We are working at the office today and these office Elders and Elder Ewell just went out on the street to buy some lunch. This is a very typical meal, the sort they buy every day. Meals purchased on the street here often include fried fish or smoked fish. Today lunch included about a dozen hard boiled eggs, fried plantain (aloco) attieke (cassava) and sauce. The locals don’t bother with silverware. I predict Elder Ewell will do the same after a few more weeks in the country!
This morning we attended the Dokui Stake Conference held in the Cocody Stake Center. It is a thrilling thing to gather with so many Saints here. We’re grateful that meetings have resumed now and we can be with our friends.
We, the missionaries, were seated on the stage at the back of the cultural hall. The building was filled.
After the meeting, I enjoyed visiting with the members and taking these photos. I love capturing the smiles, the joy, the goodness of our friends here.
Clothing drying after a baptism yesterday:
This is John’s favorite meal here–he LOVES Mexican food and we don’t see it very often. Today I made a big pot of this casserole-type dish, so we could freeze some for later. It’s a little tricky to shop and prepare meals when we are going and coming all the time. This one keeps well in the freezer (if we don’t eat it all first!).
Enchilada Casserole
3-4 chicken breasts, boiled in water with 2 large bullion cubes
Cube the chicken
Keep about 3-4 cups of the broth in the pot
Add a pint of cream cheese, sour cream or creme fraiche and stir it in
It will be very runny like soup.
Chopped onion
Chopped red & green peppers
2 cans of crushed or stewed tomatoes
1 large can of kidney beans
1 large can of white beans
1 large can of corn
Part of a jar of salsa (as much as you can part with)
A bit of hot red pepper paste (local)
Cheddar cheese, grated (about 1+ cups)
Add whatever seasonings you can find:
1 taco seasoning packet or Mexican seasonings
Ground cumin, cumin seed
Chili powder or pepper paste
Salt and pepper
Add 1 cup uncooked rice and cook with the lid off.
The rice will absorb the liquid and it turn into something perfect.
Serve with tortilla chips and lime water
Bushels and baskets of mangoes are coming into town from the farms, and these mangos are DELICIOUS!! Today we stopped at these produce stands to stock up on things for our next 2 weeks here. We eat these fruits and vegetables every single day and we love them.
These are local cashews, roasted and raw. Also delicious!
Here is a fruit I haven’t tried yet. The vendor lady called it “coco deu.” I asked her if it was like a coconut (“coco”)and she said no. There is an orange flesh under the skin. These are huge, the size of a child’s head.
This evening we had a special missionary meeting with Elder Kacher, the first counselor in our Area Presidency. We flew with him from Accra this morning. He’ll be visiting areas in Cote d’Ivoire this next week. Tonight the missionaries in our mission got to hear from him. Everyone gathered in Cocody Stake Center, except for the few who are quite far away. They joined us on Zoom.
Elder and Sister Kacher spoke to us about member missionary work and how we might better coordinate with our ward and stake leaders. The Stake Presidents in our mission were also invited to attend. It was a really great meeting.
After some instruction, each Stake President met with the missionaries serving in that stake. They talked about ways they might work more effectively together in their stewardships and areas.
It was wonderful to have so many of our missionaries together in one place. We’re lucky we can do that here, as the pandemic continues around us.
It’s great to see some of our American missionaries returning!
We were up at 3:00 a.m. this morning to send off our missionaries flying to Nigeria this morning. The MTC was kind enough to have a hot breakfast ready for them.
Preparing and filling out more travel documents!
Our missionaries originally called to serve in Nigeria. Ka-di-o!
Our last group (including the two of us) prepared to depart at 5:00 a.m. We had more weighing and distributing things, breakfast, and more travel documents to fill out.
We said farewell to the MTC at 6:00 a.m. and were first in line at the airport for our flight back to Abidjan.
Farewell to Accra and hello to Abidjan, where Pres and Sis Bendixsen met us this morning. We were sad to leave, but we’re happy to be home!
