Week 2

I have enjoyed seeing pictures from home. The fall colors look really beautiful at home too. Except you have nice warm temperatures too. It feels like mid November here with wind blowing leaves down the street and crisp cool air. I am glad we get 4 seasons here though even if they are shorter than winter. The picture of the pretty leaves on the tree are inside the apartment complex.

The picture with leaves in the street are outside the complex.

 I also sent a picture of my Alaska boots on a drip pan. They are rubber ankle boots with warm fur inside and you can slip them off very easily as soon as you walk in the door and put them on the rubber pan for wet shoes. They are a great idea! Since everyone wears them I feel in style wearing them too.

 

The other unique thing I have noticed in Alaska is that when you build somewhere that doesn't have a street name, you get to pick the name of the road. So there are streets named Our Road, My Road, and Alaskas Best Place. It is like seeing vanity plates on a car. They have their own personality. It is also interesting to see the Moose crossing and Beware of Bear signs everywhere. We saw a ranch in Palmer that had longhorn bulls, reindeer and caribou in pens. No one puts the moose in a pen though. But there are a lot of fences to keep moose off the road. One stretch of road posted that 19 moose had been killed since July. I think humans are the outsiders when you get in the wilderness. 

One last comment on nature. We went to Wasilla on Friday and it was raining with a beautiful rainbow most of the way driving there. I must have taken a dozen pictures while driving in the car but none of them looked very good. 

That night on the news, the weather segment posted a picture of the double rainbow that was absolutely perfect. It was what I saw for the hour we were driving that I didn't get a good picture of. So you can see my picture and the really good picture. The rainbow was huge with every color of the prism. The newswoman commented that she had never seen a double rainbow. Yes, she was quite young. 

We are quite busy and learning a lot. Covid has changed missionary work a lot. I am grateful for the missionaries effort and optimism. The hardest part is if they have symptoms or contact with covid + person they are in isolation or quarantine for 2 weeks. It affects their companion and other missionaries living in the apartment too. So far only 2 of 233 have been positive but several have had to be tested. This really is a season of change. Getting used to changes in just being a missionary and changes in the missionary program both with covid and learning how to more effectively do missionary work. I was so grateful for conference and the reassurance that we are learning to find a better way of accomplishing God's purpose. I especially am grateful for Pres Nelson's talk about Israel meaning the Lord will prevail. With all the turmoil and contention we face now it is reassuring to know the Lord will prevail. 

One last missionary moment. As Gary was talking at zone conference about housing, Sis. Lowe who also works housing commented that in one missionary apartment on the second floor a leak caused damage to the apartment below (not their fault and the landlord had it repaired). But she suggested the missionaries go downstairs to explain what happened to the family in the first floor apartment that was damaged. Anyway they were so appreciative and asked them about being missionaries. It eventually led to them coming to church and being baptized. They were impressed with them being responsible and concerned about their damaged apartment. You never know how you will be led to ways to get to know people. I know that even now with Covid restrictions there will be ways that will open up to find people who are ready for the message of coming to Christ. I hope you have a good week and remember a good message from conference to lift and lighten your week. We love you and appreciate having such great family and friend support. We are truly blessed

Love,

Elder and Sister Robinson

*They have also discovered the Ripple's of Alaska, it looks delicious!