April 23, 2010

April 23,2010

Dear Family and Friends,

Monday began with an office meeting to plan the coming week of changes. Tuesday we welcomed two missionaries . This was our smallest group we have received since we began our mission. Sister Cozzens came to us from North Carolina and Elder Paladines is from Ecudaor. We greeted them at the airport and went immediately to the temple. We spent a little time getting to know them and then shared our testimonies of the importance of the temple and the wonderful blessing it is to have a temple here so close to the people we teach. Our sweet friend Brother Falcon one of the first missionaries to serve in Paraguay from Paraguay came over to bear his sweet testimony also. We went to lunch and then went to the office for orientation and interviews. Sister Cozzens understood Spanish well and they were both anxious to meet their companions. After a quick bite of dinner in the evening we came to the mission home for dessert and testimonies. They both seem ready to go to work. Elder Paladines went with the office elders for the night and Hermana Cozzens stayed at the mission home with us.

Wednesday morning we headed to the office for instructions for the trainers and the new missionaries. By 10:30 a.m. they were off to their areas to begin to work. At noon we took the four missionaries who are ending their missions out to lunch. After interviews we went to the temple for a session. It is always nice that the missionaries last night in Paraguay is spent at the temple. I am also grateful that we have a temple so close. I always feel rejuvenated after attending the temple. While we were outside of the temple taking a few photos there was a young couple from the Encarnacion district taking photos who had just been sealed. Mark had interviewed them just a week or so ago so it was nice to be there and be able to share a few minutes with them and take a photo with them. They had travelled by bus 5 or 6 hours and were at the temple by themselves with no family to share the experience. That is the way it is here for so many as many are the only members in their families. It was nice to see a new eternal family being created. Afterwards we went back to our house for testimonies and dessert. Again I love the contrast I see as I look at the groups of missionaries beginning and ending their missions. The new ones are a bit nervous and excited to get going. The returning ones are sad to leave but excited and full of joy for the service they given and the growth they’ve received also. I love to see how Christ centered and Book of Mormon centered the testimonies are of the returning missionaries. We always know by their testimonies how deeply the gospel became engrained in their hearts as they served. Hermana Lynes stayed at the mission home with us and the elders went to stay at the office. On Thursday we said goodbye to two of the elders. One elder is leaving in a week and Hermana Lynes will leave on Sunday.

Friday we were going to resume apartment checks but some things came up Mark had to take care of so we will head out Saturday and be traveling through next Thursday or Friday. When we return to Asuncion we will have seen all 95 or so apartments. The ones we will be visiting this week are more spread out. Some we will be driving 5 or 6 hour to see one apartment and interview 2 missionaries. I understand these apartments are a bit more rustic because they are in smaller places and the choice of apartments is quite limited. It will be nice when we have in our minds where all of our missionaries live.

Today Robert graduated from BYU. We are missing some wonderful things that are happening in the lives of our children but we continue to be grateful as we hear the way the family is helping and supporting each other in our absence. Have a good week! Love, Mark and Sandy

April 18, 2010 pictures

The First Lady of Paraguay arriving with Elder Zivic for the

presentation of the wheel chairs by the Church to Paraguay

Elder Zivic speaking at ceremony

Official presentation by Elder Zivic to first lady

First Lady speaking at ceremony

Callans and Wades with the First Lady of Paraguay

Portion of the 750 chairs donated

Zone 7 after zone conference

Christian's Paraguayan twin. (Little boy)

Relief Society working on project in Cuidad del Este

RS project

RS sisters

Christian's twin.

