A Once in a Lifetime experience!

We arrived in Durban on Saturday and found our bed and breakfast.  We checked our e-mail and saw that Michelle had sent a last minute SOS that due to a terrible snow storm in New York their flight plans had changed and they would be arriving at 10:00 PM Sunday night rather than Sunday afternoon.  We were just grateful they were able to change their flights to Washington rather than New York so they could come.   Sunday morning we attended church at the Berea chapel - the first large ward we have been at in 8 1/2 months.  After church we drove around Durban a bit to get a feel for the city and then after a nice visit that evening with Elder and Sister Olson we headed to the airport to meet Rod and Michelle. They were very tired, but excited to finally arrive in Durban.  Needless to say - so were we - excited that is!  I kept watching for them through the doors as they opened and closed trying to get a preview as they waited for their luggage to arrive.

 Monday morning we took them right to the beach - the India ocean so they could get their feet wet and - stay awake!  They had a fun time playing in the waves and gathering sea shells for Rod's kids. 

 Michelle found this beautiful little creature and wanted to take it home, but was afraid it would be confiscated at customs.  So we left it at the beach for another day.

 We enjoyed looking at the amazing sand sculptures on the beach and buying "unbreakable sunglasses" from the beach vendors.

 Now that's a sandcastle!

Monday afternoon we headed back to the airport to pick up Brittany and Spencer.  It was so great to finally have our children altogether again.  They were also very glad to be together.  We got the rental van loaded up and Wayne drove the rental van and I drove the bakki and we headed to the Pinetown chapel where we were going to leave our bakki while we took our family around the country.  When we got there we found a bunch of missionaries playing volleyball and basketball in the church parking lot.  To our great surprise and delight many of them were elders that had been assigned to our area at the beginning of our mission.  It was such a glorious reunion.

 Rod and Spencer played a quick game of pick-up basketball with some elders on their p-day where we left the bakki.  We met up with Elders Gold, Ndivo, and a bunch of others.  We were told that our bakki would be safe at the back of this gated chapel, however, when we got back our bakki had been broken into, our radio/CD player had been stolen and all of the tools from the back of our bakki.  Very annoying.

 Meet Ted!  He had a friend named Bill.  These were roommates of Rod and Michelle's at the B & B.  Michelle tossed a bar of soap at Ted from the shower and Bill met his demise.  I guess this is a part of Durban I will become very familiar with.  We have not had cockroaches in Ladybrand - gratefully.  I guess there is something to be said for cold winters!

 In spite of making reservations for our Durban stay a month in advance - they messed up our reservations and they did not have room for all of us at the same place so Spence and Britt got moved to another B & B a ways away.  This is the indoor patio where they stayed. 

Our first supper altogether!

Durban has a very large influence of East Indian culture.  For supper that night we decided to try some East Indian cuisine.  Rod loves it - the hotter the better!  Dad likes his hot too.  The rest of us not so much.  However the bread that accompanies a meal is delicious!

 Durban is famous for its "naughty" monkeys.  These brazen little monkeys will find their way into any opening.  If you leave a window open they will be in your house and will help themselves to any food they can find.  A closed container is no deterrent.  They are very cute to look at - however they are very mischievous.

 We were up bright an early on Tuesday morning and headed for the Victoria market.  Wayne very quickly had enough of that and soon found a chair to wait out the true shoppers.  He was very good about carrying and holding the packages however.

We found some great bargains and fun trinkets at the market - Rod bought some beautiful "big five" replicas, Spence & Britt bought "Geoffrey Giraffe" and a fancy cow, Michelle bought some beautiful butterfly wing pictures.  Needless to say a good time was had by all. 

 We then headed down to the Ushaka beach where Spence and Britt had a chance to put their feet in the ocean.  As you can see - Britt almost got more than her feet wet!

Two brothers enjoying a moment at the India ocean.  What a great memory.

We tried two times to get to the top of this famous stadium for Rod and Spence to jump off.  One time it closed early for a soccer game and the next time it was too windy and they wouldn't let anyone jump.  Rod - you just have to come back when its time for us to come home and try again!

That night we headed to a mall to try to find some supper as it was late and we were getting a little hungry.  Everybody but Rod decided they just wanted some "Gelato".  Rod decided to try a little South African Sushi.  Once it arrived he dug right in - only to spit it out and throw it away.  He didn't realize that instead of wrapping the raw fish around rice they wrapped it around "Pup" (pronounced Pap).  This is a staple of the South African's diet.  It is kind of the texture of mashed potatoes, but it tastes very different.  I think it is an acquired taste.

 Wednesday morning we checked out and headed out to Nambiti Plains for our Safari.  We spent two beautiful days there and saw some beautiful animals up close and personal.  We were treated like royalty at this beautiful place and the food was delicious.

We loved the giraffes.  They are so beautiful and graceful.  The last day we were there we saw a "tower" of giraffes.  (thats a large group).  We did 4 game drives in total and with the help of Geoffrey (our guide) and the expert spotting skills of Rod (he was amazing at finding the animals) and even Spencer added his share of spotting, we managed to see all the "big five".
We had beautiful weather and a glorious time at Nambiti

This little friend was in Rod & Dads room when we got back to the room.  Rod tried to pick it off the netting to "dispose" of it when it bit his fingers.  First a crab in Victoria and now a cockroach in Africa. 

