Week of 20250928 - Ghana Week 81: President Nelson; Pig Roast; 20 Bicycles from Takoradi; Google Sheets; Elmina; General Conference
= Sunday, we learned that the President of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Russell M Nelson, has died (at 101): an amazing and loving man.
= Sacrament thought: God gives us rules to follow because He loves us.\
= Sunday School thought: We are all part of a group that seeks to do God’s will with his power and authority.
= Monday, we joined a pig roast at the house of Elder and Sister Campbell in Twifo Praso.
= Tuesday, I drove Brother Bright's truck to Takoradi, he drove the mission van, and we bought 20 bicycles for the mission (arranged for by President Tachie-Menson).
= Wednesday, I concluded that I could make Google Sheets (preferred by the Office Elders) substitute for Excel for the Apartment Issues workbook, but formulas break when exporting out of Google Drive. [sigh]
= Thursday, we drove to Elmina in the rain, did an apartment inspection, and swapped two bicycles. Home, Steph transformed leftovers into a meal; I sang Christmas songs while Steph conducted.
= Friday, an office meeting started before 0930; Steph gave a spiritual thought based on the beginning of the twenty-third psalm. We worked on mission issues. We had Pizza Hut pizza while we watched Paycheck (good), then Star Trek - Next Generation; we relaxed.
= Saturday, we watched two sessions of General Conference. Two takeaways from the first: My heart has learned to love in languages I do not speak. It is not just about what we do, but why we do it. Two takeaways from the second: The family is ordained by God. Prioritize the things you *can* do; be patient with yourself.
The missionary who posted this added the admonition that we give ourselves when we embark on a mission: Return with Honor. President Nelson surely did that. [Posting this, I'm teared up again.]
I checked the water meter, unreadable in this photo. I was reminding myself that the little gear was spinning, and that was the important thing.
Our "road" was slipperier than usual.
Can we get those chairs up there too?
The downside of this hill looks steeper than usual in this subdued light.
This football goal is a crossroads, even without a ball.
Unusual construction: piers are usually rebar and cement.
The site of that building will be a big business when it's complete.
Walking away from the village
We hoped that loose rock would stay put.
Neighbors there have made a double stove. The mud is renewed periodically.
[no idea what was on his mind]
Waiting for a ride
Little is wasted.
The dark one on the right seems to ask: "What are you looking at?"
Another view of that construction site
Clothes, spread out to dry
Beckykay Foundation provided these (probably restrooms)
[supported by Becky Kay restaurant in Cape Coast]
A dental clinic that does much more than dentistry
Dumpster contents aren't compacted in place; dumpsters are open at the top and are carried elsewhere to dump.
Ebinom Ntease {Some Understand}
I don't know whose tracks form a half-circle; the others are probably ours.
Heating peas in the steamer above rice
[It heated them, but canned peas here are hard; this did nothing to soften them.]
Rice; shredded fake spam; peas; shredded pickles; honey; balsamic vinegar; fig jam.
Across from the Audit building on our "road"; planks supported by bamboo are the bottom of what will be forms for rebar-cement girders
Eden Lodge Hotel - Annex is
above an Ashfoam distributor from which we have bought many mattresses for missionary apartments. The annex is across from Hutchland Bakery (at the back of the gas station) where we first had corn on pizza
Researching, I had not realized Eden Lodge (near us) was probably a good place to stay, tho' not fancy.
I often forget that cities have many unrelated stores near each other. This building advertises Aunty Ameila's Restaurant and Pub; Goldlink micro credit services; Redmond Machinery tools and equipment [probably out of business]; True God's Power Bridal Centre; and Mothercare kids' wear.
.
Nyame na ɔdze ma {God is the one who gives it}
Ebenezer Nyame {Stone of Help - God}
The load is slipping onto the ground.
Mfuom. The white box at left hides our church sign. Missionaries live on the other side, about a half-block before this point.
Our relatively new sign at this turn vanished a while ago. (Here's where we drive up the hill to a point above the rented house where we worship.)
The jungle looks like it's winning. Imagine an animal at left, crouching over the road.
Akoben {Adinka symbol for war horn}
Ohene Adwa {King Adwa}
[The symbol looks like a stool: a throne in this part of the world.]
Obi Nka Obi {No one should bite another} [The symbol is of two fishes biting each other's tails.]