President Callan after releasing missionary from Paraguay who
served in Chile. Elder Carron

April 18, 2010

Dear Family and Friends, April 18, 2010

This week began with our picking up the Wades, the mission president and wife from the north mission, and attending a ceremony where the church presented Paraguay with 750 wheel chairs. The ceremony was held on the grounds of the Residencia Presidencial Mburuvicha Roga here in Asuncion. Elder Claudio Civic of the Area Presidency attended and spoke along with a couple of people representing those who would receive the chairs. La Primera Dama de la Nacion (The First Lady of Paraguay) Dona Mercedes Lugo de Maidana spoke and was so grateful to the Church for their gift. 750 more wheel chairs will be arriving in the future. The first lady is not the wife of the president because he was a priest in the Catholic Church and he is not married. When there is no wife, a first lady is designated so the first lady is his sister. She was a very kind person. After the messages and some music by the national orchestra quartet everyone mingled and the first lady stayed and visited with everyone. Everyone took photos and she was very gracious. The temple president and some senior temple missionaries were also there along with representatives of hospitals and groups who would receive the chairs. It was a nice event. The church does so much good in the world. Elder Zivic explained how members of the church fast each month and give the offerings to help those in need.

As soon as we were done there we headed to the office to gather our things at the office and we headed to Encarnacion for zone conferences. We arrived in time for Mark’s 6:30pm interviews with members of the district there. Tuesday we were at the church at 7:30am to set up for the conference. Across the street from the church there is a fruit market that sells fruit salad, flan, rice pudding so we grabbed our breakfast there before the conference. The fruit salad here is very common. It is made with apples, bananas, pineapple, plums and pears or whatever else but it is cut in very small pieces and has a bit of juice on it. It’s quite good. Conference went from 9am-3pm and then we headed for Ciudad del Este with the assistants. Elders Lytle and Woodruff were great company. They have fun talking and we used the time to discuss the conference and how it went. Elder Woodruff seemed very quiet which is not normal for him and then all of a sudden he asked Mark to pull over. Unfortunately he gets car sick. The road is just a two lane road and there is a lot of speeding up and slowing down which doesn’t help. Anyway after a couple detours we made it to our destination.

The next morning we were at the church ready to go again and repeat the conference schedule of the day before. As soon as the zone conference was over we grabbed two elders and took them to their apartment for apartment checks and interviews. We saw 3 apartments and interviewed 8 Elders in Hernandarias and then went back to the church where Mark met with the President Karra, the Stake President. There was a Relief Society meeting being held so I watched as the sisters were learning how to make beaded flip flops. There was a little boy who was 20 months old that was running around and he looked so familiar to me. All of a sudden I realized he looked like a dark version of Christian our grandson. He had a round face and curly hair and his face and expressions were just like Christian’s. I took some photos which I’m not sure caught the resemblance I saw but it was fun to see a little boy about Christians age and imagine what Christian is like now. His mother and grandmother thought it was funny when I told them he looked just like my grandson except Christian is blond and blue eyed instead of brown haired and brown eyed.

Thursday we were on the road at 6:00am on our way to Ca auzu for apartment checks and interviews with 8 elders in 4 apartments. We then went to Coronel Oviedo and checked 2 apartments and interviewed 4 missionaries. We have two hermanas (sisters) in Oviedo. They are the only hermanas not in or close to Asuncion. Hermanas Edwards and Plessl say they love it there. Their apartment was probably the best we’ve seen yet. They are doing a great job. We went to the church where Mark released a missionary from the district who returned from serving his mission in Chile and then we headed on in to Asuncion getting there just before dark. We try not to drive after dark on the rutas (main highways). It’s quite dangerous. In fact the first lady said 1/3 of all the wheel chairs used in Paraguay were used by people injured in accidents along the rutas or roads out in the country. Motorcycles drive without headlights and weave around cars and there are also lots of large trucks and buses and everyone is in a hurry.

Thursday and Friday our phones began ringing nonstop. It is strange how we can go a few days and things are a bit calm in that regard and then they just go crazy. I was on the phone three times with the area doctor. I had to check one more thing Friday night and at the end of the conversation he said “Hermana you sure have long days”. The next day I realized that when the time changed here last week we were no longer the same time as Argentina but it was an hour later there. I had to send him an email the next day and apologize for calling at 11:00pm when it wasn’t an emergency situation!

