News of the Past Week

We have had a good week.  The missionaries are busy with a lot of activity in the office.  Sister Hawley has had many referrals to type up and send out, and a host of baptismal records to enter into the Church System--CDE or Convert Data Entry.  She has also written letters to parents of the incoming missionaries, new district leaders and new zone leaders, new trainer letters, and letters to those who have been baptized in recent weeks.  Even the president commented on the volume of letters going out as he had to sign them all.  Sister Hawley is currently getting ready for the group of new missionaries coming in for September and October, and the corresponding groups of departing missionaries as well.  This past week she has submitted travel info for each of our departing missionaries, and has prepared the materials for those incoming missionaries.  Only one elder is departing mid-August, and there are no new missionaries arriving for the month of August.  Of course there are always "surprises," so we both have adapted a "wait and see" attitude.  

Wednesday morning we took two hours and went with a group downtown [the Little's, 2 friends of theirs, our guide, another YSA friend of the Little's, and the Price's]  to go through the British Parliament buildings at Westminster and Westminster Hall. The word "parliament" comes from the French  word "parler",  which means to speak or to talk.  Our tour guide took us to the House of Lords (more like our Senate) which is a body of over 800 appointed for life.  They can make laws and send it to the House of Commons (like our House of Representatives) which is a body of 649 elected for five years by the people.  These two groups make the laws in Great Britain, which is made up of Wales, England, Scotland and Northern Ireland. The Prime Minister acts like our president and has a great amount of power. The Prime Minister is not elected but 'invited' by the Queen to be Prime Minister, and who is 'determined' by the leader of the party which got the most votes in the last election. The original room for Parliament was in the converted chapel, where there were benches on opposite sides of the length of the chapel with opposing parties facing each other.  This came about as the first Parliament building was an old cathedral which had the choir seats facing each other on the sides of the hall just before the altar. The members of Parliament sat in the choir seats with each party taking a side of the hall and it has been that way ever since.  The space between the two sides was just far enough apart that the members could stand and debate and swing and thrust their swords, but could not touch or reach the opponents of the other party debating on the other side.  There is a  line painted on the floor of  each side which they can not cross.  They are to "toe the line"! which is where that phrase comes from.   Currently there are separate chambers for each house, but the seats [benches] still remain on opposite sides with members of each party facing each other.  There is a throne as each room's top end, and spectator room around the walls on the 'balcony' floor.  We heard 'Big Ben' chiming on the hour and 1/2 hour.  We went in at 9:00 a.m. and came out right at 11 a.m., so we got first 9 and then11 large 'bongs' from this very famous clock tower.  The Westminster Chimes are played.

[Side note:  just before we left Utah we purchased a beautiful grandfather clock for our entry hallway that plays -- wait for it -- the Westminster Chimes!]

The halls and rooms are so very ornate and filled with large paintings and so much pagentry.  There is little of the modern day in the decor.  There are however, TV cameras and up to date communication systems about. And they have plenty of security and even have their own post office which must stay open until the House of Commons closes for the day or night, which- ever comes first.  Britain is about history and tradition  The queen opens Parliament each year in the House of Lords and walks over to the House of Commons where the ballif strikes the door three times announcing the Queen.  The door is opened and is symbolically closed in her face and then she is let in.  Power to the People!   The House of Lords still is a place of powdered wigs and the like.

We were back at the office by 11:30 and took on the activities of the office and all of the good that happens there.  Zone Leader training is every first Friday of the month and we arrange for the food for lunch, but that is for only about 26 people.  The Church has changed our Zone Conferences from one every 6 weeks to one every quarter.  The mission president now only interviews the missionaries every quarter, instead of every six weeks as before.  This will cut down of some of the work and some of the travel, especially for the Mission President.  Our mission had 30 baptisms last months which is good for the London Area.  So the work progresses.  We feel blessed to be here. 

We continue to help with the Addition Recovery Program on Wednesday nights.  Sister Allred has left to go to California for 6 weeks to help care for her sister who is not expected to live much longer due to cancer.  We are helping Brother Allred for the next while.

