DEAR FAMILY AND FRIENDS, JAN 23, 2011,
I WANTED TO WRIGHT THIS LETTER YESTERDAY, BUT THE DAY GOT AWAY FROM US WITH NO FAULT OF OURS. THE DAY WAS ALL PLANNED OUT TO GO UP TO NEWCASTLE FOR LEADERSHIP TRAINING, SPEND LUNCH WITH ELDER AND SISTER WARD AND THEN HOME AND GET OUR LETTER DONE AND READY OURSELVES FOR SUNDAY WITH JUST A LITTLE SHOPPING BEFORE GETTING HOME. WHEN WE ARRIVED AT THE MEETING SISTER HUDSON WAS ASKED TO PLAY THE PIANO AND I WAS GOING TO SUPPORT THE COUNSELOR IN THE DISTRICT PRESIDENCY IN ONE DEPARTMENT OF INSTRUCTION. PRESIDENT GAVE ME SOME INFORMATION ON WHAT WE WERE GOING TO TEACH AND I SAID WE SHOULD TELL THEM "HOW TO" GET IT DONE. HE THOUGHT THAT WAS A GOOD IDEA AND SAID WHY DON'T YOU DO THAT AND JUST LEAVE ME FIVE MINUTES AT THE END. SO THAT'S HOW IT WENT I TOOK THE TIME AND LEFT HIM FIVE MINUTES AT THE END. SOMEHOW SISTER HUDSON AND SISTER WARD LEFT THE BUILDING WHILE I HAD TO STAY FOR ANOTHER MEETING, WE LOVE MEETINGS IN THE CHURCH, SO WHEN THE LAST MEETING WAS OVER I WENT OVER TO PICK UP SISTER HUDSON AND HEAD FOR HOME. NOT THERE WHEN I GOT THERE TO PICK HER UP SO SAT IN THE CAR AND JUST WAITED, I GUESS FOR ABOUT 15 MINUTES. THEY HAD MADE PLANS TO GO OUT FOR LUNCH WHEN ELDER WARD GOT HOME AFTER ANOTHER MEETING THAT HE HAD TO GO TO. WE WAITED ABOUT HALF AN HOUR FOR ELDER WARD WHEN MY PHONE RANG AND IT WAS THE OTHER COUNSELOR IN THE DISTRICT PRESIDENCY, PRESIDENT MOLOI. HE SAID HE HAD CAR TROUBLE AND WONDERED IF WE WOULD LOOK OUT FOR THEM ON THE ROAD BACK TO LADYSMITH. I TOLD HIM WE WERE STILL AT THE WARDS BUT WOULD LEAVE RIGHT AWAY AND COME HELP. HE SAID THEY WERE RIGHT ON THE ROAD AND HE WOULD STAND THERE SO WE WOULD SEE THEM. DO YOU KNOW WHERE I'M GOING WITH THIS, WE DROVE CLEAR BACK TO LADYSMITH AND COULDN'T FIND THEM, THANK GOODNESS FOR CELL PHONES, UNFORTUNATELY HE COULD NOT TELL ME WHERE THEY WERE, SO BACK WE WENT TO TRY AGAIN TO FIND THEM. WE DROVE AND DROVE TO ALMOST WHERE WE STARTED FROM AND THERE THEY WERE OFF THE ROAD IN SOME TREES, NO WONDER WE MISSED THEM. HE NEEDED SOME GREASE TO PUT IN THE FRONT WHEEL, I KNOW NOTHING ABOUT CARS SO THAT ALL I SAY ABOUT THAT. WE LEFT THE TRUCK THERE AND DROVE TO LADYSMITH AND GOT THE GREASE AND BY THIS TIME I NEEDED GAS. BACK TO THE TRUCK WITH THE GREASE WHICH HE TRIES TO FORCE INTO THE WHEEL BEARING WITHOUT TO MUCH LUCK, BUT WITH WHEEL ON WE START ON THE ROAD AGAIN AT A VERY SLOW PACE WITH FLASHERS ON. DOWN THE ROAD A SHORT DISTANCE SOMETHING FELL OFF THE TRUCK, BUT HE KEPT ON DRIVING. WELL AT THE WORST POSSIBLE PLACE ON THE ROAD THE TRUCK STOPPED AND SMOKE STARTED TO POUR OUT FROM THE WHEEL. THE TRUCK WAS NOT GOING TO MOVE ANYWHERE WITHOUT CALLING FOR A BREAKDOWN TRUCK (WRECKER). HE HAD THE NUMBER IN HIS CELL PHONE WHICH I HAD PLACED ON THE HOOD OF THE TRUCK WHILE HE WAS WORKING ON THE WHEEL, SO OFF WE WENT BACK TO FINE THE PHONE, BY NOW IT IS NIGHT TIME, DARK AND A LIGHT RAIN. WE DRIVE RIGHT TO THE PLACE LOOK RIGHT WHERE THE TRUCK