Saturday we spent preparing for the week to come and catching up with things around here since we were gone all week. We felt really good about our zone conferences and all the apartments we have checked so far. We feel good about our efforts but frustrated at times that we are not accomplishing more thing s more quickly. I guess we need to be like President Uchtdorf said and be patiently persistent. The patient part is especially important when we are dealing with other peoples’ agency.

Today we attend the Obrero branch. It was a wonderful branch with a strong spirit. The missionaries spoke and also another brother. They gave great messages about how we all need to reach out and support one another and also reach out to our non member friends and neighbors. Mark and I also shared messages. We are learning and growing daily and enjoying the things we are doing here. I was listening to a recording Laura, Sara and I made of a song we sang one time in Relief Society called Joy in the Journey. It was based on a talk President Monson gave a bit ago. There really is a lot of joy in our lives here as we try to do what we are supposed to as we serve the people and missionaries here. We do want many more people here and around the world to be able to know the true source of our joy. The gospel of Jesus Christ is that source. We love you all. Mark and Sandy

Pictures April 11, 2010!

President Callan and outgoing secretary, Elder Wilkes

Missionaries come in all sizes but their hearts are all huge

Cow and Bird outside missionary home

Typical missionary apartments

Elder Martinez and Kragenbrink

April 11, 2010

Dear Family and Friends, April 11, 2010

This week we began with a staff meeting with the office elders Monday morning. There is always a lot to do as we begin zone conference week. The office elders really do carry a big work load. They work hard to keep the mission business running during the day and head out the door at 4:30pm to preach the gospel. During zone conference week they arrange the lunches each day and make sure all the materials are ready for each zone (Book of Mormons, pamphlets etc.) along with packages that need to be dispersed. They keep track of all the records of baptisms and confirmations and other information. Elders Facer, Guenther, Roberts, and Bowns are doing a great job. Elder Wilkes finished training Elder Bowns last week as secretary so he is back out in the field. There are always things coming up that need to be taken care of and the office elders all work hard to take care of their responsibilities. We’ve been working on taking care of problems in apartments that we learn about as we continue our visits and that falls on their shoulders also. Many of them came with great skills and talents but I think they are all learning some good skills and abilities for their future lives.

Zone conferences for zones 1,2 ,3,4,5and 6a were held Tuesday ,Wednesday and Thursday from 9 am to 3pm. We had some wonderful experiences learning and sharing. Missionaries who were attending their first zone conference were introduced by their companions who also shared some of their companions good qualities. It was fun to see Elders Alexander, Nielsen,Clyde,Burley and Bills be introduced. The new missionaries reciprocated in their new language skills and it was great to see the progress they are already making with Spanish. Sister Lynes who will be finishing her mission in the end of the month bore her testimony also. She will be missed! The assistants Elders Pitcher , Urmston , Lytle and Woodruff took turns participating by sharing practical ways to share the Book of Mormon and how to obtain references from the members .The assistants are doing well as they go out on divisions with the elders and teach and help through practices to improve the teaching abilities of the missionaries. A wonderful part of the conferences was when missionaries would testify of the good things that are happening in their areas because of the good things they are learning. We have many wonderful missionaries doing many wonderful things!

Mark and I taught about the importance of watching out for our companions. We talked about the importance of everyone keeping all of the mission rules so that we can all be safe and protected. Preach My Gospel teaches us that with our callings come the responsibilities to protect our companions . We talked about using the motto in the mission of “You are safe with me!”, to help us remember to do our part in helping everyone be exactly obedient. Mark also taught about our purpose as missionaries , the doctrine of Christ, and how we can always be looking for people to teach so we are always helping more people find the Savior and his true church.

When we come together in zone conferences I always love the strong feelings of love we have for our missionaries. We really do want to help them be the best they can be and we want them to learn things here that will help the missionary work and also help them with whatever comes in their future lives. It is also is so apparent to me that the very happiest missionaries are the missionaries who have learned to throw themselves into the work and work their very hardest.

Friday and Saturday we were back out inspecting apartments and interviewing. It was fun to gather fruit along the way also. We picked a few grapefruits and mandarins in the yards of some of the missionaries. We ate a nice grapefruit for breakfast today.

