Kevan Kingsley Clawson's Blog, page 17

Goodbye to Amara

Terri and I went to the docks to say goodbye to the Amara. We had not seen the access bridge to the bay go up yet, so we saw both!

These are some of the larger personal ships in the bay     This is the Amara waiting for its turn to go through the access channel to the ocean   This is a view of the hill where we live     Some of the boats were almost too big to get through the channel!    One last wave goodbye to the Amara as they head out to sea!

First week comes to an end

Our first week in St Martin has finished, and we are happy and tired (we can’t believe it’s only been a week, while at the same time, time flies when you’re having fun…).

We have attended a normal sacrament meeting (our first meeting was General Conference), and found the new Branch Leadership and all those in various callings to be doing a great job! Terri was asked to sing (it had been a long time since Terri sang in church, but after hearing her voice, it was the first request of the Branch President!), and chose something short and simple—there is a green hill far away. She also stepped-up to direct the music when the normal person came late. The room was not full to begin with, but by the end of the meeting the entire room was full. Considering the current work of the missionaries in teaching and reactivation, they will need to add an addition to the building very soon.

We have cleaned the church three times, so we are getting the hang of it now. It is a small building so it goes fast (especially when you have help).

We have also attended District Meeting with the missionaries twice. The last meeting was also the farewell for the Thompsons (they left for home right after the meeting), and they shared their testimonies one last time with the missionaries. Elder Horton, the District Leader, gave us instruction on the new missionary/member program they are using in the mission. It is one I have never heard of before (which is saying something for me…): they select two or three families to be a ‘group’ to work together to find and prepare people to be taught by the missionaries. A group leader is chosen to coordinate regular meetings (like once a month) to review any success the group has had and encourage them in their efforts. Members of the group also are used to fellowship investigators and new converts. As more groups are created, more success will follow. It will be interesting to see how well this works.

Terri and I also have had the opportunity to go out with the missionaries on a couple of their appointments. We got a chance to bear our testimonies and aid the missionaries in their work. I’m sure we will be doing that a lot in the next 18 months!

One day we received a call from the travel office about a missionary that needed help in transit. He was a new missionary traveling to the MTC in South Africa from St Kitts (and nearby island), and who would be stranded on St Martin for a day. We arranged to pick him up at the airport, had him stay overnight with the Zone Leaders in the French Quarter, and the next day took him back to the airport and made sure he made his flight. It was the first time for everything: first time leaving home, traveling on a plane, going to another country, etc. He was very happy to see a friendly face at the airport!

 Elder Payne with the two zone leaders

We attended our first Branch correlation meeting. It went well, I thought, but both the missionaries and the Branch leadership will improve over time.

Thanks to the efforts of Isaac and his connections in FedEx, the crew of the Amara is finally on their way home (that is the catamaran that is in St Martin for repairs).

If you go to their website:

WWW.sailingamara.com

you will see pictures of the branch and Terri and I!) Anyway, they had been waiting weeks for a part to come, via FedEx, and it seemed to be lost. Isaac found the package and it got here just a couple of days later—and they got the boat fixed and they are off!

Here are new pics of our apartment:

Changing of the Guard

Today was preparation day and the last day for the Thompsons on St Martin. We traveled with Brother Thompson to do a couple of errands in the morning, then went to lunch with them and all the missionaries for a farewell lunch.

That afternoon, the Thompsons and the branch president and his wife went to the beach for one last time. That evening we went to dinner with them for a farewell dinner. The Branch here in St Martin will definitely miss the Thompsons—they have been a big part of the branch for a long time. Brother Thompson was the Branch President for most of their time here (President Hutchinson was just put in as the new Branch President about a month ago). So all the members here relied on the Thompsons for leadership and training…and now they are on their own! A big transition!

Terri and I will be here to aid them in that transition, but we will just be shadowing them, rather than leading them as the Thompsons did. But they are in good hands! President Hutchinson and his wife are great, and very dedicated, and they have great counselors—they will do well.