 This was the sunrise that greeted us on Thursday morning at 5:30 AM as we headed out on our 2nd drive.

 We had been following these cape buffalo's tracks for quite a while before Rod finally spotted them.  We got up close and personal to them as you can see.  They can be very cantakerous if they are crossed. 

 The elephants in this preserve have been very naughty.  They have been pulling up trees all over the place.  On Thursday morning when we came out at 5:30 to go on our drive the path to the Wyatt's room was blocked with branches that the elephants had knocked over during the night.  The staff had to clear away the branches before the Wyatt's could get out to the "vega". 

That afternoon we went to the Cheetah preserve.  Cheetah's have become an endangered species and they are trying to breed, raise and release cheetah's to keep them from becoming extinct.

 We were very fortunate to see lots of lions.  This is a young male lion just starting to get his mane. We were fortunate to see many lions that morning very close to our vega. 

A swim in the pool to cool off after a hot dusty game drive.  They had a great time.  After, Rod and Spence laid out in the sun. Unfortunately, Rod fell asleep and got a little toasted - to the very well done point.

 A beautiful African sunset!  It never ceases to amaze me how beautiful the African skies can be.  Morning or night - each has its own beauty.

 Zebras are very plentiful here and we enjoyed watching them. 

The Hippo's were performing well for us that morning.












Just before we left on Friday morning this herd of elephants came right up to the swimming pool where the kids had swum the day before and got a nice cool drink of water.  Look at the trunks of the little baby elephants barely reach over the pool to get a drink. Rod got some great movie footage of the baby elephants blowing bubbles in the water.

Alas, the time always comes when we have to end a good time. Here we are heading back to our van to leave.  Brent (left front row) is the manager of Nambiti Plains and did a great job of taking good care of us.  Geoffrey (between Michelle and I) was our game driver and did an excellent job finding the animals and getting us up close.  We enjoyed his great sense of humor and his willingness to teach the boys how to do the animal sounds.  We will always remember how he told Sister Wyatt how to tell the male Rhino from the female Rhino - right!

 We have had a great start to our time together.  We enjoyed playing games at night, sitting around talking and laughing and seeing the beauties of this country.  As this part of the blog is getting quite large I am going to end it here at this logical point and pick up the "rest of the journey" on another blog.  Tune in for the 2nd half of the story.

The Holt Clan!

A Wild and Crazy Week - again!

Monday, January 28th started very early in the morning as we had to be back in Ladybrand to take Elder Daines to the Doctor at 9:00 AM.  So..... at 5:00 AM we left the Shumway's home in Bloemfontein and made the trek back to Ladybrand, arriving at 7:00 AM.  We quickly got ready for the day (showered etc.) and the Elders Daines and Kiyimba arrived about 8:45 for the Dr.'s appointment.  Somehow the Masianokeng 2 Elders found out they were coming into Ladybrand and called wondering if they were to come to breakfast as well.  Of course we said come on ahead and so we found ourselves cooking breakfast for a few more.  I took the Elder's to the Dr. and Wayne stayed home to start the breakfast.  We fixed omlettes, toast, fresh fruit, juice etc.  Of course there was not a crumb left and they then just sat around and visited and visited.  I think they realized that this was probably the last time they would all be together as transfers would take place the next Monday.  We know for sure that Elder Daines will be transferred someplace else.  It was about 1:00 PM by the time they finally headed back to Maseru. 

Having been gone since Thursday I had laundry and office work to do.  I spent the rest of the day getting those necessary tasks taken care of.

Tuesday morning we headed into Maseru to do 4 flat checks and bakki checks; Maseru 1 & 2, Masianokeng 1 & 2.  I was so impressed with how well all the Elder's did this time on cleaning their flats.  They really seem to be trying harder these days.  We then spent the afternoon jockeying bakki's back and forth to the dealership to get servicing done on them.  It was late afternoon by the time we finally got home.  I then had to get to work baking muffins, cookies and a birthday cake for Sister Shumway's birthday.  I made 18 individual packages of muffins with three muffins in each package for the Elder's breakfast on the way to zone conference.  We give them muffins, fruit and a juice.  Then the Phuda elders asked if I was going to make them cookies anytime soon......so I made individual packages of cookies for the Bethlehem and Phuda Elders to enjoy on their way home from zone conference the next day.  They live so much farther away and so they don't get to enjoy coming for breakfasts, etc. at our flat, so once in a while I need to do something to spoil them a little. 

I also had to take treats to be served at the zone conference lunch on Wednesday so I made some orange rolls and butter horns to serve with the birthday cake for Sister Shumway.  Needless to say I was pretty exhausted when I fell into bed at 12:30 AM. 

Sister Ikaneng Kato came with us to zone conference that day as a prospective missionary awaiting her call.  She arrived at 5:45 am. and we headed out to the highway to meet the Elder's and we travelled in tandem to Bloemfontein.  Sister Marengay (a sister from Masianokeng Branch) came home with us after zone conference.  Both these prospective missionaries thoroughly enjoyed the zone conference experience.  At the conference President Von Stetten asked three of the elders from our district to stand.  Right there he asked them to become trainers to new missionaries at this transfer.  That was very exciting for them.  Elder Munson, Elder Kiyimba and Elder Summer's were all assigned as trainers.  That meant that Elder Holt would have to go and train them before transfers on Tuesday.

