Let Your Light Shine

     Our P-day is Saturday instead of Monday like the rest of the missionaries. Last Saturday was a busy day. It started with an outing with our ward. We went to Pier 21, a landing place for immigrants in the early 1900s until about 1970. It's now a museum.

Some came with little more than the shirt on their back, some with a suitcase, some with trunks and trunks. Some were fortunate enough to sail into the harbour in luxury. Others, mostly refugees, had tighter quarters but were glad to arrive. Most of them, rich and poor alike, suffered terribly with seasickness and were pleased to be able to stand on land again. It often took hours and hours for the passengers to get processed and given a health clearance. The lucky people whose names started with A or B got through quickly. A Zimmerman might feel like it took him a year to get through, although it probably wasn't more than 10 hours.

We wanted to see what else was in the area. People were coming and going along the boardwalk, so we knew there had to be other things going on. First we walked through an area full of crafty things--exhibits, activities for kids, and a lady and her spinning wheel. It was cold enough that even her coffee wasn't keeping her warm and she packed up and moved inside just after we snapped this picture (you can see her fingers are red from the cold).





This drumming band was made up of people our age-ish. They were very good. Fun to listen to for a few minutes, but we don't know how they could play as long as they did and not go deaf.

 Just down the boardwalk from Pier 21 is a Farmers' Market. We'd heard about it but didn't know where it was. It was a delightful thing to stumble across! We expected a lot of booths selling produce. What we got was a vast indoor marketplace selling everything from carrots to full meals--lots and lots of food in all forms--plus flowers, meat, artwork, jewelry, clothing, and various musical groups in different places in the building. We walked until we were worn out.

From a balcony on the second floor of the Market we snapped this picture of a lighthouse. Last fall at a fundraiser for Syrian immigrants we bought a painting that looks almost exactly like this! It's the lighthouse on Georges Island. There used to be a prison on the island. Unfortunately now it isn't safe and now no one is allowed on the island, so we just satisfied ourselves with seeing our picture in real life through the mists.


That evening we went to a ward talent show. It wasn't for the ward we attend (that will be next month), but we were invited by someone who helps in the office to go to his ward's talent show. There was everything from a cowboy kid singing opera to a 42-year old showing off his skateboard tricks, a young girl skipping rope, someone playing Name that Tune with an ocarina, to a cute twist with a ventriloquist. The audience was very supportive of all the acts with enthusiastic clapping after each one. No one seemed embarrassed to share their talent.

Lots of hula, grass skirts, and ukulele, acts--I think they're all yearning for warmer weather!

And yes, even the missionaries were asked to participate

Bill Green from the office--he's quite the character and an amazing ventriloquist

President Pratt asked us to attend the Sackville Ward instead of the Dartmouth Ward (we live within their boundaries). The members of the Dartmouth Ward have let us know they were sorely disappointed they didn't get to have us. We LOVE the people in Sackville, and it's almost as close as the Dartmouth building is from our apartment.