London has been so very dry.  The lawns are burning up for lack of water.  This is most unusual as London gets about 2 inches of rain per month for each month of the year as regular as clockwork.  We have not had to use umbrellas for the last three or four months, most unusual.  The weather is about 70 to 75 in the day and 59 to 60 degrees at night.  The humidity has not been too bad this summer.  We are blessed again.  Love to all.  We are still waiting to see if a couple is assigned to replace us and hope and pray that it can be arranged.  Last Fast Sunday we dedicated our fast to several things, among them our prayers included our hope for a replacement couple who are qualified to do the office work and who can also afford to live in London close to the office, AND, who can arrive some time in November so that we can have enough time to train them before we depart ourselves on 7 December.  Sister Hawley has been asked by the Travel departments in both Solihull, England and Salt Lake City, to submit travel info 4 months in advance because of the upcoming November-December holiday season.  And on Monday, tomorrow, she will submit for return travel for ----
ourselves!  We cannot believe how fast the time passes.  This mission has and continues to change us for the better, and we feel extremely blessed in so many different ways.  We were touched, and are so very grateful, for those who fasted with us, and prayed in our behalf.  Thank you so very much, Everyone!

Yesterday we got on the 328 bus and rode it to the end of the line and then returned to our flat.  We saw a part of London to the north that we have never seen.  We also stopped at a farmers market and picked up some fresh corn on the cob, tomatoes and watermelon.  We have not had watermelon for over a year--what a nice treat.  I think I feel fall in the air!  Fresh-picked corn and tomatoes and cold night air!!  More blessings!

QUOTES

[1]  "Commandments are no more restrictive to the spiritual man than street signs are to the motorist.  Neither prohibits our progress; to the contrary, they enhance it by serving as guideposts or directional signs to help us find and reach our destination."  [Tad R. Callister, The Infinite Atonement, p. 258.

[2]  "We are too inclined to think of law as something merely restrictive . . . something hemming us in.  We sometimes think of law as the opposite of liberty.  But that is a false conception....  God does not contradict himself.  He did not create man and then, as an afterthought, impose upon him a set of arbitrary, irritating, restrictive rules.  He made man free--and then gave him the commandments to keep him free.  We cannot break the Ten Commandments.  We can only break ourselves against them -- or else, by keeping them, rise through them to the fulness of freedom under God."  [Movie producer Cecil B. De Mille, famous for The Ten Commandments movie.]

[3]  Obedience is not an enemy of freedom; to the contrary, it is freedom's best friend."  [Ibid, 1]

[4]  "I once wondered if those who refuse to repent but who then satisfy the law of justice by paying for their own sins are then worthy to enter the celestial kingdom.  The answer is no.  The entrance requirements for celestial life are simply higher than merely satisfying the law of justice.  For that reason, paying for our sins will not bear the same fruit as repenting of our sins.  Justice is a law of balance and order and it must be satisfied, either through our payment or his.  But if we decline the SAvior's invitation to let him carry our sins, and then satisfy justice by ourselves, we will not yet have experienced the complete rehabilitation that can occur through a combination of divine assistance and genuine repentance.  Working together, those forces have the power permanently to change our hearts and our lives, preparing us for celestial life....  The doctrines of mercy and repentance are rehabilitative, not retributive, in nature.  The savior asks for our repentance not merely to compensate him for paying our debt to justice, but also as a way of inducing us to undergo the process of development that will make our nature divine, giving us the capacity to live the celestial law.  [Elder Bruce Hafen]

[5]  The definition of grace as set forth in the LDS Bible Dictionary: ". . . is an enabling power that allows men and women to lay hold on eternal life and exaltation after they have expended their own best efforts."

[6]  Bruce Hafen:  "As King Benjamin suggests, the Atonement does more than pay for our sins.  It is also the agent through which we develop a saintly nature....  The Savior's victory can compensate not only for our sins but also for our inadequacies; not only for our deliberate mistakes but also for our sins committed in ignorance, our errors of judgment, and our unavoidable imperfections.  Our ultimate aspiration is more than being forgiven of sin -- we seek to become holy, endowed affirmatively with Christlike attributes, at one with him, like him.  Divine grace is the only source that can finally fulfill that aspiration, after all we can do."

