Hegsted's Mission -Week 77
14-January-2024-Sunday
President Shelton was in the branch today and spoke to us without knowing beforehand. He did well. The Stake Sunday School President also spoke and did well. I played sufficiently, although I used the pedal coupler on two hymns because I was uncomfortable using the foot pedals. One was new to me, and the other just fast. Amelia has chosen pieces I have not played, which is fun.
Luckily, the primary music was easier to play. Our trip home was uneventful.
We were blessed with an opportunity to give a virtual tour of the site to the Reddish family, now living in Hawaii. Dede served with her in the ward Relief Society and loves her and her kids. Rather than use the video we created earlier, I put together slides that match our standard live presentation. I hope Hoopes had someone come in during their shift. Dede and I have been very blessed lately to talk with people. We had forgotten about this opportunity for the virtual tour until Dede remembered in her prayers last night.
It was nice to have a Sunday off. Read more scriptures than usual. Wrote a little in the document and just enjoyed the day off.
15-January-2024-Monday
Today is a holiday for the FM missionaries. Regardless, they were invited to the regular morning meeting. Sister Knuteson says she is doing better. She wishes she were like her young grandchildren who recovered so quickly from bone breakage. I have felt that way about recovering from many ailments. Regardless, she maneuvered smoothly on her cart and seemed grateful to be at the meeting. We pray for good news when she meets the orthopedic doctor on Wednesday. I am awed at her ability to remain grateful to a loving God. She said, "I am glad it happened to me and not a guest." I agreed with President Buswell; "we wished it had not happened." Our FM missionaries have struggled with health-related issues. I pray the Robers are not impacted.
We talked history with the Buswell for some time after the meeting, so we did not get home as early as I planned. Regardless, I finished the latest editing pass through the document. President Buswell wants to do a markup for me, but I will probably take a break and read an article and look through two Royalton history books.
We had three people come in this afternoon. The Hoopes were blessed with fantastic guests. I had a gentleman who had worked with Sister Missionaries in Massachusetts. He is amazing. He reads the scriptures and is moved by them. He came today because he thought he needed to go to Vermont, and he saw the sign and dropped in. He had not felt well when he awoke but came anyway. We spent a great deal of time at the Restoration Board. It helped him see Joseph's life on a timeline and go over events again. He has had spiritual experiences all his life. It seemed apparent God was moving him to the Church. At the end of our tour, I wrote my name and number on his Joseph Smith History pamphlet and told him to text me when he was baptized, testifying that God was moving him to baptism and he would be an asset to the Church. He did not want to leave. The Spirit was so strong that he promised to return.
Meanwhile, Dede had a member couple and gave them a complete tour. We are so blessed. It was hard to believe anyone would come on such a cold day, even a holiday. But God moved these people and the Hoopes group and blessed everyone involved.
16-January-2024-Tuesday
It was a day of snow. It fell most of the day. Without wind, it fell lazily until it reached a depth of 10 inches. It was a beautiful sight, but no one came to visit us. With a temple visit scheduled for tomorrow, we were glad when the snow stopped around 10 pm. Without visitors, I really accomplished very little.
17-January-2024-Wednesday
With courage in our hearts, we left for Boston at 7 am. As we drove, the roads improved. New Hampshire did a great job of salting and clearing the interstate. Our car was white from the road's salt, but we were safe. Boston traffic was regular, so we did not wait as long for our session as the previous two visits. That was nice. The sessions were small. Many did not want to travel with the weather. However, the workers were there in force, and I am grateful. Brother Bennett led the sealing session, and we enjoyed his spirit.
We fasted for Sister Knuteson and, on the way home, received word that she would not need surgery. She must wear her boot for three weeks, be non-weight-bearing, and then return for X-rays. I consider this a miracle. It would be nice to have the doctor say it healed miraculously, but this is still a miracle for all to see.
We drove home through Gilsum. We have been there before but missed some Mack sites without our guidebook. The low tire pressure light came on. One tire looked down, and I put in the air, but the light stayed on. The extreme cold is probably to blame. I now know all the tires are low, except for the tire I put in too much air. Should carry a tire gauge.
We ate in Lebanon at Chiles. It was typical Chiles' food, not great, but good.
Pictures from Gilsum: First row: The Congregationalist Church in Gilsum, attended by Macks. Gilsum's stone bridge. The original was built by Solomon and his brother. Post office today. The first postmaster of Gilsum was Chilean Mack, grandson of Solomon Mack and Joseph's cousin.
Glad I took pictures. Otherwise, this would be a really dull weekly blog.
18-January-2024-Thursday
Called Staples to get a price for printing and binding my document. They want $520 to do 7 copies. Danielle can get that for $300. Spent some time talking to her about the document. She insisted I read it out loud, and Dede concurred. (Anna said the same several weeks ago.) I said I could do it without, but found several errors when I swallowed my pride and started reading aloud. Why are the women in my life always right? Or perhaps better stated, why am I always wrong? Big sigh! Being a male is hard. But being hard-headed is painful.
It's another slow day at the site. Today is clear and cold. We are in the January doldrums. We knew it would come, and it has. I did catch up on the blog and worked on the document. Reading out loud is tedious, but I found many errors. Many were punctuation errors or just incorrect statements. Speed is as vital in catching errors, and reading aloud slows me down.
Dede is making clam chowder. I feel like a New Englander. I am grateful for her kindness and her cooking ability.
19-January-2024-Friday
We are in a winter wonderland, a world of powdery snow with temperatures between 0 and 15 degrees. It is excellent, except my car complains of low tire pressure even after I add air. Oh well. During the early shift, a young man from SLC came in. He was applying for a residency position at Dartmouth and was out for an interview. It is lovely to have a guest in such poor weather. Having a guest who wants a full tour and feels the Spirit is a true highlight.
Our apartment has stayed warm, and we have not lost power and heat, so we cannot complain. Dede continues to feed me like a king, so life is good.
Anna pointed out to me that murmur spelled backward is rum rum. This is a great parable. I found it hard to be told not to xxxx. In this case, do not murmur. I do better with a positive statement. So instead of saying I do not want to be like Laman and Lemuel and not murmur, I will think, I need to live the principle of rum rum, which is the opposite of murmuring.
21-January-2024-Saturday
It was another cold day without a visitor at the site. I cannot even take credit for helping President Buswell as he was out. I struggled with my document and the computer the entire day, trying to save and make a PDF copy. I am unsure why some days are like this, but I still had a great day.
We watched the Saturday Evening session of our home Stake Conference. All the speakers were great, and we were edified.
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