What a week it has been! We had training meetings three days this week to activate and provide training on Mini iPads for 200 young missionaries. The set-up and preparation to make sure we had a strong internet signal in the buildings we did training in plus all of the logistics, etc. made for a hectic week with long hours and not much quality sleep. Thankfully, I had called and trained 6 missionaries to help me as techs to trouble-shoot and assist in the training. They are amazing and understand the devices and learn the software so quickly. Which means that my life will be a bit easier. I will utilize these techs to field most of the questions the missionaries have particularly about their iPads and the specialized software we are using. Each of these meetings required me to find the wireless router and plug a long cable in the back of it so that I could plug that into another router in the room we would be activating devices in. This enabled us to bypass the Church firewall so that we had a signal strong
That means that I can have more time to monitor their Facebook activity. That is time-consuming but I am actually very impressed with most of their posts. For the most part, they are uplifting, inspirational and great invitations to learn more. There are some, particularly young men, who don't understand that goofy pictures are fun but they don't really invite anyone to want to be nourished spiritually. I know that for some, having an iPad will make it that much more tempting to be online when they are not supposed to be.
The weather has shifted; when we left for church yesterday morning, it was 12 degrees and the wind was blowing. The high on both Saturday and Sunday was only 26 degrees. Today it snowed for about 2 hours. Not much actually stuck but it was quite slippery as we left the office.
On Friday, the fleet manager from Salt Lake City was in our office t train me on the new software to keep track of all of the cars. So, we spent from 8:30 to almost 5:30 together loading that program and then going through all of the details pertaining to it. So by Friday night, my brain was totally drained and stretched.
Fortunately I was able to sleep in until almost 7 on Saturday and we had a somewhat relaxing day once we got the apartment cleaned, laundry done, shoes shined and grocery shopping taken care of. Ok, I had about 1 1/2 hours to relax a bit before we headed off to a baptism in the afternoon.
I enjoyed talking to each of my children and their families on my birthday last week. But I must admit, it did make me really anxious to be able to give a big hug to some of the little ones. It was also enjoyable to speak with Linda, Darren and Ken from my old office. Personally I was grateful just to see another birthday and know that I had lived and enjoyed another year. Oh, the simple pleasures of getting old.
As we go into the Thanksgiving week, I am grateful for so many things. I appreciate the part each of you has played in my life and the wonderful times we have spent together. As challenging as it is to see all of the craziness going on in our government lately, I am still very appreciative to live in this great country. I truly do appreciate life and the opportunity to experience so many things. I am grateful for the scriptures and knowledge of a loving Heavenly Father's plan for each of us. I appreciate my older brother, Jesus Christ, and for his Atoning sacrifice that makes it possible for me to have hope when I fall short of his expectations of me. I have been blessed with an amazing posterity and extended family. My companion and friend is the joy of my life. She helps me to desire and strive to be better.
I wish you a blessed Thanksgiving week. Take time to tell those you love just how much you appreciate them.
Elder Taggart
I got finished in the Bishops office at about 10:15 last night. My car had been there since 4. I didn't even know it was snowing outside. I didn't know the temp had fallen to under 20. Actually got to 3 last night. Five years ago, when we first got to Logan, the cold was kind of a challenge. Now, it's not a challenge anymore, it's something I try to avoid. The snow blower is ready to go though. And for the most part, the house stays warm, if Cyndy isn't in the house anyway.
ReplyDeleteYour posts let us all know how happy you are, to be of service and to be experiencing the joy of sharing the gospel full time. The unselfish life is the good life. Enjoy it while you can. Unless something changes, you will be done sooner than you know it.
Mark