Here are the final pictures of the Mescalero farewell party. Enjoy
Thursday, March 1, 2012
More PIctures of Mescalero goodbye
Here are the final pictures of the Mescalero farewell party. Enjoy
Farewell to Mescalero - More PIctures
After returning home I found more pictures at our farewell party at Mescalero. Because I don't want to forget these beautiful people, I wanted to add the pictures that were taken at our farewell party. We had a lot of people come to say good bye to us. We will miss them too!
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Surprise at the Lee House
After driving all day long trying to get home we received a phone call from Marci, saying she was sorry but no one could make it to see us arrive but her and John. Of course, I felt very bad. I actually cried! Then Jeff called and asked how close we were and said "It looks like John and Marci will be there to see you come home." Of course, I felt bad again, but tried to smile and take it on the chin. Then when we got home Marci and John came out to see us and welcome us home. BUT when we opened the door, were we surprised?????? YES!!!! The whole family was there! It was the best surprise I've ever had and I was extremely happy!!!! It was the best gift I ever could have received. Thank you Kids! We love you very mu h and it feels good to be home.
Good bye from the Elders at Ruidoso
After packing all our stuff, having to ship boxes home because there was no room and leaving our Elk antlers because there was no room, we stuffed our last possession into the car and slammed the car door shut. It was so full, we couldn't get another thing into our car. After months of teasing Sister Lee with a Ghool that they hid everywhere in the apartment to scare me, and teasing me with pretend mice they left everywhere in the cereal, in the fridge. on the door knobs, in the food closet, on the stairs, in the back seat. They loved it. So when they told us they had a surprise for us we were a little nervous. Sitting at the kitchen table, the two elders came up from the stairs with two hymn books. Those two missionaries sang "God, be with you till we meet again" Tears streamed down our faces as we listened to these young men say good bye to us in the most tender way. It is something we will never forget!
Utah - Home Sweet Home
After many hours on the road, we finally saw a beautiful sign - UTAH! We left the roaming plains of New Mexico and drove into Utah. There was a BIG difference! New Mexico is dry and flat with no mountains, but rolling plains. Utah was beautiful, with large snow covered mountains, trees and the BEST PLACE ON THIS GREEN EARTH! We are happy to be home.
Dad's Buffalo
Dad worked really hard trying to get a sculpture of a buffalo while we were on the reservation. We met Fabian Dolan in the spring and he said he would carve a buffalo for Dad. However, he disappeared for six months because he was on a drunk. We went to see Dara Shanta, his girlfriend one day and we asked about Fabian. She said he was back at her house and he was sober. We were very excited and he said he would make the buffalo for Elder Lee before we left for Utah. Dara was making my Apache camp dress and he said he would do a buffalo if we could get him some rock. We took him to a rock store and he picked up a large rock that looked just like any other rock. The next day we went to visit him and he had a friend with him. He had started carving the buffalo. His friend had carved a small sculpture called "two brothers". It was a beautiful work of art. Dad said he would buy it for $20.00. He was very happy and asked for a ride to the tribal food store. Little did we know that he went there to buy beer and when we returned to pick up our buffalo, they had got drunk the night before and didn't have it finished. Well we thought we would just chalk that one up to experience and would have to go home without the buffalo. Right before we were ready to go to Lubbock, they called us and told us Fabian was leaving the city and he had the buffalo if we wanted it. We met him at the bus station and DAD GOT HIS BUFFALO!
Farewell at the Mission Home
We drove on Tuesday morning to Lubbock Texas for the farewell dinner and testimony meeting for the departing missionaries. There were seven missionaries, plus Elder and Sister Lee going home that day. Sister Augustin prepared a beautiful dinner for us and then we held a final testimony meeting. That was such a spiritual experience!! It was beautiful to hear the strong testimonies of the missionaries that served with us. They certainly was valiant sons of our Heavenly Father and we felt privileged to serve with them. After the testimony meeting we had our final interview with President Agustin. He thanked us for for our valiant service and said he knew we really did our best and loved the Apache Indians. He realized it was a hard mission but he felt we served very well and commended us for our diligence. We walked away feeling very happy. It is wonderful to serve the Lord
Last Sacrament Meeting with Mescalero's
Our last Sacrament Meeting was very emotional for us. It was hard to say good bye. After Elder Lee and I gave our talks and said good bye, President Fossum opened up the meeting for members to come and bear their testimonies. Of course, they all wanted to come up and say good bye to us and thank us for our service. It was a difficult meeting for me as I cried through all of it. We really felt the love of these people and it touched our hearts. Our bodies may leave the reservation but our hearts will always look back with fond memories and love for them. The highlight was when Roman, an investigator, who wants to be baptized, but can't because he can't get parental consent, came up to the pulpit. He was very nervous, but said, "I don't know what to say, but all I know is I feel very good when I come to this church" He thanked us for teaching him and helping him to feel the spirit. It was a highlight. The church was full and they had to get extra chairs. We had sixty people, which made us feel very good. They provided a beautiful pot luck dinner, with all the trimmings. We love the Mescalero Apache's and will miss them very much.
Farewell to Mescalero
After eighteen months, it was time to go home. We left with mixed feelings because we didn't want to leave our friends in Mescalero, but we did want to see our family again. We told the Branch that our last Sunday would be in February. They didn't want us to leave, but knew it would happen anyway. President Fossum said to Elder Lee at their last Presidency meeting "Don't go, ok?" He said if he knew it was possible to request an extension, he would have asked for us to stay six months longer. But they held a farewell party for us and two of the members got up and talked to us about our service as they told us about the apache's. The Fossum kids did a native american sign language dance for us. Sister Ahidley said, she was grateful for our love of the Apache people and how well we blended into the community. One time at a school function, someone looked into the crowd and said "Who are those two people?" (pointing to the two white faces in the crowd). She said, she proudly said, "They are missionaries from our church, the Mormon Church). People got used to us on the reservation as we were there all the time. We went to the funerals, Birthday parties, community activities, feasts, and school activities. The best compliment I ever had was when I was at Wallmart, and a native american woman came in back on me in the checking out lane. I smiled at her and asked her how she was. She smiled back and said, "I know you, you are from Mescalero aren't you? You see they knew who we were and accepted us.
Sister Ahidley, jokinging with us said, "Sister Lee, I understand you were a little scared to come to Mescalero because you heard the Apache's were ferocious! That is true, and we want you to know that we love you because we are letting you go home with all your white hair!!! Everyone laughed. It was a great party and we had a wonderful time with our friends.
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