Cold Gray Spring with Missionary Bright Spots

     Since we have been in Alaska I have usually been able to find something beautiful, unique or interesting in Alaska every day. But this week has been a lot of cold gray weather and black/brown melting snow. It seems pretty drab. Nothing fresh or spring-like this Easter Sunday. There is still about 18 inches of snow on the ground which is the second deepest snow depth on record for April! It makes the roads and parking lots quite icy and full of deep puddles. So far this is not my favorite time of year in Alaska. 

I was driving home from the office this week and hit an icy patch. The car started to slide and swerve side to side in the lane. I had my hands on the wheel but I couldn't steer. It felt like those Twilight Zone slow motion moments. I kept thinking the car was about to roll over. It was really scary. But then it straightened out and I drove on without any problem.  I feel we are being watched over and protected here, especially as we drive!

    You can see how dirty our windows are on the car. Elder Robinson hates driving a dirty car. With an unlimited car wash pass you still are limited to only wash the car once a day. It doesn't take more than a few miles down the road to be very dirty again. So I don't get any good pictures while driving. 

    For a while more missionaries where able to go to their original missions. This week Chile closed its borders again. Two elders who were scheduled to leave this week are now postponed again. They were so disappointed. There is one elder still scheduled to go to London on Thursday. I hope he gets to go. 

    More of the missionaries are getting vaccinated for Covid too, which is great. One missionary this week was sick with Covid the day after Zone Conference so everyone in close contact had to quarantine. Many missionaries were 3 days short of being fully vaccinated so they still had to quarantine. I work with the health department for isolation and quarantine follow up. The AHD contact is a member of the church and very helpful. It is good to have someone to work with who understands how missionaries function. We still follow all the rules but it is easier to communicate with her. Hopefully things will improve as more missionaries become fully vaccinated. I was grateful that I was able to get one of the missionaries returning home to the Philippines scheduled for a Johnson and Johnson vaccine before he leaves.  He is in Juneau where vaccines are harder to get. One of the stakes here in Anchorage is doing a clinic just before he leaves and was able to get him scheduled here. I do see miracles in being able to find people who can help the missionaries when we need it. I liked hearing Pres. Nelson mention in conference the miracles they have seen in missionary work moving forward during Covid. There were 10 baptisms last month but also a lot of good service and teaching opportunities. There really are amazing things happening even if it seem like 2 steps forward and one back. 

    I am so inspired by the missionaries and members for their examples of selfless service. Many missionaries serve missions at great sacrifice to themselves and their families but they never complain. Pres. King took some elders to Outback Steakhouse before they left for home. As they were ordering and talking about their favorite things to get, they asked one of the elders what he liked. He said he had never been to Outback or even a sit-down restaurant and didn't know what to get. He comes from a family with 14 other siblings and their family never went out to eat. It was his first time in a "nice" restaurant even though he comes from a metropolitan area. He is polished, polite, well dressed, very hard working and responsible.  Having some of the experiences or things others take for granted doesn't seem to matter as much to him. He always smiles and asks what he can do to help. He is a great person and missionary!

    Another missionary is a new member, the only member in his family and paid for his mission without any help from anyone. He could only afford to have one wisdom tooth removed before his mission and hoped to get the others out, if they caused problems, when he returned home. About a year into his mission he had to have another tooth removed. Missionary Medical insurance doesn't cover dental expenses but a local member who is a dentist was willing to do the work for free. There are a lot of kind people!

    Although he isn't a young missionary, Elder Hobbs  is one of the kindest missionaries I have seen. He repaired the tile in a shower that had water damage in one of the missionary apartments. The apartment owner was an older woman in her 80's and didn't know how to get the repair done. When Elder Hobbs found she needed help, he did the job himself (he's a contractor and can do just about everything).  It helped the missionaries in the apartment and the owner. He owns the buffalo ranch Elder Robinson visited a few weeks ago. Here are pictures of his greenhouses and his home with "animal decorations". Elder Robinson is excited to go fishing with him this summer. They also like looking at bullets. I don’t know why.

    It is a great experience to serve a mission and to be inspired by others to do better and be better. The things we do seem small in comparison but it feels good to do what we can to help others. It is also uplifting to see so much good around us. I think seeing good helps us to see God better too. I was so grateful for General Conference and Easter this weekend. I'm glad to refocus on things that bring spiritual strength and guidance. It was just what I needed. I want to "clear the debris" from my life of the things that don't matter as much and do those things that really matter. I liked Pres. Nelson's talk about the things we can do to strengthen our faith and Elder Rasband's talk about miracles. I also enjoyed the talks from the many members around the world with different experiences and different cultures but hearing we share similar spiritual experiences. I hope you were able to hear something that inspired you too. 

    I hope you don't mind a long message with fewer pictures this time. I'm not sure what the next week will bring. Hopefully a bit of sunshine and clear roads at least. We love you and pray for your welfare each day. I know prayers are heard even if the answers may take a little longer to come than we want. I hope you remember Pres. Nelson's talk when he said "This Easter morning start today to increase your faith. Through your faith, Jesus Christ will increase your ability to move the mountains in your life, even though your personal challenges may look as large as Mount Everest". I know faith helps us through challenges big or small. 

We love you!

Elder and Sister Robinson (Elder Robinson is my proofreader!)

Here are some miscellaneous pictures. I always like a great sunset. It's even better at the end of a gray day. And the cars have a kind of snow mohawk as the snow melts from the sides of the car