1 May 2020, Friday
Transfer Day
Today the Country of South Africa moved from COVID-19 Level 5 to Level 4.
We arranged to have Area travel bring two missionaries to our mission office to join our Johannesburg Mission until they can return to their original missions.
Elder Dos Santos and Elder Mokhoanatsi live close to each other in our Gauteng province. Elder Dos Santos went to the Joburg MTC, then to Mozambique Maputo Mission for a few days before returning back to his father's home before the lockdown began.
Elder Mokhoanatsi completed his virtual MTC training on April 28 and cannot travel to the Durban Mission, so is temporarily joining us.
Elder Dos Santos will be trained by Elder Madlala.
Elder Mokhoanatsi will be trained by Elder Malgas and Elder Mnyakana.
We are happy to have them with us. I have helped both to complete their missionary recommendation applications. They and President Leavitt and I are excited they aren't sitting at home. They are joining our wonderful group of missionaries.
Unfortunately, I was occupied all day and didn't take one photo of anyone coming or going. It was the first time we have gone to the office since 27 March. We spaced out the missionaries who were involved in the transfer and those getting their phones fixed by the office elders.
After all was completed, President Leavitt and I traveled back home and held a office staff meeting by Zoom.
2 May 2020, Saturday
Life goes on even during lockdown. At 2 pm via Zoom instead of the board room at the area office, President Leavitt joined his coordinating council meeting with Elder Glenn Holmes and seven stake presidents. President Leavitt represents the 18 branches in 4 Districts and also as mission president. There is much to discuss.
3 May 2020, Sunday
President Leavitt and I had sacrament meeting under our carport with Elder Paongo, who lives next to us until he has recuperated.
At 7 pm, we had a Zoom meeting with all our missionaries. These are not very good photos and you can't see everyone, but give an idea of how we bring everyone together.
5 May 2020, Tuesday
Zone Conference - North Zone, 9:30-12:55 pm
Elder Malgas, Elder Mokhoanatsi, Elder Mnyakana, President and Sister Leavitt, Sister Kipela, Sister Sithole.
Sister Madlanzi, Sister Osikol, Elder Krakra, Elder Jooste, Elder Kireta, Elder Mthembu.
Elder Chifarimba, Elder Ndlelo, ZLs, Elder Mtyobile, Elder Kunjuzwa, APs.
Zone Conference--East Zone, 2-5:30 pm
Elder Zulu, Elder Mabuza, Elder Ngozo, Elder Mayisela, President & Sister Leavitt, Elder Mtyobile & Elder Kunjuzwa, APs.
Elder Ndlela, Elder Madaza, Sister Mogale, Sister Vetten, President & Sister Pitcher (2nd Counselor in Mission presidency).
Elder Rodrigues and Elder Bopape, ZLs.
6 May 2020, Wednesday
Zone Conference--Central Zone, 9:30-12:45 pm
Elder Khumalo & Elder Rakotonindrina, ZLs, Pres & Sis Leavitt, Elder Kunjuzwa & Elder Mtyobile, APs.
Sister Mpahlele, Sister Nzimande, Elder Kani, Elder Van Thiel Berghuys, Elder Nocanda, Elder Rattana.
Sister Nyembe, Sister Mvelase, Elder Mosia, Elder Randrianary, Elder Clark, Elder Mathenjwa.
Zone Conference--South Zone, 2-5:20 pm
Sister Maboso, Sister Bell, Pres & Sis Leavitt, Elder Kunjuzwa, Elder Mtyobile, APs.
Elder Madlala, Elder Nganda, Elder Wailagala & Elder Dakuiyau, ZLs, Elder Tyantsi, Elder Jente.
Elder Fierro, Elder Klintworth.
President Leavitt and I found out that Elder Mtyobile and Elder Goje must leave tomorrow to travel home across province borders before the midnight deadline that was imposed by President Ramaposa. We quickly worked on a transfer Wednesday night and Thursday morning. We are so sad to loose our assistant and one of our trainers but they officially finished their missions on April 29 and were extending until 20 May to help us. Things changed.
7 May 2020, Thursday
Zone Conference--West Zone, 9:40-1 pm
Sister Rambau, Sister Mokoena, Pres & Sis Leavitt, Elder Kunjuzwa & Elder Mtyobile, APs (last meeting for Elder Mtyobile as our assistant).
Elder Daniels & Elder Mafundityala, ZLs, Elder Baldiviezo-Aguilar, Elder Torres, Sister Akello, Sister Machoba.
Elder Hlatswayo, Elder Austin, office elders, Elder Dos Santos (joined us while Elder Goje was packing).
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| Elder Goje |
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| Elder Mtyobile |
Elder Goje made it home to East London. Elder Mtyobile wasn't allowed across the last province border (Western Cape),100 kms from his home in George. President Gadifele Lebethoa (Cape Town Mission) assigned him to a companionship in Port Elizabeth (the province they were traveling in) about 3 1/3 hours from his home.
10 May 2020 Sunday Zoom Gathering
Happy Mother's Day!
Our special guests were President Leavitt's parents, Dixie and Anne Leavitt. They served as mission president and companion in the Leeds England Mission in 1984-87.
President Leavitt started interviews and I started my WhatsApp video training. Here is a screenshot of Sister Madlanzi and Sister Osikol. We focused on the digital Area Book Planner this time. I didn't include screenshots of the planner as they included names of people being taught. My last day of regular training was Friday, 29 May 2020.
14-15 May 2020
President Leavitt and I had the Africa Southeast Area Interim Mission Leadership Seminar by Zoom for all mission presidents and companions in this area. This area is being split in August to become the Africa South and Africa Central Areas, so this is the last time we will meet together with these mission presidents and companions. Of course, we have been here three plus years and might be home before the next Seminar is held in Oct/Nov 2020. We did participate with our departing testimonies. Elder and Sister Anderson joined us on Friday. He said to ask, "Where is the opportunity in this difficulty?" We will always have difficulties and tests--not the exception, but the rule. In many occasions, miracles of God are sown, character is strengthened and we experience growth in not what we do but what we are becoming as we choose to do God's will. Don't seek but embrace difficulties. Get on our knees, pray in faith and see miracles.
17 May 2020, Sunday
SAJM Sunday Gathering 7 pm
We check the COVID-19 news to give our missionaries a quick update at our Sunday evening gathering on what is happening so they will know they need to follow the regulations and safety rules.
Cases: 13,524
New Cases recorded in last 24 hours: 785
South Africans tested: 421,555
Tests conducted in last 24 hours: 18,537
Number of deaths in SA increase by 9
Total deaths in SA: 247
South Africans recovered from Corona virus: 6,083
Our 7 pm Sunday gathering on Zoom:
President Thabiso Sehloho, 1st Counselor in the Mission Presidency was our special speaker tonight. He gave us some wonderful things to think about and choose to act on.
18 May 2020, Monday
Shopping is now a different adventure with a person spraying your cart and hands before entering the shopping complex and again when entering the grocery store. There is tape on the ground reminding us to stay apart from each other. Everyone must wear a mask to enter the store and signs remind us to stay 1 meter apart while shopping. Upon exiting the store, hands and carts are also sprayed.
21 May 2020
Short-term projections of the month of May.
The Long-term projections:
The chart below begins on the left with 21 March 2020 and ends with 26 November 2020. The solid black line is what the projection of Active COVID-19 cases if no intervention is taken. The dash line is the optimistic view of a 5 week lockdown effect. The solid green line is the pessimistic view of a 5 week lockdown effect.
The graph starts at 0 active cases, next line is 2,000,000 and increases 2 million each horizontal line going up. So the worst scenario has a peak of 12 million cases on 9 June, the pessimistic has a peak of 10 million on 9 July, and the optimistic has a peak of 8 million cases on 8 August 2020.
21 May 2020, Monday
This is what President Leavitt and I see out our window as we exercise as the sun rises in the fall.
22 May 2020
I made separate labels to keep track of where elders live and who are the drivers. We needed to close two flats and move them to a safer environment. This helps as the missionaries do not cover the areas they live in--so it gets a bit confusing when trying to figure out a transfer as the transfer board only lists their teaching areas.
22 May 2020: Arrival of two Sister Missionaries, who will join our sisters living in and doing missionary work like our elders except they all live in the MTC.
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| Sister Nyembe, trainer, and Sister T. Sithole |
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| Sister Mvelase, trainer, and Sister Madlingozi |
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| Elder Jooste, trainer, and Elder Arumugam, who arrived on 23 May 2020 to join our mission. |
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| Elders Mnyakana and Malgas, trainers, and Elder Mokhoanatsi, who arrived to serve in our mission on 1 May 2020. |
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| Elder Mokhoanatsi with President and Sister Leavitt |
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Elder Baldiviezo and Elder Torres, companionship before being transferred today to new companions. They requested a photo while we were taking photos. (We all took off our masks for the photos as we have all been in quarantine and are outside.)
23 May 2020
24 May 2020, Sunday
We noticed during Sacrament Meeting in our front room that we had 15 guinea fowl eating from our lawn and washing themselves in the dirt around our trees, shaking and fluffing and preening their feathers and having a wonderful time.
 
