July 30, 2012

Dear Family, My missionary journal entries last week were not all that interesting to I'm sending a letter instead this week.  My journal basically said that I had done well to stay at the mission office from 9-12:30 each day and kept my work caught up.  Dennis brought me home and then went back to finish up his lists of things to do.

     Yesterday I had Sunday dinner with the Paynes while Dennis went to stake Priesthood meeting in Kirtland.  It’s always fun to visit with their family.  This coming weekend they are planning to go to Goodyear for the baptism of William’s son, Mason.  I keep remembering our trip to Utah when we stopped to visit with William and family in Logan and my mom was using a walker at the time (bad ankle?).  Mason was probably 2 or 3 then and met us at the door and asked her if her walker was her “quad” – we observed a garage full of quads on our way in.  We laughed and laughed about his quick wit. 

     This coming Friday we have an all-mission zone conference for all of the senior couples in Gallup.  We are really looking forward to that as we have never met all of them.  The ones we have met and have visited with are really valiant individuals and we have been impressed with their commitment and faithfulness.  This week I visited on the phone with the couple in St. Michaels, AZ and learned that he had been battling shingles on his head for the past six weeks.  Yes, the Lord’s missionaries are NOT immune from health challenges, but angels are on our right and left to bear us up and help us fill our callings.

     Elder Hunt has really been scrambling to help find housing for our new group of missionaries coming in on August 21.  We only have 3 missionaries leaving to go home, and 19 new missionaries coming in.  That means we will have eight more companionships that will need a place to be housed shortly.  He met with President Batt this morning and hopefully it will work out smoothly.  We plan to go to Bayfield,CO to look at apts. there this Thursday – we have never been to Bayfield.  Right now the Durango missionaries are servicing Bayfield, but Pres. Batt wants to have missionaries there again. Today Elder Hunt made a trip to Bluesalt and then to Kaibeto with a washer, furniture, and vacuums to deliver.  We have a trailer for elders ready to go in Kaibeto behind their chapel and he wanted to check it out.  

     Today we've been thinking of our little Kolby boy on his 4th birthday, hoping that he is making everyone's day a happy one.  We also look forward to Braden's 15th birthday tomorrow.  I can still picture their moving truck parked down by our basement door when Braden was just a year old.  Johno was so delighted to have those boys around to brighten his lonely world --and we certainly enjoyed those days as well.

     All of the stores are highlighting their back-to-school displays -- we are thankful that our school days are now history.  But we DO have lots of fond memories of many of those days.

     We send our love to each of you.  Elder and Sister Hunt

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