Thursday, February 22, 2007
Our Valentine Group - arrival Feb. 12/07
Sister Nielson searched the stores and the Market place to try and find a heart shaped cookie cutter to make cookies for our third group in 2007. One of the metal workers changed a round cookie cutter into a heart shaped for her, and she was underway - except a day later a parcel arrived from Walla Walla with a heart shaped cookie cutter in it - so it was a happy valentines day for all. This group is composed of 27 missionaries - the three sisters on the front row, and the twenty four elders scattered behind. Countries represented are - United States (2), South Africa (2), Sierra Leone (1), Ivory Coast (2), D.R. Congo (2), Nigeria (12), and Ghana (6). WE celebrated two birthdays also with this group - Elder Skinner and Elder O'Friel - both from South Africa - which prompts an evening of cake and ice cream and singing of national anthems - (almost). The two Ivoriens opted for Happy Birthday in French instead. Elder Matubu from the Congo has as close to an operatic voice as we've had here in the MTC - very talented with playing the piano and singing. Some are a bit of the Night Hawk variety and wonder why they feel "listless" and "tired" during class times !! We'll get them in shape (we hope).
Our most recent but happily not our LAST marriage
This is George Ofosu - and his bride as of last Saturday (Ernestina Asare). George was one of our teachers here at the MTC when we first arrived and taught all of last year for us. He is a wonderful person. This wedding didn't have all the pomp and circumstances of the other two we attended recently, but it had all the traditions and customs including the screaming and screeching associated with the groom and bride kissing at the end of the ceremony. Since the church at Nsawam is under construction it was held in a rented hall, so the reverence factor wasn't much of a factor at all. In telling us how to get there, Barbara had the impression it was about 15 minutes north of Accra - in reality (given traffic and roads) it was closer to an hour and fifteen minutes - however, marriages are usually an hour late getting started and when we arrive (about an hour and fifteen minutes late) the first speaker was going on in Twi, and then the second one went on (for about 40 minutes) in Twi, and then the former Stake President went on in Twi - we didn't understand much of what was said, but enjoyed watching all the others enjoy it as well. It was very nice to see George take this step... We are very glad it wasn't our last wedding, we just avoided a very serious accident between a greyound type bus and a mid-sized tro-tro - we could easily have been caught right in the middle of the two of them as they collided - but fortunately the bus passed us rather than hit us and struck the tro tro - we were a little shook up - too shook up to think to take a picture, but not too shook up to thank God for protecting us. Not sure we'll be verturing too far afield again for marriages - or anything else for that matter.Thursday, February 08, 2007
WE SEE ANOTHER OF OUR FORMER MISSIONARIES
What a surprise last Tuesday as we took our missionaries to the temple - we were aware of a large group attending from Ivory Coast - and so while our missionaries were getting ready, I just stuck my head in the waiting room and there sat one of our missionaries from the Congo - we were so glad to see each other we had to step outside the temple to visit for a minute - that's where Sister Nielson was - Elder Ouai and his wife Agnes - We made arrangement to have them come and visit us at the MTC on Thursday and hear their tales and experiences - we actually picked them up - stopped by Alfred Mintah's because the two of them had served in Lubumbashi together - we had a good two hour visit while they had lunch with us. It is so great to meet former missionaries in the temple - he is currently the Stake auditor and has a very good business contracting services (gas, electricity, etc) with the military in Ivory Coast. He and his wife work together in the job. She is a lovely young lady. They lost one baby at birth, but rumour is they are expecting another - we might see the whole family before we leave if they get back to the temple again.
