Day of the ninos, temple trip for new elder and English class earthquake drill

Dennis and I were asked to take a new missionary to the temple today.  Frequently the Latino missionaries arrive here without having been endowed in the temple yet. That was the case with Elder Jacob Barrera.  His companion has only been to the temple once so he was the escort but Dennis was close behind them both.   I am sure his parents would have wanted to be with him when he went to the temple but that would have meant that they have to travel to Mexico City.  This Elder flew from his mountain town in the far north of Mexico.  He had been to the temple one time when he was sealed with his parents and family when he was 4 years old.  At that time he stood in front of the Christus with his family so he wanted to do it again.  I looked at the Elders in his district.  Their names are common church names as is typical that parents name their sons after men in the scriptures.  There were two that were names Jesus one Jacob one Daniel, one Moroni and an Esau and an Adam.  

Today in Mexico is the day of the Ninos.  The day of the Children.  April has Childrens Day, May has Mothers Day and June has Father´s Day.  Why doesn´t the US has a children's day?  This is Catty the nurse who initiated us here in the clinic celebrating children's day and Hermana Montoya one of our older ninos on the campus.   It was a delicious tres leche cake with cream and fruit on top.  

We also taught 9 people in our English class today.  I played a game and gave them a silly picture from the Children's Highlight Magazine and had them talk in English to tell me what was going on in the picture.  They were anxious to make up sentences because every time they did I gave then a chocolate kiss and a baggie to put them in.    

Specific Prayer lesson by President Tenorio

Every Sunday at 2:00 we have a presidency lesson for all the North American missionaries.  The teaching assignment is rotated between the three members of the MTC presidency.  They take turns teaching about important doctrines of the gospel.  

President Tenorio just gave a lesson about “specific prayer”.   I want to remember what he said so I have made some notes on his lesson.

These are two quotes are from Preach my Gospel P. 95

“The trouble with most of our prayers is that we give them as if we were picking up the telephone and ordering groceries—we place our order and hang up. We need to meditate, contemplate, think of what we are praying about and for and then speak to the Lord as one man speaketh to another” (Gordon B. Hinckley,Teachings of Gordon B. Hinckley, 469).

“If prayer is only a spasmodic cry at the time of crisis, then it is utterly selfish, and we come to think of God as a repairman or a service agency to help us only in our emergencies. We should remember the Most High day and night—always—not only at times when all other assistance has failed and we desperately need help” (Howard W. Hunter, The Teachings of Howard W. Hunter,ed. Clyde J. Williams [1997], 39).

The following is a scale from PMG p. 95 to privately evaluate personal prayers.

·         Recognize that your Heavenly Father knows what you need better than you do. Rely on the Spirit to know what to pray for (see 3 Nephi 19:24; D&C 46:28, 30).

•          Always express gratitude for your blessings. A conscious effort to be grateful will help you recognize how merciful the Lord has been in your life.

• Pray specifically for the guidance and help of the Holy Ghost. Show that you value this blessing by being sensitive to and aware of spiritual promptings. Then courageously follow those promptings.

• Pray with love and charity. Pray for people by name. Ask for inspiration to help you understand and meet their needs. Pray for the welfare of contacts, investigators, new converts, and less-active members. Pray for the members and priesthood and auxiliary leaders in your area. Pray for your family at home. Pray for your companion, other missionaries, and your mission president. Pray to know how you can help others, and then be willing to sacrifice in their behalf.

 D & C 112:10 Be thou humble and the Lord thy God shall lead thee by the hand and give thee answer to thy prayers.

2 Nephi 25:23  For we labor diligently to write to persuade our children and also our brethren to believe in Christ and to be reconciled to God, for we know that it is by grace that we are saved, after all we can do.

Plead your case before the Lord.

Abraham taught us how to make “a specific prayer” in Genesis 24.  Thank the Lord for what he has done.  Explain to him what you would like and exactly how you would like it done.  Ask him to, “let it come to pass that…” what you are requesting will happen.  

D & C 84:88  And whoso receiveth you, there I will be also, for I will go before your face. I will be on your right hand and on your left, and my Spirit shall be in your hearts, and mine angels round about you, to bear you up." 

