November Wishes

I'm sending you a copy of the email that I just sent to all of my first cousins, both Payne and Hatch.  This is your reminder of a very important day coming up, NOVEMBER 19.  Please take note!  I love all of you!  Sister Linda Hunt

Dear Family, My parents will be celebrating their 70th wedding anniversary on November 19 and my wish is that their mailbox will be filled with cards/letters from family and friends. I invite each of you to take the time in the coming week to put something together for them and have it in the mail so it will reach them before November 19.  My dad is in a care center in Lordsburg - his worn out knees finally gave out on him and he needs additional care. Their hope was that they could end their days in the comfort of their own home, but life's realities have not made that possible.  Thank you for your love and support and prayers in their behalf. We send our love and best wishes to you and yours during this special season of giving thanks.  Sister Linda Hunt     Ed and Jean Payne    474 State Highway 92     Virden, NM  88045-8023

NMFM Week 31: October 14-21, 2012

Dear Family,  We've had quite a week and this one is off to a good start!  Maren just had breakfast with us before leaving for her first day on the job at the Farmington Library.  We love having her close by.  My parents did not have a good week and for the first time have recognized that they need to make a change in their living arrangement.  Please pray for them and also John and Wendy that they can find a suitable situation for them asap.  I know there is power in prayer and I also know that help is there for the asking. We love you and pray for each of you each day.  Love, Elder and Sister Hunt

PS I'm going to try to attach a pic of Elder Hunt in front of the Mexican Hat Rock, Sister Hunt at Monument Valley, and Monument Valley chapel

 

Sunday:  Maren wanted to attend Kirtland 3^rd ward which is Jimmy and Sandy’s ward so we all went together.  After sacrament meeting, Dennis and I took Lauana back to the Beehive House.  We visited with her while she ate her lunch and then she wanted to go lie down and rest.  I helped her take her shoes off and tucked her under a blanket.  I bent down and kissed her on the cheek and told her that I love her to which she responded, “I love you too, good-bye Linda!”  Boy, was that a surprise!   

            It was Fast Day for Farmington 8^th Ward and the Payne’s tradition is to have breakfast foods to break their fast.  For dinner we had hash browns, scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage, rolls, and fruit.  We always enjoy our Sunday visits at their house. 

Monday:  President Batt met with the mission office staff to begin our day.  He advised us of upcoming assignments and happenings that we need to prepare for.  He also wanted us to be aware of the Zone Conference schedule the following day and Elder Paul Johnson’s visit to our mission.  By afternoon the place was buzzing with elders and sisters from all over the Farmington, Bloomfield, and Durango zones.

Tuesday;  Zone Conference Day:  A tradition in our mission is to have all of the elders who will be going home before the next zone conference have an opportunity to bear their testimony.  Two of our APs, Elders Nielsen and Jeskie both had that opportunity and it was good to hear from them.  President and Sister Batt gave exceptionally good talks as did Elder Johnson and his wife.  The theme was “Exact Obedience.”  It is always fun to observe the missionaries interacting with other missionaries they haven’t seen in a while.  We enjoyed visiting with the Sr. couples that we don’t get to see very often.  Elder Johnson spent some time discussing with the missionaries the impact of the new ages that missionaries will soon be as they come into our mission and what the implications will be of training, etc.  We loved being a part of that meeting.

Wednesday:  We spent a good part of the day picking up the pieces from the day before.  In the afternoon I went to Kirtland for organ and piano lessons.  I always get more than I give during those sessions and have made some dear friends.

Thursday:  We spent the morning at the office and came home at noon to get ready for another inspection tour.  We made cookie dough and cookies to take with us to our missionaries.  It’s quite a trick to bake cookies in a toaster oven!

Friday:  Red Mesa, CO was our first stop.  The elders there live in the barn loft and it is actually quite unique.  They spend the first part of the week there and the end of the week in Mancos, CO.  We caught up with them in Mancos and that is a rather unique place as well.  The elders live in an apartment the Bishop there built to the side of his house (kinda like George’s).  Their big double doors overlook the mountains and a meadow with a pond.  They have to have the best view of anyone in the mission!

