We then climb 2 flights of stairs to the CES East Europe area offices. The adjoining office houses the Moscow Mission. We share rest rooms and the kitchen. We are blessed to have phenomenal Russian (and one Japanese) cooks who trade off Fridays making huge batches of borscht, plov, or seaweed pancakes for everyone. Really yummy stuff.
Everyone asks what we do. I will try to explain. The East Europe area consists of 10 countries. 14 CES area coordinators supervise the Institute and Seminary programs in these countries. The larger countries have more than one area, Russia has 5. The Area Coordinators are all natives of thee countries who also speak english, a huge help to us.
A good part of our task is to assist the 25 or more missionary couples serve well where they are. They are scattered all over East Europe. We encourage, hold hands, cry with them a bit, cheer for progress and sometimes just talk to them in English, which is very nice as most of them are Americans and the only English speakers in their area, except for the young missionaries, who are encouraged to speak only the native language. We tell them we are their new Mom and Dad. We telephone, skype, email and after jet lag, we usually visit to train.
. I also get to pour some creative juices into our monthly newsletter and a facebook group, keeping everyone talking, sharing, encouraging each other. We begin with their call and continue with their transition to home.
Elder Pierson spends a lot of his time with the implementation and use of a new CES computerized registration and student tracking system . We produce monthly reports on youth and young single adult activities. We measure attendance, scripture reading, service opportunities, adjustment of returned missionaries with callings and jobs. These are all important measures of progress in the gospel. As with any new program, there are glitches, especially here with many language, culture, mobility challenges. Let's just say, he is known in Salt Lake. I often hear him say into the phone, after listening, "I understand and I am just a lowly missionary but it seems to me it would work better if...." and he usually fixes the problem.
As anyone who was near me before we received our call, I LOUDLY expressed my desire to be anywhere but in an office. Well, yes, God does have a sense of humor because we are pretty much in an office but this is the PERFECT assignment for us. We have found that we love living in Moscow and enjoying the friendship and companionship of the 20 plus missionary couples doing different things here. We travel enough to see and experience even more new things but home base is a comfy, warm apartment.
We also enjoy interacting with these amazing CES missionary couples and, hopefully, smoothing things out a bit so that they can do what they have been called by the Lord to do, serve and bless the lives of these young people.
This is our workplace. You will notice I am standing with my keyboard stacked on boxes.
I really hate sitting for very long so my sweet companion stacked boxes perfectly so I don't have to. It works great.
Turkeyless thanksgiving
No one seemed to care that it was chicken and ham. Turkeys are not big here, neither is cranberries, pumpkin or sweet potatoes. We just loved having all of these fabulous missionaries in our tiny apartment. They are happy and inspiring. We love each one.
Beautiful Messiah-
Yesterday, we attended an extended version of Handel's Messiah, sung by beautiful Russian voices in English. Period clothing and gorgeous voices. As the longing for the coming of the Savior and the joy in His Kingdom was presented so tenderly, I couldn't help but feel so grateful for the privilege we have of playing a small role in helping others to come to Christ.
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