Home coming

 Tuesday, the week before we left, the Bolivar branch invited us for a farewell.  Brother Rio had made us a photo of ourselves in front of the temple and we had dinner and a concert.  All of our student were there, even those who hadn't finished, except Albis. 

 The students each played, and Hattie Pinto and Michelle Rios played a duet of "Testimonio".  It was gratifying to say the least.  They had worked hard to make it special.

 Here we all are together.  Mixela (far left) played "If the Savior Stood Beside Me".  She told me after that she was thinking of Elder Packer's saying that as musicians we need to inspire, not impress.  She did a lovely job.

 I told Sister Miranda that she was our favorite restaurant in David.  We spent 4 hours teaching at her house each Wednesday, and she always prepared wonderful food for us. (We only went to a restaurant once in our 6 months in David -- with the mission president)

 The day we left we finally had Teo over and showed him how to make and use a stomp rocket. 

 We followed this fruit filled pickup for quite a ways as we left David.  The colors were pretty impressive--real Panama in my mind.

Mihaly, our wondrous student from Chitre, painted this picture for us.  Pretty talented.

President Ward is a positive person.  Here is his summary of our mission.


Ray Johnson, Edyn's husband, took a video of the homecoming at the airport.  What a finale for the mission.  It is SOOO good to be home with our family.  It was nice to come to our apartment and feel immediately right at home -- except where do we keep the mixing bowls or ...

The posters that we found hanging in our apartment and that were the welcome at the airport.

 Home with our granddaughter, Ellie, and my kindergarten bears.  We've spent lots of time with grandchildren.

Rod and Ellie, just relaxing in our apartment.  It's nice to have an easy chair again.

We got our first phone call from a friend in Panama today.  Berta Savedra called and reported on her mom's health.  It will be interesting to see how long we keep those ties.

We had an interview with Bishop Rogers today.  His parents are serving their 11th mission.  He says he'll hook us up so they can enthuse us on their type of membership support and we can see if we can enthuse them on ours.   This could be fun.  If every missionary could come home as happy as we have, it would be a great blessing.
We're grateful to have had the opportunity to serve.

Elder Beloved (Amado) and winding down

 We made a trip back to Bugaba, our old area.  Patricia is talented, but for some reason quit practicing and attending classes and we had to reclaim her piano.  That's our least favorite part of this job.  We told her that if she could find a way to practice (she had cousins who earned their pianos) that we would come back to hear her play.  SHE DID IT!  Talk about cutting it close.

 Here she is picking mamon chino for me.  She's up on her grandmother's roof.  I was hoping the fruit would be ripe before we left and it was. 

 Second ward, the ward we live in, threw a going away party for us Friday night.  It was pouring (President Ward's flight was cancelled for rain.  He called us during the party to ask for a ride to the hotel.  We didn't answer, and he had to"take a taxi like other people".  Oops! Actually we wouldn't have wanted to leave the party in our honor anyway) and yet despite the downpour most of our students were there.  They put on a concert for us and then we had a kind of testimony meeting with each person who wanted to sharing their gratitude.  It was lovely.  One of my favorite comments was from Bishop Aparicio.  When we first came and were in the chapel, he warned us pretty sharply that the organ was his to protect (it is the most expensive keyboard I have seen -- like a piano, even to the touch).  In his comments at the party he said that when the church sent the organ his thought was "What good will it do us?  We have no one to use it."  Now there are students clamoring.  What a blessing!

First ward has few students.  This morning we attended there, and two of them played while Abril directed. When we arrived (above) they were practicing.  We really hope they continue.  We didn't have the group energy in this ward.

Hilda, a young adult, studied with us.  It was far from easy, but she kept at it.  At our farewell she and her friend played the song she composed.  The message is lovely.  I'm not sure if it will be hard to understand.  I asked for a copy, and we can put it in next time. 


