As you get nearer the city, you can see that it is surrounded by mountains much like our little home city, Pocatello. This picture, taken from the car, is not the best, but it is what we often see as we enter the city on Sunday morning on our way to Branch Presidency meeting. A gorgeous sunrise with the mist laying in the valley and the mountains stalwart and brave all around.
Here is a nice sunny summer picture of our beautiful church yard.
I would like to introduce you to a few of the members that I have learned to love. This is Candace, an amazing young woman who is a social worker. She teaches one of the Relief Society lessons each month. She loves Oprah and entered a contest writing about her boss and all she does to help the poor in Paarl. She won a trip for the two of them to Chicago and appeared with all the winners on the Oprah show! yes! She went in January. She is amazing in so many ways and a is very serious, obedient member of the Church. She is hoping to move to the US to work for a while very soon. Maybe you'll get to meet her!
This is Keegan, a very musically talented young man, who has been serving as the Ward Clerk, the Executive Secreatary, the librarian, the membership clerk etc, etc etc. His job was to help the Branch President in everything that the Branch did. I say that in past tense, because he left last month for a mission in Ghana. Exciting times for him and his family. Boy do we miss him!
This is a picture of the Branch Christmas Party held in the 'gym' in the chapel. The white-haired lady in the wheelchair on the right is the oldest member of Paarl Branch. She actually passed away about a month ago and I was privledged to help prepare her for burial with her Temple clothing. No one else really stands out, except the man leading the singing who is the branch mission leader. You can tell Christmas is in the summer here----everyone was very relaxed in their summer best!
The Relief Society sisters did a little program about how women are like gems and jewels with strength and value beyond what we see. I know this doesn't really go with a Christmas theme, but our President was determined to put this program on because someone had showed it to her and she liked it. This is Sister Wang who is a divorced mother of five children. She makes money by sewing clothing---beautiful tailored suits. I hope to have her make me a skirt before I leave. She is very beautiful and talented in many things.
This is Margaret on the right, she is Ellen's sister, and her daughter, Bianca---doing their part for the program. Two very active members who do a lot here in Paarl to bless the members who attend here. Margaret just got her degree in teaching and started teaching grade three this year. Bianca just got married and had her first child this year.
And this is Sister Hendricks-- another stalwart in the Branch who is such an entertaining lady. She never misses an opportunity to bear her testimony or share her thoughts on a gospel subject. She is amazing! I wish I had a better picture of her. She was assigned to talk about gold in the program I think because she is the most highly prized person in the branch.
Of course the missionaries are not paying any attention and totally have their own thing going at their table! Elder Leach, Elder Balmforth, and Elder Nielsen are showing the young women some magic tricks I think!
They weren't the only ones not listening to the program, Elder Herbert was goofing off quite a bit too. A young girl wore this hat and several of the men had to try it on.
This is not a great picture of Mara and her daughter, but it is all I have. Mara is a widow with three children who is loved by all. Her daughter helps to hold the Young Women together. There is Elder Maja sitting alone in a contemplative mood---he is not one to be silly. I really appreciated him in so many ways. He has gone home to Polokwane, Limpopo now and I really pray that he is doing well there.
The Young Women sang some Christmas songs---like I said the dress code was pretty relaxed that night. The beautiful one in the center is Tamsynn---the young women's president. She returned last year from a mission at Temple Square. She is Candace's sister and has been such an asset to the branch.
And here I am with Sister Ellen who is the Relief Society President in the KD Branch. She invited all the missionaries (and many of her family members) to her home for dinner on the Sunday before Christmas. She is the cutest and sweetest woman you could ever hope to meet. This picture was taken on her deck in the back of her home. Her husband works in a water purification plant and she is a nurse. She doesn't speak English very well (she thinks) and she writes out everything she says in front of RS when she conducts so she won't make a mistake. I am getting her to forget about that and just get up and speak from her heart.
Here is a picture of the whole group she fed that day. Oh, but I forgot to tell you, Ellen doesn't cook! Her daughter, Valencia (pronounced Walencia), had prepared all the food. She is standing on the left of Ellen with her arms around her little boy. She is a canine officer in the police force in Cape Town. Ellen's husband and brother are in back of her, and her sister is up in front with the crown on her head. I think it was her birthday. Ellen's son and neices and nephews are in the back too. Elder Grobler - a missionary from The Free State, is kneeling with his arm on the table---the other missionaries are behind Vic--Elder Balmforth and Elder Leach. Elder Maja is the black Elder in the very back---great missionary. And Elder and Sister Foster are there too. We had such a good time sharing stories of Christmas.
This is one of our new converts in Paarl with her two small children and her parents. Her parents came to her baptism on this day---but they also came back the next week. Her name is Lindelwa and she is a really wonderful woman who has spent her life caring for parents, aunts, cousins and everyone else. She lives behind her parents in a one-room shack that they built back there. She has no running water and her electricity is an extension cord running from her parent's home. She uses the bathroom in her parent's house and has a bucket for the kids to use in emergencies. (Many people live that way---they call it a Wendy shack for some reason.) What a strong and beautiful woman. She also has a great job in a factory where she is in charge when the boss has a day off. What a blessing she will be to this branch.
Look at that hair! this is a great example of what lots of the little kids look like. You can tell she is a little afraid of me---probably because I am white. My white hair doesn't help either.
Later, when we had made friends a little, she struck this pose when I started to take her picture.
Big brother didn't want to be left out---he asked me to take his picture. What a cutie!
These two young girls were also baptised that day. Their mother had to work, but she is a member too. They had just never gotten the girls baptized. This is one of the families we have worked to bring back to church. This man's mother was one of the earliest members of the church in Paarl and taught Seminary and Institute to many of the people his age. She has altzheimers now, so we don't see her at church. He has a wonderful testimony of the gospel of Jesus Christ.
Here is a picture of the lovely chapel for me to remember. I know you've seen a millon chapels, but this is somewhat rare here in South Africa. Paarl is set up to have a stake here someday.
Here is the multipurpose room when no one is in it. We have two table tennis tables and a pool table ---just no basketball hoops inside. They are out in the parking lot.
And finally a picture of the entire branch that was in attendance at Keegan's farewell. These are our new friends in Paarl. What a great group of people. I love so many of them dearly. Can you imagine us saying lets all go outside and take a picture together after Sacrament meeting? Well, that's what the Branch President did. They told the women to line up first so I lined up with them. Then everyone else started filling in and Elder Herbert ended up far away from me. That is Sister Foster standing by him and her husband is kneeling next to her. You can pick me out by my nametag just a little right of the center of the picture.
The other counselour in the Relief Society is right in front of me. Hope you enjoyed meeting the people I am working with every week. This is a memory more for me than for those who will read it. The Church is the same everywhere you go---great people doing many, many small things to build a small piece of the kingdom of God on the earth. Every little thing we do helps so much---keep up what you're doing too! We love you too!
