Yes, We Like Cemeteries!

Something Different

Saturday afternoon was nice and sunny! We always cheer when it is sunny. It feels so much warmer if you have just a smidgen of sun. 

Thor decided on an adventure that would be close to us. (It is about 2 kilometers from our apartment.)

We went to the Cementerio Jardines de La Paz in La Molina. Translated that means the Gardens of Peace Cemetery. It is a really large and beautiful cemetery.

Walking into the Jardines de La Paz

We found it interesting that all of the headstones were uniform. There were many beautiful flower arrangements on the graves. In fact, about a kilometer from the cemetery is a section of little shops or tiendas that only sell flowers.
Walking around the cemetery reminded us of walking in the Kaysville Cemetery or even Hyrum Cemetery.

Jardines de La Paz

A Blessing

On Tuesday we traveled out to Chalachayo. It is an area of our mission that is 24 kilometers (15 miles) away. The traffic going there was very much stop and go with the emphasis being on the stop. It took us over an hour and a half to get there.

We had a wonderful meeting with President Ora (the counselor in the stake presidency that is over self-reliance). We also met with Sister Rosa Timon; she is the welfare specialist in the stake and a policewoman.

Presidente Ora, who is over self-reliance

Later the stake president came in, President Lorenzo. He is very kind and warm. He showed us pictures of his family. He played a video on the computer about his son, who is on a mission in Africa. It was really neat.

Stake Presidente Lorenzo

When the meeting was done, Sister Rosa came outside with us to wait for a Uber ride. Unfortunately we were unable to connect with anyone for a ride. Next step was to get an taxi to take us home. We needed smaller bills than 100 soles. The tienda (store) across from the church did not have any change. Sometime in all this trying to get a ride we met a friend of Sister Rosa. (We think it was her bishop, but don't quote us on that.) They took us out to the main street and flagged down a taxi. The friend paid for our ride and Sister Rosa questioned the driver and took his business card.

We arrived home safely and it only took 30 minutes to come back. About five minutes after we got home, Thor gets a call from Sister Rosa to see if we got home safely.  She said she had also checked in with the taxi driver.  It's nice to have angels watching over you!

Our Angel, Sister Rosa Timon

Something Spiritual

Sunday night we were able to talk at a fireside for the youth in the Musa Ward and for the American Humanitarian Especially for Youth group. That group (HEFY) has come several times this summer. They are building a school in Vitarte. 

It was interesting to talk with a translator! 

Presidente Amato was the final speaker. He had the Peruvians and the Americans get together one on one. Their goal was to find out the following: name, age, where they were from, and favorite food and music. Then the youth got to introduce each other.

Presidente mentioned how we are more alike than we are different. He then gave each of them a Book of Mormon and had them write their testimonies in it. He then challenged all of them to give their book out in the next week and a half.

The missionaries in the La Molina zone ended the meeting by singing "We'll Bring the World His Truth" in three different languages. In Portuguese for our mission president and then in English and Spanish.  In the chorus they changed the words from "We will be the Lord's missionaries" to "We are the Lord's missionaries to bring the world His truth." What a powerful song and message.

We are the Lord's missionaries. We can share the gospel in simple ways. We can reach out to our neighbors. We can smile at the people in the grocery line. We can say a kind word to someone. Go out and be a missionary today!

Plants of Peru

Same plant, but different colored blossoms!

Random Picture of the Week

A truck taking guinea pigs to market.

These little guinea pigs went to market! These little guinea pigs wished they had stayed home.

Out With the Old and In With the New

Something New

This was a week of new things for the apartment. It has been quite exciting. 

First we received a new washer and dryer. They were needed. The old washer leaked and keep giving error messages and would not finish a batch of laundry. The dryer did not dry anything. I tried drying two towels and after 1 hour and 40 minutes, they were still not dry.

A washer and dryer that work! Yeah!

We also got 2 heating/airconditioning units put in the apartment. This takes quite a bit of work since the walls are made of cement. They had to drill a channel for the electric line to go through. Then they mudded it with cement. When we came in the day they finished, it was so warm in our apartment. They had turned them on pretty high. Heat is wonderful when it has been cold.

Our new heating/airconditioning unit.

The channel through the cement to the electrical box--which is on the other side of this wall in the kitchen.

Some Random Thoughts

Tuesday we had our district over for french toast and scrambled eggs. They were very excited to have some "real food" for breakfast. They usually buy some rolls to eat on their way to the office.  We are in the same district as the office elders. Elder Armstrong is over health and medical. Elder Tenney does the finances. Elder Wilcox is the mission president's secretary. Elder Rincon and Elder Pardo are the supply elders--they order the needed supplies and send them out to different parts of the mission.

