I didn't get a chance to post anything last weekend because we were in Phoenix. There has been an outbreak of bird flu that has spread to Dairy Cattle for the first time. There are 8 states where it has been identified in dairy cattle with Texas being the first. I was asked to give a presentation on what is known so far and what can be done to prevent the spread. I got permission from Salt Lake to go to this meeting in Phoenix and give the presentation. Velyn and I flew to Phoenix on Friday the 12th, I spoke on Saturday the 13th and we flew back to Houston on Sunday the 14th. It was a quick trip but was good to see some of my friends at the meeting.

As each day of our mission goes by, we are more and more grateful for the opportunity we have here of being able to help Heavenly Father's children each and every day. There are so many people that need help in ways other than just finding employment. Velyn received a call from a young mother of 4 that had just lost her husband and suddenly found herself responsible for the financial welfare of her family as well as being their Mother. She is the second mother that we are helping in the same situation. I had two men come in from different companies that are in senior positions in their respective companies but the companies are not able to make their payroll. So they suddenly find themselves looking for a new job. If they don't find something that is equal in pay to what they are accustomed to, they will be forced to sell their home and make some other financial adjustments. They are both realizing now that it would have been wise to not to set their standard of life so as to spend almost every dime they make each month on a large mortgage payment and other things that perhaps were not necessary. I remember reading a book many years ago called "The Richest Man in Babylon". In that book he said something like people have an uncanny ability to spend exactly what they make each month. 

Many people have become accustomed to working at home as a result of the Pandemic. From what we are seeing, a lot of these types of jobs have gone back to working at the office, if not full time, at least several days a week.  This really makes it difficult for those who need to be home to take care of their family. I think that we have more job seekers looking for remote jobs than any other type. 

It is starting to get pretty warm and humid here now with the majority of days in the 80's. There are flowers all over here, including some of the Magnolia trees blooming. We really enjoy our apartment complex, with the pond in the center. The dog that was constantly barking right below us is gone now. I cried for days but was finally able to get my emotions under control. We have a Stork and a Blue Heron that hangs out in the pond, so there must be a few fish in it. Velyn got a nice picture of the Blue Heron:

When I was growing up on the ranch in Montana, we had a large group of Blue Herons that nested in the tops of some dead Cottonwood trees close to the road.  I used to hike there when I was around 8-12 years old and just sit under the trees and watch them land on their nests. It was amazing to me how such a large bird could be so graceful in flight.

There are a lot of rose bushes all over this area. It seems to be one of the bushes of preference here, and is one of Velyn's favorites. I got a nice picture of her next to some roses by the pond. The roses are beautiful, but not as beautiful as my sweetheart:

We have really been enjoying teaching in the English Connect program. We have about 30 people in our class now, representing many different countries from Mexico, Central and South America. These people have experienced many hardships and yet are always happy. It has been fun to get to know each individual person by name and where they are from. They are all trying so hard to learn English, and realize that it will make a huge difference in them being able to earn a good living for their family. We teach two classes each on Tuesday and Thursday, one at 5 pm and one at 7 pm. Each week, one of the couples that are teaching volunteer to bring dinner for everyone that is serving there, including 3-4 sets of full time young missionaries.  This last Thursday was our turn and Velyn made taco soup with all the fixings and some of her oatmeal white chocolate chip cookies. It was quite a hit with everyone.

The senior missionary couple that we have become most acquainted with and have become close friends, will be going home on May 6th. They are amazing people. He was the mission president in one of the missions in Argentina for 3 years, then they served in Mexico on another mission for 18 months and now are completing their 3rd mission. We will certainly miss them.

I was supposed to take a picture for my church email account awhile ago, and finally got up the nerve to take one. I was afraid that it would scare people away from the employment center, but so far only a few were scared away:

Our Ward is going to have a Star Wars Party on May the fourth be with you day this coming Saturday. I don't have any costume to wear so I'm just going to go as Jabba the Hutt. I will probably win the best costume award.

We feel so blessed to be here on our mission.  When we received our mission call, I had no idea what the Church Employment Services was and what it's purpose and function was. I can now see what a crucial role that the employment services provide to both members and non-members alike. One of our service missionaries and I went to the hospital to give a priesthood blessing to non-member lady at her request. She works at Deseret Industries and got to know us since we helped here with her job applications. We have 5 of the non-members in our English Connect class that are now taking the missionary lessons. I can't imagine being in a mission that would be more fulfilling than the one we are one and we both feel so blessed because of it.  We love and miss our family, but for now we know that we are where we are supposed to be.