So many blessings...too many to count!

 May 15, 2021

We've had a very busy past couple of weeks celebrating new babies either being born or soon to arrive; Mother's Day & a special Family History fireside. It's been wonderful to participate in activities where everyone comes together to show love & appreciation for mother's, friends & family in so many ways...a testimony that what matters most in our lives are the relationships we are so blessed to have. It increases my gratitude for & knowledge of our divine origin & the love our Heavenly Parents have for us as their children...they have provided us w/the perfect plan to guarantee the continuation of the family unit here on earth & into the eternities! 

My English student, Yue & her husband Henry, welcomed their little cherub a bit early & very quickly! When little Ethan was ready to come into the world he only took about two hours & caught everyone unprepared for the quick delivery! He is a beautiful little boy w/fat cheeks & lots of black hair & his parents are very proud of him. His big sister Amy is still deciding whether or not she likes the competition! 

Our dear RS sisters jumped in immediately to help out by bringing in meals. The Chinese are very unfamiliar w/the concept of service, but because of our friendship & the trust they have developed w/us, it was a wonderful opportunity for this young couple to experience true charity & discover there are many people who will look after them when we are no longer in Kalgoorlie. The Chinese have a tradition of new moms staying at home the baby for 40 days & not having company, but they made an exception for us/RS sisters. Yue will be very bored & anxious to get out of the house & I think they will come to church & some activities to say thank you & mingle w/the good sisters they've met. We're very hopeful after this experience they will find new friends & strong support among the members when we're no longer here & simply be loved into this ward family. 

The Saturday before Mother's Day we had a wonderful baby shower for CeCe & Josh's little princess, who's due mid-June. It was a lovely party w/lots of delicious food, laughter, fun activities...a good time was had by everyone. CeCe received some beautiful gifts, including a couple dozen onesies w/darling personalized messages. She's going to be a beautiful, much loved & very pampered princess! We're so very hopeful we'll still be around, but chances are we'll be passing the stork the plane as we head back to the States when she arrives.

                                           

Our beautiful Elder's Quorum prepared/catered a very lovely Mother's Day dinner for all the RS sisters & we had a wonderful turnout w/about 50 women! Many were less active or not members of the Church & weren't quite sure what to expect. The food was delicious & plentiful; there was much laughter, great entertainment; silly jokes/some unexpected dancing by a couple of our more reserved sisters...overall, it was such a lovely evening & everyone had a wonderful evening & are already looking forward to next year! 

We had special guests w/President & Sister Baker visiting for the weekend from Perth. He was released from the Mission Presidency a couple months ago & the two of them are now the WA regional Temple/Family History consultants, so they came to our dinner & spoke in Sacrament meeting Sunday. They have a grand daughter who is serving at the Rome, Italy Temple & she, along w/two Sister missionaries, gave us a live tour of the grounds/visitor's center in Rome during our dinner! It was incredible to see/learn about the Christus statue & the statues of the original Apostles; the special areas of the Visitor's center, but especially the magnificent Temple up close. What an amazing opportunity for those not of our faith to experience something so special. Our Elders received several requests for visits as a result!

Here's a few of our RS sisters w/little Mother's Day key rings my friend Cindy made for them all. Sister Baker & I, such a lovely lady & friend. It was a great weekend filled w/joy & memories to last a very long time. Elder Meads & Elder Amitua made candy leis for all the mom's, too! How sweet was that?! 

Here are a few pictures of people in the community we've met & become friends w/who help us out so much. The couple below, Grant & Anna, own/operate the bike shop & take such good care of the missionaries! Heaven knows those bikes take a beating & need some tenderness! 

These are two brothers who own/operate the post office near us, Patrick & Damien, (post offices here are franchises...what?!) Must be why post offices here are so efficient & profitable! They love Elder Tate's cowboy cookies & always take such good care of us when we need help packing up things to send back to America! 

This is Birgit (front) & Mandy from the Women's Shelter. Mandy is the manager & her grandfather was full Aboriginal, so she has a rich heritage & close relationship w/the women who come to the shelter seeking refuge & safety from domestic abuse & violence. Birgit is an employee & recently received her citizenship, so now has dual citizenship w/Germany & Australia. They came over last Friday evening to share a meal & socialize. It was a lovely evening. We will miss these good people & are very grateful for the opportunity we've had to get to know them.

