Viva Mexico y Mas

Because we have been very busy, this is a week and a half blog ; )

Viva Mexico - The celebration for Mexican Independence Day was awesome. We were able to hear the school kids practice their drum and bugle march for about a week leading up to 16 de Septiembre. The day before the parades, they spent about an hour practicing their march with drum and bugle number in the plaza next to our home. Think 7th grade band and you will get a taste of what we were listening to.

That evening we went to a celebration at the church and it was a great feast and a dance performance by the young people and then the women of the Branch. Then a couple of members performed a 50's dance number. It was fantastic.

 

 

These were a Cucumber/Apple Water, Horchata and a Watermelon Water. We also had Jamica, pronounced ha-mic-a, water.

 

The morning of the 16th our alarm 6:30 am alarm was a car driving up and down with a "public service" announcement over a loud speaker telling people to get their cars off the street for the parade. Around 8:00 am there was the first parade, yes the first parade, of several to happen during the morning. It was fantastic with drums and bugles and lots of people participating. The subsequent parades were school children from all over the area marching to the same drum and bugle number. The last parade was completed with the Navy marching with an impressive weaponry display. I understood why all the schools have the drum and bugle number, they are all trying to achieve the perfection that the Navy had with their drum and bugle corp.

 

 

 

 

 

 

There were plenty of options for food and drink throughout the day during the parades and as the celebration lasted all day, just like July 4th in the US.

 

 

 

After the parade we went to eat breakfast at a café close to our home. While we were ordering we noticed a Mom and her 4 young children struggling to get into the restaurant, like herding cats ; ) Hermana DeWolf jumped up and helped her get all her kids and gear in and situated at the table. After awhile it was clear that she was having a rough day as the kids, ages 4, 3, 2, and 8 months, were excited to be dining out and had a little too much energy. Hermana DeWolf and another lady went over and helped her get the kids food ready and helped clean up the baby, who had reached up and grabbed a plate that was too close and dumped fruit all over herself and her carrier. I then went over and helped keep the kids entertained and encouraged them to finish their breakfast so mom could eat.

 

After we went out to the plaza next to our home and Hermana DeWolf and the young lady, Audrey, talked while I played with the very energetic kids. Audrey was having a rough day and opened up to Hermana DeWolf about her pending divorce and her husband who left her in Mexico just before the baby was born and went back to the US. She speaks a little Spanish but it is difficult for her to communicate clearly. Herman DeWolf was prompted to offer to help a little more and we took them all down to the beach to let the kids get some of their energy out. I forgot how much energy little kids can have and how fearless they are. The 2 year old just took off running into the ocean and went in head first into the surf. I picked him up and he was spitting and coughing and then started laughing and ran right back in. The 3 year old would be playing and if a wave came in over his head he would just hold his breath and start walking on the bottom toward the beach.

After about 2 hours we took them back to their home and she thanked us for "saving" her day. I went home and needed a nap. This Grandpa is not even close to being in "kid" shape ; )

 

Saturday was a very busy day, we helped the Zone Leaders with Zone Conference. By help I mean we prepared BBQ shredded chicken sandwiches, melon balls with grapes, chips, pickles, drinks and homemade chocolate chip cookies. The missionaries were very grateful and thanked us repeatly. However before lunch the ZL's executed an incredible Zone Conference and all who were there were uplifted and motivated. Hermana DeWolf and I introduced ourselves and spoke for about 10 minutes on the importance of "being converted" to the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Elder Nonu and Elder Domingez  are incredible young men and represent the Lord in a way that makes all around them better.

 



 



When missionaries get ahold of your camera, this is what happens.

And yes, they love to eat. Whether at our home or at Zone Conference. We are so happy to be able to feed the Missionaries. We have lived in Utah for over 30 years and have only been able to feed Missionaries 3 times.