This is our little zone of elders at zone conference with the addition of President and Sister Von Stetten and the Assistants to the President.  Sadly we have lost a number of these elders to transfers and their time to go home.  This part of a mission gets harder and harder the further into the mission we get. Unfortunately we get quite attached to these Elders.

This is Elder Adams who served as our zone leader for the last two transfers.  He returns home to Johannesburg.  He is stayed focus right till the end of his mission.  He has served well. 

This is Elder Kondowe, a great missionary serving in the Bethlehem branch.  He returns home to Zimbabwe.  We will miss him as well.  The mission president asked us to get him a new white shirt and a suitcase in preparation for his trip home.

 This is Elder Dickerson - a unique individual.  He has been transferred to the Durban area and was made a district leader in this transfer.  He is a keener and will do a great job.  Elder Dickerson is very sensitive to the needs and feelings of others.

 Elder Daines has been transferred to Berea district in the Durban area and was made a Zone Leader in this transfer.  We will really miss him.  He is a great leader and a hard worker.  I know that the other Elders in the district will step up and take the leadership roll in his absence.

This handsome elder is Elder Khutledi.  He has been transferred  to Newlands in the Durban area.  He has been made a district leader in his new area.  He was probably the most faithful and obedient elder in the Phuda area.








Thursday Wayne headed out early in the morning to go into Masiaokeng to train Elder Kiyimba to be a new missionary trainer.  He did the training and then Elder Daines and Elder Kiyimba made him a delicious breakfast.  He then installed water purifiers for the Masianokeng flat that we had received on Wednesday from the mission office.  I couldn't go with him that day as we were awaiting a package to be delivered by courier.  So I missed the breakfast, but Wayne said it was delicious.  I waited all day and the packages did not arrive.  I baked a cake for Elder Sele's birthday the next day.

Wayne headed to Phuda Friday morning to train Elder Summers in anticipation of his new greenie to arrive on Tuesday.  He stopped in Bethlehem on the way home to check out Realtor's to help us find a new flat for a couple who are arriving in March to serve in Phuda and Bethlehem.  President Von Stetten has asked us to arrange for housing for them.  On his way home he stopped in at Leribe to do some plumbing repairs and he thought that the birthday cake I had baked for Elder Sele was supposed to go to Elder Sekirime in Leribe.  When he got home I asked him how Elder Sele like his birthday cake and he said "Elder Sele?  I thought it was for Elder Sekirime and left it there." 

That meant I got to bake another birthday cake that night to deliver to Elder Sele one day late.  As we were on our way to deliver it Saturday morning - Elder Sekirime started to feel guilty about accepting this birthday cake when it wasn't his birthday and he called to tell me it wasn't really his birthday that day.  I asked him when his birthday was and he told me it was March 1st, not February 1st.  I said "well, consider your birthday being celebrated one month early!"

We went to the church in Maseru to pick up the seminary and institute rolls for the Wyatt's and we also delivered a mission call to Brother Maja.  That was the parcel I had sat home waiting for for two days.  He has been called to serve in the Ghana, Akra mission.  He was so excited.  He goes to the MTC in Ghana on March 22nd.  We also spent some time getting bakki's from the repair shop back to the elders flat.  I am now expected to drive in Maseru on a regular basis.  However, I never drive without a very sincere prayer and I am very grateful that the Lord sends angels to watch over me whenever I have to drive in Lesotho.

Sunday we went to church in Maseru.  We only stayed for Sacrament meeting and then we headed out to Masianokeng so we could get the seminary and institute rolls for that branch.  We then had to take the Leribe bakki back up to Leribe in preparation for the new missionary coming in for transfers on Tuesday.  Wayne drove one bakki and I followed him in the other.  It takes about an hour and a half to drive from Maseru to Leribe.  Gratefully we arrived without incident.  Inge, I even made it without you as co-pilot.  We then had the long drive back home to Ladybrand.

On the road home we saw these folks out cutting this grain by hand and then taking the grain in bundles in their hand and hitting it again the basket and separating the heads off the stalks.  This is a very labor intensive effort.









Once we got home we put together lunches for Elder Adams and Elder Steed who were heading to Bethlehem.  Elder Adams would be getting on the greyhound bus to go to Durban that night at 12:30 AM, arriving in the early morning.  We always kneel in prayer with the Elders as they head off on their way to transfers or heading home from their missions.  This is a very special experience that we will always cherish.

Monday, February 4th I took advantage of a few minutes to clean house and bake some brownies for the Elders leaving for transfers.  We had been assigned to take Elder Daines and Elder Dickerson to Bethlehem where they would stay overnight and leave at 3:30 AM to go to Durban.  As we had to pick up an Elder at the bus on Tuesday afternoon we also stayed overnight at a B & B.  We used the day on Tuesday to hunt for a house for Elder and Sister Anderson who will be joining our mission on March 1st.  They have been serving in the Johannesburg mission but will be switching to the Durban mission.  We were only able to arrange to see one townhouse that day, but have appointments set up to see 3 more on the weekend on our way to Durban to meet our children when they come.

