From the Mission President's Blog:

STARS
Stars, in your multitudes

Scarce to be counted ,

Filling the darkness

With order and light

You are the sentinels,

Silent and sure,

Keeping watch in the night

Keeping watch in the night

You know your place in the sky,

You hold your course and your aim

And each in your season

Returns and returns

And is always the same.

(A song the character Javert sings, from"Les Miserables")

This is just a memory of traveling late last Sunday night, from General Villegas to Buenos Aires, with the APS. We were on a very long, dark, two lane highway, and suddenly, we noticed the brilliance of the stars above and the hugeness of the "Milky Way." Evrett commented that this was the first time he and I had been able to see the stars in the "Southern Hemisphere" sky. We pulled off the highway, and drove a little ways down a dirt road. Then, we all got out of the car and gazed at the bright stars for a few moments. We talked about the scriptures that refer to the Lord creating "worlds without number", and the scriptures in the Book of Moses that tell about Moses' reaction, when he saw all the inhabitants of the earth and the vastness of the Lord's creations. Moses realized then that "man is nothing." On Monday, the verses from the song "Stars" popped into my mind, and I have been humming that song all week as we've worked with our missionaries in various ways.

Last night, I realized that the words from "Stars" remind me of our missionaries and our wonderful family and friends. It's a dark and cold winter in Buenos Aires right now, and it seems like we've been encouraging our missionaries all week to do their best to stay out on the streets day and night, even when faced with illness and danger, proclaiming the Gospel to the people. A few missionaries have told us that some of the people here call them "angels"and want to serve and help them in their work. Yes, they are angels, and when they are out among the people, they are "filling the darkness with order and light". They are the "sentinels" who "keep watch in the night" and "hold their course and their aim, and are "always the same", because they are proclaiming a Gospel that is always the same. The missionaries give comfort and hope to the people of Buenos Aires.

We want our dear family and friends to know that you are all the "Stars" in our lives, who give us strength and direction. Because you are our own personal "Stars", we send a big hug and a big kiss and "Thank You" to you all. We love you all and we miss you all!