Sunday, August 24, 2014

This week in El Salvador...

Monday, August 18 to Sunday, August 24, 2014
August 18 - Monday tour to Acajutla Seaport without seeing the Seaport.
While we were having lunch -- about 20 minutes away from the Seaport, President López received a call that the President of El Salvador was making a surprise visit there and because of the heightened security no one else was being allowed to enter the Port.
So we finished our lunch and drove right on past the famous Acajutla Seaport. (Very sad.)

We stopped for ice cream before we returned to our Temple Square.
It's fun to go travelin' but it's always nice to come home!
There were 13 of us who went:
Los Haroldsen...DeVar & Sharon--from Idaho Falls...
Los Caballero - Roberto y Irma--from Canada (but native El Salvadorans)...
Los Udall - Mike & Jeanne--from Arizona...
Los López--Jaime y Gladis...
Los Oliva--Sergio y Betsabe Penelope...
Hno. José Peña...
And us--Los Petersen- Walt y Eileen...
Oh, and our bus driver, Andres...
August 19 - Tuesday
Hna. Udall taught us how to make "Easy, Delicious Cinnamon Rolls...   Then everyone did their afternoon temple shift - except Hna. Majano, who had a day with no shift.

August 20 - Wednesday
We had a day with no shift. Except Walt was there all morning in the weekly temple presidency meeting.  Then he called me to come over for a photo of the temple presidency, matron and assistants so it could be printed in the Temple Workers' Devotional for Sunday, August 24.  I don't think I got a copy of the photo.



August 21 - Thursday
Then Thursday, after our morning shift, we met with the gal who is over our shipment to move our things back to Idaho.
After that, Walt had an appointment with a dermatologist for some spots on his head...
August 22 -  Friday
We had the afternoon shift in the temple.
Then when we were off, Jaime López picked us up for the 50th Birthday Party for Waldo Reyes.

We got there at 10:00 as the soup was being served.  Then at 11:00 the salad was served.  At 12:00 midnight the main course of turkey, spare ribs, shrimp, veggies, rice, and rolls was served.

     Between all these courses, entertainment consisted of Mariachi singer, full 10-piece band for dancing, then dancers performing every dance known to man.
Waldo Reyes is now "50" - half a century~~!
We left at 1:15 a.m. before they had served the birthday cake. We had no temple shift the next day, but Los López had a temple shift at 4:00 a.m., so that was less that 3 hours away.
    
We are usually in bed 4 hours before this.
And this "party girl" (not) was partied out (true).
August 23 - Saturday
We were invited to a "farewell breakfast" for the Udalls at 8:30 for which I baked a "Spanish Omlet," plus we were to speak at 8:30 to over 100 youth from the Chalchuapa Stake before they were spending the day doing baptisms at the temple.
I just had time to take the Omlet down, then dash over to the chapel where Walt had gone.
I got to the chapel but they didn't start until 9:00. (We could have had breakfast.)  When we finished and had taken some photos, we met the Saturday afternoon temple coordinator and her assistant, plus other workers who had put on the breakfast, headed over to the temple.
We were really hungry.
When we walked into our apartment, there were two plates brimming with all the goodies from their breakfast.  What sweethearts we work with!
The hot chocolate was even still hot.
It would have been nice to eat with all of them, but as Walt pointed out: "We were where we needed to be."
That afternoon Romel drove Walt to a speaking assignment at the San Salvador Saturday Priesthood Meeting of their Stake Conference.   I was only assigned to speak with him the next day, so I got to stay in our apartment and relax.
Well, if you can call preparing two talks for the next day relaxing.
August 24, 2014 - Sunday
Our first speaking assignments were at the Sunday morning 9:00-11:00 a.m. session of the San Salvador Stake Conference.
Their stake presidency: Presidente Carlos Alfredo Flores González and his counselors José Dario Rodríguez Lizano and Carlos Antonio Gómez Chevez.  We are impressed with the great leaders they have here in the stakes and wards as we visit many of them.
We are always so thankful for those who drive us to each of our speaking assignments. Yesterday it was Romel. I wasn't with them so I didn't get a photo.  But here is Hugo Martínez who drove us this morning.
We got back to our apartment just in time to have a quick snack then head to the airport with President López to pick up our Area President, Kevin Duncan, who was coming in to speak at our annual Temple Workers' Devotional.
The full-time temple missionary couples passed our the printed programs and greeted everyone, then served the refreshments after.
I got a photo of them with President Duncan.
Elder y Hna. Caballero, Elder y Hna. Udall, President Duncan, and Elder y Hna. Haroldsen.
There were 344 temple workers and their spouses at the Devotional.  We got a photo of each stake's workers.
Then it was time to whisk Elder Kevin Duncan back to the airport.
President López picked him up and then drove him back. 
Gladis López got to come on the drive back.
We are very impressed with our new Area President and felt very at ease with Elder Kevin Duncan.
As we returned, we took a photo of Presidente y Hna. López by the temple that they can send to their missionary son, Elder Diego López, in their Monday e-mail to him tomorrow.
We pray you have had a peaceful and restful Sabbath Day.
We are thankful for our many blessings.
The Lord blesses us in each speaking assignment.
We hope the youth yesterday were touched by something Walt or I said to them.
We hope they had a spiritual experience as they were baptised for the dead yesterday in our temple.
We hope the members and investigators at the stake conference this morning gained a deeper understanding about the temple and went away with a stronger desire to enter this House of the Lord to do work for their kindred dead and others.
We hope our temple workers feel appreciated and loved after this special Devotional for them tonight.
And we hope you have had a good week past and will have a good week coming up.
The Gospel of Jesus Christ has once again been on the earth since a young boy went into a grove of trees to ask Heavenly Father which of all the churches was true and which he should join.  Ask any Mormon missionary or Mormon what his answer was.
     Con amor, Los Petersen - Walt and Eileen

No comments: