Week 28 Hegsted Mission

 29-January-2023-Sunday

Gosh we like the Rutland Branch.  The people are kind and we are so grateful that we were sent to this branch for our meetings.  We now know people in the S. Royalton Ward (although limited since we rarely attend) and this Rutland Branch.  No matter where one goes, the gospel is the same and the people are striving to love God and follow His commandments.

We had expected snow coming home, but that warning was removed from the app and we had good weather coming and going.  The Buswells have a grand-niece reporting her mission in Boston and so we took both shifts.  May I say how hard it was to spend 4 whole hours at the site.  I am surprised we made it home before being translated.  But we made it so you get the blog.  We had one visitor.  He was from NJ and grew up in the church, but no longer attends.  However he said he loves the history of the church.  We gave him a 20 minute condensed tour and enjoyed the spirit he brought into the site.

It was nice to sit and study scriptures today.  Other than walking for 45 minutes, we did not do any outside work and so I could focus on study.  Dede does a better job of this than I do.  I need to catch up with her or I might not be able to hang on to her apron strings and slip into heaven with her.

Found out two interesting things today.  For the fifth Sunday we were taught about Family History Work.  There are premium tools that one has previously needed to go to a family history library to use, but which now can be downloaded to your PC (but not a handheld as of yet.). You need to use Chrome and then if you google "FamilySearch Center Premium Content", it will tell you how to download.  I did not take my laptop, so I will do this after writing my blog.  This has probably been available for a long time, but I was unaware, and the tools they were describing sounded fantastic, so I thought I would share.

The other thing I learned about is "Book of Mormon Art Catalog."  This is an attempt to collect Book of Mormon Art and get it into one searchable database.  Much of the art has never been on the WEB so it might be unfamiliar.  I saw drawing that appear to be done by children to very serious paintings.  What a neat tool that is free to use by way of the Maxwell Institute.  Again, type in Book of Mormon Art Catalog and it comes up.

It amazes me how the knowledge of the gospel is spreading to the world or at least being made available to the world.  These tools can be used in spreading the gospel and enhancing our understanding and to help us in magnifying our callings.

This picture was taken yesterday, but I forgot to add it.  The monument in the late afternoon often has the sun's reflection on it.  One can see how the obelisk portion of the monument was polished so that it can shine in the suns reflection.  I love it when it does this while we have visitors which we did yesterday.  President Hinckley gave a fireside from the side 23-Dec-2005 to mark the 200th birthday of Joseph Smith.  He asked why a polished shaft (38 1/2 feet tall recognizing his age at his martyrdom) to honor the prophet?  Because Joseph said he was a rough stone rolling down a high mountain...the only polishing he would receive would be when he hit obstacles that removed corners etc... but that he would be a smooth shaft in the quiver of the Almighty.  This reflection reminds me that yes he did become that smooth shaft and is still that smooth shaft in the quiver of the Almighty and that it is our privilege to testify of that fact on a daily basis as we serve here at the site where he was born.  I am so grateful.  Notice also the snow at the top of the monument.  It stayed there for several days which is also unusual.

30-January-2023-Monday

With Ewers and Wilcox's out of town and the Bergers sick today, we were small.  We had a devotional with the Buswells this morning and then went home to wash the car and prepare for the day.  The good news, I was able to contact Social Security in Pocatello and they were able to submit my paperwork for Medicare Part B, which I should have gotten when I first applied, for which they punished me by not letting me submit on line.  Thank you Pocatello people.

We did not have visitors today.  Not unusual for Monday, especially a dreary Monday.  Tomorrow we get to work  the entire day while Buswell's enjoy PDAY.  The good news, we have lot's of time to study the gospel and get in our steps as we walk around the circle outside of the visitors' area.  Perhaps tomorrow I can get the lights out of the last tree; so we can call that done.

God was so kind to me today.  He reminded me how generous my wife is now and always has been in the past.  I will not go into details, but she is wonderful.  Also when I called Social Security in Pocatello, I was connected to Dacia, a wonderful lady to whom we ministered in Pocatello.  How wonderful to hear her voice.  And yes she followed the rules and passed us off to someone else.

31-January-2023-Tuesday

Obviously the weather Gods have a sense of humor.  My weather app said there would not be any precipitation for the next 10 days so I washed my car with the hose out front.  Last night it snowed about an inch.  With all the salt on the roads, the roads were wet with salt water and my car looks worse than it did before I washed it.  When we are lacking snow in Pocatello, I need to remember to wash my car so we get snow.

We worked both shifts today.  It was slow.  As I was shoveling around the monument, I had a car come in and the man yelled at me from the car and we talked for a few minutes, but he had an appointment and could not stop and come in.  Then about 4 pm, we went for our final walk.  Just two laps because it got  colder and windier as the day progressed.  As we finished our second lap a car with Idaho plates came by.  He stopped and we spoke.  He has been here for two months looking for a home so he and his wife can come out.  It is hard to find homes near here.  He works in the upper valley for a pharmaceutical company (I am guessing near Dartmouth) so hoped to get a home in New Hampshire, but the best so far is in Randolph.  He wanted to look at the church for his wife.  He at least has family that are LDS and some were from the Pocatello area.  He wanted to take a picture of the church building where his wife would attend church.  They would be a nice addition to the S. Royalton Ward.  It was a tender mercy that we were outside walking and slowed him down.  Otherwise we would not have met him.  I was beating myself to go walking one more time, but Dede threatened to poke me if I did not move so we were in the right place at the right time.

After a wonderful meal (with a steak) we went into Lebanon for groceries and gas.  Tomorrow we will go to Boston to the Temple as it is supposed to be clear weather.  We will try the Dumpling Kingdom tomorrow and see how it compares to the Dumpling House from last week and hopefully visit the Minute Man Park and walk a little.  My weather app is predicting -21 and -20 temperatures for the weekend.  This sounds more like the Vermont weather everyone has threatened that I would learn to hate.  We will see.  Might need to wear my lined pants and change to a sweater instead of merely a vest.  

1-February-2023-Wednesday-PDAY

We had great roads to Boston and back.  The endowment session again was rather full and we had 6 people in the sealing session.  Very nice.  The last few times I have signed up for an endowment session, it has shown that more people attend the morning sessions than the evening sessions.  This surprises me.  I better understand however, why they would feel comfortable canceling an evening session for weather as they did last week.  Also somewhat surprising, there was less snow in the parking lot than I expected.  They have not had the cold we have had and thus melting has occurred.  We had our normal sealer for our session until the last 20 minutes when another sealer came in to finish so our normal sealer could go to a graduation for a young man in their ward.  What a contrast.  Our normal sealer is a very loud person, probably in large part because he struggles to hear.  He is also speaks quickly and will make funny observations throughout.  His replacement had been the temple president.  He spoke softly and slowly as sealers are instructed to do.  There was a pronounced change in the feeling of the room.  However, I cannot say I prefer one over the other.  Both utilize their talents as given by God and we are blessed to have both.

We tried another Chinese restaurant called the Dumpling Kingdom.  We again had dumplings.  I liked the shells on these better, but the filling from the Dumpling  House better.  Both were good.  We also had pepper steak and I could not imagine that tasting any better anywhere.  They got us in and out quickly which we appreciated.  I think the restaurant was 7 miles from the temple, but it took about 25 minutes to get there.  Boston traffic is not easy.  From there we went to Costco as Dede had a prescription show up and they filled it quickly so she could pick it up today.  The traffic over there was tremendous and so another 30 minutes.  Then on to the Minute Man Park where we walked "The Battle Road". We only covered a part, it will probably take us 3 different trips, as we were freezing by 4:30 and ready to head home.  Walking the trail is so interesting.  When I have read about the war, it is all so distant.  However as you walk and realize there were houses with people living along the road and that these people were literally fighting in their yards and farms it takes on a different dimension.  Also this time, I could really feel for the British Troops who were making their retreat down the battle road while the colonists from the surrounding areas continued to pour in and harass the British.  It was lucky that the muskets in use were so inaccurate since they lacked rifling in the barrels and so the bullets tended to be random in their flightpath.  Had the colonists had rifles instead of muskets they would have destroyed the British had they fought in the same way.  However more than likely the British would have hunkered down and waited for reinforcements.  Lucky for them 1000 troops came to reinforce them but not before panic had caused the British to basically start running down the road.  With the loss of officers and lack of ammunition and pure exhaustion from the many times they were forced to send out groups to sweep the colonists from their hiding places, it is not surprising that they cracked under the pressure leaving their wounded and dead behind them.  Obviously I am glad for the colonist's success, but I can still appreciate the British position as well. At two of the homes, the people returned to find dead and wounded soldiers in their homes.  They treated them, but some died anyway.  It is interesting that they note so many wounded, so many dead, and so many missing.  I would think the colonists probably knew the location of all the bodies and would have been willing to give an accounting.  I think however, there were also missing on the colonist side and that is even more intriguing.  Regardless, we have a great appreciation for those brave men and women who gave everything for the revolution.  I wonder how I would have stacked up.  We learned about Parker and his company at Lexington.  Around 8 were killed there by the British.  Parker and his men returned to the Battle Road to extract revenge on the British in the area where we were walking and where the British lost control.  I might have stayed home thinking we had done enough, but they regrouped and came back to fight again.  Parker would shortly thereafter pass away.  He had been very sick and would succumb to that illness.  

We came home after a stop in Lebanon for gas and a few items we will need because we were invited to eat with the Sheltons again.  That will be nice.  I also ended up riding the stationary bike for 15 minutes to finish up my steps.

I am impressed with the Boston temple and how it operates with so few people.  It is a tender mercy to understand what it takes to run the Pocatello Temple and then better understand what it takes to run the Boston Temple.  The changes the prophet has made in allowing women to fill more positions such as witnesses and checking recommends is also a tender mercy.

