February 20,Letter from South Africa

1. Pres. & Sister Probst  at the Beach for the Baptism

2. Sister Probst & Desiree at the Baptism at the Beach

3. Sister O Desiree & Sonja in the BMW

4. Family Home Evening with the Kibido

February 22, 2010

Dear Family, Friends & Loved Ones

On Monday Feb. 1 we had the Millers, another Senior Couple here to visit with us and go to dinner, which is always nice and so enjoyable to spend time with another senior couple.  Sister O. usually fixes them a large breakfast before they leave.  This time we didn't have time for breakfast.  We had to leave at 7:50 AM to go to a wedding.  Brother and sister Bongo, who we had gotten close to from our class, called us to be to the wedding of her brother Thando and Khongelies Kibido.  He forgot his ID papers so we had to wait about an hour for him to get them.  It was a justice of the peace wedding and it is so lacking in feeling as a church or temple wedding.

    After the wedding they wanted to go to the church for me to give them both a blessing.  I was happy for the opportunity and thought what a wonderful way to start a marriage and they were both really grateful and in tears.  We then made Sister O. happy as she had time to make her hair and nail appointment.  Then after lunch, Sister O. and I went to Great Braak River to visit the Meyer family.  Sister Meyer is struggling a little with faith but seems much better.  I asked her to read Moroni 7 to help her better understand faith.  I also wanted to give them a framed "The Family: a Proclamation to the World."  We will visit them again on Saturday with Elders Caine and Maja.

    We then visited John O for a few hours.  Helping her to get information and started on trying to get a loan for school.  Sister O and I go home at 7:15 and very tired.  We laid down for a rest and woke up at 10, just in time for bed.

    The couple that Sister O and I gave the blessing to wants to teach them but we probably can't do all of it as it isn't a safe area to got to.  The elders will have to do most of it for safety reasons.  Elder Whiting was stabbed in the arm in that area, but he made a bad mistake of allowing several young men into their car to find an area for them.  No. No. No.

    Last night (Tues) was a wonderful night.  Desiree committed to baptism and her daughter, but her daughter is not quite ready, nor is Gerard.  I suggested that we wait for Gerard to be baptized and let him receive the priesthood so that he could baptize his daughter Elizabeth.  Also Douglas' wife, Yolanda, and their son Niko, committed to baptism.  What a wonderful day.

    On Friday after our district meeting, we had lunch with the elders at a chicken place called Nandos.  Then Sister O and I needed to go grocery shopping, and a lot of reading and studying as we had Sunday school lessons, a priesthood lesson, and a young women's lesson to give.  I have had the opportunity to read and study a lot since being in Africa and my testimony has really grown and been strengthened. 

    On Saturday February 6 at 12 noon, to Sunday noon we had a special fast and prayer for rain.  Hopefully if we are humble and sincere enough we will be blessed.  I have seen much power in fasting and prayer while on our mission and we have also been commanded to do so.  We visited and taught Douglas' family and his dad Hein and finalized their baptism date on February 20.  Then we went to Great Braak River  to visit the Meyer's family.  They are a great young family and seem so interested to have the gospel back in their lives. 

   

We really had a great and spiritual fast and testimony meeting on fast Sunday.  President Mason was here.  He is first counselor to President Probst.  We received an email from the Chamberlains serving in Joburg, and they told us they had received 13 inches of rain in January.  I wish we had part of it here in George. 

    Our African son, George, hitch hiked from Tsitsikamma (two and a half hours by car) to George.  He came to church and visited us.  We were so busy with our lessons that we didn't have time to visit with him and he was able to ride clear back to Plettenburg bay with President Mason.  He is such and amazing young man I wish we could have received some support to help him go on a mission but I'm sure the lord will bless him and make it happen.

    For Sunday dinner we had a real treat.  Sister O fixed tacos and burritos.  She was planning a Spanish rice but forgot about it until the next morning.  You're not going to believe this one, Elder Maja wanted Mayonnaise on his tacos and burritos.  Can you even imagine it?  Yuk!  On February 8, P-day, we were busy until about three thirty and then went golfing for nine holes.  We had family home evening with the mother of Sister Bongo and Bro. Kibido.  They are a big family and a very close and loving family, which is wonderful to see.  We had 22 people in all with five missionaries.  In 1980, the mother had a dream.  She was sick and in a coma.  She dreamed that Christ's church was brought back to earth in America by a young white boy.  Do we recognize this?  Wow, how exciting is that?  She has looked for this event since but has never been able to find it until now.

    We visited with Desiree on Tuesday.  I was going to teach the law of chastity to her daughter, but she couldn't be there, so we went over the word of wisdom and her baptismal plans.  Before the meeting with Sister Desiree, she took Sister O and Sonja in a ride in her BMW convertible.  Sister O is now spoiled.  We did get some good pictures.  We'll try to email them to you.