[7]  Spiritual Gifts or Gifts of the Spirit [source=The Infinite Atonement; Callister, ibid]:  [a]  Since the gift of the Holy Ghost is gien only to members of the Church, it follows that the fruits and gifts of this Spirit are given in their fulness only to Church members.  Elder Bruce R. McConkie taught:  "Men must receive the gift of the Holy Ghost before that member of the Godhead will take up his abode with them and begin the supernal process of distributing his gifts to them....  Thus the gifts of the Spirit are for believing, faithful, righteous people; they are reserved for the saints of God." [pg. 270]  [b]  Whether or not the Atonement itself is the source of these spiritual gifts seems not yet to have been revealed in the scriptures, but certainly the availability of these gifts is conditioned on our faith in and demonstrated acceptance of that divine act.  Our reception of the Atonement is key to unlock these gifts and all their enabling powers, for it is the Atonement that purifies us and prepares us to be eligible recipients [pp 270-271].  [c]  As we acquire the gifts of the Spirit, that gap between man and God is narrowed, for with each gift acquired we advance along the path toward godhood.  Is it any wonder that the Lord wants us to pursue these gifts with unrelenting determination?  [pp 271-272]  [d]  President George Q. Cannon:  "No man ought to say, 'Oh, I cannot help this; it is my nature.'  He is not justified in it, for the reason that God has promised to give strength to correct these things, and to give gifts that will eradicate them....  He wants His Saints to be perfected in the truth.  For this purpose He gives these gifts, and bestows them upon those who seek after them, in order that they may be a perfect people upon the face of the earth, notwithstanding their many weaknesses, because God has promised to give the gifts that are necessary for their perfection....  If any of us are imperfect, it is our duty to pray for the gift that will make us perfect.  Have I imperfections?  I am full of them.  What is my duty?  To pray to God to give me the gifts that will correct these imperfections....  So with all the gifts of the Gospe.  They are intended for this purpose."  [pp 272-273]  [e]  How?  "Covet earnestly the best gifts...."  "... with all [their] hearts."  [Apostle Paul]  Seek ALL the best gifts.  Be orderly, and persistent, and diligent.  [f]  In some respects these gifts are like a spiritual gold mine at our disposal that remains untapped if we fail to pursue the mining process.  These gifts refine us, ennoble us, and ultimately can perfect us.  Obedience is necessary but isn't enough -- WE MUST ASK.  "We must want the gifts so fervently that this pursuit is a constant unending struggle."  There must be "... a burning desire, a reaching out, a seeking, . . . an exhaustive exercise of our combined spiritual, intellectual and emotional energies, all focused on obtaining these divine gifts."  [pg. 274]  [g]  Moroni 10:  "I would exhort you that ye would come unto Christ, and lay hold upon every good gift [meaning the gifts of the Spirit and the other blessings of the Atonement]....  Yea, come unto Christ, and be perfected in him, and deny yoursleves of all ungodliness; and if ye shall deny yourselves of all ungodliness, and love God with all your might, mind and strength, then is his grace sufficient for you, that by his grace ye may be perfect in Christ....  And again, if ye by the grace of God are perfect in Christ, and deny not his power, then are ye sanctified in Christ by the grace of God, through the shedding of the blood of Christ, which is in the covenant of the Father unto the remission of your sins, that ye become holy, without spot."  Moroni 10 "defines the relationship among grace, gifts, and godhood.  The grace that flows from the Savior's atoning sacrifice opens the gate to the divine road, the gifts are the vehicle, and godhood is the destination.  By the grace of God the gifts come, and with the acquisition of the gifts, godhood emerges."  [ibid., 277]

[8]   "The tumult and the shouting dies --
       The Captains and the Kings depart --
       Still stands Thine ancient sacrifice,
       An humble and a contrite heart.
       Lord God of Hosts, be with us yet,
       Lest we forget--lest we forget!"
                      -- Rudyard Kipling --

NEWS of the WEEK

This week has just flown by.  It has been MOVES week, Transfers week.  Left:  one our our favorites, AP Elder Paul Jentzsch from Germany.  

Six of our best missionaries were given honorable releases and have flown home.  

