Monday was for volunteering and repairing furniture and baking. Yes, we still have baking going on! Sister Nelson has refined the art of baking lots of things in a little tiny oven and making it look easy (to those that don't know any better). Her baked goods -banana bread, brownies, oatmeal cookies, chocolate chip cookies are all "famous" at Camp Zama. She promises or threatens to never bake again after we get home. We shall see.
Tuesday was a "last time" day and very emotional. It was our last trip to the Tokyo Temple to serve as workers there. We have so enjoyed our weekly trip to serve with our fellow senior missionaries and the wonderful Japanese members at the Temple. We have enjoyed each week seeing missionaries from various parts of our mission and being able to stay connected with them. We have enjoyed learning more and more about the Temple and feelings of the Spirit as we serve in His Holy house. We hope we can continue to serve in the Temple near our home once we return to Utah.
Wednesday was probably our last time helping at a Red Cross "Coffee Cart" event, where we greet and talk with members from various organizations (this time the Corp of Engineers) located at Camp Zama. This time with the AVP (Animal Visitation Program) doggies. We have enjoyed working with our fellow Red Cross workers and in representing that organization to member of our community. Most of Sister Nelson's baking effort of late has been in support of various Red Cross events. We were treated to lunch by Mr. Bryan Oh who is the Camp Zama Chapel director of religious education. The garrison chaplain, Chaplain Saxton and his wife joined us as well. We have enjoyed a number of times when we have been able to support various events, including Vacation Bible School, that the Zama chapel and chaplains host. Later that day we each did our last time volunteering at the Health Clinic and Army Community Service. Finally, we met for the Mongolian BBQ event with two of the families (from the chapel community) that we have gotten to know through supporting VBS. We truly have made many special friends along the way,
Thursday we supported the Red Cross office; however, we missed going to our usual District Council because the missionaries moved it from Friday to Thursday because of a transfer that took place Friday. We love the missionaries, but they are not as bound by a calendar and commitments as we have been and sometimes they will change things up and we have to just say, "sorry," we can help you this time. We started "dejunking" in earnest too on Thursday and boxed up and number of things to mail home. We came with two suitcases (and carryons) and that is what we have to go home with...but we have accumulated stuff... things we have purchased, gifts, clothes and more. So will be gradually sorting through all of that between now and when we leave.
Friday we did our mission Emergency Exercise for the last time. We made a trip to the NAF Atsugi Post Office and mailed our first batch of boxes to our home in West Jordan. It won't be the last mailing either. We have been gradually sorting through everything and throwing way, giving away, or boxing up everything that isn't nailed down. Yikes. It is a bigger job that we thought. We are also starting to clean as we go.
Saturday we took a break and made another trip down to see the Odawara Castle. It is an old "samurai era" castle, one of several in Japan, that is easy to get to and always spectacular. The only hard part about sight seeing this time of year is the weather. It is super hot and humid. And if it cools down at all, it's because it is raining...and it is Typhoon Season, so rain now means windy and sometime thunderstorms.
Sunday was a special day because we had two "friends" come to church for the first time. We don't often get directly involved in traditional missionary activity, but we are blessed to be able to every so often. We had a gentleman who is from Nigeria, here working in Japan, that the young elders have been teaching via video chat for some time. Elder Nelson has been assisting and has built a good relationship with him. Well, he finally made the effort to actually come to the church and meet with us in person. It was really special. We have high hopes and faith that he will eventually get baptized. The other friend was actually a young teenager, who is the daughter of the person Sister Nelson works with at the Health Clinic. This young girl (maybe 16) friended us on FB a while ago, then about a week or so ago asked (via text) what church we went to, and then this past week again texted and asked if she could go to church with us. Wow. Her parents were absolutely supportive and she rode with us and a member couple on Sunday and had a great experience...and on the way home, she asked if she could come again next week! Wow again.
We ended Sunday by having our local young missionaries (2 elders and 2 sisters) over for dinner. Both the Elders are from the Philippines and both the Sisters are from Brazil. Elder and Sister Melton also joined us. That will probably be another "last time" thing since feeding the missionaries in our apartment takes a lot of work and preparation that we won't have time to do again before we leave.
This coming week is another busy week of "lasts" and cleaning and dejunking and saying good byes... We will miss all that we have come to know and love here, but no worries, we are excited to come home too.
Love
Elder and Sister Nelson
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