Sharing Paper (and Non Paper) Connections

Last Monday, we made 15 loaves of homemade whole wheat bread to share with neighbors and four exiting elders on day before Change Day (actually only three exited.)  The fourth missionary was joined by two more in a tiny nearby duplex.  I loved what I found on their walls when we visited. 

                                       

Also, they laughed at our toilet paper story:

      A companion couple at the missionary training center, the Hallidays, shared with us a story about one of Sister Halliday’s brothers.  I have a scribbled list of several missions her brother and his wife had served, from Indonesia, Singapore, Germany, Russiam (Moscow, Kiev) and Utah, when they were between missions abroad.  (Who’s counting, he says? No one counts your church callings!) Sister Halliday told us every time it was time for her brother to go on another mission, he would get a kidney stone.  (Painful, but something impossible to ignore.)

So, last Sunday, returning home from Sacramento, shotgun copilot to our driver got a right leg charley horse cramp.  Upon drinking ginger water, then stopping to walk off the cramp (yes, nicer than a kidney stone!) we noticed we had detoured to an area twenty minutes north of our home, where a member family lived, that would not be easy to visit on a normal day.  Pay attention to your detours.  Some might be fortuitous. 

After meeting a neighbor, seeing a grown palm tree he had planted from seedling, we met father to a family, who shared the story of his hope to raise a family away from city hustle and bustle, and teach values to his children.  As we started to exit, I remembered having traveled over 90 minutes, wondering if we could employ their humble home as a rest stop.  Yes. 
                  

During this time, our new friend brought Val into the animal yard, to meet Hitler kitten (last post) and we met every one of the children and his wife, who expressed interest in piano lessons.  (For which, by the way, instruction materials came Saturday!  We rejoice and have started encouraging youth and their parents in strengthening finger numbers four and five, drumming those fingers on the table: “one, two, three, four, five, four, five, four, five, four, three, two one!”)

Our mission policy is to spell out all acronyms, except one:  TSP, standing for Truthful, Specific, Positive:  A truthful, specific, positive, to share with this special family was to admire the glitter cement on the floor of their bathroom sink, and the ample paper (compared to Central American style, which is very narrow).  As we began to leave, the family wanted to share with me a roll.  It is from Costco—we have plenty…let us share!  When we share, we feel love!  Of course, we graciously accepted (and appreciate the memory) with a smile.  Guatemala office missionaries remember that Sister Starkey is never averse to using any type of paper to record middle of the night, great thoughts (per President Nelson, write them down!)

Tuesday's typing up a Sacramento Sunday and practicing, to polish rusty fingers and organ shoes, brought us to Wednesday, where I got an overdue haircut from a sweet beautician who just lost her father.  We cried together. And I shall celebrate my dad's upcoming birthday all week!

One of our duties is to visit members in their homes.  Upon looking for one nearly next door, we met Charlotte and her happy four legged companion, reminding us with porch ornaments, where our treasure is:   

 

Later, after preparing an application to enter Patterson’s June Apricot Fiesta, we visited our church’s Wheat Farm in Crows Landing and visited with the current manager (and our neighboring congregation’s new leader, a native of Eastern Utah, cowboy.) 

A race is on to prepare...Four working days!  Sister Morphy, assistant director to the Regional Coordinating Council for Public Affairs for our church, shared her encouragement to simply "get out there" to be with our neighbors, to be who they are, to love them.  

Praying for hearts to be invited to learn more about Who’s your Grandpa?  Got ideas?  Send yours our way (how to spark joy in climbing a family tree!) 

More Monday…Celebrating messages with and without paper!!

Love,

The Starkeys

P.S. Note from Dad/Val:

We received a new assignment to teach about the temple, and a

desire to care for eternal family relationships.  We are excited to do that in this branch.  Some understand, many do not.

Won't You Be Our Neighbor? (Patterson Style)

By their fruits ye shall know them!  

Happy Monday! We met our month mark last week.  Our kind and interested neighbor at home in Spencer Ward, then daughter number six, asked this week,  “What is it that you DO?”

 

The couple (in another area) returning home this month said that her training came in a literal blink of an eye.  No training.  Be creative!  She joined a quilting group.  Another couple near Yosemite National Park volunteers with reading in elementary schools.  They teach classes, visit members, encourage local leaders. 

  (In case you are interested, there are only about 225 knitting days until Christmas--and this was Tuesday!)

Upon our arrival, and throughout the past few weeks, our first priority was to greet and meet as many of the branch leaders and families as possible.  Interspersed, have been Sunday meetings, Thursday district meetings, invitation for dinners with a Relief Society president and the Branch President along with a three-zone meeting and new missionary training, where our mission president, President Brent Palmer shared some of the precious time he is carefully allocating upon the reorganization of three missions (Sacramento, Modesto, Fresno) to two missions (Sacramento, Fresno.)

Our house is located in the south western area of the Modesto mission.  Thus, California Fresno, with President Bart. P. MacKay, will be our assigned mission beginning July 2018.

Since focus for the past four weeks has been a Mister Rogers style event (“Won’t you Be my Neighbor?”) I will share a bit about some of our neighbors:

Around the little house where we hang our hats, through home-made bread, Shadrach, Meshack and Abednego (no sugar) cookies and muffins, we are meeting interesting, likeable families:

A director of surgical nursing. A server at a semi-local restaurant.

Electrician for Google and other hi-tech Bay area companies. 

