La Carta de esta semana (this weeks' letter)

Ka familia!

This week we began our tijoxik kaqckikel (kaqchikel class). It´ll be helpful because some people, as we discovered, can only truly comprehend kaqchikel. We also learned how to make pan eterno (eternal bread). They call it this because it can last up to six months and it´s good for emergencies. Also it is very filling. They are trying to get the people here to begin 72 hour kits.

Pan eterno

2 c. oats

2 and a half c. powdered milk (has to be dry)

1 c. sugar

3 tsp. honey

3 tsp. water

half package of gelatin (40 grms), lemon or orange

Prepare

Mix oats, powdered milk, sugar. In a separate pot mix the gelatin, honey, and water, boil it, and retire immediately. Pour the gelatin mixture into the dry ingredients and mix using wet hands. If the mixture is still dry, water can be added. The resulting mixture should be wet but thick. Cover a pan (a smaller one used for breads, or a dutch oven) with wax paper, spreading only a little oil on the waxpaper so that the mixture won´t stick to the waxpaper. Place in a preheated oven or dutch oven for 20 minutes. It will still appear raw when cooked so check with a knife or toothpick. Cut the bread into small pieces to store.

I bought a coconut Tuesday and finally opened it with a screwdriver on Thursday.

Thursday I started having a cold. By the end of Friday night I had a cold, a headache, which made me feel lightheaded, nausea, and the chills. Saturday I stayed in bed all day. By 4 pm I had a fever of 104 degrees fahrenheit (40 degrees celsius) and Hermana Benavides started freaking out, but I remembered how you, mom, lowered my fever last summer (thanks to Swine Flu) so I took medicine and put cold rags on myself. Sunday I still felt ill but made it to Church and my fever lowered to normal for that period of time. Saturday we had several visits. Las Hermanas ***** brought limes (they call them limons here) and showed Hermana Benavides how to make lime tea. Also, a boy from our English class brought us a lot of bread. During all this time I really missed dad because he could give me a blessing. Here in the mountains there aren´t many priesthood holders nearby. The 2 counselors of the Branch presidency don´t live too far away, but the branch president lives about an hour away, and our district leader is in Chimal. One takes for granted priesthood blessings until there is not anyone nearby to give one. I still felt ill this morning, so I asked Elder Crosby (thank you Elder Crosby!) to give me a blessing. It is my last resort to get better because I have tried nearly everything else.

I bought a cuadra (painting) from el Hermano ****. It´s painted on fabric so can be folded and shows the Maya history of learning. He sold it to me for 50 quetzales, which is much less that it´s worth.
 

Last week I believe I told you of the Familia ****. This week I will write of Hermana *******. He is a little old man (4´6´´) who refers to me as the Cancha or Canchita, a name which means a person is very fair or whiter. He is always worried about whether I am eating or if I am ill. He and his sister are fascinated with the canchitos, though I don´t know why. He is an active member but loves visits from the sister missionaries because we sing to him. The first time I saw him it was just a silhouette of him and he reminded me of a chinese kung fu master because he has a big sombrero.

So one day hopefully I can write my entire testimony in kaqchikel but right now it will suffice to write only part in kaqchikel. Como misionera, yo sé que yi oj tacoshela chin ri ru kajol ri ajaw. Jesucristo, kajol ri ajaw vive. Rochoch ajaw es la rochoch verdadera. Yo sé tambien que tenemos un profeta en la tierra. El wuj Mormon es la palabra ri ajaw. En el nombre de Jesucristo, digo estas cosas, amen.

Maltiox por todos, everyone. Thanks for the letters and words of encouragement. Les quiero much. Tab´ana Cuenta! Also, I challenge all to invite one person to watch general conference this weekend. 

Answers to questions I asked:  I heard a little about this hurricane that is supposed to be hitting here. Also, it is near winter time when there is more rain and cold. I guess I have something to look for.