After Zone Conference we were on to the District Conference for the Puerto Escondido District where I gave my first talk in Spanish. It was during the Priesthood Leadership Training Session and Rosa spoke first and introduced us and let them know what our role was and then I taught on helping member understand the Atonement of Jesus Christ and The Plan of Salvation. Even though I did not pronounce all the words correctly the message was received. We had a question and answer session right after my talk and there were only a couple points of clarification.

We then both spoke in the Saturday Evening Adult Session. This time I spoke in English and Hermana DeWolf translated for me. I did, however, bear my Testimony in Spanish. Hermana DeWolf did amazing as usual and really touched the members attending.

Saturday was an amazing day filled with the Spirit and the growth we experienced was incredible.

Sunday we visited the Branch in Coyul with the Huatulco District Young Men and Young Women's Presidents. They are a young couple that are inspiring to us. There was some confusion as to whether the Hualtulco District Conference was today or next week and so there were not many at church, 11 total. We held Sacrament Meeting and I blessed the Sacrament in Spanish, another growth experience. We had Sunday School then went to visit families and invite them to District Conference the next Saturday and Sunday.

The people in Coyul are loving and a humble people and we had a great experience with them. One of the more interesting things is the spread of technology. Even in the most humble of homes/shacks you will find a TV and a satellite dish.

Monday we started visiting members of the Hualtulco Branch n their homes and invited them to District Conference this week. We met some amazing people who have the abilities and experience to strengthen the Branch here if they will commit themselves to the work of The Lord.

Tuesday we started our twice weekly English class. Tuesday was a little shaky as the class drifted in for about a half an hour. However we covered some basic greetings and gave them an assignment to practice, practice and practice some more. Wednesday the class was mostly on time and it went VERY well. The energy was great and the members of the class were having a good time learning. By the time we ended Wednesday night they had all gotten up in front of the class and introduced themselves to a "Gringo", myself and another tall Elder from Idaho played the part of the Gringos. These are the phrases they were taught.

Hello, my name is .........
What is your name?
Can I help You?
Please speak slowly.
I am new to English.
Will you help me?

Huatulco is a tourist location and they get about 100 cruise ships between now and the end of the year. We are hoping to help the members of our class improve their ability to earn a living by being able to communicate more effectively with the tourists.

Yesterday we had a chance to take the Assistants to the President to the famous Huatulco sign and take some pictures.

What a blessing our first month has been, we have been in Mexico exactly one month on Tuesday. We are developing and growing as human beings and servants of The Lord each day. Thank you all for your prayers on our behalf, they are definitely felt.

Pistols, Pests, Patience, Pets and Mario

PISTOLS - I assume most of you heard about our Mission President getting shot during a robbery in Juchitan. It wasn't life threatening, he was shot through both calves. One bullet, four holes. The bullet did not hit any bone, ligaments, nerves or any major blood vessels. He will be sore for a while but is already up and walking gingerly. We visited him the day after he was shot and he was in good spirits and joking around in his normal way. All agree that it was a miracle and the best outcome possible, other than NOT being shot ; )

PESTS- Rosa is being eaten alive by the bugs here, both visible and invisible ; )

She received 17 new ones on Thursday and has probably about 40 total. I have about 6 total. I guess I am just not a sweet as Rosa.

PATIENCE - We are learning how to be patient here. Things that would normally take a short amount of time in the states takes days here. One example, we ordered our internet service and they were scheduled for Thursday. Unlike in the states it was not 8:00-noon or 1:00 pm-4:00 pm, it was sometime in the day between 9:00am and 7:00 pm. Well no show on Thursday. So we went to the office first thing Friday morning and were told they will be there before 7:00 pm, however they will call you when they are on their way. They showed up in the evening and then informed us that they needed an Electrician there in order to do their work. We coordinated them with the Landlord's electrician and they set a time of 9:00 am Saturday to meet. At about 9:30 am  they called and said they were on their way. We called the electrician and they both arrived about 9:45 am. The electrician was having a little trouble running the pull wire for them so they said they would come back. Nope didn't see them the rest of the day. So this morning, Monday, we went back down to the office. We explained the situation and expected them to have someone come right over and finish the job, NOPE. They will be here sometime this evening before 7:00 pm, aughhhhhh !!!!!
Pray for us please !!!!

