(January 12, 2020--Jenny letter to Elder Joshua Weatherford) This week was so busy that Larry and I almost fainted more than once! And then a woman at church today told me that she and her husband set a resolution to learn English and then asked when could I teach them. I told her we work every day from 7 AM to 830 PM, and she said, but the temple is closed Saturday afternoon. I held back the tears as I told her that I needed to do laundry and to shop on Saturday afternoon. My Spanish is so bad that I really hope I didn't offend her. But there is no way that I can add one more thing to my workload. It is already tremendous!
The longer I serve my mission, the more I relate to the things you all have done in your missions. Ha ha! What an experience! Colombia is crazy, just like Malaysia and Brazil and Nicaragua, and even Japan. Dad had a cold this week, so our neighbors gave him a huge chunk of ginger and told him to boil it and drink it. Ha ha! We did, and it was okay. And yes, sometimes, I feel bad that we have to end our mission because some things, like helping the brand new Elders at the Bogota MTC from America with the temple ordinances, and playing the music for Colombian meetings, will have to end. Today we sang a sacrament hymn that they had never heard, so basically, I just played it for them while they listened. Then, for the closing hymn, it was one they knew, and they all sang so loud that you could not hear the organ on full-blast. Ha ha! They are so cute! They basically sing terribly :)
One thing that is different in Colombia than in Malaysia is that the members here have a very deep and amazing understanding of the scriptures. Your members may not have this gift yet, but in 40 years, you will be amazed! Gordan and William will be the leaders, and their children will be amazing, and you will be so proud. Dad says that when he was here in 1978-80, no one could give a talk that was scriptural and deep, but now, 40 years later, the members really know the gospel. It is amazing! One sister, who I admire so much, gave a talk on the small insights she gained from reading this week's Sunday School assignment, 1 Nefi 1-7. Wow! She added so much to my understanding of the scriptures. It was a beautiful talk. :) She was a mission president's wife, and one of her former missionaries died this week of leukemia. She has so much faith.
On Saturday, our mission president, Presidente y Hna. Valledares, (different from our temple president) took us and the temple president and matron out to lunch. The mission president has never had a couple to help him in the Bogota North mission office. He said that in McAllen, Texas (Spanish-speaking mission close to Mexico) there are 10 couples helping, because Americans want to help Spanish-speaking people, but they do not want to leave the safety of the USA. I understand that. Every time that Dad and I start a new mission here in Colombia (or anywhere in Central or South America), we will get terrible diarrhea and fevers. We will lose weight because we do not have our favorite food, and we will be really homesick for our culture. BUT, we are so needed here, and so if Heavenly Father asks, we will most definitely serve more missions in Colombia. Maybe we can come back in time to serve as office couple for Presidente Valledares in the Bogota North mission. We love him and his wife so much!
There are 4 other full-time couples living here at the temple apartment housing and helping with the work, besides the 3 couples in the temple presidency. But Dad and I realize that the 4 other couples are not really the leaders in Colombia; the leaders are our temple presidency; those 3 couples are amazing and self-sufficient. The other (4 couples) workers who work with us often do not have a place to live besides the temple, and they (in part) do the work of the temple because they need to work so that they have a place to live. They do not have cars. Of course, they all have strong testimonies, and we are so grateful for them. But, some cannot read, a couple have big mental disorders which drive everyone around them crazy, and one must work in a wheelchair. They try our patience a lot. Ha ha! And because of that, Dad and I are learning SOOOO much! Can you imagine the contrast to working at the University of Wyoming with really smart and mentally balanced scholars? Our lives have changed 180 degrees. And we love it!
One more thing about the culture -- Dad's mission companion has a daughter with a birthday, so we need to go to the party right now (see pictures). It might start at 6p, but then again, it might start at 8p. We may be there until 9p or we may be there until 11p. And we are SOOOO tired. Ha ha! Such is life in central and south America. Rest assured that we are learning and growing tons. Today I had the thought that everything that makes me sad or frustrated is at the very same time making me grow in leaps and bounds. I didn't think that a 58-year-old could grow so much! I'm thrilled that our temple mission is hard. Thank you for your great examples to me, all of you. I love you dearly!! I'm so happy that I'm here on this hard and indescribable mission. :) What a blessing.
Love the explanation for why people are vegetarian
We met up with Larry's old companion, Carlos Rojas, in the Temple
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