Sometimes it is hard for me to be here, but I keep pushing forward because I know something better will come later. I have learned a lot from my mission also, things that I wouldn´t have learned elsewhere, and I have strengthened my muscles (ha ha). This morning our ride here was standing up. The bus was crowded beyond reason and to ride in the bus, standing up, down curvy roads when the bus drivers drive at insane speeds takes a lot of muscle strength. Wow, my muscles are sore, but when I am finished with the buses here, the buses back at home will be nothing to me.

emails sent today! A day late, due to meeting changes

I have been feeling a lot better. It was just for the couple of days. It is cold here, but it was colder at first because I came from the city where it is hotter so the cold was more noticeable. Really, the coldest it gets is like the beginning of winter in Utah, when it isn´t too cold for snow, but just starts to get chilly... like the canyon in autumn, I think is the best way to describe it.  Also, thanks for the paragraph about the color of skin stuff because again I felt saddened by it because still there are people to whom it matters.

Familia,

This week there were parades and festivities for Independence Day on the 15.

We had a zone meeting on the 14, our Pday, and it was early. However, Hermana Benavides felt ill and it takes an hour to get to the stake center. We were late for the earlier bus, didn´t have much time to wait for the next bus, so we went with members of the ward and caught a ride in the back of someone´s truck who was headed in that direction.

When they went too far, we hopped out, retraced our steps a bit and got on a bus that took us to the area of the stake center. It was an adventure and I took video footage when we were riding in the bed of the truck. It reminded me of camping. Since Hermana Benavides was ill all day, we spent the day in the house.  And thank Grandma and Grandpa for me for the cards. They are so happy and I enjoy reading them.

Anyway, on the fifteenth we saw a bit of the parades and school bands and heard fireworks early in the morning. That night we went to the house of the Family **** and made papusas for them. For some reason my tortillas sometimes aren´t nice looking, but my papusas always are... hm.... We persuaded ***** and ***** to help us make them.   ***** flipped the papusas and it was Hermano ******´s first time making anything related to a tortilla, but in the end all of the papusas looked the same and tasted good.

  The people here are hard-hearted and blinded to the truth. I have learned to feel great love for the people so each time they will not listen my heart feels like rending. Well, I will write more later. I love you all. Ka´dika.

While we wait for today's email......

PLEASE write!!! Hermana Park loves and needs letters!

 Yeah, peanut butter is a delicacy. It is available to buy, but it is expensive. (I sent Destinee some small snack size peanut butters and told her to watch for it)

Anyway, other letter I write: This week I have felt sick. I have a cold and some stomach pains. Also, Sunday morning I woke up with back pains that basically continued through the day.  (don't worry grandma, just keep her in your prayers)

The branch is small but I like it. I felt comfortable when I went to Church sunday even though I was called to bear my testimony to the branch. The turnout of attendance was 55-ish. I have met many of the members already. 

Our area covers a lot of space. Sometimes it takes a half an hour to walk to our appointments. There are no cucarachas here that I have seen but at night our rooms are covered with other insects, especially spiders. It gets really cold here. That, with the smoke and dust, is probably the reason that I am ill. 

There are some nicer houses within the town, and then there are shack-like houses in the fields. Sunday a family gave us corn to eat, and other families gave us hot chocolate and atol de mais blanca. I really dislike that drink. If you would like to try it, just take corn meal, mix it to make a thin, grainy drink, and drink it. It´s nasty! but the people love it.

It is a beautiful place here. I think, however, I have never been so humbled in my life. I have had to get used to being mocked. There are many people who make fun of the color of my skin because I am so light colored. However, one thing I can say is that not many people have seen many canchitas so I have the opportunity to say that I am one of the first canchita missionaries here. Yay! 

Hope all is going well. I love you all much, and you all don´t need to worry about sending me too many letters. I have had some people worry about that, but really I do have time to read them. 

Yo sé que si yo puedo hacer algo tan grande como una missión, alguien como yo, tan debil, que por menos todos en los Estados pueden hacer las cosas sencillas. Todos nosotros somos misioneros del Señor si tenemos la fe en Él. Hasta más tarde, Ka´di´ka.