It really doesn't take much to become friends with people & bring them into our circles. We've learned that everyone likes being treated w/respect & kindness, regardless of background, religious affiliation, race or culture...ultimately, we're all children of a loving Heavenly Father & should treat each other accordingly.

As we prepare to return home in about a month, our hearts are always so full & tears close to the surface as we consider we may never see some of these good people again in this lifetime. While this is sad to contemplate, our sadness turns to joy to know this life is just a small dot on the eternal journey we are all upon & we will all be together in the eternities w/full knowledge of these relationships.

The understanding of just how much our Father & the Savior love each of us & long for us to desire to return to live w/them again has brought us strong desires to serve others so they, too, can gain this understanding. Of course not everyone recognizes or even desires these truths we have to share, but that's ok. We still love/serve & know their time will come when they are ready to listen & #HearHim.

May you all feel of His eternal love & the joy that comes as we draw closer to our Savior. Our appreciation for your support, encouragement & love can not be expressed adequately...but we certainly feel blessed to have such wonderful family & dear friends. Until next time....Hurrah for Israel!!

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

 

Fishers of men...& fish!

 May 4, 2021

My how time is flying by us! Took a nice, relaxing trip down south to Esperance to say goodbye to our Church friends there & spend some time walking along the new jetty, enjoying the beautiful setting/scenery in town. 

                               

While taking our walk, we ran into an unexpected friend on the jetty. Bibo was down just for the day to try his hand fishing...no real luck, but it was a relaxing day for him away from work, which most of the Chinese guys do six days a week. He was very surprised & happy to see us...we love these good men & are so very hopeful that they will come unto Christ in the near future. We know with the love & friendship of members of the Church, they will feel the Lord's love, desire to learn more & soon make sacred covenants which will enable them to learn & feel even more deeply our Father & the Savior's love for them & their families.

The next day we took a relaxing drive to Cape Le Grand National Park. Along the way we discovered Stonehendge...an exact replica of the one in England! It's pretty amazing to read about the size/weight of these huge slabs of granite & discover that the original stones in England were moved & put in place without benefit of wheels or pulleys. Historians/archeologists still don't really know exactly why Stonehendge was built or for what purpose, however they believe it had to do w/religious beliefs due to the face that they placement of the stones line up perfectly w/the winter & summer soltices. It was very cool! Elder Tate attempted to pull a Samson trick & make the stones domino...but, fortunately, he's not as strong as Samson & lived so we could continue on our journey. 

These are pictures of the national park area...wide & very lovely. Not many trees, just lots of tall bushes, scrubby brush & grasses. In the springtime the ground is covered w/flowers as are the bushes/trees. Very beautiful. 

During low tide people drive/camp right on the beaches! The day was warm & everyone was out swimming in the beautiful aqua waters & taking strolls along white sandy beaches! All the campgrounds were filled up & lots of families were out enjoying the last warm days of fall before the blustery winds & cold ocean waves of wintertime drive them away. 

Mother kangaroo & her baby...which was too large to fit in her pouch but stayed close by. Very friendly & wanting to eat everything in sight...of course, no one should feed wild animals in any country, as it can cause serious problems for them.

Elder Tate's first fishing trip out on the ocean got canceled because of wind. Next day was sooo foggy, but very still, so the trio decided to give it a shot. 

There's no way you will ever find me out on the ocean in a little boat like this one!! Cruise ship is the only way I'll go out there! Some sharks are almost the same size as this boat...just sayin'. 

After a few hours the fog burned away & it turned out to be a gorgeous, sunny day & he was very happy to be on the water w/a fishing pole in his hands. And they were successful, pulling in several red snappers, a couple of small tuna & other fish. We enjoyed a great dinner of red snapper & will have several more to share later w/friends back in Kalgoorlie.

As we've stated before, we're a family who loves games...especially our own game of 'Murder'. We gave one to the Barr's several months ago & they've since had six made & their daughter, who's a graphic artist, did this one up w/fantastical creatures, matching marbles & gems! It's incredible & we loved it sooo much! This is why we don't paint them ourselves...so others can customize them to what they love! So go for it, people!! 