The greyhound bus was an hour and 45 minutes late arriving in Bethlehem, but finally it arrived and we welcomed Elder Risley.  We then drove him to Leribe where he met his new companion Elder Tshabane.  Elder Risley comes from Virginia and he only has 4 more months left on mission.  He informed us when he got in the car that he had never driven a standard transmission.  He was sent to Leribe to be the driving elder.  He said "I understand the principle, but I have never actually done it."  Once we dropped him off we took Elder Sekireme (Elder Tshabane's old companion) all the way down to Maseru 2 where he will be companions to Elder Sele.  By the time we had delivered everyone where they needed to be it was 10:00 PM and we were very tired.  Home looked very good to us and we both slept hard!

Wednesday morning Wayne headed back into Leribe to teach Elder Risley how to drive a standard. All these trip in and out of Lesotho are causing Wayne's passport book to fill very quickly.  He issued a prayer heavenward asking Heavenly Father to not have his passport stamped that day.  When he approached the officer at the border, the officer scanned his passport, closed the book and handed it back without stamping it.  His prayer was answered. He then headed onto Leribe. After a 45 minute lesson, he left the Elder's in Leribe to manage on their own.  Wayne had not been gone more than 15 minutes this morning when I heard a knock on the door.  I was still in my PJ's working at the computer and I went to answer the door.  There were 3 missionaries ready to greet me.  Elder Steed had picked up his new companion - Elder Stephenson our new zone leader and also Elder Davenport a new greenie from Iowa.  He will be companions to Elder Kiyimba in Masianokeng.  I ran and put on my new bath robe that Lida gave me for Christmas and visited with the Elders.  They were not in a hurry to leave and I finally twigged to what they really wanted.  You guessed it - they were hungry and wanted breakfast!  So, I made them omlettes, toast and juice.  I had them cutting watermelon, making toast and setting the table.  While they were there eating I got a phone call from Elder Kiyimba.  Their flat had been broken into on Tuesday night.  There was no one there that night as Elder Kiyimba had to stay with Elder Sele in Maseru (both were awaiting the arrivals of their new companions).  Fortunately, whoever broke in only stole a vacuum cleaner, some food, one curtain, an electrical cord, and the converter for their DVD player.  There was even some cash laying around and they didn't even take it.  They were truly blessed that it was not worse than it was.  However, they had to fill out an incident report that must be sent to the mission office and they had to go to the police station to report the break in and file a report.  I guess their neighbors house was also broken into that night as well. 

We are anxiously awaiting the arrival of Michelle, Rod, Spencer and Brittany this weekend.  It will truly be a great birthday present for Wayne to have his children come to visit.  There will not be another blog entry until they leave to go back home on February 21st.  I will then have much to report on our blog and lots to catch up on.

We continue to be grateful each day for the many blessings that the Lord grants to us.  Our prayers are answered as we are guided and directed to do the work that we have been called to do.  Today, President Von Stetten announced in an e-mail to all the senior couples that there will be some changes in our mission - the Olson's will leave the mission office and work out in the field and the Holt's will move to the mission office and work there.  We know that there will be challenges associated with this change, but we also know that the Lord is directing this and we will be made equal to the task.  We will have two mission experiences for the price of one mission!  We will continue to look at the positive aspects of this change and work as hard as we can.

Until our next entry - the Holt's

The "Icing On the Cake"

Elder Dickerson (forefront) and Elder Daines hanging curtains in the bedroom.

This has been another full week.  It seems there is never a dull moment.  Monday morning dawned early and we headed off to Maseru to get the Masianokeng 2 elders moved into their new flat.  Masianokeng 1 and Maseru 1 & 2 Elders also came to help out.  Elder Mukuusi (whose flat it was going to be) was busy cleaning walls, light fixtures, floors etc. in preparation for their stuff to be brought over.  Elder Smith helped unload all the stuff.  Elder Daines (district leader) had rented a trailer to help us get all the big furniture that we had purchased for their flat, moved all in one trip.  He was amazing at backing the trailer attached to the back of the bakki out of the parking lot!  By noon we had all their belongs moved in and in place.  The washer and stove had been installed and were all was ready to go.

We loaded up all the Elders and took them out for lunch at their favorite place - "Spurs".  They love that restaurant on Monday's cause they can have two for one hamburgers that day.  It was Elder Dickerson's birthday on Tuesday and I was going to make his birthday cake that night and bring it in the next day but then realized that we had to drive to Qwa Qwa to meet the landlord of a possible flat for the Elders.  So..... while we were out for lunch I bought "cake" at the grocery store and we all celebrated Elder Dickerson's birthday together.  He loved the attention!  We had to head back out to the new flat to hang a few more curtains etc. and then they were pretty well set up and ready to go.  It was late Monday evening by the time we got home - tired, but glad to have that job done.

Tuesday morning we were on the road by 7:00 AM ready for the three hour drive to Qwa Qwa.  We met with the landlord very hopeful that this was going to be our solution to the poor housing situation in Qwa Qwa for our 4 elders there.  However, this gentleman was not very interested in renting and his rental rates were outlandish - and of course the President could not approve that amount of rent.  R16,000/month - thats about $2,000/month Canadian.  We generally pay about R3,200/month.  While we were there we did the flat checks for the elders and I was pleasantly surprised at how well they had cleaned their house this month.  We will probably lose Elder Khatedli this month as he has been in this area for 6 months now.  We will be sad to see him leave.   

Elder Khutledi - will be transferred next week.

