I had a great week in Natchitoches Louisiana for my final week of lean champions training. All about making business better arranged, taking out wasted time of what we do, and making everything more effective. It was actually very good and I learned a great deal for the past few months. I still have some work on my project that we had to do. And then after that I have to do another major project that will take 3-4 months and then I can be crowned a true lean champion. It is great for my learning, and should help my career also. They talk about the 8 deadly wastes, defects, over production, waiting, not using employee talents, transportation, inventory, motion, and excess processing. And everyone kept ribbing me this week because they said I added a 9th. Sleeping! Just because I drifted off one day (OK 2 days) for a few minutes during class. I was so wasted after getting 4 hrs of sleep the first night from delayed flights and crazy AM conference calls, and the next day the same calls (5:30 AM) and I woke up 6 times in the night. So I had no sleep. But it was all good and I gained so much. They talk about "learning to see" the waste. And I used a quote from Brother Partlow of the seminaries that everyone really liked. "The more you imagine the ideal circumstance, the more ideal the circumstance becomes."
Skjelse and Jeff came by last night. It was great. Jeff made great fun of me as they came over as I was watching HGTV and eating toast. Everyone else had gone places and I was home alone. Jeff pinned me on being a lame bachelor as I was alone and how pathetic it was since mom had only been gone one day. Guilty as charged! But I was hungry, I needed something and the rest entailed so much work. What was I to do?
Today really was great. We had a broadcast conference that was awesome and in the afternoon I went to Spencer's with Ty (yup Gavin, they gave us ice cream on the way out, it was a vanilla/chocolate mixed ice cream sandwich, yum, yum) and then had our first bishopric meeting. It was great, they are all such good people. Then I got to do temple recommend interviews for a new convert for their first time, and for a young adult that is doing so well. It was a pleasure to be a part of that. It's a great blessing to go to the temple and to help others just doubles it up.
Yesterday Nathan Zimmerman got baptized. It made me reminisce that I am now bishop for their youngest, and for our youngest (Lys) it was bishop Zimmerman. He was so smiley and happy. Like Lys was that day.
All of this made me think back to my first area in Norway. Aalesund was a great place, so many memories. I was companions with the elder that was branch president. I remember each week we would go to a members home and have seminary with the youth there. So we were seminary teachers, sacrament speakers, set up, tear down, Sunday school teachers, the whole works. It was neat to remember meeting upstairs in a building downtown, and how small it felt the first week, but getting to love it as I served there. The first time I spoke was so hard as it was only my 2nd or 3rd week in the country. But I tried, did my best, and was grateful to get it behind me! That is the town where I learned all about kicks (the sled type transportation I have told you about), that kids went to school on cross country skis, and that God really knew me and wanted me to have the best.
That is also where I got more drenched Than I have ever been in my life. It was a dark and stormy night, 2 elders at at a bus stop. Tell me a story said one, ......whoops, it was a dark and stormy night though! I recall having my umbrella directly sideways behind me trying to stop the rain that was just horizontal. It did not seem like it was coming down at all, just over. When we finally got off the last bus stop (which was nice that is was so close to our house) we were so wet, it was just gross. I had on a full overcoat, suit, shirt etc. and it as all just like I had been in a pool. That is where I lived the movie experience and actually took off my shoes, turned them up, and water poured out as they were just full of water. And I had avoided all the puddles. It was a wonderful time I will never forget. Miserable if all you had was earthly mindset, but given what I was there for, it is a cherished memory that was so fun to me. I felt like I was really experiencing Norway like a Norwegian.
I also had my first experience of having a members name come clear and direct to me, saying you need to meet with so and so, get it arranged now. It was a deep impression that I needed to do that and get with them. Heavenly Father knows all of us, and He will take care of us if we let Him. I just have to be sure I listen, follow, and stay out of His way as He does His work.
Thank you for bringing me so much joy. It is a pleasure to be a father.
Love you forever,
Dad
3 John 1:4
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