Ron turns 60

Ron reached a landmark day and discovered four men in the Area office share July birthdays. The supervisor of guards at the main gate, Simon, turns 44 just two days after Ron. He is a good liasion and friend.

With only the smallest degree of trickery, I was able to catch Ron totally off-guard with a morning surprise party at the office with 30 senior missionaries and employees attending for birthday cake.

Ron and Elder Warr share the exact day so celebrated at lunch.





Having learned about nearby meteorite craters, we drove an hour and half south west to experience the countryside of the Vredefort Dome. This structure was created by the rebound from an asteroid striking the region 2,000 million years ago. It is currently regarded as the biggest and oldest structure of its type and clearly visible from space. We hiked a trail which took us up hillsides overlooking the Vaal River and surrounding valley. We walked past stone walls built by African farmers in the 1500s to 1700s.

This is a pastoral area with many herds of goats and cattle seen along the valley. A troop of Vervet monkeys playfully scampered in trees alongside the road.