Tuesday, October 8, 2013

9 September 2013



Dear family,

This change with Hna Maldonado has been full of the unexpected, unplanned, and rather unusual...

Here are some of the things we have done or experienced this week:

Wednesday morning, when we headed out to work, we found the dog of a less active member dead or dying in the street. We abandoned our other plans and went to tell this sister about her dog. By the time we returned, the dog was definitely dead. (It was not a sight I enjoyed.) While we waited for her son to bring a wheelbarrow, we bought avocados from a neighbor who had come to see what was going on. Did I mention that I love avocados, especially here?

Wednesday evening I finally removed my ''extra'' toenail. I now have just one, slightly short nail on my big toe instead of two layers of nail.

Thursday we went to visit a less-active sister. She had a crib that she needed to assemble, so we helped her with that. Luckily my comp is the daughter of a carpenter and I have assembled more than a few things from Ikea. 

Remember the men who play cards in the street? (My comp and I call them los señores de las cartas.) We often stop to talk to them when we pass. Sometimes we sing for them and teach a couple principles. This week, they set up an orange stand, so when we pass by they give us oranges. Yum! They peel the oranges with something that is a lot like grandpa's apple peeler, so that there is just a thin skin on the outside. Then they cut the orange in half and put salt if you want it. Once they even added chile. Unusual, but tasty! 

Friday I tried my first coconut. There really is water inside that you can drink with a straw before scooping out the fruit.

Sunday I tried for the first time, the famous sopa de mondongo (cow intestine soup--sorry if that's too much detail). It's highly edible, but it's better if you add a lot of chile and limon. However, I loved the passion fruit juice that accompanied lunch. 

Other than that, we talk to a lot of people. We try to teach, but sometimes the people are more interested in being our friends (and giving us food) than in actually coming to church. Most people, however, are very willing to listen ''to the word.'' That's one thing that is a blessing and a struggle here. People are often willing to listen. Many will listen to anyone who wants to share some of the word. But they often don't have a desire to pray and ask if this is really the church with the authority of God. They view listening to the word of God as a blessing, so they receive us and talk to us. It's easy to find friends, even among those who don't want to accept our invitations. 

I love you all!
Hermana Davis

No comments:

Post a Comment