Week 8

Dear wonderful friends and family!

I promise this week will not be the epistle week 7 became.  We have been busy, but not crazy!  Last Monday we traveled to UNS the university that has the civil engineers.  They love to hear about the U.S. and all of its traditions, so the Grovers taught them about Halloween.  They already knew it was a holiday where people dress up.  The Grovers brought them treats, and they had to knock at the Classroom door, say Trick or Treat, and then describe their non-existent costume.  Remember the idea is to get them talking, so the description was great fun.  They had Great ideas!  Once they all had their treats, we also played Pictionary, where they drew a paper with an item on it, and then they had to draw it and the others had to guess.  They were very good.  It was a fun evening, and they always bring us an Indonesian treat, which is something along the line of a sort-of Twinkie.

We also went to see our investigator, Joko who has a little girl who has not seen her mother in over a year.  The mom is Muslim and married a Christian and was fine until they had some money problems, then her parents told her to dump him (they had never approved) and so she did.  So he has their 4 year old daughter, Natasha, and his parents lovingly take care of her while he works.  You can tell she loves her family, we wish we could do something for the situation.  He wanted us to come back with the Sisters, so we will go tonight and see if we can get him to church with his little family.

We have taught piano, played the piano for the YW of the Jebres branch, celebrated our Grandson, Gavin's birthday,  and entertained the Kelly's from Hong Kong.  Elder and Sister Kelly are the Area PEF coordinators.  They came on Thursday with the Kusamarmantos form Jakarta to visit with us.  They decided we were doing what we were supposed to be doing, I guess, because we didn't talk much, then we went out to a late dinner.  It is always great to spend time with Elder and Sis Kusamarmantos.  She doesn't speak English, but she is delightful and she and I communicate with my lousy Indonesian.  Her husband speaks English well and every so often rescues me.  I have told you about him before...he has rescued us more than once.

Oh!  We bought an oven.  It is actually just like our camping oven, only not as nice.  It is about the same size, but it has to sit upon our gas stove top burner to heat.  We bought a good oven thermometer and Dad drilled a small hole in the top and stuck in the thermometer.  You regulate the heat by turning the gas up or down on the burner.  It will be nice to have and oven.  Now I can bake cookies, although you cannot get chocolate chips, brown sugar, or baking powder in the grocery stores.  But we did find shortening (they call it white butter), a tiny package of what they call chocolate chips, baking powder, and evaporated milk at a store at Pasar Gede (pronounced Pahsar Giday) an area that has a gazillion little markets about 10 ft. by 6 ft.  We will see what we can create.  Oatmeal cookies will probably be first because you can get oatmeal, and raisins and cinnamon.  We will have to invent brown sugar.  They don't have molasses, but they do have an artificial sweetener that tastes like brown sugar.  I might try some secret combinations.

You are probably wondering why Dad had a drill.  Well a while back there were some missionaries that succumbed to carbon monoxide in Romania.  It was a tragic story.  The Church requires smoke detectors in all of the missionary apts. in the Church.  They also required Carbon Monoxide detectors in many apts. including Romania, but the batteries had died in that case.  So, the Church then required that all missionary apts. in the church have both kinds and that they change the batteries during each General Conference period.  So, Elder Grover had to put them in each apartment in the Surakarta area, hence the drill.  Now, you can imagine that we never heat our apts. but they were required anyway.  So we have inherited the drill, and a ton of other stuff they have accumulated.  They are awesome missionaries.  We will miss them.  They leave in 3 weeks.

We have been doing a great deal of member support.  We love it.  We love these people, and enjoy our friendship with them.  They are wonderfully delightful.  We are anxious to get PEF going here in Solo.  Our goal is to have the locals running it by the time we leave for home. Our big meeting is this Sat. with all the District Branch Pres. and their counselors.  We are having a District Conf. because there is a wedding everyone will be to in Jogjakarta, so why not have a conference.  They are even getting a bus to get everyone there.  Dad is presenting PEF, and I have been asked to speak to all the auxiliary leaders about Visiting teaching, Young women, and Reverence in Primary.  Sis. Groberg is going to speak with me about Primary.

I hope you are doing well.  Feel free to email and let us know how you are doing.   Like all missionaries, WE LOVE MAIL!!!!!!!!!  Take care of each other.  Our Heavenly Father knows each of us.  He depends on us to be His hands on this earth in doing and helping.  We are grateful for the place each of you have had  in our lives. 

With great love,
Elder and Sister Greenway