Hermana Lindstrom, Elder Rincon, Elder Tenney, Elder Lindstrom
Elder Wilcox, Elder Pardo, Elder Armstrong

On Wednesday we found these cute sister missionaries doing service at the MTC in Lima. The MTC or the CCM (as it is known here) is not too far from our house.

Hermanas scrubbing the masonry fence at the MTC

Thursday we traveled up to Chosica with Presidente Amato. It is 2800 feet higher than here. That means blue skies and warmth! We were there long enough to see stars at night. We met the self reliance specialist for the stake. Hermana Patricia is a wonderful, energetic lady. She is doing a lot of things for her stake. We had a fun talk. Thor wants a energy transfusion from her.

Hermana Lindstrom and Hermana Patricia

A statue of Jesus in the park at Chosica.

Chosica

Friday morning we taught an EnglishConnect class for Sister Pratt. It's a beginning English class filled with the ladies from Sister Pratt's morning exercise class. They are learning to pray and know the Savior better, because at the end of class there is a gospel principle that is taught each week. This is taught in Spanish by Hermana Karla.

EnglishConnect Class--Betti, Lilian, Dorys, Clody, Lili & Claudia (can't see her in the back)

Something Spiritual

While in Chosica Thor was feeling sorry for me, so he asked if any elder wanted to practice their english. The native elders are learning english on their missions. We meet this wonderful Elder. Elder Vasquez is from Peru. He told us the following story about his grandmother.

Elder Vasquez

His grandmother was very sick and loosing her eyesight. One night she dreamed that two young men in white shirts would come and heal her. When she woke up from her dream, she called all her family together. She told them about her dream. She then told her family to go out in the city and find the two young men in white shirts.

The family went out searching for them. They finally found them.  They told the missionaries about the dream and asked if they would come to their home. They came to the home. They were able to bless his grandmother and she was healed.

She joined the church and has been very faithful. She has done a lot of family history work.

Elder Vasques' mother fell away from the gospel before he was born or when he was little. He was baptized into the Catholic church.  When he was taking confirmation lessons in the Catholic church, his grandmother encouraged him to listen to the missionaries. He was baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints when he was nine. Later his mother became active again.

He loves his grandmother very much and she is one of the reasons that he is on a mission today.

You never know what influence you will have in another person's life. 

Plants of Peru

This plant has some serious thorns on its stems.

Please Tell Me When I Can Open My Eyes

Something Crazy

Have you ever thought that you are about to die? Just take a ride in a taxi or Uber in Lima and your life flashes before your eyes! 

The major streets are always congested with cars, buses, and motorcycles. There is a lot of horn honking. I'm pretty sure the honking means something, but I haven't figured it out. The motorcycles drive in between the cars or to the side of the cars or where ever they want. 

If you are stopped in traffic for any amount of time, someone appears from the side of the road and will sell you treats or drinks. You are always stopped in traffic so I guess treats and drinks make sense. 

There are round abouts or ovalos where the traffic is especially crazy. The car to your right might be going to the left, while you're going to the right. It's truly amazing that we haven't seen any accidents.

Last Sunday we went out for a walk and lo and behold NO one was driving on the roads. (It was the final soccer game of the America Cup and Peru was playing Brazil.) It was really eerie and very nice. If you come to visit remember to buckle your seat belt and hang on!

Day of no traffic!

PS I've resorted to closing my eyes a lot when we are in an Uber or I look out to the side--never to the front! Way too scary.
PSPS This is something really crazy. Tonight we ended up with the same Uber driver that we had on June 30! Wow, his name is Henry and he is really nice.

Something Different

This week we had two days of multi-zone conferences. A zone conference is where all the elders and sister missionaries from the different areas or zones come to a church and have training meetings.  We have around 150 missionaries in our mission. Half of the missionaries came on one day and the rest came the next day. We were able to go both days because we are in the same zone as the elders that work in the office and they go both days.
It was fun to meet all the elders and sisters and feel their enthusiasm.  Listening to them sing from their hearts is a highlight from both days. (If only wards could sing like that.) The best part was their excitement when they found out they were having Little Caesar's pizza for lunch.  The place erupted in noise. Each companionship got to share a pizza. That is a lot of pizza. There were extra ones and the elders inhaled them also.
The training was to help them improve as missionaries. It was impressive to see elders teaching different things that they needed to improve in. We were also able to listen to some really special testimonies. The elders and sisters that are going home at the next transfer bore powerful testimonies of our Savior. I didn't understand all that they said, but I could feel the spirit testify of the truth of what they said.

