Let it Be

 Our week started out so awesome! At Sacrament meeting, we saw an American (or a Caucasian at least, sometimes we encounter Europeans) sitting in front of us. Usually they are members here on business who find the  ward nearest the Metro to attend. After the meeting ended, we went up to greet him and his familiarity was immediate. Before he even said his name I knew I knew him. He's Jim, the older brother of my highschool friend Debbie! He went to school with my older sister Mares. My dad was his principal. Isn't that quite remarkable?  The coinkidink is we saw Debbie frequently when we were beginning our mission in Church Headquarters, she being a member of the Choir@ Temple Square. Now, to see her brother near the end of our time in India marks another milestone for us. What an amazing cause for rejoicing!

Now that's Doxology! 

 What added to our rejoicing is Jim met a young man named Joel, also attending church last week for the first time on his own accord. Jim befriended him, sat with him, answered his questions,  and I'm sure laid a good groundwork for the missionaries. Since we were in Indiranagar last week, we were so glad to meet Joel this week. Come to find out later, we had 13 visitors investigating the church at Whitefield Ward on Sunday! I was only aware of 3. So we were more than happy to help out the elders who were stretched pretty thin. The members are awesome too to fellowship and friendship new visitors!

             Jim and Joel in Sunday school class

We invited both of them over to our home for Sunday dinner and more gospel conversations. 

In unorthodox fashion, Rob and Jim talked in the kitchen together making cauliflower soup and coleslaw while Joel and I discussed the Book of Mormon in the living room. I learned that Joel was raised in the Catholic Church, had been an altar boy as a youth, but has lately defined himself as an atheist. We engaged in reading passages of the Book of Mormon together and discussing it. I found Joel to be incredibly intelligent yet humble and teachable too, a rare combination. Up to this point in our mission, we have given away several copies of the Book of Mormon to people but I don't believe anyone previously has taken our invitation to actually open the book and read it and ponder its contents for themselves. Joel is unique for us in that he accepted the book from us and is open to learning and appears very sincere in his quest for the truth and is reading it so in his words, he'll be ready to join in the discussion at church. What?! (Me, falling off the sofa in amazement) He is meeting with the Elders even though he works long hours and his free time is limited. I am so thankful to the Lord for Jim's initial groundwork that made Joel want to come back and learn more. We feel blessed to meet Joel in what might be our final opportunity to be a witness to a conversion to the restored gospel of Jesus Christ in India. This is something I've prayed for specifically and yet I know our time is drawing short and these matters can't be rushed to fit our timetable. So we shall remain hopeful but will let it all play out the way it will.  

               Speaking words of wisdom.......

I've made reference to our time drawing short a few times now.  We are only 7 weeks away and counting. Heavens to Murgatroyd! 2 couples who were in our same shoes found out about their new mission assignment only 2 days before their visa expired and had very little time to prepare whether they were staying in Asia (1) or heading back to the States (1). Hoping to avoid this similar scenario, we proactively put out some emails to our President, the Asian Presidency, and the Missionary Department to see if we were on anyone's radar. We made previous searches on the Senior Missionary Opportunities website for possibilities and found a few we thought were a good match for our strengths and our budget parameter and sent those suggestions to all parties. We were very surprised when Monday morning President Bushi called us in and made us aware of our new assignment. We were astounded at the place and even more amazed at how quickly we were informed. We were very, very excited about it! Why had we not seen this particular mission in our searches? We decided to look again for ourselves and find it. Ahh, the reason we never saw it is because this particular mission is nearly $1300 more a month than our current mission. We asked Pres. Bushi, did the decision makers know of our need to live within our financial means and that this was simply too big of a stretch for us? Well, apparently that factor hadn't been noted or taken into consideration when the call was issued. So now we are back to square one, being in a state of quandary, not hearing any immediate follow up. We told a few family members in our initial excitement of our call but are now retracting the declaration. We can't make any official announcement yet because honestly, we don't know how it's going to end up. Is it possible we too will follow suit and learn two days before where we're going before we have to leave?

                   There will be an answer.....

So the week progressed on as usual. We processed bills. We reimbursed the missionaries' expenses. We booked flights and cabs for transfers. Coming and going, we ran into our cute little neighbors across the hall in the elevator.

