Hello From Turks and Caicos

Dear Stephanie and all,
Thank you so much for helping me get back on the mailing list. I felt
lost for a while. We are here and doing well.

I will be sending parts of my journal often. Please delete all that
is boring. I am not an excellent writer so just read what sounds
fun. Love to you all.
Elder and Sister Herbert

Well we are here. Providenciales, Turks and Caicos. Elder Figueroa
and Davies picked us up at the airport. They were so helpful and
kind. The airline could not find part of our luggage, and frankly we
were scared because we had heard terrible stories. I guess the
baggage guys had just dropped it outside, because they found it after
we had filled out all the paperwork. We were so grateful, Another
thing to be thankful for...... The elders are trying not to cry
because the car they have been using, they now have to turn over to
us. Their bikes are broken and they really have no way to get around
the island. (One time they walked 11 miles because they were out of
money for gas and their bikes were broken, and they had appointments,
and the mission president got mad at them because he said they should
have called and got more money on their card from him.) Poor guys,
they can’t win. The island is about 11 miles long and they teach all
over the island. We will need to work closely with them and help them
get around.

The cottage is really nice. It reminds me of a little cottage in a
princess story, or a small rental if you were going to the beach for a
week. It is really cute. The bedroom is divided from the family room
by a half, 3 foot wall. There is a small bathroom off the bedroom.
There is a small fridge, full sized stove, even a microwave. (Where
is my Bosh?) We walk outside, down the stairs and into a little
storage type room where there is a washer and dryer. There is a guest
house right under ours.... attached. No one is there now. On the
same lot there is a larger house where a family will move in the first
of November. They have a small pool. We are up on a high point
looking over the town. The view from the veranda is amazing. We can
look out and see the turquoise water and white sands from three sides
of the house.

We went to the store on the way home from the airport and spent
$550.00. Then we came home a made a list that will cost us at least
another $500.00 The canned vegetables cost 3 times as much as in
Alaska. The towels were $9.99 each and they are the cheapest towels I
have ever seen...No never mind.....Diane, remember those towels we got
in Beijing, China? These are like those.

Tonight we went out to dinner with the missionaries, the branch
president and his wife, and another couple from the branch. They
were very kind and paid for our food. It was a very expensive place
so I’m glad they did. The Olorenshaws are a young couple from San
Francisco who have been coming to the island for four years. They are
an important part of the branch even though they don’t live here.
They have worked very hard to keep the records up. Because this is
such a new branch, no one knows or understands the importance of
records. They are excited to have Mike here. I know he wishes he had
paid more attention to the clerks job just as I wish I had worked more
in Relief Society.

They told us that there is such a stark difference in the branch.
The majority of the branch is Haitian illegals. They literally live
in the bushes...worse than our homeless people in Alaska. They have
nothing. Most of them used to have jobs but with the economy so bad,
lots have no money or way to support their families. Remember there
is no state welfare here.....so no one gets something for doing
nothing. The church welfare is so different here too. It will do
little the bare minimum, only enough to keep them alive. I will need
to learn more. (Will one of our jobs be to help those provide for
themselves?) We have so much to learn. A few are very wealthy and
live in the very expensive homes. I think this will be my biggest
challenge....how to deal with people who have nothing, how to enjoy
church with my brothers and sisters when they have not eaten, or have
means to feed their family. This will take a lot of inspiration to
know how to handle that. The mission president does not want the
missionaries to teach just the Haitians....because he does not want
the ward to be a Haitian branch, but mixed. Yet those are the
teachable and humble ones. They tell their friends and the
missionaries never need to tract because of the contacts. I am
excited to meet them.