The Tent is Up

Dear All,

The only solution we could find after being abruptly kicked out of our school meeting house was to put up a tent, so that's what was done. The Motherwell Branch has met there for the past two Sundays and it is okay. It is actually less crowded, and we have a PA system! However, the big problem is that there are no classrooms. So, no meetings can be held beyond Sacrament Meeting. We did show a session of general conference for the last two hours but not sure what we'll do in the future. A prefab building may be in the works but that will take two to three months to install. Meanwhile, we hope the members will remain faithful, especially given that Fall is upon us and that tent is going to get cold! 

One of the great things about serving a mission as a senior couple, and something we really didn't think about before our mission, is that you are able to associate with and get close to other senior couples. Two such couples are the Stubbs from Parowan, UT, and the Smiths from Layton, UT. Problem is, the Stubbs went home this past week, and Smiths are going home in about two weeks. We love these, and others with whom we serve, and greatly enjoy each opportunity to be with them. We feel blessed to know each one and certainly hope to reconnect with them in the future. No question that missions provide the opportunity to make new and eternal friends.

Our days are full with serving the needs of the young, and not so young, missionaries, and associating with and serving the Motherwell Branch members. We told President Zitshu that we had missed spending as much time in the branch as in the past and that were going to organize our time better so we could do so. With that said, he gave us an assignment to teach temple preparation classes to ten people and strengthening marriage classes to six others. We couldn't be more excited about this assignment. The branch has decided to begin twice a year trips to the temple rather than once per year as in the past. So, we are going this July and we need to help all these people prepare. The strengthening marriage classes include at least two couples who plan to be married. Good times for sure!

We just passed seven months on our mission and time certainly is passing by more and more rapidly. While we often have a longing to be with our loving family and dear friends, we are greatly enjoying our mission. We are able to see evidence of the truth of the work to which we, and thousands of others, have been called to serve on a daily basis. This is the Lord's work, and we are all beloved of him. We love you and pray for you each day.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

 The Motherwell tent/chapel

We took a short trip with Elder and Sister Stubbs (in rear) and spent a night with President ans Sister Dan Jean. He is from Paris but joined the church after moving to South Africa and marrying his wonderful wife. He is now a counselor in the George District Presidency. We were with them at their ranch, which is a very large piece of property in a remote area. It was beautiful and their home was the fulfillment of what he dreamed of many years earlier. The gardens, the orchards, and the setting were all amazing.  Their home, the furnishings and pieces of art therein were also amazing.   

This is President Zitshu with his son, Ahlu. We love this man and his family. Ahlu is just speaking a bit but has learned to call me Elder Watson. Problem is, his parents say that he calls every white person Elder Watson.

The Diversity of the Work

Dear All, 

We decided to reduce our correspondence to once every two weeks in order to have something of interest to write about. Well, since doing that it seems there is too much to write about, making it difficult to even know where to begin. One thing for sure, we don't lack of things to do and it is seldom that we don't go to bed at night exhausted from the activities of the day.

Last Saturday was the conference for our two zones.  As always, it was a pleasure to meet with all the missionaries and spend time with President and Sister Merrill. It was especially nice as Sister Merrill attended Motherwell Branch with us, and they both had dinner with us on Sunday evening.  It was wonderful to spend the evening with them, becoming better acquainted, and leaning from the extensive experience they have gained over the past thirty three months of service. They will certainly be missed after their departure at the end of June. 

As we previously reported, one of our missionaries, Elder Lane, was stabbed in the back on February 21st. He and his companion, Elder Allred, have not been allowed to work in their area, the Zwide Branch, since the attack. Since that time we have done our best to communicate with the police in order to determine the status of the man who attacked Elder Lane. It turns out that he was arrested for at least two felonies but was not kept in custody. The Lt Colonel of Detective told us that they cannot build a case against the guy because those who witnessed his crimes refuse to testify out of fear, a very sad situation for sure. In the case of Elder Lane, he was the only one who was able to testify, and it was not enough. With this being the situation, we decided to close the Zwide Branch area until the situation improves. It is unfortunate because it has been such a productive area. When telling the Branch President about our decision, tears came to his eyes due to his love of the missionaries and the work they do. We hope the situation will improve so they can return soon.

Elder Lane was assigned to Knysna, a resort town about 3 hours East of us which was closed to missionary work a few months ago.  It was our job to set up a new boarding (apartment) for the area, so we took Elder Lane along with us to do the "heavy lifting". This also gave him the opportunity to become familiar with his new area. He will be returning there next week with a new companion. 

It was a great experience for us to spend the better part of two days with Elder Lane. He went through a tremendous trial in being brutally attacked, but he is all the stronger for it. What a wonderful young man and missionary he is. He is representative of the majority of missionaries with whom we have been associated through the years, and with whom we now serve in the South Africa Cape Town Mission. The strength, devotion to the Lord, and goodness, of these tens of thousands of missionaries is powerful evidence of the truth of the work being done by all who have served and who are now serving throughout the world. It is our sincere honor to be numbered with them.

All our love,

Elder and Sister Watson

Photo above:  Elders Lane, Zongoro and Nyika in the town of George where furniture was stored.  

Moving into his new Knysna home.

Three fine young men were baptized this past Saturday and are the newest members of the Motherwell Branch. Bulelani (third from right) was baptized two weeks ago and he was able to baptize his brother (far left) and best friend (third from left). The young man who is third from left was baptized by Elder Warren (second from left), his first baptism as a missionary.  

Motherwell Branch members showed up for church yesterday only to find that we were locked out of our meetinghouse/school rooms. It turns out that the school principal decided to terminate our lease while not giving the three month notice that was stated in the lease. We ended up taking taxis (vans) to the nearest meetinghouse which is about 20 minutes away. We started Sacrament Meeting (no gen. conf. because of the time difference) about one and a half hours late, and then every one went home. Everyone was thankful to be together and to partake of the Sacrament. So, we are now without a place to meet!! We had three people from the church building department come from Johannesburg this morning to help find a solution to the problem. Last we heard, we may be meeting in a tent in a member's yard this week and for the next few weeks until portable buildings can be installed somewhere. Seriously, a tent in a yard! We'll let you know what happens.