Introducing the new Perm Zone:

L to R: Elder Smith, Baker City, OR; Elder Flitton, SLC, UT; Elder Weber, Raleigh, NC; Elder O'Neill, Oakland, CA; the Pococks, Meridian, ID; Sister Denning, Orem, UT; Sister Damron, SLC, UT; Elder Wimber, Georgia (family soon moving to Roseburg, OR); Elder Hronek, Heber City, UT.  What a team!  We come from all over but have one purpose: to invite people to come unto Christ.  We are so grateful to be able to work alongside these tremendous young missionaries.

Tuesday is one of our favorite days of the week...We changed FHE to Tuesdays so that our young adults who should be with their families on Monday...can join us.  "Commitment" was the focus of the lesson this week.  Six of the YSA shared their feelings about commitment to: parents, family, friends, work, their mini mission, etc.  We talked of the Savior's commitment to us, how He fulfilled His promises...even when it got hard and then we talked of our commitment to Him.  Commitment is difficult at any age, no matter where we live...but it is essential as a member of His church.  The games after the lesson are always fun and challenging.  They are such good sports.

This week I introduced Russians to fruit pizza.  They literally were afraid to taste it..."so strange!"  But it was a hit.  They loved decorating two large pizzas with strawberries, kiwi, bananas and pineapple.  The young man on the left, Stanislav, is a new investigator.  He is 17 and is awaiting permission from his parents to take the discussions but he was allowed to attend FHE.  Artium and Igor are the other two young men.  Katia is the young woman holding the pizza. She sits in on many of our discussions and is an amazing missionary in her own right.  She is so "committed" and loves to share her testimony.  There is power in having a fellow Russian share their conversion story.

Well, we have been without water in the hot tap of our bath and kitchen for 2 1/2 weeks!  Thank goodness for an emergency small water heater in the bathroom that allows us a SHORT but none the less, hot shower.  This week we turned on the hot water handle and this is what we got!  It isn't hot yet...it wasn't clear, but we do now have water!!!  The young adults tell us that it could be a long month of June before we get our clear, hot water back!  Thank goodness for our filter.

We talked on our last blog about the "White Nights" celebration here in Perm.  In the huge grassy area where they have their ice sculptures in the winter...they now have an amazing month long party celebrating the many hours of daylight.  Below you can see a view of some of the displays, restaurants and attractions.   On our P-day we visited the park and were amazed at what was offered.  Each week new performers from various countries provide entertainment.  They have had entertainers from Mexico that hang upside down from a pole, (remember Tulum?) American rock singers, many countries were represented with break dancer competition, a man played works from Tchaikovsky on about 30 pieces of cut glass and much, much more.  They tell us that they even had a demonstration of American Football.  The missionaries were sad they couldn't see that!  All of this is free admission to the public.  There are about 24 sand sculptures that have been created with a mixture of fine sand and a hardening glue.  You can see several of them to the right below.

This was our favorite:  Khrushchev with his shoe off pounding on a table.  Some of you probably remember this event in history.  We felt that this shows that the Russians are willing to laugh at some of the things from their past.  These sculptures were really detailed and creative.

One of the amazing portable restaurants was this one with authentic Arabian food and decor.  Check out the pipe at the front table.

Outside the chefs were baking the bread that was served.  You can see some of the finished product to your left.  These huge brick ovens have hot coals at the bottom .

The dough was attached to the sides of the oven and cooked to perfection...very carefully removed and
drenched in melted butter.  It made our mouths water just watching them.

Two large portable swimming pools were filled with very happy children and adults.

This gives you a wide view of how this large area is bustling with activity.  June 12 was a National Holiday and also Perm City Day...so you can imagine how busy this event can get.

While waiting for an investigator meeting at the church, we were delighted to find a mother and daughter busy at work making a quilt.  This antique iron and sewing machine were put to good use.

This is Ludmila, a counselor in the Relief Society.  Her daughter (above) is not a member but so kind.  This sewing machine was Ludmila's grandmothers and is approximately 70 years old.  It is operated solely with a hand crank. The stitching was better than most modern machines!  Ludmila said that she loves this machine because she can control the speed.  Electric sewing machines scare her.

Time for a haircut and Nadia came to my rescue.  She explained what I wanted and then she would check with me to make sure there were no surprises.  When the hairdresser was finished cutting my hair,  she used the blow dryer and an apron full of brushes to curl it...no curling iron needed!  It is truly amazing how helpless you can feel when it comes to needing such simple tasks.  We are so thankful for our friends who speak much better English than we speak Russian!!!

Talk about fresh...we haven't had any lettuce in the nearly four months that we have been here.  We were getting hungry for Taco salad so I went searching.  We found this lettuce that is so fresh that it is in the pot it was planted...roots and all!

Yes it looks like snow...but it never melts.  There are cottonwood trees everywhere and this is what it looks like outside.  The windows to our apartments don't have screens on them, so you have to be careful this time of year to just barely crack them open.  One Elder said that he forgot to close the window at night and in the morning he had "summer snow" all over the whole apartment!

Thanks for sharing in another of our weeks in Perm.  Can't wait to see what pictures I'll get for next week.  It is always an adventure.  We love serving here in Russia and seeing the gospel brighten the lives of the people here.