Fooling around during the farewell.  Hilda's friend "En el barco de Noe"


More fooling. Hilda's friend Los Pollitos

Elder Amado came to teach the Elders in this area this Friday.  We had a full schedule, but were able to shift the morning visits to a day earlier where the students had just dropped out!  We even invited one of our shy students to come and join with the missionaries to see what it was like.  Often prospective missionaries are invited, but the mission president was worried about whether he would be dressed appropriately and ready to handle three hours of talks.  Angel Palacios didn't have leather shoes, but they were dark and he wore dark jeans, white shirt and a tie.  We had 3x5 cards and he took notes!  Hopefully, it was good for him.
Elder Amado told the story of Nephi getting the brass plates the best I had ever heard it.  In a prior life, I had picked up on the fact that Nephi hadn't lied to the servant of Laban to get him to carry the plates (let's carry the plates to my elder brethren outside the walls), but I didn't realize that Nephi wasn't breaking a commandment by killing Laban.  Elder Amado taught that in the law of Moses (eye for an eye / toothless society) that you may take the life of one who has tried to take your life.  Interesting.  He said the Lord NEVER breaks his commandments or has us break them.  I haven't thought of an exception, but there are times when a higher law is obeyed and a lesser law bent/broken.  (Ox out of the mire on Sunday)
He also told a story of his own mission.  As he was bearing his testimony to an investigator that he knew that Joseph Smith saw God the Father and God the Son, his companion turned to him and said 'REALLY!'.  Elder Amado gave him a hip and whispered We'll talk later.   Back at the apartment, he explained the First Vision story and then left his companion in his room with the admonition -- Now you need to find out for yourself if it is true.  About 1/2 hour later, his companion came out and stated that he now knew for himself that it was true and after that bore strong testimony to his investigators.

Elder Amado appeared very tired as he waited for his part. His wife was back at the mission home in the city because she was sick.  Each time I view the lives of general authorities/mission presidents, I'm glad it's not my life.  It makes me want to pray for them more.

As we ate lunch, the Hereros (the couple who took over our house in Bugaba) shared their conversion story.  He was working in Australia as an engineer (out on the mines in Western Australia) and encountered the missionaries.  His wife gained a testimony, but he had lots of questions.  The missionaries invited the mission president to come to teach them.  The mission president opened the Book of Mormon and answered all of his questions without his having to ask the questions. The Hereros have served 6 missions.  They have a lot of energy.  They know both English and Spanish and so are very useful here in Panama.

We will teach normally for the next three days.  We have an invitation to dinner each night, so we'll be tired at the end of the week, I suspect.  I do like being busy.  I especially like being busy in the work of the Lord. 

Winding UP -- almost done -- ready or not.

Maria and Janell behind her home on the beach in Puerto Armuelles. This is the beach where Audrey stayed when she came.  Maria told us about the trials of living on the beach, how the water comes up two or three times a year and pounds against the beach, making the house shake.  The house is made of cinderblocks and there have been enough earthquakes that the walls are separated.  She says whenever there is a little earthquake she always worries that the walls will fall.  She says the government has repaired some homes, but so far not hers. She is single, but her daughter and her family live there as well.

 One of the reasons we needed to go back to Puerto was to take a piano to Eduardo and Nazuli.  They had earned one for each, but we didn't have enough pianos then.  Now at the end of our stay here in David, we are reclaiming pianos from those who chose not to practice, and we have enough. They came to church prepared to play for Sacrament meeting but I didn't know it until after.  There was no one organizing the music, so the president asked me to play two of the hymns and Jaynis, our other student, to play.  This is one of our challenges as we move on, is to have someone in the branch to support the youth.

 Here Jaynis is teaching one of the North American elders to play the piano after Sacrament meeting.  She is not a member of the church, but attends with her grandmother. 

 Dahlias can live here in Panama.  This one made me think of my mother and the wondrous display she and my dad used to create at the church in Moore, Idaho where I grew up.  The Huerta family grows them.

 Angel Polacios is from the branch in Las Lomas.  The first time I met him and shook his hand he didn't say anything.  I was inviting him to learn to play.  I remember thinking that there was something  not exactly right with him and that I was glad I wouldn't have to challenge myself to teach him.  When I met him the first time at his home after making the schedule, I was a bit surprised. He came to the first concert dressed in a white shirt, very sharp.  He played his hymn perfectly.  Rod and I were both praying hard. Last Friday he completed his hymns to earn his piano.  He has already played in church 3 times.  Hurray!!

Javier is a cousin of Angel.  We teach them in the same house.  He didn't have a piano to practice for a long time.  Finally we had one he could use, and he, too, has played his hymns. He still needs to play in church. We count them as our miracles.  I pray someone will support them.

We are beginning our last full week.  It will be one of triumph, we hope the students who don't complete will have learned something about the need to put forth effort and will not feel hurt or angry.  It couldn't be a surprise, anyway, as we've been trying to encourage them with every lesson.