    On Friday after our district meeting, we went to Tsitsikamma with the Knysna elders to teach George and his cousin Elizabeth.  When we got home, we went with the Thembalethu elders to teach the family that we had family home evening with.  It was great. 

    On Saturday February 13, we had two baptisms.  I had a feeling that we needed to check out where we usually baptize people.  I did and it was nearly out of water.  So the search began for another area.  We found a place in the ocean below Pacalsdorp.  This was a different experience of baptizing in the ocean for me.  We had a large turnout.  I baptized Stefaans Pieterse and Elder Caine baptized Dominic.  It took me three times to get him under the water before we got a wave deep enough for complete immersion.  Well the wave kind of baptized me also, as I went under as well.  Desiree came as she is getting baptized the following Saturday. 

    We then went to Great Braak to teach the Meyers.  This time we took the Pangels with us.  We taught them about the temple and the three degrees of glory.  They were very, very interested and I told them to read D&C 76 and we would talk more about it the next time we saw them. 

    President and Sister Probst were at the baptism on Saturday, and also at church on Sunday.  I missed the opportunity to be with Gary when he received the priesthood.  I really wanted to be there and he wanted us there, but we were in a meeting with President and Sister Probst.  He was so excited to receive the priesthood and we were excited also.  What a wonderful blessing. 

   

Well, it is time to close as we have a lot to do today.  Please know that we love and miss you all so much, but we feel that we are doing what we need to do.  We are enjoying the experience that we have been given and blessed with and we know that our lives have and will be blessed.  We really love the grandchildren and are anxious and excited to see them all again. 
 
Love to all from Elder & Sister O'Dell Mom & Dad
                          Grandpa & Linda Grandma & Grandpa Woody



PS The big family that we had the family home evening with got robbed the other night, and one of the sons got stabbed but was OK.  I'm glad Sister O and I were not there alone teaching.  Satan really works hard to keep people from the gospel.  I feel this is how he works sometimes.

First Letter for February 2010

February 4, 2010,

Dear Family, Friends & Loved Ones,

Well week before last was rather a hard week as are all transfer weeks. You really get attached to the young elders that are here and it is hard to have them leave. We lost 3 of our elders, Elder Botes went to Queenstown, Elder Cooney went to East London (about a 7 hr. drive away) and Elder Mathipa went to an area around PE we are not sure what the area is called? We got 3 new Elders who seem really GREAT and fun to be around. They also seem like very good missionaries. It is so amazing to see these young men and the dedication they have in serving the Lord and to bring people to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They all have such strong testimonies and it is such a joy to be able to serve with them.

The new Elders didn't arrive until 11pm by car so we didn't get to meet them until Thursday AM. We have Elder Maja with Elder Cane in George Elder Wilson is with elder Moyo in George, and elder Owour is with Elder Bradshaw in Knysna. We have to do apartment inspections before the transfers so we did that to make sure they are taking care of the apartments and especially that they are clean. It seems so strange that Elder Cooney who is a germ freak always has the dirtiest apartment with the most cleaning to do. Sister O is really excited about having elder Wilson (who is from Utah) because he plays the piano very well and we really need him as man times we don't have anyone to play and when Sister O leading the music it makes it so much easier for her and especially since she doesn't have to try to hum thru the song first.

On the Tuesday before the Elders arrived, I told Sister O that I would like to see the ear doctor our pharmacy referred us too. I am having so much trouble hearing and understanding people talk. The Dr.  told  me that hearing aids would probably help, but not entirely as my hearing is so bad. They are going  to make one for my left ear (experimental) to see how it works. She is going to let me wear it for a month as a free trial to see how much it will help me and how much I like it.  It is hard to imagine how expensive they are but there is a big range in the price and I tried to get one that was less expensive and that will work.

On Friday, after our district meeting we took the post to the Knysna Elders and then we all went on to Plettenberg Bay so that we could teach George a lesson. He is such a great young man and really wants to go on a mission and hopefully we can fine a way for this to happen. We are sure that the Lord will provide a way. When we got back to George we visited Clifton & Elizabeth then Gary & John O Lene.

On Saturday am I spent most of the morning making repairs to the Elders flats. We had 2 baptisms on Saturday afternoon and that is always exciting.  Except there is bad news. They are moving to PE as he has a good job there and you can't turn that down. He had a nice car for transportation also. There are so few people here that have cars. We also hate to see them leave as I'm sure he would grow into a great P.H. Leadership position.  We need good men to serve) Then at 4pm another senior couple (the Stones) were here for a teacher training seminar.

On Sunday at Sacrament I confirmed the husband and conferred the Gift of the Holey Ghost. This is always such a privilege. We had a great SS Class and a really large one and was fun to teach as we are getting a lot of class participation. As usual Sister O had a large and delicious dinner of roast beef and about everything else you could think of with it. She really enjoys cooking for and taking care of the Elders.


