October 15

October marks 2 months since the MTC.  Every day we meet: new people, more of New Zealand, new challenges, and new ways the Lord is wanting to stretch and refine us and those we get to teach.  We have only one more week of Institute classes at out Institute building before Summer Break (yup, summer is December - February  :)   Then we will attend scores of seminary and institute graduations and go to activities and events for the YSA's. We are looking for better ways to find the ONES...those who have fallen through the cracks, who are struggling for one reason or another.  Hard to find sheep when you are still learning the landscape and the culture (i.e. we offended the culture when we taught our class by sitting on the table/desk to get down to their level...I guess a table is ONLY for eating...we are learning). Out running errands both Vance and I have had missionary experiences where we have been stopped and asked about our badges and about the church.  Trying to be better representatives for the Savior and not mess things up. 

More of the North Island and its Bay of Islands from Flagstaff Hill (a big mast from an old ship)

John, a Maori and twin brother to Phoenix at the Treaty Ground Cultural Center presentation.  Elder Bills (you can see the back of his head) was chosen to be our chief and approach the Maori warriors for peace :)

Maori War canoe

...canoe in action for 100th anniversary of treaty in 1940.

Great story happened up in this area earlier this year.  Bob Warnick served his mission as a young elder in this area of the North Island of New Zealand.  Over 45 years later he came back to visit while his sister and her husband Scott and Susan Seamons served in the NZ area office. While there they drove up to many of his former areas to find his previous flats and even some of the people he knew.  In a huge rainstorm they were driving in the mission Bay Area (Glen Ennis Ward) looking unsuccessfully for a former family he knew. He was just about to give up when he noticed a man standing out in his driveway in the rain so he stopped to ask if he knew any people named Hawkes.  The man replied, "Well my name is Guy Hawkes ".  He was the very same man! He invited Bob in to the same home with all the same furnishings and even the same guitar in the same corner.  What a tender mercy!  It had been over 45 years since he had served his mission. 

Bob also learned later something else very interesting. After Bob returned home, Guy had gone inactive for some 20 years. Then he developed Alzheimer's disease. In most cases that is a sad diagnosis but it had a different effect on Guy. He forgot his short term inactive mindset and whatever had led him to inactivity and remembered only that he was a faithful, active member of the church (I think there may be a lesson here). Pretty sweet.

We have a weekly Wednesday devotional.  This past week we had a little "October theme" highlighting General Conference, prophets, our hymns, and a little low-key costume and Halloween goodies event after.  Hence the spider cupcakes. Maori drink with mango, pineapple pieces and nuts to drink.  Not bad.

The birds in NZ are more than friendly and will let you walk up to them.  The "sea gulls" have all kinds of different names, but they still fly and look the same as our California gulls and say (like in Nemo) "mine, mine, mine."

Little friendly sparrows on our balcony.

Once a month on Monday night the senior couples from the mission and the MTC Presidency get together for FHE.  This one was an Island FHE.  One couple from Samoa and another who had served on Nuie shared their culture.  The Barletts are friends with Dantzelle Allen and the Smiths from Wichita Kansas are friends with Lyle and Faith Cooper...small world! 

After teaching in the day and on Tuesday nights, we go out on Wednesday and Thursday night to the Stake Institute programs in the Auckland area.  There are 13 Stakes and we try to get around and visit them on Sundays as well.  Many of our great YSA's that attend the two Universities and come to our Institute downtown are also the ones who teach classes in their Stake Institute programs as well.  Jason is one of them.  He is on our Institute Student Council, going to school, attends one of the two YSA wards, and teaches in his home Stake.  He is humble, a return missionary, articulate, spiritually, emotionally and academically brilliant, a gentleman! He thrives on challenges.  When he was 4 years old and his family was briefly living in California he was badly burned in a campfire, but he hasn't let that or anything else stop him.  He epitomizes Elder Cooks statement in Conference that "Humility is spiritual strength and greatness", he is both strong and great!

Tafi and Phillip serving pancakes to those who got up early to join us watching General Conference live at the Institute.  See what you missed?!

Calla lillies grow wild in the bush and forest areas here.  They "bloom where they are planted" and even where they are not planted (as you can see below in the middle of downtown Takapuna)

Our Parables of Jesus class (I call them the parables princesses except when Keli comes, then we add the prince). Many of our classes are small, but they are wonderful! Second from the right is Ofono, she's studying to be a doctor.

Lots of folks fish just off the shore.

At home we have the "search and rescue" trained teams, here they have "surf rescue" teams.  Vance was fascinated watching them train in the boats you can see in the background, turning on a dime and going really fast and jumping into the water after victims.

We hear about all the natural and man caused disasters at home and all over the world.  It's interesting the perspective from another country on what is happening in the states.  Can't help but feel that some things are escalating.  All the victims are in our prayers.  The volcanoes in NZ ("Rangitoto", which means "sky blood" is in the picture) are pretty old and thus far pretty quiet, and the last earthquake here was last year (so far so good).  

Sending our love from AOTEAROA, the Land of the Long White Cloud.
Love,
Elder and Sister Downs
Vance and Louenda