We are definitely ready to see our family.  Life is good, and the gospel of Jesus Christ is true.  (It has been a source of amazement to us, how many 'tender mercies' we receive as we work with the youth here.  I am really grateful for His continual help.  We would never have found this method of teaching and surely been pretty unsuccessful without it.  Plus, every week / almost every day we recognize inspiration to do something better than we would have on our own.)

Concierto 2

 Teo brought me this fruit.  He called it "mangoti" with accent on the ti. 

 You eat the white  part and there are large seeds inside some of the sections and none in others.  It reminded me a little of cacao, but there was more fruit and less slime. (for Audrey's sake.  She didn't think much of cacao.)

 We found this "saltamonte" at the same house in the same place as the huge dead beetle. 

 We attended a wedding Friday night.  These were the cakes.

 Gorgeous!

 And more gorgeous!  Unfortunately we didn't get to try them.

 Here we are having arrived on time.  There was only one other family there for quite a while.  The wedding as usual, began at 8:30 when  the invitation said 7:00.  You can't see the cards, but we are playing Go Fish in English. We didn't have time for dinner before and I'm sure they served dinner at the wedding, but we came home about 9:45, ate a fried egg sandwich, and dropped into bed.

I wanted this photo, because Marieth looked beautiful and I think she looks very much like Aryl's daughter, Stormy.  She's one of our students. She hasn't been very diligent about lessons lately.  I wonder why.

We had our second concert tonight.  When we arrived (at 5:45) late for the people in charge of a 6:00 concert, Angelica was there waiting.  She wanted to try the big piano before she had to play it.  I got to hold and burp the baby.

This was the chapel at 6:00.  We started with maybe 25 at 6:20 and played "Name that tune" for 10 minutes.  Then we began in earnest.

At the end we had about 80 people there.  President Garrido, the stake president, gave an unexpected speech and had all the kids pose for a photo.

Here they are.  We enjoyed it a LOT!!!





Come thou fount.  Carlos Miranda played this for his mom.  She loves this music.  I haven't been able to find the words in Spanish, but it works to sing one of the sacrament hymns to this tune.




Here are our students singing "Families can be together Forever".  President Garrido told the students that he believed they would tell their children how big a blessing the music we've shared has been in their lives.  That's a nice thought.

After the concert the youth hung around for quite a while sharing and just enjoying each other.  Pay dirt for sure!!!



Here's a "Name that sound" video.  I never cease to be amazed at what makes it.  Can you guess?



I tried to express myself to the audience and just choked up and ended up saying.  "Wait a minute.  I'm not leaving for a while so I don't have to go there".  These people have become dear to us. The Lord has multiplied our talents so that we can serve them.  I often think about my musical talents placed in our Pleasant Grove ward where they are negligible by comparison.  Here we can serve every day.  What a blessing!

Star Wars

 We've changed our appointment with Kenneth to Tuesday morning.  We pick him up and take him to Roy's so we can teach them together.  Last Tuesday when we arrived, he wasn't there.  His sister said he'd be there shortly.  Sure enough, here he came walking down the road with a baby.  When I asked him whose it was, he said it was his.  I thought I would be sick, but then he laughed and said, "Just joking".  Oh I have hopes for these kids we have come to love, that the gospel can help them to learn their own value, and the value of guarding their virtue and forming eternal families.  It is a lot to learn.

 Ruben's sister loves our books.  She doesn't really like to read them with us, just contentedly 'reads' them to herself while we are there.

 The national police changed their uniforms.  We see them a lot and I always think "Star Wars"  Here we finally caught them.  A friend said he tried to photograph them and they weren't pleased, so I was a bit nervous but... Can you imagine being dressed like that in the heat and humidity?  (You can't see it well, but some of them have large shin guards that look like armor -- for some reason they had stopped this lady driving a taxi -- talk about profiling!  There aren't many lady taxi drivers.

 This boy was walking down the street with monster avocados.  He wanted $2 for the large one.  I only had a 20 and knew he wouldn't have change.  Too bad.  I would have liked to take it to Sister Miranda who has a huge family and feeds us every Wednesday.  I think all the family could have had some of this one.

This is a close up of the fruit nance that I showed on the black tarp a few weeks ago.  They make a drink out of it, or  pesada de nance which is about the texture of applesauce.  They serve it with chunks of white cheese and milk.  It isn't too bad depending on the preparation, but not my favorite, and I always think of the quantity of work to prepare it with a fruit so small.

