A sacred experience in Gabon

Sunday, December 8th I had the privilege of attending church in the West-Central African country of Gabon.  Few Westerners could place Gabon on a map, and the country is small in population, comprising only 1.5 million people.  Gabon lies on the equator and is a land of rain forests and exotic wildlife.  When I knew that I was coming to Gabon, I asked my US Embassy contacts if they knew of a member of my church that could help me get to church.  Within 5 minutes, Michael Moody emailed me back and told me that he would pick me up for church and invited me for lunch AND dinner after church.  All in 5 minutes…from Gabon!  What a world we live in.  I figured that my church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) had been established in Gabon for some time.

When Brother Moody and his family picked me up Sunday morning, I learned that I would be attending the only congregation of the church in Gabon.  I learned that the church had only existed in Gabon for about a year, and that Elder David A. Bednar of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles had dedicated Gabon in November 2013 for the preaching of the gospel.  The Moody's showed me where the dedication took place, in a beautiful arboretum by a tall tree over 200 years old - article about the dedication here:

http://www.lds.org/church/news/gabon-country-dedication-in-ancient-forest?lang=eng&country=afe

Front side of the church

The scene as I entered the Primary room.  The little boy is on the back row, second from the right.

The newness of the gospel here gave me goosebumps and I was so excited to attend church.  As I walked into the nice building that the Libreville Gabon branch used, I walked past a room of several children who were sitting so peacefully and quietly that you could hear a pin drop.  I had not planned to sit in class with the children - in fact, as I am a Primary teacher of 6 year olds in my ward in N. Virginia, this would have been an opportunity to "get a break from the kids."  However, as I looked upon these sweet, reverent spirits, I felt drawn to them.  I quietly took my place at the back of the classroom.  There was one little boy, the smallest boy in the class, that I was particularly drawn to.  He walked, but was probably less than 2 years old.  I beckoned to him and he came and sat in my lap.  That was a sweet experience.  Sister Moody soon arrived to lead the meeting.  She is a mother of 5 and a great gal.  Having learned French on her own, she beautifully led the children through their study of the Articles of Faith and through song practice for next week's primary program.  Though it was pretty hot and humid, it was great to be with these children who are so reverent and Christlike.  They surely have little in terms of possessions, but they possess the light of Christ.

I was honored to pass the Sacrament during the branch's Sacrament Meeting (the little boy wanted to take many pieces of bread, not just one (-: ).  Following a nice meeting, I got to visit with several of the Gabonese Saints.  They were very friendly and welcoming.  How grateful I was that I could speak their French language!  What a blessing that has been in my life.  I learned that very few of them have been able to go to the temple, and very few have been baptized.  Their branch is currently searching their city of Libreville (means "Free City") for a suitable pool to conduct baptisms.  They could baptize folks in the Atlantic Ocean, but there is some pollution in the water.  I feel spoiled to have easily had the spiritual opportunities that they have not had.  But the church is growing rapidly in Africa, and there is a great power and spirit accompanying that growth.  And today was the 1-year anniversary of this first Gabonese Branch!

1-year anniversary picture of the Libreville, Gabon branch

Little ones picking little mushrooms after church.

Following church, I got to know Elder and Sister Michael Moody Sr.  Elder and Sister Moody are the first LDS missionaries in Gabon.  They have served several missions in "austere" locations…Haiti, Tahiti, etc.  I was amazed to learn that A. Harold Goodman, Arian's grandfather, called Elder Moody to serve on the Church Music Department and that they were good friends.  Elder Moody led the creation of the 1985 church hymnbook and has composed many popular church hymns, including "This is the Christ," "Faith," etc.  The Moody's are completely devoted to the Lord and His work, and it was wonderful to be with them - they are fine examples to me.  We discussed the fact that instead of purchasing a timeshare for retirement, that their timeshare is serving missions.  It was great to get to know Brother and Sister Michael Moody, Jr. as well.  Brother Moody serves in the US Embassy in Libreville, Gabon.

From left to right: Brother and Sister Michael Moody, Jr., Yours Truly, Elder and Sister Michael Moody.

I am so thankful that I was able to share in these experiences and I look forward to many more here in Africa!

