Recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives

This picture is in one of our students' homes.  There are 2 bishops, a counselor in a bishopric, and a counselor in the Stake Presidency.  I like to think that this mother held family home evening.  We have several of her grandchildren as students.   Strong families are needed in the church.

Here is the baby bird again.  I can hardly believe it, but Sister Polacio assured me that it is one and the same.

These next photos are of the road we have to travel to reach the Polacio's home.  We've been wondering since we came here in the dry season how it will be in the wet one.  So far, so good.  We haven't had to walk it in a rainstorm yet.

Exposed water pipes that people drive over.

A daunting prospect for our carrito.  A student taught us a new word last Friday, llamativo.  It means calling attention to oneself, or flashy. He told us our car is llamativo.  Rod has always said it appears to be saying "Rob me, rob me".

And here is my new hair cut that Rod said made me feel like a "new man".  I do love it when it is short.  Apologies to all who don't.  I just feel better.




Guanabana

Warning -- this part may require more than 13.6 seconds to read.


It may be going a bit too far to take our own advice:  (or not)


This week my spiritual lesson for the students is from Elder Christofferson's article on "Recognize the hand of the Lord in our lives".  The examples I have been using from our mission is that most of the time when we have to change appointment times for a student, we usually have to shuffle others (a big hassle), but it will often turn out for the best.  The other is that this week (on Sunday) we picked up three new students -- a bit pushing the envelope for making by end of July -- however, we didn't have a piano to share for them to practice with (no envelope to push).  The same day, a student called saying she didn't want to practice any more -- come take her piano.  [She was a student of the 9 month class put on by the stake here that just terminated.  It was a different approach, bring your piano to the stake center once a week for a class of (originally) ten students.  They actually had several of the students accomplish quite a bit, but it wouldn't serve most students because of having to travel weekly, basically learn most things on your own with little teacher help.]

So on Saturday after the last class (that of the three new students) Janell get this feeling that it would be nice to go to an activity in Concepcion -- there are times I wonder (grind my teeth) about relationship people!
We have been meeting with people (>60 hours of teaching appointments) all week, she just can't get enough.

So what happens -- just afterward, she gets a call from the Concepcion District Relief society president about an activity at 6pm -- well, actually we'll start at 6:30 en punto.  We were on the way home from Boquette (the mountain branch of the David Stake) and had caught the three new students who live part way up there on the way back, SOOOO if we just kept going when we hit the 4 lane, we could get there in time -- likely they will feed us -- always top of mind since we didn't eat lunch.  Sigh, senior companion relationship person gets 'her' way again.


OK, Grumblino and Relationship Person got there -- so what?
or Upshot of Hand of Lord:

Keli, our student that has been living with her aunt taking care of a 1 year old, is going back home to Panama (we thought in two weeks, actually tomorrow).  She and her cousin both earned their keyboards, but we didn't have one in hand to share just yet for both.  So we were trying to connect her with some keyboards in Panama that a young man has from a class that he finished there.  We had called him and he said if she would come to church at his ward (basically across the city from her parents house, so a long bus ride) he would let her have it and not turn it into the mission offices.  We texted her cousin with the info.  He was now quite interested in making the connection as in the phone conversation he got the feeling that she was a 'special' girl.   He is a music student and was concerned she wouldn't have a teacher in Panama city to help her.  H-mmmm.
Her parents are not members and we are concerned that she might get lost as she got baptized while living here in Concepcion.  The membership system doesn't allow records to be sent, they can only be requested.  We do hope that music will aid her as likely her ward needs a pianist.
Short story long -- she hadn't gotten the text-- so we made that connection.  She also thought bus fares were 25 cents, they are now government buses and are 5-10 times that.  So we helped her there.
Basically, we were able to make that connection (and provide her a simplified hymn book -- we had just one extra) and it only took guardian angel overtime and extra inspirations (I'm counting Orlando's 'special' feeling) to get it done.

For our benefit, Janell has been anxious to get a hair cut, but we only visit Concepcion, where a member cuts her hair, on Sundays -- sooo -- yes after the activity, we took her (Sister de Romero) and her granddaughter home so she could cut Janell's hair.  At least I was able to get in a comment about it making Janell looking like a new 'man'.  It is short, but Janell likes it.
And in true relationship person form, Janell worked with Irvin, a grandson and star student on some new hymns and a start for Fur Elise.  He has been kicked out of school (probably bored) and the music has been good for him.  We did get home just in time to talk to Blythe and Talia for about two times the length of Talia's attention span and then our BOM chapter and z-z-z-z-z.

Guardian Angels:  "All in a day's work -- high fives all around!"