Ese Ne Tekrema {Teeth and Tongue} [They play independent but complementary roles in the mouth: friendship, cooperation, interdependence]
Nsroma {Star} {Child of the Heavens}
[start with adinkrasymbols.org]
I think these are dirty diapers, never seen in burn piles
We're everywhere, even in someone's home to start. Steph remembers attending services in the States in the back of an insurance office.
This stretch has empty shops.
Road does not imply smooth
The van says Forget Obiaa {Everyone}.
Many homes are beautiful.
My God Is Able Electronics
Forever Young International School. We have attended District Conferences there.
This fancy taxi almost seems to have an escort.
This wide dirt road is a sign of progress.
When words are not enough
[Ecobank]
The Hemang chapel. We baptize our new members in the font in this building, and we've led and attended District training here.
We don't know what this is, but it's very big..
This sign posted by Twifo Oil Palm Plantations says: Warning - No open defecation here.
Not much room to stay on the pavement
And then there's dodging of traffic humps. Notice a man at the right is rolling a tire.
Once advertised, now no name
Plates have been inserted along the sides to hold a larger load.
[What a name!]
KKs: sign of a populated area
A major T intersection, less-crowded than usual
Psalm 28:1 - Unto thee will I cry, O LORD my rock; be not silent to me: lest, if thou be silent to me, I become like them that go down into the pit.
I like verse 7 - The LORD is my strength and my shield; my heart trusted in him, and I am helped: therefore my heart greatly rejoiceth; and with my song will I praise him.
[Fits with the Psalm]
My guess, based on the ladder extending above the top, is that it might be half-built.
And from here, start looking for the Campbells up the hill to our left..
Old doors direct heat to the pig. They are held by what might be old bed supports.
Seniors, imagine sentiments like this on your refrigerator where you serve.
Beginning to unbury more pig
Photo for friends back home
And the pit is empty; it will be refilled from a pile of dirt set aside.
Here comes the pig from the spit
..
The Tachie-Mensons are here.
..
Shortly after the Dimmicks arrived, we said our good-byes. It was warm, we had been there a while, and I knew we wouldn't get home until after dark.
We paused only a few kilometers away. I had spotted sneakers that appeared that they might fit Steph so we could walk together.
Nyame ne me boafo {God is my Helper}
Some gravestones have photos, big photos.
Twifo Oil Palm Plantations Ltd. is a big firm. This main location has a residential area, golf course, and primary and junior-high schools.
Most mowing here is done by hand, by cutlass.
The usual technique is to lean on a stick held in one hand while you swing your cutlass with the other.
Twifo Oil Palm Plantations Ltd. has at this location the head office, clinic, mill village, oil mill, Mampong Divisional Office, and a residential area.
Will they wait, or will they flow across the street in front of us?
We moved between the groups in the oncoming lane.
A side of the Hemang chapel property
Passing Forever Young school
Agya Di Yen Kan {[The] Father Leads Us}
Luggage, probably for sale
Fa wo ho adwen {Think about yourself}
I don't know which branch this is. My hand-held camera doesn't do GPS.
Future boat keels, perhaps
A second load
Getting dark in wooded area
The Mission van and Office Elders' truck, also coming from the Campbells. They left later but passed us here.
Carrying plastic oil drums
Football players on the defense
..
Most drivers obey traffic lights here.
And a little more crowded
Both low-beam headlights worked this evening.
We removed seats from the van so it could carry more bicycles.
Installation and coronation of the 26th King of Denkyira
[The stool, a throne, symbolizes his position; the black shroud symbolizes a blackened stool: the death of the previous ruler.]
He comes - not just as a king, not merely a ruler - but as the divine rope that binds the soul of the Denkyira kingdom
[The British used to say things like this about their rulers.]
We see many such cameras; we have only guesses about their use.
Zooming in the previous image, a distant boat
Nae MebrÉ› {And I'm tired}
Brother Bright, driving the mission van
You can make out the the mission van in the distance. Brother Bright had to wait for me a couple of times.
When others found their way past this thing, I rode behind it for a while (having seen that there was another load just like it not far ahead).
And then this thing passed.
I could see to pass one vehicle, but not eight (and likely more).
It took up a lot of space.
The ad is for varieties of instant gari.
I'm reminded of an ad I once posted for Toastmasters: If you're not the lead dog, the view never changes.
I gained a change in scenery and appeared to have spotted the mission van.
A reminder that there is oncoming traffic. And, far ahead is the mission van, which has reflective tape on the left side (seen in the previous photo but not on the right (as seen in this photo).