Well on P-day the Elders twisted my arm to take them golfing. We always have fun together. Our new Elders wanted to play and really enjoyed it. They said they had played a "little" before, but it really didn't show. On Tuesday I got my hearing aid. It is hard getting used to BUT I think it is really going to help a lot. On Wednesday we were busy with a lot of appointments. We had Hein, Dougles (Hein's Son) Yolanda, Ben & Hester, Clifton & Elizabeth and Gary & John O. On yes I forgot on Tuesday we visited with Desiree as they are back from France and it was really great to see them again. Gerard was at the farm but will be back for next Tuesday. We will see them again next week.

On Thursday Sister O cut Elder Wilson's Hair before we left to go to PE for Zone Conference. When we got to Tsitsikamma, the bridge, we visited George and gave his cousin, Elizabeth a lesson. Three of the elders had never seen the bridge and the bungy jump and they really enjoyed it and thought it was awesome. (It is)  There were people jumping and that is so neat to watch. We stayed with the Stones again another senior couple and we were responsible for feeding everyone at Zone Conference.  For a morning snack we had cinnamon rolls (they make them very large over here) and call them Chelsea Buns. With a punch drink. For lunch we had pizza, a tossed salad, brownies and ice cream. We had to leave for home after conference and got home at about 9:30 that night.

On Saturday we had a busy day with 5 appointments. One was a new family called the Mayors and they live in Great Braak River which is about 25k away. They have a cute little boy almost 4 and he really took to Sister O. also a 2 month old baby girl. They were baptized 7 or 8 years ago, moved away and have been inactive and now want to learn about the church again and get active. They seem like a great couple, but again transportation may be a problem!

Sunday was a very good day. We had a lot of our investigator there and the new couple the Mayor's were there. We had a large and good SS class and Brother Mayor's participated a lot in class. The last hour was a joint RS & PH meeting and President Matsaluka gave a wonderful presentation, I have wanted this to happen for quite sometime.  He talked on fasting, prayer and faith. We are having a special fast and prayer for rain next Sunday. Our Mission President and Stake President have given us full support on this and other units in the area are also fasting and praying for rain. We all know that there is great power in fasting and prayer if done with faith and deep humility. The fast will go from Saturday noon to Sunday noon. We just hope we have the proper faith and humility to make it happen. For Sunday dinner we had a simple dinner but Sister O made it fabulous. We were just doing hamburgers & hot dogs. We also ended up with potato salad, fruit salad, tossed salad, corn on the cob, chocolate cake & ice cream. Sister O just can ever make it simple or leave well enough a lone. I guess that is just part of why she is such a great lady.

Well I think I better close because Sister O doesn't like the letters to long as she has to type them.

Family please know that we love you all with all our hearts. Also know that we love the gospel of Jesus Christ with all our hearts and are so grateful for the opportunity that we  have of serving our Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ. We need and appreciate all your prayers that we will be blessed that we may serve as we desire. The hardest thing for us is not being able to see family for such a long period. We pray daily that each of you will be blessed and given thanks for the love and happiness you bring into our lives and especially for you our Grandchildren.

We Love you and Miss you always
Elder & Sister O'Dell, Mom & Dad, Grandma & Grandpa, Linda & Grandpa Woody

January Letter

January 21, 2010


Dear Family, Friends & Loved Ones.

On our P-Day  Sister O and I went to a large train museum with our RS Pres. Sonja and her daughter Sonika and her baby. It took about 3 hours and was really interesting. It was mainly all about the history of the steam engine etc. with a lot of old trains. They also had a lot of old antique cars and some old buggies and stage coaches. They also had a large display of small electric trains that you could run. That was really worth seeing.  Bonnie and Bob will love seeing the Train Museum.

I got sick with a flue bug and then Sister O got it but we are fine now. There are a lot of people around and some of the Elders don't and have not felt to well. Sister O couldn't get out of bed one morning her neck hurt so bad. It had been bothering her for some time. I finally talked her into going to a Chiropractor and after a couple of treatments she is doing good now.

We are seeing Clifton & Elizabeth again as they called us and want us to come and visit again. I think he has his problems worked out and they seem to be good now. We are so anxious for Clifton to get his divorce finalized so that he can marry Elizabeth and they can get baptized. I guess it is one step at a time and in the Lords Way. We are still making a lot of visits and fellow shipping but I won't go into all of that unless something special happens.

We have had a few fairly warm days but nothing very bad. There has been some really hot days in Cape Town, between 40 & 44' C. Our nights have always cooled off nice though.  It is good!  If only it would rain a LOT so we could have more water. I guess you can say we are in Africa and have only a little water. taking a bath is out of the question for a while I guess. Oh well we do what we have too.

Another Senior couple came by a stayed to night on the way to Cape Town and back It is always fun to have them as we can go out to dinner, and play some games with them. We played pollock rummy and a Golf cards game. We really enjoy that a LOT.  It is so nice to be able to do something fun once in a while.

