Recognizing the Obvious

West of central London on Cromwell Road the pavement (or ‘sidewalk’ to many of us) widens just before you get to the corner of the Tesco store. The pavement is sloped from both sides to the middle where there is a row of curved blocks to allow for rain water to flow. Down the middle of these blocks someone has painted the word “Drainage.” It is good to see this, because, for sure, without this word…. in utter confusion the rain would go somewhere else.

It is much like this in life. Sometimes, in spite of careful written directions, we go somewhere else.

Clearly, our written directions say:

• Pray always, and be believing, and all things shall work together for your good[1] - then we forget to pray, disbelieve and have problems in our lives.

• Love one another …. that there should be no contention[2] - then we treat others badly and contention begins.

• Forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you[3] - then we hold a grudge and still expect forgiveness for ourselves.
• Bring ye all the tithes…..open you the windows of heaven, and pour you out a blessing[4] – then we withhold our tithes and struggle, and not just financially.

• Strait and narrow path which leads to eternal life[5] – then we wander to another path that leads to destruction and misery.

In our Family History Centre there are films of documents that are centuries old that have damaged pages that are evident when viewed, and yet the film itself has a written note to say “damaged page”. One might think that implies that without the note the document would be just fine.

I know that without the written directions of the words of God I would not be just fine.

I have a testimony of the truth in the written directions of the words of God. The list above is but a small sample of these wonderful truths. My life is better, happier and more fulfilling when I follow the directions of a loving Heavenly Father.

I shall ever be grateful for the atonement of Jesus Christ that gives hope in spite of me, all too often, missing the obvious.

---

[1] D&C 90:24

[2] Mosiah 18:21

[3] Matthew 6:14

[4] Malachi 3:10

[5] 2 Nephi 31:18

Closing Bell

Our mission is soon drawing to a close. Since time immemorial, bells have signaled the opening and/or closing, so it seems appropriate that we visited the Whitechapel Bell Foundry. Whitechapel has been making bells since 1570 (some say 1420) and the foundry makes bells just as they were made over 500 years ago. Small ones, big ones, low tones, high tones…they made the Liberty bell and the 13 1/2 ton bell that chimes in London’s Big Ben.

The bells are cast from molten bronze (copper-tin) in a mold that is made of a loam material that consists of sand, clay, horse manure and goat hair. About the only change in the process from medieval times and church friars is the use of electronic equipment to test the pitch and resonance and a huge jig bore machine to remove material to tune the bell.

Buckets of (L to R) manure, clay, sand, sand, goat hair.

Small hand bells are made in the same way as the large cathedral bells, one at a time only polished and prettied…. as our tour guide said, “If they look good, they must sound good.” The bells we played at Christmas last year came from Whitechapel. A set of 12 bells on offer (that means on sale) go for £2,875 or about $4,700.

So unless I squeeze in another blog or two, here’s our ‘closing bell’. Turn your sound way up and listen.

Wishing you the best of everything.......

Elder & Sister Watts

Devon Delving

My 2nd Great Grandfather, James Watts and his family lived here (Dean) in 1841 through 1851 and worked as an “Ag Lab” (agriculture laborer). The family moved to Cardiff Wales sometime before 1861, where they lived until they boldly left the Old World for the New and crossed to America coming to Utah. James and Elizabeth (71 & 75) were living in Providence in 1870. Elizabeth died in 1878 and James in 1889; both are buried in the Ogden Cemetery.

The current owner of ‘Dean Farm’ is Morley Hooksway whose family has owned the farm for over 30 years. He told me one of the houses was 400 years old and some of the others were newer…. only about 280 years old. Needless to say we took pictures of these old houses. See them here West Down - Dean

Dean is in West Down Parish, which is just Nor'East of Georgeham, where James was born in 1801. Click on the map for a larger view, and if you’re interested you can see some pictures Georgeham

We spent one day plus at the North Devon Record office in Barnstaple (that’s Barn-stuhpull to you Yanks) and another day in the Devon Record office in Exeter. We found some more family names to add – pretty fun. Some of the old records from the 1600’s and 1700’s are really hard to read.