We then left Qwa Qwa and headed for Bethlehem.  We met the Elders there and did a flat check for them as well.  Their flat was very clean this time as well.  Elder Kondowe said he didn't want to disappoint me again, so he had worked very hard and did such an amazing job for his last flat check on a mission. We will be saying goodbye to him in another week.  Elder Kondowe completes his mission next week.  He has been a great Elder and we have enjoyed getting to know him too.  He returns to Zimbabwe.  We need to get him a suitcase and a new white shirt for his return home.  He only has two white shirts left and they are both pretty tattered. 

We had been looking for days for a shower curtain rod for the Masianokeng 2 new flat.  Nowhere in Lesotho could we find a shower rod.  So, I thought surely in Bethlehem they would have one.  I hunted in every store and still couldn't find one.  So, finally I asked what people used for a shower curtain rod.  Well, they buy a metal rod, cut it to the desired length and then they use a curtain rod rubber end and one of the ends has kind of a screw that you can turn to make it fit snug between the two walls.  Who would have thought!  We are learning so many interesting things.

Wednesday morning we headed out again by 7:00 AM, up to Leribe this time to do their flat check.  Once again I was very pleasantly surprised.  These are the Elders I had to teach how to use a vacuum last week.  Their flat was very clean and I could see that they had really tried hard to do a good job.  We are three for three so far this month!  We also tried to finish fixing their bathroom sink tap, but unfortunately we couldn't turn the water off at the source as the handle was broken.  We arranged to have a plumber come in and fix it so we can go back and finish our repair job.  We then headed back down to Masianokeng 2 to install the shower curtain rod and their smoke detector and also to caulk around their shower tiles.  Elder Smith had made chocolate chip cookies that morning and had invited Masianokeng 1 elders over for a pancake breakfast.  This is a new leaf for him.  He has not cooked before on his mission!  Wayne said the cookies were pretty good.  I think he quite likes his new flat with all the new stuff!

Thursday morning we got things ready and then headed for Bloemfontein where we met up with the Shumways.  We loaded our stuff in their car and then headed for Johannesburg.  As I told you last week, this was so exciting for us.  We had special permission to leave our mission boundaries and travel to the temple.  We stayed in the temple housing for Thursday and Friday nights.  It is adequate, except that the air conditioning didn't work in our room and it was so hot you had to have the windows open and the mosquitoes made lunch of my arms, legs, feet, ears, neck.  We were up and at the temple by 6:30 to go to the 7:00 session.  It was so good to be back at the temple.  We did two sessions in a row and then went to the distribution centre to pick up some supplies etc.  While we were at the distribution center we met a friend of Norma Bridge, and the couple that took Ellis & Glenda Stonehocker's place at the Young Single Adult Centre in Soweto.  It is such a small world.  Wayne had to get a large size map of the Maseru branch at the area office, so that he can get it to President Monesa so they can start work on getting Leribe eligible to be made a branch.  Thats pretty exciting.  Friday evening the Maseru branch arrived (7 members) and we had arranged to have sandwiches to feed them at the temple housing because they don't supply food there on Friday nights or Saturdays.  We enjoyed visiting with the two couples we had taught the temple prep. classes to and Branch President Monesa.  Also, there were lots of Relief Society Sisters at the temple on Friday and Saturday from the Bloemfontein district as it was a special trip for them that weekend.

Some of these sisters met the taxi at 2:30 AM in the morning in Bloemfontein to make the trip to Johannesburg to go to the temple.  They sacrifice so much to attend the temple, but you cannot believe how happy they are to be there.  This is a portion of the sisters that came from our District.  It felt so good to be in the temple that day and have faces and friends that were familiar.

This is Ikaneng Kato on the left and Maria Mmusi on my right.  Ikaneng is my dear friend from Maseru.  She has submitted her papers to serve a mission and should be getting her call in another two weeks.  Maria Mmusi is the District Relief Society President and lives in Bloemfontein.  She is a power house.  She has such a love and knowledge of the scriptures.  She is a great leader for the Sisters in this area of South Africa and Lesotho.

Now, for the very best part of the day!  We met the Phasumane's and the Nchappy's at 7:00 AM in the distribution centre to get the things they needed for the temple and then took them over to the temple to get them ready for their session.  They were so excited and a little nervous.

This is the Phasumane's.  She made this new dress for this special day and he got a new suit.  They look so beautiful, both on the inside and out.  This picture was taken in front of the entrance to the temple.  When the session was over and they had been sealed, Sister Phasumane just hugged me so tight and she just kept saying "thank you, thank you, thank you!"  She was so grateful to have been able to be sealed to her husband for eternity and to have been able to have made these special covenants with her Heavenly Father.  She just glowed, as did he!  Moments like this on a mission just don't get any better.

This is the Nchappy family.  He is the Elder's quorum president in the Maseru branch.  She works in the Primary.  Brother Nchappy is a nurse and sister Nchappy is an assistant in the school.  They have two sons, (they didn't come to the temple this time).  They also were so thrilled to have been able to take out their endowments and then to be able to be sealed for all eternity.  It was such a privilege to teach both of these families in preparation for them to be able to attend the temple.  These two couples will now go back to the branch and will help and encourage other families to prepare to come to the temple as well.  It is so hard for them to get there though, as it costs so much and they have so little.

This is a day we will remember for a long time.  We will not forget the special feelings that we felt in the House of the Lord or the special promises and covenants that are made there.  These families lives will be blessed forever because of the choices they have made this day.

