One thing that I am really enjoying is our branch. We are just out of the ward boundries so all of the Ave friends we have are in the ward and we are in a branch. We drive 25 minutes to church through some beautiful scenery. There is a sign on the front of the school that we rent to announce that we are here and we meet in the cafeteria. If we are late there are generally not enough seats in the rows and we have to sit at one of the round cafeteria tables. It sure makes coloring easy for the kids. Our average sacrament meeting attendance is 80, making our family 1/10 of the branch--statistically speaking. Our speakers have a podium on the stage and we have a portable keyboard to sing with. At first, our kids kept asking why there were tiger pictures everywhere, but now their mascot is just part of the quaint ambiance. Classes are held in various corners at quiet levels and primary is held in the teachers' lounge.
Primary is an adventure in itself. We just got a 3rd teacher (hurray) who takes the 3-4 year olds. The rest of the kids are divided into 2 classes taught by the primary president and counselor. The other counselor is in charge of nursery which is in this 4x5 area in front of the bathrooms. We have a 2 little rugs and a bin of toys. There are only 3 kids (Andrew is one) until the twins join in December. Overall we have about 15 kids on any given Sunday. Where do I fit in? I am the primary secretary (aka helper and potty-taker during the 1st hour) and the primary music director. Both are callings that terrify and intimidate me and I feel like I am failing miserably. I guess that means that I am in a great place to learn. This calling looked so much easier when I was watching Sis. Gordon & Sis. Estes do it. :)
In the end, it is absolutely the people that make the branch. There is a tremendous dedication to the gospel and a strength that I have loved. Our youth are absolutely fantastic with testimonies that sometimes outshine all the adults. Even in our small branch, there has never been a lag in testimonies on fast Sunday. This has been and will continue to be a fantastic experience for our family. I doubt we will ever take a nice ward building for granted again.
3 comments:
That sounds like heaven! A nice branch with saints with pure testimonies.ANd probably a wonderful new extended family for you. What a great experience!
You can lead music! You'll be great! And you will be a fantastic secretary!
I'm glad it looked easy because it sure didn't feel that way! The best thing I ever figured out about teaching the music was to do everything I could (mostly pray a lot) to teach the gospel and invite the Spirit in with the music. Seriously, I had epiphanies about how to teach a song that I know for a fact did not come from my brain. Thank goodness the Lord blesses us when we serve with a willing heart.
Leading the music in Primary was my favorite calling!!! (Much less intimidating than Gospel Doctrine!) What better way to teach the gospel than through music! You will be great! I have lots of ideas I will have to pass on to you if you want! I was surprized to hear of such a small branch right here in the U.S. What a great experience!
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