A t Zone Conference

Elder Madruga--one of our Elders going Home

The official mission picture! President and Sister Amato

Something Spiritual

Tonight was our official first training of the self-reliance program. "Self-reliance is the ability, commitment, and effort to provide the spiritual and temporal necessities of life for self and family. As members become self-reliant, they are also better able to serve and care for others."

We were at the Central Stake. President Rafael Garrido is the second counselor in the stake presidency (age 29) and over the self reliance program. He is a refugee from Venezuela, has been in Peru for two years and speaks perfect English. He is my new best friend! We really love him. He is trying so hard to do what is right for the Lord and for his stake.

President Rafael Garrido of the Central Stake

Thor did a fantastic job of presenting how the program works. When the training was finished President Garrido said that now he felt empowered. I know that others that were there better understood their role in helping their ward members become self-reliant.

It is important to note that we ALWAYS rely on our Savior and His atonement for us. We do the necessary work to become more spiritually in tune and then we can reach out and help others.

Central Stake Self-Reliance Training
Lots of wonderful people

 New Feature! Guess the plants from the Peru!

This is all the same plant. It is called Angel's Trumpet.  Everything about an angel's trumpet is dramatic: Pendulous floral bells (6-10 inches) sway gracefully from sturdy branches, perfuming the sultry evening air with fabulous scent.

Do 19 Year Old Missionaries Know How to Clean?

Something Funny

The recycling crew

We have been busy cleaning the mission office this week. It had quite the accumulation of old missionary pamphlets and other debris. We had boxes and boxes of pamphlets to carry out to the curb. Here in Lima there are men that go around and collect items to recycle. One of those items is paper.  We had quite a few men that helped us carry the boxes out and then load them on their vehicles (whatever that may be).

We were cleaning out the shelves on the third floor. I would take a box off the shelf put it on the top step and then push. Then one of the elders would position the box so it could go the rest of the way down to the second floor (there was a landing, halfway up). The elders were carrying the boxes down to the first floor and then out to the curb. Someone got the great idea that they could drop them from the second floor to a little patio area that we have on the first floor. That was great fun, with only a few causalities of the boxes.

One of them, (I think it may have been Elder Lindstrom) decided that it would be funny to drop an empty box on a unsuspecting elder. Poor Elder Wilcox was the one on the first floor when the empty box descended on him. There was much laughter!

Something Beautiful

There was a tiny bit of sun on Saturday so we headed to the Parque de la Reserva. It is a very famous park in Lima. It has the circuito magico del auga (the magic water show). Each night the fountains dance up and down to music while different colored lights go off and on. Unfortunately or fortunately for us the water in central Lima has been turned off for repairs, so no magic water show.

The fortunate part was that the park was pretty deserted. We were able to walk around and enjoy the beauty of the park. It was like we had it to ourselves!

A nice place to sit and think

Boy and water

There's no place like home!

Tunnel of Love

The Mad-Hatter's Tea Party

You need at least one guy on a horse.

Notice the absence of people

It looks a little Greek

Can you see the dancer and horse all made with plants?

Today was a beautiful sunny day! We actually saw that we are surrounded by mountains (we didn't know that). The sky was a beautiful blue with some wispy clouds--just like at home. We also saw the moon tonight on our way home from a meeting. Enjoy your clear skies!

Something Spiritual

The missionaries are each issued a wool blanket when they arrived in the mission. Often when they leave the mission they bring the blanket back to the mission office. There was quite the pile of wool blankets. What do we do with them? Elder Rincon, the office supply elder, did some detective work and found out that the blankets cost 18 soles. To clean those blankets would be 15 soles. It didn't make too much sense to have them cleaned, especially when they like to give out new blankets to each elder or sister.

Sister Rosa

As we were pondering what to do with the blankets, Sister Rosa arrived to bring missionary tags for the elders and hermanas. She is the lady that makes the new tags when one is lost or damaged. We were talking about taking the blankets to a poorer area in the mission. Sister Rosa mentioned that she has many Venezuelan refugees in her stake. Her husband was at the Temple with a car. (I think a lot of the time she rides the bus to deliver the tags.) What a coincidence!  We needed to give our blankets away and here was someone that could use them to bless others less fortunate.
In the Book of Mormon, King Benjamin admonishes the people: "I would that ye should impart of your substance to the poor, every man according to that which he hath, such as feeding the hungry, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and administering to their relief, both spiritually and temporally, according to their wants. And see that all these things are done in wisdom and order; for it is not requisite that a man should run faster than he has strength." Mosiah 4:26-27
I pray that we can all help one another. That we can minister as the Savior did when he was on the earth,