A High Note, Shepherd's Heart, Saint Nicholas, Sunday AM GC Breakfast, Heron's Bloody Pit, Monkey Toe

General Conference & the Tabernacle Choir 

What a wonderful General Conference we just witnessed!  We are both humbled and in awe at the words of inspiration from our President and Prophet Russell M. Nelson, now 98 years old and looking as strong as ever.  We also were incredibly inspired by the counsel from the 12 Apostles and many beloved leaders and the emphasis on our Holy Easter week with encouragement to be more unified and civil as we promote peace in the world.  President Nelson and his counselors with the 12 Apostles are pictured at the Rome temple in front of the statues of the original 12 Apostles.

With 15 new temples announced across the world we make special note of the announcement of the San Jose, CA temple, where Heather's family grew up (the Hardy family).   This also was a special conference for Heather and her siblings, because Cheri Hardy Hancock, Heather's sister, has been singing in the Tabernacle Choir on Temple Square for 21 years.  (Rob Hancock, Cheri's husband had retired from the choir several years ago).  This conference was Cheri's last General Conference performance as a member of the choir.  It was an extra special day for her, when the prophet announced a temple in San Jose.  So we honor Cheri this day with gratitude for her sacrifice as a Tabernacle Choir member and the wonderful legacy she has left the Hardy and Hancock families.  She has a special talent of hitting all the HIGH notes! 

We liked this quote from Elder Vern P. Stanfill in the Sunday afternoon session of conference:

"We must remember that whatever our best but imperfect offering is, the Savior can make it perfect.  No matter how insignificant our efforts may seem, we must never underestimate the Savior's power." 

Institute

The institute lesson this last week was "Finding My Place in the Good Shepherd's Fold".  One of our favorite quotes in the lesson was from Robert D. Hales in 1996:

“We all belong to a community of Saints, we all need each other, and we are all working toward the same goal. Any one of us could isolate ourselves from this ward (congregation) family on the basis of our differences. But we must not shut ourselves out or isolate ourselves from opportunities because of the differences we perceive in ourselves. Instead, let us share our gifts and talents with others, bringing brightness of hope and joy to them, and in so doing lift our own spirits.”

We shared a children's song called A Shepherd's Heart, which Heather and her sister Tara wrote.  Here are the words:

I want to be like Jesus.
I will learn of him each day.
And the scriptures will inspire me,
As I study, search and pray. 
They teach me of the Savior,
How He loved and led the way.  
I’ll learn to serve and do my part to have a shepherd’s heart!

I want to love like Jesus.

I will search for those who stray.

Seek and find the sad and lonely,

Listen well to what they say. 

Bringing hope to those around me, 

Sharing joy and peace today.  

I’ll feed his sheep and then I’ll start to have a shepherd’s heart!

District General Conference Breakfast

We met with our district Sunday morning to watch the Saturday eve session of General Conference.  We served breakfast to them.  It was fun to hear of all the different traditions they all had in their families for General Conference Sunday.  Their traditions included cinnamon rolls, waffles, and pancakes.  Ours was German pancakes.  So we served, french toast casserole, German pancakes,  and American pancakes.  It was such a great spiritual and physical feast.

Newcastle Cathedral 

Newcastle Cathedral, formally the Cathedral Church of St Nicholas, is a Church of England cathedral in Newcastle.   It is the seat of the Bishop of Newcastle and is the mother church of the Diocese of Newcastle.  

Founded in 1091 during the same period as the nearby castle, the Norman church was destroyed by fire in 1216 and the current building was completed in 1350.  Its tower is noted for its 15th-century lantern spire. Heavily restored in 1777, the building was raised to cathedral status in 1882, when it became known as the Cathedral Church of St Nicholas.  Certainly the good ole Saint Nick called this his home for a time.  

  

William Heron, the Sheriff of Northumberland  - His Bloody Pit

Walk with Rachel and her Grandma

We had a delightful time on a walk through the park behind our flat.  We were walking with Rachel a YSA in our ward and her grandmother, Carol, who listened to General Conference and is now reading the Book of Mormon.  She is praying to learn for herself the truthfulness of this witness of Christ.  We gave Carol  a Priesthood blessing about 2 weeks ago and she found it to be very comforting and helpful in her journey to improved health.  

Monkey Toe

They say a mission really changes you, mostly spiritually.  Elder Betteridge has seen a physical change as well.  His small right toe now looks like a monkey toe, somewhat curled, because he stubbed his little toe on a door frame.  It apparently fractured but he didn't know it, thinking it was just a sprain.  When the swelling wasn't going down, he decided to see the Doc.  The Doc said it will likely not get smaller but stay a bit curled because the fracture has healed already. We will spare you the picture but I hope that further physical changes on our mission are minimal.  Regardless, we are grateful to serve even with a monkey toe!