Immediately following our YSA Sunday, there was a week of
activities known as Freshers’ Week, including an Outreach Night,
Institute Registration, a Talent Show, a Bad Luck Party, and cleaning the
Church followed by a Barbecue.
Freshers’ Week, according to the Collins English Dictionary,
is (British) a week at the beginning of a university year, usually with a
program of events intended to welcome new first-year students. It is a big
thing in Scotland at the major universities, such nearby St. Andrews
University. As it turns out in practice, many of the “activities” involve lots
of drinking and other partying, not in keeping with our standards. So the YSAs
put on their own Freshers’ Week as an alternative. This year, for each of the
activities Neil posted a clever Facebook announcement (in italics below).
Outreach Night
Welcome YSAers to Freshers’ Week 2013! It all
kicks off Tuesday with a most exciting interactive event with Hot Chocolate!
Come along to the YSA Centre at Liff Road for 7pm and bring your laptops, iPads
or mobile devices. Don't have one? No problem, come anyway! Can't make it to
Dundee? That’s ok too, simply log on at home at 7pm, come to The YSA Dundee
page and turn your Facebook Chat on so we know you are there and together we
will build Zion...online!
The basic idea was to send personal
FB messages to the less active YSA. It
was great for a first attempt at this type of thing. Everyone had a fun time reaching out. There
were a total of 21 participating throughout the evening, 14 in person and 7
only on FB.
In
addition Neil posted several questions on FB such as “There are people who have never been to YSA or haven't been
for a while. There are people we care about but we haven't seen in ages. In
this new year of Institute why should people come to YSA?” What is your favorite
YSA memory?
What has been one of your personal favourite YSA activities?
Institute Registration
Freshers’ Week continues Wednesday at 7 pm with
our traditional institute Enrolment Dinner. Start the institute year right by
signing up to study the new Book of Mormon course then sit down for the Bylunds’
home cooked meal with Chicken Enchiladas, salad and tigerbread and there is
even dessert, too. If that wasn't enough there will be socializing, games and
new friendships to be made. It is part of the plan for you to be here and it’s
always better when we're together!
We started with Br. Johnson
conducting Institute Registration in the cultural hall with 37 YSA registering
for the yearlong Book of Mormon course, followed by the sit-down dinner. After
dinner, we moved to the YSA room for a few games (Never have I ever, Do you
love your neighbor and Werewolf).
Talent Night
Day 3: Is the Thursday Talent Night! Everyone
has some sort of talent. It’s just some are more conspicuous - we just want you
to come and share something - play a piano, dance, sing, read a poem, tell a joke,
bake a cake, balance a dog, eat a pineapple whole, ping a rubber band on a
target, transmogrify yourself into a badger, waddle back and forward to music,
tell a story, do kickyups, move your supermobile knees, build a bridge, eat
pies, train a monkey to wear roller-skates - the possibilities are endless.
Come do something good or something with feeling but just come!:)
We had
about 19 at the Talent night. The “talents” included Elder Winn roping Elder
Burt, who made a feeble attempt to be a cow, and lassoing Elliot on the run
around the ankles, Jordan playing the pots as drums, Sister Bylund tap dancing,
readings in French and German Jimmy’s
impersonation of Elvis. The highlight was Stephen, a newly baptized member, doing his
magic tricks.
Bad Luck Party
 |
| Does the bread always fall buttered-side down? |
For Friday the 13th don't hide away
in fear, don't lock the doors and windows or run from black cats, and don’t
worry if it’s safe to go near that step ladder. No! Come to the YSA Centre at
Liff Road instead and try your luck. Bring an Umbrella and come dressed wacky
or weird. Feel free to be creative, you can come frumpy or dumpy, goofy or
geeky, mad as a hatter, or as chavy as a Jeremy Kyle guest. Just be
an...ahem... unfortunate person ;) It’s a party but with a difference. How many
parties pit you against the universe? Try our activities of skill, strength,
endurance, intelligence and mystery and test how blessed you really are! So
tell me do you feel lucky...punk? My name is Neil and I endorse this
message!
The Bad
Luck Party was attended by about 20 YSAs. There were an innovate variety of
games/activities based on the theme, including things like buttered bread
falling onto a face either buttered side up or buttered side down, renaming
people, progressive bad luck/good luck stories, and dancing. It was a lucky
night for those attending.
Service Project/Barbecue
Freshers Week is coming to end but it’s not
finished yet - Our 2nd last activity is Saturday at 10:30 am - It’s a service
project then a Barbecue. We have been blessed so much with a place to have fun
and relax, to hold our activities, a place for institute and home evening
group, a place where we play volleyball and werewolf and line up for the
Bylunds home cooked meals. Tomorrow we can show our gratitude and take a little
time to take care and make nice that place AND then afterwards bring your own
food for the BBQ and let’s eat and have fun together. Please if you can make it
come and be part of the YSA.
The
Chapel was cleaned and tummies were filled.
CES Fireside with Elder Nelson
Well the end of Freshers’ Week arrives tomorrow
with Home Evening Group in Liff Road at 6 pm - Elder Russell M Nelson of the
Quorum of the Twelve Apostles in a broadcast from Salt Lake gives a special
message for the young adults of the church. How blessed we are to have
prophets, seers and revelators care enough to speak to us today. You can’t
afford to miss this! Home Evening Group happens every Sunday at 6pm!
There
were 26 YSAs in attendance for this wonderful fireside.
Last post
So Fresher's Week has come to an end. I would
just like to write one last post. We pray in our meetings and give thanks for
the service of our missionary couples and our institute teacher but there is
one person I would like to formally recognize, whom we rarely give thanks to
and that is Jonathan. As YSA President he has the near impossible task of
leading a YSA program that has to please all of us, it’s difficult coming up
with new activities every week and as a council we do our best we can always do
better but he does it with love, hard work and never a complaint. I am grateful
to have the pleasure of working with such a good man. All your worries are
worth it. All hail the chief!
