Yesterday as I was changing clothes after our shift, I thought "And just like that, the week is over!" We are so busy from Wednesday through Saturday, but it certainly seems to fly by quickly.
Dishwasher
Stand mixer
Disposal
Maybe that's all. They seem to cluster around the kitchen. Oh well.
Since I read international news I know that the situation here in Panama is not making much of a splash. For the last week and a half there have been wide-spread demonstrations against the government, mainly centering around the high cost of living and low wages. The protesters have blocked all of the highways between cities, and most of the major roads here in the city are also blocked. Food distribution is heavily affected, with no fresh vegetables available in the grocery stores. We are pretty well stocked up on food for the moment. We are also grateful that so far the demonstrations have been peaceful. However, attendance at the temple has suffered badly, as workers and patrons have a hard time getting there. On one of the shifts this week we had five brother workers and four sisters (our shifts are usually pretty small, but not that small). Anyway, other than that we are largely unaffected, and we are praying that there will soon be a peaceful resolution to the problems.
Friday afternoon we went out to buy groceries. It is about a half-mile walk down to the bus stop, and just as we left the temple the rain started to pour down. We had umbrellas, but the rain was pretty intense, so we took shelter under the entrance to the cemetery next door. As we were waiting there was a car coming out of the cemetery, so we decided to move on so the car could get out. However, the car stopped, and the driver called something to Delkys. When Delkys went to talk to her she discovered it was her niece whom she hadn't seen in several years! The niece said she thought we were workers from the cemetery, but when she got closer she thought "That looks like my Aunt Delkys, but Aunt Delkys lives in the United States!" So they got caught up with each other, and she gave us a ride to the supermarket.
Our ward choir sang in Sacrament meeting today. There are about 15 of us that have gotten together to sing, and we managed to get through "I Know That My Redeemer Lives" pretty well. The choir director wants to start on Christmas music next. Most of the choir members have little experience singing, and we need to leave lots of time for rehearsals.
I have been thinking a lot about my own spiritual welfare lately. This mission is quite a different experience from my proselyting mission when I was 19, but I still want it to be a time of spiritual growth and improvement. Two words keep coming to mind as I contemplate this: "holy" and "pure". Those are not adjectives that I am comfortable applying to myself, yet it seems if I am to grow to be more like the Savior then they should be applicable to me. As I think about all the work to be done to get myself to that point, I am grateful that it is not solely dependent on my efforts, but that I can count on - in fact, must count on - the support of the Lord Jesus Christ. On my own becoming pure and holy may seem impossible, but he specializes in doing the impossible, and I have great hope in him.
I have not taken many pictures this week, but here is one to remind me of why we are here:
We are doing fine, and having a great time. We miss all of you, but are grateful to be serving the Lord.
Love,
Elder and Sister Reading
aka
John and Delkys
No comments:
Post a Comment