It is getting warmer and muggier here in Russia.  This week we broke down and bought a fan.  I got the hint when the apartment below us had an air conditioner installed.  

Church was interesting this week.  Most of the congregation did not show up until 15 minutes past the starting time.  We had a confirmation to do, and we had to wait until after the sacrament because the mother had not arrived until the bread was passed.  We have had to combine priesthood and Relief society the last few weeks because there were not enough sisters who stayed or came all together.  A bright spot was when I taught the youth Sunday school class.  They were amazing.  

One of the fun experiences of English club.  We are in the advanced group who talk on different subjects either purposely selected or just come with normal conversation.  We learn about each other and we also help them with new words and answer questions about word usage.  Helen in dark glasses just had eye surgery and has become a good friend.  She teaches English in a high school in Lipetsk.  We walked to and from club together and we are going to set a time to have dinner with her.  She said she would like that. We have a couple of people from the club who are taking the lessons.

 We said good bye to Elder Bishop (in grey slacks)  this week.  He will be serving in a Moscow ward just north of the city.  Elder Harris is still here (he was here when we came) and is a zone leader.  His new companion will also be a zone leader.  I suspect this will be his last transfer with us.

 Here  Elder Bishop takes the night train to Moscow where he will be met by his new companion.  Elder Harris will bring his new companion back with him/.

 For the past month or so these birds have been all over Lipetsk.  They frolic from sunup to sunset and do it with a high pitched screech.  They fly around our building all day long.  I have never seen one land and wonder when they eat or drink.

 We had to take a bus to see a member in the hospital over 2 hours away in Lambov. Lambov is a city east of here and just smaller than Lipetsk.

 Here is our lovely bus to Lambov.  Not a bad riding bus but no air conditioning. Just before we arrived a storm came by and we had to close the ceiling vent which for some made it warmer.  I was getting cold just before they closed it.

 Elder's Janson and Davis were with me.  We had no idea how to get to the hospital, but Elder Janson was in contact with Samville, who we came to see.  He told us which bus to take.  We took a Mashrootka, a large van, for the first part, then walked a ways to this train station where we got a city bus to the hospital.  We only had three hours before we had to be back to the bus station for our return trip and it took us almost an hour and half to get to the hospital.  We opted for a taxi to get back on time.

 A picture of the hospital.  Looks much better outside than in.  That is the opposite of most apartment buildings.  Apartment buildings look big and ugly outside but the apartments are better looking and small on the inside.
 

 Every city has a large WWII memorial and Tambov is no exception.  Unless I was turned around I think we passed two.  This one in the taxi and another on the bus.  These people have no idea how much military hardware and supplies we provided for them.

 This memorial was very well done, with some of the best lawn I have seen outside Moscow.

 Here is part of the second memorial with a view of a church under repair.

 Here is Leonid taking a group picture in front of the church.  He has some responsibility for the building and does a pretty good job.  He and his wife have a photography business, so he has a pretty good camera.  I think they take infant pictures.

 A less formal picture of the group Leonid was taking a picture of.  We are on our way to the river for a baptism.  We had around twenty people at the river, 10 of which were missionaries.  We had Elder Turner and his companion (they are AP's) who came and two office Elders who served here before, Elder's Anisaforov and Kvatnitski.  We are waiting at a bus stop for another member before we proceed to the river.

 In the summer the river is used quite extensively so we had to find a place that would give us privacy.  Worked out great with a hidden location near a pumping station.

 Artiome was not old enough to be baptized with his family last February but now he is ready.

 Here he is with his mother Vicka, Margarite, his brother Ararat and Elder Harris, who will baptize him.

 Elder Davis on the left confirmed Artiome in church the next day.  It was his first confirmation in Russian.  He did a fine job.

 On the left is a man who has an interest in learning more English so he was just there with us.  Right now English is the best attraction to involve people in the church.

 These Elders sang the opening song using an ipod for their hymn book.  L to R, Elder's Janson, Turner, ?, Harris, Davis, and our new Elder in town, Elder Raymond from Provo.  Following the baptism, we had a picnic in a close by park.  We felt like we were moving into Babylon when we got there and wondered if we should have found another place but several people came up to us an inquired who we were because of our appearance and looked like we were having fun.  Maybe it was not such a bad idea after all.

 Jeff and Fawn's family at Uncle Gary's house in Florence.  We were glad they were able to be there.

 I have emailed this to most of you but this is for my historical record.  I just read in the Deseret news that they just rededicated the Hyde Park Chapel in London.  I was there in February 1961 when President McKay dedicated the chapel the first time.  I had never before been in the presence of a prophet and I felt so blessed to be there.  

I have attached two pictures copied from the Hyde Park Chapel facebook page, one of which I think is of me watching president Mckay leave the chapel.   I am the first face you see to the left of my mission President, T. Bowring Woodbury, as he helped President McKay from the chapel.     It is one of two vivid memories of that occasion.  The second was shaking hands with a newly called assistant to the twelve named Gordon B. Hinckley.    

The second photo is of the chapel, which looks much the same as I remember it.  At the dedication I recall seated on the stand, Pres. & Sis. Mckay, Elder & Sister Hugh B. Brown,  Elder's N. Elden Tanner,  Gorden B.Hinckley and their wives, and President Alvin R Dyer, president of the European mission.  Elder Tanner replaced him shortly thereafter.  I remember most of the general authorities wives wearing fur coats on the stand.  I thought that strange.

It was also a happy time, as we learned that a new mission was being created with James A Cullimore  as my new mission president.  We were the first missionaries of the Central British Mission based just outside Birmingham, England in Sutton Coldfield.