Merry Christmas 2020 & Happy New Year 2021!!

December 26, 2020

The past couple of weeks have simply blown by! Can't say we're not excited to see the end of 2020 & the chaos of COVID, an upside down election & other crazy happenings, but through it all we've certainly learned some important lessons, gained greater perspectives, & come to better #HearHim as we've followed our beloved Prophet & leaders. We hope the coming year will be more peaceful, bring more kindness & give us opportunities to teach & lead others to Christ. We also have been enjoying the wonderful #LighttheWorld initiative & the great opportunities this time of year affords each of us.

I put out a desperate FB post for anyone's extra Christmas items to help to decorate our naked flat. We didn't want to spend anymore $$ on decorations that we would just leave behind so were very happy when we received lots of lovely donated items...trees, ornaments, etc for ourselves & the Elder's flat. I was so excited to have something to put up...Here's our humble little tree & home afterwards. 

Leslee contacted our friends Alison & Nawal, to be our own personal elves to do some Christmas shopping for her. They filled the giant stocking w/lots of goodies for us to unwrap Christmas morning. They had so much fun & got totally into the spirit of giving. We made a haul thanks to our own personal Santa & her cute, sneaky elves!!  

The week before Christmas we went to Perth for our annual Christmas conference w/all the missionaries & had a fantastic time. It was wonderful to be among all our young Elders & Sisters & feel of their energy & enthusiasm, as well as our other senior missionaries; to receive instruction from our Mission President. We had a fantastic Christmas feast provided w/all the delicious trimmings both American & Australian; beautiful handmade decorations our RS sisters do so well everywhere the world round; laughter & good times. Later that day we went to a local park (of which they have sooo many) to have some fun & let off some steam & eat pizza...teenagers favorite anywhere you go. The next day we spent a couple hours at one of the big malls spreading a little Christmas cheer w/caroling & mingling among the shoppers. Unlike in America & other highly populated areas, there was very little physical distancing or masks to be seen.  

These are all of our young Sister missionaries. Most are from Western Australia, but a few are from Malaysia & the Philippines. In total we now have 34 young missionaries serving & 5 senior couples. We are hopeful of getting about 20 more missionaries from around Australia over the next few months. We still don't have any senior couples coming in...they will most likely be asking for volunteers from the Perth area to help out when we all start leaving, which begins mid-January.

Along w/the happy were some bittersweet moments. The first was that President Bennallack & his wife have been w/their youngest daughter/family for the past month back east in Sydney. She had been undergoing cancer treatment for the past 1.5 yrs, but to no avail & was dying. President decided to make the quick trip back to attend our much anticipated conference but learned, just prior to landing late Thursday night, that he would have to be placed under isolation for 24 hrs. So he wasn't even able to personally attend the conference Friday, but had to do it over Zoom. 

The second & most bitter pill was that he received a phone call early Sat. morning informing him that his daughter had passed away. It was a very sad time knowing he had sacrificed being w/his daughter/family to come back to be w/all of us. He put his missionaries needs before his own & sacrificed precious time in order to perform his duties. What a selfless, devoted man of God! And instead of staying at home to grieve w/a broken heart, he came to the mall to join w/us in singing the songs of celebration & joy that Christmas brings. We could see his tears & hear the tender feelings of his soul as he sang songs of praise to our Savior & felt our own testimonies strengthened as we listened to him bear witness of the birth of Christ & the eternal blessings that can come to all mankind through Him. It is an experience I shall never forget.

Back home we looked forward to the upcoming holidy activities. We enjoyed a lovely dinner w/the Prall family on Christmas Eve then went to the Mortley's for their annual Christmas Day celebration of...what else? A water fight!! It was very welcome as temperatures hovered around 102*-106 for the next couple of days. I'm longing for a white Christmas next year!

And look at these desserts!! Homemade Pavlova & Trifle....so delicious!

We received some of our favorite games from our son, Josh....as you all know, we love playing games & he sent us two great ones. Cover Your Assests & Splendor. We look forward to introducing them at our New Year's Day game night. He also sent us some very special treats that are almost impossible to find here & if you read one of our last posts, you'll see/remember just how expensive they are. 

Here's Elders Winter & van der Linden (yes, that's his name!) enjoying their first & probably their last taste of our Twinkies! 

Of course, it wouldn't have been a real Christmas without being able to celebrate with our family & we give thanks once again for modern tech that allows us that blessings. If we'd only bought stock in Zoom our lives would be much richer right now! JK....

Family is what brings us the most joy in our lives & the blessings of eternal families through the restored gospel of Jesus Christ is what we seek to bring to others. That in no way means we don't have challenges, issues & sorrows... but it is because of the gospel that we are able to put those difficult aspects of living into proper perspective & continue moving ever forward on the covenant path.

We are so very grateful for this past year's opportunities for growth, learning & teaching moments. For the Christlike attributes we constantly are given chances to obtain...patience, humility, charity, virtue, knowledge, hope, diligence & obedience. Through those we have come to know & respect, friends, family, missionaries, investigators & Church  leaders/members...we see in their lives these very characteristics & qualities. There are so many who give of their time/energy to help others w/no expectation of anything in return; those who sacrifice their own needs/wants in order to bless & lift others; for people who so willingly share of their bounty so that others may have; & those who simply strive to bring joy & laughter into other's hearts. 