            From Mancos we drove to Cortez, CO where we have two sets of elders.  It certainly warmed our hearts to see how both of those places have been cleaned up.  We had been to Dolores during the past month so we didn’t revisit there, but instead headed on up the road to Monticello.  We checked into our motel and went to the 5:00 pm temple session.  We saw quite a few deer hunters around town.  After the session, we visited our sister missionaries in Monticello—they are both cute girls.  They live in a cozy, tidy, small, pink house which is perfect for them.

Saturday:  In Blanding we have two sets of elders also.  We were lucky to catch one pair just as they were leaving for a service project.  The other pair was still “studying” when we got to their little house as one of them is a trainer and the other still in the 12 week training program. We made a quick trip to Alco to pick up a few things for them (map, dustpan, frying pan). From Blanding we drove to Bluff.  We didn’t see the elders there as they were at a baptism in Montezuma Creek, but Elder Hunt DID have an opportunity to fit the Styrofoam insulation into place inside the trailer skirting there and spent a couple of hours finishing up that project.   We decided to spend the rest of the day sight-seeing so took the “scenic route” back to Farmington which included Mexican Hat, Goosenecks State Park, Monument Valley, and Kayenta.  The highlight of our afternoon was stopping to see the beautiful little chapel that has recently been completed at Monument Valley.  It has sandstone facing on the front of the building and has desert landscaping.  They haven’t been able to dedicate it yet because the Navajo Nation has not given them water rights to the property.  One of the elders who has served in Blanding told us that the Blanding Stake has had many fasts in behalf of that little chapel (which is in their stake).  I’m sure a miracle is in the making for Monument Valley. 

            We visited the elders in Kayenta, and then visited with the three Sr. couples there.  One

couple had just pulled their 5^th wheel in the day before, and one couple was leaving to go home

in a couple of days to Spanish Fork, to the same ward we lived in there.  They knew all of our

old neighbors, what fun!  We arrived home around 10:30 and were glad to have a bed to fall into.

It was a glorious weekend and we so enjoyed the beautiful fall colors and the wonders of nature

and people everywhere we went.  It was a special time for us to be able to share such a fun

weekend together.

NMFM Week 33: October 28-November 3, 2012

Sunday:  We attended the Kirtland 5^th Ward meeting block and I was pleased that one of my organ students showed improvement in her organ skills as she played for sacrament meeting, one directed the Primary children’s singing for their sacrament meeting program, and my piano student played for Relief Society.  We went directly from the Kirtland Stake Center to the Farmington 8^th Ward building so we could watch the Payne kids do their parts in their Primary program.  Isaac was the narrator as he is the oldest boy in Primary (his birthday is Nov 29) and my cousin William’s kids said their parts well.  Maren joined us at 8^th Ward and also for Joanne’s dinner – yummy as usual!

 

Monday:  We left our apartment about 7:15 and went to Safeway to rent a carpet cleaner. With a machine and carpet shampoo in our car, we headed to the Bloomfield elders’ apartment.  They were ready for us – all of their furniture was stacked in their kitchen and bathroom and their carpet had been vacuumed.  We coached them a little and they took to the task like pros.  It was fun watching them work together.  They were done in less than two hours and we packed up our equipment and headed to the 22^nd street Farmington elders’ basement apartment (they live in a member’s home). 

            The Farmington elders weren’t such a jolly crew, but worked together to get the carpet cleaning job done.  They were a 3-some and Elder O’Conner  was being ET’d (emergency transfer) the following day and felt stressed because he needed to pack and prepare to leave the area.  Elder Coesens vacuumed all the rooms and Elder Moser drug that carpet cleaner in all the rooms (two bedrooms, hall, living room).  They left to meet a family for lunch and we stayed to finish up a bit.  After we left their apartment we returned the rug cleaner and came home for lunch and a nap.  We DID make it to the office later in the afternoon.  We got there in time to tell the McNeils (our senior zone leader) good-bye before leaving for their home in Manti UT.  The new senior zone leader, Elder Zaleski and his wife (from Parowan UT) will take over the duties that the McNeils had.

