Spring has finally arrived!!!!

These trees were some of the first to start blooming last week.

This is a close up of the blossom on the tree above

These little flowers bloom on the street around the corner from us.

These are cherry blossoms.

Spring in South Africa seems to come over night.  One day it is cold and the next day the trees start to blossom, the sun becomes warmer and the grass starts to green up.  It is truly a beautiful sight and it feels delightful.

The beginning of this week we spent the day doing usual P-day activities.  The sun was out and it was so nice and warm.  We did office work, sent off all our flat and vehicle checks to the mission office, got some groceires, did some laundry and then made lunches for two elders who were heading off to Bethlehem.  We were so sad to say goodbye to Elder Ashaba (one of our zone leaders) who has been transferred to the Durban area.  We will miss him.  Elder Signorelli drove him up to Bethlehem and then came back the next day with some new in-transferring elders.  Our district has five new elders in it and we lost one set of Elders in Bethlehem.  So, right now we are only shepherding 14 Elders instead of 16. 

Tuesday morning was absolutely beautiful.  Sunny and warm so we got our workout clothes on and went for a little jog.  We saw a sign that showed hiking to "little rock" and so thats what we did.  It was just not far from our flat and we enjoyed the climb up to a rock that people use to repel off of.  The physical exercise felt great and the sun felt even better.  We spent some time working on the temple preparation lesson we were going to teach on Sunday in Phuda and then Wayne took me out to practice driving in the Bakki (a standard).  I feel confidant enough now that I can drive on my own.  The rest of the afternoon we did some correspondence and other needful clerical stuff.

Wednesday morning Wayne went into Maseru to take some stuff to the Elders and to try to meet with the owner of a house that is a possibility for the Elders to rent.  He was not able to connect unfortunately, but he was able to meet with the new Zone Leader that transferred in on Tuesday.  His name is Elder Motsitsi.  I stayed home to await a parcel that was being delivered that day and while I was waiting I did what I seem to do best - baked brownies and cookies.  That afternoon I had a hair appointment here in Ladybrand.  We have been in South Africa long enough for me to have had two haircuts.  Time is flying by.

Site from a hill top in Maseru

Thursday morning we headed off bright and early to go to Leribe (northern Lesotho) to try to help the elders there get the broken window in their bathroom fixed.  They locked their keys in their flat with muffins cooking in the oven and had to send one of the Elders in thru the window to unlock the door.  The window was no more than 12" X 12".  Gratefully one of them was a small South African elder and he could squeeze through the opening once they had broken the glass out.  It had been broken for about 6 weeks and was not getting fixed, so we went up to see that it got done. While we were there we fixed their iron and their water filter.  It was a productive morning.  We found out from the Elders that the referral I had given them on Saturday was a powerful woman and they were meeting with her this Saturday for the first discussion.  This woman wondered if she could invite some of her friends to come too.  Of course the Elders said that would be great.  Can't wait to hear how that went. We had hoped to meet a young lady in Ficksburg that afternoon to set up a teaching appointment, but then we got a call from the Real Estate agent in Maseru to go and see a possible flat for the elders in Maseru.  So when we finished with the elders we headed down to Maseru - about an hour and 15 minutes away - and when we got there the Real Estate agent said, sorry that flat was already rented.  What a waste!

Friday Dad worked on preparing for a leadership meeting in Maseru on Saturday for the three areas here in Lesotho.  He was supposed to instruct all the Sunday School Presidencies.  However, on Saturday, it turned out there was no one there from the Sunday School, so President Shumway asked him to meet with the Elders quorum Presidencies and instruct them.  Being the minute man he is he just jumped in and spent the next hour instructing and answering questions from the Elders Quorum Presidents.  They had a great day in Maseru.  Meanwhile, Sister Shumway and I did some exploring in Ladybrand and had a great time shopping and seeing what things we could find here.  We went for lunch at a fun little restaurant called "Cranberry".  We got home just before the men did and then Shumways had to head back to Bloemfontein for meetings that night. 

Saturday evening the Wyatt's stopped in on their way back from Leribe and asked us to help them with the Perpetual Education Program in this area.  So we spent last evening learning about that program so that we can help the young people here get enrolled in school using the perpetual education funds.  We will have to teach them the 4 classes that they need to have before they qualify for this program.

Sunday Mornings site as we headed to Phuda for church

Sunday morning we were up and on the road by 7:00 AM to head up to Phuda to attend their meetings.  It was a beautiful morning to drive.  Through Golden Gate Park we saw some zebra, a baboon, and lots of khudu, springbok and impala.  There were about 45 people at church yesterday and it was a great set of meetings.  There was a baptism after church (a young lady was baptized) and then we taught the Temple Preparation class to a group of about 7 (4 or 5 perspective people to go to the temple).  For Relief Society and Priesthood we had a combined class where the Branch Clerk instructed the branch members about tithing, how to fill out their slip, how to determine how much tithing you owe, etc.  Very basic instruction.  He is a return missionary of about 2 years and he did a great job.  He is also serving as the Elders Quorum President.  We then went with the Branch President and the Elders Quorum President to look at a couple of perspective properties for the church to purchase and put a speedup on.  They need a building of their own and there is basically nothing to rent in Phuda.  Hopefully the church will find one of these properties adequate and will purchase it for their branch.  A few weeks ago Sister Shumway had been to Phuda to church and she was quite upset by the little chorister who lead the music. She said that it seemed like the choristers just needed to wear a short skirt and stand up in front and wave their arm.  Well, yesterday that same chorister lead the music (also in a short skirt) and then when Dad went into the Investigators class this little girl taught the lesson.  He came out of that class and said it was the most impressive class he had attended in South Africa.  Most of the classes consist of everyone taking turns reading from the manual, but in this class she actually "taught" a lesson.  Her knowledge of the gospel was impressive and her testimony was strong and she taught with the spirit.  Sometimes our first impressions made by appearances are not always correct.  What is really important is the inner soul.  However, we are not condoning short skirts!

We have enjoyed a few face time calls from Sidney this week.  We are pretty impressed that she is able to figure out how to do that all on her own.  We love catching up on what the Holt kids are doing with their summer.  How is your play coming Gracey?  We have also enjoyed a few video clips of our budding musician in Claifornia.  Ty - we are so impressed with how quickly you are learning to play the piano.  Keep up the good work.  We also enjoy the visits on line with the other grandchildren as they face time with us.  Thanks so much for keeping us updated on your lives.  It makes us not feel quite so far removed when you send us pictures, videos, facetime chats etc.  We love you all.  We are happy, healthy and enjoying the blessings of the gospel here in South Africa.

Love the Holts