Family History aside… we were away from the busyness of London in rural England with more sheep than people. Beautiful country. We drove along the Atlantic coastline and ate at a 13th century freehouse, The Bush Inn in Cornwall. Here are a few more pictures of our trip. Devon & Cornwall

We drove back to Exeter on the 5th of January in a blinding snowstorm, slipping and sliding all the way. No such thing as all season tires, snow plows or sanded roads in England.

Love to all,

Elder & Sister Watts

London’s Winter Solstice

It’s winter in London!  It’s cold in London!  It’s the shortest day of the year.  Sunrise at 8:10am and sunset at 3:46pm.  Actually “Sunrise” is only a wishful thought, since it only gets to 15° above the horizon.  So just picture lots of tall buildings and then try to ‘not’ stand in the shade.  Almost impossible.  Still….. lots of bikes out on the streets.

Christmas will soon be here and thoughts turn to things other than family history.  Not much happening in the Family History Centre.  But still hardly a day goes by without someone thrilled for having found a marriage record or a new name in their ancestral tree that they never knew before.

We’re going to Devon next week (South West England) to visit long deceased kin.  Looking forward to walking where they walked and seeing what they saw, and maybe, just maybe…… feeling what they felt.

Merry Christmas to All……..

We love you,

Elder & Sister Watts

London Culture

The Royal Albert Hall was built to fulfill the vision of Prince Albert (Queen Victoria's consort) of a 'Central Hall' that would be used to promote understanding and appreciation of the Arts and Sciences and would stand at the heart of the South Kensington estate, surrounded by museums and places of learning. The Royal Albert was officially opened in March 1871.

Thursday evening we went to a “Best of Broadway” concert featuring the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra at Royal Albert. The orchestra was eye-watering magnificent and the music program was varied and beautiful with singers to perfectly match decades of Broadway songs – Evita, Phantom, Man from La Mancha, Kiss Me Kate, Joseph.., Les Mis, Hairspray, Wicked, West Side Story, etc.

We were seated in the Grand Tier, second tier boxes to the left. Click on the picture for an expanded view. Our seats were in the location circled in red. To say the least it was a cultural feast.

On December 15th we’ll be back for a Christmas concert featuring the London Concert Orchestra, City of London Choir, a Children’s Chorus and The Brass Ensemble of the Band of the Scots Guards with lots of great Christmas music.

On Wednesday, the day before, we went to the Globe Theatre, the wooden peg-built replica of the original open-roof theatre where Shakespeare made his mark. It’s now off season, so we were not able to see a play. “I like this place and willingly could waste my time in it.” (As You Like It)

What a place! If we wanted to, had the time (and the money) we could then go watch the eight best tennis players in the world compete in the last ATP tournament of the year. London definitely is a city of action and happenings – plays, ballet, opera, concerts, football (lots of that). The Real Salt Lake winning the MLS Championship even made the London papers – however, mostly about David Beckham on the losing team.

Lastly, there was a lady in the Centre this week that, as we were talking about finding records of ancestors, said, “I just get chills when I find one.” There you go….. Elijah is at it again.

Love from Elder & Sister Watts

Medieval Gem - Rye

Rye is a medieval town perched on a hill over looking the most narrow part of the English Channel in East Sussex.  It seems almost suspended in time reflecting an unhurried charm of years long gone. P-day again and we’re off to explore more of this amazing country.  The entrance gate above was constructed in 1329 AD

 

Ypres Tower looks formidable with this English maiden guarding the entrance.

And here’s Lady Watts at the Millinery Shop.

Click on the cobblestone street below to take a photo trip with us through the medieval town of Rye……

Best wishes to all….

