June 10, 2009

Reporting for this week:

Spencer is finishing the final class for temple preparation for a young couple in the ward that plans on being married in a few months. Hooray for them! Last Saturday they went on the ward excursion and did baptisms for the dead. Spencer helped with the confirming of our youth on the excursion. I attended a session. The sister helping at the veil never let me even try to remember what to say—she just jumped in with the responses faster than I could say a word. At first it was frustrating, bordering on annoying, and then I decided to just relax and accept it as an extra opportunity to be tutored. I did actually remember a lot, which made me happy. Afterwards, I was going to attend an additional session, but there were probably 100 people inside and outside the temple already waiting for their turn to attend a session. When you arrive at the temple, you show your recommend and you receive a little plastic chip telling you what endowment room you will be in and the worker tells you about how long it will be before your session starts. There were two sessions full of people waiting ahead of me. Our bus was scheduled to leave at 1 PM so I decided to do initiatory names instead. Wow. That was a great experience. I have never done that before (in Spanish). As the workers spoke, I was able to immediately process it in English in my head. I still had to go thru English, but at least I recognized all the words of those incredible blessings and promises. That was a special experience. At 12:30 I saw our friends leaving the temple (they are workers on the early shift). The said they 14th session was in progress—in a temple that has hourly sessions scheduled starting at 5 AM. That was more than double—plus baptisms and sealings. Lots of dedicated saints. It is a good thing we are building temples in Quezaltenango, El Salvador and Honduras.

We had 11 youth and 15 adults in our rented bus. They started picking people up at 3 AM, so we were ready. The actual arrival time here was 3:45 and we were out of town by 4 AM and at the temple in time for the 7 AM baptismal session. On the way home we were able to visit with others and we really enjoyed the entire experience.

Once again I was struck by how small many Guatemalans are. There were 15 women in a little chapel waiting for our session and only four of us could touch the floor with our feet while sitting in the regular chairs. With 11 sisters dangling their feet, I thought they should scale down the furniture in these temples to accommodate the members who attend. But no one in the temple department has requested my input—so it is just a simple observation. 

Sunday, Kimberly Montesorro played the sacrament hymn and the postlude music at church. She is the one I have been working with. I was really happy to see her succeed at this new experience. She is a very, very special young woman with many challenges in life.

Gladys Ramirez and her children weren’t at church, so Sunday afternoon we decided to check on them. Spencer baptized her two daughters a couple of months ago. We learned that they no longer live in her parents’ home, which was close to the church. We stopped by there to get directions and her nieces and nephew came running for hugs. They were so happy we came to see them. It would be great if we could teach some of them and nurture them along to baptism. Now Gladys and kids live with her husband’s family. No one said why, but I know Portfirio hasn’t been working (and when he does work, he drinks) and Gladys has a crippled shoulder and can no longer prepare and sell food to provide food for the family. I suspect it was just too much for her extended family to support two extra adults and seven children. Perhaps, the hope was that if the family lived with his relatives instead of hers, he would feel more responsible to provide for his family. They live much, much further away from the church, down a horrible, impassable road. When we arrived, we observed the worst living conditions we have seen thus far. Gladys was preparing a meal over a fire outside on a raised fire pit—using only her left arm. The “house” had been expanded with corrugated tin and plastic sheeting over some 2x4’s. At some point, someone had started to dig a hole, probably for a cistern, in the front yard, but it was just a square 4’x4’ hole about 3’ deep—with junk in it now. Three other families of Portfirio’s siblings live there or across the street. In total, there are about 20 kids. Many of them only half dressed. One baby was covered with a rash—the doctors at the public hospital told the young mother that it was a skin infection. But they don’t provide medications to the poor, so it was untreated. Spencer gave the baby a blessing. Gladys had nothing for her pain and inflammation in her shoulder and arm. We took some Advil over the next day to see if it helps her. We are scheduled to provide a FHE next Sunday and I better have enough refreshments for about 40 people. At one point, as we sat visiting, I asked Gladys what her plans were and she instantly teared-up and said, “I have no future.” My heart is broken. I love this family so much and it is such terrible poverty. The kids were just as excited as ever to see us and came running and leapt into our arms. Gladys says to go to church now she will have to leave about an hour early—and that is probably about right. I’m not sure how to help them at this point. Sorry for the gloom and doom and rambling. Sigh. It just weighs heavy on my mind.

The sister missionaries have found an apartment, so this Friday is moving day. We will hopefully be able to more our furniture back into the LR by then also—if the floor is still dry after our recent repairs.

Spencer has planted a garden in our front patio. Now if the rains will just start—IT IS SO HOT! Everyone is praying for rain. But it does at least cool off at night. The humidity and heat together really sap your energy if you are outside very long.

Many of the bus drivers in town know us now and go out of the way to be accommodating—things like turning around when they get to CUNORI and taking us back to the center part of town and closer to home--now if they would just drive a little more cautiously—but that would be asking too much. I try to walk to school in the morning before it gets too hot and at first all the drivers checked to see if I wanted a ride—but now they just beep or wave as they rush past.

This weekend we will be back in Esquipulas. This will be our first chance to get to know the new elder there. He is a brand new greenie from Calgary, Canada. We will be happy to see our friends there.

We love all of you and miss you more than we can express. Keep up the good work and the prayers of support. It blesses our lives to know you are praying for us.

Mom/Dad/Spencer/Jeanine