Fred and Paula’s Most Excellent Adventure

 I have been challenged by our mission president to read the Book of Mormon in a 10 week period. This is a different way to study the scriptures. It helps me see the gospel in an overview, broader vision. We are asked to underline all the references to Christ. There is hardly a page that goes by without highlights. I received greater insight while reading Lehi's vision of the tree of life. (1 Nephi 8 & 11) A man, dressed in a white robe, leads Lehi to partake of the tree. (Tree=Love of God). This man is Jesus Christ. The atonement is a big part of the love God gives us. God gives us a choice, never forcing. We can get lost in the midst of darkness or caught up in the pride of the world. We can cling to the word of God and follow the path. Once we reach the tree we can partake of the love of God. Once we partake of the love of God doesn't mean we can't fall away. The cares of the world can lead us away. Pride can distract us from our focus. We must be every diligent aski

We went up high in the mountains. The scenery was beautiful with Kobe below and the ocean beyond. There are so many things to see up here. We will definitely have to return again. Yesterday, we saw a music box museum with a quaint garden path called the "Sounds of the Forest".  They had small music boxes along the path and beautiful flowers. This is a pond with lilies and frogs croaking. This music box (Pneumatic Orchestrions) sounded like a full orchestra playing an Overture from operetta "Light Calvary".  Amazing!! Who thought to create a box that included horns, flutes, pipes, and even a drum. The song lasted at least 5 minutes. Beautiful flowers And even a tree house to climb. Today we have invited a friend from our morning walks to join us for dinner. We are going to teach him about Jesus Christ.  Elder Anderson taught the missionaries to say, "Iesu Kirisuto o shijite imasu." (I believe in Jesus Christ.) We will talk to him about Jesus's visit to

Cicadas hold a special significance in Japan. Cicadas and summer are almost synonymous. Even though it is hot and humid during the rainy season, summer is not officially started until the sounds of cicadas start. They are a noisy lot especially when you walk by a tree that is loaded.  Fred keeps saying, "It sounds like summer." March of the molted cicada skins We opened an apartment in Omihachiman which is near the largest lake in Japan. We drove over to Lake Biwa. It was very beautiful with a Shinto Shrine by the lake. There was also several crevice caves where the people had created a mini-shrines. On Monday, we went on a "food tour". We went downtown to Sannomiya. Then wandered from shop to shop. We would buy a small food item and then share it.  We had pork steamed buns, beef croquette, cream pan (cream filled roll), and gourmet mochi with 6 different flavors. We won't mention the chocolate croissant that we bought since that is French.🙊 So fun!! I was list

What is it? Dragon Fruit which tastes like a mild kiwi. That's part of the fun of being in a foreign country. You get to try new things. We continue to open new apartments and receive more missionaries.  Not only have we received Americans but we also have received someone from Australia and Brazil. The sister from Brazil speaks 3 languages.  How? I'm having trouble with two. 🤣 Friday was a fun day--work in the office all day, feed the missionaries after work, make cookies for the arriving missionaries the next day, and listen to a webinar from two doctors on common medical issues of missionaries (Long COVID and Fungal infections).  I don't blame the mission. A lot of that busyness is part of my own choosing. Burning my candle at both ends. This is the entrance to the Mission Office. I love it. We see it a lot. I hope you love what you are doing. Life is too short not to enjoy it.  If not, change what you are doing. Make it better.  At the end of Jacob's life, a Book o

 We headed to the mountains of Kyoto to visit more national historical sites.  These temples and shrines were built around 800 AD. It was a hot day, 97 degrees with lots of humidity.  I learned the benefit of using a parasol. It really does reduce the heat. We tried to find shade where ever we could.  I love the mountains of Japan. They are very steep and covered with trees. It is so picturesque. I want to come back here in the fall. It is known for beautiful fall leaves. We found a bamboo forest while we were hiking to an old Buddhist Temple. There were warnings not to feed the moneys because they may bite.  We did not see any 🙈 . I seriously doubt they were there. 🙊   We visited with some junior high students from the Tokyo area. They wanted to practice their English. They are so cute and so excited to talk to us. These are very old stones probably from an old cemetery used as grave markers. We celebrated July 4th with a double cheeseburger Japan style. Check out the bun! (Pressed