Christmas

I am not going to try and catch up on all the days that I have missed.  I will highlight some of our most recent activities.

On December 19, we drove to Kingston for our Christmas FHE.  We stopped at the office to take care of some mission business and then Elder and Sister Whitehead drove us to Boon Hollow Oasis at Stony Hill
where we had a wonderful dinner with President and Sister Brown and all the senior couples.  The environment was fantastic as was FHE.  The Vances set the tone for the FHE by sharing some past Christmas experiences and then the President and Sister Brown and several of the couples shared some thoughts.  I enjoyed the spirit that I could feel as those thoughts were expressed.  One of the benefits of serving a mission is the experience of meeting such choice individuals that you might not otherwise have the opportunity of meeting if you had stayed home.  We found out later that Sister Brown went  into labor that night and had her baby early the next morning. We spent the night with Sister Wege.  She shared with us her trip to the Dominican Republic.  The next morning we made a trip to Pricesmart to purchase some items for the branch Christmas party and a few food items for ourselves.

We skyped with the Port Antonio Elders for our district meeting on Christmas Eve.  We were informed at that meeting that we would no longer be meeting with Port Antonio and that Elder Jones would become the new district leader for Ocho.  We were sad about not being able to go to Port Antonio but I can see the wisdom of eliminating all the travel that is involved going back and forth.  Elder Jones will do a very good job.  He has only been out for two transfers but he is very capable.  After the meeting we delivered a few cookies and some Christmas cards to some of the employees of our condo complex.

Christmas morning I woke up and started a batch of rolls and made two pumpkin pies before Sister Mouritsen and Sister Garrett came over to skype with their families.  It was fun to meet the families of both sisters.  They were so excited to skype and it brought back memories of the excitement I felt when we got to talk to our own missionary children.  We also got to skype with some of our children and that was wonderful.  Rohan, Tracy, and their children came over for Christmas dinner along with Elder Jones and Elder Cox and the sister missionaries.  Rohan and Tracy made fried chicken, rice and peas, fried fish and a Christmas drink.  It was fun to watch them cook and they are very good.  Rohan does not measure so it was hard for me figure out all the right ingredients.  The Christmas drink had two cans or carrot juice, two bottles of Malta, 2 raw eggs but normally it would be 3, 4 TBS. of vanilla, one can of sweetened condensed milk, and one box of Nestles full cream milk.  I really enjoyed the drink and the meal.  I made a potato salad also. It was the first time Rohan and Tracy had tasted pumpkin pie.  Jamaican potato salad is very different from my recipe but they seemed to enjoy the salad also.  Jamaican potato salad has frozen mixed vegetable mixed in with the potatoes and eggs.  I do enjoy their salad also.  In fact, I like most of the Jamaican food I have tried.

Friday we drove up to Lime Hall to get our car washed.  The Halls came up to visit with the members in Ochi since that is where they served before going to the office.  They followed us up to Lime Hall to get their car washed also.  We left for Browns Town as soon as our car was washed so that we could pick up food for the Branch Christmas party the next evening.  After we got everything loaded into the truck, we dropped the food off at Sister Vacianna's and then dropped the chicken off at the Hall's condo so that we could use their refrigerator.  We then went with the Halls to a Chinese restaurant in town.  It was very good.

Saturday we did a lot of running around for the Christmas party.  We had to pick up a few odds and ends in paper products and food items.  We also had the Halls over for breakfast.  We stopped at the branch to drop off the papers goods and noticed that the power was still off in our building.  We asked the security what was going on and they said the whole complex was without power.  As it was, the power never came back on until around 9:00 in the evening.  I went home to make cheesy potatoes for the dinner.  I also frosted the cookies.  The Halls came over so the Brian could practice a song with her on the keyboard.  When we took the potatoes to the branch, we found out that the food wasn't going to be ready until 5:00.  We already at people at the branch - most of which was investigators.  The elders and sisters entertained while we went back and forth to get the food.  By the time we started, we still had a little daylight but by 6:00, it was dark.  We used flashlights so that we could dish up the food.  Sister Alexander, her daughter Anika, Rohan and Tracy, Sister Henry and Sister Vacianna prepared the food.  It was excellent.  We had fried chicken, Jerk chicken, Jerk pork, curry goat, rice and peas, potato salad, vegetables, cheesy  potatoes and Sorrel to drink.  We also had Christmas cake (non alcoholic) for desert. Everything was so good.  We did not have a program because their was no light.  When it was all over, the sisters and elders said they would come back to clean early Sunday morning.  We could not see to do anything as far as clean up was concerned.  Brian and I stopped to get gas and noticed as we were going back through town that a few of the places had lights on.  We needed to pick up some items at the branch and we were thrilled when we turned on the lights and they worked.  We ended up cleaning up the building so that we would not have to come back early in the morning.  By the time we washed pans and put things away, it was midnight before we got to bed.  I decided to see how much the cheesy potatoes cost to prepare.  It added up to $85 US dollars not counting the tax which is about 16%.  I had hoped to get some pictures of the party but with all the confusion of the power being off and all the running around, it did not happen.

Sunday the Halls spoke in church and did a great job.  Brian also gave a little Christmas message.  The Primary sang two songs before Sunday School started.  After the meeting, we served the goathead soup that they didn't bring over the night before.  I also passed out pumpkin cookies to everyone.  The Halls made a few visits to some of the branch members and then came back for dinner.  The sisters came over to drop a  paper off for the Halls and we invited them to have a bite to eat.  After the Halls left, we invited the sisters to make a trip with us out to St. Ann's hospital to visit Sister Llewellan and Sister Sandra Henry.   When we got back to our condo, we got to skype with Jill.  It was a nice day.

Today the Whiteheads came up.  We made a trip to  St. Ann's Infirmary and also to St. Mary's Infirmary.  When we got back to Ochi, we decided to eat lunch at the Chinese restaurant.  I will really be sad when the Whiteheads leave for their home in February.

Elder Lewis from Georgia, Elder Grosbeck, and Elder Lewis from Jamaica who is also the branch president for Port Antonio

After our last district meeting in Port Antonio, the whole district stopped to eat at our favorite cook shop.  The zone leaders and sister trainees were also there so that they could do splits.

Boon Hollow Oasis

River bed at Boon Hollow

President and Sister Brown walking down the path at Boon Hollow.

