Week 43 Report

Wow! This week started off with a bang. I forgot to mention that last Saturday Devon was bit by a stray dog when we were in Kaneohe. It was a pretty mean looking bite that broke the skin in many places. We tried to clean it and went on our way. In the early hours of Monday, Devon started running a fever and wasn’t feeling well. We thought he had the flu. The fever continued all day Monday and Tuesday. He felt bad enough to stay home on Tuesday (that tells you something). When I came home from the office about 5:30 I took a look at his leg and the whole lower leg was red and swollen – cellulitis. We got in the car and went to the ER at Queens Hospital. The waiting room was packed, but gratefully we only waited about 30 minutes before we saw the doctor. He agreed it was cellulitis and ordered labs, IV hydration, and 3 grams of ampicillin IV. The labs looked pretty good so he sent us home with a prescription for 10 days of Augmentin and instructions to return in a day or two if Devon wasn’t feeling better or the leg didn’t look better.

Wednesday Devon said he felt a little better – no fever – so he went to the office for half a day. By evening the leg was less red and still no fever, so we were encouraged. By Wednesday he was ready to put in a full day at the office – no appetite but definitely better. It continued to improve throughout the week. We were very grateful.

One of our big concerns was the possibility of rabies, as we didn’t know anything about the dog. It was a big relief to learn that there is NO rabies in Hawaii! I was stunned and very grateful. The ER doctor confirmed that was true. So I guess Hawaii is a good place to get a dog bite. Devon says that now his missionary experience is complete.

Work in the office this week has been as busy as ever. It was time to request travel home for our March departing missionaries. We only have 6 going home, but four of them are going to the Philippines, Japan, and South Korea. It’s a little challenging to figure out which airport to send them to especially if they are from a small town. I’ve learned a lot and I think I’ve got them booked to the right destination. I also requested our flight home – that was really strange!

It seems like I’ve been on the phone to SLC a lot this week – questions about travel, IMOS system problems, visa and permanent residence questions for one of our missionaries, having SL adjust release dates that were wrong in the computer and an arriving date for a senior couple that needed to get moved up. One sweet brother in SL said, “Oh, hello Sister Tufts. How are you?” We’re getting to be good friends!

I’ve also been busy doing the mail this week. Usually the receptionist does it, but she is new and has so much to learn. It takes a big stress off her to have me do it. I’ve had time this week, but next week may be different as it’s transfer week. We’ll see how it goes. I’ll keep doing it as long as I can. I’ve also had lots of letters to write. We only have 2 missionaries going home next week, and I already have most of their departing books ready to go. My big goal is to finish updating my instruction book for the sister who will be replacing us.

Thursday was my birthday. That day and the next couple of days I enjoyed lots of phone calls, texts, and messages from family and dear friends from all over the world wishing me happy birthday. It was a little overwhelming to realize just how many special people have been a part of my life. I have been richly blessed! Thursday itself was a usual, busy day at the office. We came home very tired and decided to stay in and have left-overs – which were actually very yummy!

Friday was Elder Reeder’s birthday, so the three office couples decided to go to dinner at my favorite restaurant – Haliewa Joes in Kaneohe. Luckily it is a favorite of Elder Reeder’s too.

We spent Saturday morning and early afternoon doing 5 pad checks. One pad needed some attention, but the rest were pretty good. I started feeling a little under the weather and so took a nap in the afternoon. I woke up feeling feverish and achy and decided to miss the Zone New Year activity. I put the potatoes in the oven and cut up the vegies (my assignment). Then I sent them with Devon and stayed home. The zone enjoyed the baked potato bar and vegies. Then they watched “Chariots of Fire” while they ate popcorn and candy. Afterward they enjoyed a rowdy Nerf war game in the halls before they had to leave for home. Curfew is 9:30. I heard it was great fun but I was glad I decided to stay home. I went to bed early, but Devon stayed up till midnight. He said the fireworks over the city were loud and amazing. He watched them from our balcony and said he’d never seen so many at one time. They were coming from multiple areas all over the city. Beautiful!

Sunday our church time changed from 11:00 to 1:00. I woke up feeling pretty good, but by 1:00 my energy was fading. I played the organ for Sacrament Meeting and then came home for a nap. In the evening Devon needed to deliver a bicycle to an elder in Hauula (up by Laie), so I rode with him to drop off the bike.

I wish I had some photos to post. I’ll have to do better at taking some, but in order to do that I suppose we will need to do something besides work and sleep. Hopefully this new week will find us both feeling well. I’m looking forward to transfers. It’s a lot of work, but so fun to meet the new missionaries. I always hate to say goodbye to the elders that are transferred from our zone, and I’m going to miss our AP that is going home. But that’s the natural progression of things. All is well. We love being here!