                        Thing 1 and Thing 2

There were 2 national holidays this week with more explosions outside our window, lights on the trees, and beautiful displays in our lobbies.

On Republic Day, the office was closed so we in essence had a free day in addition to P-day. I suggested to Rob that he accompany me to Lakshmipuram Graveyard. He could wander off and explore the area while I did more photographing of graves. He left for awhile but then returned. After a while, my neck started hurting so bad, giving me a wicked headache that made my vision sorta blurry. In retrospect I am profoundly thankful Rob came back  quicker than his usual jaunts because suddenly in mid-row, I felt myself get very lightheaded like I was going to faint, while simultaneously feeling my "bowels move with compassion" (if you catch my drift). I hung onto a grave stone with head down and started moaning and swooning. Maybe bystanders thought I was hired to be a professional mourner because right on cue, we heard the sound of distant drums drawing nearer and nearer. Bursting onto the scene was a funeral procession, carrying the coffin down the center aisle with frenetic dancers and mourners aplenty. I could hardly stand up straight to see the hullabaloo. Rob was encouraging me to high tail it, but how was I going to inconspicuously get out of this place without collapsing in the process? Believe me, I was praying for strength from above! I know without Rob's help, I would've surely fallen down, hit my head on a stone or marble corner, and have bled to death! Maybe that's a bit melodramatic but I took the incident as a gentle warning that there is wisdom in not being alone and far distant from your companion. I'll spare you the details of how he further assisted me but thank goodness he had decided to come with me this time and was there for me in my moment of critical need! It helped me make the decision to stop this Billiongraves project for now, knowing I'll never ever possibly be done.  I wish I could continue and do more but the Lord, of all people, knows my limitations and that it just isn't wise for me to continue on my own. 

So... I'm done.

                 Shine on 'til tomorrow.....

 

So we keep reassuring each other that everything is going to work out in the end, maybe not how we expect but always for our good. And perhaps next week we'll have big news to share.

 Or maybe not. 

Doctrine & Covenants 58:55

"Let all these things be..."

I submit as evidence, Your Honor

 Many instances on this mission we question if we've done any good in the world today, or have furthered the Lord's work in any meaningful way. Often, we slog through days of sameness with only a few occasional bursts of novelty.  We would suggest that occasionally the Lord can use us if we will simply show up in the right place at the right time where we're supposed to be. Like at church, for instance. We've concluded it's fulfilling enough for us to be used as a bridge between people who need to meet or simply to pass on information that needs to be shared. We're realizing we are very small cogs in this giant wheel of the Lord's work to gather Zion.

 Exhibit A- Two weeks ago we had 3 visitors, a couple and another brother in our age range show up to the Whitefield Ward for Sacrament Meeting. We invited them all to our apartment afterwards. The couple was touring all of India and other countries before and after. The woman's father was the first Mission President of the New Delhi Mission and additionally, her nephew completed his missionary service here right about the time we arrived here. They were here visiting family and sightseeing. The other brother was native born in Bangalore, immigrated to Ottawa, Canada with his parents when he was a young boy, joined the church there and was now back visiting his extended family and checking on some medical arrangements. Both parties mentioned they were feeling a strange pull that they should come back to India to serve missions here in the future. How glad we were to give them all a tour of the mission office, the couples' apartment, with the best view of the temple construction, and to invite them to sit in on the upcoming Mission Conference. Had it not been Fast Sunday, we would've loved to have included them in a meal. A soft couch and friendly conversation was all we could offer. 

Brother DeSouza's ancestors came from Portugal to India and originally settled in Goa. 

Brother and Sister Haddon are from our old stomping grounds- Idaho Falls

They both came on different days to the mission conference to see the training in action and were able to meet President Bushi and the current serving missionaries. With 2 of the 3 of them having family ties in India, is it possible they might obtain visas easier than the average American or Canadian, eh? You just never know where this one will lead. 

The following Sunday we attended the Indiranagar Ward and "little did we know" we'd meet up with Brother Desouza once again.