 

Tuesday: I was delighted to sit down at my desk at the office and find eight baptism forms waiting for me to enter into the computer.  It was Zone Leader Council meeting at the mission home and after their meetings the office was buzzing with zone leaders taking care of business for their zone (picking up packages, mail, teaching supplies, etc.).   It is always a fun day when they come because we get to catch up on what they have been doing.  We especially enjoyed our visit with Elder Lamph (one of our favorites) who is serving in the Winslow/Joseph City area. He told us who they are teaching and how the work is going there.

 

Wednesday:  We left our apartment about 7:30 headed to Colorado for a “bed check.”  Bishop Coppinger in Mancos called to tell us the elders who are living in his garage apt. needed a bed as his daughter took the bed that belonged to her that the elders were using.  When Elder Hunt loaded in the box springs from the AP house, he noticed the frame was broken so we stopped at Sam’s Club (the only place open that early) to pick up another box spring to go with our mattress (which was fairly new).  Our first check was at the sisters’ apt. in Durango – Sister Pielstick had complained of bedbug bites so we gave her the bed we intended to take to Mancos.  After we left their place we stopped at a furniture store in Durango and got another bed set and were fortunate enough to have them take the broken frame and also bed-bug bed off our hands.

            It was a gorgeous Indian-summer day and we had taken a picnic lunch with us so we went down to the river walk in Durango and sat on a big rock by the river to eat our lunch.  Durango has a seven mile river walk along the Animas River that is paved and VERY nice.  It was fun to stroll along the river and enjoy the beautiful fall foliage and bask in the sunshine.

            Our next stop was Mancos and we found Bishop Coppinger home – what a fun guy to visit with! We left our new bed there and headed to Dolores to take a mattress “encasement” to Elder Searle, who had recently received a new bed to replace one that was bed-bug infested. 

            Maren called us just as we were driving through Shiprock on our way back and asked if we were available to go furniture shopping with her, so we just stopped by her place after we parked the Silverado in the mission corral.  Maren found a cute table/chair set and it will be here next week –just in time for Thanksgiving!  We didn’t get home until after 8:30 so missed the trick-or-treaters – it was the best Halloween I’ve ever spent!!

 

Thursday:  I had seven baptisms to enter – yeah!  Elder Hunt spent the morning shopping around for a washer for the Cameron elders and didn’t come up with one in the price range he had set for himself.  We left the office about 3:30 on another shopping spree and by 5:30 had a washer/dryer loaded in the Silverado and ready for a delivery.

            We received Cami’s email that she sent out to family with the challenge to write down something we are thankful for each day during November.  Thanks, Cami, for encouraging us all to open a “Thank Account” (Mormon Ad term).  I accepted Cami’s challenge!

 

Friday:  Elder Hunt left for Cameron at 6:30 and promised to call during the day.  He got to his destination before noon and helped the elders get their new appliances hooked up and the old ones loaded into the truck.  He took them to the Cameron Trading Post for lunch where he had a Navajo Taco and the elders had a Shepherd Sandwich (a sandwich on fry bread).  His next stop was Tuba City where he picked up a gas range that came out of one of the missionary trailers and also misc. furniture/stuff that was left in the elders’ apartment that was vacated recently. He called before he left Tuba City and said he hoped to be home before dark and he was! 

            I spent the day working on unreported referrals and other catch-up tasks.  Maren and I went to “The Big Fat Greek Restaurant” for dinner.  I was glad Maren was with me instead of Elder Hunt, because it wasn’t the type of place he would enjoy.  I don’t need to go there again.

            George and Joanne came over to visit with us and it is always a treat to spend time with them – they are the best!

