Honduras - reminds us of Yellowstone

We have learned that the onc constant in the LDS Church is that of "change". We have learned to be flexible in all things. People we have learned to love, come and go. Challenges are faced, solved and then a new one emerges from nowhere. Solutions never before considered enter our minds. Each new day is a new adventure. We are slow learners, I'm afraid, and to be a little "off-balance" has been the way we learn best.

We have just returned from Comayaguela, Honduras Mission. Five, very dear days have flown by and are becoming a blur already. If I don't write a few memories I will have forgotten them by the time we have the next Zone Conference in Nicaragua. We leave on Sunday. It is Friday night.

We admit that we aren't able to "sight-see" in any of the countries we visit as these visits are intense working days. But as we drive hundreds, perhaps thousands of miles, we can see the landscape, visit markets, talk to people who live in these places and experience the joys and discouragements of the development of the church. This is all we could ever ask for. We see parts of these countries in an intimate way we think miraculous. For example, we were so close to Tikal, but couldn't find an hour to go there, on the other hand, we wouldn't trade these hours
for anything in the world.

Honduras is beautiful! In fact, it is one of the most beautiful lands we have seen in Central America. It is the only country without volcanoes and yet is is the most mountainous. It is the least inhabited and so thousands of miles are pristine. Forests of pine make us think of Yellowstone and Western landscapes. The undergrowth is not as thick as one might think and it is possible to hike and walk through these places. It doesn't appear to be as dangerous as Guatemala, although in all of Central America one has to be aware of surroundings at all time. Neverthe less, we still love Guatemala more than any of the countries even with its difficulties and disadvantages. There is a vibrancy and an energy...eclectic and interesting that we don't see anywhere else. There is not country in Central America with the incredible ancient history of Guatemala, and that ancient history is still living and evident today.

Our Zone Conferences were wonderful as we had the whole day in each zone to do lectures and clinics. We sometimes feel as we are talking to ourselves when we talk about balanced diets. We discovered that eldeers eat 13-14 eggs a day because they are inexpensive, for example. We field amusing questions and as we go through our clinics often hear some discouraging health issues. The miracle of it all, is that these young men and women - sometimes from backgrounds of abuse, poverty, serious mental and physical disabilities, families who have disowned them become such incredible people. These young men and women come into the mission with all these issues and learn to rely on the Lord. They rely on the Spirit and they grow. We see an obvious light in their countenances and come away almost in disbelief that they are becoming such great men and women.

We loved the Mission President and his wife. They were both from Argentina and were so gracious and kind to us. We went to their lovely mission home one night and the President cooked an Argentinian barbecue with several kinds of meat that could melt in one's mouth. They had six childen who seemed perfect. They go to a private school and our friends who we met last summer are the senior couple in this mission, pick them up from school. One day they asked if they could go to McDonalds after school. They purchased one child's hamburger and a small fry. They each took little bites and passed it on to the next one. There was not a single murmer or argument. This may seem insignificant, but is is an example of the generous nature of all the people we have met.

We were too busy to take even a single photo so I can't record anything in pictures. I feel sad, but hope I can remember the missionaries, the leadership and the landscape. One disadvantage of being so busy is that sometimes wonderful events merge with other wonderful events into a blissful blur and it is difficult to isolate memories.

We leave on Sunday for Nicaragua. This time we will be there for 7-8 days, but will stay with the Mission President for all that time. I worry as it is difficult for me to do this. As I was grumbling to myself as we were flying home yesterday, a song popped into my head. "Nephi's Courage" with the words "I will go, I will do just what the Lord commands..." was the Spirits way of giving me a swift kick. I have been laughing about it all day. I am still worried, but we will do our best.

If I could wish for one thing, it would be for more Senior Missionaries. We haven't been a single place, visited a single mission where Senior Missionaries are not needed with urgency. Why did we wait so long to go? How can we convince others to come and help? The church is growing so rapidly that leadership and example is essential to provide stability. Without a doubt, the church here in Latin America will continue to grow without seniors, but it would help so much to have men and women who have experience in the gospel provide leadership.

On now, to Nicaragua. We had a disaster lecture in the CCM this morning as we had missionaries from the CCM in Chili crowd the room as their CCM is temporarily being refurbished. The Elders in the back couldn't see Kim, the screen, the board and became restless and hot. We don't know how to fix this, but we have thought of a few strategies should this happen again. Besides all this, the computer failed half-way through and Kim had to do the lecture from memory. Now, we hope all will go well in Nicaragua. So far, the lectures, activities and clinics have been fabulous. They have all been very different, but successful just the same.

How could two little old people from Salt Lake City be participants in such a great work? What a blessing!