      ( Sorry private joke. You had to be there)

                  I'll let you caption this photo

It's really a joy to meet the Saints wherever we go in India, or in the entire world for that matter, and feel the instant bond with them and the same Holy Spirit in our meetings. 

This bright young woman is Naina and she was teaching the Relief Society lesson this week. 

                    Elder Massey in action.

The following day, even though it was a working day in the office, Brother Desouza invited us to eat Thali with him, a cuisine similar to what we had eaten once at a wedding, with lots of little side dish mix-ins to your rice. He brought with him Brother Anthony, a member of the Indiranagar Ward we hadn't met the day before. We were completely OK to take time off from our jobs to eat! 

      The place mat is a large banana tree leaf

Our conversation centered on answering his specific questions about serving a mission in India. Though we're not the ultimate experts, we shared with him our preparations and current experiences, hoping it strengthened his desire to someday serve with his wife in the future. Brother Anthony was a returned missionary so he was able to contribute much to the conversation. We had a wonderful visit together. We found we're all connected in the church network with many similar friends. Since I wasn't familiar with the area at all, I asked Bro. Anthony if there were any nearby cemeteries. In fact, there was one in walking distance from the restaurant! What a blessing for me and the work I've felt compelled to do in my spare time! So Elder Dunlap scurried back to the office to do his essential work but I took the blessed opportunity to walk with these two brothers where we found a good size cemetery where I could take photos of gravestones. They were so patient to wait while I scurried down the rows snapping pics and what's more, they provided me an auto ride back to a nearby  metro station to get me back to my own area. 

But now my story turns bleak. Once home, I tried to upload my 250 pictures onto BillionGraves. In the past, the photos I took were immediately assigned a location, this time it kept showing them located in an undefined cemetery and so the upload circle just spun and spun eternally. No!!  All this divine provision for naught? This just can't be! I got on the BG website but found you need to be a paid member, not just a volunteer, to create a ticket to get any help with technical issues. So I was pretty bummed how this episode ended. I kept checking back over the next couple of days to see if it would somehow start uploading the photos with prayers and pleadings, pressing harder the same buttons as I had before. I looked countless times at the map on the app and tried to find where we had walked and what the name of the cemetery might be. It was really hard to tell. When you zoomed out there were literally dozens of them. I took an educated guess, we did drive on Old Madras Rd. Could it maybe be Lakshmipuram Graveyard? So I pressed on it's icon. It said something like "This is not your current location". Darn tootin'.  But suddenly something clicked and voila, it connected all my photos with that location and they instantly started uploading. 

Action shot of the photos uploading. This is exciting stuff, no?! I still don't know how to take screen shots but because I own 3 phones, I can at least take a picture of this phone with another one. 

I was overjoyed that my work wasn't halted. I now know how to get to this new graveyard and back on the metro on my own and I can stay as long as I want to or until I get fatigued. So eagerly I went again this week. I got lots of stares on the Metro and while walking the streets as an independent foreigner but I'm glad to report I got 347 more photos, including this one:

  Don't you dare laugh. He's somebody's relative 

Dass is a common name here, we knew a Brother Dass down in Coimbatore. Initials are the first letter of their Father's first name and constitute their family last name. So this is totally legit! But discovering this one man kept me smiling the whole time as I worked. This Exhibit B experience showed me that the Lord is very willing to help me help the Indian people find their ancestors, through small miracles and fortuitous meetings. 

Exhibit C was all about getting 7 of our missionaries in their various areas back to Bengalore so they could fly internationally to Bangkok to receive their temple endowments. Right now there is no charge for a visa to Thailand so there is a huge push to get every Indian missionary and as many saints as possible to the temple in this window. I felt the urgency. But continual glitches on airline websites caused me to throw my arms up in constant exasperation. I am so easily frustrated by technological issues. But I knew I couldn't let Satan have the win so I just kept trying again. We ended up bringing some missionaries by train and come to find out later the credit card company charged us twice even when it said "transaction failed".  Grrr. This wasn't the worst part. Poor darling sweet Elder Karra got all the way to the airport and couldn't board the flight due to some technicality in his ticket. I was only slightly relieved it wasn't my error, someone else is responsible for booking the international flights, otherwise I don't think I could've lived with myself. So he had to stay behind with our local elders while the rest of the group left on their way. This was around midnight. I can only imagine if that would've been me how devastated and alone I would've felt. But he took it in stride. Earlier that day I had the sweetest experience with him. While 3 of the other elders opted to take a nap, he offered to help me make cookies for all the departing missionaries. He said he'd never made cookies before so he was a most eager student. 

