Our Grand Congo Adventure Begins!

            We had a great week in the MTC.  We truly appreciate all those there who help train us, but we are really impressed with the young trainers and how they handle all of us who are set in their ways and don't learn well.  They broke us down into small districts.  We loved our district and hope to stay in touch with them.

            After a wonderful week at the MTC in Provo,we flew out Saturday morning.  Gina,Aaron, Kaden, Ethan, Trevor, Luke, Britt, Casey, Treyson, Chloee, Nixson, andKara came with us and it was so hard to say goodbye.  Tears were shed, but we knew we had a great adventure ahead and we were ready, or so we thought. 

We flew to Washington D.C. and were all smiles as we started.  Little did we realize just how long the trip would be.

While waitingfor our plane to Brussels, we met 2 wonderful women waiting for the sameflight.  We met them separately, but bothwere from Cameroon (part of our mission). The woman I met was a director of schools (principal) and Hal met another.  She worked for an oil company.  After learning a little about what we would be doing with PEF, she explained about her circumstances that gave her the opportunity to get a good job.  She said she has seen missionaries in white shirts and ties in Cameroon and wondered about them.  She even gave the impression that she would like to visit with them to learn a little more.  Both of them gave us theirbusiness cards and wanted to exchange information (wonderful missionaryopportunity).  On our flight to Brussels,we sat with a little 2-year old girl with the biggest eyes.  Her mother sat across the aisle.  She took such a liking to Hal that she called him Grandpa.  Her mother, probably thinking that she was well taken care of didn’t give her a lot of attention, so Hal helped feed her and get her set up with movies that didn’t hold herattention for very long.  When he wouldget up and walk around, she’d play a game with me and throw her hands in theair and say, “Where’s Grandpa?” and then hide when she would spy him.  She was a delightful little girl.  As we got off the plane in Brussels, we foundout her mother was from Kinshasa but was now living in Baltimore.  She had 3 little girls and they were allseparated on that long flight.  What goodand independent little girls they were!
            We had to go through Security again in Brussels (longline that took forever) but again we met some wonderful men, one from Africa,one from India.  Our plane to Luanda waslong(about 8 hours), no movies, but Hal sat with another young man who seemed to radiate goodness.  They spoke in Frenchfor a while (we were separated by the aisle). I sat in the middle that had 4 seats. The others in my row knew I couldn’t speak French, so it was a quietride.  I read and tried to sleep, but sleep didn’t come too easily.  We spent an hour in Luanda while we picked up some other passengers boarding and flew t oKinshasa (another hour).  We arrivedabout 9:00 p.m. Sunday night and made it through Customs without aproblem.  When we got to baggage claim,we were met by Antoine, a man hired by the Church to help us with ourluggage.  That was our first culturalshock.  Baggage Claim in Kinshasa is like no other Baggage Claim we’ve seen in the world. They have an assembly belt that comes from outside, but more men camethrough on the belt than luggage.  There are truly no or very few regulations here. After a long, long, long time our luggage came through.  We were so relieved!
            Three couples (the Staggs, the Moons, and the Smiths )started out to meet us, but after being held up in traffic for 2 hours, couldn’t make it.  Thierry, who is a stake president and works for Pres. Jameson realized he was closer to the airport and came forus.  He is such a handsome, cheerful man and doesn’t seem to let anything get him down. He smiles through every circumstance, but at the same time is soresponsible and tries to make us all comfortable.  He is now our hero.  With Antoine’s help, we loaded into the Church van (with Thierry driving) and met the 3 couples half-way and drove home.  By the way I don’t think the airport is more than 10 miles from home.
            The Staggs introduced us to our new apartment, which is so very nice.  It has African paintings everywhere and they’re beautiful.  The bathroom is small and only has a shower but very nice by Congoleese standards.  Even our bed is comfortable.  We are very blessed.  We recognize that our living conditions are much better than we thought we would find.
            It was 1:00 a.m. before we got to bed and had to be to a Devotional at 8:00 a.m.  Because we hadn’t slept in 2 days and had our days and nights mixed up, we were a little dazed getting up Monday morning, but so glad we did.  The Devotional was for the S&I (Seminaries and Institute) Leaders that have offices in the same building we do.  (We work very closely with them inthe PEF Program.)  I’m still a little confused on who they all were, but I know that one is a bishop, 2 are stakepresidents and 1 is an area authority. We have 2 area authorities in Kinshasa. Elder Kahungu (in our office) and Elder Mabaya.  What an honor to be there!  They started and finish with a hymn and theysing so beautifully.  A short talk was given in French, so I didn’t understand, but the closing prayer was given with such a strong spirit, I could understand that.  After the devotional, we were given the chance to bear our testimonies.