We visited a new investigator last week referred by a new member friend the Olivier's. She seems very interested and I think she will be really good in time. She only has a 2 room house. The Kitchen, Living room and Bathroom combination. We had to sit on the corners of the bed and on a small chest of drawers. There was only one stool in the Kitchen and there wasn't room to bring it into the Bedroom.

On Saturday Jan 16 the Elders & I did a service project. We were going to help an investigator Sister move. We thought this would be very simple, she has a small place and not a lot of furnishings. We were moving it to her daughters place which was right behind the lot she was on and over one.  The corners of the lots connected. Well after that she wanted the whole house dissembled and moved. We took the roof off which was a tin roof. Then we took what paneling etc off that she had and room separators. Then we took down all the walls. We had to separate the walls in ½ and then carry the walls over to the other lot. We put everything on the ground as there was no cement slab, no footing or anything. That took us about 4 hr. Then this lady wanted us to assemble it all back together on bare ground. This is impossible with no foundation or any thing. No nails or anything. All we had was 2 hammers to work with. I think she was disappointed that we couldn't
>  do that all in one day.
Anyway that was quite an experience and we were really tired. (well I was any way) Ha!! She couldn't believe I was 72 :)

On Sunday we  had our YM Pres. by the name of Shephard to be confirmed to the Mel. PH and to be ordained to an Elder and he wanted me to do it from him I was happy for the opportunity to do this for him. I do this as Pres Matsaluka was there an is such a good man as was our Mission Pres. Pres. Probst. Shephard asked me about a month ago when he knew that he would receive the Mel. PH.  It took that long to get it done. Then Sister Day in our branch asked Sister O if I would come over on Sunday afternoon and give her a blessing and  I was grateful for this opportunity as well. We receive blessings in so many ways when we give them. I know there are many struggles on a mission but  it comes back two fold.

On one morning last week our RS Pres. Sister Sonja & Sister O asked me to take them to play Golf for 9 holes and let them try it. I was skeptical about this but it turned our OK and quite fun. They did much better then I thought and they had a lot of fun. Sister O asked me if she was to old to learn and I told her NO, so I think she wants to try some more. I will probably end up being a golf widower.

We also had a young couple that was recently baptized ask us Sunday after our SS class if  we could teach a couple that are friends of theirs about the gospel. We said we would be happy to.  They live in Oudtshoorn which is about an hour drive away. That is a little out of our area but being a senior couple we are allowed to do this. They want to contact them first and make sure they are interested in seeing us and hearing about the gospel and he will let us know. But he is sure they will want to hear about the gospel.

Well I guess it is time to close but first we want all of you to know how much Sister O and I LOVE the gospel of Jesus Christ. It brings so much love into our lives and helps us to love each of you even more with the knowledge that we all can be an eternal family and that is so important. There is only 2 things in life that really matter, and that is the gospel of Jesus Christ and ones family and the knowing that we can be sealed together for ever. This is so comforting and it makes one want to live life to be worthy of the blessings. We must be forgiving of each others and the weaknesses just as our Savior did and has are we will come up short. This is a commandment from our Heavenly Father. Sister O and I Love all of you so much and are so grateful for such a wonderful family. Thank you all for your LOVE and your prayers for us.

I wrote earlier if any of you would be willing and able to donate a little each month to be put into an account for our African Son George to go on a mission. We only receive one response from on person. "THANKS JACK" 
If you can please let me know so I can set up an account with someone in American to take care of this for us. I promise that your lives will be blessed and we all need the blessings of our Father in Heaven.

Remember we love hearing from you at any time. Don't for get us in Africa PLEASE let us hear from you often.

Love to all from the O'Dell

New Years Letter from SA 2010

January 8th 2010

Dear Family, Friends & Loved Ones.

Well the holidays are over and we survived. They were great because we got to talk to all of our families.  That's what makes  Holidays so special.

On Saturday after Christmas, Sister O & I had Gary & John O over for a braai with the Elder Cane and Cooney. We had been wanting to do this for some time. Just as we set down to eat we received a call from Sonja Sister asking me to come and come right now they need us to come and help them sort something out. It sounded like we really needed to come right over. Sister O and Sonja (Branch RSP) are really good friends.  When we got there Sonja was having a serious depression, she was having a very hard time coping with all that had been going on with her ex husband.  So sister O talk her into coming home with us for the night so she could take care of her. Sister O stayed by her and talked to her for a long while.  Then neither of them went to church they stayed home and tried to help her get things sorted out.  She is fine now and doing well.  Hard times sometime really get to us.

Also on Saturday night  I was ask to talk in church plus I had my SS class to teach as well. I Believe my talk turned out very good, and I was happy  with it . About ½ the people there said how much they enjoy my talk. We had a lot of members missing because of the Holidays, but we had a lot of visitors there to take there place. They have a month Holiday here for Christmas time.

For Sunday dinner we had a braai, mostly what was left over from Christmas. Sister O had been so busy with Christmas and Sonja she didn't have much time and she needed some rest.