We invited President Ward and his wife to dinner Friday night.  They were here for missionary training.  About half an hour before they were to arrive we called to give them directions to our house.  His wife said "Dear are we going to see the Watson's tonight?"  We had thought about calling her when he accepted the invitation, but we didn't do it.  They really don't communicate sometimes. 

We served fried chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy, not exactly a health food delight, but comfort food.   (Janell really doesn't like to go out to eat -- that was the offered alternative)  

We're really getting to where the kids need to fulfill the requirements for the keyboards.  For many, those who have taken off, there is not an issue, they have their 10 hymns easily and often want harder ones or other music, such as "I'll find you my friend".  Some only have one or two and will not make it.  But there is a group that needs a push to get done.  It is difficult for us to visualize exactly who will continue or use the music later, (most of our own kids, who play, use music to various degrees) so we try to certify all we can.

Keys and kids

 Yohanna got tired of playing her pieces after an hour and her family didn't come to pick her up.  We played Go Fish, and she read "Where the Wild Things Are" to me.  I enjoy her a lot.

 She brought me flowers again.  Her mother lets her cut them from their garden in Volcan.  Some of them last several days.  I really enjoy them.

 Keys and locks are not our favorite here.  Seldom do they work properly.  Yesterday we were in Boquete and forgot that the front door lock doesn't work.  We inserted the key and it wouldn't come out, or open the door or anything.  We decided to call the repairman who told us we'd need to handle it.  We called the Church Education System person (who is also a member of the mission presidency) who lives next door.  He was at a baptism in David.  He said "Oh hermana, that lock doesn't work"  DUHHH!!!  Anyway, by this time we were several miles down the road with a carload of kids. He wanted us to go back and break off the key so no one could possibly get in (even though we couldn't get in either).  Rod grudgingly turned around.  The kids wanted to try to get the key out.  I'd prayed all the way back thinking this might be a simple thing for the Lord to take care of, but we didn't get a miracle.  I finally borrowed pliers from a guy at a car wash across the street  and we tried with those.  When it just wouldn't work, I broke off the key and here it is.  I'm not sure if it was the right thing to do, but...

 Sunday morning with four students slated to play their first time in Las Lomas.  They were nervous.  The member of the bishopric told me "Hermana, you look more nervous than the kids.  Don't worry.  If it doesn't work, we'll just turn on the CD."  NOT what I wanted to hear.  They actually did fine.  Some almost perfect.  It is a big challenge to make yourself get over nerves and just do it.  I sat beside these kids to give them confidence.  They all got the idea that this might be interesting and fun LATE.  I'm not sure if they can pull it off to earn their keyboards.  I hope so.

 This lady is blind and on dialysis.  She is the grandmother of three of our students.  This grandson, William, was sitting by her in Sunday School class today.  Pretty sweet.  She's from Bocas del Torro, on the coast of Panama.  She gave us avocados one day, and called them "Peras", pears, because of their shape.  English (Jamaican) is part of her culture.

 I never get tired of these "group of students enjoying each other and the music".  We do have fun.

 Abril started really late and hasn't taken off.  This brother Alvarado tries to look out for her and calls her when she doesn't come for her lessons. 

 We were invited to dinner Thursday night.  Often there is a fair amount of time just sitting by ourselves and waiting until dinner is ready.  This time Rod had a book, so while I played Go Fish with the kids, he read.  He has played Go Fish so many times that he has no desire to play it again unless he is partners with a small child.

 Count your blessings normally at 45rpm playing at 78rpm

These two kids are our 11 year olds.  Genesis, directing with me, I think will learn her 10 hymns.  Lorenzo won"t unless we have another miracle, but he has learned something.  He did play it flawlessly in church.



The stake president's dog (the apartment under ours) likes to bark at us and jumps when excited.  Janell gets tired of him, but decided the jumping was of interest.