Tomorrow we have District Meeting where the Thompsons can say one last farewell to their beloved missionaries. Then we take them to the airport at noon.

Then Terri and I are on our own…but feel good about the training we received. Ready or not, our mission really starts tomorrow!

Party Time!

St Martin 09, 10, 2015

On Thursday we spent the day inspecting the Missionary apartments. We were able to see all of them except the sisters, which is by the church, but Terri had seen that the other day.

All of the apartments were very nice! One had an incredible view of the bay where all the cruise ships come in.

 

In the afternoon we went to visit a home-bound member to give him the sacrament. He was a very faithful member, who has been ill for some time so hasn’t been able to come to church.

 

Terri and I went back to our condo so that the Thompsons could spend time packing and perhaps go to the beach.

On Friday we did errands—went to mail stuff, pay some bills (strangely enough, most bills on the island are paid for in cash, or you have to go to their office as you cannot pay on-line). The lines here at the stores, at banks, at utility companies, at government offices, etc., are VERY long. They never have enough people working to service their customers. And, they are all on ‘island time’, meaning, no one is in a hurry. Fortunately many places have a ‘senior line’ for those older than 60. These are almost always shorter. One obvious perk for us!

Friday night was busy: we had a church meeting, three LDS sailors had invited the ward to their boat, and there was a youth bon fire on the beach.

While driving around on errands I had stopped to get some extra maps. While there three men saw our missionary badges and came to talk with us. The owner Martin Frey was from Salt Lake—he actually lives very near where I grew up on Cottonwood Lane!—and two others were sailing around the world and visiting small LDS congregations along the way. They were in St Martin getting a part for their boat. The invited us, and the Ward, to come see the boat and have a party. We were all for that!

The boat was fantastic! It was a 57 foot catamaran with about 100 foot mast. It had four bedrooms (two on each side) and great living/kitchen area, and lots of room.

After going to tour the boat for an hour or so, we went to the beach, not far from where we are staying, for the youth fireside. They started a small bon fire, and had a missionary, the Branch President, and Martin Frey from the boat, say a few words. Then we ate hot dogs, cooked marshmallows, and had some cake (they had brought a farewell cake for the Thompsons).

Saturday we go to help clean the church and have a District training meeting that night. We are getting independent…we have the truck and Terri has officially taken over the Medical phone from Sister Thompson. They are staying home to pack.

The French Side

ST Martin 4/8/15

  one of the huge ocean liners that come to the island

  the trash dump for the island

  you can see how dry the island is! a small fire would burn the whole thing down!

This is the Weston Resort on the Atlantic side of the island. The waves are much bigger here than on the west side where we live.

This is the view from the restaurant we ate at for lunch

 

It is good luck to have butterflies land on you… Elder Thompson has YEARS of good luck coming to him, as butterflies seemed to perch on him a lot!

This is the very exclusive resort. There is a small road that goes up and over the mountain, down a very steep grade to the ocean.

we watched this guy for a while, he was pretty good for a first timer.

This is a view of the exclusive resort from the top of the hill. It is a gated community with lots of cameras, etc., but they have to let you in to use the beach–they just make it difficult!

This is the French quarter and downtown on the French side of the island.

That night we met a few members for a going away dinner with the Thompsons at a Chinese restaurant.

These are the gelato machines at the ice cream place we went. They told us they are the same kind that Pat used and sold and trained people on in Italy! The gelato was very good, but expensive!

We had some errands to do, and eventually pick-up missionaries at the French airport on the other side of the island, so we also toured the island a little bit and also went to the butterfly farm!

We stopped to pay some bills, met the owner of one of the missionary apartments, met the insurance lady, etc. For lunch we ate at a seaside restaurant on the French side and had a great meal.

We also stopped at the butterfly farm: Wow! It was wonderful! Hundreds of butterflies.

We went to the airport to meet two new missionaries coming to the island: a sister and an elder.

We toured the back side of the island where there was a very exclusive resort (all the beaches are public, so anyone can go to any beach). It was hard to get to the beach, but it was beautiful. There was someone trying to use jet boots in the water!