Obedience and complete obedience

I had a very interesting experience happen on Sunday.  One of my responsibilities is to audition groups or individuals that want to participate in the Sunday devotionals as a special musical number.  Early in the week a quartet of sisters had told me they wanted to sing.  We could not find a time to audition until the very last day on Saturday before the devotional on Sunday and the only slot open was as a pre-devotional number before the meeting started.  They finally auditioned in the Joseph Smith building close to the clinic.  As we gathered one Hermana said to her companion, “Are we singing in English?”  I overheard her remark and said to all of them, “You know sisters that you have to sing in Spanish”, and so they did.   On Sunday I met them early in the auditorium and we did a mic check with them singing their song. (In Spanish)  At the appointed time President Lyons announced their number and they went up to the stand.  They sang the first few lines in Spanish and then switched to English.  I was dumbfounded.  That was blatant disobedience.  We absolutely sing in Spanish, the whole song and everyone knows it. 

I wondered if they thought they were getting away with something because they were leaving in less than 6 hours to fly off to their field of service.  I also wondered what everyone else in the congregation thought.  Everyone knows we sing in Spanish.  What a way to start you mission being disobedient. Even though it is a little thing we teach the missionaries to be “completely obedient” here.  Obedience brings the blessings of the Lord. 

This experience also made me think about my personal obedience to the things I know are true.  Disobedience only hurts ourselves and halts our progress.  Obedience helps us progress toward our goal of living with our Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ in the Celestial Kingdom.  

p-day to San Angel in the south of Mexico City

This is a typical sight and a traditional construction method of building with brick or stone and then covering it with stucco.  The pyramids of 800 years ago were built the same way with rock and then covered with stucco and painted.  

We saw this beautiful church in the San Angel region.That is a lot of gold on the wall.  This North American man was mediating for a very long time with hands in cupped position on his lap/legs and eyes forward.  I suppose he was receiving inspiration or at least mediating on sometime important.  He could have been a statue he was so still.  

The beautiful interior and a confession booth that is still in use.  The priest sits in the middle and confessing patrons sis on each side to tell their sins to the priest.  They also pay by giving him money.  We can confess too just not to a priest for hire.  

In a another area of San Angel is the Casa del Risco.  This used to be a walled in area and this was a fountain in the plaza.  Fortunately now there is a covering above to protect this beautiful fountain and wall of seashells and porcelain.  The close up shows that it is made of teacups, plates, vases, cookery and sea shells.  It is Baroque style with a lot of exaggerated motions and design.  

The group, Sister Call is taking the picture

The typical fountain in the middle of the town plaza

In an old museo we went to we saw this mural on the wall it depicts the area in colonial times.  Religion was important.  The domes of the church indicated that.  Those domes are still here in a picture I took with the domes in the back.  

I love this circular staircase.  We have see several of this variety.  Perhaps Renee and Ben would like to install this type in their new house to go into the basement or we could put one in the cabin to connect to the down-under room.  

This was in a museum.  I hope it is not a weapon of torture the kind that Christ was beat with.  

We stopped by the Diego Rivera/Frida Kahlo house and studio museum. I like his murals that tell about the Mexican history.     

Dennis on top of the flat roof Diego Rivera home

The tradition is/was to make these paper mach effigies and then burn them on the Day of the Dead.

San Angel is a nice part of town with some very large homes surrounded by 20 foot walls.

We went to an art museum.  I love the arch architecture with clay bricks.  The art was made from roots of trees.  Oh how many trees did we excavate from our back yard a year ago and look what Dennis could have made from it....art pieces.  

A corner church with my favorite color of bougainvillea.  We stopped at some of the little shops along the way and I bought a quilted wall hanging that is tan, brown and blue with geometric shapes.   

We stopped at the San Angel restaurant and Inn for lunch.  It was still not open for lunch even through it was pass noon.  I had a fruit tart and then we cam back for dinner at 3:00.  This is a metal sculpture of the gardner.  Absolutely beautiful 5 star restaurant!  

Went for lunch but no lunch as they were still serving breakfast.  I had the wonderful fruit tart.  

At dinner only inside this time.  I had salmon.  beautiful place to eat.  

Just me and the gardener.  

produce from neighborhood market

We like to shop at the neighborhood market  the tiange, then I end up making and eating a lot of soup with all that produce.  

On Wednesday We like to shop at the neighborhood street markets that are very close to the CCM.

The fruit is so delicious there.  It is ripe and ready to eat.  As I ate a mango the other day I thought of Lehi's dream with the delicious fruit on the Tree of  Life.  I wanted all of my children to be able to eat and enjoy the fruit that as I was.  Likewise I want all of my children to partake of the gospel fruit on the Tree of Life which is Jesus Christ.  Make Him part of your life.  

