21-28 June 2020 Two busy weeks

Everyone tells us the kangaroos are easily spotted when you are out in the bush areas.  But we found a mob while coming home one evening from shopping at Costco.  Right by the soccer field across the street we turned and saw about 16 just grazing.  They may have been wallabies by the looks of their size, but I am not certain.  They were oblivious to us until a large truck loudly started up and they took off across the field. 

Each day, as we walk to the office, we are met by the birds.  In the morning as I walk with some of the other senior missionaries, we hear kookaburras right at dawn.  Here is one bird that just sat and looked at us as we walked by.  His green coloring though not readily apparent in the picture made him especially noticeable to us.

These weeks have been busy and hectic.  A week ago, the young Australian missionaries that were sent home were reassigned to Sydney.  They arrived over three days from all over the continent leaving their homes again to serve.  I was touched to hear them tell of their previous assignments and their desires to continue to serve though some really only have just months left.  Others, like our grandson Sam, have completed the online MTC work and are just beginning their two years.  This past week and through Tuesday, there will have been 5 Zone Conferences for more training and instruction from the mission president, the assistants, and the newly called tech missionaries which will guide the social media work. 

With arrivals, the office couples all handle orientation responsibilities.  I watched and assisted Sister Blackham as she explained all the ins and outs of their phones, passing out SIM cards and the expectations for approved use.  She  and her husband return home this week, so it's now all been handed over to me.  I have been surprised by how much work it takes to help keep these phones working and repaired.  I have had my phone since before our mission in Germany and have never had to repair it.  I just gave some out last week that will be brought in tomorrow with cracked screens and cases or missing volume buttons and a myriad of other problems.  Some can be fixed for a price.  Others may just need a hammer taken to them!

 It is fun to get to know the young missionaries and watch how enthusiastic they are about missionary service.  They always want to know how they can help us or if there is anything else they can do.  Social distancing is still supposed to be the order of the day, but they were so happy to see each other after weeks of isolating in flats and elsewhere.  These are a few of our Sydney Australia missionaries.

With Elaine and Carl Blackham and Karleen and Claude Stoker returning to the states this week, the mission office will be down to just three and a half couples working there.  I am basically the "half" as Don works in our office downstairs.  So now I have two offices.  I will spend morning upstairs for now dealing with the phones and spend some of the afternoon in our office downstairs in the Service Centre doing my other work with humanitarian projects and preparing for more ESL classes to resume.

We're into the days of the long good-byes as we spend time saying good-bye to these two wonderful couples that will be very difficult to replace.  Friday evening after the fourth Zone Conference, all the senior couples went to dinner at Gringos Mexican Cantina.  We really enjoyed the time to relax and get out together.  President and Sister Runia made all the arrangements and invited us all to join them.  Again, I found the social distancing requirements funny as we could have six at one table and 10 at the other.  I have no idea how that arrangement is determined but it worked out well and the staff were so friendly and helpful.

Yesterday, the four couples that will be left working in the mission office headed to Manly from Kissing Point on the ferry to enjoy the decidedly great winter weather, the beaches, and more food.  So Don and I, Ron and Elise Christensen, Mel and Nina Anderson, and Mike and Theresa Thomas set off together.  They ferry took us by several stops, one being Cockatoo Island, the largest island in Sydney Harbour.  Originally inhabited by indigenous people, it once served as a penal colony primarily for re-offenders in the early European colonization days and is listed as one of  the convict sites.  From the mid 1800's it became the site of Australia's biggest shipyards until the 1990's.  Now it has a camp and glampsite and is used for many cultural and historical activities.

It's always great to see the harbour and sites of Sydney from the water.  We passed many of the skyscrapers and under the Harbour Bridge pass the Opera House.  It's always a good view from the water side.

What would Circular Quay be without a Crocodile Dundee poser?  Lots of sail boats on the harbour today too. 

The ferry took us to Manly where we walked again down the other side of the Corso pedestrian way where we've come once before though the shops were mostly closed on that occasion.  Today, we all got take away food and sat on the beach to eat.  Then we hiked to some look-out spots to watch for whales and the surfers.  

Here we are with the other six missionary couples that we are working along side for now.  Mike and Theresa Thomas from Centerville, Utah.  Mike handles all the finances, bills, and now is in charge of the transporation fleet too.  She is a mission office secretary that has had travel and visas added to her other duties.  Elise and Ron Christensen from Highland, Utah are filling in as the medical team.  Don and I each have assignments from the Area Legal Counsel and now I will have a few more things to help with upstairs in addition to starting our ESL classes again.  Finally, Nina and Mel Anderson from Hooper, Utah handle the missionary flats and other duties in the office.  International travellers and flights allowing tourist visas are not expected to begin any time soon.   

And the birds just keep posing and waiting for you to get the best shot!

The waves were larger than they look here.  Cormorants and gulls all over the beaches and rocks.

Cabbage Tree Bay with Shelly Beach- a great place for snorkelers too.  Around the beach there were an abundance of turkeys looking for hand-outs from picnickers.  I don't think these look like Thanksgiving size however.  Another great day returning on the ferry and preparing for the new week-another Zone Conference and saying good-bye to Stokers and  Blackhams.  They will be greatly missed for their tireless service to all.

Our Sam will leave his home for Tempe this Tuesday also as he begins his own mission service.  How great to serve at the same time as our first grandchild.  We are so proud of him and his righteous desire to help others find peace by inviting all to "Hear Him."

7 -14 June 2020 This is Winter?