President and Sister Brown

Another picture of Boon Hollow

Our dinner spot at Boon Hollow

Christmas day dinner.  From left to right, Brian, Javoni, Sister Mouritson,  Jaleem, Sister Garrett, Rohan holding Kiki, Elder Jones, and Elder Cox

Rain and More Rain

December rain fall is making up for the dry summer.  When we went to Port Antonio on Friday, there was a mudslide on the road and some fallen trees.  The elder's roof is leaking.  The good thing is our apartment is much cooler.  We seldom have to turn on the fans in the living room.

Today was wonderful at church.  We had two members that we haven't seen in a long time show up.  Kimoya, who was baptized about 3 or 4 weeks ago, was able to come to church today for her confirmation.  Her non-member sister and her three children came also.  I could really feel the spirit for that confirmation.  For Sunday School we showed the video "Pioneers of Faith."  A lot of our members have not seen it so it was fun to see their reaction.  They really enjoyed it.  Rohan called me to be Young Women's president.  I nearly croaked.  I guess I can look at it as good study time.  I do enjoy the girls so that is a plus.  I was supposed to be sustained today but Brian had not been able to contact the outgoing YW's president so it didn't happen.  After church, Rohan, Brian and myself went to see Sister Llewellan so that Rohan and Brian could bless and pass the Sacrament to her.  I was able to find the "Pioneers of Faith" video on Youtube so that Marge could watch it.  After we dropped Rohan off, we drove back home to pick up some rice and  peas for a member of the branch.

Saturday we spent the day in Brown's Town.  The sisters had never been up there so we took them with us. We first drove out to Rio Bueno so that Brian could interview Kimoya.  We didn't know where she lived and  she didn't have the phone with her.  She wasn't excited about us coming up because her family is not excited about how far it is to church especially when there are so many churches in Rio Bueno that she could go to.
We were able to find her home by asking around.  It is amazing who you can find when you are on the Lord's errand.  I have seen it happen more than once.  From Kimoya's we drove to Discovery Bay to see Sister Jones.  This is the third time that we have visited with her.  I hope she comes back to church one of these days. After our visit we drove to Brown's Town and visited with Cheryl and Sister Alexander.  We did not make it back to get our car washed.  We tried to call Wayne and left a message but he was not able to get back to us before it got dark.

Friday we drove to Port Antonio so that we could take the elder's Christmas boxes to them.  When we were going through the town of Hope Bay, there was a guy on a bicycle that was pretty close to our car as we passed.  He must have lost his balance or his handlebar hit the back of the truck but when we looked back, he was on the ground.  It nearly gave us a heart attack.  We backed up and he came up to the window.  I asked him if he was okay and he said he was.  His bike was fine so we went on our way.  It did put a damper on the rest of the drive.  The towns are so hard to drive through because you have people walking on the roads and you have bicyclists driving in the road plus taxies that just stop to let their passengers get out or in and then you have taxies passing taxies on the other side of the road so they come into your lane and you can barely squeak by and that is what happened with this bicyclist that we passed.  A taxi was in our lane and we were trying to maneuver between the bicyclist and the taxi.  We were not going very fast but we were a little too close to him.  We drove on to Port Antonio and got a bite to eat at the cook shop and then headed to the elder's apartment so we could drop off the boxes and check their apartment.  We also had some book bags to drop off so we drove to the branch so the elders did not have to carry them on their bikes.  We were able to visit with Shaneeza for a few minutes.  It was so good to see her again.  Her baptism was the first one that we attended on this island.  It was dark by the time we got home.  With all the rain and overcast skies, it gets dark around 6:00 here.  We stopped at the branch for the missionary correlation meeting and didn't get home until after 8:00.

Thursday was seminary and institute so we did a little studying and then Brian dropped me off at the branch because he needed to pick up Rohan and take him to Brother Barbagees for a branch presidency meeting.  I needed to be at the branch at 4:00 and I didn't want to take a chance that they would not get back in time.  As it was, my only student didn't show.  We spent the afternoon at the branch so that Brian could teach his two classes.

Wednesday we went to Montego Bay for Zone Conference.  Elder Martinez and his wife were there.  He is a member of the 70 and both he and his wife gave great instructions.  They were very inspiring.  President Brown also did some training  and he was excellent as usual.  After the training meeting we had lunch and then had the Christmas program. I had to tell a Christmas story.  I told the story of the stolen Christmas trees that Brother Jesperson shared in gospel doctrine last year.  We had a good time.

Tuesday was spent visiting people.

Zone Conference Christmas party.

Elder and Sister Martinez

President Brown with one of the elders.

Primary children showing off the ring pops that Sister Garrett's mom sent.

Ocho

Today was P-day.  We are definitely in a routine with the wash and refrigerator freezer defrosting.  Brian picked up Rohan and they drove to Lime Hall to pick up Wayne.  Wayne needed to get his birth certificate so that he could get a tax number.  It is always nice to have Rohan along because he knows the ins and outs of Jamaica and he is also is very familiar with the PEF program since he and Tracy have taught the course.  I stayed home and studied for my seminary lesson.  Brian brought Rohan and Wayne back to our condo so that they could fill out the birth certificate application on line.  After Brian took Wayne back up to Lime Hall, I went with Brian to take Rohan home and then we stopped at the store to get a few items.

Sunday was interesting.  Our Elder's quorum president, Relief Society presidency, and Sunday School teacher were all absent.  Brian taught Sunday School and  Sister Mouritson taught Relief Society.  She did a great job.  After the meeting I tried to help Sister Barbagee with her ipad but that was like the blind leading the blind.  She had forgot her password and when she was setting up her ipad, her birthday got entered in wrong.  The e-mail on her phone was different than the one that was put on her ipad so there was no way of getting her new password.  We finally gave up.  When we finished at the church, we took Shawn with us to visit Sister Noble and her family and then we stopped at Brother Lester's to give Peter a school bag.  Shawn is the new branch mission leader.   From there we drove to Mansfield Heights to visit a sister that we have not met before and we also visited with the Elder's quorum president.  When we got home we skyped with Jill and Brian talked to Ben.  He informed us of the passing of Jeff Greensides.  We were really sorry to hear that news.    We watched the Christmas Devotional and then retired for the night.  I got a ton of mosquito bites on my legs while we were at Sister Nobles and I woke up in the night clawing at both of my legs.  The mosquitos are vicious here.

