First Day in Our New Ward

We have been looking forward to attending our new ward, Harvest Hills 6th Ward, and today was the day! I must say that we were not disappointed. Sacrament Meeting was first, and even with low attendance of Thanksgiving weekend, there was still a need for nine brethren passing the sacrament! We sat on the last row in the chapel, and I suppressed the urge to turn around to see how many people were there, back in the folding chairs in the cultural hall, but there must have been a lot. It was a sweet experience for me to partake of the sacrament in our new ward. I felt and feel so blessed to be here, and felt the spirit in that meeting. Next was Sunday School, which was held in the other cultural hall (we meet in the Stake Center, which is why there are two cultural halls.) Brother Thomas taught the lesson on Pure Religion, which covers the book of James from the New Testament. According to the ward web site on lds.org, we were supposed to be having 1, 2 and 3 John, which is what Opa and I studied for, so I guess they are behind a couple of weeks. No matter, even though we had already had this lesson in Mobile, we enjoyed it so much here. Again, a very sweet spirit permeated the class, as Bro. Thomas taught the lesson, utilizing a clip from Elder Holland's May 07 conference address, concerning bridling the tongue. There were appropriate comments from the class members, and we both left class feeling fulfilled. Next was RS for me, and priesthood for Opa. I love Relief Society in this ward, having visited periodically since Lynne and Ricky moved here in 06. I really felt at home today, even though some of the sisters I have become friends with were not in attendance, due to visiting their children for the holidays. I sat with Kathleen Hansen, whom I have gotten to know, along with her daughter Shannon. They are missing Gavin! We had Teachings for our Times today, with the discussion around President Eyring's conference address "O Remember, Remember" from the recent General Conference. Great address, and great lesson taught by someone whose name I didn't catch, and again, lots of pertinant discussion and again that very tangible spirit present in the meeting. I am going to enjoy this ward! In RS, one of the brethren came in at the beginning of the meeting to ask for two sisters to feed the missionaries on two different dates in December. Quite a change from the missionary dinner calendar going around weekly in Mobile! Opa told me how much he enjoyed Priesthood meeting today. He said that Ray Hansen (Kathleen's husband) taught the same TFOT lesson that we had in RS and that he did an excellent job teaching.

So we drove the one minute drive home from church, ate lunch, and now, as soon as I finish this blog entry, I think I just might walk on back over to the church for choir practice at 2:15. They are working on some music to sing for Christmas, and I would really like to be a part of that! Then when I get back, we will go to Stace's house where we will get to help decorate the Christmas tree. And eat some delicious Thanksgiving leftovers! We had such a wonderful time spending Thanksgiving with the Vasses, Dave and Bryan, and Josh and Amanda. Rather than write all about it, I will just post some pictures I took of the day.

Signing off with love,
Mimi