Elder & Sister Watts

Off to the Races

P-day again and we went to see a ‘Steeplechase’. Beautiful day, very English and lots of fun. Beautiful horses…..

The ‘Pedestrians’ -

Elder & Sister Scott, Elder & Sister Watts and Elder & Sister Inskeep.

One of many bookmakers (touts), showing the odds and taking bets. Had a hard time keeping Sister Watts away…

Interesting people….

Very proper.....

Beautiful horses.....

And here’s some of the ACTION!

Click here for more pictures.

Love to all,

Elder & Sister Watts

Walkin' in "Stile"

Last Saturday we joined three other senior couples and set off to take an English country walk. It was a beautiful day as we walked along and across tree-lined fields, through bough-covered paths to see quaint villages and medieval churches.

One field 'required' us to pass through the domain of some ferocious wild animals (above). At first Sister Watts said, "I'm not going in there", but when confronted with the alternative of a very long walk, she relented and bravely faced the beasts and made it through.

The goal of the walk, aside from the exhilaration of just taking it, was to see the Watts Memorial Chapel and George F. Watts Museum. George (no relation as far as I know) was a famous painter and sculptor of the late 19th century. His works are displayed prominently throughout England - most notably St. Pauls Cathedral and the National Gallery.

Our walk took us through the villiage of Puttenham, where we ate at The Good Intent pub, walked across the Puttenham Golf Club (ca 1894) and came up "The Street."

Here's a picture of Sister Watts crossing the Stile in style. And..... below, Elder Watts is not acting his age on a rope swing. Best wishes..... Elder Watts

Missionary Engineering

The Hyde Park Chapel is, in every way, a shared facility. Besides three wards, the building is used for: the England London Mission Offices, Stake Offices, Employment Center, YSA Outreach Program and the London Family History Centre. For many years the Family History Centre has put up a temporary vinyl banner sign each day to 'advertise' its existence. The existing vinyl banner had become worn and looked more like a swap meet sale sign than a sign meeting the usual high standards of the Church.


Our FHC Director asked me to arrange for a replacement banner. After some investigation, I suggested a thin, solid panel sign that would look a bit more upscale and last longer even though it would be a bit more expensive. She agreed and off I went to do a bit of engineering complete with a few drawings, a simple design for mounting and the new sign is now in place. It's lightweight and easy to hang and remove each day.
We often have patrons who say, "I saw your sign and came to investigate.

" Not rocket science, but fun nevertheless to do a little Missionary Engineering.

Elder Watts

Brilliant P-days

Every missionary feels that they were called to serve in the best mission in the Church. We do! No one can argue with us, when we declare that we have the best P-days in the world. Monday, September 21st was a special day when we visited the historic and fascinating city of Oxford, and visited some of the thirty eight colleges which comprise Oxford University. It is the oldest surviving university in the English speaking world. Although the exact date of foundation remains unclear, there is evidence of teaching there as far back as the 11th century. There are just over 20,000 students in the colleges that make up Oxford University.

A favorite was Christ Church, which is the largest college and has an Anglican cathedral. The Cathedral is the College Chapel for the College as well as the cathedral church for the Diocese of Oxford. King Henry VIII was the founder of the college. John Wesley is one of the famous people educated here. Another is Charles Dodgson whose pen name is Lewis Carroll. He became friends with the daughters of the Dean of Christ Church - especially Alice. Dodgson made up stories to entertain the sisters and thus was the beginning of "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass."

The Dining Hall Scenes and stone stairways for the first two "Harry Potter" films were filmed at Christ Church.





Lot's of humorous gargoyles on all the college buildings. Click on the 'Bored Student' at the left to take a trip with us through Oxford.

Love, Sister Watts

Babylon Gardens

We had to cap off the 50th celebration with a night out on the 16th, and what better place to celebrate for a missionary couple than Babylon. It's actually called the Roof Gardens and Babylon is one of the featured resturants. The gardens are on the top of a building in Kensington and are beautiful. The view over the city was spectacular.