And we have another new Assistant to the President. Below:  New AP Kirk Katseanes with AP Mason Zemp

Four new missionaries, two elders and two sisters, arrived yesterday.  There has been much activity in the office.  We've had fun and been BUSY!  

And yet our minds have been drawn more and more to spiritual spheres....  We have increased our efforts to be more faithful, prayerful, obedient ....  It is wonderful.  It is more humbling than we have words to express.  

Also, we are preparing ourselves to fast for several purposes this Sunday:  for our children, individually; for those we know who are struggling with difficulties; and for a replacement office couple to be found who can come to England and be able to afford to live here, and arrive here ahead of our release with, we hope, about a month's time for us to train them.  

Because of these things, taking the Sacrament on Sunday is becoming more meaningful in recent weeks, and so what we are including in the blog this week will be something different:  a quote from Elder David B. Haight that we hope will touch you as it has touched and instructed us.  We love you all and appreciate your support.

"Living God's commandments obligates a person to a life of goodness—goodness to society and a genuine helpfulness to humanity, and excluding from one's life hatred, enmity, immorality, selfishness, drunkenness, jealousy, and dishonesty. "May we experience the joy of regular attendance at sacrament meeting and feel the blessings of eternal progression in our personal lives through wholehearted compliance, in spirit and actions, with the sacred words of the sacrament. "The Prophet Joseph Smith taught: 'Reading the experience of others, . . . can never give us a comprehensive view of our condition and true relation to God. Knowledge of these things can only be obtained by experience through the ordinances of God set forth for that purpose. Could you gaze into heaven five minutes, you would know more than you would by reading all that ever was written on the subject.' (Teachings of the Prophet Joseph Smith, comp. Joseph Fielding Smith, Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1938, p. 324.) "The sacrament is one ordinance that allows us to experience a personal relationship to God and enlarges our knowledge and understanding of Him and His Only Begotten Son. "Our personal reward for compliance with the covenants and obligations in the ordinance of the sacrament becomes the companionship of God's Holy Spirit. This is the light that leads to eternal life. The divine virtues associated with the partaking of the Lord's Supper are to keep His divine life ever in mind; to love the Lord with all our heart, might, mind, and strength; and to labor to bring to pass His ultimate purpose—the eternal life of man."  [Elder David B. Haight, Ensign, The Sacrament, May 1983, p. 14]

We pray for blessings upon your heads, even a multiplicity of blessings.  We pray for your own progression in relationships with Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer, and with the Holy Ghost, whose companionship we cherish.  We sent you our love.  We bear you our testimony of the truthfulness of the Word of God in the scriptures and in the Gospel we practice and preach.  We know these things to be true, and to be great blessings in our lives.  And we pray for you and hope for you a 'heart/soul/spirit-touching' experience this week, that you may know the love of God for you individually.  Elder and Sister Hawley

NEWS of the PAST MONTH

We've been cheered by the good weather that England has been enjoying, and even have been encouraged to take a day off now and again to travel around and see the countryside within mission boundaries.  We found a "manor house" to go and visit in a place called Amersham, north of London.  The "house" is more like a small castle, really -- it's huge!  It is called Waddesdon, and was built and lovingly furnished in minute detail by the Rothschild family.  The Rothschild's are a European dynasty of German Jewish origin that established European banking and finance houses from the late 18th century.  Five brothers of the Austrian family were given hereditary baronies by Emperor Francis II in 1816.  The British family was elevated into the nobility by Queen Victoria.  It has been claimed that the family possessed by far the largest private fortune in the world, and by far the largest fortune in modern history.  The family's rise to prominence began with Mayer Amschel Rothschild; he developed a finance house and spread his empire by installing each of his five sons in European cities to conduct business, and by keeping their financial dealings secret and "in the family."  The name "Rothschild" has become synonymous for seemingly endless wealth, neo Gothic styles, Byzantine splendour, grand manners and elegance.  Indeed, Waddesdon is a beautifully decorated, albeit VERY large and elegant "summer residence" for the extremely wealthy.  Here are some photos we took of the house and grounds.  The grounds include a bird aviary, manicured gardens, a patio the length of the main house, and a rose garden.

