Thanksgiving

We had a nice Thanksgiving Day. It was a mini-holiday for the missionaries. They came over after morning studies. While we were putting the finishing touches on dinner, they started watching "The Great Race" (Dave's favorite movie). They took a break when dinner was ready. We had roasted chicken in lieu of turkey, mashed potatoes, gravy, dressing, yams with marshmallows, corn, a delicious Oriental cabbage salad provided by one set of missionaries and monkey bread provided by the other set. We were able to provide some of those things because Niki sent Stove Top dressing, canned yams and marshmallows, none of which are available here. They LOVED it! When we were done they finished watching "The Great Race" and then "Monsters, Inc." before devouring the pumpkin pie (a can of pumpkin was also in the package from Niki). We decided they're just a bunch of big kids, with appetites to match! A few of them snuck in naps before leaving about 6:00 to do Gospel English. All in all it was a very nice day.

Elder White, Elder Capps on the couch, Elder Marcy and Elder Terry on the floor

Things Dave and Arline are thankful for:
*Skype, mails, blogs, texting, and Magic Jack phone calls.
*We can be embarrassed by our luxurious accommodations (by Russian standards). As we visit people in their homes, we see them living in tiny quarters and they don't seem bothered. The most cramped living situation we've seen is a family with 4 kids under 5 in a room approximately 10' X 12'; the kitchen and bath were down the hall and shared with at least 3 other apartments. Once we visited another lady and took a loaf of zucchini bread to her. She asked us about it and how we cooked it--did we do it ourselves or did we have to take it to a place to bake it for us. She lives in a small dorm room and has only a small hot plate for cooking. It's often a little awkward when they come to our home for FHE or firesides and see that the two of us have so much room in our apartment.
*Smaller versions of two of our 4 favorite stores in Barnaul have just opened up right across the street from our apartment. The fact that they weren't there when we first moved in makes us appreciate them all the more!
*Snow is less slippery when it's really cold.
*Cleats that slip over our boots for when it's not cold enough. They don't clear most of the sidewalks or parking lots, and walking surfaces are rather uneven. Right now we are walking on 1-3" of packed snow on the sidewalks. Here's a close-up picture of where the sidewalk is cleared at a crosswalk. That is very solid snow, about 2 inches deep.
*Feeling needed, especially on Mondays and Fridays when we feed the missionaries on P-day and after the weekly district meeting.
*Supportive family and friends and all the letters, emails and packages we get. It's great to be kept up to date on what's happening at home, and no, it doesn't make us homesick (at least not too much). We enjoy ANY contact from home, even when we don't respond.
*Our apartment is on the third floor (no elevator), so we get a little bit of exercise every time we come and go, but it's not so high that carrying lots of groceries is too hard. And we're about 15 minutes from church, so we get some automatic moderate exercise almost every day without thinking about it, even on days when we might otherwise be tempted to stay warm and cozy at home!
*Opportunities to meet, visit and Skype with other Senior Couples and compare experiences. It's nice to have our own peer group here!
*Warm, really warm, unbelievably warm Russian outerwear.
*Reminders of how great American really is and how blessed we are to call it home.
*So many diligent young men and women who are willing to serve the Lord.
*Wonderful inexpensive public transit that makes it possible to get around town and for trains to and from N'sibirsk for meetings and visa trips. We wouldn't want to be driving on the roads here.
*A long, mild Siberian autumn.
*The visa trips to Helsinki every three months where we can go to the temple. And that it's so easy to find English speakers in Helsinki.
*Senior couples get some privileges the younger missionaries don't, such as an extra day for visa trips; train trips (usually in a sleeping compartment at night or nicer seats for day trips) instead of buses; unlimited internet usage (in addition to staying in touch with family, it's great for checking recipes online or looking up information for talks, lessons and teaching; we don't tract or contact; we can go our separate ways if necessary, like Dave goes to the store to pick up a last minute item while Arline is home cooking; we get date nights and can watch an occasional video; we don't have to get up at 6:30 or go to bed at 10:30--they trust us to get enough sleep, and besides, we have permission to takes naps; we don't change companions and seldom get transferred.
*The warm, loving Russians.
*President Gibbons and his inspired leadership of the mission.
*The positive, upbeat attitude of the Gibbons that helps us to appreciate what we have here.
*Free heat--we can keep the apartment as warm as we like it. The buildings are heated by hot water running all through the city.
*We don't have to keep our apartment as warm as the Russians keep the stores and their homes. They love their heat and don't understand air conditioning. When it gets too hot we just open the windows and things cool down pretty quickly.
*The Holmes, the senior couple we followed to Barnaul, will be returning early next year to serve for the third time in Barnaul (this is in addition to the other two missions they've served, but apparently they like Russia the best). We met them once and they're delightful people. And we no longer have to feel like we abandoned our new-found Russian friends in Barnaul because we know the Holmes will take good care of them.
*Young men who are so appreciative of our attempts to cook using what we can find here. All they care about is that A) it is homemade and B) they didn't have to fix it. They eat all our experiments and mistakes without complaint.
*We can get by without speaking much Russian. They appreciate our attempts without pressuring us to learn more.
*We've been here long enough that we know our way around and can find most things without bugging the young missionaries.
*We have the gospel in our lives and always have had it to bless and guide us. Thanks Mom and Dad, and Grandma and Grandpa, and G-Gma and G-Gpa . . .
*Sunny days. Did you know it can drizzle snow? For days? Without any noticeable accumulation?
*An opportunity to give back to the Lord in gratitude for the many, many blessings he has given to us through the years.
*The great location for our apartment--close to bus stops, a few stores and walk-aways (Russian take-out)--and lots of windows in our apartment for watching life go on below on moderately busy streets.
*A classical pianist for a neighbor. We get to listen to her practice. She's really good. The thick walls mute it and we have to make the effort to listen, so it's never too loud.
*Great examples of other senior missionaries who have all been out longer than we have and are so willing to share their knowledge and experiences with us. Rubbing shoulders with them is a wonderful boost.
*The Christmas music Becca loaded on the iPad before we left. We didn't even think of it, but she did.
*Most of all, knowing we have a loving Heavenly Father who is mindful of all our needs, desires and wishes, and that He sent His Son as our Savior and for the opportunity we have to share that with others.

This week in Russia:
We're going to have a little contest to see if you can pick out the Russians in the pictures below. The pictures were taken at a recent zone conference. Let us know which 3 missionaries of the 12 you think are native Russians. You can comment on the blog or email us at arlinejh@gmail.com
Too hard? How about in the pictures below:

(L to R) Elder A, Elder B, Elder C, Elder D, Elder E and Elder Z

(L to R) Sister 1, Sister 2, Sister 3, Sister 4, Sister 5 and Sister 6 (one of those sisters is from North Salt Lake!)