July is Gone Already? and now August is too!!!

 She-ma-nee!!!  I looked back at journals and pictures.  Some things seemed like they happened a year ago and others seemed like they just happened last week.  Time is a curious thing. It goes waaay too fast, and yet, sometimes, not fast enough!!!

Fourth of July picnic on the 1st!

Our month started off with a BANG!!! July 1st is Canada Day and is celebrated much like the fourth of July minus the Stars and Stripes.  EVERYTHING is closed and  (except a few museums and restaurants) and there are picnics and fireworks, watermelon and games.

Outside the museum looking towards a hotel downtown.

Because everything was closed on the 1st, we celebrated the 4th by going to a museum with our Sr Sisters.  We live right by the canal designed and constructed by a crew under the direction of Colonel John By.  Sister Munsell found a little museum called the By Town Museum.  Ottawa was called By Town originally and was a rough, saloon, dock worker town.  They name was changed after Ottawa became the national capital.  This little place was kind of a memorial to that original town and was filled with what looked like the leftovers from some of the bigger museums, but there was some cool stuff.

We never get enough of the beauty of Ottawa!

The rest of the month was typical of summer in the capital.  All the students were in and out traveling hither and thither.  the roads are filled with construction.  Theres tourists everywhere because there are festivals and concerts and celebrations everywhere.  But in our little world life went on as usual.

Ned caught this at the Bishops Storehouse.  Don't
remember what we were looking at but...(notice the feet)

Every six weeks whether we're ready or not that last picture
before transfers comes about.  Never know whether to be excited
or distraught.  It always turns out to be exciting.  Its fun to watch
the work roll on.

Some stay

and some move on, but the plan is in place and it is magnificent!

I think the biggest blessing of being on a mission is that missionaries learn so much as they prepare to teach.  I don't know how my class (they are 20 of the most amazing people ever) learned from me, but I will be forever grateful for all  the things that they taught me. I would go to class with a basic lesson plan but their insights turned it into something amazing.  Sometimes I would be up front sputtering and stammering trying to pull out or explain a point or figure out a better way to ask the question just posed and they would straighten things out for us every time.  I taught the class "Jesus Christ and the Everlasting Gospel".  I hope their testimonies and knowledge of the Savior and how to access the blessings of His Atonement grew as much as mine.
One of my favorite lessons taught the

"Savior lives today, that He is our Advocate with the Father, and that through faith in Him we become “begotten sons and daughters unto God”

This was my favorite quotes from the lesson

“It is of great significance to me, 

that I may at any moment and in any circumstance 

approach through prayer the throne of grace, 

that my Heavenly Father will hear my petition, 

that my Advocate, 

him who did no sin, 

whose blood was shed, 

will plead my cause." 

(D Todd Christofferson) 

A second quote that I loved came from a lesson teaching that we need not wait until the millennium to enjoy some of its blessings. President Kimball taught,

“When Satan is bound in a single home

—when Satan is bound in a single life

--the Millennium has already begun in that home, in that life”

What a great class!

We started a Family History class on Fridays as well! It was a lot of fun even if our numbers were small. Sister Wells and Sister Munsell were Saints to come every week to fill in where we lacked!

We played grounders at HEG one week.

Grounders to me was a game where one person hit the ball
and everyone else practiced catching it and throwing in home.

This one- one person was it and his eyes were closed while on
an apparatus.  On the ground, he is eyes open.

If you get tagged while on the apparatus, or if you get called out
while touching the ground, you are it.  so much fun!

One other outing appropriate to the month of July fell into our laps (Mission miracles happen every day) was a visit to the American Embassy.  The Senior Sisters go to church with a woman who works there and she arranged for us to tour the building.  One of our Young Adults works security there, got to see him and his mom.  Security is pretty tight in most of the buildings here.  They took our phones as we walked in, so, no pictures.  (I'll grab some online).  The inside was designed to look like the inside of a ship-long skinny passageways with lots of doors and beautiful woodwork and the middle open from floor to rooftop. Beautiful artwork that we can't show you- sorry, it changes frequently and I couldn't find anything else online. Maybe you can do better than I did.  Anyway- it was cool!


  


  

Went to lunch after the embassy and they still had minute before
they had to be back to work so we stopped in to see Notre Dame.

So what else happens in a month?  We replaced air-conditioners, chauffeured, students have become engaged, gone on missions.  I had a tooth break and what T thought would would end up with a crown only needed a new filling (mission miracle and a GRESAT dentist!).  We're getting pathway groups set up so we've done a couple trainings and answered a lot of questions. We went to a Ukrainian festival- so excited for real Ukrainian food, but it just wasn't the same. ): Elder Mik helped a lady with her computer so she could volunteer downtown at the archive, referred a few people to the missionaries that we've met on walks  We harvest garlic at the stake garlic farm

All the proceeds from the garlic farm go to a local charity.

Ned watched this boat come through the locks
one day.

Couldn't resist getting a picture of this as we drove by.  If you
could add a caption here, what would it be?

Its already halfway through August!  A little slow this month.  Elder Mik looked at the calendar the other day and realized we only have 7 transfers left!
"Time flies on wings of lightening, we cannot call it back.  It comes then passes forward along its onward track. and if we are not mindful, the chance will fade away, for life is quick in passing.  Tis as a single day.
Improve the shining moments; don't let them pass you by. Work while the sun is radiant; work, for the night draws nigh. We cannot bid the sunbeams to lengthen out their stay. Nor, can we ask the shadow to ever stay away."
It flies! and oh what a journey!  Hope you find joy in yours as we do in ours!
Love to you all,
The Miks