Well on Monday P-Day the Elders and I played golf at a small course near Knysna. It was a par 55 and I shot a 60 and I was very happy with that. Missionary work is slow right now as so many people are out of town on holiday.  We visited with Gary and john O on Tuesday and things are looking good that they will be married and baptized.  On Wednesday we spent a few more hours with them and they said they were going to be married and baptized. This is so thrilling to us to have them commit to having the gospel in there lives. They have wanted baptism but there smoking problem was hard to get through.

Sister O is sort of having a crisis at this time. The water problem is so bad that our landlord suggested doing our laundry at a laundry-mat and to save our bath and shower water to flush toilets with and to try and cut down on using so much water for baths.  This is really hard for sister O as she likes to go swimming when she takes a bath.

Well today is Thursday New Years Eve. We are going to pick up the Knysna Elders and go to Tsitsikamma to visit George and begin teaching his cousin Elizabeth. It is 233K to there from our home. We usually meet at Plettenberg Baai. But we didn't want him to hiking on New Years Eve as it is not safe with so many drunk drivers.  We taught from the Ensign on the talk by Elder Holland on the Book of Mormon. Elizabeth is a very intelligent person and a sweet lady and she really wants to learn more about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.  She has a one and ½ month old baby boy and wants us to come to Knysna on Sunday to give her son a name and a blessing and I said I would.  So that means that I will have to get a substitute for our Sunday School Class.





We had all the Elders for New Years Eve. Then Knysna Elders came over to do a Baptismal interview with Gary & John O as the plans are that they will be married and baptized on Saturday.  About 9pm on  New Years Eve I went with the Elders to the Church and we watched he latest Harry Potter movie titled  "Half Blood Prince" It was over at 12 midnight. It seemed so strange that it is already 2010 time flies so fast.

Well today is Saturday January 2, 2010 and we survived the new year ( Boy was that hard) and it will be and exciting day.  Sister O and I are taking Gary and John O and Sonja for the Wedding at noon at the Knysna Chapel. It was a beautiful wedding. Pres. Atkinson and they both looked so nice. I think we are as excited as they are. We then went back to George for the baptismal service, but first we took them to the Botanical Gardens for a lot of wedding pictures. They look so happy together.

I gave a talk on baptism and being confirmed and receiving the Holy Ghost. Then we went to the river for the Baptisms. I baptized Gary and Elder Cooney baptized John O.  This was so exciting as we have been working with them a long time. John O told us that this was the Happiest Day of her Life. That was so great to her she really did look happy and excited and we were so happy for them. That evening Sister O and I took them and Sonja out to dinner for a wedding president.  Today is Sunday and the day of their confirmation. I really hated to miss this as they wanted me to confirm them, but I had already committed to give a blessing to Elizabeth's baby son in Knysna. We also heard that John O bore her testimony and that she did a beautiful job and almost every one was in tears. After the blessing of Elizabeth's son we gave her a lesson on the restoration.  She seems very excited and interested in learning about the gospel.  I'm sure she will embrace the gospel as did George and be very strong in the gospel.  There missionary experiences can be so wonderful and we again encourage more of you senior couples to think about going on a mission and enjoy these wonderful blessings.

We sew a movie for FHE at Sonja's last night with Gary and John O It was called "Mr. Bones" part one.  I hope all of you can find a copy of this and watch it. You can see the real Africa if you can survive all the laughing.  It is so funny.

Well it is time to close and to tell you how much we love and miss all of you. Sister O and  I are so lucky too have such wonderful families. You are all so Great and we are so proud of all of  you and we really do love and miss you.

                                                                                          Elder & Sister O'Dell
                                                                                      Mom, Dad Linda & Woody
                                                                          Grandpa Papa Grandpa Woody Linda Grandma

Christmas Letter from SA

Elder Cooney opening his gift in his grandmother's robe.

Elder O in his Africa shirt

Sister O in her Africa Dress

Sister O Opening her Gifts

Elder O in his new pointed toe shoes

Sister O in the trunk of the car; she can't stand to say good by to the Elders on Transfer Day!

All the Elders going to zone conference

All the Elders around the tree on Christmas Day

                                                                                       December 26, 2009 

Dear Family, Friends & Loved Ones,

Well it was the night before Christmas and now it is the morning after Christmas and we hope everyone  had a GREAT Christmas and survived. We are a little behind in writing so we can't get into as much detail as usual. Our Branch Conference on Dec. 12 & 13 was Great. We had a really large and enjoyable SS class.

On Monday, P-Day Elder Caine & Cooney had to work as they took an afternoon off last week to watch some rugby. There were teams here from all over the world and it was fun to watch. I took Elder Mathipa & Moyo golfing. It was Elder Moyos first time and he really did good.  I was happy as I was only 3 over and for an old man, I will settle for that.

