I'll start at the most recent of our experiences. This is a photo of us with Gantumur and Oyunjargal. They came to the temple the last few days of August and the first three days of September and were sealed. They are both returned missionaries, both of them having served in Russia.
They wre delighted to be with us and we had a great time at the temple with them. They are great kids. She had finished her medical training--8 years--as a gynecologist before her mission. She learned about the church during her last year of school, joined the church and went on her mission a year later. He is an engineering graduate and works as an engineer at Boro Gold. Prior to his mission he came to UB from him home in the countryside of the Bulgan Aimag and was taught the gospel. He joined the church and later served as first counselor in the Enkhtaivan branch presidency before being released to serve his mission.
Kathy is the mother hen. She makes sure that these kids have a great experience with there wedding day at the temple. No one else from visiting countries get the attention and have their pictures taken with the bride in a white wedding dress. They have three dresses at the temple and Kathy sees that each of the girls get to dress in white for pictures.Visit to Mongolia--August 27 to September 2
We spent a week in Mongolia from August 27 to September 3. On our arrival on Thursday, August 27, Soyolmaa had alerted many of our friends and announced we were coming. She then orchestrated a pot-luck dinner for us on Thursday night. There were 61 in attendance. We had the greatest of times in a happy reunion.
Soyomaa was the happiest of all. I'm not sure she ate anything because she spent all her time going around taking pictures of everyone. She is now the service center manager and everyone who has anything to do with the temporal affairs of the church say that she is far and away the best manager ever in Mongolia. From members to senior missionaries to staff to the mission president, they all love her.
There was lots of food and everyone had all they could eat.
One of the most exciting things about going home was to see our returned missionaries starting their families. There has never been a time like this in the church in Mongolia where there are so many babies being born and being born to returned missionaries. About half of them are already sealed in the temple and their children born in the covenant. There are another 8 or ten couples who want to come to the temple in November if they can get financing. This picture was taken at the end of our party and a few of the couples with children had gone home.
We got up early on Friday morning and went for a walk to Sukhbaatar square. The government has remodeled the parlimentary building and they have made it beautiful--with a heavy emphasis on Chinggis Khan.
On Saturday morning Odgerel had his seminary and institute in-service training for all of the seminary and institute teachers in the country. He had 100% of his teachers attend. He asked Elder Gibbons to give the opening address. We had a great time with them.
Four and a half years ago, we went to Mongolia to work with CES. One of the first people I met was Enkhbayar--a skinny, shy 18 year old who was a seminary teacher!!!!! I couldn't believe it. He didn't even have any self-confidence. I wondered how he was chosen. But he was faithful in meeting his classes.
Today he is a returned missionary and teaching institute!! Here he is making a presentation during the in-service training. He was so poised and confident. I was again deeply touched by the change that comes by living the gospel of Jesus Christ. Enkhbayar was a giant in my eyes today.
We left the in-service at noon to keep an appointment with the Caldwells and visit a garden project of one of our members. We had provided vegetable seed to some of the members with humanitarian money and we wanted to see how the gardens were doing in Mongolia. This is Chinbaatar's Cabbage patch. His garden was impressive.
He was so proud of his produce. He had a little hot house where he was growing cucumbers and squash. His cucumbers were phenomenal. He plants were so healthy and robust. As we visited about his gardening efforts, his wife kept picking produce and stuffing it into plastic sacks. Each Sister got a sack full of cabbage, lettuce, red beets, chives and selantro. They were as generous as they were proud.
Back at the church, a young woman--a full time missionary came running up to us and asked if we could remember her. She had been taught the gospel by the missionaries in our home when we were here on our mission. She is just finishing her mission and is just a delightful young woman. It is so gratifying to see the harvest of souls--the harvest in the vegetable garden was exciting for those who planted the seed, but this kind of harvest is eternal and the joy therefrom will never end.
Altansukh heard we were in the country and so drove from Erdenet just to see us and update us on his life. He is married to the returned missionary--Delgerotgon--who we first met in Liberty Jail where she was serving her mission many years ago. Altansukh regards us as his parents and is so loyal to our friendship.
We hardly had time to turn around when Mungunchavdas came up and hugged us. She had her baby and a beautiful smile. She reminded us that she was an older single when we were here and had taken our 'Preparing for Celestial Marriage' class that we had taught to the single adults. She told us how she longed to be married, but because of the class determined that she wouldn't marry out of the Church, but that she would live faithfully and trust in the Lord's promises. Some time later, she met a good member of the church and they were married and now have a little boy--and great joy and trust in the Lord's promises.
We were in the MTC with Sister Naranjargal. She was so happy to see us. When we were in the MTC she was so delightful there but now much more so. She had just returned to Mongolia and was waiting for President Anderson to return to the city so she could be released. She goes home to Choibalsan where there is nothing for her. I pray for her and her future. She is beautiful inside as well as on the outside and I want the very best for her.