We drove through the French quarter, and eventually made a circle of the island. After getting back we went back to our room for a rest, only to head out to dinner with some members at a Chinese restaurant.

After dinner we stopped for ice cream…well, gelato! We met the owner and told him Terri’s brother worked in Italy for a gelato company. He then proudly showed us his gelato machines—the same ones Pat sold and worked for. The owner said they were expensive, but were the best. He spent a lot of time trying new flavors and combinations. The store is very popular, and has a real carousel.

Then it was bedtime. Tomorrow we go to inspect the missionary apartments.

Maho beach

We attended our first weekly District meeting with the missionaries this morning. We heard from each pair the progress they are making with their investigators and success with members. They also reviewed a map of St Martin and outlined the areas each missionary pair should be working in (I guess there has been some confusion about the matter). The District leader handled it very professionally and clarity.

They gave time for each of the two missionaries who are leaving due to transfers, to bear their testimony and tell about what they have learned while working on the island.

They also gave a few minutes for Terri and I to introduce ourselves and bear our testimonies. Next week the Thompsons will be given time to bear farewell testimonies.

After the meeting we traveled with the Thompsons to Maho beach (where the planes land) and a restaurant called Sunset Beach, to eat lunch and see the big planes come in with all the people on the beach waiting underneath! It was quite a site.

  It was very crowded at the beach as it is a very popular place for those visiting the island to come.

 There was great live music playing–really very good! But it was also very loud, so hard to hear if you want to talk!

After lunch we ran some errands so that we would know where the bank, pharmacy, hospital, etc., are located. Tonight we went back to our condo and cooked home-made tacos, then spent some time on the computer with taxes and other stuff.

Here are some pics of the island, as we drove around on errands:

 

 

We are excited about working with the missionaries here. They seem to be great missionaries who work hard and have the spirit. They have a number of baptisms scheduled and quite a few investigators. We assured them that we were here to aid them in their work.

Tomorrow we continue to be tutored by the Thompsons about our responsibilities here, and shown around the island. Thursday we inspect all of the missionary apartments. So it will be a busy week. I just hope we can remember everything once the Thompsons leave!

One great perk on the island: most banks and offices have ‘senior citizen’ lines—special lines just for seniors (over 60 yrs old), that are much shorter and quicker to get through! The bank lines were really long (20+ people with just a couple of tellers), yet we only had to wait a few minutes! See, there are benefits to being old!

P-day in St Martin

We had our first preparation day (day off) in St Martin today (Mondays are usually a day off for missionaries where we can do household chores, and recreation).

Today, Terri and I hit the beach!

 This is the beach just below the place we are staying until the Thompsons go home.

We watched one large private ship leave and one very large cruise liner arrive.

 

 

We went out to eat at Pineapple Pete’s for dinner. Wow. So far, there has been no bad food here on the island. I think we will be fat and happy…

 

Tomorrow we attend District Meeting with the missionaries, and we spent part of the day going over billing and expenses with Elder Thompson (so we aren’t complete slackers!).

First day on the Simpson Bay Resort beach

It’s P-Day and as the Thompsons prepare to leave, we had a day to explore the resort’s beach. Very nice. There were lovely gentlemen there to take lounge chairs and an umbrella wherever we wanted. Actually went into the water. It was colder than it was in Zuhuatinejo, but nice once we actually went down into the water. We watched a huge yacht leave, which I guess is what they do at this time of year. They stay here for the wi tee and then move to the Mediterranean for the spring and summer – they don’t want to be here for hurricane season. We also watched a cruise ship come in. I believe there are two ships due today. There’s actually a daily report in the newspaper.

   Looking up the beach   

 Yacht in the bay. I hear there is a crew of 30. 

Cruise ship coming into port.

  

From Trinidad to Sint Maarten/St. Martin

We left Trinidad at 3 PM and arrived just 15 minutes late at just after 9 PM. That is pretty good for a flight that landed on four different islands prior to St. Martin (SXM). Below are some pictures from the plane.

Pics coming . . .  I’m trying to figure out how to get them off my iPad.