It was a bit of a splurge for two country folk from Utah, but it was well worth it. We mentioned to the waitress that we were celebrating our 50th. The dessert came with a special decoration as you can see by clicking on the picture. I forgot to bring my camera, but we struck up a conversation with another couple next to us who had a camera. New friends, camera, email... and here we are. It was a great evening.

Have a good week!

Elder & Sister Watts

'50' And Counting

On Wednesday, September 16th, we will celebrate 50 years of marriage. This is no small thing and certainly worth celebrating! This milestone is a family event and to be a 'proper' (as the English would say) party, it ought to be done with family. Well.... we're blessed for now to have a temporary family here in London and they gave us a 'proper' party last Friday evening, complete with invitations, favors, balloons, wonderful food, flowers and most of all -- Friendship. If you would care to, you can join the party here.

Just a word or two about being together for fifty years. It's not been all smooth sailing, but then as Harold B. Lee once said, "A smooth sea does not a skillful mariner make." I would recommend an occasional 'disagreement' so you can better appreciate the smooth sea moments -- well maybe 'recommend' is not the right word, but you get the idea. We've had a wonderful life together and counting blessings would overload my abacus.

As I think back I'm not sure it all began with a clear focus on how serious and important this all was. I was in love and as the saying goes, "a team of wild horses couldn't have kept me away from Barbara." But the importance and seriousness grew and came into clearer focus as I truly learned the gospel, where it says things like, "cleave unto his wife, and they shall be one flesh", "whatsoever God doeth, it shall be for ever", "heirs together of the grace of life" and finally "new and everlasting covenant of marriage."

Most of all I married right. In the September Ensign President Uchtdorf says, "The scriptures give us names of several women who have blessed individuals and generations." I would include in that list - Barbara. She has blessed my life and continues to do so. I am the "best-cared-for" man in London. You would not believe some of the meals we have that she makes seemingly out of thin air. Proverbs Chapter 31:11-31 describes her to a "T" and truly "Her children arise up, and call her blessed; her husband also, and he praiseth her."

Our children get a lot of credit for this milestone; they have helped us along and trained us well. We have been blessed with five wonderful children - Brian, Barry, Rich, Julie and Jane - each with unique and individual talents and gifts. Their choices and the lives they live are a rich reward for a 50-year marriage. Add to that Jana, Nannette, Tammy, Matt and Jake and the rewards double. But that's not as good as it gets -- at the end of our 50-year marriage rainbow is truly a pot of golden grandchildren, who we cherish and love dearly. We are ever amazed and impressed with their activities and achievements that make us smile, laugh, clap, cheer... and bring us joy. Our hearts are full; we love you lots!

Lastly to our friends, we say thank you for joining us in this grand trip, bumps and all. We love you and look forward to lots of fun times yet to come.

God bless you all,

Elder and Sister Watts

Goose Fat

The miracle of food in England is "Free Range!" All the quality (more expensive) foods come from free range..... free range eggs, free range chickens, free range cows, free range pigs. Somehow the eggs, milk and meat from critters in pens is second class. Well..... Jana bought us some "Free Range" Pure Goose Fat, which has sat on 'me' shelf (as the English would say) for six weeks.

With a little help from the internet recipe reservoir Sister Watts cooked up some free range potatoes using Pure goose fat. Not too bad -- but then, as with any gourmet chef, Chef Barbarez's skills in the culinary arts

could make any food tres magnifique!

Happy gourmet eating.

Elder & Sister Watts

It's 'Football'

This weekend marked the beginning of the Premier League football season. Twenty teams with players averaging £1.1m in annual salary (that's £21,000 per week) begin their competition ending next May with the champion taking home, besides a solid silver trophy, over £15m. The team picked to win is Chelsea with Manchester United (winners last year) and Liverpool close behind. Lots of U.S. ownership in these teams. 'Football' is a front page topic all season and we hear about it from our patrons in the FHC as well.

