Week 11 in St. Thomas



I ran across the quote below this week as I was studying .  I thought about how this applies to us.  We really don't have any great talents or abilities that stand out but hopefully we can do some small good during these 18 months that we serve in the San Juan Puerto Rico Mission.  We are His hands in many ways as we serve here.


"Any man or woman who enjoys the Master's touch is like potter's clay in his hands. More important than acquiring fame or fortune is being what God wants us to be. Before we came to this earth, we may have been fashioned to do some small good in this life that no one else can do...If God has a work for those with many talents, I believe he also has an important work for those of us who have few." (James E. Faust, "Five Loaves and Two Fishes," Ensign, May 1994, 5-6)
                                                                                                        Roselle and Sondra 

 This Wednesday at Queen Louise's Home for the aged, I painted Roselle and Sondra's nails.  They are always pretty tickled about the bright colors.  As I hold their hands and paint them, I often wonder what these hands have been through:  how many tears they have wiped away, meals they have cooked, floors have they washed, dishes have they done, or prayers have they said?  It is humbling to serve these  ladies and to get to know them. 
                                                                         Elder Shah, Maria and Elder Robinson
This Wednesday, Maria was our one and only student for English Class.  She is from the Dominican Republic and has a darling personality.  We all laugh so much when she tries to pronounce certain works.....like scissors!  She told us this week that she has a 19 year old daughter that actually joined the church when she was 15......who knew?

                                                                       It's ME!
Usually once a week or so, we can get away for a couple of hours to go to the beach that is about 15 minutes from our apartment.  We like to snorkel and visit with the other people on the beach....snorkle contacting.🔺  We have seen some pretty large sea turtles, they are fun to watch.
                             Wilson, LaRae, Elder Shah, Elder Robinson, Elder Garrison and I


                                 Dick and Wilson.......smile and say:  OSHA
Me getting up some tile that had buckled

Elizabeth using the power drill like a boss 
On Thursday we went to a member's house that was severely damaged in the hurricanes to help Wilson and Elizabeth Walch do some repairs.  The Walches are from Santa Cruz and they just retired and decided that they wanted to sail to St. Thomas and do service.  They showed up at our branch about the time that we started our mission and they were looking for service opportunities.  They ended up hooking up with a non profit called "All Hearts and Hands".  They work with them to repair homes here in St. Thomas and St. John.  While attending our branch, they found out that LaRae Phillip's had some major damage to her home, so on their own, they arranged to get her home "safe". They work so hard, with no pay and are just a joy to work with.  The name of their sail boat is Kokua which means "serves voluntarily" in Hawaiian.  Love them!

I have been wanting to post a picture of this fashion trend here on St. Thomas.  We see this a lot!  It is actually a kind of a knit cap( or t-shirty fabric) that men wear and stuffed inside are their dread locks.  Some of them can be huge!  We just wonder if the trend will ever catch on in Cali?  

Sunday the Primary children loved Dick's Come Follow Me lesson. Their response reminded him of Joseph Smith's quote on leadership, "I teach them correct principles and they govern themselves". You could say they were head-over-heels about his presentation. 

Last but not least; a picture of three of our faithful members in St. Thomas:  Gina, Wilma and Delphine.  Gina is from the Dominican Republic, Wilma is from St. Thomas and Delphine is from 
Dominica.  Such diverse backgrounds but they have the church and The Savior in common and truly that is the great equalizer....

 Hope you all have a good week.  Thanks for your prayers and messages.  
Dick and Donna


Comments

  1. UnknownApril 1, 2019 at 8:05 AM

    I finally figured out how to get to whatever you call this report - a Blog???? Anyway, I think I will use Dales email address and invite him to watch Gen. Conference. (Maybe you've already done that) We had a man and wife and his friend move into our ward - he had been a member, served a mission and after his return of about 7 10 years he decided the church wasn't true. We've been friendly to him as has the ward. He came to our "empty nesters" activity a few days ago and was so pleasant so I reminded him of the upcoming Conference and suggested he watch it. His remark back indicates he has really lost the spirit of learning and wanting to know the truth. He said, "No, it's just another boring meeting." I was amazed that being raised in church, serving a mission, etc., could make one become so callist to the truth. Someone said: "doing even a little sin prevents one from recognizing the simplest of truth." Looks like you're doing what the Lord wants and needs you to do. How blessed those you work with are. Keep snorkeling and I'll keep riding my bike. (rode twice last week - 11 and 6 miles, and this week in good weather - I will ride more and a bit further. Our love to you both.

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