In June of 2006 we visited the reindeer people in Northern Mongolia by Huvsgul lake near the Russian border. We met a young 14 year old by in the reindeer camp and he was selling trinkets to try to earn some money. He was happy to see us because his older sister had joined the 'Mormons' and had just entered the MTC to go to the Pocatello, Idaho mission. He wanted to learn more about the church.
He came up to us in the Church and said, "Elder and Sister Gibbons, do you remember me?' We didn't!! He was quick to refresh our memory and told us that we had met one afternoon in a reindeer camp in a remote area of Mongolia over four years ago. He is now here in UB. He arrived three days ago and yesterday got a job. He is saving to go on a mission as soon as he turns 19. What a miracle!!! From being a reindeer herder and trinket seller in one of the most remote corners of the earth to being a missionary for a church that was organized in upstate New York in America. The God who notices the sparrow's fall certainly knows His children and their premortal covenants and sees that the missioanries find them wherever they are.
It seems like we were eating out every night. We had the pot-luck on Thursday. On Friday night Tselmegsaikhan and Natsagdorj had us over. They are so good to us and wanted us to be as proud of our 'grandson' as they are. He warmed right up to us and giggled as we played with him. Tselmeg was our translator for the Preparing for Celestial Marriage class and she has one now. They were sealed last October here in Hong Kong. We really love these kids.
On Saturday night we came back from the garden project and then met President Odgerel and he drove us to his home where he are Ariunaa prepared a wonderful dinner for us. We had a great evening with them They have a new apartment and have been blessed so much by the Lrod and they are the first to acknowledge His hand in their blessings. Their lives are a testimony of the Lord fulfilling His promises to His faithful children. The evening we spent with them will be an evening long to remember.
On Tuesday night, Enkhbayar invited us to his home. He and Uyanga live with his parents--Dashdavaa and Enkhjargal. The girls had worked all afternoon preparing a dinner for us. It was a true Mongolian dinner with Buuz and potato salad and carrot and cabbage salad and a drink that was hot water with raisens in it. They were so appreciative that we could come to their home. They didn't want us to leave and there were lots of tears when we finally broke ourselves away and went back to the hotel.
Enkhamgalan and Purevjargal and Zolo have been friends from the beginning. They are part of a large extended family who consider us their own family. These three have been close since we met Zolo in Provo when we were at the MTC for our Mongolian mission. We had dinner Monday night with Pujee and Zolo and then went to a Mongolian musical and drama production with them. Enkhamgalan was in the countryside, but he returned to see us before we left and they took us to the airport. They would have no talk of this being our last time together. Enkhamgalan simply smiled and said that the family would see us in Hong Kong in November at Kowloon Tong--where the temple is. They have been sealed, but they will come again
We had been in training all week and then attended Zone conference on Tuesday morning. We hadn't taken a break and so we had lunch with the Caldwells--picnic style in the garden at the church--and then we left for a three hour drive in the countryside--out to Terelj and back.
We had to stop and be falconeers for a minute. This time we did so with a large Golden Eagle.
A quick camel ride was in the plan and after a slow walk away from the camp, this old by was in a hurry to get back.
A final look at the country in the fall. It will soon be winter and it will probably not take more than a couple of more weeks to come.A day out at Ocean Park--A popular theme park in Hong Kong
Kathy and I went with the Woolseys on Sister Woolsey's birthday to Ocean Park. This is a Disney style theme park. We went on a couple of rides and saw a lot of people.
The ride on the tram was fun. It traverses a couple of mountains and takes you to the part of the park where the rides are. We had a fast ride on the rollercoaster. I was reminded again that Heavenly Father put my body parts in the place where they should be and this mixing them all up wasn't part of the plan.
The big draw in the park is the Panda bears. This one wasn't about to show us any of his stuff.
This one however, was very entertaining and showed us just how to eat bamboo leaves. Next time I make a meal of them I will know how to do it.Stage three of the MacHelose Trail on a Veeerrry hot day.
Getting out of the city and being in the quiet mountains is so therapeutic. Elder Woolsey and I got fairly often and thoroughly enjoy the beautiful scenery.
This is typical of the many views we get. The day was clear and hot and there was some haze that kept us from having pictures that were breathtaking.
This was early on in the hike. We had just scaled the first mountain. Tolo Harbor in the background.
The trail ahead. Continuous down and then back up.
By this time, the heat and the climbing was starting to wear on Elder Woolsey and I feared another repeat of our earlier hike when we weren't sure he would make it. This trail was very different from the Wilson trail. There were almost no steps and the rock trail was punishing on the feet.
But the scenery made us forget that we were beating ourselves up. We got plenty of water down Elder Woolsey and slowed the pace and finished the hike in just one hour longer than the book said we should take.
Looking back at the trail where we have been. As hot as it was, it was still exhilarating to be out and see this. I would have missed so much by not hiking and staying in the city.
Another view of Tolo Harbor extending to the ocean.