Saturday we went to Lime Hall to get our car washed.  Brian talked to a man who is just starting a restaurant and he  gave us his card.  We will probably go up there to eat some time.  We thought we would wait until  our company came but we thought it might be better to try it out first.  He gave us  four Soursops.  They are a really interesting fruit.  We had to ask Wayne what you do with them.  He told us that when they are really ripe, you just peel them  with a spoon and take out the seeds and blend the fruit in a blender or press it through a sieve.  I tried one of the Soursops.  It wasn't too bad.  I mixed it in a smoothie of banana, and orange, pineapple and mango juice.  Sunday night I juiced the other three as they ripened very quickly.  Wayne told us to mix it with water or milk and add some nutmeg.  I haven't tried it that way yet.  After leaving Wayne's, we met up with the sister missionaries and they showed us where one of the members lived.  From there we went to see one of our less active sisters.  She is very sick and her blood is very low so she was freezing - if that is possible here.  She reminded me of how Sister Rose looked before she died.  Brian gave her a blessing.   We drove home for lunch and then met the missionaries at the branch.  We were going to sit in on a lesson but the investigator never showed up.  We took the missionaries up to Shaw Park to visit with Sister Temple.  She hasn't been out for awhile but she said she would come and she was there on Sunday.  We left the missionaries in Shaw Park as they had another appointment and then we headed home.

Friday we spent the morning with the plumber.  Our tub would not drain.  The plumber had come over on Thursday but he couldn't fix the problem.  He thought it was the drain plug but found out on Friday that it was some roots that had gotten into the pipe.  After lunch, Brian went to the bank and I did some reading.  I am trying to read Jesus the Christ. I am really enjoying it.  I think I started  it a long time ago but never finished so I thought it would be a good Christmas read.  When Brian got home, we took some school bags to Sister Jackson and stopped to visit with Sister Llewellan before we picked up Tracy to do my hair.  It was nice to get the hair cut short again.  Tracy does a good job.

Thursday the Whiteheads came up to Ocho to pick up the humanitarian kits.  It was nice to get the kits out of our condo.  We went to lunch with them at Island Grill.  They made a trip out to Mustard Seed to drop of the kits but we didn't go with them as we had seminary and institute to teach.  Brian bought some drano to put down the tub drain and when that didn't work, our condo supervisor called a plumber.  She said he could come at 3:00 so Brian took me down to the branch so I wouldn't be late for seminary.  He came back home but ended up not being able to teach institute because the plumber was still at the condo.  Finally, at 7:00 p.m. he came down to the branch to pick me up.  I did get to meet Elder Cox.  He is new to Ocho.  He is from Emery County but use to live in Manti. His family moved to Castle Dale a few years ago.  He didn't have enough knowledge of his ancestors to know if we were related.

Wednesday was transfer day and because Brian was taking four elders back to Port Antonio, I stayed home.  I made some rolls and spent most of the day reading.  Brian got home around 7:00.

Soursop fruit.

Rain and more rain.

Friday I spent the day preparing a Thanksgiving dinner for the missionaries here in Ocho.  We decided to buy a turkey.  It was a 3 lb. Butterball turkey and it cost us a little over $30.00 US.  I think the stores carry the turkeys for all the US visitors.  I was able to find  some pumpkin so I made a pumpkin pie and a banana cream pie.  I did not plan on doing any baking here so I left my pastry cloth home.  I have regretted that decision.  I remembered my sister Tricia rolling her pie crust between wax paper so I resorted to that method and it worked out great.  I also found that if I let my roll dough rise in the refrigerator, it was easier to roll out the dough for the rolls.  I feel like I have gone backward and not forward in my cooking skills.  Anyway, we had a good time with the missionaries.  I was always grateful that my boys were invited to eat out on their missions so this was pay back time for me.

Elder Jones, Sister Mouritson, Sister Garrett, and Elder Hall

Saturday we got up early and headed to Port Antonio so that we could meet up with President Brown's family and the senior missionary couples.  From Port Antonio we were going to go to Boston Bay, Long Bay, and then on to Reach Falls which is another hour from Port Antonio.  We woke up to rain in Ocho and by the time we reached Port Antonio, it was pouring rain.  We decided that we would go to Boston Bay and Long Bay and skip Reach Falls.  By the time we got to Long Bay, it had stopped raining so  President Brown and his family played in the ocean at Long Bay for awhile.  The ocean waves were bigger than normal due to the rain and wind.  When we got in the van, it started raining again but we decided to go to Reach Falls hoping that the rain would stop.  It never did.  We sat on a porch and ate lunch waiting for the rain to stop.  The rain continued to pour and we even had lightning and thunder.  We decided we would try Reach Falls another day so we headed back to Boston Bay for some jerk chicken and then on to Port Antonio to pick up the other vehicles.  Boston Bay is famous for their jerk chicken and they even have a jerk festival there.  The chicken was hotter than the jerk chicken in Ocho but it did have a good flavor.  My lips were on fire for awhile.  We had a great time visiting with the senior couples and the President's family so it was worth the three hour drive to and from Ocho.  It was nice to have left over Thanksgiving dinner to come home to.  Brian and I were so tired that we went to bed around 8:30.

Looking at the ocean at Long Bay

Looking in the other direction at Long Bay.  Notice how the wind is blowing the coconut palms.

Elder Hall and Sister Whitehead sitting on the porch at Reach Falls. The rain is pouring in the background.


Sunday we left the house at 8:15 so that Brian could meet with a member for tithing settlement.  The member never showed up but at least I got to study for a little while before church started.  Sacrament meeting and Sunday School were really good.  We had intended to show a video for  joint Priesthood and Relief Society but we could never get the TV working so the missionaries explained the new Christmas focus of putting Christ back into Christmas.  We wanted to show the video that the church put out but that didn't happen either.  Brian had tithing settlement after church so we were at the branch for awhile.  In the meantime, the rain continued to pour.  By the time we left the branch, the street was flooded. It was nice to be driving a truck.  I might mention that the rain seems to keep the members from coming to church.  Someone told me that Jamaicans do not like to get their heads wet so they avoid the rain because they think it will make them sick.  One nice thing about the rain is that it keeps people off the streets so it is easier to drive in the cities.

Today was P-day and it was also another rainy day.  We even lost power for awhile.  When it finally stopped raining, we decided to check out the new store that just opened.  Some of their prices were good but I think General Store under our branch has more variety as far as American items go.  We decided to take some school bags to some of our members and then stopped to visit with the Llewellans.  Sister Llewellan is out of the hospital and her daughter is here from England.  It was fun to finally meet her.  After our visit, we went home.  I decided to read " Jesus the Christ" so I spent the remainder of the afternoon reading before I had to fix dinner.

