December 2007 Bob Marley to the Rescue

Well today was freakin nutters!  So we got transfer news in the morning.  Me and Nielson are staying and they are making this District here in East London one huge district again.  Here’s the big kicker about transfer news.  All of the sisters in South Africa missions are getting new assignments and will be leaving South Africa on Monday.  I almost pooped my pants when I heard that.  It’s strange..it’s like a part of me died, only having sisters in my district and now they are extinct. 
 Well I think Heavenly Father knew how weird and depressing today was for me so I think he blessed me by playing Bob Marley everywhere I went.  It was good.  Well, I am going to attempt to sleep now. 

These are  the first sister missionaries in Mozambique for many years.  They have just arrived.
Now I am wondering if South Africa will get Sisters back?

Random things Bryce said at the end of his mission....

9-15-08
It was nice because the next day at zone conference they talked a lot about accountability. Elder Young from the Area was there with his wife. it was nice I bore my departing testimony... that was kind of interesting ....sister Young was the talk before the testimonies and she talked alot about things near the end of missions. and it got me thinking about all of the blessings that I had received  while here in Africa serving a mission... and it was hard for me to even get words out... I may have even cried a little bit... which is not normal for me at all.

.Meatloaf is playing... I would do anything for love.... but I wont do that... yoh! trunky! ... just kidding... but this is a way good song... oh the email shops...oh yeah about the season pass can you take money out of my zions cd account yet? how close is it to being done? how much did I make? oh yeah and I was thinking it might be cool if just mom and dad pick me up at the airport and then I could meet everyone when I get home... I dont know how everyone else feels about that... but I think I might like that. Well Have a great week. Elder Christensen.. PS. I only have 3 pages left in my journal.... but I feel bad because Elders Will ask me... so how many journals have you done now.... and its just one .. everyone else has done like 3 or 4... you would be proud of them mom. well bye.

I thought Bryce's request for just the parents to welcome him home at the airport was rather strange and seemed even stranger when we got there and all the other families had big group of people and signs to hold up, etc.  However, now I know that Bryce was responding to a prompting by the spirit.  He did not know he would be gone 2 1/2 months later and he knew that we needed to hear what he had to say to us as we drove in the quiet big van back to Brooke's house where everyone was waiting.  I will never forget his emotion filled voice as he expressed his love and gratitude for us and all we had done for him in his life.  I feel God's tender mercies when I reflect on that special moment. 

This is one weird picture of me but it most clearly represents the fun we had Thursday night when we decided to make money for a trip to Vegas by selling all of the stuff our missionary sons had that we thought they might not miss while they were gone. My face reflects the paltry amount of money Steven was willing to offer for Bryce's bass. I won't get much gambling done in Vegas! Behind me the sign says, "Missionary Mom Yard Sale."
Here was Bryce's reply when he say the posting on our family blog:
Mom... I just saw the blogspot.... thats not funny please dont tell me you sold my guitars or snowboards and things... I know you wouldnt.. well hopefully I know... really this is the most scared I have been in a long time.....Im sure you wouldnt to something crazy like that with out telling me.. but I need to know. now I have a week of crazy anticipation of finding out if I need my stuff is all gone... yeah I know that it is just stuff but ...no theres no way you could have sold my guitar... ..mom! what are you tryin to do to me? argghh! this is not cool.

The Missionary Moms had a great time with our missionaries most prized possessions.  No one got quite the reaction that I got from Bryce.  I mean really...would I sell his stuff to go to Vegas?

Missionary Journal:

The beginning of Bryce's snowboarding days

2007 Dec. 5   Well Sunday was Fast Sunday and our D/A forgot us so I opened my Christmas package so I would have something to eat.  There was a crazy lighting storm that night that was awesome.  P-day we went to the driving range with Armstrong and Fromling.  It was way fun.  I'm getting good with a driver.  Yesterday was alright.  Dec. is a hard month.  We have lots to do so far but just the holiday spirit makes me a bit trunky.  I just want to go snowboard and listen to music, play guitar and watch a movie or something ....arrrgh! 10 months.

Laying the Foundation of a Great Week!

21 July 2008
President Probst:  This week has been really good.  Langa is nice and we are working with some great families and potential priesthood holders.  Even though the rain was pounding Langa this Sunday Theboho still came and is doing great. H e would be baptized but he needs to get his girlfriend out of the house.  We are praying for miracles to happen. 
Elder Bean is a great missionary.  I am grateful to be serving with him.  He is kind of running everything right now because I am not as sure what is going on.  It's been interesting to have to know what the Zone needs when I have not served with these Elders.  But I think of you and how you got a whole mission to worry about and how the Lord has been able to inspire and guide you to know what to do and I know he will do the same for me.  ( Just transferred to Langa and called as ZL).
I am grateful for the opportunity to serve a mission.  I know we are laying the foundation of a great work.  I hope you have a great week.  Elder C.

The picture is one from an afternoon after school in our backyard.  It was Bryce's birthday but we had not planned a party.  The boys just came over to hang out with Bryce.  Everyone in this picture is a returned missionary.  Well...Daniel is still on a mission--he went later.  Some have moved away and some are married. 

