Week 20 and Still Going Strong

Wanted to start off by saying that the gospel is true and that we are really enjoying our mission.  We particularly enjoy our Sundays.  We have some of the most special people attending our ward - the Staines Ward.  Some of you will know that we are teaching a temple preparation class.  We are teaching some wonderful people that are really eager to learn and to prepare to attend the temple.  Additionally there are some of the most faithful people we have ever met that are attending our ward.  There are also some really great people that are investigating the Church.



London Temple

Smarts & Powells @ Temple

This past week we have had some neat experiences.  Last Sunday we spoke at the London Temple Visitor's Centre at a fireside about family history.  We had the blessing of returning on Friday and attending a session and then going out to dinner with the Carpenters.  They are from Draper and we have known them for a few years.  They also happen to be the directors of the visitor's centre at the temple.  We also had the opportunity of having the Powells accompany us.  They work with us at The National Archives as we do our digitizing.

We have spent quite a bit of extra time this past week working on putting together a booklet of family history for one of our less active members that is working on coming back to Church.  Her name is Dee Blything.  She is a special lady who is quite elderly and has had a rough life.  Nevertheless she has a great spirit about her and she oozes with goodness.  Her family is quite disfunctional and has had lots of interesting turns and twists.  Nevertheless, we have been quite successful in succeeding at helping to put her genealogy together.

On Tuesdays we have been letting a couple come from the upstairs of the Archives (they work in the FHC) and do digitizing while we go up and work in the FHC.  This has proved to be a good break and it also allows us to get involved in helping patrons with their family history.  We love it, but we also have a strong testimony that we are digitizing because that is what the Lord has called us to do.  The couple that comes down to try digitizing said they could absolutely not do that type of work every day of their mission.  Another senior couple said that they were not set apart to do that and that is the reason that they could not digitize everyday.  That meant a lot and verified to us that we are okay with digitizing because that is what we have been called to do.  We love our mission!

Swans & Their Remains

Just wanted to mention that the swans still grab our attention to and from our work.  We enjoy our little 12 minute walk to and from work each and marvel at the beautiful flowers and shrubs that we pass.  We start from our flat (apartment) and walk through the gardens that surround us.  We go through a gated area and walk across a parking lot that surrounds a mini mall.  We walk past Marks and Spencer (a combined grocery store and clothing store).  There is a coffee shop, a drug store called Boots (kind of like Walgreens), a T K Max (just like T J Max at home), and a Mothercare (store with baby stuff).  Then comes our favorite bus stop (actually our only bus stop).  We then walk onto the grounds of The National Archives.  It is surrounded by a large garden, a couple of ponds (home of our swans and a few other fouls) and some really nice benches, flowers, etc.  Two or three minutes later we enter our work place, deposit our coats (yes, we still wear jackets at the end of June), and then go to the basement and begin our days work.

We did our usual shopping, flat cleaning and resting on Saturday.  However, we also had a chance to support our friends the Badens.  Paul is the husband, a prospective member of the Church, and an artist in his own right.  We went to see some of his art work and had dinner with the two of them (Paul and Helen) and their son, George.  Had a great time, went to Bushy Park, and then had dinner with them at a Spanish (not Mexican) restaurant.  Good food! Good company!  Good art work!

Well that's it for another week.  We have lots of things to accomplish this week and we trust that you do to.  We want to congratulate Aaron and Audra on their anniversary, Simon on his birthday, and all the rest of you for being such good people.

We want to tell you how much we love you all -- family and friends.  You help us to keep going.  We appreciate your love and prayers and the way you lead your lives.  To our wonderful children we also appreciate what you are doing to raise our wonderful grandchildren in a world of turmoil with a righteous outlook on life..

Thanks -- our love and best wishes,

Mom and Dad, Annie and Paul, Elder and Sister Smart