On the 4th of July we went to the London Temple and stayed in the Accommodations Centre there overnight and went to church with Elder and Sister Ricks, who spent their last few months from their mission working in the temple.  We spent the Saturday doing temple work, and met the matron and one of her assistants.  We were welcomed by the missionary couples who are temple workers there, just as if we were part of their group.  We had a good visit with the Ricks, went out to dinner at a real-American steak and ribs restaurant where the conceirge dressed all in black, jeans, hat and all, and spoke with an English accent!  Ha!  Good food, good company, and good conversation.  We went to church in the Crawley Ward about 15 miles from the temple.  This is the finest all-English family ward that we have attended there.  Elder and Sister Ricks are from Rexburg Idaho and were proselyting/reactivation missionaries in the England London Mission; they were transferred to finish their mission as temple workers.   They were being released on the 13th of July and we went to say goodbye.  They 

live in Idaho and enjoy going to Yellowstone, like we do, so we plan to keep in touch and to see them when we get home.

On 16 July we borrowed a mission car and with Elder and Sister Little from Wellsville, Utah, spent the weekend in the Dover Area.

We saw the White Clifts of Dover, barelyas one needs to be at sea to really see them, and toured the Dover Castle and military tunnels at Dover.  Interesting that Dover is the gateway to England from Europe with a sea port, and has been a strong defensive place even before the Romans came in 200AD.  There is a Roman Light house still standing.  The castle is huge and interesting. 

The first rock castle began construction in 1070 AD, right after William the Conqueror came in 1066.  The decisive battle of Hastings was fought about 40 miles to the south when William defeated King Harold and took control of England from Normandy, just thirty miles over the channel.

The military tunnels were first constructed in the 1700s as a place to barracks troops defending the castle. Major secret renovations occurred during World War II, and the operation to retreive the beaten troops from Dunkirk were planned and managed from the Dover Tunnels.

Yes, on clear days one can see France and Calias across the misty water.  We had a good time there, and then Elder Hawley drove us to Ashford to inspect the zone leader's flat while we were in the area.  Thank heavens for GPS guidence devices to get around these narrow streets.  By-the-way, a free-way is called a "double carriage way" in England and yes, I was on the left side of the road (most of the time anyway).  

Sister Hawley drove all day on Saturday as we visited Leeds Castle near Maidstone.  Leeds Castle is surrounded by a mote and is so very beautiful and scenic.  Much of it was restored privately in the 1920's by a rich Lady Bailie who died in 1974 and bequeathed it to the English Heritage Trust. Such a HOME.

The Lake was filled with swans and ducks and wildlife. Some of the swans were special black swans brought from Australia.  There were many rooms on several floors, but the rooms were smaller than some castles, and so it has a homey feeling to it, or as the Brit's say, a homely atmosphere.  We were glad we did not need to clean and dust this large place, but the setting was spectacular.

We stayed in a Holiday Inn Express in Folkstone on the coast for two nights and went to the Deal Ward in Deal, Kent, UK for church.  There were 4 missionary baptisms after church and we stayed to witness that nice event.  Then we traveled off across the countryside through Canterbury and back to London before the traffic got too bad and reached home by 6 PM Sunday evening.

The past three months have been busy ones for us in the office, especially for Sister Hawley -- there is always paperwork, changes in the calendar, phone calls, referrals, and plenty of letters to write and emails to answer and records to keep.  Elder Hawley is the missionaries' best friend -- they know HE knows where the money is, or where it went, as the case may be.

We are grateful to be busy, to be of service, and to enjoy what we do.  This month in particular we have been especially blessed by daily, almost hourly, blessings from Heavenly Father.  We are humbled by this personal, immediately attention from Him.  We are also reading a wonderful book by Tad R. Callister entitled The Infinite Atonement.  We are reading this book together.  It has been described as the finest book on the Atonement ever written.  We highly recommend it to you.  Your minds will be expanded, your understanding increased, your heart touched; tears may flow, and you will be filled to overflowing with the Holy Spirit.