Papers With Poem's on them Oct. 20003

Period 1, Mrs. Zemp and Bryce's poems...not something he put his heart into. 
Nothing to Do:
I'm at my friends Willy's house
and there's nothing to do.
I just sit there and stare at my shoe.
I guess the bulldog violet was too.
Because she started biting it,
I didn't know what to do.
The more I moved my foot,
the more of a grasp she took.
so as I sat there, scratching her ear,
Wondering what to do?
Then she let go, and I hide from her.

Mrs. Zemp's comment...Interesting rhyme pattern

Bryce's analyst of The Coxcomb Bird by Alexander Pope...is a ballad because it tells the story of what the coxcomb bird is like.  I didn't like this poem because I'm really getting sick of poems, sooo many poems all day long.  Why?  why us Mrs. Zemp, were a good class, we do what were told, we don't cause any trouble.  What did we do to deserve the wrath of the poems.  What?

Elder Baldwin, The Wallys and Merry Christmas from Bryce

This morning I received a very special letter from my friend in Mozambique.  She is serving a Welfare mission with her husband.  They went to Johannesburg South Africa for some testing because John has been sick off and on.  Our friends have met several returned missionaries from South Africa while serving and one that knew Bryce.  He has helped the Wallys a lot and we have been able to correspond with him.   He and his wife are expecting their first baby.  It has been wonderful to see these African RM's faithful and serving post mission.  Bryce's second companion was from South Africa.  We have not heard from  him since Bryce's death so this letter was a special and amazing thing for us.
We went to church with the Curtis's and the ward we went to was the Pretoria East ward. It was very enjoyable and we loved sacrament meeting and all the Sunday school and Relief Society was nice. IT was all in English. A Spiritual Feast for me.
When I found John after Priesthood he grabbed me and said Sister Wollenzien you need to come with me. There is someone who you want to meet. I said 'I DO?' . and he just grabbed my arm and drug me through the church to this very tall, very nice looking young man. He Grabbed the young man and turned him around and said this is sister Wollenzien. I was wondering what was going on.
The young man shook my hand with a big smile, said its nice to meet you and then he said 'I served with Bryce.' It was Elder Baldwin (Wade Baldwin) I just started to cry. John met him in priesthood when he asked John where he was from . When he found out he was from Spanish Fork he asked about President Christensen being the stake President there. When he knew we knew you he said   Bryce was his FAVORITE companion.John told him that Bryce was our sons very best friend. The rest of the men still in the priesthood room asked what happened. John told the story. Elder Baldwin told how Bryce was his very favorite companion. He told them Bryce was one of the most dedicated missionaries out in the field. (And we know he is still out there don't we).
Well we went out side and stood with him because we wanted to take his picture. (We were in a little hurry because we were with the Curtis's) We talked a little. He is in the Bishopric and when I asked him if he was married he said,'Oh Yea! Let me go get my wife.' He came back with his darling wife and the cutest little baby boy. He said this is my wife Karen and this is Bryce. I named my son after Bryce.' His wife cried and I cried.
His wife told us she has heard so much about Bryce.
Wade told us that Bryce told him the story of shaking hands with ELder Uchdorft when Kim was set apart. He said Bryce told him it was when Elder Uchdorft shook his hand and said to him 'This is a good looking Elder.' that's when he really decided he was going on a mission for sure.  I never knew that story.
He just said  many good things about Bryce and about his  mission experience serving around Bryce. He kept saying Bryce was the greatest missionary.
I said well that boy is still working hard at missionary work . He is still around here. His wife said, 'Yep he is.'

I let him know I was going to be telling you about this experience and how much it means to you and Kim to see how the missionaries are doing now.

 When I hugged him to say good bye I couldn't help but cry.
He said, ' Will you please tell his parents that for me he is here always.' He was patting his heart with tears in his eyes.
It was one of those hard to have to say good bye moments.
well. We all had tears in our eyes. It really made this Sunday a special day.
Little by little puzzle pieces come together that tell us a story about Bryce.  Over and over again I am reminded of God's love for me.  Merry Christmas from Bryce.
Oh...and last week one of Bryce's friends told me that his son to soon be here will be Grayson Bryce.  It doesn't get better than this. 

Angels on bikes

Sept. 17, 2007

We were tracking in this complex then this white kid (11) on a bike came up to us and started asking us questions.  He asked me how much I knew about God and I said enough which isn't true actually but then he asked me if I could forgive him of his sins, so I taught him about repentance.  He said there were some things he couldn't stop doing.  I asked what and he said beat up his brothers.  He kept talking to us and followed us out of the complex.  He asked us where we were going.  I said to find someone to teach the Gospel to.  He pointed to a complex and said we should go there so we did.  The first house we knocked on was this coulored family.  The mom said they were Catholic, but I said our message is something you've never heard before and we share it with everyone.  So she let us in and was very respective.  She talked about how she was confused with some of the things going on in her church.  So the crazy boy on the bike, an angel maybe?