Ma's Place: My how the time flies!!!

It is hard to believe that one year ago on May 6th I entered the Provo MTC to begin my journey to the New Zealand Auckland Mission. I am having such a wonderful experience.

I arrived in Auckland on May 20th and the very next morning, I was blessed with the opportunity to attend a conference with the missionaries and to shake hands with President Russell M Nelson, Elder Gong, and their wives as they visited the saints in Auckland. How could there be a better way to begin an 18 month mission!!!!

I have been rewarded by meeting many new people who have enriched my life and helped me to strengthen my testimony. The missionaries are the best! I love working with them. It was difficult to see so many leave and return to their homelands. I still am happy to be with the 55 missionaries we have left. We can’t join together in conferences but I still interact with them through texts, calls, Messenger, emails, etc.

Over the year, I have been able to travel about the country and see the gorgeous scenery around me. This has been an awesome year!

Today, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern announced that we will go to Alert Level 2 beginning this coming Thursday. Stores, malls, restaurants, parks/playgrounds, and most businesses will re-open with physical distancing still enforced. We may begin to travel around the country again. I believe that schools will re-open next Monday but I may have that information incorrect. I’m trying to remember what I heard in the live news broadcast by the Prime Minister.

We are to gather in groups outside our bubble of no more than 10 people. We will be at this alert level for 2 weeks and then there will be another evaluation. I am unsure how this will affect missionary work.

At any rate, I intend to still exercise caution. Physical distancing and hand washing are a priority.
Been a quiet, routine week here. Walk to the beach daily to get my 10,000 steps. Reached my goal every day!

Tuesday morning early sunrise

Wednesday evening full moon

Friday morning the tide was at the highest I’ve seen at the beach.

There wasn’t much beach to walk on between the water and the retaining walls

There is a construction site along the beach.

It looks like they are putting in a retaining wall. The owners of the shed
on the beach had a cute display of bears on Friday.

Saturday was “play day” for man and dog,

kayakers,

and fisherman

Sunday after our Sacrament and Gospel discussion, we walked to the beach mid-day.

I have never seen the tide so far out. The beach was expansive!

Someone told me that the full moon has an effect on the tides being extra high or extra low.
I’ll have to research that on Google.

This is the point at the end of the beach where we normally have to stop. (See the next picture for comparison.)
In this pic the sea is out far enough that one can walk around the point.

It is a little difficult to tell from the pictures but you can see how high the water is.

Around the point is another beach and rock formations that I’ve never seen before.

Monday morning sunrise

Monday morning the tide was high again. This is the point we walked

around on Sunday. I love the way the waves crash against the wall.

I picked up this shell because I liked the color and texture. I washed it after I got home and
set it on the dish draining rack to dry. The sun coming in from the side caused a reflection on
the metal under the shell. This made the shell look as though it were glowing.

I found this gorgeous sand dollar.

I so appreciate all of the calls, texts, and messages from my supportive children, grandchildren, family and friends to wish me a Happy Mother’s Day this week. With the day/time difference, I have enjoyed the attention for many days. Thank you for all for the poems, kind thoughts, and love. I couldn’t feel more blessed.