For the past few weeks we have begun to realize that our time here in London is getting shorter and shorter....  We hadn't thought about it much.  We have been so busy, and time just flies.  We looked at the calendar, and also realized that we have not yet heard any news about a replacement office couple.  We discussed this with President Patch, and he suggested Sister Hawley send an email to the missionary department, which she did.  They promised to send a couple, saying they are aware of the shortening time and our desire to have time enough to train the new couple before we are released.  However, we were also told again how expensive a mission location London is, and that because of economic considerations it was quite hard to place a couple here who can do office work AND afford to live here.  So we decided to fast and pray about this, and to turn it over to the Lord, and we fasted a full 24 hours and felt that our prayers were received and understood.  Then the other day an impression came to ask others to join with us in fasting and prayer for this goal.  And the blessings of support and gratitude for being asked to help were truly inspiring and humbling.  We are so grateful for this sweet blessing.  Our hearts were truly touched.

It also seems as if we have "turned the corner" somehow on our calling.  We feel so good about working with the president, and feel also that our efforts are really helpful to him and to the missionaries.  22 July 2010 was our anniversary of being in London for 1 full year.  Hard to imagine!  The time has gone by so fast, and we are energized and renewed to continue to do better for the last few months before we are released.  Again we are happy that we have made this decision to be couple missionaries.  The blessings and the knowledge of Heavenly love and support and help and answers is overwhelming.  We praise and revere our Heavenly Father and our Savior and Redeemer.  How grateful we are for righteous parents and righteous choices

P.S. Added 5 Sep 2010:  Our current APs, Elders Katseanes [left, from Idaho] and Zemp [right, from Canada] had a chance to spend their P-Day climbing the White Cliffs of Dover, and they shared this photo of them at the top:

NEWS of the PAST WEEK

We have a missionary from Armenia, Elder Artak Avanesyan who arrived last October, and this is his story.  Two young men of 18 years, members of the Church in Armenia,  had decided to go on missions.  They talked and laughed about serving together, but then got serious and made it a matter of fasting and prayer.  Elder Avanesyan was called to serve in the England London Mission and Elder Zorabyan was called "next door" to the England Manchester Mission.  

Elder Avanesyan went to the Preston MTC because he knew some English, but it turned out his knowledge of English was so very limited that after three days the MTC called our President Patch and discussed what to do as he could not understand what was being taught.  In the England London Mission we just happened to have a sister missionary from Georgia in the Ukraine, actually the first native missionary from  that nation to serve as a missionary, who spoke both Russian and Armenian as well as English.  It was decided to send Elder Avanesyan on to London to be taught English by Sister Umurshadyan.  [Photo above:  Left, Elder Avanesyan, Center, Sister Umurshadyan, Right, Elder Zorabyan.]

They and their companions met every morning in the mission office for two hours of English training before going on with other missionary tasks. He made good progress and within two months was transferred on to Cambridge with his companion.  Sister Umurshadyan was transferred to Gillingham in Kent.

Elder Zorabyan was sent to the Provo MTC for English language training about the same time as Elder Avanesyan, but the Provo MTC did not have any Armenian or Russian teachers, and his two months there were largely wasted.  When he arrived in Manchester, he could not proceed as a missionary without English.  There were no resources in Manchester to help him, so the mission president, hearing what had happened in London,  spoke to President Patch and they arranged a short term transfer to the England London Mission.  Elder Zorobyan was put into a companionship in Gillingham and every morning he was taught English by Sister Umurshadyan for two hours.  Within two months he was doing quite well and progressing both with English and as a missionary.

President Patch, knowing of their history and their desire to serve together arranged a transfer for Elder Zorabyan to serve with Elder Avanesyan for his final three weeks in this mission before returning to Manchester.  President Patch said he saw no problem with helping the Lord answer the prayers of these two faithful young elders from Armenia.  The Lord finds a way to make everything work out, if we are patient and allow Him to lead us and not be afraid to follow His ways and are faithful.

Queen Elizabeth's birthday is 21 April, but the military has a way of celebrating her birthday called "Trooping the Colour."  It is held in June with many horses and troops in military red and black with the high fur hats, all in the very large court yard of Buckingham Palace.  There is a practice a week before that can be viewed and a few of the missionaries attended the pagentry   See the pictures.  The event lasts some two hours and is pagentry as only the British know it.