Several years ago when we were in Ghana, we met Wisdom, a wood carver here who makes beautiful Nativity sets. We bought one from him then, and we were able to find him again this week. We hoped to purchase another Nativity for our Ouesessebougou benefit auction coming up in a couple of months. We were happy that the missionary couples serving here knew how to contact him.
Here is some of his work:
This morning after breakfast, our missionary schedule began with personal study time. It was inspiring to watch these missionaries immersed in their scriptures.
Today we waited for our COVID test results, which came in this afternoon. We are all NEGATIVE!! Tonight our two Kenyan Elders fly out, leaving here at 3:30 a.m. Tomorrow morning before the crack of dawn, 6 will depart for Nigeria. The rest of us will fly tomorrow morning, departing from here at 9:00. Friday the Yamoussoukro group will return to Abidjan.
We have enjoyed the food here. Variations of African dishes are served, which always include fried fish and fried chicken, rice, foofoo or things made from cassava or yams, sautéed vegetables (carrots, cabbage, potatoes and peppers), and sometimes salads.
Today we had time to enjoy this wonderful place. The missionaries purchased a few things at the Distribution Center. John helped exchange money and buy some extra luggage and bags. Everyone packed and organized their things.
I enjoyed looking around the MTC a bit. Here’s a look at the MTC floorplan. The wing on the top has the classrooms. Courtyards separate the wings. the cafeteria is the large room on the right with the kitchen (I think) in the lower corner). The dorm rooms are in the bottom wing, 5 floors high.
Here is a missionary room:
This playing field is to the west of the living and classroom areas.
Here is the laundry room:
Empty classrooms:
The mailboxes:
The grounds are like a tropical paradise. It’s warm and balmy here.
At the Distribution Center:
Then tonight after dinner we said farewell to our 2 Kenya-bound Elders.
At 3:30 a.m.
This is in the MTC office–cards waiting for missionaries to arrive again someday.
Our corner of the world:
Today the 8 missionaries from the Yamoussoukro Mission received their endowment in the temple. John and I got to accompany them too, a bonus gift for us.
While we were in the temple, our Abidjan East missionaries went to take their next COVID tests. Below is the schedule the MTC prepared for us this week.
After our temple session and some lunch, we went with the Yamoussoukro missionaries to the COVID testing place. It was our turn for yet another poke up the nose!
Here is the COVID testing place we went to in Accra.
And today Elder Guei’s luggage was returned to him. When he saw it, he kissed it!
Back for dinner. It feels like we are eating ALL THE TIME!!
Here are a couple of video clips I took when the missionaries wanted to show me how much easier it is to eat without silverware. We laugh together when we eat!
Today was our day to attend the temple. Many years ago, on the day when I went to the temple for my very first time, the temple workers assisting me said something I’ve never forgotten. An elderly gentleman told me, “The blessings of the temple have always been here. Today is the day you have come to claim them.” I told that to the missionaries last night as we met with them. The blessings of the temple are the greatest blessings we receive here on earth. They promises and covenants we make bind us to God and bless our families, including our posterity. I love the blessings of the temple and the peace they bring.
We were divided into two groups of eight and today each group attended an endowment session where they were endowed with power from on high. John and I got to assist each group as the witness couple.
We had an incredible day in the temple. We were the only ones here, with a handful of temple workers. We had all the time we wanted after the sessions, in the celestial room, with our missionaries, where we were able to answer questions and talk about the things we learned in the temple. We don’t discuss these things outside of the temple. They are sacred and dear.
I loved that Sis Gaze told me this morning, “I feel like a new person!” I told her, “You ARE a new person!”
After these sessions, the missionaries had a late lunch and then some time for exercise and rest. Dinner came quickly for them, at 5:00.
Each missionary receives the gift of 8 pair of garments to take back with them.
This evening John and I walked over to visit our friends, Karen and Chris Shepherd. They recently returned to Ghana after going home during COVID. They work with the humanitarian projects in West Africa. Karen made a fantastic dinner for us–enchiladas, corn bread muffins and fruit with apple crisp for dessert. We had a great evening and we talked a lot about the refuge camps in Ouelessebougou and what LDS Charities can do to help.
Our Cote d’Ivoire Abidjan East and Bamako, Mali Mission 