 

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1.02.28

Answers to my questions 9-13-10

I am glad you got yourself a PMG. (I finally got my own copy instead of sharing one with my hubby and told Destinee in my email to her) It has great stuff in it. My copies are marked up. I have been taking more notes in my spanish one though because I have been reading that one more, but there are good notes for me to use in my English copy as well. 

There haven´t been too many problems with the rain and mud. There are some of the houses along the mountains that have broken in in some places. Our living quarters is more like a house, well, a cabin. Our yard is big and we have avocado (aguacate) trees, corn, squash plants, and red onions that we can eat when they are ripe. We try to keep everything clean. The shower isn´t too bad, but it is always cold. The first 2 days I was here it was warm, but now I do my best with the cold water. It´s not too bad after a while. 

There are not any monkeys because those are no longer in our mission. Also there are not many different birds. There are more than in the city, but none that are exotic. 

My foot has felt better, whether it is really better or I am just used to it, I don`t know, but I wear socks. the fuzzy ones I need to wash. We do our own wash because there is no one that wants to come and wash our clothes. Everyone is always too busy.

My companion has been in the area since she started. So since she skipped the CCM, she´s been out here for 2 changes in this area. This is her third change in the area. 

I will buy skirts when I get the chance. The corte is what is the colorful popular type and it´s cheaper to buy it here than other places. In Antigua they were sold for around 160 quetzals and in the mountains they are sold for 75. Actually, everything´s at a better price here. I just don´t want to get everything to carry around for the next 14 and a half months, but I will get stuff here. 

My companion told me that her package took a month to get to her so I will wait a week or 2 more before I worry too much, but you sent peanut butter? I will write more in a different email.

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1.02.28

July 2010 New Missionaries in the Guatemala City Central Mission

(from the Guatemala City Central Mission blog)

 (Lto R) Hnas. Moeai, Park, Zapet,
Rubio, Ayala, Elders Udall, Crook, Taylor, Briggs,
Ogden, Richards, Ratelle, Hernandez, Wilkinson,
Petersen, Bench, Lontine, Porter, Euteneier, Fullerton and Crittenden

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1.02.28

I am in zone Chimaltenango, in the area of Comalapa

I still haven´t gotten the package so still waiting. I did register (mine) so that the pen would not cause problems. That´s so awesome Kade got to be there for the baptism, and his pants helped. So I am in my new area now. I am in the mountains!!!!! I am in zone Chimaltenango, in the area of Comalapa.

Here is a picture of Compalapa I was able to pull off the internet for now

It is so beautiful here. There are trees and fog, and spiders. Ha Ha. I actually haven´t seen too many insects and it is better having spiders than cucarachas. It gets pretty cold in the morning and night. I met Hermana Garcia. She is from Honolulu, and she`s in my zone. I forgot to tell you those in my last district: District leader Elder Hansen, Elder Richards, Elder Gonzalez, Elder Calta, Hermana Angel, Hermana Rubio, and then Hermana Earl and I. This new district I didn´t know many. Just Elder Crosby. He´s the district leader.

My new companion is Hermana Benavidas. She´s from Texas but her parents are from Mexico and Guatemala. She speaks mainly in Spanish to me but doesn´t know all of the words still so she speaks spanglish. She entered the MTC the same time as me, but like Elder Flores, she went straight from the three weeks at the MTC to the field. This last change I had the opportunity to finally meet Elder Flores, and also Elder Melville. He was pretty excited to see me because he had been waiting after my letter to him for me to come to Guatemala.

This area I am in is very beautiful and reminds me of camping in the mountains. The people are very based in the indigenous ways. The women wear corte, which is the type of fabric you´ll see in some of the photos that is very colorful and made with different patterns. I think I will buy some skirts here of it because it is más barato aqui, whereas other places it is very expensive. It is neat seeing the difference in cultures here in Guatemala. I had expected one type of culture from all I read beforehand, but everything cannot be explained because each place is very different.  

Here in Chimaltenango, they speak Kechikel and I will get to learn how to say some things. I don´t know what else to write about the new area... but how´s Kiana doing with school? I received letters that I haven´t read yet. It seems to be two weeks of letters. Mail is reliable for sure, but it is slow.