There is a lot of construction work all around London.  It has continued to expand since we arrived last July.  We are told that it is in preparation for the 2012 Olymptics, but when we ask a local, such as a taxi driver, he/she will say that this is just how it is, and when one job is finished another place to dig a hole will be found!  It makes it hard to travel around by bus, car, or on foot, because there are always construction barriers and diversions [detours].  There are a lot of buildings with scaffolding up the sides too -- getting refaced, which is a good thing because the weather really dirties the exteriors of buildings.  On "our" side of Exhibition Road we have the Victoria and Albert Museum, and it is located directly opposite the beautiful Natural History Museum.  Both museums are long and multi-sectioned, with additions being added on over the years.  The V and A just had its front "sanded and refaced" and it looks quite nice and clean now.  However, evidence of shrapnel bombing has been left in place, as a reminder of WWII, and other buildings around London of a like age show similar markings.  Our U.S. Memorial Day here is a Bank Holiday.  Why the banks need a holiday is unclear.  We walk by the V and A each day on our way to the mission office in the Hyde Park building.  These shrapnel marks were purposely left as reminders of the the "Battle of Britian" in 1941 when 80 percent of London was destroyed by German bombs.  The older Brits especially are very aware of the effects of war and the hardships. People of all ages wear a red poppy on their lapels in November, which is when the British have their "memorial day" set aside to remember their war dead.

This past week we attended a ballet in the Royal Albert Music Hall opposite Hyde Park, and about 4 blocks from the mission office.    Across from the Hall is one of the many monuments and/or memorials commissioned by Queen Victoria to her Prince Albert, who died quite young and unexpectedly at age 42.  

We saw "Swan Lake" which is one of Sister Hawley's favorites.   Such talented dancers and the music was wonderful.  There were over 60 ballerinas in white attire on their toes on the floor at once. 

This was a special version which as done in the "round" in the Music Hall.  This is a magnificent building and done just for the arts and cultural events.  Three hours of ballet is a bit too much for Elder Hawley, but the evening was fun and entertaining. 

Most of the dancers were from the Eastern European countries and were so very talented and precise.  Oh, to be young and energetic again!

This week is transfer week again and we have been busy getting everything ready.  The new AP was called last night.  The MP will give Sister Hawley the MOVES information, which she will input into iMOS as a New Transfer.  As soon as this is done, Elder Hawley begins the work on Pre-Imbursements.  We will miss our Elder Cusick, who has been a happy, helpful, energetic and efficiient AP.  He flies home to his eager family on Thursday morning.  He is from Riverton, Utah.  We will greet an Elder Hinckley on Tuesday -- yes, he's a relative -- when he arrives from the Provo MTC.  The remainder of his group -- all additional 12 of them -- will come by bus from the Preston MTC on Wednesday mid-day.  Elder Cusick's group of seven missionaries leave for their homes on Thursday, with an additional departing mission leaving on Sunday, the 20th.  It will be a mad house, but fun and exciting.  Sister Hawley carries the brunt of the business and preparation, but she does a great job and the President knows everything will be ready and in order.

One more transfer and another AP will be called to replace Elder Jentzsch, who is from Germany and who will be released then.  We will miss Elder Jentzsch also, as he has been a great asset in the office and to the mission and the president as he is mature, focused and responsible.

The mission president has had quite the challenge to replace these two find young men who have served honorably and well, and we're excited to see the new choices and changes they bring to our mission.

Love to all.  We remember you in our prayers and hope all is well with you at home.  We are particulatly grateful for the security and the peace and the safety and balance and guidance that the Lord provides for each of us through His love and His plan.  We see His hand in our lives continually.  We are grateful for His love and patience and consideration for us, and know that we can always turn to Him and that He will always be near.  We hope each of you receive a "multiplicity of blessings" in the areas you would like these blessings to be yours.  We are also grateful we made the decision to serve a couples mission.  I know we have said these things before, but our gratitude grows stronger each day for this wonderful blessing, and for the experiences and ways we can share this experience with each other and with the Lord.