Botanical Gardens

      Well, our two week break is over and the temple opens today. YEA!! We were ready for some rest but two weeks without attending the temple is just way too long for us. We are ready and excited to return.

 

      This week we visited the Botanical Gardens. It is located in the volcanic crater right next to the flour mill where we got our whole wheat flour. The orchids were not in bloom yet but the wide variety of plants was amazing.

 The Clarks loved the cactus section. It reminded them of home, Arizona.

The bamboo trees were one of our favorites. They were huge!

There are fish ponds and a very big iguana living in the park. We didn't see it, but the Wall's did. This rich volcanic soil grows amazing plants. If the country would not build so many houses and keep some of the land to grow things on they wouldn't have to import all their fruits and veggies from Guatemala. There are just way too many people here for the size of the country.

 

Didn't get a chance to finish this yesterday. We got called to come to the temple to help with some Americans who were visiting our temple. It did feel good to be back to the temple. We love the work we are doing here.

 

The Alas's invited us to breakfast for pupusas in Antique Cuscatlan. They do not have a car and walk or ride buses everywhere so we were in for an adventure. We walked there, about a 30 minute walk. We again ate at Lillies Pupusaria then President Alas wanted us to experience a ride on one of the coasters that zip around town, usually overfull. He wouldn't let us on one of the school buses. We had to wait for about 30 minutes for the right bus to come along. While we were waiting, the shop across the street started making their tortilla's for the day.  The picture shows a mound of dough ready to cook. The ladies used a trowel as a spatula.

 This is the neighborhood we were waiting in.

 

The picture below is for my brother-in-law, Mike. We were not sure that the wiring was up to code. The coaster finally arrived and we climbed in, at a cost of 25 cents apiece. President Alas yelled hang on and off we went. We grabbed the overhead rung, poor Sister Alas was too short to reach it. You never knew when they were going to stop or start. It was a very bumpy squirrely ride. It is always fun to go with the Alas's because we get to experience how most of the people here live. They are very poor, but with the gospel in their lives, they are very happy and love to serve.

     We had a great Easter Devotional on Sunday. It is hard to believe that it will be our last here. We get to sing with the choir once more this Sunday for Stake Conference then that part of our experience here will be over. Lon will really miss the two hour practices every Sunday, NOT!!! But we will miss the people and the music.

      We send our love to all. We hope you are enjoying a beautiful spring. Tracy and his family are moving into Jerome this Saturday. Those in Jerome, please take good care of them til we return. Lon and Nancy, Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma

Velatorio

      Just wanted to share with you another custom that we have been part of this week. When Sister Alicia Colina passed away, we were invited to the "velatorio" the very night that she died, Friday the 8th. The dictionary says that this is a viewing or wake. We figure it is just a viewing and we will get to visit with the family so we are very happy to have a ride to the funeral home. We arrive around 7:30 pm and are in time to hear Brother Montepeque give a talk, then Marti, the husband, talks for about 15 minutes, we sing a hymn and have a prayer. A velatorio is more like a wake than a viewing. They served drinks and cookies and other pastels the entire evening. We left around 10:30 and there were still people sitting and visiting. They say that sometimes they are there all night.

     One of the hardest things here is not having a car so we can just go and visit or help someone. Monday morning, the 11th, was the funeral. We rode with Mariela Figueroa. The funeral was to start at 9:30. We arrived at the church at 9:20 and the gates were locked, all churches are surrounded by fences and are locked up when no meetings are taking place. We got in about 15 minutes later and found out that they had no piano player so I was fortunate to be able to actually DO something to add comfort and peace for the Colina family. I played prelude for 45 minutes before the family arrived and the three hymns in the service.

      When we returned home we found out that the sister of President Majano had passed away and her velatorio is that very night, Monday the 11th. President and Sister Petersen arrived home from the States at 8:00 pm and at 9:00 we all loaded into the van to go to the velatorio. President Lopez drove and the Alas's went with us, so we loaded 11 into our 8 passenger van. We got there as the son of President Majano was finishing his talk, then President Majano was to speak. Our Bishop came to me and asked if I would sing for them. I told him I didn't have a book and didn't know anything by heart. He found me a book and said pick a hymn. The book opened to "God be With you till we Meet again" so that is what I sang. Again I was fortunate to be able to DO something to add comfort and peace for the Majano Family.