I had not appreciated the complexity of concrete uses.
Catching a break near a defunct toll barrier that I consider the edge of the Central region, heading to the Western region. We pass.
The last weird object is now clearly in view.
You don't need a shop; a patch of ground will do.
Seeing past this truck is not easy.
Usually you rent the ground floor while you add the rest. This building is almost finished, but it's unclear that it has any tenants yet.
Brick kilns made of bricks?
Nyame Ne Me Boafo {God Is My Helper} - Casket Center
Grave clearly visible from the street
They carry cutlasses the way we used to carry pocket knives.
Wo Daakye {Your Future} Land Surveying Consult and Bulent Construction
Boafo Nye Nyame {The Helper Is God}
I think this is where Steph bought shirts on a previous trip.
It's a meme here to prefix sayings with "Still".
In this case, only the prefix is here.
Except for walkers, the railroad tracks below are empty, as usual.
I hoped it was just the road tilting.
Nope, he is leaning.
I was asked to squeeze Brother Bright's truck as much as possible into this gap. This is a busy street; there was no room to look at the bicycles outside of the shop. Bicycles were almost this close to each other in the shop. Brother Bright did notice that some bikes lacked hand grips; those were installed on the spot.
Half of the payment for 20 had been sent via MoMo. I provided the other half in cash when all had been loaded.
They eventually loaded ten bicycles onto this truck!
This highway has improved much since Steph and I drove it for the first time; it's within Takoradi.
If I look grim, it's because I have to drive these bicycles for a few hours back to Cape Coast [grin].
These look larger than our local craft.
Odd to see brooms with long handles. The man in the background is helping a lady position her load.
[nice name]
Yes, bicycles are dangling beyond the driver's side of the truck that I'm driving.
One of our church buildings
A passenger stop extends over a steep drop; sheep graze. This is a suburb of Takoradi.
Carrying his tool: a short-handled shovel
The van says "Cloud". The object it's carrying looks as if it could be a cloud, fighting to get out.
Wouldn't be easier to unroll the mattress?
Aseda Nka Nyame {Thanks Be to God}
DSCF4536
Psalm 23:4 - Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
They're each pushing a set of wheels with their stick.
She carries on her head; he carries under an arm.
If you need to go somewhere, usually you walk.
Kae MebrÉ› {Remember, I'm tired}
What does this remind you of?
<music>If he catches you, you're through</music>
[probably TwerÉ› Nyame {Writings of God}]
Wood stacked without cover :(
We are going so slowly that the cyclist is passing us.
See him still? And at this point the ground is leveling off.
The aboboyaa is passing the truck that I'm stuck behind.
Missionary tested; missionary approved
(Ten in the truck; ten in the van)
Sister Dimmick checking out a bike
Elder Dimmick. Putting seats back in.
The low beams worked tonight.
Italian chicken and accompaniment
Don't Miss This (scripture discussion with David Butler and Grace Freeman)..
This week's podcast gave time to a field trip to the Kirkland Temple from four years ago by David Butler and Emily Belle Freeman, Grace's mom. Grace stepped in to co-host the podcast when her mom was called to be the Young Women General President for The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
My electric razor decided shortly after I arrived that contrary to markings, it didn't like charging from 220 Volts. The regulator provides smoothed voltage (about 230 volts) to the refrigerator. But it also has a 110 Volt outlet on the back.
A nice piece of equipment
Neighbors across from us dug a trench to try to protect their wall from built-up water.
{Look Successfully [Carefully]}
Pizza City does more than pizza. (We don't get the combo, but it's available.)
No coin laundry, but laundry service
That plywood is double the width of his KK.
New food joint; cute facade
Most slow down to cross the severe traffic bumps ahead; some, impatient, go around those waiting if they can.
I'm not sure what's going on here, but the aboboyaa to the right eventually started passing on the right.
Last of the shawarma, I think
Steph's usual pineapple jelly
My usual fig jam
The broken tile I deposited in this rut seems to have helped a little.
A life well lived [one hopes]: 106 years
Power in the Blood [of the Lamb]
The turn to Elmina is muddy today.
Slippery
The breakwater. Notice that half of the guard rail is missing.
View from this restaurant
We hope the entire shoreline isn't taken up by restaurants; room is needed to beach boats and haul nets.
Empty shoreline like this..
And augmenting them with ramen
..
