All the Senior Missionaries, Asia Area office employees, and the Asia Area Presidency
I don't think Lynn liked the food! Going from left to right - Elder and Sister Orton (Medical), Us, Elder and Sister Thong (Auditing), and Elder and Sister Roberts (Legal)
A slow week of Missionary Work, but a very busy week of extracurricular activities makes for another great week in Hong Kong.
Saturday we held a special Christmas Sacrament Meeting in our Saturday Branch. We had been warned by the previous Branch Leaders that the employers of our Branch Members would be keeping many of our members home on Christmas day to work parties for family and friends. So, we moved everything up a week and it turned out great. After Sacrament Meeting we opened the back of the Chapel which joins the cultural hall, like the Rose Park Chapels at home, and turned the back few rows of chairs around and had a special Family Home Evening with the four different families in our Branch. (Remember that we divide the members of our Branch into four different families). Each performed a dance or a musical number or both and all had a fun time. At the end, the Branch Presidency participated in a Nativity skit that brought a special spirit to the evening’s activities. It turned out to be a very good night for all of us.
Tuesday morning, all the Senior Missionaries and Area employees were invited to a special Asia Area Presidency Christmas Devotional. Elder Funk presided and spoke to us about the Light of Christ. It’s always a special experience to sit and be taught by the Elders of the Church. After the Devotional, we were invited to the Area Christmas Social and lunch. We ate Chinese food and played games with the employees which are mostly Chinese. I had forgot how funny the Chinese people are but remembered shortly into the first round of a game of charades.
Wednesday night the Senior Missionaries all went to the movie, Rogue One, a Star Wars Movie. It is so fun to sit in a movie theater that seems to be an exact replica of the old Arcade on 9th West and watch a modern movie like Rogue One with Chinese subtitles. It gives the experience a lot of character.
Thursday and Friday Karen was sick, probably from something she breathed in at the theater, and I finished some projects that were pending due to lack of their importance. I was also able to do some shopping without Karen knowing about it and broke my promise that neither of us would buy a present for the other because our Mission was present enough for the two of us.
Saturday, we had a very small attendance at our Sacrament Meeting. After the short block, Karen and I were able to attend a Christmas Concert featuring the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra. It was very good; the talent was as good as any Orchestra we have ever had the opportunity to experience. The hall, the Christmas decorations and the Christmas music performed created an ambiance of reverence worthy of the season.
Our first Christmas Day as Missionaries was a day of calls to the family and the viewing of many digital photos of grandchildren busy with Christmas. So, thank you for sharing much of your Christmas with us, but Christmas is not like Christmas when you are not with your family, so we would have to say it was not an easy day. We missed being home with those we love on Christmas Day.
However, in an unexplainable way it was also a special day for Grandma and Grandpa to be in a faraway place, involved with faraway people doing what we know we should be doing on this year"s very special Christmas day.
We love you all,
Elder and Sister Beckstead
Asia Area Missionaries
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