            We started our training from the Staggs, with our minds whirling from lack of sleep and information overload.  It’s good they prepared everything on paper,so we have something to refer to, and the teaching was repeated to two dullheads the following days as well.  I hope we’ll catch on and be able to do all the Lord wants us to do.
            In our office we have a computer for each of us and 4 computers for the young people to come in and fill out applications for PEFfunds.  These young people are returned missionaries (men and women) and attend Institute (there are exceptions).  The people are truly beautiful.  Their features are beautiful, but their spirits are even more beautiful.  The twoyoung men who help us are called Volunteers. Their names are Kabeya and Kalonji.  They come in 2 or 3 times a week; they volunteer their time and we only pay them for their transportation.  These two young men are incredible.  We don’t know what their living circumstances are, but we know they are not good.  They travel 1 ½ hours to get to the center and work so hard helping with applications.  They are so willing tohelp us in anyway they can.  The Staggs fed them lunch and we would like to do the same.  We have to pack a lunch each day and it’s not hard to pack enough for them as well.  OnThursday I was thinking about them and how much I would love to pack them up and bring them back to the U.S. with us. Their example of goodness is so amazing. I wish we could all learn from them, but then the thought occurred tome, if we did, our culture would ruin them. Oh, there’s so much we can learn from the Africans, their pure love and goodness shines and radiates and we all feel it.
            Now let me tell you about driving in Kinshasa.  Many of us like Bumper Cars at an amusement park, but how would you like Bumper Cars in a city of 6 to 8 million people.  Most people walk or taketransports (boxy vans that they’ve taken the seats out of and replaced with 2 x4's to seat more people (as many as they can crowd in)).  Some drive and they’re crazy drivers.  The laws only apply to Mandelas (Lingala forwhite people).  If we break a law, we’ve been told the police are right there to stop you and fine you.  The Congolese can run red lights, turn left from the far right if they think they can make it and any other law you canthink of to break.  They are not stopped.  The Staggs and the Smiths havebeen driving us around until we get our bearings, but Elder Robinson just got his driver’s license Friday, so I think we’ll start driving on Sunday.  They say driving home from Church is the besttime to practice.  We’ve also been told you’ll kind of get used to it, but I have a hard time believing that.  We’ve also been told to expect at least one accident while we’re here.  Our mission president had 2 in one day. 
            One of the missionary sisters asked me what I liked least and what I liked best so far.  I told her driving is what I liked least and the beautiful people is what I liked best.
             We don't have many pictures of the area yet but this is what we saw looking out our window.

            We had dinner at President Jameson’s on Tuesday eveningso they could say goodbye to the Staggs and then again on Thursday, when we were interviewed and had a better chance to get acquainted.  They are wonderful people.  We talked a little football and President Jameson even knew about the famous Poppinga family from Evanston, Wyoming.  Imagine that Britt and Casey!  Friday night we had a couples dinner at the Billings.  (The couples try to gettogether every Friday to talk, support, laugh and just relax.)

           
              It was wonderful.  The Billings are from West Jordan and hespecifically was called to teach Construction to 12 young men who have nowgraduated and each of them are now teaching the same skills to 12 more students(that’s 144).  Can you see how this is going to grow.  The Church has need of construction workers to build the many chapels that are needed here in the DRC because the gospel is spreading so rapidly. (We found out just recently that the Church is growing more rapidly inthe Democratic Republic of the Congo than anywhere else in the world.)  Elder Billings’ program is a pilot program and if successful will be used elsewhere in the world.  Sister Billings is also very dynamic and wanted to give something that she could do while here on this mission.  Sister Billings loves Family History.  She has put together a power point presentation with our Kilonji (from our office. He is also her interpreter.) to be given to the Stake Presidents on August 29th.  She wants to start at the top and work down through the members.  She has asked me to help her and I’m so excited.  She also has a contact with someone in the government and is trying to set up a meeting where we can ask ifwe can film government records.  We have no records in the Family History Library from the DR Congo.  This is a pioneering effort and I hope I cantag along on that visit with her.  We’llsee what my needs are at the office first. It’s so exciting to think that maybe we can help prepare the members to not only go to the temple, but take their deceased ancestors as well.  I asked Kabaya and Kilonji if they had records and how far back they could go on their own lines.  Kilonji has gone back 4 generations, and Kabeya said his parents are already working on it. (I hope you all remember that the temple in Kinshasa was announced the same time Star Valley’s temple was announced.) They said they keep track of their families’ birth, marriage and death certificates because the government is not reliable.
            We’ve been shopping twice in markets and spent about 150U.S. dollars for what we could buy for about $50 in the United States.  Buying from the local people on the streetsis where the Staggs got their bananas, papaya, pineapples, and bread, but theywere very specific about who to buy from. I hope we can remember all they told us.
            We wash all fruits and veggies in chlorine water, we also wash our dishes in chlorine water.  We have a filter in the kitchen that we use to brush our teeth because the bathroom water is municipal water.  We take malaria pills everyday and will even for one month after we get home.
            We’ve got a great 18 months ahead.  We don’t know what adventures lie in front of us, but we do know, with the Lord’s help, we can do all things.
            That’s all for now!