Steph at the somewhat weekly meeting
The bicycle oil removes ink from duct tape.
Writing the numbers multiple times helps a little.
Putting clear tape over the duct tape helps also.
Ye repa {We are doing well}
The vehicle in the center is forcing oncoming traffic to the shoulder.
Boss box (in two boxes) from Pizza Hut
The bamboo holds planks that will be the bottom of cement forms, built in place.
Star Trek - Next Generation
Fried egg sandwich smothered in sweet chili sauce
[It's sweet with only a tiny bit of heat.]
Ants are leaving, taking something with them,
And finding refuge behind the connection that holds the propane tank cage in place.
General Conference weekend. We watch the ASL channel on YouTube. Fewer viewers contend for the bandwidth than with the regular channel, and we get to see the expression of the translators as a second witness to what we're hearing.
Opening prayer for this session
We go forward with this semiannual general conference, proceeding as planned and with speakers and music assigned by President Nelson after months of preparation. The only additions are this, my introductory explanation, and my speaking in place of President Nelson in the closing session on Sunday afternoon. -- President Oaks, President of the Quorum of the Twelve
Sustaining of general officers of the church by members. Years ago when we watched from church buildings, we raised our right hands there. Now we do it from our homes, signifying that we will support these leaders.
Exodus 24:3 - ¶ And Moses came and told the people all the words of the Lord, and all the judgments: and all the people answered with one voice, and said, All the words which the Lord hath said will we do.
Other individuals were proposed as general officers in the church, some old, some new
The Conference Center holds 21,000; millions watch from more than 160 countries.
If you're having difficulty sustaining anyone, counsel with your Stake President.
The morning's talks begin. Summaries here were posted to the church website after the conference,
Elder Gary E Stevenson teaches us to follow the Savior’s admonition to be peacemakers—in our hearts, at home, and in our communities.
We take notes to focus our listening, even though the talks will be available in a few days on the Internet. I capture their names from the screen so our notes will show who's speaking.
Sister Browning teaches that music can testify of the Savior and teach important gospel truths that can stay with us for a lifetime.
We like her statement: My heart has learned to love in languages that my tongue does not speak.
Elder Ronald M Barcellos invites us to give our hearts to the Lord by committing to more intentionally follow Him.
Standing for a rest hymn. I've skipped other hymns here.
Elder Brik V Eyre shares two ways to better understand what it means to be a child of God.
Elder Kelly R Johnson invites us to be reconciled to God through the Atonement of Jesus Christ.
Elder Dieter F Uchtdorf teaches that we should work to develop the gifts God has given us so they can bless us and others.
Quorum members and their wives leave first. They'll be back soon. The next session is only two hours from now.
"Church News" and short videos are broadcast between sessions. Only a couple of fragments are captured here. A video summarized the process of refurbishing the organ in the tabernacle, an historic building whose roof, like an upside down boat, allowed it to be constructed without columns. A quarter of the pipes were removed to work on its historic organ.
Elder Peter M Johnson discussed his conversion. Young actors dramatized stages of his life.
President Nelson, having a discussion with the General Primary President and some Primary children in an historic location
Saturday afternoon session. I've omitted prayers and hymns here.
Elder Ronald A Rasband shares principles from the proclamation on the family [given in 1995] and teaches that this document has a divine origin and should be treated with the reverence given to words from God.
To us, it seemed obvious 30 years ago: "... marriage between a man and a woman is ordained of God .... the family is central to the Creator’s plan for the eternal destiny of His children."
Brother Chad H Webb teaches how we can invite the Holy Ghost to teach us gospel truths.
Elder Jeremy R Jaggi teaches that we will be blessed as we keep the covenants we make with God at holy altars [in the temple].
Elder Kevin D Brown shares three truths that inform our testimonies and encourages us to choose to believe.
You'll probably see on social media a snippet from this talk: "When you know, you KNOW."
Elder Gerrit W Gong teaches that the Lord invites all of us to come unto Him and to be united with one another in His Church.
Elder Michael Cziesla teaches that applying the doctrine of Christ in a simplified way will bring us joy, give guidance in our callings, answer some of life’s most complex questions, and provide strength.
Elder Quentin L Cook teaches that as the Lord hastens His work, Church members have a sacred duty to accept and welcome new and returning members. He offers counsel for these new or returning members.
Activity
[Most are being posted as "reals" now; they vanish before I see them.]
Waiting for a ride
Little is wasted.
No comments:
Post a Comment