Winter Suddenly Turns to Summer - What Happened to Spring?

Spring flowers in full bloom on the Johannesburg Temple grounds

 

After a couple of months of cool winter weather, summer suddenly burst onto the scene in South Africa. We had at best a handful of spring-like days in early August. Suddenly this week, temperatures were in the 80's and Saturday we even had a monsoon-like evening thunderstorm, so typical of a Johannesburg summer.
 

This week the forecast is sunshine and temps in the mid-80's every day and lows at night in the high 50's. It really is summer weather, at least for now. So we turned off our space heaters and opened up our windows!
 

The locals here say winter is June, July and August. Spring is September, October and November. And Summer runs from December through February. Evidently there is no spring this year! And summer appears to have come more than 3 months early!

This week was the Area Presidency's orientation for the new mission presidents and their wives who arrived 6 weeks ago. We provided their transportation to and from the Area office and their hotel in Rosebank in a church van and sat in on and participated in the whole 2-day orientation, which was very educational, informative and spiritually uplifting. 

We got to know the four new presidents (from France, Brazil, South Africa and Nevada) and their wives very well and the general authorities in the Area Presidency and their wives even better. 

 

We had lunch both days at the Area Presidency's residence ("The White House") and had a lovely formal steak dinner at Wombles Restaurant, a new favorite.

 

The Area Presidency and their wives live in this mansion, in three separate apartments, and share the
common areas and garden. It is lovingly referred to, even by the Presidency, as "The White House."

 

While waiting for the mission presidents and wives to exit the temple after an afternoon session on Wednesday, we enjoyed the summery day on the Johannesburg Temple grounds and took a few photos to share:

 

Spring flowers in bloom under the temple steeples

The afternoon sun illuminates the vegetation on the hill behind the temple

A close up view of the South African wildflowers that surround the temple

 

 

Today, 24 August 2015, is the 30th anniversary of the dedication of the Johannesburg LDS Temple.

 

Johannesburg South Africa Temple 30th Anniversary

36th operating temple in the world, 1st on the African continent

© 1998, Clive Martin c/o Sean Bruton. All rights reserved.

Announcement:  1 April 1981 
Groundbreaking and Site Dedication:  27 November 1982 by Marvin J. Ashton
Public Open House:  30 July–10 August 1985 
Dedication:  24–25 August 1985 by Gordon B. Hinckley

Site:  One acre.
Exterior Finish:  Masonry exterior with gray slate roof.
Ordinance Rooms:  Four ordinance rooms (stationary) and three sealing rooms.
Total Floor Area:  19,184 square feet.

Temple Locale

Rising above a stand of enchanting Jacaranda trees on Parktown Ridge, the six white-tipped spires of the Johannesburg South Africa Temple capture the attention of travelers on the M1 highway north of Johannesburg's city center. Located on Jubilee Road, the temple shares its grounds with area offices including family history, employment, and distribution services.

 

Temple Facts

The Johannesburg South Africa Temple was the first temple built in Africa.

The first convert in South Africa, Henry Stringer, was baptized on June 15, 1853. However, the exodus of the Saints to Utah and government-imposed restrictions on the number of missionaries who could serve greatly hindered the work in South Africa until the 1980s.

The announcement of the Johannesburg South Africa Temple came less than three years after the June 1978 revelation, announced by President Spencer W. Kimball, extending the priesthood and temple blessings to all worthy men regardless of race or color.

The Johannesburg South Africa Temple is located in the historic suburb of Parktown, known for its grand turn-of-the-century Victorian mansions, many of which have succumbed to commercial, educational, and civic developments.

The nearly two-week public open house of the Johannesburg South Africa Temple attracted more than 19,000 visitors including civic and business leaders and government representatives.

Nearly 3,500 of the 12,000 members of the extensive temple district attended the dedicatory services of the Johannesburg South Africa Temple, during the Apartheid era in South Africa.

The dedication of the Johannesburg South Africa Temple brought a Latter-day Saint temple to every habitable continent of the world.