General Conference and a 2:30 am Phone Call
The week of March 31 - April 6
Transfer Week at Staff Meetings get a little crazy. President decided on 9 White Washes. No apartments being opened from before, just white washes. So calls need to go out to the 9 white wash apartments and tell them they will be white washed and clean your apartment!! Make it nice for new set of missionaries. (We find some do and some don't care what it looks like when they leave) Calls to transfer missionaries to leave their companion key with the missionary staying in the apartment. And we had 2 apartments that were going to need 3 beds for about 2 or 3 weeks. Besides getting all the paper work for that to happen and the calls, we continued going through the files one by one to make sure they are all correct.
Tuesday morning we met the President and 10 missionaries at the airport and loaded their luggage into the trailer. Then President asked us to stay and wait for one more missionary that was coming by her self from Mexico. So we parked over in the Cell Phone Parking Lot and waited about 2 hours. Dan then dropped me off to go inside and wait for her. Well, to true Patty form, when Dan dropped me off and I walked inside I was totally confused to where I was suppose to meet her. Thankfully the Lord helped me find my way and I was in the right place as she came out of security. A darling sister from California. She had just gone to Mexico for her MTC to learn Spanish. She was a little nervous but did great. We took her to Presidents house and left her with them.
Wednesday, TRANSFER DAY! It was cold and rainy so we set up in the foyer. President had wanted us outside, but, sorry, not going to do it. Sister Brayan, another Senior Sister always comes to help out at transfers, thank goodness. I couldn't do it with out her. This was her last transfer before she goes home, not sure who I'll get to help me next tie. We gave our little speech to the newbies and then go and start collecting keys and sim cards from the missionaries. Then after collecting everything we pass them back out to the new missionaries. This time we had a companionship that refused to come in and give us their keys. Not really sure why but it caused a little confusing. Then one set of sisters some how didn't get the right keys. Because the next day when they went back to their apartment they couldn't get in. They live 2 hours away, so we called their Housing Inspectors and they went over and tried to help them get in. But their keys didn't work either! So we had to call the landlord and ask them to go over. They were nice enough to go right over and help the girls get in. As they went in, there on the counter were the keys to the apartment. Who knows what ever really happened and they got the wrong keys?
Thursday we only had 3 departing missionaries, so they didn't need us to take any luggage to the airport. So we had a day to work in the office. Always something to do when we are there.
Friday, Dan had a Physical Therapy appointment. He hurt his shoulder doing something, lifting furniture, throwing stuff over his head into the dumpster, who knows. After his appointment he came home and got me and we ran errands. Post Office, get my prescription, grocery shopping, lunch, storage unit and then Walmart. It was a full day. We met at the Mott's for dinner. She had made Salmon. Everyone razed about it. I eat everything else. After dinner Elder Mott had prepared some questions for us to think about. It turned out to be such a sweet, spirit filled night. He asked us some different questions that we could answer about:Which of these questions have changed your life? Everyone answered and the spirit was so strong. That was a great segway into General Conference weekend.
Saturday morning we were invited to join all the missionaries that live 40 miles or closer to Presidents' home to watch Saturday Morning Conference. We all met at 10:00 and Sister McKay had made fresh Cinnamon Rolls (about 200) and we brought fruit. So for an hour we all stood outside and ate and visited. I love to see the missionaries getting together. They love each other so much. The hugs and high fives and excitement is so fun to see. Then we all went inside to watch. President had TV's and chairs enough for everyone to watch, someplace. Some upstairs, some downstairs, some out in the garage. Everywhere, missionaries were watching conference. It was the best. Afterwards we stayed and helped the Smith's and cleaned up chairs and the kitchen. We went home and watched the rest of Conference alone and quietly. That was nice too.
We got to watch in the Family Room
That night at about 2:30 the phone rang. The Elders smoke detector had gone off. (We thing it was the carbon monoxide detector part) It had gone off and they reset it and then a few minutes it went off again. They didn't know what to do, so they called us. That is what they are suppose to do, only I'm not sure I knew what they should do next. Do they really need to call 911 or was it a malfunctional detector. But I didn't want to be the one that says go back to sleep and don't worry and then they don't wake up the next morning. I was worried all night. We had them check all their gas appliances and theys aid they were all good. Then we told them to go outside and get some fresh air (I know it's 30 degrees out) open up a window and set the detector again. Sleep with the window open. If it goes off again call us! (then we'll call the Fire Department) So they did and they were fine. It never went off again. So all is well, we think.
Conference was wonderful! Loved hearing from President Nelson and all the other Apostles. What a blessing to be able to hear them speak to us and hear the things the Lord needs us to hear and do. Can't wait to study more about Charity and Virtue.
Patty, I have been so busy preparing to move that I haven't read from your blog in ages. I am loving it! What a wonderful work you and Dan are doing. Good call about the smoke/carbon monoxide detector. They had no such things as these detectors when Mark was on his mission in Argentina as a young man. A mission president's worst nightmare happened there. Two elders died from carbon monoxide poisoning. Mark was an AP at the time, so he went with the president to the apartment of the two elders after receiving news of their deaths. It was so hard for everyone.
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