Hermana Pyatt

Hermana Sierra McKenna Pyatt is an amazing missionary.  She has ptosis like Ely does but doesn't let it get in her way.  She has had three surgeries on her eye to open it up a little more but she said the doctors didn't cut low enough the first time and the the other surgeons followed the same scare line so she still has some closure of the eye.  Her parents have helped her develop her singing ability.  As a child they noticed that she loved to sing and that she had a great voice so they began providing lessons for her.  She is professional quality.  She sang for two of our Sunday devotionals.  I (along with Dennis) am the senior missionary assigned to hear the auditions for musical numbers and to decide when and if they can be fitted into our devotional schedule.  The first time she sang she auditioned and we had a good spot for her.  The second time we desperately needed a musical number and her companion came in sick to the clinic so they had to be at their home for the morning.  I told Hermana Pyatt she was the only missionary on the campus that could at a very short notice pull of a musical number.  I suggested a pianist (Elder Bown) that I knew was really good and they were amazing together with just one practice session.   I hope she will continue her career as a singer.

Hermana Pyatt and Hermana Falslev...wonderful missionaries ready to give 18 months to the Lord.

Santa Cecilia, a pyramid close to us.

Jicama on a stick. It looks good but I don't ever buy it. I just buy a fresh jicama. They are fresh and juicy and sweet here in Mexico.

Very large plants in Mexico

That is Dennis on the stairs at the top.  It was our P-day trip to a close by neighborhood.  This pyramid was built in 1224 and is just 15 minutes from the CCM.  It is named Santa Cecilia.

 Century plant in the pyramid plaza.  It has probably been there since for a hundred years.  It is taller than I am

The Packard's, Bruce and Jody, coming down off the pyramid.  No Calls this time they had just spent a week with family.  

After the pyramid viewing we went to the largest mall in not just Mexico but, Mexico and Central America.  The Packard's wanted to stop into a toy store for a puzzle to put in the lobby of the clinic.  

eating a lot of cactus

It is interesting to me that cactus is such a staple here in Mexico.  At the market this woman and many others up and down the street are preparing the cactus.  They have a board that they scrape the spines off and she is trimming the edges.  At other stops along the way I see when they grill it or cut it up and put it with other cut up veggies.  Sometimes them batter it and fry it.  Often they put toppings on it and just cut it up and eat it after it has been cooked.  They also put it in corn tortillas along with salsa and eat it that way.    

A bug/ virus at the CCM

I think it was about last July when the norovirus hit one in four of the missionaries here at the CCM.  Germs can spread really fast.  Yes it hit again but not with such vengeance.  We only have about 100 North American missionaries here right now and I think that about one third of them have been sick with nausea, diarrhea, and just being tired and feeling weak.  A few have had a raised temperature but not very many and very limited throwing up.  I am grateful for that.  Dr. Montoya thinks it must be the food but that is not possible because it is spread out now for a week or more and no one is eating the same food.  I do think it is highly likely that the germs are spread at the communal comodor where everyone eats.

Val Christensen and Ian McCracken visit

Val Christensen and Ian McCracken from Salt Lake were in Mexico to visit an orphanage in Tuxtla, Mexico.  It is called La Casa Alegre or the House of Joy.  Val helps to keep the orphanage going.  It is for abused and abandoned children.  There are about 100 children there.  Mama Liz started the orphanage and Val helps a great deal.  Val and Ian took youth down to help do some painting and take care of the children. They stopped in Mexico City on their way back.

We picked Val and Ian up from the airport and then went to the temple.  Ian gave me a name to take through.  

They stayed at our casa #12 on Thursday night and on Friday before we took them back to the airport we visited some sites downtown.  We stopped at a street market and I bought Mexican dolls for each of my granddaughters.  

We stopped at the site of reconstruction of the Aztec Templo Mayor It was build around 1300 and has been destroyed and rebuilt bigger 6 times.  The monument spire right in the middle ( in the model below) is dedicated to Quetzalcoatl who at that time was called the God of Wisdom.  Quetzalcoatl started out to be the great white God , or Jesus Christ but was convoluted as the years went on.   

This is a model of what the Templo Mayor used to look like in its height of glory.  

We stopped at the old post office with Ian and Val.  It is a beautiful old brass and marble building but odd enough it is not automated and from the stair case above we see that they are still hand processing the mail and delivering it via bicycles in the city.  No wonder Jenny's Christmas card to us took over three months to get here.  Oh well we are enjoying the card and family pictures now and at least it did arrive.  

Los Torrez were in charge of FHE the Monday after conference.  They went out of the CCM and purchased tamales and Mexican sweet bread for all of us.  

Papaya from the local neighborhood markets.