YSA Conference and Highgate

This morning we drove to Shaw Park to visit with Mark's mother.  Mark's dad was hit by a car and killed about a year ago leaving his mom to raise the children.  Mark is the only member in his family and he is a wonderful kid.  From there we went to Sister Mouritsen and Sister Garrett's house to do the apartment inspection and to also pick them up for a trip to Highgate.  The sisters have only been to Highgate once and that was to see Sister Bennett.  Today we visited Sister Raymond, Sister Wilson, and Sister Gayle and Brother Doyle.   Hopefully the sisters will be able to find their homes again.  We also stopped in to see Sister Nielson in Port Maria on the way home.  We dropped the sisters off at their home and then paid a visit to Sister Lewellan.  It was almost 6:00 before we got home and we left the house around 9:30 this morning.

Yesterday we had to go to the branch as Brian had an appointment with a lady in the branch.  After the appointment we did some grocery shopping, fixed lunch, and then made a trip to St. Ann's bay to pick up a letter giving us permission to do a project at St. Ann's Infirmary.  We were very close to the hospital so we decided to make a visit to see Aunt.  She is waiting for another blood transfusion.  She can't get blood until someone gives blood but you cannot give blood if you have had Chikungunya.  I was thinking of giving blood but I am too old.  You cannot give blood if you are over 60.  Most of the members of our branch have had the Chikungunya so they are having a hard time finding donors.  The blood bank is really low right now due to the Chikungunya.  One of our sister missionaries said that she would donate blood because it has been over six weeks since she has had the Chik V but missionaries, including couples, are not allowed to donate blood.  We thought it was visiting hours so we just walked in but found out that we really weren't suppose to be there.  We made a quick visit and as we went to leave, a lady who was mopping the floor asked us to leave by the back door.  As we walked out, a man said, "Do you recognize me?  Brian said that he looked familiar and he told us that he was one of our security guards.  Once he said that, we knew it was him.  He is always stoned face and we will wave and smile but he usually does not respond.  I just figured that he didn't like Mormons.  He was very kind to us and told us that his 22 year old had had Chikungunya for a month and was now in the hospital.  He asked us to pray for his daughter. I really felt like it wasn't a coincidence that we were suppose to leave by that back door.  I guess we will see what his reaction is when we see him again.  Maybe the straight face is his professional look. On the way home, we stopped at Mark's house and then picked up Sister N and her step daughter and drove them out to Huddersfield so that Brian could get a receipt from her.  We then headed for home.   Another late night and late dinner.  I am surprised that my skirts still fit.

Sunday was a long day but Sacrament Meeting was excellent.  Tracy spoke and also the Vance's.  After the block, Brian had branch correlation so it was close to 4:00 before we were finished at the branch.  We picked up Ester and her two daughters so that we could make a visit to the hospital to see Aunt.  By the time we visited and got home, it was after 7:00.

Saturday was the YSA conference.  The sky was cloudy and it began to rain when we left the condo.  The conference was very close to our condo so we felt very fortunate.  It was pouring rain by the time we got to Turtle  Park Falls where the conference was being held.  It finally stopped raining around 11:00.  The conference was very good.  They had some fun activities and the closing speaker was Brother Martinez of the Seventy.  He also spoke at the October General Conference.  He did a great job with the YSA and I wish that he could have spoken longer.  The Vance's were in charge of the conference and they did a wonderful job.  After the conference, we dropped a couple of our YA off at the taxi station and then went to the store so we could pick up some bread for the sacrament.

As we were leaving Sister Raymond's, we looked up and saw this massive spider web that stretched between the trees.  If you look closely, you can see the spiders.  There were quite a few trees like this.

Sister Raymond and her brother Tata.

Sister Mouritsen and Sister Garrett overlooking Port Maria Bay.  Sister Nielson lives just below where the sisters are standing.

Brian and I with Port Maria Bay in the background.

Brownstown, St. Ann's, and Ocho

Monday, after we did our wash and freezer, we decided to go back to Browns Town to see a mother and daughter who live in our branch.  The daughter is trying to get approval for a PEF loan so that she can go to nursing school.  We had a great visit with them.  I showed them the video, "Only a Stonecutter".   I have seen it so many times but I still get a little teary eyed.  There was a good spirit in that home.  We had thought to go towards Montego Bay but it was getting late and we didn't want to come home in the dark so we headed back to Ocho.  We went to Sikura for dinner.  Sister N called me about her first day of on the job training.  She is working for a large resort in Runaway Bay called the Grand Bahia.  I checked out the prices to see what it would cost to stay there.  It is an all inclusive resort so it covers all your food.  In the summer when the prices are lower, it costs $149 per person per night.  Anyway, she is going to hospitality school and this is her on the job training.  She told me that they would not cover her taxi or pay her during her six weeks there.  She was hoping that they would at least cover her taxi as it will cost her $1,000 JD ($10.00) per day.  They do have a bus that runs from Ochi that is free for employees but the trainees can only ride the bus if there is room.  She has to come up with her own chef knife and frying pans plus buy a vest and bow tie to wear.  I think her husband only makes about $1000 JD ($10.00 US) a day so I don't know what she is going to do. Once she has a certificate of completion, she can work at any of the resorts if they will hire her.  Sometimes they would rather just hire trainees so that they don't have to pay them.  After we got home, another sister in our ward called to tell us that she was taking her mother to the hospital.  We went to the house so Brian could assist in getting her into the taxi.

Tuesday morning, we call to see how Sister L was doing in the hospital.   M told us that they had admitted her but since there were no extra beds (probably due to the (Chik V) they had just left her in a wheel chair in the waiting area of the emergency room.  When we got to the hospital to visit with her, she had  sheets covering her arms and a towel on her head.  She was barefoot and freezing.  She is 74 years old so I felt really bad for her.  We went back home and picked up a blanket and some socks and took them back to the hospital so that our sister could get warm.  We stayed and visited for awhile.  We then took her daughter back to her house to save her some taxi money.  We did a little grocery shopping and then headed back home.

Today was district meeting.  President Brown came to interview the missionaries. They talked about finding out about investigator's concerns.  President Brown gave some good insights.  The Whiteheads came to Ocho and we left the district meeting to accompany them out to one of their projects.I can't believe I forgot to take pictures.  We will be going out there again to take some hygiene kits so I will try to remember then.  We went to lunch with them and then headed down through Fern Gully to get to our destination.  We had a great time and the time flew by really fast.  The place that we visited is, I think, run by a Catholic organization.  They take care of mentally and physically ill people who have been given up at birth.  They are trying to become self sufficient so they grow a lot of their own food.  The Church's  humanitarian efforts had helped them with some big water barrels.  We told them that we would deliver some hygiene kits.  After Whiteheads dropped us off, we drove to St. Ann's Hospital to see Sister L. They were giving her blood and they finally put her in a bed at about 7:00 last night.  She seemed in much better spirits.  They are monitering her blood sugar also as she is diabetic.  She got the Chic V and it really did a number on her.  After our visit to the hospital, we came home for the evening.