We had a number of lessons and visits during the week and all seemed to go good and especially Gerard & Desiree. They left on Wed. to go to there farm and then to France for the Holidays. They gave presents to all of us and we thought that was so nice. We left at 7am on Friday to go to Zone Conference in PE. We stopped in Tsitsikamma to see George and to try and teach his Aunt. It was rainy and foggy and they were not there. We couldn't even see the bridge because of the fog. We the went to Storms River Mouth to see a large suspension bridge. It was about a 1k walk to get there and Sister O didn't go because she had no walking shoes. When we got there,  there were actually 3 swinging bridges.  It was really neat and see and walk over.

At Zone Conference we had lots of good pizza for dinner. Then we all watched a really good movie called  The Christmas Shoes. Then the Elders did a talent show it was very good and entertaining and we all enjoyed it and most of the Elders did something. On Saturday we had a Great conference from 8am until 3:30pm. They had a lunch of chicken and salads etc. We got home at 9:30pm. Well that night I got really sick (and I mean really sick) with food poisoning. I was up all night. I went to church as I needed to take care of my SS class but they sent me home after Church.

For Sunday Dinner we had a braai of Hamburgers and Corn on the Cob. I had the Elders do the cooking. We found out that about ½ of the people at Zone Conference got food poisoning. Pres. Probst got really sick with it as well. Well this coming week we don't have a lot of Missionary work planned. On P-Day (Monday) we went to a place called Jubilee Creek. Sonja our RR President has wanted to take us there for quite a long time.  It was close to Knysna there was a water-fall she wanted to take us to. It was about a ½ hour hike. Well the area is dry and short on water. They water fall was only a trickle. It was more like a garden hoes running. We will have to go when there is more water. There was a deep pool where a lot of people were swimming and jumping in. Where we parked the cars, there was a large grassy area with tables etc. The creek was running with more water there. We had a nice picnic when we got back there.

On the way home, Sister O and I stopped at an area called Buffel's Baai. It was beautiful we want to go back again when we can take pictures because it is so beautiful. That night we had FHE at the Pangel's house with Gary and John O Leen The Elders were there also. Sister O stopped and got some sweets for refreshments. Sister O essentially did everything.  She did most of the Christmas Story, helped the children sing and then led us all in some carols.  Then it was time to go home again, and I was really glad as I was getting sick again.


On Tuesday we went shopping for Christmas Dinner etc. We got a lot of toys and etc for stocking and things to wrap for the Elders.

We had 2 senior coupes by in the evening the Harms & Forsgren's. They wanted us to go and spend some time with them the next day.  We met them and had a nice breakfast. We then went to Oudtshoorn to the Cango Caves and then to and Ostrich farm. I got  nice bruise on my lip as the guide had 4 men hold a food in our mouths and the Ostrich would peck it off. Well she pecked it off really good, I guess I got a harder kiss then normal.  It was time for dinner when we got home. After dinner we went to Victoria Baai and set on some rocks and visited and enjoyed the gorgeous view. We enjoyed the gorgeous view for about an hour.

On Thursday we took some sweets and cookies (that sister O cooked) to some families that we have bee working with and it was a lot of fun. Christmas is very different here.  It is summer time, none of the homes we have been to decorate there homes, no trees up, no presents etc. They all talk about Christmas but you don't see much evidence of it.  They mall is so crowded with shoppers so I guess some of them at least give gifts.

Christmas eve was very special for Sister O and I as the Elders took us out to a nice restaurant and stake dinner and they payed for it. They picked us up, opened the doors for us and everything.  We thought that was wonderful on there part.  On Christmas AM Sister O family called us at 3am our time and we got to talk to everyone. That was fun and great. We called my family at 4:15am. It is so wonderful to talk and hear from family. I wished we had talked to the grandchildren but we didn't. All the Elders came over on Christmas Morning and went through their stockings we opened gifts and so forth. We drew names for a small gift of each other. Sister O and I fixed a nice breakfast of cantaloupe, cinnamon rolls, bacon and eggs and french toast.  We all ate too much.  We then did the dishes and the Elders and I went to play Golf.  After Golf we came home and had a Braai of stake, lamb chops, bor wors and sister O had potato salad, green salad and Vega's, fruit salad and all kind of sweets for desert. It turned out to be a wonderful day.  It made it so special that we had a wonderful prayer together offered by Sister O. I love her so much! Then the Elders made their calls to home which took several hours. We let the American Elders use the Vonage phone to call home. They all left about 10pm to go home.

I tried to call Connie and her family but didn't reach them. Then I called my Sister Norma and Russ, and my Brother Wayne was there so that saved me a call. Sister O Called her best Friend Pam, her brother Jack but couldn't reach her sister Bonnie. All in all it turned out to be a wonderful Christmas. As good as it could have been with out being with family. We thank you for all the wonderful gifts you sent, we love them all and our beautiful day.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL ! Talk with you next week We hope you miss us as we miss you!!

