Sunday February 21, 1982

Dearest Ron, Ann, Susanna & Jessie, Rick, Jean, Ricky & Barbara Jean and Roy,

We are having a beautiful almost Spring day and we really appreciate it because we have had a cold and nasty Winter. Daddy's ear operation really went good - Jim let Bob observe the surgery and then since Bob was off and could care for him he let him bring Daddy home Monday afternoon - last time he had to stay in the hospital for three days. Bob told us all about it and evidently there was a lot of scar tissue that had formed and stopped the bones from doing what they are supposed to do to let you hear - do you all remember when Daddy had his ear drum punctured that Summer when he was water skiing? Well - when Jim did the first surgery he re-patched that spot on the ear drum and the scar tissue from that had spread or something. Anyway they are expecting a lot better results this time and Daddy says that already his ear feels better than it did - he won't really know if there is any improvements for about six weeks. I can't keep him down though and now he has a cold - he and Bob went to Maumelle one day this week and finished and it is really too cold to do that. We're happy that is over and we hope it will help him.

The funniest thing happened this week - last Tuesday Bro. Asay from the Seventies Presidency called to talk to Daddy. Just the day before we had read an article in the Church News that featured Bro. Asay and his calling over the International Mission in Ankura, Turkey - we all laughed and said that was one place we wouldn't want to go. Well - on Friday Daddy received a large envelope from the Missionary Committee along with a letter explaining a little about being a Mission President. John came home before we did so he opened it and came upstairs to the typewriter and typed in at the bottom of the letter - "You have been called to the Ankura, Turkey Mission". That was the day Bob and Daddy had gone fishing and when they got home and opened it they were shocked but believed it and I came home shortly after that and we were all going through the house to try to find out something about Turkey - finally we decided that Bob should go to the library and find some books on Turkey so he was just getting in his car when John came home and John told him what he had done. We laughed and laughed but now we have told John it would serve him right if that was where we were sent. He did it with one of his friends and they were so proud of themselves that they had really fooled us and they really had!!!! We still haven't received the formal call from the First Presidency but we should receive it tomorrow and they also send a copy of the letter to Pres. McChesney so the word will be out soon and then you can tell it - Bro. Asay told Daddy to not announce it until he received the formal calling. We are really excited and Daddy has been packing "up a storm"!!!! We'll call you when we know anything - it will probably not be until the middle or last of March before we know where we're going. We really don't care where we go but it will make the planning of clothes and everything else a lot easier when we know.

We are so involved in our church callings that Daddy says we should both be released next week so we can start going into the investigator's classes and preparing ourselves spiritually. Last Tuesday I had to give the Primary In-service Lesson and that takes a lot of time to prepare, tonight we are having the Ward M.I.A. over here for a Fireside (Dr. Jordin is going to give a talk on the danger of drugs) and then Wednesday the Primary is giving a shower for Jennifer Doan over here and I am going to put on a quilt for everyone to tie - all these things take the time we should be spend doing our packing or studying or something. The teacher I am substituting for has quit and they asked me to finish out the year - I really am happy about it because it will keep me busy and out of Daddy's hair so he can do most of the packing and the pay is really good. The only thing that isn't good is that it will be hard to get everything in that I should. Daddy and I are going to drive a large U-Haul truck out and pull a boat the last of March - we'll leave here March 27th because that is a school vacation - Johnny is going to Colorado on a skiing trip with the Young Life Group - we hope to be able to bring a lot of things out so that I June there will just be the big things to pack - I believe I have talked Daddy into saving both boats.

Claire and Michael have been in Houston all week and will get home this evening sometime - Bob has really missed them and will be so happy to have them home. Claire called one night to tell him that Michael had two bottom teeth through.

Daddy and I went to Jacksonville with Johnny yesterday for a basketball tournament - our boys' team lost both games but the girls' team won both of them. It was a fun day - we spent a lot of time visiting with the Wiggins - Nell is the Young Women's President over there and she was "running" the snack bar. They said that Pete was "between jobs"!!!! We also went to Jacksonville on Wednesday night for a chili supper because they had asked Daddy to speak about the first organization of the North Little Rock Ward - it was fun to visit with the Corpiers, Goodwins, and Sister Wilhite was there too. We will miss seeing these people. By the way, Chris Mart has been accepted into Med School here - this was the third time he had applied so we are really happy for him - he has a lovely wife Sally Mart.

Woolleys - we hope you don't feel that we have put our newest little grandchild on the "back burner" - we talk all the time about what an exciting Spring this is going to be. It might be a good thing we won't have time to become really attached to "him" because it is going to really be hard to leave Susanna, Ricky, Jessie, Barji and Michael and know that they will be thee years older when we get to spend much time with them - we are hoping that if we go in the states somewhere that you will be able to visit us, all of you. I know they discourage long visits form anyone but the Richards had their families come quite often - it will depend on where we go.

I can't think of any more news and I know we'll be calling you probably this week sometime just to talk to you. We love you all very much and pray constantly that you will stay in good health and not have any accidents or anything to harm you. Please let us know if we can help you in any way and PLEASE BE CAREFUL IN EVERYTHING YOU DO!!!!

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