 

      I am so thankful for the talents that My Heavenly Father has given me. I am so thankful for earthly parents who spent time and money to help me develop these talents. I am thankful for church leaders over the years who have given me callings to further develop these talents so I am able to share them without fear. Please don't think that I am bragging. I feel like Ammon when he said in Alma 26; " I do not boast in my own strength nor in my own wisdom; but behold, my joy is full, yea my heart is brim with joy, and I rejoice in my God. Yea, I know that I am nothing; as to my strength I am weak; therefore I will not boast of myself, but I will boast of my God, for in his strength I can do all things."

 

     What a joy it is to me to be able to share my testimony through music in a different language. Having only 5 minutes to prepare to sing for a funeral has to be a record. I am working on "O Divine Redeemer" and "The Lord's Prayer" in Spanish for this Sunday for the Easter Devotional. I know that it is only through His strength and help that I am able to do this.

 

      My dear family, thank you so much for all you do for us and for our children while we are away. We feel of your love and prayers daily and we love you all so much. We never know when it will be our time to return to our Heavenly Father so we just wanted to take the time to let you know of our love for our Savior and for all of you. May God bless you in all you do. Lon and Nancy, Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma

Tracy Got the Job!!

     Great news today. Tracy just landed a job with the Twin Falls Sheriffs Office as a deputy jailer. He has been looking for a job in law enforcement since October. We are so excited that he and the family will be living so close to us. Sarah has a job in Twin also! They have enrolled the kids in a charter school in Jerome and will be living in our house for now. He asked me to thank all the family that have been praying for him. He said that he didn't get this job on his own and thanks all of you for the prayers in his behalf. They have a lot of work to do now, with having to move us out of our house, move down, and get his ready for renters by the 25th.

 

      We lost a dear friend again this week. Sister Alicia Colina passed away on Saturday morning.

Marti and Alicia were both ordinance workers in the temple until his legs got so bad that he couldn't stand for long periods of time. He has diabetes and has not been well for a year. Alicia was the Young Womens President in her ward, she is the same age as I am. We are saddened to have lost another friend but are so thankful that we were here and got to know her in this life. We look forward to renewing our friendship in the life to come.

 

      On Friday, we went to visit Parque Bicentenario with the Walls and Halls.

It is the dry season so it is not as beautiful as it will be in three months, but we will be in Idaho in three months so we took the opportunity to visit it now while the Hall's are still here cause they were good tour guides for us. They leave next month. We walked only on the south side of the park cause it is huge and it was getting real hot by noon. The Bamboo trees were huge.

   It was an up and down trail through the trees

Right smack in the middle of the park is a group of shanties where people live. We can't believe that they didn't kick them out when they made the park. It has only been opened about a year.

 

      We have gotten to go to dinner with several of our friends this past week and have several more invites this week as well. It is good to visit with them now while the temple is closed. We do miss the temple and will be glad to get back next week. The Petersen's fly in tonight.

 

      As we drive around this beautiful country, we see street venders everywhere. This is a normal sight along any of the roads.

 It is sugar cane harvest time, and the trucks are everywhere, carrying the cane to the factories for processing.

Lon and Eric Behner went golfing for the last time here on Saturday. They went back out to Corintos and had a great day. The caddie got paid and left so fast that he forgot to give Lon his card so he is not sure what he scored this time. But he played with one set of clubs on the front 9 and a different set of clubs on the back 9 so he didn't expect to golf his age this time. But he had a lot of fun and gave away all his tees cause he won't have an opportunity to golf again until he gets to Jerome.

 

      We are well and happy and thank you for your prayers in our behalf. We know that we are being watched over and protected and given extra health and strength to be able to serve this mission. You are all in our prayers also. We love you Lon and Nancy, Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma.