Brownstown

Saturday we drove up to Lime Hall so that Wayne could wash the truck. Wayne was telling us that the people building the house close to his home wanted him to lay tile.  Normally for a house the size that they are building, the tile layer would get $100 for the job.  If you do not have a certificate, the builder will say you do not have a certificate so he would only pay Wayne $35.  I guess they do that quite often.  Wayne will work a full day and be lucky if they pay him $10.00.  It is pretty sad. We had decided to go to Brownstown to see Sister Alexander.  Wayne thought it would be faster to take the road from Lime Hall to Brownstown instead of going back to the main road and driving to Runaway Bay and up to Brownstown.  We had heard that the road was not that great but we decided to try it anyway.  The first part of the road was narrow with a lot of pot holes but when we hit the better road, it was a pleasant drive through the bush.  It is amazing to see all the small towns that are hidden up in the high country.  Most of them have their own little grocery store and a few churches.  We had a great visit with Sister Alexander.  She is our primary president and is very faithful.  She always manages to make it to church even though it is almost 1 hour away.    She told me that she was the first convert in Brownstown.  She works during the week so Saturday is the only day we can see her unless we want to drive home in the dark and we really don't like to do that.  We drove home going through Runaway Bay and decided to visit a few members before we headed home.  It was late when we finished so we thought that we would eat out before we went home but at the last minute we got a call from one of our sisters who is in the PEF program. She needed a white shirt for her first day of training at a resort.  She didn't have any money to buy a shirt nor did she have a way to pick one up.  When I got the call from this sister, we were in a local drug store to pick up some hand sanitizer before we went to eat and some chalk for the branch.  I asked one of the store clerks where I could pick up a white shirt like the school kids wear and she suggested Josephs.  It is in the same complex as our branch building so we hurried over there and bought the largest size they had because she is very big busted.  I really hope it fits her.  Clothes here are not too expensive.  We only paid $8.50 for the shirt.  We went back to the fast food place but their card reader was down and we didn't have enough cash so we just went home for the evening.

Today we left our condo at 9:00 to head down to the branch.  Brian likes to get there an hour early so that he can turn on the air before members start arriving.  We did not leave the branch until almost 3:30.  We decided to visit our old branch president and drop off his sons seminary certificate.  We took Shawn (our returned missionairy) with us.  We also made a trip up to Sister N's to drop off her shirt.  She is excited for her work experience.  She will be working in the kitchen and hopefully they will cover her taxi fare as it will be about an hour trip each way for her.  The Christmas season is busy here with all the vacationing visitors so  this is a great opportunity for her.  I hope they hire her on full time.  I hear it is a nice resort so I also hope they pay her a little.  If they hire her, she will not have to complete the hospitality schooling which would be a blessing for her since she would have to buy a lot of extra items for the school class.  With the work experience, she will get a certificate of graduation.  The only sad thing is that she has young children and the oldest daughter who is not that old herself will probably be the main caregiver since the dad drives a taxi and is never home.  Life is so tough here!!!!

A little patch of farmland that we saw on the way to Brownstown.  The white object  in the back by the bushes is a goat,

This is the house that is being built up by Wayne's home.  It has been fun to watch the progress.

FHE in Kingston

Sunday we got to hear  Shawn Jones give his homecoming talk.   We are so excited to have him back in our branch.  President Brown was asked to bless a baby for one of his friends in our branch so it was a real treat to have him in the branch also.  I am sure Shawn  was a bit nervous but his talk was really good.  We also got to hear from Sister Garrret.  We have an elder from Wyoming that is serving in our branch and he is also an Elder Jones.  President Brown did some teaching in Sunday School and Priesthood.  He is a powerful teacher and I am sure all were edified.  After church we dropped Tracy and Rohan off and then went back to the church.  We were there until 6:30 as Brian had some corrections to do on the MLS.  Some of our members were listed as non-members on their print off for the tithing donations.  He is suppose to start tithing settlement next week.

Monday morning we left for Kingston around 10:30.   I mixed up the dough for some breadsticks with the intentions of rolling out the bread sticks when I got to Kingston.  It is strange to knead dough when you have used a Bosch for over 30 years.  When we got to Kingston, Brian dropped me off at the Whiteheads so that I could roll out the rolls.  He went to the mission office with Elder Whitehead to drop our truck off for its  11,000 mile service check.  He and Elder Whitehead then went to an appliance place to check out prices for the humanitarian service project at St. Ann's Infirmary.  When they got back, we visited for awhile and then went to the mission office for dinner and FHE.  The Whiteheads were in charge and Sister Whitehead made lasagna.  I should have doubled my breadstick recipe as they disappeared rather quickly.  Sister Pearson made a fruit cobbler and she brought cream to pour on top.  It was very good.  Sister Hall made a tossed salad.  The Vances were still recovering from the Chick V virus so they didn't come.  The Whiteheads showed pictures from their first humanitarian mission to Jamaica and also pictures of their humanitarian mission to Guiana.  It was a fun evening  We skyped with the new missionary couple who are serving in the Cayman Island.  We spent the night with Sister Wege since the Vance's weren't there.

Tuesday we went back down to the Whiteheads for breakfast and Sister Whitehead and I visited while Brian and Elder Whitehead discussed the St. Ann's project.  We loaded the school materials in the truck so that we could take them to Ocho for the YSA activity on November 22 and then headed to Pricemart.  After shopping we went back to Ocho.  We made a trip out to Huddersfield in the late afternoon and then headed home for the evening.

Wednesday morning I made a banana cake for the baptism that we were going to have at our condo in the afternoon.  We then headed to district meeting.  We picked Kimoya up at the church and then took her to our condo for the baptism.   She wanted Brian to baptize her.  Only Kimoya, the elders and the sisters and Brian and I were in attendance.  It would have been nice to have a few more members but it is very hard for them to come at the time of the day.  Kimoya lives almost an hour from the branch building and she needed to be home at 4:30 to fix dinner for her grandfather.

Thursday was our institute and seminary day.  Brian went to the bank in the morning while I fixed some cookies for our classes.  The sisters asked me to come to the church at 2:30 so that I could show Kimoya a video from the church website on temples.  The wifi wasn't working so we went in the branch office and pulled it up on the computer.  My only student did not show up so I listened in on Brian's adult religion class and then taught Tracy and Rohan's two boys while Brian taught institute.  Thursdays are a long day and the week just seems to fly after Thursday.

