Boarding Checks -- week 82

 

It's a little hard to see in the this photo, but all those brown blobs on the center-right are mongooses. (mongeese?)  We love the view out our living room windows.  It will start to get very green soon.

We have not had monkeys in the house this week, but they do damage anyway.  Either they have very hard claws, or our car has very soft paint.  There are scratches all over, and getting worse, from monkey claws.  They climb around on everything.

Monday we finally made our three-times-postponed trip out to Piggly Wiggly to have lunch with the Van Heerdens.  This is a small group of shops and restaurants along the Midland Meander road about 90 minutes west of Durban.  It's also about 90 minutes east of Ladysmith where the Van Heerdens live.  They and the Hubrichs had not yet met in person, so this was the chance to introduce them.  

We had a lovely lunch and then wandered around to see the shops.  Sue especially loved the ice cream store and the chocolate shop, of course.  

There were also various artsy stores.  We liked this sculpture made of driftwood pieces.  

And this fun door.  Wouldn't you like this mosaic (!) at your house?   Ken told Sue it wouldn't fit in her suitcase.

Sue had to take a photo of this sign.  She has a sister, Louise, with a daughter, Emily.  The store had all kinds of bags and luggage.  

We spent two days this week running around doing Boarding Checks. In the USA that would be Apartment Inspections.  We have such  wonderful Elders.  They are happy and working hard, and doing good work for the Lord.  But some of them are not so good at cleaning....

Tuesday we went first out southwest to Washington Heights in Umbhedula township.  This place is hard to find if you use Google Maps.  It sends you up to the top of a hill, and then wants you to drive through a field.  I've sent in a map correction, but it's still wrong.  Elders Odundo and Boulter are "shopping" for cleaning supplies from the back of our car.

Next stop was KwaDabeka, with a similar shopping trip for Elders Mbonyana and Jordan Peterson.  (We currently have two Elders Peterson.)  They are the Zone Leaders for Hillcrest Zone, which is our area. 

We also visited the Elders in Chatsworth -- but forgot to take a photo.  Elders Hulley and Hanson Evans are doing well.  (We also have two Elders Evans these days.)

Tuesday was a busy day.  Next stop was the law offices of President Mkhize.  He is counselor to President Lines, but that is not a full-time position.  His "day job" is as an attorney here in Durban.  His office is not too far from the Durban Temple.  We needed him to officially stamp some passport copies for the Elders who came last week.  Unlike in Russia, where we had to carry our passports with us always, in South Africa the Missionaries all carry a copy and we keep the original in the office safe. 

President Mkhize can do the certifications for us.  His office in Umhlanga Ridge has a beautiful view of the ocean.  

After that we drove a few more minutes north to the Durban Temple.  The Temple has been closed for several months due to COVID outbreak here, but it opened on Tuesday, only for those going for the first time with their friends and family.  Elder Tom was not able to go before his Mission started, as most Elders do.  Four of his family members were able to come up from Port Elizabeth, about a 12-hour drive.  And we were invited, too.

Wednesday we did boarding checks and got bicycles fixed.  We picked up The Mpumalanga Two, Elder Bly and Elder Wardlow, with their bicycles at the Hillcrest Chapel after they finished their weekly District Council meeting.  

Hillcrest Chapel has the most beautiful landscaping.  We have said that before.  This week the azaleas are all in bloom.  We are starting to think about Spring here!

The Elders needed brakes and tyres on their bikes.  (In SA they are tyres.)  We went to the bike shop and dropped off the bikes.  We also tried to buy a new helmet for Elder Wardlow.  He is a very large young man -- which reminds us of our son, Tim.  They had nothing big enough for him.  We drove them the 30 minutes home to Mpumalanga and then the hour back to the Office.  Sue got on the phone calling bike shops.  No one has a helmet that is 64cm.  Not even on special order.  So, we ordered one on Amazon and had it sent to Independence, Missouri.  One of our missionaries is there temporarily, but will come in two weeks.  That's the best we could do.

We also went to Molweni.  That is Elders Tom and Watkins -- again forgot to take a photo.  Oops.

Last stop for this Transfer was Hillcrest.  Such a beautiful spot!  Elders Jeremy Evans and Walls are doing great and enjoying their surroundings.  There are four small apartments on this pond.

One of the things we check is if they have cleaned out the filter on the washing machine.  Elder Walls worked really, really hard using a big wooden spoon as a lever to get theirs open.  He found three collar-stays and 6 pence.

Part of boarding checks is to check the closets for excess stuff left behind by previous Elders.  We must have forgotten to do this last time around.  And before that the checks were on video-chat because of lockdown.  

Q: Is there anything here extra that doesn't belong to either of you? 

A: No.

Q: What is in that box up in the top cupboard above the wardrobe?

A: I have no idea.

Real answer:  All kinds of stuff that belongs to no one.  Mostly old bedding and old clothes.  We throw out what is bad.  (Who wants pants with holes?)  We keep what is good.  So Sue did a lot of laundry this week:  thirteen fitted or flat sheets, seven duvet covers, five pillowcases, three mattress covers.  

Each bed has a mattress cover, a pillow and a duvet (plain white fluffy quilt).  When Elders arrive we give them a bottom sheet, a pillow case, and a duvet cover.  That cover is like a big pillow case for the quilt.  When they are transferred, they are supposed to take those three items with them and leave the bed as they found it.  We wish!  The problem is that in the summer they put the duvets up above the closet because it's too hot and they are not needed.  Then someone else moves in and it's winter and they complain that they don't have a duvet.  Or they take their pillow and duvet with them when they move.  It's a constant puzzle to keep them all in the proper bedding.  

Friday late afternoon we drove back to Hillcrest to pick up the bikes, and then out west to Mpumalanga to deliver them to the Elders.  It was a very hot day, but clouds were starting to come in, and the sky was gorgeous.  

 

This is such a beautiful country!

Elder Hubrich and Elder Allen got together to watch the  BYU/Arizona football game in Las Vegas on ESPN on Saturday night at 7:30pm  (yea--we know, that is 4:30am on Sunday here.)  They both wore their BYU-gear for the occasion.  Sue wandered down there to join them about 7am.  Sister Hubrich appeared after waking up about 7:30am.  BYU won, so all are happy.  

But Ken then had to spend some time on Sunday morning and afternoon making up for hours of lost sleep.  

After Ken awoke, the MTC Elders Tinta, Pick & Kortjas in our building joined us in late afternoon for a short Sacrament, Fast and Testimony Meeting in our boarding.  Powerful and humble young men on a mission to minister.  

When we arrived back here last December, there was a very sad looking orchid plant in our flat.  Sue cut of the dead stalks, gave it a little bit of water, a little fertilizer and set it in the shady windowsill.  It's now blooming!  There is another in the office that was even more bedraggled.  It is growing a new leaf, so there is hope.  Yes, there is always hope, in this life and in the life to come.

The word is out:  We have to come home to California.  Our replacements have now received their assignment.  Richard and Diane Taylor of Orem, Utah, are due to arrive here on 15 January.  We are supposed to go home on 12 January.  But there are Transfers on 19 January.  That doesn't work!  They are experienced, having been an Office Couple in New Zealand, and have now been serving from home as Office Couple Mentors to missions all over the world.  But we all want to overlap for a couple of weeks.  We'd like them to come a week or so earlier, since they really don't need the Office Couple training week in the Provo MTC.  And we'll stay a couple of weeks longer.  They know all the basics, but every mission has its quirks.  At this point we are glad we still have many months here, and glad to know that we will have great people to carry on when we go home.