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Playing 'Cover Your Assets' w/the Barr's. They love playing games almost as much as we do & it was fun to listen in as the girls tried to beat Sister Barr & Randy. Lots of girlish squeals & lamenting...& the female's were loud, too! 

Saying goodbye is never easy, but we're grateful for the time we've had to get to know these true pioneers who came to Australia almost 30 years ago from California to make a fresh start in a new country. They've raised six children + took one in...Bree, on the end. If you recall, she was baptized last November & continues to increase her testimony every day. The two girls will leave next January for Perth to go to university, which is where James is now. Judy & Tim will put their beautiful property on the market so they can start looking for another place in Perth & back home in the States. We'll look forward to renewing our friendship when they return to America when they come to look for another home in the next few years. 

We also said adios to Elder van der Linden (on the right) who was transferred & will continue serving in Perth. He had never ridden a bike before coming to Kalgoorlie but was determined to do whatever was required. He took some spills yet never looked back until he had accomplished his goal. We were sad to see him go as he had only been here two transfers, but we know he will grow & become even more dedicated to the Lord as he has new opportunities & experiences. 

And it is so true that when one door closes, another one opens!! Elder Amitua is our new missionary & we are sooo excited to have him here w/Elder Meads. We (mostly Elder Tate) has been working w/Elder Amitua for the past five months on his English skills & he is a hard worker & one happy Samoan guy! He will do very well here as we have so many Polynesian people in Kalgoorlie, so now we have to islanders who will feel know how to relate to the culture & know many of the same people back home. He's just off the train here & wearing a mask because Perth had a few cases of covid & had just come out of lockdown but everyone was still required to wear masks...He's all good now & loving being in Kalgoorlie! 

Here's the Kalgoorlie Elders at our Zoom Zone Conference yesterday! Happy missionaries learning how to bring others unto Christ & help them receive joy in their lives! We love their huge hearts & incredible desire to serve Him!

Our hearts are often filled to overflowing w/gratitude & love for the people in this part of the Lord's vineyard & the way the Gospel brings us all together. It is so obvious to us that there is a divine plan in place...that when it comes to the happiness & success of His children, our Father has not left anything to chance. As the scripture says in Moses 1:39...'this is my work & my glory, to bring to pass the immortality & eternal life of man.'

Throughout out journey in Western Australia as missionaries for the Lord, we have seen His hand extended in love & patience through the actions/words of good brothers & sisters who minister so kindly to those who need support & encouragement; when men put aside personal desires to literally put their shoulders to the wheel barrow to move heavy piles of rocks; cut down/stack numerous cords of firewood; move furniture from one place to another...all without expectation of reward, but because they are their brother's keeper & disciples of Christ; as sisters in Zion have taken in meals for a lonely young Chinese mother who just had a baby in a strange country w/no family nearby...& the list goes on.

Just like you, we've had to put many things we took for granted, off to the side as we've dealt w/Covid-19 & are still coming to terms w/the numerous changes that have occurred in the aftermath of 2020. And, like many of you, we've discovered that many of the things we thought were essential, really don't matter much in the long run. What really matters, is how we treat one another & whether or not we actually walk the talk of the Savior when he said...'Come, Follow Me'. 

Elder Oakes has said..."To testify is to know and to declare. The gospel challenges us to be “converted,” which requires us to do and to become." It is not always easy to do what is needful or to become more than we are. But we have been promised that it will be worth every hardship, every sacrifice & every effort when we return to our heavenly home & the Savior's puts forth his hand & says..."well done, thou good & faithful servant."

May you all feel the love of our Father & His Son as you continue to press forward in faith through the challenges that come your way. May you recognize the blessings that fall like rain on parched hearts & souls & give thanks to God, from whom they flow. His hand is over all the earth & nothing can stop His work from progressing.

We love & pray for you, our dear family & friends. May you be happy & continually look for opportunities to serve each other & those around you. Hugs to you all!!

Hurrah for Israel!   Elder & Sister Tate