This is what its all about! (Thought this was already published)

    Friday night we drove to the Montreal Temple with Gisele.  She has been working diligently to prepare herself to go inside to receive the special blessings which come to those who are worthy.  The day was not without its opposition.  Gisele suffers from severe headaches among other health ailments, and she takes 24 pills a day (or perhaps a few more). This number has actually decreased in the past year from her record of 60 something.  From time to time, she has paralysis on one side of her face and of course, Friday was one of those days. and of course, there was a "tempete" which means storm.  There was snow and blowing snow.  All in all, it was an awful weather day.   However, she has great faith and knew nothing was going to keep her from going to the temple on December 20, 2013.  She asked for a blessing before we began our two hour drive, and within an hour or so she was beginning to feel some improvement.  Due to some unforeseen circumstances, mostly due o the weather, everything went slowly and we didn't leave to drive home until close to 11 p.m.  And it was still snowing.  By the time we dropped her at her apartment, the paralysis was nearly gone and she felt much better.
   On the way home, we noticed a young woman, perhaps 20 years old, standing on the side of the road.  It was 1:15 a.m., and a mere 14 degrees, and yes, it was snowing.  She was hitch-hiking! While we normally don't pick up hitch-hikers, we did this time.  She wanted to go to Victoriaville, which of course, right where we were headed.  We dropped her off at an apartment building and she said possibly the only two English words she knew:  "thank you."  The way I saw it, we had just come from the temple, we are on a mission, and if we got shot, at least we were in best spot ever for ending up where we all eventually want to end up….
   The weather continues to be an amazement to me.  Today as soon as it got light enough to see (after 7:30 a.m.)  I saw blowing snow and more coming down.  There was about 8 inches, plus that which had drifted.  I have abandoned any notion I once had of wearing fashionable clothing to church. I brought a clunky pair of rubberized boots with me from home--boy do they look nice with a skirt.  Church was postponed for an hour, but no one seemed concerned that the snow had turned to ice pellets, covering all the vehicles with a slick film.  I am so happy that yesterday was the shortest day of the year.  Here in the northland, the sun currently sets at 3:35 and when it is cold and dark, all I want is some hot chocolate and my pajamas. While senior couples have leeway when it comes to the schedule I don't think they had in mind a day that ends at 3:30 :)
    This was this morning just outside our apartment's from door.

   And this was in the parking lot of a member's apartment when we went this afternoon to deliver a Christmas box of food from the branch:

Life is cold, but good!

It isn't all sunshine and roses

This past Thursday we had one of those really "down" days.  We had taken a sister to another city to get her new dentures. This whole process has taken several trips at about an hours' drive each way. We have taught her countless lessons, taken her to doctor's appointments, and to and from the church ( a 20 minute drive each way) many times since August. We have grown very attached to her, and she is a very spiritual person.  She went to the temple for the first time on December 15th.  We drove her in a snowstorm and didn't get home until after 1 in the morning.  We haven't minded doing all this because that is what missionaries do. However, on Thursday as we were returning to her home, she told us that she has decided to quit coming to the church.  She said she had changed she email address; cancelled her cell phone, and she won't answer a knock on her door.  Writing a letter is our only means of communicating.  For the rest of the evening and the next day I felt absolutely disheartened.  I know she is now vulnerable to temptations, loneliness, and negativity because she has cut herself off from all who care about her, and I am truly sad about that.  I also worry about her salvation because she has made sacred covenants, not to be trifled with.  My returned-missionary children assure me that these feelings are common in missionary life, but even so, I am devastated. I keep praying she will have the strength to come back.

Amazing Faith

      I may have written earlier about our friend, Diane.  She has been paralyzed for the past 16-plus years due to a doctor's incompetency.  Her attitude about this is that it was a blessing; if she had not been paralyzed she would have been too busy and maybe too proud to listen to the missionaries.  She grew up in a small village here in Quebec, had no schooling, and began cleaning other people's homes when she was about twelve.  At some point she moved to Toronto to work in a bank.  While there she learned English, which she speaks fluently. (Yea, I can communicate with her!!)  She has a grown son.  Rarely, in our visits to her small apartment, has she been anything but positive and happy.
    Recently she struggled with a cough, which then developed into bronchitis. Being rather immobile except for her electric chair, she didn't improve.  Finally late one night she realized that the hospital was the only option.  I don't want to expound on my political views of socialized medicine, but suffice it to say that here, for the poor anyway, it stinks. One day she asked if I could wash her hair, because to have such a luxury costs extra money.  We have visited her nearly every day for the past 10 days. She seemed to improve a little but on Sunday she was been moved to intensive care and put on a respirator which we would deem not good news.  Before she got worse she told us that she had prayed and "told Heavenly Father that if He could take me, that would be nice.  However, if He wanted me to stay and try to help my son accept the gospel, I will stay."  What faith! Knowing Diane, and having her share her positive attitude about her life despite her difficulties has inspired me to be more appreciative and more anxious to share that gratitude with others.  We pray that she will improve but if she doesn't, I have no doubt that Heavenly Father heard her prayer and took her to Him.

