Our first week in South Africa

"SAWUBONA" (Zulu for "Good Day")

Our first few days have been exciting, stimulating, tiring, uplifting, and with a few challenges. Our flight worked out great without any problems. We had a very nice missionary couple, from England, pick us up at the airport and bring us to our flat. Then they invited us to dinner that evening. Our flat is quite spacious and they had provided us with an initial supply of a few food items and other things. There are a few problems with it, but we're working on them. We were so excited that we went into the area office on Wednesday and began getting oriented. We're still get tired in the afternoons, but we're getting adjusted. Our flat is about 2-3 kilometers from the area office, which is in the same complex as the temple. The temple address is 5a Jubilee Road in the Parktown area of Johannesburg. You can find it on google earth. Our flat is in Duke's Court which is next to the Kilarney Mall. We are about 3-4 kilometers west of the zoo. Duke's Court is very secure with 24 hour security at the door. We feel very safe here. However, we do need to take some precautions as we go out. They tell us that with these precautions such keeping the car locked and putting all items in the trunk (the boot as they call it) we should be fine.

We have been assigned to attend the Tembisa Ward on the weekends. Tembisa is a township about 40-50 kilometers northeast of here. A township is an area where the black people had to live during apartheid. Of course now, people may live anywhere, but many (and perhaps most) blacks live in the townships. It really takes you back to see some of the living conditions the people live in. Some live in "squatter homes" which are like the shanty towns in South America. They are nothing more than whatever they can find to put over their head. Some have electricity, some do not. Some live in small homes that have been built by the government. They look much better and have electricity, but they are quite small compared to what we have. We'll get some pictures to send.

We loved meeting with the people in the ward. We had lumps in our throats during most of the meetings and tears in our eyes as saw and heard these humble people show their love for the Lord. The people were so gracious and expressed appreciation for us. They love the missionaries.

Before we left, the mission president called us and told us that even though we were working in the office, we would find many opportunities to share the gospel. We wondered how that would happen, but we have already had a couple of experiences. The person we work with in the area office took us on a "tour" of some of the area on Friday. We stopped at a restaurant in a mall for lunch. He was planning to take us somewhere else, but somehow that didn't work out. Anyway the waitress saw our name tags and asked us if we knew how she could get a hymn book. She said she went to Church, and was probably even baptized, for a little while when she was young. Her mother then took her and her sister to another Church and she has not been back since then. She gave us her information and said she would love to have the missionaries come by. So we will get a hymn book and make contact with her. We probably will have the Elders go see her.