Our Vacation Has Begun

     Our temple closed for the next two weeks for cleaning and repairs. We let our closest friends know that this is the time to take us anywhere they want us to see and we are having a few over for dinner. We need to use this time to say goodbye as we won't have the time or energy once the temple opens again. It is so strange to know that our time here is so short. The Petersen's flew out on Monday to Minnisota to be with family, especially a grandson they have never seen. They will return next Monday. We always miss them so when they are gone.

     Our new missionary couple, the Clarks, arrived last Thursday. They are great and will be a great asset to the work here. They are from Arizona. They came to the temple for the Saturday PM shift and they are not afraid to roll up their sleeves and dig in. This is their second mission to a Spanish temple, having served in Monteray, Mexico. There they were the only English Couple so they are thrilled to have a family this time, not only us, but Sister Clark's sister is the wife of the Mission President, the Glazers!!

     Today, Carlos Ortiz arranged to take us and the Walls on a trip to the center of town. (the Clarks were with the Glazers all day) We went first to the Presidential Palace.

He hired two taxi's to haul us around and the drivers and Carlos were our body guards and guides for the day. The palace is being renovated after a fire and an earthquake. They are not quite done yet but it is beautiful.  This is in the Blue Room.

The royal family doesn't live here anymore and most of the government business has been moved as well. It is more of a museum on the top floors with offices and a library on the ground floor. Below is the Red Room.

It has pictures around the walls of all the Presidents of the country in it. It was facinating to read about some of the history of El Salvador from the governments point of view. We visited the Yellow and Pink Rooms and the grounds were amazing. You will have to come to visit me when we get home to see the rest of the pictures though. I just can't post them all here, I think we took about 50.

     We were amazed that after we left the Palace, we actually WALKED right down the center of town to the Excuarter.

 This the the down town that no one has ever allowed us to even get out of the car to see. But with our drivers and Carlos, we felt very safe, except for Sister Wall. She was real glad to get out of here. The Excuarter is a huge market filled with hundreds of shops selling any kind of souvaneir you can imagine, and some you have never imagined. It was almost overwhelming because it was so big. Carlos made sure that anything we wanted to buy was at the lowest possible price.

     We send our love to all. We hope that spring will be kind to you and you will not have too much wind. We have decided that the Lord is preparing us for our trip home by sending a lot of wind here. Our backyard has been torn up and they are putting in a subdivision so we have dirt blowing, really looks like home. We can't even eat on our patio now because of the blowing dirt and loud machines that work 7 days a week. Have a great week. You are in our thoughts and prayers always. Lon and Nancy, Grandpa and Grandma, Dad and Mom

Trip to Cojutepequ​e

     We took a trip to Cojutepeque following the Panoramic Route on February 11th.. Several people advised President Lopez not to take us on this route because it is not safe, lots of robbers. They have built very nice wooden platforms for tourists to look over the valleys but these are where the robbers hide, under the platforms. He wouldn't let us stop at any of these lookouts but would stop in the middle of the road and President Petersen and Elder Wall would jump out and take a picture. We were in the back of the van and couldn't get out quick so we have been waiting for the others to share their photos so we can send this letter.

      It is a windy road up the mountains. We rode right along the ridge of the mountain and on one side you could look down into Lake Illopongo and on the other side deep valleys and ravines. It was beautiful, even in the dry season. I think we have been here long enough not to notice the garbage along the roads anymore. We just enjoy the flowers and trees. Along the way we saw one of the locals driving his cart, pulled by two brahma bulls. We had to stop and President Petersen talked to him.

He had the ropes tied to one ear of each bull so he could pull on the rope and the bull would turn. We passed lots of people cutting and hauling wood for their cooking.

When people from these small towns come to the temple, you can smell the smoke from their camp fires that they cook on. We had lunch and then visited Saint Fatima Park. It is a Catholic park in honor of the virgin Fatima. It was a very beautiful, peaceful park just outside of Cojutepeque. 

We were surprised at how large Cojutepeque is. They only have one set of elders in the town and only one branch. However this branch is amazing. We drove to their new chapel, only 8 months old, and got a tour of the building by the branch president.

It is a two story building, the chapel is upstairs. This branch has 150 members and 130 are in attendance each Sunday. It has an elevator if you can't do stairs. Sister Petersen rode up in the elevator, only to have the doors not open on the second floor. Luckily Elder Wall was with her and he forced the doors open about the time she was ready to scream!! Needles to say, she walked down the stairs after touring the upstairs. The whole building was tile flooring and the classrooms would hold 10 people at the most. It was so cute. The soccer and basketball court are outside. It is on a gated street for protection.

     President Lopez was our driver and tour guide. It was fun to see this section of El Salvador through his eyes. He used to visit Saint Fatima Park with his girlfriends, just to walk along the paths and enjoy the peace and quiet. We came home on the main highway, circling Lake Illopongo. When we travel and see just how far and difficult it is to get to the temple, we have a deeper appreciation for the members who sacrifice to come. We rode in a nice, air conditioned van. They come in school buses that are older then we are. One of our temple workers is from here and rides 3 different buses for 4 hours to arrive at the temple, works for 4 hours, then rides the 4 hours back home. We have learned a lot about dedication from the members here.

     I've spent a lot of time trying to learn "Popcorn Popping" in Spanish this week so I could sing it in the nursery today. Of course the words aren't the same so I had to learn new actions as well. It actually went pretty good. Elder Thompson has spent the week getting ready to give a talk tonight at 5:00 at a meeting of the temple worthy members of our stake. He only has to speak for 10 minutes so that will be the hard part. He always has more material than he has time for.

     We hope you have each had a great week. We send our love and prayers to you. Thank you for your prayers in our behalf. We are well and enjoy serving our Heavenly Father here in El Salvador. May God bless you this week with health, and peace and happiness. Love Lon and Nancy, Dad and Mom, Grandpa and Grandma

It is so hard to loose someone you love and admire

     We are saddened to hear about the passing of our dear friend Patsy. She will be missed so much. Patsy has been such a great example to all of us over the years. She truly lived her life as a disciple of Jesus Christ. She was always there in our trials, our triumphs, and our losses. Whenever she had an assignment or a calling, she magnified that call and we were all blessed because of it. The Jerome Second Ward will feel the void of her passing for a long time as we have lost a valiant servant of our Heavenly Father.

     We want to bear our testimonies to you all that we know she is in a better place, with family and friends who have gone on before. She will be watching over her family and prompting and guiding them still.  She and Al will be together again and their family with them if they will but follow her example and become disciples of Christ as she is.

     We send our love to Al, Tami Lane, Valerie, Danny and their spouses and children. We mourn with you and pray that we will all be fortified with the spirit of our Father in Heaven to get through the tough days ahead. May God bless us all with the peace and strength that we need to go forward. We will never forget our friend and will look forward to meeting her again one day in the kingdom of our Father.

Cojutepequ​e

     Just want you to know that we are alive and well. We took a great trip to Cojutepeque on Monday the 11th. Elder Thompson and I were in the back of the van and couldn't get out to take all the pictures so we are waiting for Sister Petersen to forward her pictures to us. So, for now I will just send the picture of the "plastic bag tree". When we stopped for lunch, I saw a tree that had these big white looking leaves or flowers in a distance. I asked President Lopez to come with me to see the tree and tell me what kind of a tree it was. He got real serious and told me that it was a "plastic bag tree", and didn't we have them in the States? When we got close enough for me to recognize what had been done, he just laughed and laughed. Anyway, it is a quayaba tree. They put the plastic bags over the fruit to protect them from birds. Maybe we should try it with strawberries? 

  Poinsetta tree with a couple of old missionaries in front of it.

     Anyway, just a quick note and I will get a full detail of our trip to you next week. We are enjoying our mission and look forward to each new day. It is so fun to know so many of the regulars and look forward to their visits to the temple. We send our love to all and hope you are well and enjoying life. Love Lon and Nancy, Grandpa and Grandma, Dad and Mom .