Today we attended sacrament meeting in Kaaguy Rory where the family that was baptized last week between conference sessions was confirmed. What a sweet family! They were all smiles. The missionaries were the speakers along with Mark and they all bore strong testimony of the Book of Mormon and the wonderful plan Heavenly Father has for our families eternally. We ended the day with a staff meeting and prepared to travel tomorrow to the zone conferences outside of Asuncion. We also have a meeting to attend in the morning with the First Lady of Paraguay. We’ll tell you about that next week. We love you all and miss you but we know we are where we are supposed to be at this time. The Lord is helping us daily and we are grateful for that. Love, Mark and Sandy

Easter Sunday Pictures

The Samaniego family

The 8 new members baptized between sessions of conference on Eas

Happy Easter!!

Dear Family and Friends, April 4, 2010

This week we spent a lot of our time in the apartments of the missionaries checking and interviewing for Mark. Monday we spent the whole day visiting 7 apartments around Asuncion. That day all of them were okay except one that has some problems that the landlord doesn’t seem interested in helping with. The missionaries are looking around for a better option so hopefully they will find one soon. Tuesday we began the day in a district 2 meeting in zone 5. Again it is so nice when we get to visit the meetings where we see the teaching and training done by the elders. Elder Rivero did a great job and then the zone leaders Elders Coburn and Dobbins ran some practices about using the Book of Mormon to help people find the answers to their “questions of the soul” that were really helpful for everyone. Afterwards we took 6 elders of the district and went to each of their apartments for inspections and interviews. The apartments looked good that day. Wednesday and Thursday we went to zone 4 and saw all of their apartments and Mark did the interviews. We finished up zone 5 with the office elders so by the end of Thursday we had visited about 30 apartments and Mark had interviewed about 60 missionaries.

Overall we have been pleased with what we have seen. There definitely are different levels of cleanliness but they did pretty well in preparing for our visits. We still have a couple zones to finish here around Asuncion and then we’ll get started on the ones farther out. I came back with a list for the office elders of all the things that need repaired or replaced. We’re trying to get all the apartments improved a bit, one by one.

Friday we spent getting ready for zone conferences which are the next two weeks. Mark keeps moving around the house during his study and preparation time. He used to use his office and then he used a spare bedroom that has a better view of the yard and this week he was out in the quincho. The quincho has two sides that are totally windows and all you see is the green palm trees and plants and the pool so it’s very light . We got the internet connected out there so he can read his letters out there now from the missionaries too.

We enjoyed watching conference here at home on Saturday. What wonderful messages so many of which were focused on the family. We spoke by skype to Jenny and Brian and family and Laura and Sara who were there for conference. After we were finished speaking Mark and I were talking about how wonderful it was that some of our conference traditions continue even when we are not there. How grateful we are to know that the family is gathering to watch conference and eat good food together. Robert and Rachel and Jack arrived later to watch the second session with them. Our family is such a source of joy for us. I miss everyone and want to see everyone but then when I hear the good things they are doing without us I feel okay about missing a few things. We give up some time with our family now for the chance to be with them for eternity.

Sunday we attended the conference broadcast at the stake center. The high council room had an English broadcast for us which was nice. We were there with about 8 missionaries watching. In between sessions we attended a baptism .There were 8 people baptized. There was a young couple, a single man and a couple and three of their children. Mark had spoken with the parents a few weeks ago about the importance of working together as a family and when they decided to be baptized they wanted him to do it. So he baptized the parents and the missionaries who taught them baptized the children. They were such a cute family. All the men baptized bore their testimonies at the baptism and a 10 year old boy also did. It’s always so wonderful to hear the testimonies of brand new members. After the baptism we watched the last session. The father of the family and his sons who are about 9 and 10 attended all the sessions of conference. He will be a great member and leader for his family. It was great to see three men baptized . The church really needs good men here.

Well we hope you all have a good week. We are so grateful for the wonderful messages we received during conference. We know the messages will bless our lives as we study them and put them into practice in our lives. Love, Mark and Sandy