The Young Women
Lunch after a service project
The Palot Huacho, Lone Avocado Tree, what we give as our address
Our home at the Palto Huacho, Cuz Cuz, ouside Illapel
House made of Coke crates filled with concrete
Almost all doors and light fixtures hit Dale about here
New house in Los Vilos, once contract is signed
Kitchen
Almost the Lucky Leaf
Mirella's Baptism
House and sheep pen in back yard where we did a service project.
Walking friends
house found on a walk
Wild horse
It was hard transitioning over-night from summer to
winter. However the winter here
hasn’t been very severe and is almost over. How bad can it be when you look out
your window & see oranges hanging on the trees? The homes here have no central heat/AC. It seems like the
buildings retain the cold and everything you touch is freezing cold. Lately when we leave our house in the
mornings, it feels warmer outside than inside. This past Sat. night we drove to a tiny mountain town called
Canela (Cinnamon). They had asked
us to do some training for their leaders. I always like driving during sunset.
After the meeting (about 9pm) we drove up a mountain side (another one!) to
President Moreno’s home and they treated us to dinner. We had scrambled eggs (bright
yellow-from their ducks and chickens); goat cheese (home-made from their goat);
a hot drink (Echo); tiny store bought cookies and of course PAN. Every meal always
has bread! Many family members
live in one house including grand-children. The Moreno’s home was small but tidy. It had no glass in the
windows (or bars). They only had wooden shutters to pull closed at night. They were generous in feeding us &
we loved getting to know them. The
gospel of Jesus Christ really makes us feel like family. It seems to cross all
the barriers of culture, language and generations in time. I have always wanted to travel back in
time and being here in Chile feels like I have.
Did I already mention
that all the adults stop and stare/gawk at Dale as he walks down the street but
the children are often vocal? They say… “mama, mire, un gigante!” All the doorways are very low and Dale
has to stoop to get under them. He has hit his head (seen stars) many times.
One time as he was stepping up (one step) to enter our bedroom, while ducking
his head, he bumped it so hard it hurt his neck. Our bed is too short for him
and the mattress is lumpy with a huge sag in the middle. We are usually too
tired for this to bother our few hours of sleep.
One fun way to pass a
dark, winter evening is to gather and have Family Home Evening (FHE) or Noche
de Hogar as they call it here. We
have two really fun young (20yrs) Sister Missionaries here. One is sister (Hermana or Hna) Cazaut
from Argentina. Her companion is
Hna Valencia (Lima, Peru). They
are out every day working hard & sharing the message of the gospel of Jesus
Christ. They like to organize
these FHE’s. The evening usually
begins about 8 or 9pm. One Friday night we drove up to the Villa (a type of
suburb to Illapel) for FHE. Most
of the casas in the Villa are built on a steep hillside and they are attached
to each other in rows. The streets are very narrow and often one-way. Parking
is always a chore even though most of the home owners are lucky to own one car.
Here is the process to enter another’s home. They all have walls in front, right next to the street, with
locked gates which leaves a space of about 4-8’ between their front door and
the wall. To enter you must first
stand outside their little gated wall and holler “Halo!” If they are home, they will hear you
(so will all the neighbors) They either stick their head out the window to see
what you need or else come out & unlock their gate to let you pass in. The first few times you yell “Halo”
outside a gate it feels funny! But
it is not ever good manners to enter (even if the gate is open) until you have
permission.
For FHE we squeeze a bunch (10-15 or more) people into a
small area. We begin with a prayer,
have a lesson on a gospel topic such as faith or the plan of salvation, then we
play a game and have refreshments.
Last Friday night FHE was in a country-home (Fernandas) about 8 minutes
west of Cuz Cuz, near the Confluenza. We left the highway & drove up a
steep, dirt road. Our branch president (Marambio) met us there with his family
and others. I especially loved the
game we played that night. It used
a Spoon (una cuchara) and a fork (un tenador) and all you did was pass them
around (opposite directions) while repeating a few simple words such as “Este
es una cuchara” “una que?”... Maybe you know of this game. For me it was harder
and fun played in Spanish. It got pretty loud and confusing when the items
crossed. Most Noche de Hogars wind
down with everyone standing around the kitchen table eating sweets and Lays
Potato Chips (yes, potato chips have taken hold here!). This particular night I
was thus engaged when I happened to glance into the adjoining room and saw a
rat running along the wall. I must
be adapting pretty well because it didn’t faze me & I just continued
grazing! It is a custom here that when you enter or leave a home you must greet
each person individually. So every person must hug-shake hands-hug again (men)
or hug & kiss right cheek (women to women or man to woman) everyone! It takes a bit of time to greet &
say good-bye to everyone! PS-We
attended a 2nd FHE in their home and I learned the family owns a
Hampster which runs free so I think this is what I saw J
As we were leaving FHE at Fernandas in the pitch black of
night, somehow the Marambio’s truck collided with the rear of our car. We both
had carloads of people and everyone let out a moan (universal language) when we
heard the crash. Miraculously
however, there was no damage done to either vehicle! For transportation most of the people use “Collectivos” or
else the bus. A collective is like a taxi cab but with specific routes and
stops. There a lots of them and
they are always busy!
Well, let me close this epistle. We had a wonderful baptism
last night for Clelia (Kelly). We got to help with her lessons and had one in
our home and she asked Dale to baptize her. The youth did a service project
(mutual) in her back yard Saturday, picking up rocks and debris so she can
plant a garden. Her mother is also taking the missionary lessons. It is so good
to watch the lives of people changing for the better and I love seeing that
special ‘light’ that enters their soul and shines out their eyes as they learn
about the restoration of the gospel and understand their prayers can be
answered by our Father in Heaven to them thru personal revelation!
PS: It is now Thursday (29 Aug) and I hope to mail this
today if we can get to the church to use the internet. Kelly’s mother is
getting baptized tomorrow. Last night at her Bap. Interview Dale needed to stay
for a meeting so I drove a group of sisters home. It was about 10pm and the
road I happened to choose to drive out of town was barricaded with Carabineros.
I was stopped and they asked for my license. He called his partner over and
they both studied my NC license. They seemed a bit confused so after a minute
they simply handed it back and said “Buenos Noches”. Whew,,,I was relieved because I have heard they like
to ‘harass’ people & always question them extensively. We have all our
papers etc in order but it is still scary. I noticed the 4 hermanas were VERY
quiet when this was going on, which was very unusual! I think 2 of them being
from other countries themselves silenced them. Not a peep or giggle or
anything. After we drove away I
heard the sweet sound of angels in the back seat singing the hymn “I Need Thee
Every Hour”. PS—just heard that
Kelly’s mom will be baptized also!
Thanks for all your prayers and love and support. I wish I
could write personal notes and call each of you individually but with no phone
and limited internet it isn’t possible. We love you all!
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