This is President and Sister Monesa, the branch President in Maseru.  Sister Monesa is a beautiful woman.  They have one little girl who is almost two.  It was very nice that they could be there in support of their branch members.  A lot of the sisters from the Maseru branch also came for the Relief Society temple day.  There was lots of support for these two couples as they were sealed after the session.  It was such an amazing day and experience.  What a great feeling.

This is the Shumway's and us we we are getting ready to leave the temple.  We are grateful for good friends to share this very special experience with.  Elder and Sister Shumway were the escorts for the Nchappy's and we were the escorts for the Phasumane's.

We left Saturday afternoon and headed back to Bethlehem (about a 3 1/2 hour drive) and stayed the night in a lovely Bed & Breakfast called the Cambridge House.  It was a pleasant night and we awoke early the next morning to head to Phuda for their branch conference.  The District presidency and the district auxilaries were there in great numbers to show support for this struggling little branch.  It was a great Sunday, but President Shumway had some very long meetings after that meant we didn't get away until about 6:00 PM.  That did mean however, that we had the most spectacular sun set on the way home.  We had to keep stopping to record the beauties of the night.  The African sky at sunset is unforgettable.  Here are a few pictures for you to enjoy.

We had had hard rain as we left Phuda Sunday evening, but it cleared off as we got closer to Bethlehem.









I don't know if the rain and clouds made this such a spectacular sight but we enjoyed every minute of the sunset that night.

This week Michelle's children told me they love to see the animals in my blog.  There are no animals this week but.......
in preparation of my children's visit in two weeks, I am just warning you.  Critters like this are common here.  I killed one just a little bigger than this fellow Saturday night as I was getting into the bathtub.  I was not willing to share my bath.  I got Wayne's shoe and he will not be around to welcome you to South Africa when you arrive.  We are so excited about your impending visit.  Hurry and get here!


 We love to hear from all of you.  Please phone or write (email) us often.  Thanks for all you do for us in our absence.  We appreciate your kindnesses to our Mom, Norm, etc.  Till next week....
Love
Wayne & Barb

A "whirlwind" week!

Here is our picture of the week.  It has been a while since I have sent you some scenery pictures and I thought this was quite stunning.  We are so fortunate to live in such a beautiful country.  We have some fantastic lightening and thunder storms almost every night.  The lightening just dances across the sky at night and fills the night sky with light.  Pretty amazing.






We have spent a very busy week getting the lease signed for the new flat for the Masianokeng 2 Elders.  They will move in January 21st. The list of supplies for a new flat is quite extensive and so I spent some time almost everyday doing comparative shopping to get the best deal on a washer, stove, living room furniture etc. etc.  Monday we headed up to Bethlehem to get the Elders there a new washer to replace the one that broke (that was too expensive to fix).  We had to wait around for the Elders to get back from Phuda (they went up there to spend their P-day with the Phuda Elders) so that we could install it for them in their flat.  Consequently it was about 8:00 PM by the time we got back home.

Tuesday we were back into Maseru to purchase the new washer for the Masianokeng 2 flat, and deliver it so that the plumber could install the hook-ups in the flat.  We got a call from the Elders saying that they needed a new bike helmet - theirs got broken.  We had just bought them new helmets a few weeks before.

 This is Elder Daines - he is the district leader here.  He does live life on the edge though, and he had ridden the bike on Monday evening and took a very steep hill a little too fast and wiped out.  He bounced on his head three times before he finally landed.  He left a lot of skin on the road, off his arm, his knee and his hand.  He shredded his shirt and his pants.  He was the one who broke this helmet.  The ear piece is missing and you can see the scrapes all along the top of the helmet.  I'm just glad it was the helmet that broke and not his head.  Then, the next day Elder Smith and his companion were riding the bikes Tuesday afternoon and Elder Smith was just doing a little jump on a hill - and he wiped out.  Now, the bikes really needed some repairs, to say nothing of the Elders bodies.

This is Elder Smith.  This was just shortly after his wipe out.  He landed on his shoulder.  His right shoulder and arm was pretty swollen and he could not lift his right arm.  He tore the knee out of his pants and I think that white shirt is probably toast.  We took the bikes into Ladybrand to get repaired and then had to get permission from the President to let Elder Smith drive the extra Bakki for a few days till his arm healed and the bikes got repaired. 










Wednesday morning I started preparations for the supper for the Elders on Thursday.   We made a huge crock pot full of baked bean caserole, homemade chocolate almond ice cream and brownies.  Wednesday evening we were invited into the Maseru Sun (hotel) for supper with Elder and Sister Murdock, Thabo Lebethoa (over PEF, CES, Humanitarian SVS in Joberg) and Shawn Donnely (Area rep for Public Affairs from Joberg) and the Director of Red Cross in Lesotho, the Director of Disaster Management, the Minister of Education for Lesotho and a few other dignitaries. 

It was a lovely evening and we enjoyed the company and the experience immensely.  They talked to these guests about the churches Humitarian efforts and how the money was all donated by members all over the world. We had worked with many of these people on the Berea disasters as we distributed blankets and Hygiene kits. 

