October 28, 2014, Andrea's Baptism and Boston's South End

This has been an incredible week!  Andrea Grossman was baptized on Sunday!  She is the woman who has wanted the church in her life for 33 years (see post from a couple of weeks ago), but because of certain circumstances beyond her control she didn't seek it out in earnest until a few weeks ago.  She phoned our sisters just over a month ago and has been taught steadily through the month of October.  She has taken in every principle and doctrine of the Gospel of Jesus Christ as though she were drinking water from a cup.  She is so happy to be a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.  She said that it is the best decision she has ever made and that Sunday was the best day of her life!  We are absolutely thrilled for her and so happy to be her "favorite" senior missionaries!

Sister Roy, Andrea, and Sister Jones

 

Sister Grossman with Elder MacJanet and Elder Calvert

Her ward (Lynnfield) is wonderful!  They had her baptism right after the 3-hour block of church services on Sunday and probably half of the ward at least stayed for her baptism.  They are super supportive and so happy to welcome her into their congregation with open arms.  After the baptism service they had a nice lunch for Andrea and all of her supporters!  It truly was a day to remember.

We went to church with Andrea before her baptism and our Relief Society (women's class) lesson was based on a talk by one of the Twelve Apostles, Elder Neil A. Anderson, from the April 2014 General Conference, entitled "Spiritual Whirlwinds."  I recently read that article and loved it.  It is so relevant for the times we live in.  The teacher shared the following poem, "Good Timber," as an introduction to the lesson in which Elder Anderson talks about developing strong gospel roots by being true and faithful during adversity in comparison to trees that grow stronger roots when they have to struggle against the wind.

(I got this image off Pinterest)

We live in perilous times when we will all have our faith tested to the limits.  We can survive the spiritual whirlwinds that come our way by staying close to the Savior.   “Remember … it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, … his shafts in the whirlwind, … when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power … to drag you down … because of the rock upon which ye are built.” “Remember … it is upon the rock of our Redeemer, who is Christ, the Son of God, that ye must build your foundation; that when the devil shall send forth his mighty winds, … his shafts in the whirlwind, … when all his hail and his mighty storm shall beat upon you, it shall have no power … to drag you down … because of the rock upon which ye are built.” ^{Helaman 5:12}  This is our safety in the whirlwind. 

If you'd like to read the talk by Elder Anderson, please go to:  https://www.lds.org/general-conference/2014/04/spiritual-whirlwinds?lang=eng

For our p-day this week, we discovered more of Boston, the South End.  It is a section of the city famous for it's beautiful tree-lined streets, picturesque parks and old brownstone house from the 1800's.  We had another perfect blue-sky day and enjoyed being with the Braithwaites once again.

 

There were wonderful signs of the season everywhere!

 

 We had lunch at the Flour Bakery.  It is one of the Best of Boston restaurants that we found to be ok, but definitely not the best of Boston.  Oh well, we clearly have different taste than the reviewers who have been making the big bucks choosing the Best of Boston!  We would love to have their job!

After lunch, we walked along a park that was literally blocks long.  It was awesome!  We made our way to the Boston Public Library.  Nancy and I left Dale and Mike there to explore since we had already done that previously.  Nancy and I walked through the high-end posh Copley Place Mall, took some pictures around the library and really just enjoyed the beautiful day.  Mike and Dale enjoyed every minute they had exploring the library.  It really is a must-see when you come to Boston!

 The old and the new.  Love the reflection of the old cathedral in the glass mirrored-windows of the Hancock Building.  It's the building they called the Plywood Palace during it's construction because the glass kept falling out onto the street below and they had to patch it up with plywood!

The Tortoise and The Hare

We ended our Boston day in the Boston Public Garden once again, because who can get enough of a beautiful place like this?

We love Mrs. Mallard and her sweet little ducklings,
Jack, Kack, Lack, Nack, Ouack, Pack, and Quack

What an adventurous day and it ended with a sushi dinner at Fuji in Kendall Square.  It may be the best
sushi we have ever had except for the Volcano Roll at Sakura in Longmont!  It may not be possible to top that!

The rest of our week was packed with teaching the gospel, serving in our ward and stake, visiting the sick in the hospital and a variety of other missionary tasks.  We just learned today that our friend, Al, who has been in the hospital or rehab center since we got here in July is going home on Friday.  We are so happy for him and his family.  He has some recovering yet to do at home, but he's going home!  He has been anxiously awaiting this day for months!

We feel like the colder weather is gradually creeping up on us.  We wish we had a warm fireplace to snuggle up to, but for the next couple of months we will have to make do with our hulu fireplace on our computer screen.  We do feel very blessed to have this wonderful, cozy little apartment to call home.  Home truly is where the heart is and for now, our hearts are here serving the Lord in Cambridge, Massachusetts!~

 Not to say that a big chunk of our hearts aren't with our family and friends, because it is!  We love you all and hope that you have a wonderful week filled with wonderful people and joyful experiences!