary couples and compare their activities to ours. Elder & Sister Karren are amazing S&I missionaries serving in Birmingham. It is so fun to talk to them.

We have so much to be thankful for at this time of year. We are blessed with wonderful families and with a marvelous heritage from our ancestors. Our daughters are so precious and so helpful and caring for one another. Our grandchildren are delightful and bring us joy beyond anything we ever expected. The opportunities we have had to associate closely with the wonderful young adults here in Wales and to learn from and be inspired by them is a high privilege, one that we will sorely miss when our mission is over. The time we spend with the young missionaries is rich and rewarding. We do treasure every opportunity we have to be with them, and especially the times we can teach with them. It is at those times we are shown the operations of the Holy Ghost and how great things are brought to pass through small and simple means. We love and admire them. We are thankful for our Savior and have learned, more than ever before, to appreciate his atonement and the incomparable love manifest by the Father and the Son in providing this gift for us. We find great joy in knowing that Joseph Smith truly saw the Father and the Son and did all that was required of him to bring about the restoration of truth upon the earth. Our gratitude is deep for all we have been given.