Fall

March 28, 2015

It is hard to believe fall has arrived.  It has become very apparent in the last week.  The Poincea trees are losing their leaves and others are turning yellow.  It is still warm but most evenings cool off now so it is easier to sleep. 

January was a quiet month.  It was pretty warm so we did not venture far from home.  I did take the opportunity to swim several times a week but found out it was irritating my back and causing me pain so had to give it up.  It has been real hard because I was enjoying the lap pool.

Cyclone Marcia

February 29 Cyclone Marcia came ashore north of Rockhampton at Yeppoon.  The young missionary flat in Rockhampton was flooded.  Power was out for several days but all the missionaries were safe.  They moved their beds into the dining area for two days.  We were blessed with a miracle and able to find them another flat within two days.  It usually takes a week or more but the Lord was watching over the missionaries.   The storm turned south but had weakened considerably and we just got lots and lots of rain.  Here I am soaking it up as it came in under our front door. 

 February 24, 2015      We had a surprise visit from Tonga the 24th of February.  The Office Couple, Elder Garth Hamblin and Sister Sandy Hamblin flew into Brisbane.  Sister Hamblin came for some tests to check out pressure she was feeling in her chest.    The mission was able to provide them with a vacant flat in which to stay until Sister Hamblin was cleared to return to Tonga.  The best part of the visit is they are friends from Alaska.  In fact I was working with Elder Hamblin and the Tonga Mission President (President Tupou) to be called to Tonga.  The Missionary Department had Sister Parsons and me flagged for Tonga but when the call was issued the Lord had a different plan and therefore we are here in the Australia Brisbane Mission.  We had a great weekend together.  Sister Hamblin was released from the hospital on Thursday afternoon.  Friday evening they went to the Brisbane Cultural Arts Center to see Wicked and they loved it.

 

Saturday we went to the Church to participate in a workshop put on by a sister from New Zealand who weaves traditional feather capes.  It was begun with a traditional New Zealand welcome.  It was fascinating.  The sister has set herself a goal of making caps this year to present to her siblings as she is the only one in her family who has this skill.  She learned it from her mother.  She started as a young child by soaking the feathers.

Lorikeets feeding

  At noon we excused ourselves and went to Lone Pine Koala Sanctuary and met several other missionary couples from Brisbane.  A young sister serving in Tonga had come over to have her tonsils out but it was determined it was not necessary so she also joined us.  Had a great time seeing all the various animals, having a picture taken with a koala bear, feeding kangaroos, and feeding Lorikeet parrots.

Sister Madsen, Hamblin, Mickelsen

Sister Madsen & Tavolea

Baby Koala with Mom

Baby and Mom

After our visit to the sanctuary the Hamelin’s and I took a ride on the City Cat to see the city at night.  It was a fabulous evening on the river with gorgeous views of the city skyline.

Garth & Sandy Hamblin

Garth, Sandy & Giant Tree Roots

Sunday we went to church and then drove north to the Sunshine Coast Hinterlands to Mary Cairns cross Reserve.  We had a nice picnic and walk through the rain forest.  We were incredibly blessed to see two Wallabies run across the path and into the forest where they thought they were hidden but Sandy got their picture.  My first wallaby in the wild, was very exciting.  On our way home we stopped to view Moreton Bay from Nudgee Beach and came across a number of Cockatoos feeding in the grass.  What an exciting site.

King Coockatoo

 

Monday came too soon and they had to fly back to Tonga.  It was so good to spend time with friends from home......


March 14, 2015

Sister Parsons and I went to Mt Coot tha which has a lookout over the city, many hiking trails, a planetarium, and botanical gardens.  There was a Dahlia show on the day we were there that we enjoyed.  We enjoyed the view from the lookout of the city of Brisbane.  Walked through the Planetarium and found out just where to look in the sky for the Southern Cross.  I also got the answer to my question about the moon.  When I first arrived the first thing I noticed was the moon.  Instead of sitting on it’s side the rounded side was facing down.  The man at the plantitarium explained that once you cross the equator it changes positions in the sky. 

Brisbane City

Brisbane from Mt Coot tha Lookout

Palm Flower

Palm Flowers

Fan Palm

 

March 23, 2015     The Senior Missionaries from northern Queensland arrived for a three day Senior missionary conference.  Tuesday morning we went to the Temple as a group.  It was a special experience to be together in the Brisbane Australia Temple.  We then met at the Stake Center next door for lunch after which we took the double decker bus tour of Brisbane.  Learned some really cool things about Brisbane.  We got off the bus at Southbank where we went our separate ways to find dinner.  We met up again at the Brisbane Cultural Center to attend the musical play Wicked.  It was an amazing production which I truly enjoyed.  

Wednesday morning was open for us to do whatever we wanted until 2:45.  Sister Parsons and I worked at the office until we had to leave for the Kangaroo Point Chapel for a few hours of training in which many of the senior couples made presentations.  It was very informative and interesting to hear what they are doing out in the field.  At six we were back to Southbank for a lovely dinner at The Shores restaurant. 

Thursday morning we met again until noon with more amazing presentations.  We have really wonderful senior couples in this mission here in Brisbane and all the way north to Cairns. 

Sister Parsons and I ended the week on Saturday by visiting two flats that the mission is closing.  One was south of Brisbane in Mt. Gravatt while the other was an hour north in Minyama.  A bond and carpet clean is required prior to turning in the keys. We were checking out the flats to ensure all was ready to turn over the keys to the flats.  After our last inspection we took a lovely walk on the beach at Sunshine Coast and finished off the afternoon with frozen yogurt I had a bowl which included mango, lychee and pineapple.   It was Great.

Brisbane is looking at some rain this week.  It is okay though because it is not a constant rain for several days.  You get a shower or downpour and then it clears us.  It remains warm so we look forward to the rain because it cools things off.