High on a Mountain Top

Our Church Week—The absolute highlight of any Missionary’s week is a baptism.  And so it is this week.  This is why we are here and this is what we do.  It’s true as Senior Missionaries, we are here in another capacity, that of supporting members and new converts that come into the Church.  We serve in three over-lapping capacities, depending on need.  We coordinate and help teach with the young missionaries who are solely charged with the responsibility to teach.  Secondly, we help transition newly-converted members into the Church and lastly we help with leadership roles within the Church as need dictates.  All is needed.  But there is nothing sweeter than watching and participating in a lesson where someone who is unfamiliar with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints makes incredible changes in their lives (of their own free will) and embraces the Restored Gospel. We get to witness the “light bulb” moments and are happy for them.  It’s indescribable. And it’s an HONOR to be a part of the entire process culminating in baptism. 

Kaman grew up in a strong Catholic family.  He is very grateful for his Catholic roots and the patterns set by a Church-going family. He admires the devotion and dedication he learned as a child, youth and young adult.  Still, he felt like he was missing out on a certain kind of spirituality.  He found himself searching for that something more, that “je ne sais quoi.”  Upon hearing the lessons about the Restored Gospel—patterned after the original Church at the time of Jesus Christ with a Prophet like Moses/Noah or Isaiah, 12 Apostles and Revealed Truths—he decided that Christ’s Church has been restored in our day.  And he decided to be baptized yesterday.  We are still on cloud 9!

Kaman is quite and very accomplished.  He wrote for a newspaper column interviewing famous authors, celebrities and the like.  Now, he is working on his 3^rd book.  He is a thinker and just drinking in the newfound knowledge.  He’ll be a wonderful addition to our small flock.

Thanks to Carole who “opened her mouth,” Kaman has found what he says he has been searching for all along. 

Stayed tuned.  Their story is not over yetJ

Comic relief for the week—We went up (in altitude) to the Medieval town of  Béost.   It was the perfect Medieval town with lots of charm and very nicely preserved.  But in France, Medieval towns are not hard to find.  They are all different, each with their own charm often dictated by location.  There we were, enjoying this town on our day off.  We had a nice lunch in the town square, we took photo after photo.  The weather was absolutely perfect, not too warm, not too cool, a nice breeze. We talked with some local passersby.  We visited the old spring and the Mayor’s building—which are always beautiful in any town.  We went to the local Cathedral as we always do.  Marc was talking at length with a visitor from Paris.  Then he stopped to read a plaque; Meg decided to go in the next Historic Building, marked with a prestigious plaque.  She’d get a head start on picture taking.  We always enjoy the specially marked buildings.

In she walks.  This is very nice.  The foyer was decorated more than normal and so was the backyard.  She took several photos….as she always does.  She admired the hydrangea in the backyard, took several photos of the view out the back door.  She looked up and down at the architectural details…as she always does.  She came back though the foyer to see if Marc had come in yet.  No, not yet. 

The “hostess” came into the foyer and asked if she could help, “Oui, j’espere mon mari; il lire le plaque. Il arrive maintenant.”  After using her basic French sentences she was really searching for Marc because the “hostess” was saying far more than she was used to comprehending….usually the pamphlets are here, the bathrooms there, you follow to this room then to that one.  By then, a few more “hosts and hostesses” came forward and we all walked towards the door because Meg said she needed Marc to translate and he was just outside finishing reading the plaque.  We walked toward the open door finally finding Marc….who filled in what Meg was not absorbing.  This was a private home, even though there was a public Historic Plaque displayed on the side. 

It was hard to be embarrassed as they were so understanding and gracious.  We looked at the Historic Plaque together and we complemented them on their Medieval home.  We chatted some more about their beautiful town and home.  We parted as friends with the French “bisou”.  They got a GOOD look at that name tag we wear.   They’ll have a story to tell the next time they run into that now familiar name tagJ

A la prochaine.  

 

French greeting--in Tarbes 2 kisses, one each cheek;

in Besançon, 3 kisses on each check, repeat first

Frequents our street with flyers

 Driving towards Béost

 

 Hydrangea galore

 Every town in France has a World War II Monument listing those in the town, 

no matter how small the town, who gave their lives

 Approaching mountains...

bears getting their honey

 Entering town of Beost

 Beost is nestled in the mountain half way up

 Neighboring town of Béost

 Technically a roof....slanted and slate; therefore not taxed as another floor

 Béost is right on the timber line

 Church in center, tower to left where Meg entered private home

 Ancient watering hole and spring for hikers and washing

 Medieval slate roof

 Typical narrow streets

 Lunch stop, served 12 noon til 2:30p

2:31p, no lunch available

 Date marble plaque says 1486

 1596

 His backyard is the mountain behind the home, goes right up

 Home built 1501

 Flowers are VERY important in French culture,

 where ever there is space

 

 Very narrow alleys between homes typical of Medieval towns

 Alley way with support between homes.  

Some are walkways thru

 Cathedral in Beost

 Historic Monument on home Meg walked into

 Entrance to their backyard...

and portion of their backyard

 The Elders live around the corner from us.  

They invited us over to make sushi and have dinner with them

 Valerie lives around the corner from us in the other direction.  

We had her over for lunch to share about her trip to China with a Chi-Gong Master

 St Anne's, one of two Catholic Cathedrals in Tarbes

 Sycamore tree-lined streets slowly turning yellowish green

 A member French Navy Seal gave the Elders a genuine beret

Looking the part

 One tired Elder coming home in our car

 Our Branch Mission Leader

Marcel got a yo-yo

 Walking thru Jardin Massey on the way to dinner

 Jardin Massey tree beginning to turn yellow just in one spot

Lovable Jeny

 Frere Pho, sushi chef and member from Cambodia.  

We all walked Jeny to her car after we ate; we happened upon 

his up-scale restaurant on the backside.  The restaurant depends on him.  

When he visits Cambodia, they close until he returns.

Kaman