Cranes and Geese

Photo Report

1. Two geese coming inCreamers Field
2. Crane coming in notice his long legs and his red top notch
3. Contrast the view from Pres. Grose's house in the Denali Branch. We spoke there two weeks ago. This picture was taken outside his house on the private air strip in front of his house and looking at the Alaskan Range.
4. Missionary picture was taken last transfer. Leaving missionaries leaving all have their missionary clothes on. This picture was taken at 7:00 a.m. with full sun in our faces so not a good picture. Sister Jenkins is from West Point, Sister Klenk (not being transferred is from SL), Elder Watt from Layton, Elder Palmer from Tooele, Elder Tuita from Tonga (the three on the right hand side). Gosh, we are sad when these kids leave, we love them!
   

Weather Report
High + 60 Low + 27
Daylight Report: Sunrise 4:57 Sunset 10:43
For a total this weekend of 17 hours and 46 minutes of sunlight.

The sky is so pretty at night now. We had Sister Klenk the other night and her companion didn't get here until 1:00 a.m. so we were outside and the sky was the most clear beautiful blue. It is not really very dark at night and it reminded us that it is only 6 1/2 weeks and there will be 21 hours of daylight on June 21st.

We are the stop off point for the sisters when they get their transfers. We have transfers every six weeks and that is how we keep time here in the mission. Every thing happens from one transfer to another transfer. The elders do pretty good but the sisters have had a lot of bad luck. Sister Jenkins was here the whole three transfers that we have been here but she has had 5 different companions. Two of them got sick, the third one had to go home to have surgery, the next one was a sister Rep who was sent back to Anchorage 3 weeks before she went home, and then she had Sister Klenk for just two weeks before sister Jenkins was transferred to Wasilla. Then we had Sister Klenk (pronounced Klink) for the two weeks with Sister Jenkins.
At that transfer they sent up a visa waiter (a missionary who is waiting to go somewhere else, in this case Sister Dent was waiting to go to Spain and her visa hadn't come through yet). So at this point we had Sisters Klenk and Dent, pretty funny. Well Sister Dent was here Monday night at 11:00 p.m. and she got her visa the very next day so she left at 11:00 a.m. on Thursday and her replacement didn't arrive until Friday night at 1:00 a.m.

So we had Sister Klenk for a companion twice this week and Sister Jenkins at everyone of her transfers. That is not the funnest part of Elder Robbins missionary work. Speaking of fun parts we just got notice from the mission president that he wants us to do the missionary apartment inspections.

Neither of us are happy about that little job! Last month we spent two weeks apartment hunting for the Elders so you can see we do have variety in our job description.
We were transferred this week from Fairbanks 2nd ward to Fairbanks 3rd ward.
I cried when Pres. Wood told us we would be leaving 2nd ward. I just hadn't realized how much I had fallen in love with that little ward. They are the poorest ward in the stake and struggling so in their pool for ward leadership. But the interesting thing is that they have the most baptisms.

There is plenty to do for the members. One Hispanic fellow who joined the church last October came home after doing two or three ward jobs as well as his home teaching in one day. His wife said he dropped on the couch and said, "This Mormon stuff sure is hard work!" Then there is a little Philippian gal who told the bishop a couple of weeks ago, "There is just too much Mormon!" Both of these brand new converts, baptized just last October, are wonderful people and we have gotten them both involved in their family history. Sister Alexander is so excited as she reads the films from the Philippians and sees her family names. Br. Rodriguez is taking his father and mother's names to the temple next week and is so excited.

Spring is in the air in Fairbanks and according to what everyone tells us in two weeks everything will be covered in green growing things. It is fun to see all the people and children outside playing, walking, talking, laughing and just so happy to see sunshine and feel warm. I don't know how happy we really are because I told you last winter that I didn't feel any pain from my arthritis. No thumb, knee, or back problems and I could sleep all night with no pain. Not so the past couple of weeks. They tell me that it is because it is so dry in the winter and now we have water everywhere. By the way this also brings mosquitoes which we are not looking forward. But we are just enjoying being able to take nice long walks. And there is so many places to walk. Tonight we walked out by the airport, Burt wanted to see the float planes. The water is still frozen so no float planes on the water but a lot tied up with their floats on just waiting for break up. We saw something we have never seen before and it was an air plane campground.

Each site is just like a camp site in the lower 48 except there is a spot to tie up your plane and a place for your tent. It was so nice with restrooms, showers, pavilions, fire pits and even a place to hang a dutch oven. Then right in the middle was a phone booth. I have never seen a phone booth at a camp site before. You could stay one night free and after that it was $5.00 a night. You pay your fee and put your ticket in the window of your plane.
So fun!
The birds came and went at Creamers Field. It was so fun to see the hundreds of Geese, ducks, swans, cranes etc. We drove up there about every other day and there was always a line of cars. People take their lunch and just sit and watch them. Fascinating! This past week there weren't many birds and it was kind of sad to see them come and go so fast. Spring is wonderful in Alaska! Haven't seen any hungry bears come out of hibernation yet, much to Elder Robbins delight.

Lara reminded me that I didn't write last week. I guess when I don't hear from kids I just assume I just wrote. Hint, hint!
Love you and God bless you all,
Sister Mom