Today we went out to St. Ann's Infirmary to get some information for Elder Whitehead.  We then went to the St. Ann's Parish administrative office to tell them about the humanitarian project and to get their permission to apply for the funding.  They were very nice to work with.  From there we drove to Lime Hall to visit with Humphrey and Wayne.  We stopped in to see how Richard M. was doing but he was not there.  We drove back home for lunch and then headed out to Huddersfield again to see Sister N.  We got a call just as we got there that one of the families in the ward needed some assistance so we quickly visited with Sister N. and  then drove back home to get the check book.  Brian got the signature he needed and then we dropped off the check and headed for the elder's apartment so that we could pick them up for an appointment that they had with Bobby.  It was fun to listen to their lesson.  We then dropped the elder's off at another appointment and headed home for dinner.

Ester with her two daughters.  Her oldest daughter was taking care of her grandma.

Sister Nielson and her family

Kimesha with Tracy's daughter Kiki.  Kimesha's mother is the sister in our ward who died of cancer.

Sister Mouritson, Kimoya, and Sister Garrett 

Brian with Kimoya.  She is 16 years old.

Coming back from the pool, I took this picture of one of the cruise ships parked in the Ocho bay.

Browns Town, Port Antonio and Highgate

I guess I will start with today.  Brian and I decided that we would go to Browns Town to visit with two of our members.  We forgot to set our GPS the last time we were up there so we were a little bit worried about  finding these two sisters but Brian did a good job of navigating and we made it there.  We had a nice visit.  We then drove to Discovery Bay to visit a sister that we have not seen in months.  I think she was surprised to see us but she seemed happy that we had taken the time to come to her home.  We had a good visit with her also.  On our way back to Ocho, we stopped at the St. Ann's Infirmary to get some measurements and pictures to send to Elder and Sister Whitehead.  They are the humanitarian couple and they are hoping to get the funding to fix up the kitchen at the Infirmary.  We then drove to Lime Hall to give a lesson to W on the Priesthood.  We then drove home for the evening.

Yesterday we had seminary and institute so most of my day was spent in studying.  I try to make a treat to share with the seminary and institute students.  There are not very many of them that can afford to come.  Brian had to make an emergency trip to the pharmacy for one of our members.  He has had the Chikungunya for a month now and has a hard time walking.  He is a taxi driver but has not been able to drive.  He is diabetic and it seems like the Chik V (nice name) targets the unhealthy parts of the body.  His blood sugar was really high and it was affecting his eye sight.  We have another sister who is in the same situation.  One of our missionaries has had  problems with his ankles and he still gets  pain in his ankles even though it has been a month since he had the virus.  Our CES missionaries, the Vances, both came down with the virus at the same time.  We feel like we are walking time bombs but so far we have been able to escape it.  We have been in a lot of infested areas.  We feel really blessed.

Wednesday we made a trip to Port Antonio for district meeting.  After the meeting we headed over to one of the little cook shops that our district leader, Elder Hall, liked to frequent when he was serving in Port Antonio.  We got two pieces of fried chicken, some brown stew chicken, and rice and peas and a little cabbage slaw.  It was really good and it only cost us $300 JD (less than $3.00) a piece.  Even Brian liked it and we will probably frequent that place again.  When you see the picture you will think that we were brave!
On the way home from Port Antonio, we stopped in Highgate to show the sister missionaries where one of our members lived.  We had Elder Jones and Elder Guthrie with us and the sisters followed.  Sister B shared her conversion story with them.  She is such a neat lady.  The is 75 and lives with her grandson.  She cannot afford to come to church because she has no income.  After we left Highgate, we dropped off the elders and then picked up Shawn Jones at his work so that he could make a trip with us to the J's.  We had a nice visit and that is when we found out about our member who has not been able to recover from the virus.  The J's were going to take him to the doctor because he is a relative and lives with them.  While we were at the J's, Elder Guthrie and Elder Jones came riding on their bikes so that Elder Jones could pick up his new (used) bike from brother J.  Shawn and Elder Guthrie were companions in Spanish Town and they were so excited to see each other.  It was fun to watch them.  After our visit we dropped Shawn off at home and headed back to our place.  It was a long day!

I think I will skip Monday and Tuesday and tell you about Saturday.

Saturday was our service day at St. Ann's Infirmary.  We had nine men and 5 women attend from the branch.  The residents really seemed to enjoy our visit.  The men gave haircuts, clipped nails, sang at the bedside of some of the men and had wheelchair races.  The women combed hair and braided it.  Sister Garrett and the Chik V so she kept her distance.  It was a very nice activity.  When it was finished, we went back to the branch and then dropped R & T off at their home and then headed back into town to pick up some hot dogs and chips for the YM's activity that was held at our condo.  The boys swam and played games and it was a nice activity.

On Sunday, I decided to make rolls.  We bought some new yeast to try because my last batch of rolls were so heavy.  The rolls turned out good and Brian was delighted.  It was our fast meeting so I rolled out the rolls when we got home from church and then we headed to the B's to visit them. Brother B is in the branch presidency with Brian.  It had rained very heavily on Sunday so he was not able to get a taxi into the branch. Taxis are scare on Sunday anyway so when it rains hard, it is really hard to get a taxi.  One of our members almost turned around twice because of the rain.

Sister B with Brian and Myself

Brian with Sister Mouretson, Sister Garrett, Elder Jones, Elder Hall, Elder Lewis and Elder Havili at the cook shop in Port Antonio

W taking one of the residents of St. Ann's for a ride!

Sister Mouretson braiding hair at St. Ann's

Elder Hall singing to a resident at St. Ann's

The cook shop in Port Antonio.

Montego Bay and Ocho

Yesterday we made a trip into Montego Bay for zone meeting.  The zone leaders had asked us if we would be willing to assist with some roll playing for which we did.  We were suppose to be a married couple on the street and the elders were suppose to introduce themselves and bring up eternal marriage.  It was fun and the zone meeting was good.  The Ocho elders drove with us.  By the time we got home, it was almost 3:30.  We  had picked the elders up at 7:00 a.m. so it made for a log day.  Once we got home, we worked on our lessons for seminary and institute.