 

Saturday:  We slept in and had a slow morning catching up on chores etc.  The Silverado was parked out in the yard with “stuff” to take care of so we unloaded it at the AP house and also Good Will.  Jimmy and Sandra came by to visit us and share some goodies with us – they are certainly fun people to be around and we appreciated their kindness.  We set our clock back an hour and went to bed an hour earlier than usual!

 

            I love November and the time it gives us to reflect on our many blessings.  I like the Mormon Ad that says, “Show your thanks through your giving.”  I want to give a little bit more and be a little more thankful!

 

NMFM Week 32: October 21-27, 2012

Sunday:  We went to the Kirtland 2^nd Ward Meetings and since we hadn’t been there in a while, some of the folks thought we weren’t around any more.  It was nice to be missed!  I met Jared at their chapel at 4 for an organ lesson – he told me he plans to play in sacrament meeting on Nov 18 as a birthday present for his mom.  I love that kind of gift!  We joined the APs for Sunday dinner with the Paynes so they should get LOTS of blessings for feeding four missionaries.

 
Monday:  Monday is always planning/correlation day at the office.  Several of our senior gardening missionaries are leaving this week to go home for the season.  They will be greatly missed as they are a strong support for the church unit where they serve.  We aren’t getting in very many replacements and President Batt is working to recruit more senior couple to this mission.

Tuesday:  Maren returned from Seattle today and her first day on the job at the library is tomorrow.  She left her car parked at the Albuquerque airport the week she was gone. Jimmy’s Mayflower truck picked up her stuff on Friday – a tender mercy for us. He has never made a trip to the northwest before, but had a delivery 20 miles from Seattle the very week Maren needed to move to begin her new job.

            After my lab work and Dr. appointment I went to Kirtland to give organ and piano lessons.

Wednesday:  President Batt called Elder Hunt from Gallup to tell him of his phone conversation with Elder Tadd Callister.  Elder Callister told him that the church would be able to send 90+ additional missionaries to what our numbers are now to the New Mexico Farmington Mission in the next six months and wanted to know how many we could find housing for and be able to use.  President Batt had less than a week to send his report back to SLC so asked for help is figuring where more missionaries could feasibly be sent.  This is going to take a LOT of “stepping up” for every member of the church in wards, branches, missions.  It will definitely have a BIG impact on the mission office staff.

            We filled out our absentee ballots and got them in the mail today.

Thursday:  Elder Hunt went to Chinle by way of Lukachukai to check out housing situations in both of those places.  President Batt wants to put a travel trailer in Lukachukai for elders to live in – we already have a missionary couple serving there.  Our trailer there is parked on the college property and trying to acquire another trailer space from the tribe/college  has been a bit tricky.  In Chinle he checked to make sure that our new travel trailer there is winterized sufficiently,

            After a day at the mission office I went furniture shopping with Maren  to look for a kitchen table/chairs.  We saw some nice stuff!

Friday:  Elder Hunt met with the APs to discuss housing possibilities for 90+ extra missionaries – they took copious notes to share with President Batt as they met him later that afternoon.  At 5:00 we met Jimmy and Sandra at the mission office parking lot and followed them to Farmington High School’s cafeteria where they treated us to a spaghetti dinner that was sponsored by the FHS dance team.  It was a nice meal and the company was great!  Elder Hunt stayed there with the Paynes to attend the FHS football game and I drove to the mission office parking lot to meet Maren to go to the Piedra Vista High School’s “Spooktacular” evening at the Totah Theater which was sponsored by their choir department.  It was really a fun program – all of the choir members were in costume and Josh, Jared, and Makenna were lots of fun to watch.

Saturday:  We told Maren to call us when Jimmy would be there with his truck to unload her stuff so she did.  The guys did a great job unloading while Sandra and I had a nice visit.  Maren has LOTS of books that were all boxed up neatly.  They put the mattress on the floor and Maren unpacked her quilts for me to crawl under and I had a cozy little nap while Maren and her dad put her wooden bed frame together.  We spent the rest of the day doing errands and chores that needed our attention.