PETS - We don't have actual pets but we do have geckos that live with us and even when we go to the grocery store one will hitch a ride with us.

MARIO - We were at the beach on Friday morning, doing our daily workout (lost 8 lbs so far), and we stopped by a couple of shops to meet the locals. We met a Silversmith named Mario who speaks pretty good English and offered us "neighbor" prices since we are living here. He asked how long we would be here and when we said 18 months he asked why. We introduced ourselves as missionaries and started a conversation. Rosa taught him a lesson on the Book of Mormon and we are going to deliver one to him tomorrow, still waiting on the cable guys today ; ) He also had questions about what happens after we die so we are going to teach him The Plan of Salvation.

MISC - Saturday we attended the cultural celebration via internet at the branch that was held for the Mexico City Temple dedication. It was Fantastic. Sunday we attended the 9:00 session of the Temple Dedication and were reminded by Elder Holland to rededicate our lives daily to the Savior.

God Bless us everyone !!!!

A Long and Winding Road

We left Oaxaca around 1:00 pm Tuesday afternoon and arrived in Huatulco after 8:00 pm. You are probably thinking that we traveled about 300 miles, nope about 150. It is indeed a Long and Windy road no matter which of the three roads you take from Oaxaca to Huatulco. While we did stop for lunch for about 15 minutes we drove the remainder of the time, with the exception of about a 20 minute delay due to a bloqueo by Mother Nature.
It was raining through the Sierra and the rain caused a large tree to fall across the road. I went up to see what was happening and ended up assisting about 20 amigos in cutting and removing half the tree so that we could clear one lane and let traffic continue. We accomplished this with 2 machetes and on axe. I opted to use the axe and chop the highest trunk in the picture below.

The next day we continued looking for a place to call home and with the help of Presidente Pineda we found a great apartment in the center of Huatulco. We are happy to have a place to call home for the next 17 months and are anxious to get to work serving the people in this region of Mexico.

We have met with the District Presidency and with Local Branch Presidents and we are going to assist with the plan to grow these Districts into a Stake. As you know, Mexican's are a happy and hard working people by nature. We are excited to be here among them.

Friday night we had a Branch activity/fireside that was focused on eternal marriage. Before the meeting started they handed all the men a card with an envelope and asked us to write a love note to our wives and told us we would deliver it later. When the fireside concluded they had all the men leave the chapel and we all were given a rose and a chocolate bar to give our wives along with the note and an horchata. Rosa is pictured below with hers.

After we had an Incredible dinner that was served to us by the branch jovens (Teenagers). At the end the men were again called away and we were given a Pina Colada to deliver to our wives. After dinner I was able to play soccer with some of the brethren against the jovens. I am not much of a soccer player but had a great time. All in all it was a great evening.

Saturday we drove north and explored a couple of new areas we hadn't been to yet. On the way back we stopped at an overlook that is above Bahia de Santa Cruz. Simply Beautiful !!!!!

On the way we saw a couple of the local buzzards just waiting for a meal.

We finished Saturday evening with a great meal at a local restaurant on the beach.

I had Coco Shrimp and Rosa had Lobster tacos. When ya'll come and visit we will take you here ; )

Sunday was Fast and Testimony meeting and the District President asked us to share our testimonies. Rosa went first, since she CAN speak Spanish, and introduced us and bore a beautiful testimony as to why we are here and of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I followed and began in Spanish and explained that I was very nervous and new to the language. I then bore testimony in English and concluded with my simple, 6 line, testimony in Spanish.

The love we feel for and from the people here is just amazing.

We finished the day with a District Leadership meeting and were introduced to a few of the Branch Presidents. Next Sunday will be the Mexico City Temple Dedication and then we will begin visiting a different Branch each Sunday to discover how we can help.