Winter thaw

The past five days have been pretty wonderful because the temperatures have moderated significantly.  Who would have imagined that a temperature of 32 degrees fehrenheit  would bring the comment "Hey, it's really warm today!"  One man came to our English class last night and when I asked him how he was doing he told me he really was not happy because it was raining instead of snowing.  Why so much focus on weather?  Well, for one thing, in a small town like this, there isn't much else to focus on; and for another, one's life in a Quebec winter is dictated by it.  I wanted to share a couple of photos taken during a snow storm a few weeks ago:

And just where do they put all this snow?  It becomes absolutely huge mountains which start out as white but soon become brown and rather ugly, and which we are told make for a big mess come April. These piles are all over:

    Missionary work ebbs and flows and the holidays are typically very slow.  The two elders here lost most of their investigators.  Because we saw this in Switzerland and France, and thus have some perspective, we are trying to keep them positive.  They have been brainstorming of ways to get some people interested.  New ideas will be welcomed if you have any!  

No Hype

   It is January 4th, 2014.  Christmas has past and the meager decorations in our apartment have been packed away for the next senior couple who will reside here.  Our decorations consisted of a 3 foot tree, pre-lighted, with a few clip-on ornaments.  We also had two strings of Christmas lights which we put around our sliding glass door, and a small wooden sign which says "HOPE", given to us by one of our branch members.  I did bring two of my nativity sets, small ones, and very simple. That was it.  It took us about 5 minutes to set up the tree and other items (well, maybe 10 to get the lights to look right around the door), and less than that to put it all away.  I was srtuck this year by how low-key it all was.  The branch had nothing in the meetinghouse to indicate it was Christmas except for three small Christmas trees (no more than 8 inches high) which our dedicated branch librarian found and put on a table.  I admit I wished there had been something to indicate that we, as a congregation, loved the Savior and celebrated His birth. We had a nice Christmas Day with Jaclyn--she opened three small gifts; and Paul and I opened a couple.  I tried to imagine the gift-opening frenzy taking place in other homes.  Ours this year was so serene it made me want to never go back to the stress and hoop-la of years past.  We visited one of our members that afternoon. It was really nice, and so non-commercial.  Have I made my point?  I really liked it.  Sorry I forgot to take a picture!
   However, we came face to face with the loneliness that is reality to many people, especially older singles, during the holidays. Several of our branch members were, quite literally, all alone on Christmas Day.  These are individuals who have adult children, living within driving distance, but who chose not to come to see their mother, or father, on Christmas.  We visited with several of these individuals several times over the week of Christmas and New Year's,  in person and on the phone.  Of course, we were a poor substitute for their loved ones and I had to battle down some feelings of animosity for young adults who were so self-consumed that they couldn't reach out to a lonely parent.  It made me wish I had been better at paying attention to Mom at all times (we did a decent job on holidays), when she was alive.
     Winter is upon us in full fury.  Next post will have pictures and details.

Its all Relative

Yesterday was a day of service.  We drove to a town about 25 minutes from here to pick up our friend Gisele and bring her to the church so she could work in the library.  She is perhaps the most dedicated ward librarian on the planet. She likes to come in at least once a week (this was her 2nd time this week) to organize and inventory the books, etc. in the library.  She got the approval to purchase some office supplies but since she doesn't have a car, we volunteered to purchase them for her, and then the branch will reimburse us.   Later in the day we drove her to Trois Rivieres (Three Rivers), a city about an hour north east of here for a dentist appointment.  On the way home I noticed the temperature on the car's gauge said it was 3 degrees fahrenheit.  Wow, I thought, it is cold outside!  We were happy to return to our warm apartment.  Luckily I reminded Paul to plug in the heater for the car engine.  This morning I realized that everything truly is relative:  this morning the temperature was -25;  that is negative 25 degrees fahrenheit!  I have never experienced anything like this.  We had an activity with the leadership of the branch and the stake presidency today where we went to visit individuals who haven't been to church in a long time.n's morning, and I was amazed at how everyone, although they mentioned the cold, acted like it is normal.  I bundled up in several layers and I wasn't too cold, except for my face.  I am so grateful for my lined boots and a long wool coat, worth every dollar. Tonight the temperatures will rise (it will be a warmer minus 4) but then the snow arrives.  We are expecting 10-12 inches by tomorrow evening.  I know the schools were closed in Virginia for two days because of the 3-4 inches of snow they received, but church and school will continue as usual here.  Paul is absolutely giddy about the challenge of driving around in the snow tomorrow to pick people up for church; me,, not so much.

Winter is coming

With highs for the day in the low teens, one might consider us in full-out winter.  Not so. We have been told by the locals that, come January, we will relish a day with a high of 17 degrees.  Am I smiling?  No, I am not. We have had a couple of snow storms but not much more than a few inches.  With the cold temps, however, the snow doesn't melt.  The beautiful reservoir near us is frozen over, as is the river that runs through town. We spent a little time the other day taking some pictures of how the Quebecois prepare for winter's onslaught:

These green tarps are apparently placed on the grass to protect from the huge amounts of snow that will be dumped/pushed onto yards from the snow plows.  We suppose that they must really work because we have seen them everywhere.

These lovely plastic structures are erected early in November in anticipation of the snow.  Do they do this in the Northeastern parts of the U.S.?  I don't know.  While hardly attractive, one has to admit they are less expensive than a permanent garage, which isn't needed in the summer months.   And, shoveling one's driveway is eliminated. We have seen blocks of cement laid at the base to hold these in place during the frequent winds we have (Oh, so lovely to be outside at 2 degrees F with a stiff wind!).  The plastic at the entrances to the front doors supposedly cut down on wet junk getting into your home.  We have even see a few really serious residents connect their "garage" to a door covering, making it possible to walk from car to home without going into the snow. And here is a "double" garage:

These Quebecois are serious about being as comfortable as possible in the winter.  I guess they need to be since we have been told that winter lasts until sometime in April.