Week of June 24

June 26, 2012-I have decided I am not going to wait to write on my blog just because I don't have any pictures.  Too many things happening and I know if I don't write them down I will forget them.  We are now in a pattern and our schedule is pretty much set.  Jonny goes to his job at 6:30 a.m.(he walks the 1.5miles to site), and depending on where I am serving I go either at 9:00 or 12:00 and work 6 hours at a site.  This week I will be serving at 3 sites I haven't served at before.  Today it was at lands and records, which I really enjoyed.  It has records of everyone who lived in Nauvoo from 1839 to 1847.  Many of these records are not available anywhere else except here in Nauvoo.  I was a little nervous about helping people look up their ancestor's records and print out a cd but after a few practice sessions with the other missionary I had it down and was amazed at what I was able to do.  The other lady asked me "Are you sure you haven't worked here before"?  I guess all of the family history classes I took with the Taylor's has helped me.  I sure hope I will get to serve here again.  

Every Friday we get a new schedule so you don't know where you will be or who you will be working with.  Sometimes when I am working in a home I have to think now who is this I am supposed to be talking about, as I don't want to give out wrong information about the site.  Luckily this hasn't happened yet.

I was serving in the John Taylor home yesterday when a family of 5 came in.  Their oldest daughter was in a wheelchair and the father picked her up and was carrying her, she was probably about 12 and did not speak and had braces on her arms and legs.  I told him my companion would show him and this little girl pictures of what was upstairs so he wouldn't have to climb the steep staircase, but he said no I can carry her.  I did find a non-antique chair that he could sit in and he was grateful for that.  I gave my tour and like to end in the child's bedroom telling a story about a small rocking horse the family had to leave behind.  I didn't think this girl understood what I was saying but when I finished the tour she had tears in her eyes and then smiled at me.  Of course I got tears in my eyes too.  That night we had our play "Rendezvous" to perform and I saw her again sitting in the front row with her mother holding her the entire hour.  At the end of the show we all come on stage and sing a farewell song (and look at the audience) I saw her and gave her a little wave, she got a big smile on her face and again there I was with tears in my eyes(like right now as I writing this.) Sure makes me grateful for my healthy grandchildren.  These parents were wonderful and her siblings were so well behaved.  

June 27, 2012=Today we went to the Carthage Reenactment of the martyrdom of Joseph & Hyrum Smith and guess who was sitting right next to me, yes that little girl’s family. Her cousin that was visiting the family was from Australia stayed with me and we had such a nice time talking.  It was hot and we were out in the sun so I guess this is our taste of what it is going to be like this summer.  

When we were leaving Carthage Jonny struck up a conversation (which he does all the time) with a family from Logan Utah.  He asked if they knew his Uncle Evan Olsen and they said no but asked if he was Morgan Olsen's cousin?  When Jonny said yes, he was told Morgan told them if you see a Johnson that is my cousin - small world and what are the chances of them meeting us when there were probably 350 people there.  They were parked right behind us.  Wished I would have taken my camera with me today, but again I didn't which makes me sad - missing too many photo memories.  Maybe tomorrow will be a photo day??? We had to hurry back to Nauvoo to do Sunset and it sure was hot out there, but Sister Barton said this is how it will be during the summer and it was not as bad as I thought it would be, it was bearable.