Shedding a Tear or Two

This week, 10 missionaries completed their missions, and we sent them off to continue their lives in their respective homes. One of those missionaries was our beloved Elder Kumar. We took him out for lunch on Monday to thank him for his service in the office. We have been so fortunate to have known him and to have worked closely with him. We went to a restaurant called The Peacock. The restaurant had Indian and continental cuisine, so it appealed to all taste preferences.




When we entered the restaurant, we realized that a buffet was available, as well as à la carte. Sister Tiefenbach and the Smith's opted for the à la carte. The others chose the buffet, but we soon found out, it was not the normal type of buffet. The kitchen staff prepared various items on the buffet and then brought it to the table. This proved to be a time consuming process. Lunch took at least 2 hours. The Smith's and Sister Tiefenbach left the restaurant before the others, as they had things to do at the office. Elder Tiefenbach and Elder Bown ordered a pasta dish for their buffet main course.

Elder Kumar order chicken biryani. He didn't like it, so he also had some pasta. They were excited to finally get their main course.












They had a nice selection of dessert, which the Smith's and Sister Tiefenbach did not get a chance to see.











That afternoon we shed some symbolic tears of joy when the triumphant Elder Fitzpatrick, one of our missionaries returning home, finally got his registration certificate. We hadn't realised until a couple of weeks ago that his registration process that he began in February when he transferred from Hyderabad to Bangalore was not complete. As soon as we discovered this, we began working right away to discover why it hadn't been completed. Of course, we ran into bureaucratic issues. We were requesting an exit permit just like we received for Elder Aydelott. Well, the authorities told him he could not get an exit permit, but that he would need to get his original copy of his registration certificate from Hyderabad. Hyderabad said they had sent it, but Bangalore said they didn't have it. They were stalemated, and neither the Hyderabad nor the Bangalore offices would facilitate resolving the issue. He was then told by the authorities to apply for an exit permit (which  was our original request).  We then gathered all the documents we had originally to seek for an exit permit, which also required documents to get a police check. He took courage and valiantly headed off to the FRRO in Bangalore with his documents to get his exit permit and vowed he would not leave the FRRO until he got it. He triumphantly returned in the afternoon with a . . . registration certificate! Go figure that one! It's enough to make us want to cry from hitting our heads against the wall. Well, that did not matter any more because he now had a document that would allow him to leave. Interestingly, his registration certificate (called an RCRP) was valid from Monday to Thursday only. That was just plain weird. Sunil had never seen anything like it. Here is the victorious Elder Fitzpatrick.


On Monday evening, we decided to make pancakes for our supper meal, and we wanted apple sauce to put on top of the pancakes. So, we made the big jump and used the pressure cooker to make the apple sauce. This is the first time we have used a pressure cooker. They are used a lot in India because the cooking time is reduced drastically, which reduces the amount of gas needed for cooking. We had never used it because we did not know how to use it. But, a few months ago, Elders Ram, Aeshamalla, Prakash, and Kumar came to our apartment to cook their Sunday meal because they ran out of gas at their place. So, we took lessons from the knowledgeable Elder Aeshamalla. We bit the bullet, and made apple sauce in the pressure cooker; however, we couldn't remember what to do with it after the allotted number of whistles. In trying to figure out what the next step was, Sister Tiefenbach touched the rocker. Well, you can guess why a tear or two could have been shed - hot steam shot out. In reality, no tears were actually shed, but it did hurt. At least, it helped us remember what the next step was: release the pressure (but don't use your fingers). The apple sauce was great! We are now converted to using the pressure cooker. We will have to buy one when we return to Canada.

The next tears to be shed were also symbolic. Along with our apple sauce for our pancakes, we wanted whipped cream. We bought some cream, the same kind we had purchased once before. The meal was starting to take shape. Finally, the cream was nice and thick . . . we watched the process with eager anticipation as we began to salivate by thinking about the smooth, rich, creamy taste. Looking wasn't enough. Anyone who LOVES whipped cream knows that one has to taste it before it is served - right? Well, let's just say that those symbolic tears began flowing; the cream tasted like it had a bit of vinegar in it. Yuck! Our hopes were dashed! Luckily, we had some powdered whipped topping mix that we were able to whip up. It tasted okay but not as good as good whipped cream. All in all, our pancake supper was great.


 On Tuesday, all the home bound missionaries came to the office. The office was a hubbub of joyful and exciting activity. Six of the home bound missionaries are (left to right) Elder Fitzpatrick, Elder Aruldoss, (Elder Mecham is not home bound) Elder Hollings, Elder R. Kumar, Elder Barlow, and Elder P. Kumar. Elder Barlow always has such a great smile!

 Tuesday evening we had the farewell dinner and the farewell devotional at the mission home. The meal, of course, was good, especially Sister Berrett's freshly baked dinner rolls. We always have more than one. There is Elder Barlow with more food going into his mouth! We catch him at such great moments. We caught a portion of Elder Pace with Elder Worton next to him. We are sad that his parents could not come to pick him up. We hope they will all be able to come at Christmas time so we can meet them. He has been a solid, dedicated, obedient missionary. We will miss his leadership.