WAS WORKED ON AND LOOKED AND LOOKED WITHOUT ANY LUCK. DROVE BACK TO THE TRUCK AND THERE THE POLICE WERE AND THEY HAD CALL FOR A BREAKDOWN TRUCK. I KNOW THIS IS A LONG STORY, BUT TIME WISE ONLY HALF WAY THROUGH, SO LET ME CONTINUE. THE PRESIDENT HAS NO MONEY, WANTS TO TOW THE TRUCK TO OUR BOARDING SO HE CAN WORK ON IT MONDAY, I AGREE TO PAY THE 750 RAND ( A LITTLE OVER $150.00 ) WHICH WE JUST HAPPENED TO HAVE IN THE GLOVE BOX. WE HAVE NOT HAD ANYTHING TO EAT ALL DAY AND THE PRESIDENT AND HIS WIFE LIVE ANOTHER HOUR FROM LADYSMITH, SO WE FIXED THEM SOME LEFTOVERS THAT WE HAD PLANNED TO HAVE SUNDAY AFTER CHURCH AND THEN DROVE THEM HOME. I COULD TELL YOU OF THAT EXPERIENCE, BUT WILL JUST SAY NINE HOURS LATER AT MIDNIGHT WE LAYED OUR HEADS ON OUR PILLOWS. DID I TELL WE STARTED THE DAY BY BUYING A FOOD ORDER AT 7:30 AM FOR A LADY IN EZAKENI BRANCH FOR THE ELDERS TO DELIVER, SO TURNED OUT TO BE A LONG DAY.
TODAY WE DROVE TO DUNDEE, ONE HOUR FROM HERE IN THE WORST RAIN STORM EVER. WE HAD A GREAT MEETING THERE AND THEN BACK TO LADYSMITH AS I WAS ASKED TO BAPTIZE THE SISTER WHOSE WEDDING I SPOKE AT FOUR MONTHS AGO. AS MISSIONARIES THIS IS A GREAT BLESSING, ALTHOUGH I DID NOT TEACH HER, SISTER HUDSON AND I HAVE BEEN IN THE HOME AND SPENT TIME WITH HER AND HER HUSBAND. THE REST OF THE WEEK WAS SPENT IN TWO MORE MEETINGS IN NEWCASTLE, WHERE SISTER HUDSON FOUND, WITH THE HELP OF SISTER WARD, A PLACE TO BUY MORE MATERIAL.
KEYBOARD LESSONS STARTED UP AGAIN AFTER SIX WEEKS OFF AND WE NEEDED TO RETEACH SOME THINGS, BUT ALL IN ALL IT WAS GOOD TO GET BACK TO WORKING ONE ON ONE WITH THE YOUTH.
One of our major purchases this week was a fly swatter. When I asked at the store the lady didn't know what I was saying. She was having trouble with my English I guess.
We also found a hole in the wall Chinese Restaurant. It is across for Game, one of the stores we shop at.
Now I have to add to our adventure taking President Moloi and his wife home. They live off the main road about 2 miles. It is a dirt road. It had rained before we got there. The last two blocks was just the wheel tire trenches. President Moloi kept telling Elder Hudson to drive on the right side up on the grass. These two trenches were deep and the grass hit the bottom of the car. Thank goodness for the flashlight Mark got us. We used it to shut the gate and look for the lost phone.
Elder Hudson wasn't too excited about me finding more fabric stores, but I was very excited. I was able to get five different African prints. This made me happy. Elder Hudson keeps telling me what to type. He will be happy when winter comes and the sun shines. Going to Dundee I told him it was raining so hard know one would be at church. We got there and the Elders said we had 60 at church. This was a really good turn out. It was so nice to see them again.
From the wet and soggy missionaries from South Africa
Sister and Elder Hudson
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