Change is a Good Thing

A week and a half ago the five wards in Christchurch underwent a make-over and came out four fresh and fabulous new wards.  Because the earthquakes (10,000 and counting) forced a redistribution of population, the wards on the east side of town were hardly able to function.  Avonside, Opawa, and Wainoni (the Samoan language unit) were all disbanded.  Riccarton and Cashmere borders were rearranged, and the result…a very large Avon River Ward, a mostly-white and wealthy Merivale Ward, a slimmed down and fresh-faced Cashmere Ward, and a predominantly brown and beautiful Riccarton Ward.  We are looking forward to visiting each of the new wards, but for the first week we went to check out our new and exciting Riccarton.  We walked in about eight minutes early and found the chapel mostly full.  Samoans (we inherited a large portion of the Wainoni members) are always early.  Our meeting began at 1:00 p.m. on the dot—not 10 minutes after as we are accustomed to.  As I looked around I saw a sea of black hair and brown faces.  That to me means warmth and kindness and food and parties!!!  I just hope that I can learn to say all of their names.

I know that this change will be difficult for the Samoans, especially the older ones who speak very little English.  However, the Lord provided us with the perfect Bishop.  Kent Johnston is the son of President Johnston, the President of Ashburton Branch who died so suddenly last year at this time.  Kent is half Maori, half Pakeha (white), and is married to a Samoan.  He is also, like his father was, loving, kind, gentle, soft-hearted, and determined to see that everyone feels loved and included.  We sustained a Relief Society President, a Young Men’s President, a ward mission leader, and an army of ward missionaries.  President Johnston wants to bring everyone back into activity and I know that he will do it. Change is always feared a little, but in the end it enlivens and electrifies.  I think Christchurch Stake is on the cusp of something big. It is exciting!

The shake-up of the wards, has also reeked havoc with our seminary program.  However, the stake has been busy and called a new teacher from each ward.  We have inservice tonight, and classes start next Tuesday, the day after Waitangi Day, another national holiday held to celebrate the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi. [Speaking of national holidays, we heard a news report this week that there is a petition to be presented to parliament this year, asking for another vacation day for public employees.  Evidently they believe that because the weather has been so rainy and cold during the month of January—their vacation month—they deserve an extra day off.] 

Our summer institute class has been ‘Preparing for Celestial Marriage’.  When we told the kids which course we were going to teach, many of them groaned and ‘acted’ as though they were not interested.  I kept saying, “Come and give it a try.  It will be fun.”  We have 59 kids enrolled in the class (I think that’s a record for summer) and we are having a great time with it.  The manual is wonderful and the discussions are always interesting and dynamic.  Some of the things we talk about are met with much scepticism, but as we read from the words of prophets and the scriptures and discuss the ‘why’ of a given doctrine, they develop an understanding and are more determined to follow the wisdom of God.  The world has confused and confounded the principles of home and family and doctrines concerning roles of men and women so much, that the truth often sounds absurd to young people.  It is fun to see the lights go on in their eyes as they see how the Lord’s ways can and do work.  Because I love these kids so much, I want each one of them to experience the unspeakable love and joy that can only come through righteous family life.  That goal is well worth the time, the effort, and the wait.

We just finished our pre-school traveling with trips to Nelson and Greymouth.  We hope everyone has all the materials they will need to begin the year.  We went to meet Brother and Sister Lewis who will be teaching seminary and institute in Greymouth.  Some of you will recognize them.

David and Pam Lewis are from Bountiful.  He is a physician who spends several months working each year in New Zealand.  We had a great afternoon with them talking about our mutual friend, Pat Cox, and seeing some of the sights around Greymouth.  They took us to see the pancake rocks.  You can see where they got their name.

Nature and the force of the ocean have created something spectacular.

It was a gray and drizzly day in Greymouth as it has been every day we’ve been there.  It is certainly appropriately named.  Here is the place where the Grey River runs into the ocean.  Gray, gray, and more gray.

On the way back from Greymouth we saw…

these trees.  Gray bark, moss growing in patches, beautiful frosted-green leaves that create a silver light.  Patches of these trees are all through Arthur’s Pass.  The picture does not do it justice.

These rock formations at Castle Hill are very near to Arthur’s Pass as well.  They don’t look like anything spectacular from a distance. 

But as you follow the trail and get close, they loom gigantic.

It wasn’t far from here that they filmed the final battle scenes for the Chronicles of Narnia.  It is easy to see why.  A sort of wildness and dramas of nature as far as the eye can see.

As a side note, Prince Caspian was partly filmed on the rugged West Coast near Greymouth.

John took a few pictures on our Nelson trip.  First, the streets of Hanmer, a little tourist town.

On the beach at Kaikoura looking for shells…

We found shells and some wildlife…

Okay, not very ‘wild’.  We tried our best not to disturb him.  And, Jill, you need this picture printed on canvas to hang in your house.  The perfect colors!!!

And lastly, a quaint rock church in Cheviot.