A Rendez-vous

The Elders are teaching a woman who speaks English.  She is ready to be baptized, but she and her husband are not "legally" married, so she is waiting for her husband to pay the "dote" to her parents, which is an agreed upon amount of money.  Lately, she has been a little frustrated with him.  She told us, "My baptism is in his hands.  I will not leave him, but we sit at Church and pretend we are happy, when at home I am mad at him."  So, the Elders asked us to come visit with them.  They are both happy people.  We asked him to set a date to get the "dote" paid.  She thanked us for bringing a happy Spirit to her home.  I snapped a quick picture in the entrance to her home.  Elder Masse' and Elder Whitesides are just stepping out of her home.

Here's a picture from the last time we visited.  It shows the small room we meet in.  They are pretty well off from the looks of the computer and couches.  In the other corner is her cooktop where she cooks.  She fed us dinner last time and we ate on this table. 

Plantains

Elder and Soeur Gailey had to make a quick visit to Yaounde' to renew their Visas, so that we could get the paperwork started for Visas into Kinshasa.  She brought along some plantains for us to cook and try.  They were pretty good.  They are sold everywhere on the streets, but I feel better about cooking our own.

Limbe'

While visiting with Elder and Soeur Gailey in Douala, we drove 1 1/2 hours to Limbe'.  It is famous for the "black" sand beaches.  It was beautiful and interesting to see lava rock and black sand on the beach of the ocean.  Here are some of our pictures:

These girls were swimming on the beach, so we took our pictures with them.

On a clear day, we would have been able to see Mt. Cameroon.

Part of the entrance fee of $3, included a free soft drink in this restaurant.

They can get so much on top of these vans.

As we were crossing the river, we saw these men who dive for sand.  Then they unload it onto the beach and then into the trucks.  All by hand, of course.

 

There were many plantations of banana, plantain and rubber trees along the way.

Elders

We had a quick transfer of a couple of Elders this week, and we lost one of our favorites.  Elder Mpungu is from the Congo, and he is such a good Elder.  He will be missed by members and companions.  We drove him to Douala where he is being transferred to.  He called us before he left to tell us he loved us.  We truly love him as well.  We told him that meeting him here in Africa, was a bonus of coming on our mission.  His dream is to one day see the Tabernacle Choir sing in the Conference Center.  He could easily be a member - his voice is that good.

While in Douala, we met up with Elder Graham.  He was just transferred to Douala from Pointe Noire.  He is from our home ward.  It was great to see him.  He is a good Elder and liked by all.

Piano Lessons

We were happy to receive 8 keyboards from the USA.  It has been such a blessing.  Before we received them, the students were playing and practicing on their laps.

Our piano classes continue to grow.  There are 10 on the roll in Bastos and 6 on the roll in Ekounou.  This week, we set up a third keyboard to accommodate all the students.    I have told them that when they get good enough to play in Sacrament Meeting, they will be given a keyboard.

Hamburgers Anyone?

Our Elders told us this was a good place to get a hamburger, so we took a few of them here for dinner.  It was pretty good.  The fries were yummy.  I did have a fly go right into my bottled drink, so I had to order a new one and keep the lid on.  You can see their blue ice cream machine out front.  We aren't ready to try that yet.

"Well Done, Thou Good and Faithful Servant"

We said goodbye to Elder Waite this past week.  He was a good Elder and only here for two transfers, but we quickly came to love him.  We wanted to acknowledge all his service, so we had a dinner (white chili requested by Elder Waite) and had the departing Elders (some were being transferred) share their testimonies.  Some of the Elders had prepared a song for Elder Waite, and they sang it to him.  After the meeting, it just felt like we should do something as he said goodbye, so we had everyone line up on both sides of the room and had Elder Waite walk through giving everyone high 5's.  They all started humming "Chariots of Fire".  It was all fun and I think Elder Waite knew that we all loved him and appreciate his service.

Doesn't he look sharp.  The Elders don't usually have their suit coat on.  He looked good all dressed up in a nice, clean white shirt and shiny shoes.  His Mother will be so proud.

It was hard to see one of our "sons" go through the exit gate.  I offered to travel with him, but Elder Whitesides didn't think that was a very good idea.  I thought I was being quite unselfish ;)

Haircuts

One of the hardest things for our Elder's to do, is to find a good barber.  Well, they asked Elder Whitesides where he got his haircut and when he told them that Soeur Whitesides was his barber, that was all it took.  This morning, 7 Elders showed up for haircuts.  We had a great time talking with them.  They even did the breakfast dishes.  I think they look pretty sharp, if I do say so myself.  I never dreamed that I would be cutting hair on our mission.