Today, Brian needed to go to the bank for some branch business so I stayed home and worked on my lesson.  The Vance's called and wanted to know if we would like to meet them for lunch.  They had come to Ocho to check on Turtle Hill Falls and Island Grill.  We met them at a restaurant that is a lot like Panda Express.  I was impressed with  what we got and we will probably go there again.  We only payed $1110.00 JD which is equivalent to about $11.00 US for the two of us.  We then went with Elder and Sister Vance to the Falls and walked around.  It is a beautiful place. They use to call it the "Enchanted Gardens" and I can see why.  They have a swimming pool there and people can also walk in the falls.  The falls almost look like they are made of cement but it is natural rock.  It was nice to spend some time with the Vances. From the Falls, Brian and I went back to the apartment and picked up our teaching materials for seminary and institute.  Both of us taught two classes today.  I am enjoying this experience.  We headed home around 7:30 to fix dinner and settle in for the night.

Turtle River Falls

As you can see, I am not starving here in Jamaica!

Another view of the falls.

Ocho

Monday was P-day and I washed clothes, defrosted the freezer, ironed a few clothes worked at separating the humanitarian kits that we are going to give out at the St. Ann's Infirmary on Saturday. Brian had  some branch business to take care of and then we headed to Lime Hall to meet with one of our members who has been really sick.  Brian asked if there was anything we could do for him and he asked for a blessing.  He and his wife have not been to church since we got here but I thought it was nice that he wanted a blessing.  We then drove up to W's to visit with him for a few minutes since he lives very close to these other members.  We then headed back home and I finished up kits while Brian worked on branch business.

Today we headed to the branch at 10:00 so that Brian could open the door for one of our members to use the computer for his PEF class.  Afterwards, we headed to the store to pick up some finger and toenail clippers for our Saturday activity.  We drove home for lunch and then headed back to the branch as Brian had an interview at 1:00.  Sister Mouritsen and Sister Garrett were teaching one of their contacts when we got there.  It was the little 16 year old investigator who came to church on Sunday.  We asked her how she got to church.  She told us that the video that we showed her really helped her make up her mind.  She got up at 6:00 in the morning so that she could do her wash and other chores done and by the time she called our RS president, it was 10:00 and the RS president was already at the branch.  This 16 year old girl only had $150 JD which is a little less than $1.50 US. to travel to the branch.   It takes $600 JD to get to the branch from where she lives.  She walked to the highway and a tour bus picked her up and took her as far as it was going.  She asked how much she owed and he said nothing.  She than got a taxi and only had to pay $100JD to get the rest of the way there.  The RS president had to leave right after Sacrament meeting but asked the little girl if she had enough fare to get home and she told her no.  The RS president gave her $500JD to get home.  If I have learned one thing while I have been here in Jamaica, it is that the Lord takes care of the poor and especially those who exercise faith in him.  The people are pretty giving to each other also.  After we left the branch, we headed to the True Value Hardware store to see if we could get a key made.  We could not get the key made but we picked up some ant bait and some small appliance oil and then headed to the locksmith's to get a key made for Brian's counselor.  We then drove back to our apartment and I worked on Seminary while Brian worked on branch business.

The little complex where the locksmith has his business

Transfers

Wednesday we left the apartment at 8:30 a.m. so that we could pick up the Linstead Elders and take them to Spanish Town by 9:30 for transfers.  We really didn't need to be there that early but the missionaries like to get there early so that they can visit with the other missionaries.  There were about 7 or 8 new missionaries that had arrived the day before and also 7 missionaries that were heading home.  It was sad to say goodbye to the missionaries that were leaving because they have done such a great job.   We did get a new sister to replace Sister Walker.  Her name is Sister Garrett and she is from Sacramento.  She seems to be enjoying herself here and she is quite upbeat.  A typical transfer meeting is hearing from President Brown, the announcement of where the new missionaries are going and who their trainees are and listening to the testimonies of those missionaries who are leaving.  It was a nice meeting.  By the time the meeting was over, it was close to 4:30 and we still had to drop  the Linstead Elders off and take a transfer, Elder Rammel,  to Port Antonio.   When we got to Port Antonio, we took Elder Rammel to KFC for dinner.    It was 10:30 before we got home.  We had four hours of driving in the dark which isn't one of our favorite things to do.

Thursday I spent most of the day at the branch.  Brian had a few things to do so I read and studied my seminary lesson.  He got a call from R telling him that he needed some prescriptions filled so Brian left to help  him.  The sister missionaries came to the branch to teach a lesson so I sat in on the lesson while Brian was gone. I showed the investigator a video on my ipad about faith.  This investigator really wants to get baptized but in order to get baptized you have to go to church at least two times.  She lives about 40 minutes away.  She is only 16 and lives with her grandfather.  I don't think she has any extra income.   By the time Brian got back, we had less than an hour to run back home and come back to the branch so we could teach our lessons.  I had two students show up which is better than the "no students" that I have had for the last three weeks.  Chickungunya has hit a lot of our members and that is what happened to two of my students.  While I was teaching my lesson, Brian was teaching institute to 5 members of the branch.  When they left, he taught another young adult and I sat in our his lesson.  We then ran up to the hospital to see Sister L.  They finally released her around midnight to come home.  It was another long day.

Friday we went out to Huddersfield to drop a check off at a business to replace the one that a check was written out to earlier because the bank wouldn't take it with his business name on the check.  When we got there the owner wasn't there so we told them we would come back the next day. That seems to happen a lot.  We then drove out to Highgate to take a check to a sister that has had the Chick V and needed some help with medication and groceries.  Brian wrote the check out to the business as directed by the sister.  It took about three hours by the time we got the signature on the check from Brian's counselor and journeyed to Highgate and back.  We stopped at the store so I could do some grocery shopping and then headed home for dinner.

Saturday morning we left the house early so that we could catch the owner of the market in Huddersfield.  We drove back home and then left to pick up M so that we could do some branch business.  While we were with M we got a call telling us that we needed to go back out to Highgate to replace the check that we took out the day before because it needed a different name on it.  The sister was in town and she was going to meet us at the clock.  I told her it would take us about 1 1/2 hours to get there and she said that was okay. We dropped M off in town  and then headed out to Highgate.  We stopped in Free Hill to get a signature from Brother B and then continued on to Highgate.  It was another two hours by the time we got home.   We stopped at Sister H to give her some information and then went home to eat.  After dinner we went to the branch and then headed to the store to get a few items for the dinner I was preparing for Sunday.  It was nice to finally be home after a long day.  I spent a lot of the evening getting ready for the Sunday meal since we had the Pearson's coming for dinner.