We give thanks for all these wonderful souls that have enriched our lives & blessed us so abundantly this past year & pray for the blessings of heaven to be upon you throughout the coming New Year....Hurrah for Israel! 

Love to you all....Elder & Sister Tate! 

It's the most wonderful time of the Year!!

 December 10, 2020

We've had a very busy couple of weeks with everyone getting prepared for Christmas & all the activities which that brings. We had our 2nd Australian Christmas party last Friday night & a good time was had by all. So much delicious food, good conversations & laughter all around. I baked 50 pumpkin pie tarts (plus 10 coconut cream for he RS helpers to sample), we did a small turkey, largest available was only about 10 lbs & it barely fit in the oven, & homemade stuffing. They were a hit & helped bring a little bit of home & Christmas Spirit to us. 

Here's John & Robert, the bakers (& brothers) where we get our donated bread Mon-Fri & who also gave us the tart shells for free! They are such awesome guys! So, of course, we had to give them some samples & now they want me to come in & teach them how to make dessert pies, cause they only do meat pies, like everyone else in Australia. They're thinking the coconut cream & pumpkin tarts will be very popular. Who knows...this might be a new sensation down under! 

Last night we went to the Kaa family's home for dinner. They had come to our place a couple weeks ago for FHE & we had a lovely time w/KT, Ellen & their four kids. They are very gracious people who truly love missionaries. KT actually served in this mission & spent time here in Kalgoorlie, returning later to marry & raise his family. It was a missionary opportunity to meet/spend time w/Ellen's mother/stepfather & KT's good friend...all of whom are nonmembers. 

They invited us over for a traditional Maori hungi (hungee). KT dug a pit in the backyard & put about a dozen foil wrapped packages of different meats & veggies like pumpkin, potatoes, yams, cabbage, carrots...into a very large iron basket that is placed on top of big red hot iron discs. It's then covered w/cloth then more heated discs are put on top of that & again covered w/more cloths to be finally covered over w/dirt. Because it's such a time consuming process, whenever anyone does a hungi, several families contribute & enough is cooked to provide dinner for many people. KT also made several dozen pieces of fry bread...like scones that was served w/butter & jam. 

It was a delicious meal spent w/good people. We had a great discussion w/Ellen's parents about his time in America & about the true meaning of Christmas. I think we will be playing games soon w/Ellen's mom & stepdad...hopefully will get them married soon & on their way towards baptism. That's KT in the front of the picture...a big teddy bear of a guy. 

In the past we've mentioned how expensive things are here, especially American food/products. Our favorite mayo is Best Foods & it is around $10.50/per quart size jar. Here are a couple photos of a section of popular American foods in one of the small grocers. You might want to be sitting down when you see the prices! 

It's hard to see so I'll point out that the boxes of cereal are $10.95, the boxes of soda are $19.95, the pop tarts are $8.79, the box of 10 Twinkies is $19.99, the Hershey's candy bars are $7.95 each, & the bags of chips are also $7.95. Understandably, we don't eat many things from the States here. Who knows how long they took to get put on the shelves & how long they've been sitting there?! Fun to see, though. 

This time of year means lots of sporting events...it's still hard for us to wrap our heads around the fact that it's 90*+ outside & they're playing cricket, footie & basketball outside. Looking at this picture, you'd think we were in the good ole USA at any playing field in the spring or fall. But no, Christmas is just around the corner & so is twinkling lights, decorated trees & holiday music. 

Elder Tate's U-14 team is wrapping up their season & has one more game before tournament begins. He has managed to bring these boys along & teach them some life skills as well as help them improve their basketball moves. He loves them & they really love & respect their coach. 

This is the Tau Pau family. Maraea (Mariah) & their boys are very active in the community in basketball. The twins are on Randy's team & are both very good players. Plus they're two of our young teachers & their little brother will be turning 12 next month. Unfortunately, they are moving to Perth just before Christmas. Elder Tate is very sad to lose them on his team, especially with the tournament coming up, but we're especially sad to see them leave the ward for they are such a good family & wonderful examples to everyone. We certainly wish them the very best on this new adventure!

Time has hurried on & we are now seeing our senior missionaries begin preparations to leave for home. It is a very bittersweet time...for while we know & can certainly appreciate that they are excited to return home to loved ones, their diligent & steadfast service will be greatly missed. It is nearly impossible to express how much senior missionaries contribute to the building up of God's kingdom! From supporting/encouraging/teaching new members who are just beginning their life-long journey on the covenant path to those who are returning after years of being away; to assisting in starting up Family History programs, Self-Reliance or Pathway education classes; helping train those in leadership positions & being there as support to members who just need a helping hand; & probably most importantly, senior couples can often bridge the gap & bring love & encouragement to young Elders & Sisters who are far from home for perhaps the first time...missing their families, struggling to feel they are good enough, learning to have faith in their Savior & to listen to the promptings of the Spirit & act quickly when it comes. We are called upon to be a listening ear, a shoulder to lean on, a quick hug & word of praise...it is amazing how much of a difference we can make in the lives of so many. 

In closing, may you all feel the blessings that can be ours...especially as we focus on Christ during this wonderful time of year. We pray for continued safety, peace & love to be in your hearts & home as you gather to celebrate our Savior's birth. He lives & love us! 

Hurrah for Israel!!  Love to you all....Elder & Sister Tate