The Gabon Atlantic Ocean coastline

A day with the Amish (well sort of)

We ventured out to Amish country in Southern Pennsylvania on Saturday, October 12, 2013.  We had a delightful visit, accentuated by the fact that we avoided the incessant rain that had pelted the region during the past 2 days (6 inches in 2 days).  However, first things first.  At 0000 hours (midnight), Sat. October 12, my boys and I made a pre-trip sacred pilgrammage to a place called Gamestop, where we joined 50 other southern Pennsylvanians anxiously awaiting the release of something called Pokémon X and Y.  Surprisingly, my kids were the only people in the store under 16 (maybe that has something to do with my parenting skills).

One item of note was when an enormous man walked into the store wearing a t-shirt proclaiming "Walking Dead Survivor."  Something to consider, for sure.  He seemed a gentle giant, though, as he calmly took his place in Group 6 of the small throng amassed to pay exorbitant prices for children's entertainment.  It is also intriguing to note the niche of the GameStop employee - a group of friendly, able, unquestionably dedicated personnel to their pursuit of all things gaming.  They carry a certain spirit about them that certainly lends itself to gaming.  They were pleased to welcome the presence of the boys and quickly assured us that our Virginia Gamestop store would reimburse us the $5 that we paid for pre-ordering these games in VA.

Arriving at revered Gamestop at a bewitching hour

The transfer of property

On to the Amish...our first stop in the small but crowded village of Bird-in-Hand turned out to be a lively Amish market store.  Here we found many sweets and other precious goods to tickle our fancy, including 2 gigantic pumpkins costing only $5 each.  It was also notable that the boys were "of a pleasant demeanor" during this stop for one of the only times during our séjour this day.  We also dabbed into the neighboring hamlet of Intercourse, which is a thriving Amish tourist community in spite of being the butt of countless jokes.

Making apple cider doughnuts

It appears difficult to actually be with the Amish, rather than find the tourist perspective of the Amish, but we gave it the old college try.  What I can conclude is that the Amish are dedicated people, talented farmers, and fairly reserved folk.  It was fun to see several buggies sharing the traffic lanes with the cars and we did see lots of Amish people.  One of the coolest things we saw was a bike/scooter combination being utilized by teenage boys - the young men would "scooter along" as there was a foot rest for scootering, though the contraption looked like it could be ridden as a bike as well.  

The Deluxe Buggy

Been waiting to see this sign my whole life

It was fun to taste this homegrown root beer, unlike any that I have tried before.  The root beer was not too sweet, but had plenty of soul.  I enjoyed it more and more after each Dixie cup refill.  Next, we went on a buggy ride led by John, a retired Amish farmer who now leads tourists on buggy rides.  I enjoyed his distinct Penn Amish dialect (I didn't understand about 10% of what he said), and he gave a good overview of Amish life.  Amish children attend school in a 1-room schoolhouse from 1st-8th grade (all together), classes are often taught by teenagers.  After 8th grade, students do 1 day a week of vocational training, but that is the end of their formal education.  Men farm corn, soybeans, etc. while women make clothing, do house chores, etc.  A simple life that the Amish seem content with.  As part of the tenets of their religion, the Amish do not use electricity, but instead use natural gas and solar heating, surely in more prosperous and efficient ways than the rest of us use electricity.

Don't know how we conned this boy into smiling for this picture on board this buggy

John, our Amish buggy leader, sharing his tales with the pack

A true Amish gentleman and a true tourist

Finally, as the boys were waring down, I toured America's first pretzel bakery, Julius Sturgis, in Lititz, PA.  It was fun molding my first pretzel dough and learning how the Sturgis family pounded the dough, heated the dough in 550 degree ovens to make soft pretzels, and later put the soft pretzels in hot rooms for hardening.  As a sidenote, do not pass up the opportunity to eat a few of Sturgis's Jalapeño pretzels -  a beautiful creation.

Truer words were never spoken than "Oregon Dairy is More than Just Milk."  What it is a pleasureable world of a large corn maze, a highly respectable playground replete with a horse swing (see pictures below), a fine general store, and a delightful restaurant.  We enjoyed PA specialties at the buffet including chicken pot pie and stuffed ham.  A great conclusion to a very fun day.  

Horse swing

A pumpkin whoopie pie sundae, a taste of whoopie pie heaven here on earth, and a fine precursor to "Fast Sunday."