Arriving in St Martin

We had a wonderful time in Trinidad—loved the small hotel we stayed in, got to know the office couples, and were able to meet President and Sister Mehr—but Friday came and it was time to move on and travel to St Martin.

Our last meeting in Trinidad. We left with mixed feelings: it would have been nice to stay longer (we loved the couples there!), but were anxious to get to St Martin.

 

We had a very long day. The plane departed at 3pm, so we got to the airport early (2 hours) but were still one of the last to get to the counter (there was already a very long line). They randomly inspect bags, and Terri’s was chosen to inspect…but it went ok, even with all of her medical stuff.

When we left Utah, we checked two bags and took two carry-on bags. But the planes here are so small we had to check all four bags (and the carry-on had to weigh less than 16 lbs.). Because of the size of the plane they weighed everything, even your carry-on bags! (On Tinian the planes were so small they even weighed the passengers!).

So we left Trinidad and stopped at a number of islands along the way. There are an amazing number of islands along this chain from Puerto Rico down to Trinidad (which is close enough to Venezuela to be able to see it on a clear day).

Typical island-hopping plane we took to St Martin

 

We made one stop at St Vincent, a beautiful island that is very mountainous with lots of large mansions overlooking the cliffs. The runway was tucked into the hills and was short—so there was heavy breaking after landing and full-throttle before releasing the brakes when leaving!

We next went to Barbados, a very large island, and very flat (a Tsunami would take out the whole island!). We had to change planes there, but it was a short turn-around, and we were off to Antiqua.

It was getting dark so it was more difficult to see the next islands, but we could see many more islands (and lights from islands) as we flew.

After Antigua we went to St Kitts. By this time we were completely lost. I couldn’t remember which island we were at, or if we had missed our stop… we just had to listen to the announcement for St Martin!

We finally got to St Martin about 9pm, but, unlike getting into Trinidad, there was no problem getting into St Martin. They hardly looked at us, and there was no paperwork we had to fill out.

The Thompsons were waiting for us after collecting our bags. They were very kind and took us out for Pizza, as we had not eaten much all day. It was immediately clear that this would be a very different mission! This was better than First World…they had everything! We have been put in a lovely hotel / resort called Simpson Bay for the 10 days prior to the Thompsons leaving. It is a beautiful ocean-side resort with 6 swimming pools, and our unit has its own kitchen.

We did get a chance to stop by their apartment for a look-see. I think we will be very comfortable there. It is about the same size as our apartment in the Congo: a living room/dining room area, small kitchen, one bedroom with storage, and a bathroom with shower. They do have two small balconies that overlook Simpson Bay…eat your hearts out!

All buildings have heavy hurricane shutters. They roll up and down automatically, and are used for security also. This is the front door of the apartment!

This is the view from the front porch/patio (there is also a small patio off the bedroom)

The front door after the hurricane shutter is raised.

The living room/dining room

The small kitchen

The apartment comes furnished, and has one parking spot for the truck.

This is the bedroom, overlooking the same view.

 

It has a small bathroom and shower, with some storage.

You can even drink the water!

The next day, Saturday, we went to the chapel to clean the building and prep for Conference. Then we spent the rest of the day watching conference, meeting the missionaries and various members, and eating more great food at little cafes (breakfast was eating at a French bakery… quiche and pan du chocolate…). We stopped and got groceries at the Grande Marche (a French grocery store), where we found all of our favorite foods from the Congo! We even found Crisco! (Something that was like gold in the Congo). That night for dinner we ate French bread and juice we had come to love in the Congo.

Sunday we will spend watching conference, and on Monday we will start to learn our duties from the Thompsons.

The two sister missionaries serving on St Martin. The one on the left is being transferred this week.

 

The grocery store (Grand Marche) has everything a Frenchman could desire! It even has a stock of Crisco… eat your hearts out Congo couples!

 

Conference was great. Of course, Terri jumped right in helping set-up the audio/visual and fixing problems. We met the new Branch President and counselors, and a few members, and all the missionaries. It should be a fun stay!