Ohana

The word for family in the Hawaiian language is OHANA. The Thanksgiving holiday we celebrate this week is special, not because of food but because of FAMILY, and being grateful for the many blessings each of us enjoy each day by being part of a family. We encourage all of our friends and family to cultivate an attitude of gratitude, spend quality time with their family, and make Ohana a priority in your busy lives.

Our family was blessed in several ways this past week. Our daughter Chloe and her husband Russell welcomed a baby boy into their family, Levi Kenneth Cheney, on November 9th. Sister Mundell got permission from the mission president to fly back to Colorado Springs and spend some time with the new parents and her precious grandson. This meant putting some of her missionary activities on hold for a week, but for important events like this, family comes first. She left her companion a detailed list of the places to be and the things we were supposed to do each day she was away, which was very thoughtful of her. Elder Mundell has been using the bus system all week to get around, which he likes to do if he has the time and it doesn't involve transferring to another bus.

We work well together as a team as we go out and visit people, Cathy does a lot of fun activities that encourage participation and social interaction, while Dan provides her support by interjecting comments and  counsel from his wisdom and experience. So it has been a challenge for Elder Mundell to wing it solo the past few days, but he managed to make it out alive with only a couple of minor cuts and bruises to his ego, and without any complaints to the mission president. He definitely does not take his wife's skills as a communicator and therapist for granted, and is grateful for her talents as a missionary.

Saturday was a special day for the Waimanalo ward Ohana. We reserved sealing sessions at the temple for 9 and 10 am. The special spirit you feel in the sealing room as family members are connected. linked and sealed together eternally as families is hard to describe, it's very emotional and touching. We witnessed the sealing of the Relief Society president to her deceased parents. Our members with physical limitations were able to fully participate in the sacred ordinances. There was an overflowing feeling of love (aloha) in the room. We feel  the best way to attend the temple as a ward family is by doing sealings together, not always an endowment session, because of the interactions we experience while doing these temple ordinances. 

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