An insurance provider to high risk motorcycle and race car drivers, a couple of workers at Fed-Ex and Amazon-like company (several large complexes of this sort here,) a few stay at home moms, one stay at home dad, hamburger plant manager, a city clerk at a Bay Area city (commuting daily three to four hours) concrete and construction manager and internet installer, trombone player—are a few neighbors we have met.

Also a nice "fix-it-guy," former emergency medical technician, who answered our question, "Do you have a mechanic you trust?" with

“Well, when I wake up in the morning, sometimes I don’t trust myself!”  (Joke translated:  I do all my car work!) 

In the Crows Landing Spanish branch we work to serve and support we are learning to know and appreciate:

The owner of a nut growing company, master of nursing student, dog groomer, handy man, driver of farm machinery, three tow truck drivers, a friendly cook’s helper, crop gathering assistants, repairer of swimming pools, painter, construction manager, mobile 3D mammogram technician, retired apartment manager, gas station attendant, dairy driver, worker and manager of our Church’s nearby Patterson West side wheat and alfalfa farm, and left offense select soccer player. 

In the process, as documented in last week’s letter, we have met rabbits, goats, ducks, dogs and kittens.

Who let the cat out of the bag?

Saturday, Val and I 

joined in Love Turlock, a neighboring city, to help groom Chatom Middle School playground.   

My favorite part was painting the fire hydrant bright…also feeling energy of young people sprucing up their campus.  

And Val, in addition to preparing a curb to paint, enjoyed career talk with a young future aerospace engineer.

                        

Last Tuesday, we scoured our city to gather ideas from nearby community and senior centers. 

Still wondering whether to sign up as readers on Dr. Seuss night, callers for Spanish bingo, or  swim instructors!  (What would YOU do?)

Received a go ahead to organize music instruction in Crows Landing Branch--challenging with rewards.  Laurene is holding a happy heart with caution.  Prayers invited to directly assemble and organize materials, minds and music!

Dad’s addition:

“Two highlights of last week:  we were given permission to leave the mission and attend our nephew Michael Sorensen’s, ordination and setting apart to serve as counselor in his new ward.  

So, I had the privilege of ordaining him a high priest.  We also were able to attend the Sacramento temple—beautiful, peaceful, a place we love to be and treasure!

Another miracle from Val:

"My tablet battery apparently died this week.  Is it worth a change?  Change can be good--also hard.  What does one expect after 5 years of use? The screen went black…. Charging did not work…. Reading online brought 2 ideas to the table… They did not work… So looking at YouTube--I can do this! And $17 and 5 days later… Wow! In our personal mail box….. a small package.  The next day I opened it and proceeded to remove and replace, with a very small screw driver, and quite a bit of difficulty, removing the battery connector, replacing the battery.  More difficulty replacing the connector….I tried it.   Ugh!  Nothing…. Maybe it is more than the battery?  But exercising more faith unto experimenting again…disconnect…then reconnect.  This time I tried it, before fully assembling the housing…it worked!  That was worth the effort, the time, the $17.  I learned once more:  If at first you don't succeed, TRY, TRY AGAIN.

(I hope Laurene shows the mug of Hitler, the cute cat, who we met at Ignacio’s house.)

Won't YOU be our neighbor???

  

Acuzena

Happy belated Mother’s Day to our amazing mothers, aunts, daughters, and wife of our son!

At church Sunday, I met a beautiful young woman named Azucena, which I learned in Spanish means lily.  So here is an "azucena" for each of you (and for every sister, family or friend, who chooses to nurture.)

We are also celebrating a "Striking Sixteen" for our oldest grandson, and "Great to Be Eight" for another in the middle.  Congratulations...marking milestones.

 Apologies for last week. We had a mistaken idea of laundering, cleaning, baking whole wheat bread, catching up banking, and writing home.  But you have been moved back to front seat! 

Since we last chatted, our paths have crossed the doorsteps of some colorful characters

  

And springtime has sprung, 

inviting mourning dove songs to accompany early chapel visits. 

 

Seven senior couples gathered to wish well to a couple who has served in a little mountain village of just over 2,000 people.

                         Happy to get ideas from friends 
                    with a few more miles under their belt.  

Our Crows Landing Spanish branch president and his new wife 

kindly shared dinner in their beautiful home

 

and a beautiful woodcarving made from death masks cared for by his family (descendants of Samuel Smith, brother to Hyrum and Joseph)

Learning to look to see a heavenly hand each day...

 Grateful for beauty "all around" as we find love in homes of friends near and far. 

Happy Mother's Day...remembering 

Blessings to each of you!       

P.S. Lesson from Dad/Val: Case of the Misappropriated Toothbrush

Lesson for the week: I got up in getting myself ready,  in the dark of the bathroom, I grabbed a toothbrush to have clean teeth.  However it had a quite distinctive different taste….anxiously I now turned on the light only to find this was not MY TOOTHBRUSH, but the one that I had used to clean the gunk and grime out of a dirty window…yuk…YUK…hurry hurry…now what do I do…What would Jannette do?...oh yes vinegar…quick..quick..into the glass and..swish..swish…yuk²…quick...quick… clean water…ahhh!…better…there is still something further down the hatch… kind of Itchy..Scratchy…quick..quick round 2…more vinegar.. only this time…vinegar/2  (diluted with water) not quite so Yuk….traveling to church…I better pray… it would not be good to loose a missionary to a dirty toothbrush…the Missionary authorities would have a hard time explaining that to an 88 year old mother.     The lesson learned: Don’t keep your special cleaning equipment by your personal cleaning equipment…certain things can be confused!