...Down to the sea in ships...

By Elder Julian M. F. Kau
(Captain Julian M. F. Kau, Civil Engineer Corps, U. S. Navy (retired))

Reflections

On October 29, 2009, Sister Kau and I, in company with Charles (president) and Helen (matron) Goo of the Hong Kong China Temple had the privilege of visiting the USS George Washington (CVN – 73) which had come to Hong Kong for a few days on a goodwill visit to the Peoples Republic of China. It was a pleasant but reflective experience for me to be standing in a sovereign United States of America place for a short period of time so far away from our homeland.

As we stood on the hangar deck, which is more than 4 acres in area, of a modern and comfortable most sea worthy ship, my mind took me back in time to several events relating to the sea:

• In 1 Nephi 17:8 we find recorded, "...And it came to pass that the Lord spake unto me, saying: Thou shalt construct a ship, after the manner which I shall show thee, that I may carry thy people across these waters..." This was done so that Lehi could, by commandment, bring his family to the Americas in about 590 B.C.
• In 1492, Christopher Columbus, a navigator, colonizer, and explorer voyaged across the Atlantic Ocean and raised general European awareness of the American continents in the Western Hemisphere. The timing of these explorations, as we believe, was inspired by God as part of His plan to establish a free land wherein the Gospel of Jesus Christ could be restored in these, the latter days. During this time and with the invention of the printing press, there was great interest in reforming Christ's church on earth and to purge it of the misinterpretations of doctrine which had taken place since the death of the Savior. The birth of the American republic, just 50 years prior to the restoration of God's true church on earth, was part of the great Plan of Salvation.
• With the restoration of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in 1830, many converts from Europe came by ship to America at great peril to be able to worship their God according the dictates of their conscience.
• In the early days of the Church, before the advent of commercial aviation, all missionaries and general authorities traveled by ship to the various parts of the world.

The scenes on the hangar deck also caused me to reflect further of how fortunate we are to be able to serve as missionaries of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Having graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy and been a part of the U. S. Navy for 27 years, aircraft carriers were always considered, during my career, to be instruments of war. My perspective now is that it is more than just a fighting machine. Today, the U.S. Navy conducts goodwill visits with its ships all over the free world. An aircraft carrier is usually a part of those visits because it provides a platform upon which guests of foreign countries can partake of the hospitality of America and be exposed to the values of our country right in (their) home territory. I now consider a U.S. aircraft carrier an instrument of freedom to help the work of the Lord move forward in these the latter days. The murals of the U. S. flag and George Washington, the presentation of the U.S. and People's Republic of China flags as the national anthem of each country was played, and the fact that Sister Kau and I and many others are here in a foreign land doing the Lord's work further reminded me of how blessed we are as a people to be so engaged.

Heritage

I further reflected on the rich heritage (much related to the sea) and values provided to me by my family as I grew up as in Hawaii:

• The economy of Hawaii was very heavily dependent on the U. S. Navy when I was growing up. Both of my parents worked for naval organizations. My dad worked on ships and submarines during and after World War II. Visiting the large naval shipyard and the many kinds of ships instilled in me a great sense of patriotism and pride. Both mom and dad worked long hours to provide us with the necessities of life. It was particularly challenging during the war years when food and basic supplies were rationed.
• Our home in Hawaii was on a straight line a mile and a half from battle ship row on the southeast side of Ford Island in Pearl Harbor. This provided us with a "ringside" view during the 7 December 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor and I will never forget the feelings of concern I felt as a young boy about the future of our home as I watched the battleships Arizona sink and Oklahoma capsize right before our eyes.
• My mom and dad were not members of the Church but were Christians and I saw my dad drop to his knees and offer a prayer of thanksgiving to God for what we had and when he perceived we had been blessed for seemingly the littlest of items or events.
• We did a lot of fishing in the ocean and I was always thankful that the ocean provided good food for our dinner table when all we had was some flour and salt in the cupboard.
• I attended a military intermediate and high school in Hawaii which instilled in me the love of work, service, country, and God. This was reinforced at home because my parents believed these were the most important things their children had to learn before we left home on our own.
• Even though I am a citizen of the United States of America, I am grateful for my Chinese heritage which instilled in me the love and respect of our elders. My father was pure Chinese (Hakka) and my mother was Chinese, Hawaiian, and French.

As a result of my wife's family and their missionary efforts, I joined the Church during my senior year at the naval academy. When I asked for Sister Kau's hand in marriage, her parents asked if I would be willing to learn about the gospel. I became an investigator and was baptized in February 1959. We were married on 4 July 1959.

The Church has always been important in our lives. My career in the Navy gave us an opportunity to serve in many different cultures and neighborhoods and to have uplifting experiences--many spiritual in nature.

In summary, my heritage, from a very young age, has been centered in the themes of duty, honor, God, and country. Sister Kau and I still try to live and pursue these qualities today. Standing on the USS George Washington helped me recall these things which I am writing about for our children and grandchildren.

Gratitude

After our visit to the USS George Washington, Sister Kau and I reflected upon many things pertaining to our heritage, our career, and our service in the Church. Clearly, our Church heritage provides the overriding framework of our happiness. We have been fortunate to be able to keep church things at the forefront of our lives no matter what we are doing or where we are standing. We are so grateful for God's Plan of Salvation and the knowledge that we have of it. We are most grateful for His Son Jesus Christ who makes the Plan operative in our lives and in those around us who believe. It was most pleasant to be in surroundings from the past which were very familiar--ship, military personnel, uniforms, flags, local visitors, etc. We were appreciative of being with friends, the Goos, for an evening aboard the USS George Washington.

I write these thoughts through the eyes of Captain Kau (commanding officer of three major naval commands), a career naval officer. However, it is those same eyes which have viewed these things from a gospel perspective--over the years, President Kau (Metro Philadelphia branch president), Bishop Kau (Halawa Ward bishop), President Kau (Morristown, NJ Stake president), Elder Kau (senior missionary), and Brother Kau as husband, father, and grandfather have all been totally dependent upon the Lord for inspiration and guidance. For all of these things I am most grateful and, above all, I am especially grateful for my eternal companion, Sister Kau, who has made my life fulfilling and complete.

For Sister Kau and me, being companions with the help of the Holy Ghost as full-time senior missionaries in Hong Kong, is the highlight of our experiences thus far in life. We are trying our best to ensure that these joys of being together, along with our children and posterity in the eternities to come, will continue.