As I was helping prepare for new missionary arrivals a week ago, Don had a meeting in Sydney with one of the attorneys he works with on various matters.  Using the express bus, he arrived a bit early and enjoyed going into the Queen Victoria Building (QVB) which was closed when we were there earlier in the month.  The beauty of stained glass and the upscale shops all located in Victorian-era- like facades is a lovely place to visit.

Another impressive building in Sydney is St. Andrews Cathedral.  An beautiful example of revivalist Gothic architecture, it is the cathedral church of the Anglican church here in Australia. 

The next day we went with another senior missionary couple, Ron and Elise Christensen from Highland, Utah on the Hornsby Blue Gum Hike.  Just as it sounds, we hiked through amazing stands of the towering eucalyptus trees through rain-forest like terrain to sandstone ridges.  Rock shelters, waterfalls and fishponds, we traversed through a number of environments as we reached the top of the ridge and then continued back down the trails.  I love these bush walks. What a beautiful day for a hike.  This is called winter "Down Under?!"

One of the most interesting things I've seen here is the regeneration taking place for some of the trees that were part of the firestorms last summer.  Already, trees not totally decimated have green sprouts coming right out of the tree trunks and branches.  What a hopeful sight to witness and see how flora life continues even under such devastating circumstances.

The Fishponds

Rock shelters and eroded sandstone boulders

Carpets of ferns throughout the lower parts of the bush

This week was equally busy as we had 40 new Australian missionaries arrive as they have been reassigned from other missions due to the corona virus.  It was a busy week for the office couples; two couples are preparing to return to the states in just two week so this is their last missionary orientation.  I watched, trying to learn everything I will need to do when they leave as I will continue helping in the mission office also.  

With more English speaking missionaries, I will probably teach my last Zoom ESL class this week.  Now they will be able to have English speaking companions that will help them continue practicing English with daily study.  Perhaps we will be able to continue since meetings of larger groups are now allowed and I could meet with groups.  I'll just see what the mission president and the self-reliance missionaries plan to do.  I feel pretty energized meeting with these enthusiastic young adults.  Their commitment to serving and working hard is inspiring.  It's been very hard for them as many cannot drive and they have been in isolation for a long time.  

Yesterday we went with the Christensens again and took on the challenge of the Bondi to Coogee Beach walk.  Parking at Coogee Beach, we began the 6km walk to Bondi Beach by walking along the coastal cliffs.  Absolutely amazing ocean views and five of  Sydney's fabulous beaches made for a memorable day. Leaving Coogee beach we then walked on to Clovelly, Bronte, Tamarama before stopping at Bondi for a late lunch. 

As we followed our walk, we passed the Waverly Cemetery at Bronte, a massive cemetery known for its Victorian and Edwardian headstones and monuments.  It opened in 1877 and has over 90,000 burials and monuments.  Its location is remarkable as it looks out toward the Tasman Sea and is situated high on the city hill.

The cliff views are as stunning to us as the beaches.

Clovelly Beach with ocean pools and swimming areas

 Another beautiful winter day, we stopped along the way to watch surfers and look for whales.  No luck with whale watching on this day, but each beach and bay had numerous wet-suit clad surfers trying to get the best wave.  We followed one lone swimmer, watching from the cliffs as he swam from Coogee to Bronte.  He just turned around and began swimming back.  Ocean swimming through swells cannot be easy.  After eating al fresco at a sidewalk cafe in Bondi, the four of us began the 6km  return trip. 

First Road Trip!!!  Don and I were so excited to get to drive up to Newcastle and meet with family members.  Tony and Laura Barton our daughter-in-law Rebecca's brother and wife, invited us to come up and share the day with them.  What a joy to spend time together and enjoy such a warm welcome to their home.  Afterward, they showed us more beautiful beaches and sites.  When we lived in Germany, I never tired of seeing half-timbered houses.  In Australia, I will never tire of the exquisite beaches and rocky cliffs. 

Here we are with Tony and Laura at the first beach they showed us: RedHead Beach by Lake Macquarie.

This next site is actually one of Tony's "offices," the Merewether Flying Site.  It is where he sometimes teaches and where he and other flyers take off when hang-gliding or paragliding.  A stunning location high above the beach, it has become something of a venue for weddings with its gorgeous backdrop.  We'd love to come back and watch.  I don't think I could run off the cliff though to get in the air!  Don thinks he's game for it though as long as Tony is with him!     

The third site we saw was located at the Strzelecki Lookout which is where the ANZAC Memorial Walk and Bridge is located.  This has an area which is really Tony's "official" office for take-offs!  

These steel silhouettes of WWI soldiers are also engraved with the names of those soldiers who served from Newcastle and the surrounding area in the "Great War."  Laura told us that at night, the silhouettes and bridge walkway are lit.  That would be a lovely site to see sometime.

                      

While looking out toward the ocean, we saw many coal barges as Newcastle is still a large coal mining and shipping area.  Earlier we had seen whales' spouts. But then, there it was.  A humpback whale tail slapping the water and breaching a few times.  She was putting on quite a show for us. We spent several minutes just enjoying the scene until a large yacht ventured to close probably trying to get up close and personal.  Alas, our friend disappeared.  

This is the fence that "protects" Tony's main office.  The flyers just have to lift their gear over and then be prepared to walk back up the trail from the beaches where they often land.

Our last stop for the day was Nobbys Beach which is a wonderful family and surf beach.  Here is the lighthouse.  While watching the surfers, we also could see the a pod of dolphins jumping and playing right behind them.  What an absolutely wonderful WINTER day.  Laura and Tony were so gracious and hospitable and spent their day taking us to see such beautiful scenes.  We are so privileged to call them family.  We hope to return even a modicum of hospitality when they come down our way.  But we will definitely be going back too.