Monday July 4

Happy Independence Day to all those in the USA! I did hear mention of the 4th on the English news channel this morning. This picture is of the view from the building I work in. It looks like LA traffic and get's just as bad at times. On this particular day it was overcast.
Yesterday I was able to go to church here in Beijing. I know what your thinking! An LDS Church in a Communist Country? Well there is. It's not the usual building type but it is the 4th floor in a large business office building. On arriving inside the building I was confused on where to go, until I noticed a group of "white" people all dressed in their Sunday best waiting for the elevator. I said "this must be the place". The group was from Utah, traveling around China. When arriving at the fourth floor I could hear an organ being played. It began to feel like home. I introduced myself to the Branch President (who is the same as a Bishop in a Ward) , his first counselor, and many of the member's came up to introdcue themselves as well. The chapel was filled with chairs, a podium, sacrament table and the organ. Throughout the fourth floor I could see a library, classroom's designated for certain age groups and leadership offices too. It was better then what we had in Detroit, where one branch met in a Auto worker's Union hall, and the other shared a building with another church. It was a great and refreshing sight to see a setting that was a place I could call home. I think roughly there was 100-120 people there. Families, singles, student's and regular's who have lived in Beijing for years. I couldn't believe how much I had missed Sunday's. There is actually a National's Branch that was starting to meet there that afternoon. The rule that is in place is that you cannot talk to Chinese National's about the LDS meetings, Christianity, or promote the church in any way, but that we could meet freely in the privacy of our own facility. This was another great experience to add to my list, here in Beijing.