This shot gets Elder P. Kumar (next to President Berrett), Elder Fitzpatrick, Elder Pace (his full handsome face this time), Elder Worton, Elder Hollings, and Elder Aruldoss.

 What is Elder Worton talking about? Is he still teaching about missionary work? Whatever it is, Elder Pace is being quite attentive.











Sister Bathula was the only sister missionary going home with this batch. She is also a dedicated, hardworking missionary as she dedicated herself to invite others to come unto Christ. She was always willing to lend a helping hand and was always in the kitchen helping Sister Berrett whenever there was Missionary Leader Council.

We didn't get a picture with our camera of each of the missionaries with us. This batch was difficult on us to see them go. We have worked closely with most of them and have grown to love them dearly. Elder Fitzpatrick always brought a ray of sunshine into the office. There was something wonderful about his presence, and we were always delighted to see him. We will miss seeing him, and we wish him well as he returns home.




What can we say about Elder Barlow.? He is dedicated and always seems to have a joyful spirit. You can see his contagious smile. We enjoyed working in the office with him and would liked to have had him stay there longer, but, alas, he was needed elsewhere. We miss his humour. We will always remember him when we walk over a certain spot in the office floor. He was a lot of fun - don't get us wrong, he was also spiritual!

Elder Kumar, Elder Kumar: he was there for us when we first came to India. He helped us in ever possible way when we were so new and not knowing what was going on. We worked together in Coimbatore for about four months, so we had a lot of time to develop a close relationship with him. He was then transferred to Gajuwaka (part of Vizak) and then to Chennai. We were delighted and thrilled when we found out he would be finishing his mission in the office in Bangalore. Saying good-bye to this batch of missionaries did not bring symbolic tears; it brought real tears. Tears welled up in Elder Tiefenbach's eyes as he gave Elder Kumar a hug and told him that we loved him. That was all it took! Tears not only welled up in Sister Tiefenbach's eyes, but they flowed. Whenever we have partings like this, we always cheerfully say we will see each other again, but the reality is that we may never see some of these missionaries again. Knowing this as a real possibility is VERY sad for us. We have grown so close to this batch of missionaries.

 Sister Tiefenbach had tears of joy when she made bread on Saturday. It turned out almost exactly the same as when she made it at home. We are not exactly sure what made the difference. Perhaps it was the packets of yeast that she received in the mail from our daughter Brenda. Our daughter Chantel had sent some yeast from Canada prior to that, and it seemed to make a difference compared to the bread that was made with the yeast from India, but it still was not the same results as when Sister Tiefenbach made it in Canada. But, this yeast made a lot of difference. It is the same type of yeast, so we are not sure why the results were so different this time. The bread rose so well.

While the bread was rising, Sister Tiefenbach took a few moments to go over the hymns she was going to play for Sacrament meeting on Sunday. She usually sits down, but did not take the time to do a serious practice. Do you like the keyboard stand? Sometimes, we use the ironing board for the stand.













We were eagerly waiting for the bread to be done as we watched it in the oven.

Ahhh!!!! the aroma of freshly baked bread! Making bread is such a satisfying and rewarding activity. We can certainly shed symbolic tears of joy to see the bread finally turning out the way it is intended to be. Doesn't this make your mouth water? Imagine the aroma!

Not only did the bread smell good, but it looked so appetizing with butter and jam spread on the fresh, soft slices.











The bread not only smelled  good and looked good, it TASTED fantastic! YUMMY! Elder Tiefenbach could hardly wait to sink his teeth into this delectable treat, but Sister Tiefenbach made him wait until she took a picture of him. The taste, however, was well worth the wait. Eating fresh bread is not just an event; it is an experience! Maybe, you are now shedding tears of sorrow because you didn't get any of this bread. Sorry about that! You will have to simply imagine the taste and the experience.



 We couldn't have this great experience without sharing it with someone, so we invited Elder Ramaraj (next to Elder Tiefenbach) and Elder Bown. Elder Ramaraj, native of Delhi, is the new assistant to the president. We have previous experience with him as we worked with him in Coimbatore. We have been so fortunate to have been able to work with so many great missionaries. We receive so much joy in sharing with the missionaries. We truly have many tears of joy in our hearts for knowing these fine young men.


 We have been truly blest and have shed symbolic tears and real tears as we have seen many tender mercies of the Lord in our own lives and in the lives of our family and many people here in India as they embrace the gospel and devote their lives to serving Him and His kingdom. As we acknowledge the tender mercies of the Lord in our lives, we are reminded of the Jaredites when they landed on the shore of the promised land, for "they bowed themselves down upon the face of the land, and did humble themselves before the Lord, and did shed tears of joy before the Lord, because of the multitude of his tender mercies over them" (Ether 6:12). May all of us, too, shed tears of joy as we approach the Lord in gratitude and partake of his love and abundance.