Thursday morning I was up at 5:30 to set some rolls for supper that night and we made a huge fresh fruit salad.  Then we gathered everything together so we could be into Maseru by 11:30.  We had to be to the chapel to make sure it was clean and ready for Elder Cook (member of the seventy and also a counselor to the South African Area Mission President).  We dropped off all the food in the fridge at the chapel and then headed to the Water company in Maseru to try to get the water bill for the Masianokeng 2 new flat in the churches name.  After an hour of standing in line waiting our turn we found out that they couldn't establish the account because the last tenants had not paid their final bill.  So, we had to contact the landlord and have her finalize that account so we could open a new account next week.  Oh, the wheels turn slowly in Lesotho. 

Then we were off to the airport to welcome home a missionary from the Maseru branch returning from his mission in Cape Town.  We were to take him to the Maseru Sun Hotel where President Shumway (district presidency member) would release him from his mission.  That was the plan, but..... the missionary was not on the plane.  We waited until everyone had left the plane and then asked whether he had been on the plane.  They would give us no information without his flight itinerary.  After many calls to the mission president etc. we found out that he had been detained in Joberg because his visa had expired and although he had applied for a new one - he did not have it yet and they would not allow him to leave South Africa.  Long story short - he arrived by car at 2:00 AM.  President Shumway released him the next morning at the Maseru church.

We headed back to the church and got the chapel already for Elder Cooks arrival.  He had come with his wife and return missionary daughter.  Our Lesotho Elders were invited to a special meeting with him from 5:00 PM till 6:00 PM.  The Murdock's, Brother Thabo Lebethoa, and Brother Shawn Donnely (area public affairs) were also there.  The Shumway's came too.  Elder Cook spoke about the work in Lesotho and he challenged the Elders to show forth an increase of faith and an increase of obedience.  He promised them that if they would that the work would move forward with a greater rate of success than they are already having.  Our area is booming at this time already!  The Lord is blessing our Elders and they are working so hard.  Elder Cook fed them spiritually and then we fed them physically.

The Cooks and their party headed off to meet with the South African High Commissioner for a supper and we went to work feeding the Shumways and the Elders at the church.

As usual, the human vacuums consumed all we prepared and there was nothing left to take home but the dirty dishes.  While we were feeding the Elders, Elder Shumway was doing interviews for 4 Maseru branch members to attend the temple this coming weekend in Joberg.  We have taught these people the temple prep classes and they are going to take out their endowments on the 26th of January.  They were so excited after they finished their interviews with Elder Shumway they could hardly stand still.  The best part of all is that we get to go with them as their escorts.  We are so excited as we have not been to the temple since June. It has also been so wonderful to see the growth take place in one of the couples lives especially as they have prepared to go to the temple.

Friday morning we stayed home and cleaned our house and caught up on some much needed office work.  The paper work was consuming our office and needed to be controlled. 

The next morning we were on the road again - this time headed to Leribe to help the Elders with some flat repairs.  We also took them to get some groceries.  They are on bikes now as neither of these elders has a drivers licence.  Elder Sekirime's licence is supposed to be coming from home, but it has not arrived as yet.  So, they have to either walk or ride a bike. It is a little hard to carry groceries home on their bikes so we helped them out.  We then headed back to Maseru and spent the afternoon gathering household goods for the Masianokeng Elders new flat.  We dropped them off Saturday evening and then went with the Elders to a discussion with a family that they are currently teaching.  Their son (11 years old) was baptized last month but the father and mother are just now receiving the discussions.  They are having some challenges in their family and the Elders were presenting them with "The Family - a Proclamation to the World".  They wanted us to talk to them about marriage and family life.  It was quite an experience.  The husband committed to coming to church the next day and also to holding family prayer every morning with his family.  He also committed to having family home evening with his family and the Elders. 

Sunday morning we were up and on the road by 7:00 AM.  We were off to Phuda to attend church there.  There was about 62 members in attendance.  As we arrived, the branch president met us and asked if I would please be the third speaker in Sacrament meeting and would I please talk about Tithing.  We both always carry a talk with us "just in case", but the talk I had in my scripture case wasn't on tithing.  So..... I said a quick prayer asking for some divine intervention and armed myself with a scripture or two and then gave them a talk right off the cuff.  Oh, the experiences we are having!  We were hoping to meet with a landlord from Phuda to see if we could arrange a new boarding for the Phuda elders, but he had not returned from Joberg yet.  He said he would be back home Tuesday.  That means another trip back on Tuesday!  That's three hours there and three hours home.

We received quite a bit of mail this last week both from Durban and right here in Ladybrand.  It was fun to get Christmas cards and letters from home.  Thanks to all of you who remembered us over the Christmas season.  It was wonderful to catch up on what has happened to you and your families this last year. 

As you can see we are busy and anxiously engaged.  We are loving the work that we are doing.  We are so grateful for all the experiences and challenges that the Lord is allowing us to experience and work through.  Everyday we realize how His hand guides us and protects us through the work that we do.  Sometimes we are so frustrated when things that were supposed to happen don't, only to learn the next day that the Lord had a different plan in mind and it was supposed to work out differently.  We are so thankful for your prayers from home on our behalf.  We feel the effects of your faith and prayers and ask that you continue to send them heaven ward.  We love you and miss you.

The Holt's!

Red Letter Day!

Dear Family and Friends

Another week has come and gone.  I cannot believe how fast the time is going.  It seems like I just finish the blog and Wayne is saying "Are you going to do the blog tonight?"