Here's Elder Watts on a recent P-day outing warming up for the season with one of the local stars. We had a little trouble keeping the fans off the 'pitch'. I was asked to play for the Tottenham Hotspurs, but I had to decline due to my prior commitments to the team at the London Family History Centre.

Best wishes,

Elder Watts

Lea Valley Primary

After 10 months of teaching Gospel Doctrine to the Saints of Lea Valley Ward, I was surprised when the Bishop issued a release and said he would like to have me serve in the Primary. I felt a little sad because as difficult as it was for me to teach the adults, I loved what I was learning. It has not taken long to switch allegiance to the Primary and these cute girls.

It's Raining!

After a week of sunshine and temperatures in the low 30's (°C) , one of our FHC patrons said, "Well summer's over now, we can get back to normal." That would be cool, wind, sprinkles and showers. Here are a few pictures of London and E&S Watts, now seasoned Londoners -- see for yourself.

Presidents Passing

Tomorrow we will have a new Mission President. President Renn Patch and his wife Deanne will replace President Clayton Foulger and his wife Marla. We have developed a great love and respect for President Foulger and his wife. They will be sorely missed.

We ('we' meaning the Family History Centre staff) were discussing over dinner two weeks ago what we might give to President and Sister Foulger as a going-away present. After much discussion, Sister Watts said, "Why don't we do their family history." It was an 'epiphany' (see the spot on definition below) moment and particularly celebratory coming from Sister Watts, who is occasionally less than enthusiastic about family history. We all took a piece of the pie to create a set of records for each of President and Sister Foulger's family line. We searched and gathered copies of censuses, overland trail records, immigration records and stories of ancestors, until we had a 'volume' (picture at left) to present to each of them along with electronic copies of all the documents on a USB memory stick.

President and Sister Foulger were thrilled, bothered somewhat by something wet in their eyes.

epiphany -a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple, or commonplace occurrence or experience.

Oh.... by the way - the research revealed that Sister Watts is related to President Foulger!

How's that for ironic.

I Shook Hands with a Prophet Today!

June 6th, 2009 is a day that we will always remember. We were blessed to attend a meeting with 280 elders and sisters that serve with us in the England London and England London South Missions. Our speakers were President Uchtdorf, and Elder Neil Andersen, our newest apostle. We were seated well before the meeting started and when they arrived, we all stood as they and their wives walked down the aisle. President Uchtdorf went to the pulpit and said they would like to shake our hands, so he and Elder Andersen stood down on the floor and we went row by row and all of us were able to shake their hands. Two great men that we sustain as prophets, seers, and revelators. It was powerful and the meeting had not yet started. Sister Watts

We Have A New Granddaughter!!

Our dear friends here in London rejoiced with us at the news of the birth of our granddaughter. They thought the pink flowered plant would be a good announcement to our patrons and soothe our separation pains.

Grace Emery Freeman was born June 4th. to Matt and Julie. She weighed 7 pounds 14 ounces and is beautiful. She will be welcomed home by an excited brother and two sweet sisters.

"What have you learned on your mission?"

One of the blessings of serving in the England London mission is our association with the other senior couples. Every other Monday we enjoy a special family home evening with them. We take turns being the host and provide the main course of the meal and the activity or lesson after dinner. We have eaten many delicious meals, laughed as we've played fun games, or been spiritually fed with great gospel discussions. Last Monday evening, Elder and Sister Neu were the hosts and after dinner Elder Neu started our discussion with the question, "What have you learned on your mission?" The Neu's will be going home in one month. Everyone at the table will be going home before us. Each took a turn to respond to this thought provoking question and the answers were varied and inspiring. I've thought about them many times in the past two days and reflected over and over what my response was and is to this question. Jim and I were seated to respond near the end with only Sister Hintze to conclude the discussion.

The lessons I am learning are too many to mention. I do not have adequate words to describe the experience we are having.