It seems the time goes by faster than I remember. It has been five weeks since we last sent out a blog. I will try and repent and make them more often. We have been up and down about our Center. Last week, it was a for sure, then the next day the wheels came off again. It seems we started at the top getting permission, instead of going through the ranks. That didn't set well with the ranks and they have put us through a week of torture. When the Area Presidency says yes, then sends it to the Presiding Bishopric for there stamp of approval, then they send it to someone else, then the FM Department gets hold of it and wants to know why they were not in the loop. Anyway we have learned quite a lot about the bureaucracy of the Church, and hope we don't have to experience this again. We haven't heard from Pres. Ford yet, but the contract was supposed to be signed today. Anyway, I hope I don't need to retract all this information. Glen and I are wore out with all the red tape. But it will be wonderful when (not if) it happens.
We had a wonderful investigator named Fati. He has been coming to church for months. He pays his tithing faithfully (with special permission), and is always smiling. He asked me to speak at his baptism in Shqip, which the Elders were going to translate for me. Anyway last week in a meeting with the Elders his true character came out. It seems he had a 13 year live in affair with our R.S. President (before she was R.S. Pres.), she broke it off, he began to stalk her, even coming to church to keep an eye on her. When the missionaries started giving him the lessons, he became very interested in the gospel. The problem is, he is still stalking her and it has gotten out of hand. So he has been forbidden to come to our branch, which he ignored. Pres. Ford met with him which went way bad, and Pres. Belishi (our branch pres.) has tried to talk to him, but he won't listen. Tonight Glen has an appointment with him, and we will see what happens. It breaks our heart because we really like Fati, but his actions go against everything we believe in. Have I ever told you about the Albanian temper! Fati was so mad, his nose started to bleed.
I have been baking cookies for Christmas. Since there are no chocolate chips, I cut up candy bars. Since the shortening is in short supply, I use a lot of butter. One cup (1/2lb) of butter, is $2.25. These are very expensive cookies. Of course, you can't get good brown sugar in the market, you have to go to the American store, so these cookies are like buying gold. When I am baking for the Center, I use the dark brown sugar which you can buy in some stores here. This is just a whole new cooking experience for me. The missionaries don't care, they just like homemade items. The Y.A. don't care, they just like my homemade cookies. Pres. Ford has a new rule that more than one companionship cannot be in a home at a time, which makes Sunday dinner a day long affair. He is afraid they will stop acting like missionaries, which does have a lot of merit. But Elder Warburton made the comment that he didn't know Sister Stacey very well, because she makes us act like missionaries. I think that was a compliment.
Now that Glen is in the Branch Presidency, we see good changes taking place. He is able to teach and train. Callings are being issued and Pres. Beleshi is anxious to have things done right. Bro. Topi is the 1st counselor and he speaks very good English, so he translates for Glen and Pres. Beleshi. Christmas will be very different for us, but we will be more focused on the Savior which is good. We have a little tree all decorated, and I love to sit and enjoy Christmas music while enjoying the tree. It calms my soul and helps me feel peace. We love the gospel and are grateful to be able to serve. There is much to learn when you are in a foreign country, and everyday we try to be more accepting of their ways. But one thing we aren't accepting of is the lack of respect for the gospel. Members need to learn and understand the teachings of the gospel, to strengthen their testimonies, and to help build His kingdom. The Church will not grow if the members are not strong. We see great potential, and just hope and pray someday they will understand the purpose of life.