One of the best things that happened this week is that we finally have a telephone land line that works.  Ever since we moved into this flat the land line had so much static on it that we could not hear when we used it.  Then, it would not work at all. We had been having trouble with our internet going down quite frequently and so we finally called the Telkom people and had them send out a repairman to take a look at it.  About an hour and a half later - walla - we had a telephone that works perfectly and our internet working again.  We are so easily thrilled these days!

As soon as the repairman left we headed to Bethlehem to get Elder Munson out of the hospital and home with his foot up.  He is to have bed rest at home for the next three or four days.  Hopefully he can get this infection cleared up. 

Once we got home that evening we went to work getting the lunch ready for the ZTM the next day in Leribe.  We made chicken pasta salad with rolls and fresh fruit.  The elders loved it and ate everything we brought.  No left overs.  Our zone leaders did a great job of conducting the meeting and they inspired and motivated the elders in this district to good works.  While we were in the meeting my cell phone rang.  It was President Von Stetten and he asked me to issue an invitation to all the Elders in Lesotho to attend a meeting on January 17th in the Maseru chapel with Elder Cook and his wife, and two other area representatives from Johannesburg.  These elders are so lucky to be able to have this special opportunity to meet with Elder Cook for an hour and be taught by him.  We will also have the opportunity to attend. 

Once we left Leribe we hurried to Maseru to meet with the owner of the flat we had looked at in Masianokeng to take her the church's lease agreement.  She said she would have her lawyer look it over and meet us on Thursday.  We are so relieved to have found an available flat for the Elders in Masianokeng.  It is almost impossible to find something suitable in a safe area at a price we can afford.  The Lord is truly blessing us and them.

 We are so excited about the kids coming next month.  We have been busy planning things to see and do.  I have been making reservations, bookings etc.  I thought the girls might like to get their hair done while they are here and so I have booked you appoints at our local salon here.  They will do just about anything you want.  Hope that is okay with you Michelle and Brittany!

 Wednesday morning we were up and away early in the morning to head yet again back to Bethlehem to the ZTM meeting there.  This is the group of Elders from Phuda and Bethlehem plus the zone leaders.  We took lunch for them as well.  The menu was the same as yesterdays lunch and again the elders licked the platters clean.  It was good that Elder Munson was feeling well enough to be able to attend the meeting.  He had to head back home afterward for more rest.  Two young men from the branch came to do splits with the Elders so Elder Kondowe could get out to do the work.

FR L-R Elder Mudzurawona, Khutledi,Adams, Steed, Kondowe
BR - L-R Elder Caldwell, Munson, Summers

Thursday morning we headed into Maseru early to do price checks for stoves, washers, couch, chair, house supplies etc. for the new flat in Masianokeng.  We met with Matladi, (owner) and got the lease signed and ready to send to the President for approval.  We also picked up the water bill in Maseru for the mission office to get paid. 

That night we went home teach at Sister Ellen Chadribo's.  Her husband has been in Uganda since September and she gets pretty lonely.  We decided to take her to supper at Living Life once we finished giving her the lesson.  We had a delightful evening with her and she really enjoyed having some company.  Once I got home I had to make a pie crust so that I could make a peach pie to take to the Shumway's on Friday.

We headed to Bloemfontein on Friday afternoon as Wayne had district meetings on Saturday.  We had been invited to the Wyatt's for supper Friday night.  We had a great visit with the Shumway's and Wyatt's and a delicious supper.

 On the highway to Bloemfontein there is a lot of road construction.  Consequently there are areas of one way traffic.  While they have the traffic stopped these ladies run up and down the highway selling their peaches, plums and treats to the stopped cars.  It is pretty amazing that they can balance these loads on their heads and never drop anything.  Once we got to Bloemfontein we went to the Makro store - South Africa's version of Costco.  We stocked up on some much needed supplies so we can feed the Elder's some more.

 Saturday morning we were up early and headed out for a walk at 6:30 with the Shumway's.  This is what we saw as we walked out of their front door.  Occasionally they will have zebras grazing in this field as well. 

Rod, I am sure this makes your trigger finger real itchy, but you can't shoot these fellows - they are protected on this preserve.  They are certainly beautiful to look at.








We enjoyed a beautiful walk and then headed home for breakfast and to get cleaned up to head off to the outdoor market.  We had a great time going from booth to booth, buying a few fun things to bring home.  We then headed over to the church to help Wyatt's set out refreshments for their opening social for the Seminary and Institute students.  Wayne and Elder Shumway then had to go into meetings and Sister Shumway and I headed to the mall to do a little shopping.  Sister Shumway is a delightful friend here in South Africa and we have a great time together.  We enjoy one anothers company, and both love books, sewing, etc. 

It was soon time to meet up with Wayne again and head back home to our little flat in Ladybrand.  Home always looks good and our own bed feels better.  

 We feel extremely blessed these last few weeks as we have been trying to find housing for the Elders.  We even have a lead on a flat in Phuda.  We will go up Friday to meet with the owner and try to get a deal made with him so that we can move our Elders in there.  We have to get them out of the terrible boarding they are currently in.  We have been fasting and praying for a number of months now to solve this situation and it looks like the Lord is now going to grant us this blessing.  We know if it isn't this house it will be another because the Lord is mindful of our need. 

We love you, we love our mission and we love serving the Lord.  We are very much looking forward to February 10th and 11th when our children will arrive for a visit.  We cannot wait to show you this beautiful country.

Love
Wayne & Barb