Elder/Sister Meyers

Where has January gone? We have been very busy and the time is flying. We love it when that happens!
This week we were able to visit several families. Some of them are families that we have already seen but we did visit a few new families and were able to take their pictures.
We saw Sister Emily Mary Amerasckara. She is 86 years old and lives in an elderly home. She has been a member about 26 years but is now less active. She enjoys us and we love our visits with her.
Brother Jeffry took us to one of his friend's home for a visit. The mother is Nancy Fernando. As we walked into the small neighborhood, young children were all over. They stared as we passed them and then they began to wave, smile, say hello, and follow us. We felt like we were on parade. When we found the small home, we went inside and the children stood in the doorway until they were told to leave. Nancy and her three children were home. Her husband came in for a few minutes but had to get to work driving his tri-shaw. We enjoyed our visit with Nancy and the children. We invited them to come to seminary. Since we are teaching the Old Testament, Brother Jeffry thought they might come.
Sister Ann took us to Sister Munjubhani's home. Sister Munjubhani is a member of the Church. She has two daughters and a son. She loves animals and has at least 3 dogs and 2 cats. She is a marriage registar. In Sri Lanka when you register to marry you are considered legally married.
Elder Meyers was asked to run Mutual for the Colombo Young Men since their leader couldn't be there on Saturday. He helped the young men make cookies. They loved it! The fun part was watching how fast the cookies disappeared. It was like magic!
The big event this week was having Matthew Wilkinson come from Alaska. Matthew was introduced to Sister Premila, our primary president, through face book and they are now engaged to be married. Matt arrived in Sri Lanka on Wednesday. He and Premila toured several sites in Sri Lanka on Wednesday and Thursday. Friday they called to see if Matt could stay here for the night. The heat was unbearable for him at Premila's home. He stayed here Friday night and Saturday. He loved having an air conditioner in his bedroom.
Saturday evening we were invited to Premila's home for dinner. Premila, her mother, and aunts provided a feast for Sister Ann, Sister Sherine, Matt, Elder Meyers and Sister Meyers. We enjoyed meeting Premila's family.
While at Premila's we had Matt demonstrate how he proposed to Premila in a small cafe here in Sri Lanka. It is hard to see Matt and Premila struggle with the cultural differences. Matt tries to be a gentleman by opening doors, pulling her chair out, and using his manners. Some of these things clash with the Sri Lankan culture. Premila has a hard time holding his hand, hugging him, or showing any kind of affection toward him. She wants to but it is so hard because Sri Lankans just don't show affection for their mates in public.
Matt and Premila have had a great visit! Matt will leave this evening and return home. Now the waiting begins. After Matt turns in the paper work for Premila's visa to the USA government, it could take up to a year for Premila to get to the United States. Once she is allowed to enter the United States they will have 90 days to get married. They hope to be married in the Salt Lake Temple by this time next year.
It is wonderful to be the Lord's servants here in Sri Lanka!