Hermana Benavidas taught me how to make something delicious. It is just a normal sandwich on white bread made with ketchup, mayo, mustard, and ham, but on the outsides, it is covered with a mixture of pancake and eggs and then grilled or fried or whatever in a skillet. Then we put powdered sugar on top. It sounds weird but it is good. 

It is really cool seeing how many people I have met and been a part of their lives. I had the opportunity to see that when I left La Justo. Well, I am going to write kiana and kade in the time I have left, but I love you all. Keep pressing onward. Si edificamos en el evangelio de Jesucristo, no vamos a caer porque su evangelio contiene las cosas que necesitamos para luchar contra Satanas. Suerte a todas. Adios hasta la proxima semana.

Hermana Destinee Park

My new companion is Hermana Benavidas. She´s from Texas but her parents are from Mexico and Guatemala. She speaks mainly in Spanish to me but doesn´t know all of the words still so she speaks spanglish. She entered the MTC the same time as me, but like Elder Flores, she went straight from the three weeks at the MTC to the field. This last change I had the opportunity to finally meet Elder Flores, and also Elder Melville. He was pretty excited to see me because he had been waiting after my letter to him for me to come to Guatemala. He had also been telling some of the missionaries from what they´ve told me that we had known each other since preschool. Not true, but it´s funny to hear that. D034D585-5259-E93B-CCEB-BD7D4C1EB62B

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1.02.28

While in the CCM, the missionaries get to go on a field trip.  They go to a museum, and to the Relief Map.  Here are a few of the pictures  from that trip.

 

The Relief Map

Teletubby Hill

If this is your Elder, let me know so I can identify him

At the Museum

                                                                             

Guatemala Mudslides

I was not expecting to hear from Hermana Park today because this week is changes and she will be changed.  However, over the weekend Guatemala once again experienced continuous rains and mudslides.  

Many have died in these slides.  I am asking you all to pray for the missionaries, and for the people.  These people live in such poverty anyway, but to have these disasters plaguing them every few months is horrible.  Until I hear from Destinee, I will assume she is safe.  No news is always good news.  As a mom, I worry about her wet feet, but then again, her feet have been wet since she got there!   Here is a picture of one of the slides:

Some information from letters sent snail mail

We got a package from Destinee with her sd card full of CCM pictures and a few out in the field pictures.  

She also sent her little sister a cool pen.   

Here is a few tidbits of information from letters sent with that package:

When it rains here, which lately has been every day, I can stay dry under my umbrella, but my feet and backpack get soaked.  Some places of Guatemala are pretty and others are dirty with garbage everywhere.  I've traveled much of my mission area so far.  I've been to the center of Guatemala City towards the mission office and hospital numerous times because a fifth or fourth of our days are spent there--so many people have too visit the doctor.  I've also gone to Monte Maria to pick up my companion after the week of divisions, and Trebel as a meeting place a couple of times, Sand Cristobal for one day of divisions; The Vasquez for half of those days of divisions, and Antigua, where we went as a zone for P-day.  So, as you can see, I have been many places in only a month.

2 more weeks (will be this coming week) and then there is a change.  It is common for a missionary to be with their trainer for 2 changes, but Hermana Earl is going home in October and has to have the next nurse as her final companion so I know for sure I will have a change. 

The mission really is an interesting experience.  I've had so many trying experiences but I have learned so much.  For example, some things are too big for missionaries to handle; there is always something I can learn from every experience or someone I can help; I must learn to be more patient in waiting before the result begins; there will always be something rewarding at the end of a tough journey.

Besides food, I have received a few trinkets from others while here in La Justo:  a string bracelet (one like Kiana makes), a pebble (know how I love rocks?  Now I can carry one with me), and a crochet hook (found on the street by someone we were with named Eslin).  Fantastic!  I wish I knew what size it was so I could send her yarn.  For a few years before her mission, Destinee was crocheting leper bandages.

Sister Destinee's welcome letter and picture--finally!

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President and Sister Baldwin and Hermana Park