2-February-2023-Thursday

I must start out by saying that Groundhog's day is my favorite holiday.  It is so ridiculous that I just love it.  Since it is hard to know whether or not we have had winter yet this year, what is 6 more weeks?

A day to catch up with chores.  Worked on the kitchen table to try to make it less wobbly.  Got the mail and packages from the post office.  (In Sharon the window is open 7 to 10 and then 1:30 to 4:30) while you can get to the boxes later than that.). We had three packages.  Yeah for Amazon.  Went to S. Royalton to get gluten free bread and then washed the car.  I am still bitter that I washed the car Monday and that it looked worse by Tuesday with salt on the sides than it has looked since getting here.  They are very liberal with salt usage here which keeps the roads clear.  We will see if we get another surprise storm or not.  The temperature tomorrow morning is supposed to be -19F so I am doubting it.  [Flash, it snowed again, and I once again have a white car. Grrr.]

Invited the Berger's and Buswell's over for spaghetti tonight for a nice evening of chatting and food.  It is easily done with 6 of us in our apartment.  Harder with all 10 of us.  But unfortunately the Bergers are ill and could not be with us.  Had a wonderful evening with the Buswell's.  They are wonderful people and have done so much in the church and in life in general.  So glad we have gotten to know them on this mission.  How else would we get to know these good people from Utah and Washington?

My tender mercy is the people God has let us come to know because of this mission.  I am so impressed with all the missionaries here and their consecration which allows them to serve.

3-February-2023-Friday

The week is quickly fading and I have posted one picture.  Today when we got out it was about -2F with a forecast to continue dropping in temperature so we will wake up tomorrow to approximately -20F.  The temperature is one thing, the 15 mph winds accompanying the cold makes if all the more fun.  Obviously people with good sense do not come out to visit on such days.  We had the early shift and so we had a bit of free time on our hands.  Dede has seen video of a person dipping a cookie cutter in soapy water and then holding it up and watching the crystal form as the film froze.  It sounds simple, but getting the angles correct with the light is not that easy.  Nevertheless we got a few videos and know some better techniques including avoiding the wind.  Allowing the cookie cutter to get cold so that the freezing is not delayed.  And having a dark colored background against which to film to highlights the crystals as they form.  The picture is of a frozen film and toward the bottom one can see a crystal formation.  As the crystals form they actually move across the film and so video is better.  However as in all things video, the eye catches so much more than the video.  Anyway it was fun way to freeze your fingers and to see nature in action.

We worked with Calvin our agent to finish up Medicare for me.  I became eligible the first of the month so I am officially old.  This will surprise my children and grandchildren whom have known for years that I am old.  We took a drive after working with Calvin to go along the White River.  For the majority of the year it has been warm enough there has not been much ice, but that is changing today and we wanted to see it.  I am guessing the ice will build quickly tonight and tomorrow and then with more moderate temperatures predicted, the iee will probably break up quickly.  

I have started working on my taxes for 2022.  They should be so much more simple than in years past.  I am sure there is always something I need to be aware of that will make that prediction null and void.

My tender mercy for the day.  It is hard to believe that I could have a tool in my pocket which takes marvelous pictures and videos and allow the distribution of these to the world.  God has enlightened minds so that we have miracle tools.  I read in amazement of the Urim and Thummim, but I must think the ancient High Priest would have been astounded to see everyone with a tool in their pocket that does so much.  I know my grandchildren cannot comprehend a world without cell phones.

4-February-2023-Saturday

It was cold this morning, but the wind had decreased and by the time our shift started at 1:30 it was a balmy 1F with little wind.  Still cold enough to freeze our bubble solution and so we took some more videos.  We are getting better at it.  I need to collect our videos and edit out the wasted portions and put together a video string to post for people to view.

We again lacked visitors, but people are wise to stay indoors.  Tomorrow the high is 36F and we return to more normal temperatures (at least for what we have seen this year.). We were able to walk this afternoon, although after a few minutes, my face which was exposed was feeling it.

Drove along the river to check that out again.  There is more ice than ever, but with the warmer temperatures coming back, it will probably not last.  That is about it for the week.  I am ready for Sunday school and hopefully my hands thaw out so I can play the organ.

Tender mercy of the day:  Our health.  Most of the missionaries have been sick while Dede and I have been blessed with good health.  I must thank the Lord daily for this miracle.

Last night right before I went to bed, Dede informed me that she had invited Lynne to watch our remote video.  I have put that behind me after we were told that the church was hiring people to work on this and we could step down from our efforts.  However this morning I got the video out and began writing bullet points in one column with a description of the scenes and times in the other columns.  This will allow us to put together our own words but still follow the pictures that I prepared for the script that Sister Ewer spent so much time preparing.  Perhaps we will get to give the video to some of our friends who follow us on this blog.  It will take a couple of weeks, but if you want to have us give you a site tour using the video we have put together let Dede know.  It would be fun to connect with people.  Our site is so out of the way, that most people will never get to come, but this is a chance to feel the Spirit we feel every day.