February 27, 2011

Dear Family and Friends, February 27, 2011

This week we headed out to the zones outside of Asuncion for zone conferences for the rest of the mission. We left on Monday and drove to Encarnacion. I always enjoy the time during the drives where we can talk and plan and listen to cd’s of conference talks. The weather has been nice lately, a little cooler but still summer. Monday we received a fun Dear Elder letter from a friend I grew up with in Texas and then later we spent time getting reacquainted when Mark and I were in Omaha where our husbands attended dental school . Kami and Ken Wallace’s daughter was a roommate at BYU with Hermana Plummer, one of our missionaries.The church makes the world so small it seems. Any way it was fun to hear from them as they shared their love for Hermana Plummer.

Tuesday we had our zone conference in Encarnacion and enjoyed seeing the missionaries there. We focused on the same things as the other conferences last week. It is interesting always to see how the spirit directs a few changes here and there according to the group of missionaries attending the conferences. At lunch we were visiting with Elder Moreno a wonderful zone leader from El Salvador. He was telling us how excited he to go home in March when his mission ends to be sealed to his family. They joined the church and were able to be sealed while he was here in the mission. When they asked him if they should wait for him he said,” No. I can be sealed to you when I get home. ” He didn’t want them to delay their sealing waiting for him.

Wednesday we drove to Ciudad del Este. On the way there we checked an email on Mark’s phone and the office elders had sent the mission history of 2010 for him to review. I read it to him as he drove and we thoroughly enjoyed the hour or so as we read the history. Elders Roberts and Smith had written it in scriptural language. They were very creative and it made the reading very enjoyable. It almost sounded better that it was when we lived it! We are grateful for good young missionaries who take their responsibilities seriously and put in some extra effort as they accomplish the tasks that they do here in the office that support the missionary effort.

Thursday we held our last zone conference of this cycle. It is one of the larger groups because of the growth of missionaries in Ciudad del Este. Again it was nice to be with the missionaries there and see their desire to learn and improve. Friday we headed back to Asuncion and went straight to the office. We stopped for my favorite chipa at Maria Ana’s on the way. Chipa looks like a bagel but is more yellow. It is made from mandioca (cassava) flour, cheese, oil and caraway seed. Just so you know mandioca(cassava) is what tapioca is made from. They bake it in brick ovens and when it is fresh it is wonderful and chewy. This particular area has many chipa stands along the route and we always noticed Maria Ana’s always had a line of cars and trucks. The women come right to the car window with their big basket with the chipa wrapped in a cloth. We figured it must be good so we stopped one time about 9 months into the mission. Now it is a regular stop for us. For 10 mil guarani we get 5 chipa. That’s about 2 US dollars. They last with a little microwave heating for a few days so we enjoy them for a few days. There are various varieties of chipa and this is the best we’ve had. Some are dry and hard and certain times of the year they shape them into animal shapes instead of the circle. It is a real staple because mandioca is grown here and plentiful. Often at church firesides they serve it as the refreshments or people eat it whenever. It is very filling though so it stays with you a long time.

Friday was Jenny our oldest daughter’s birthday. She was born 34 years ago and has been a wonderful part of our family ever since. She is doing such a great job with her 5 soon to be 6 children along with keeping her siblings connected and taken care of while we are here. We love Jenny so much!!!

Saturday we were in the temple with the Area President Mervyn Arnold and his wife along with the stake and district presidents and wives. We also had a meeting and lunch as a group . Tonight we are having a fireside where President Arnold will speak to all the new converts and investigators and the missionaries who bring them. I’ll report on that next week. Tomorrow we also have a council with the zone and district leaders in Asuncion with President Arnold. I’ll write more on that next week. We hope you all have a wonderful week. The church is true and the best way to help the missionaries is to share your friends and families names with them or invite them into your homes to be taught by the missionaries. We love the work and as the Stake and District presidents were taught by President Arnold this week the members are a key ingredient in the success of the missionary effort. Have a great week! We plan to! Love, Mark and Sandy