Our guest speakers at our 7 pm Sunday gathering 24 May was Elder and Sister Holmes. Elder Holmes is an Area Seventy and over the Guateng Coordinating Council President Leavitt attends as the president (like a stake president) of the mission branches in the four SAJM Church districts.
      
My favorite tree on our drive from the mission office to our home that overhangs the street with vines hanging down.
26 May 2020
Elder Van Thiel Berghuys sent this photo of Elder Kani as they helped cut a Palm tree down for the owner of Zebali Complex on 21 May. They were happy to be allowed to get outside and help.
28 May 2020 Thursday
Last day of interviews with President Leavitt and training with Sister Leavitt.
We had MLC from 4-6 pm. We mostly counseled about organizing the missionaries to clean, move, sort, clean and store flats. We cleaned 60 flats total and closed 32 of them. Sister Leavitt also spent some time training the zone leaders and sister training leaders on the digital area book planner and their responsibilities over their zones and missionaries assigned to them.
  
30 May 2020
We welcomed Elder Manjate today. He has been at home since the lockdown. He was serving in the Mozambique Maputo Mission. Now he will serve with us in the South Africa Johannesburg Mission until the borders open and he can return to Mozambique along with Elder Dos S
 
31 May 2020 Sunday
7 pm Missionary Gathering
Elder and Sister Parrish did a presentation of the "Where Can I Turn for Peace" Facebook ad campaign so the missionaries will know more how to respond to those who fill out their information for someone to contact and help them find peace.
We talked briefly about this week's cleaning and closing flats instructions as given in detail in a mission-wide WhatsApp word document Saturday night.
Our guest speaker, Dennis Freire, recalled some real-life stories to illustrate service to others and faithfully serving the Lord. Dennis expressed a strong testimony of the truthfulness of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints since his conversion long ago. His testimony is sustaining him as he faces continued cancer treatment.
         
The office elders, Elder Krakra and Elder Austin spent some time after speaking with Dennis until we said goodbye to him and visited about other office items.
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