                 Look at me, I'm making cookies! 

                Look at the the delight on his face!

Gratefully, its only a slight delay for him and he'll get to go with the next batch in a few weeks but bless his heart. The rest of the group got there safely and Elder and Sister Robinaugh were there in Bangkok to receive them and guide them to Patron Housing, to the temple, and to restaurants to eat. Eat up Elder Gudla!

A newly married couple on the right and their parents on the left acted as travel chaperones for the group.

It's been confirmed. Indians do not dig Thai food.

So it's gratifying to see these photos and to have even a small part in getting them there to receive those eternal blessings they'll gain from making sacred covenants with God. That's enough. 

 Exhibit D is my final submission to the members of the jury and judge. It's best told in screenshots. I didn't even know how to take one when I started this. Teaching an old dog a new trick is painstaking, it just kept turning down my volume while simultaneously shutting down the phone. But with the elders exhibiting the patience of Job via WhatsApp, they taught me how and I finally got the hang of the quick click! 

The condensed background expository of this incident is that I got an email sent to the mission from a virtual stranger, a Sister Sheen from  Clinton, Utah. 

Well, that's all the evidence we can muster up this week, including a bit of last week. It feels like relatively little to us but along with Elder Dunlap's daily grind of processing bills and payments and reimbursements, we hope we are helping the Lord's work going forward, if only in very small and unassuming ways.

 

" And it came to pass that they did go forth, and did minister unto the people, declaring throughout all the regions round about (Bengaluru, Indiranagar, the Blogosphere) all the things which they had heard and seen, insomuch that the more part of the "Lamanites" (Indians and whomever) were convinced of them, because of the greatness (?) of the evidences which they had received. 

Helaman 5:50

 

Meet the Family

 Whenever we get to be with our missionaries, it's like a family reunion! January 9th-11th, we gathered all 35 of them (not counting the 6 Sri Lankans) to our mission headquarters in Bengaluru for a 3-day Conference. 

      Small in #s (and stature) but giants in faith

It was all you could hope for in a gathering- spiritually inspiring, behaviorally motivating, socially satisfying, topped with an all-you-can-eat Southern Indian Food Frenzy for 3 meals a day. What can I say more?  Biriyani reigned supreme! 

                             Carbfest 2024

Words fail to capture the full experience, maybe the photojournalism will aid, but suffice it to say we were fueled and fed in every possible way. We love our little band of warriors so so much! Perhaps it's because Rob and I have no children together that we have adopted these missionaries as our collective children. We have yours and mine but now we have Ours. And maybe because I have no sons of my own, I especially feel this motherly bond with these righteous young men. Although we enjoy them collectively, it's the one on one conversations  and friendships with them that stand out after it was all over. We even had the joy of having two of them stay with us at our apartment for the 3-day event. Even with all the food provided, they still had room for more!

                 Elders Harmon and Rejendra-

                         The bottomless pits 

For the bulk of it, we held the devotionals and trainings in the Whitefield Ward Building. 

          Former Coimbatore Stripling Warriors, 

                          Bora & Koonisetti

                    The 3 Nepalese Amigos

               Capturing their brotherly bond

   Elders Nepali and Benson- Go Abish!

          Favorite Newbies Andrew and Willis

             The Mc-APs McSwain and Macdonald

                       and the entire IBM 

                               The Seesters 

         Elders Rajput, Gudla, Awesomesetti

                  Elders Karmegam and Meruga

                           Cook and Weight- 

            The anticipation before a meal?

                  Or the inevitable result?

                 Elders Prabhas and Andrew

The 2nd Day of the conference, we took a half- day break for a morning excursion to Nandi Hill. Ah, what memories it evoked of past Zone outings! The PBN Breakfast of Champions (Peanut Butter and Nutella on white bread), the bus rides, the hiking, the photo ops. I'm including all their names here for my own sake. 30 years later, I look at my photos from Korea and the names are gone. You think you'll remember everyone at the time but we know from sad experience memories fade unless we preserve them.