David Caballero, a student from Bugaba, rode the bus in and met us at Price Smart Saturday night.  We cooked meatballs mashed potatoes,pumpkin bread and lemon sauce.  When it came to decide for or against the sauce, I asked David if he'd rather play piano or make the sauce.  He said "Your husband likes the sauce."  I said yes, but that he could do without.  David then said "I like the sauce", so we made it.  We took him home about 8:30 and visited the Romero family. As we pulled up, someone came running down the road.  I said "Is that you , Pipo?"  No answer, so I figured I'd just blown it royally.  It was he, though.  He gave me a hug and then went right in for his teclado.  He sat down and played hymns the entire time as she cut my hair (by then it was 9:00).   One of his cousins, Patricia, a student who stopped practicing while we were there, played 5 hymns.  She may try to finish before we leave.  It's little time, but if she can focus she could do it.
It was a nice, relaxing night.  Rod read a book and didn't finish it until early in the morning.  Wow!  He knows he can sleep while I do things like this blog, I guess.

This week Rod's message was on prayer, taken from the bible dictionary.  Prayer is not meant to, nor can it, change the will of the Lord.  It is meant to help us to gain blessings that we can only have if we ask for them.  It was an interesting week.  I was focused on a need of one of our grandkids, and to hear that message 5 times a day, just after praying, was thought provoking.  Here I am, trying to practice "Thy will be done", and also "There is another kind of faith...it calls forth things that otherwise would not be".  I want to bless my family all that I can through my faith in the Savior.

Our lesson from Alma today talked about the sons of Mosiah and how even though they were doing right, they had hard challenges.  I just read Elder Hales conference talk which talks about life being  a time to have experiences that we learn from.  Shoot! Myles said, "If everything were peachy, you wouldn't be eating mangos there in Panama".  Our friends from Aguadulce, the Trejos family, sent us another box of them.  YUMMM!!!  Life is still good, and our health is still holding.  (That is we continue to pay for insurance and the money all goes for someone else's sicknesses -- guess we can't be too sorry for that!)  Have a great week!

More Flora and Fauna

 I walked to the fruit stand one morning alone.  On my way back I found this leaf.  As a child I wondered about leaves in the garden of Eden, but here in Panama there are leaves big enough to cover.  This one wouldn't work very well, but it was beautiful to me. 

 Here is the other side.  It reminded me of our tarantula, Dirty Harry, for some reason.  I threw it outside after the photos, and it scrunched up and dried and still reminded me of him.  I never tire of the variety that God has created. 

We picked up a student one day and found this (thankfully) dead beetle on his driveway.  His sister and I put our feet by it so that you could see the size.  I'd hate to meet it while it was flying.  The smaller ones are bad enough.

Yesterday we started our Saturday with our directing appointment.  We didn't meet construction on our way to the second one so we were a bit early and stopped at a used bookstore to get books.  We taught at our second appointment normally, but when we continued on to Boquette, neither of our students was there.  We sat in the church parking and read for an hour and a half before continuing on to our  last appointment.  When we arrived there there was no electricity.  We continued on to be on time to a birthday party we'd expected to be really late for.  Rod went to the wrong house (way out of our way) while I continued to read my book.  He didn't say anything aloud when I told him we were at the wrong house, he just backtracked.  When we arrived, we were the first guests and remained the only ones for more than an hour.  The party started 2 hours late.  We're not going to get this one figured out on the mission.  I give up.

Today we attended church in 3rd ward.  The bishop finally called a music coordinator so we wanted to meet her.  She had the music for today, and before we left had selected those for next week.  Hurray!!!
The students who  played sat at the organ until it was time for them to play.  They turned the volume very low and were practicing.  You could just hear the hymns, almost as if you were imagining it.  Then my attention was caught as I was hearing, not a hymn, but Fur Elise.  I caught Angel's eye and wagged my finger at him.  He smiled and changed back to hymns.  Two other students spent the entire hour of relief society in the back of relief society (which is the front of the chapel) practicing the piano.  They have assignments for next week.  I decided if no one else made an issue of it, I wouldn't either.

Our Stake President today talked in our relief society meeting.  He said as a counselor in the mission presidency years ago, he was assigned to guard a door during a meeting in which President Hinckley was speaking.  He had to stay outside and miss it all.  As he was watching, 3 large white cars pulled up.  PRESIDENT HINCKLEY got out of one of them, walked over to him, shook his hand and  patted him on the back and said "Hi, guy".  Fun tiny glimpses!  As he left the meeting, I said "Bye, guy", but he didn't hear, and no one else understood, so only I got to laugh.

I never cease to be amazed at the myriad details that SOMEONE takes care of so that the church can function smoothly.  I love it that each of us is needed so things work out.  Building the talents of the members is part of the magic of the gospel.  I'm glad to be here doing a little bit.