Love Elder & Sister O'Dell
Mom & Dad Linda & Woody
Grandpa,  Papa, Grandpa Woody & Grandma

Merry Christmas From South Africa

December 15, 2009

Dear Family, Friends & Loved Ones,


Merry Christmas from SA . Yes we are still here in case some of you wanted to know, our e-mail is  just in cause some of you would like to say hello or you are always welcome to call.
We get so lonesome for each of you and don't hear from you very often.  We know everyone is busy and especially at this time of the year.

Well last Monday (P-Day) it was heavily overcast in the morning, then started to sprinkle and then by noon until after dark we had a very heavy rain which was so needed. They are still predicting that we will be out of water in George by February. We need so much more even though it is still so beautiful and green here.

Sister O & I had to get up at 5:30 on(P-day) to take Elizabeth to town at a government office to get some paper work turned in. She is trying to get some disability income because of her bad back. Even thought we got her there by 7am there was still several hundred ahead of her in the waiting line-and it is first come first served. That meant a long wait.

Right after lunch we picked up Elizabeth and took her home to Pacltsdorp. Then we went with the Elders to Mossel Baai. They wanted to see some caves but didn't know exactly where they were and couldn't find them so. Sister O and I came back home instead of waiting there as Sister O needed to go with Sister Sonja our RS Pres. to get a lot of groceries etc for our Branch Christmas party on Saturday and it was also our Branch Conference on Saturday afternoon & Sunday with Pres. And Sister Probst being here. We ended up going to a large museum which surprisingly I think we all enjoyed. After this they wanted to see a Big lighthouse when we got to the lighthouse we also saw a sign about the caves there. It was raining so hard that sister O and I waited in the car. They hurried up the hill but still returned as thought they had jumped into a swimming pool.  Sister O & I were really glad we stayed in the car. It was too late to go to the caves as we needed to get back and do some missionary work.

Well on Tuesday it turned out to be self improvement day or beautification day. Sister O got her hair cut and her nails done. That always makes her feel good just as a good game of golf makes me feel. She got her hair cut short and it is really "Cute."  The best I think since we have met. I couldn't let her out do me so I went home and buzzed my hair off (that is my personalized hair style). It was still heavily overcast and we were hoping for more rain but it turned out a zero. We also had a great visit with  Gerard and Desired. He is really changing as we teach him as he seems so happy when we come. They promised to be to church for our Branch conference.  Also on Tuesday Sister O and I had to do inspections on the Elders flats etc. Overall they were pretty good, but we had a few things for them to correct.  We always find something wrong :)

Our African son George came over on Wednesday all dressed in a suit and tie. He really wants to be able to move over in our area so that he can be close to the church. He wants to go on a mission so  bad and he wants to be closer so that he can grow more in the church. He wants his family and girlfriend in Malawi to receive the lessons so we are working ON that. We let  him go with 2 of our Elders to make missionary visits and he really seemed to enjoy that. He stayed overnight with us. On Thursday we had missionary transfers which is always a hectic time between running back and forth between the airport and bus terminal.

We lost Elder Maseko and Mwenda and got Elder Moyo and Bradshaw. Elder Bradshaw will be in Knysa with Elder Botes. Then sister O bought lunch and said "Elder Cooney is the greatest! Just the greatest! :) " I needed help with the computer and Elder Cooney came by and finished my sentence.! Ha!!  and pizza for all the Elders before they parted ways and went back to work. We then went to visit Sonja & her son Urich who will be leaving for about 3 weeks to stay with his father for the Holiday.

After our district meeting on Friday morning, 4 of the Elders and I went to some Rugby games at George stadium. Their were teams from all over the world. America won it's first game but was beaten very bad in the 2nd game. I think it was about 50 to 0.

Saturday was a busy, very busy day and especially for Sister O who is having to do so much cooking for our Branch Christmas party. At the Christmas dinner  I set by a lady that is not a member but a good friend of Sister Sonja's our RS Pres. I talked to her quite a bit and she wanted a Book of Mormon which I gave her. She also wants Sister O and I to tech her the lessons after the Holidays.  This was so exciting for us.  She was easy to visit with and seemed very nice. We hope this will happen.  We also had a very good program with the dinner. The theme for our Conference was "Be Ready" it makes one wonder if any of us are ready and our lives are ready and prepared for the second coming of Christ when he will rain here on earth.  It really makes one ponder if we are keeping all of God's Commandments and not just the ones we want to or the ones that are easy for us. Remember loved ones, that narrow is the gate and straight is the path that leads to eternal life. Hopefully we could answer,  that we are ready and our lives are in order if our Savior comes today. I hope we don't wait until we think that it will be more convenient. I hope each of us will live our lives that we may always be Temple worthy. If so, then we are closer to being ready. We love and miss each of you so much.  We want to wish all of you a Very Merry Christmas. We know it will be hard without us " Joke Joke"  But we really know it will be hard for us with our you LOVE ALWAYS!

                                                                          Love to all you!



