Two weeks ago (082210)...

On Sunday, August 22nd, we awoke to a torrential downpour. After looking outside we went back to sleep to the pounding rain. Not long after that, our rest was done as the drips began to fall on James's pillow. The hotel supplied us with a large water bottle whose spout had been cut off to catch the leak.
You can see the water bottle on James's pillow.

We had places to be that day so we didn't worry about it much. Our goal was to hit as many branches as we could in the areas where James had served.


This brother was a youth at the time James served. Apparently he had a long ponytail at that time. Now he is the branch president.


This was priesthood meeting in one of the branches.


This is an investigating family originally from Romania, residence in Ukraine, working in St. Petersburg. It's amazing how the Lord works.


The sisters from RS that knew James.

Family James knew.

Second Priesthood Meeting. As we talked about some of the people who had fallen away and how slow the missionary work seemed to be, the gentleman in the center who is now a "long-time" member said, "We are a people who are now sleeping, but we will awake."

In the second building we attended hung the original of the painting on the July Ensign. Interestingly, the actual statues are nude but the LDS artist painted them with clothes.

The remainder of the day we were just like missionaries, retracing James's old routes until our legs were exhausted and our feet hurt.


The balcony of the apartment where James lived.

One of the buildings where James taught.

We figured we walked about ten miles by the time we returned to the hotel that night.

Total Approximate miles traveled: +10 on foot.