   Polupalli & Meruga (Did I capture something  here?) Probably not but time after will tell. 

                Love thy neighbor as thy Selfie

                           We come in peace 

                     Heimlich maneuver hugs?

                 Vermin and Portapotty (jk)

Koolcats Prabhas Gudla Sondi Injeti Koonisetti

         Willis, Nepali squared, Benson, Andrew

                  Made ya look, Sister Bushi

Adhikari and Patta in rear, Abish blazing ahead

         Kaithwas, Johnson, del Plain, Harmon

          Karmegam Sandwich on white bread

  Elder Macdonald deciphering between 

glyph and graffiti 

I spent the most one-on-one time during meals with Elder Massey. What a friend he is to me. He has made huge strides in his English and in his confidence, his humility, and overall personal growth. It was gratifying to see the patience and love his two companions had for him. He is loved by us all.

           My (t)rusty companion, Elder Dunlap

   Is that your hair on top or just a wispy cloud?

 Is that my crazy hair standing on end or a tree?  Well, both.

I was told to be careful, these monkeys would steal your glasses but this one was wary of me. 

Our last venue of the conference was at the mission home where we ate still more biriyani but also got very close and cozy. It was very special and poignant because we shared our mission miracles and dear Elder Adhikari said his final farewells. He loves the gospels and and all the peoples and the childrens. 

              We will miss his Adhikari-isms 

  We were feeling the Kumbaya love singing 'round the figurative campfire

o

   We adore off-key singing now, it's our favorite 

So here's the crux of it. The reason why we are so bonded to these young people and why they feel like family to us is because of our shared faith in Jesus Christ that we so openly express with each other. These testimonies are personal and are the deepest feelings of our hearts. They often bring tears to our eyes and lumps to our throats. When these young missionaries bear testimony, we know through the Holy Spirit exactly how they are feeling and the Spirit also fills in every gap that can't be said in words but we get it, we know what they are trying to say in their version of our language and we feel that "whatever they say" to be true too. We love hearing "each and every one" of their testimonies of Jesus Christ and the restoration of His Church through the prophet Joseph Smith. We were so touched by Elder Kaithwas and Elder Rajput. These young Indians were raised Hindu with such different beliefs and deities but when they heard the message of Jesus Christ and read the Book of Mormon and felt the truth in their hearts, they radically changed their whole way of thinking and life paradigm. Not only that, they were then willing to sacrifice two years of their life to teach others about it. And then all of the many Indian pioneers who were the first and only in their families to experience conversion, like Elder Vasamsetti. And then the rebellious ones, like Elder Benson who listened to the Spirit that told him he needed to repent and serve a mission. And the stubborn ones like Sister Mani that didn't want to serve a mission but who softened her heart and then saw everything fall into place. And then the pure and simple testimonies like Elder Massey's who spoke of the Lord's tender mercies and enabling power in his simple elementary English. And then to watch his companion Elder Johnson help him find the words and put his arm around him to encourage him.  And then the powerful testimonies of Elder Willis and Elder Guntu and Elder Nepali, where you see a vision open before your eyes of a future leader in the church. And Elder Gudla tell how the Lord helped him gain 5gs so he could qualify to serve and have sustained health. And Elder Patta tell of giving up his movie dance career to serve a mission. And every single one of the others. We add our testimony to theirs. We know there is a God in heaven who loves us! He sent his Son to save us from sin and death and to give us the abundant life now and forever! He is our Savior and Redeemer. This is His church and it is led by His power and authority and we are giving all our energy and wearing out our bodies here to declare it to anyone who's hearts are humble enough to listen and accept the truth we bear. And we are so blessed because of it. This is our collective testimony!

"Therefore, that we should waste and wear out our lives in bringing to light all the hidden things....wherein we know them; and they are truly manifest from heaven. Therefore dearly beloved brethren, let us cheerfully do all things that lie in our power; and then may we stand still, with the upmost assurance, to see the salvation of God, and for his arm to be revealed."

Doctrine and Covenants 123: 13, 17