PS.
Our African son George is not very strong financially but is a GIANT spiritually. We are asking if any of you feel like you can afford a little each month?  We would really like to set up a mission fund that will pay for his mission after we are home. Actually he will be able to go on his mission before we leave to come home. We know at this times it will be hard, but it will not only bless your lives but it will be such a blessing for him and his family.  Let us know  what you think and how you feel about this suggestion. We would really love to see this happen. Thanks for what you are do for us already and being the BEST Family Ever. 


Merry Christmas to Everyone !

We Love you
Mom & Dad
Grandpa, Grandma,
Papa, Grandpa Woody, Linda
AND Elder & Sister O'Dell

Letter From SA December 8

December 7, 2009


Dear Family, Friends & Loved Ones

Boy how time flies, It is already time to write again. Well here it is Dec.1st 2009. It sure seems like the time is going by fast. We know that everyone is starting and thinking about Christmas. It really makes us sad and lonesome knowing that we won't see our families at this special and wonderful time of year. We love and miss you so! It was cold and windy today and we hope it stays cool a lot longer as we have only a floor fan for our cooling system. We have only had a few warm days so far.

We had another visit with Gerard & Desiree. They feel everything is true and they love everything about the Gospel, but she has been hurt so many times and has been taken advantage of so often, that she wants to be absolutely positive. We know that it is true but really one can only know this by faith which is the first principal of the gospel.

Wednesday  was a beautiful day and the morning  was spent doing book work etc. and Sister O typing our last letter. We visited Gary and John O Lene and Ben and Hester. We tried to visit Brother Micheal's but he was gone. On Thursday we made it a P-Day. Another Senior Couple from PE wanted us to meet them in Plettenberg Baai. There names are the Millers and Sister Millers sister was visiting. She is from Utah, and has been in Cairo, Egypt for the last 5 weeks visiting her son who had a new baby so she was babysitting.  She will be in SA for a week and thinks SA is really beautiful and especially compared to Cairo. We had lunch together and then toured Plettenberg Baai Game Reserve. It was fun and we saw a lot of wild life. I got some really good video footage of some Hippo's, but then I accidentally erased it. Just call me stupid, never mind I already did! Ha! Ha!
Sister O really likes to go for rides, so we took about a 2 hour drive in some back country before we met them.  We always enjoy just a little time to our selves. :)

Friday was District Meeting, we told the Elders that we couldn't go as we had to many things to do. First we picked up the post at the airport and took it to the Elders. Then we had to straighten up a confused mixup about some medications at a pharmacy and a Dr. office with wrong names and etc. We did finally get it cleared up and set it up so that it wouldn't happen again.  Then we picked up John O and I dropped  her and Sister O off at the mall to have lunch together and talk about her marriage plans. She is still not sure what she wants and spent more time walking the mall. While they were doing this I took the post to the Knysna Elders in Sedgefield. After picking them up we had to shop for a  YW & YM Braai and party for Saturday and also we needed to do some heavy grocery shopping for us.

On Saturday we had a large Braai for the YM & YW in Sister Sonja yard. We had lamb chops & bor wors (their favorite. ) Sister O made a large Potato Salad with Rolls, Chips & Dips and punch. They played some games and had a good time. We then had to get dressed as we had 3 baptisms on Saturday  afternoon. We had the baptisms at the river. It is such a beautiful setting for this after this we then came home so I could study my SS lesson some. Then that evening there was a BIG event in downtown George of turning on the Christmas Lights. There was a man singing (Great Voice) Then a Big talk from the Mayor, and then a count down for turning on the Christmas lights at 8pm. There were many sidewalk venders selling food and other things.  It was so crowded you could hardly move  or walk. It went until 1am but Sister O and I came home about 9:30. For us we had seen enough.



We had a good fast and testimony meeting on Sunday. I ordained Thandiwe Bongo, she was Baptized on Saturday. I think we had a great SS Class, it was really a large class and there was lots of questions etc. which we like because people learn more when they ask questions. We left home at 7:45 and didn't get home until 2:15. As we were taking Gary & JohnO home it sounded like they were planning on getting married soon.

Sunday dinner will be the last dinner before transfers so Sister O wanted something special, so we had T-Bone stakes, Lamb chops, Backed Potato, Fruit Salad, Green Salad, Corn, Rolls, Ice cream bars and muffins. It was REALLY Good. We need to have more transfers if we are going to eat like we did last night. After Dinner we let the Elders decorate our Christmas Tree. It is one that was stored in our garage. It actually looks really good. It is good " BUT NOT LIKE BEING HOME WITH FAMILY)

Family & Friends, Please enjoy your families and love each other. You are all so special to us and we can't express the GREAT love we have for you. Please realize the Blessings you have. We all have so many. We need to put Jesus Christ at the top of our Christmas Celebrations as he is what Christmas is all about.  We Love you all.

                                                                        Merry Christmas From
                                                                  Elder & Sister O'Dell Mom & Dad
                                                                          Linda & Woody
                                                                  Grandma, Papa Woody Grandpa& Papa