Utah Salt Lake City Mission - President and Sister Condie

  " For unto us a  child  is  born , unto us a  son  is given: and the  government  shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful,  Counsellor , The  mighty   God , The  everlasting  Father, The Prince of  Peace . " Isaiah 9:6 It was the first of three Christmases we will experience here on our mission and was definitely a lot quieter than those celebrated at home. It was nice to have Christmas fall on a Sunday this year. It is so much easier to remember the true meaning when it falls on a Sunday. Our church service was exceptional. They had a full string orchestra from members of the ward - many or most of whom were youth between the ages of 11 and 17. Rachel and her husband Jake came over to open Christmas presents and we then  enjoyed a nice, quiet dinner with them and our two Assistants (two young missionaries that work closely with Anne and I in the mission leadership). After dinner we w...

  The highlight of the past few weeks (and there have been a number of highlights) had to be our youngest daughter's (Rachel's) wedding to Jake Beverley on December 2nd in the Draper Temple. She met him at church and they were friends long before he ever asked her out on a date. Though the weather was cold, the sun was out and it was a beautiful day for a beautiful bride. To make things even more perfect, we were able to be with all of our children and their spouses over the weekend and spend time with them, which was much needed. The night before the wedding, our son Dan and our two other sons-in-law Victor and Kimball went up to Park City to see Tommy Emmanuel in concert. He was his usual brilliant self and it was fun to introduce Victor and Kimball to his genius. If you ever get a chance to see him in concert, it is well worth the time and money. On the mission front, Anne and I were able to attend two different leadership conferences, one with Elder Gerritt W. Gong and anot...