Sunday meeting was great.  The Pearsons gave the talks and they did such a good job.  We had five visitors attend out meeting.  Four were from Canada and the other sister was from New Zealand.  I loved her accent.  Our little investigator that is 16 showed up.  The sister missionaries were thrilled. Sister Pearson taught Sunday School because our instructor was ill.  The Pearsons were a real asset to the branch today.  After the meeting, Sister Pearson drove me home so that I could put dinner in the oven.  We had a very enjoyable visit.  Brian and President Pearson stayed for a meeting and then headed home.  President  Pearson is in the mission presidency.  He and Sister Pearson  came out as MLS missionaries two years ago.  They extended six months and then were asked to stay on another two years for the mission presidency.  They are both converts and they are great people.

Sorry that I don't have pictures again.

St. Ann's Infirmary and Aunty Jackies

Today the Whiteheads made a trip to Ocho so that the four of us could visit the St. Ann's Infirmary.  Elder Whitehead wanted to see if they needed some humanitarian help.  When we arrived at the Infirmary, one of the nurses showed us around.  Elder Whitehead wanted to see the kitchen and the laundry facilities.  We were also shown the sleeping quarters.  Most of the people at the Infirmary have disabilities.  When the hospital can no longer keep them, they are sent to the Infirmary.  Right now there are probably 110 patients. Our branch is going to the Infirmary  for the November 1 service project.  We hope there is a good turnout. Last year they clipped nails and visited with the patients.  They also cut hair and did a few other projects.  We are hoping to have enough women this year to visit the women's side because the women felt neglected last year because there were no women from the branch to assist them.  I am looking forward helping out there.

After we finished at the Infirmary, we drove to Discovery Bay to see if we could find Aunty Jackie.  After asking around, we were given directions on where to go.  Jackie is a Rastafarian who takes care of children who's parents can no longer care for them.  Some have disabilities.  She has about 10 children.  They had just moved into a new place.  From the outside the place looked like it could have been a truck stop with restrooms and a restaurant.  It was quite run down.  When she inherited the place, it  was a disaster.  All the walls were painted black and it was very dirty.  I think it had been vacant for a while.  They had been cleaning it for a month and they were still in the process of moving in.  She was happy to have a larger place to take care of the children.  Food for the Poor had donated some chairs and other supplies.  They also keep her in food and clothing.  I wish I had taken some pictures but we will go out there again and deliver some humanitarian items and I will try and remember to take some pictures then.  From Aunty Jackies, we drove back to St. Ann's Bay and ate lunch at Scotchies Jerk Centre.  All four of us got jerk chicken, rice and peas, and a festival. When we got back to the apartment, the Whiteheads headed for Kingston and we headed for Free Hill to take some Tylenol to Brother B.  Both he and his wife have the Chik V virus.  We also dropped off some food items to a member of the branch who is also sick with Chick V.   It was an enjoyable day!

Browns Town, Kingston, Port Royal, Cobert Castle and Ocho

Friday we went to Lime Hall for a car wash and then headed towards Discovery Bay to find out where our RS president lived.  She was going to check out an Auntie Jackie who takes care of disabled people.  The Whiteheads ask us to check Auntie Jackie  out to see if there was anything that she needed in the way of humanitarian effort.  We were able to find our RS president but she told us that Auntie Jackie had moved so we still don't know where she lives.  While we were waiting for our RS president to get ready, we visited with her friend who makes blocks and pours concrete decorations.  It was interesting to see his business.  We drove with M into Browns Town to find some of our members.  It was the first time that we have been there because it is about an hour from Ocho.  We were able to find most of the members that we were wanting to visit with.  It was a nice day.

Saturday we left our apartment around 7:15 a.m. so that we could meet up with the other couples for a Jamaican sight seeing trip.  We left Kingston around 9:30 and headed towards Port Royal.  It is the remains of an old fort that existed in the early 1600's.  At one time it was an island and considered the most wicked place on the earth.  An earthquake dropped 1/3 of the island into the sea.  Many of the residents that survived the earthquake later died of disease.  The earthquake actually created a sandbar that joined Port Royal to the Jamaica.  They have a little building that they call the giddy house.  Part of the house sunk into the sand so the building is on a slant and you kind of lose your balance when you walk inside.  It was very interesting.  From Port Royal, we headed for Old Harbor for lunch.  There were only 9 of us and we were the only people in the restaurant.  It took them about two hours to serve us.  The food was good.  Brian ordered Korean charcol chicken and I order chicken chop suey.  We shared and both dishes were very good.  From the restaurant, we head over to the Cobert Castle.  I could imagine that it was quite the place in its day.  On each corner of the property there were structures  that resembled the castle.  In one of the structures, there was an underground tunnel that housed the slaves.

It was a lot of fun to be with the other couples and to hear their stories.  The length of travel makes it easy to get to know them.  We have a single sister that is serving here by herself.  Her companion ended up going back to the states but she doesn't mind being alone because she can get so much done.  She is a convert to the church and was the controller for a successful business that oversaw about 28 other businesses.  Evidently she promised the Lord that if he would help her with the business she would give him 10 years of missionary work.  This is her third mission and she is one of the most positive persons that I have ever met.  She is one smart sister.  When we reached Kingston, we hopped in the truck and headed back to Ocho.  I really hate driving those roads at night.  When we got to Ocho, we still had to make a trip out to Huddersfield.  Brian told the sister in our branch that if she would speak in church, he would give her money for the taxi since she probably would not have been able to come otherwise.  After leaving her house, we drove to the store so that we could get some bread for the sacrament.  We stopped at Pizza Hut and got a medium pizza.  It was nice not to have to cook that late in the evening.

There were about 36 out to church today.  A lot of our members have the Chikungunya.  They call it ChikV.
I really feel blessed that we have not gotten it.  Both the elders and sisters up here have had it.  After church   we went over to the L's so that Brian and R could administer to Sister L and her granddaughter.  We then came home for the evening.

A man selling sugar cane in Old Harbor.

One of the corner buildings of the Cobert Castle.  It was under one of these corner buildings where they housed the slaves in an underground tunnel.

Another corner building.

Cobert Castle

Vances and Elder Hall standing in the Giddy House.

The Giddy House.

Brian standing in the entrance to the fort at Port Royal.

Elder Vance sitting in the ring of an old anchor.

The senior elders standing in front of a cannon at the fort in Port Royal.

Brian standing with the owner of a concrete company.

Brian watching the owner remove the mold from his decorative concrete products.

Sister Walker and Sister Mouritson.  This was Sister Walker's last day at church.

Senior couples eating at the Farm Village Restaurant.