A Week of Quiet Progress

 No exciting trips this week and we will not ever stay in the office every day if we can help it. Something about mixing with the people we are actually helping that keeps smiles on our faces.  Sunday we were able to have the Bishop, his wife and mother over for a lunch of tacos. The bishop served in the same mission as Carter but 10 years earlier. We didn't want them to think we were making tacos because we think everyone in South America eats like Mexico but just because we love tacos and so did they!

We think our small and steady English Connect 2 class is getting used to us. We feel more cohesive as a group and the support for each other is a comfort.

Monday morning we enjoyed a meeting with a nonprofit that helps those living on the streets and those that may have housing but are extremely poor. Monica, on the right, is from our ward. 

We (meaning South America South Area Humanitarian) don't donate cash or do small donations on a per person basis so we couldn't help them directly but it so happens that one of the hospitals getting a new digitilizer for there mammography machine is one of the hospitals that supports a majority of the people they help! They are also going to help get the word out to schools and other hospitals to make solicituds (requests for assistance).

We did get a few pictures from the hostel for dialysis patients. They now have all their stuff and we are going to be visiting on Monday but here are a few smiling faces of the staff as the materials came in. Check out the monogrammed sheets.

Thursday night we were able to go to sealings in the temple. Gathering in God's family is at the center of all we should be doing even if we are doing it in different ways. Consider how you are treating God's family and if it measures up to how God treats them. We are grateful for our time in the temple to ponder how to establish the attributes of God in our relationships.

We heard many times at the MTC that as Humanitarian missionaries you need to be flexible and our trainers taught us if you just get one thing done each day you should feel successful. Not sure we can explain how mixed up, changable and turned around things can be in the life of a Humanitarian missionary.  Anyway to get us chuckling we started a list "You Know You're a Humanitarian Missionary when . . ." and sent it to our friends who are serving in the South America South and other parts of the world. We hope we grow the list with other responses because everyone is having such different experiences but here is the list so far.    

You Know You're a Humanitarian Missionary When . . .

1. You talk to your mission president only once or twice during your whole mission
2. You can skip project steps if your manager or someone above them asks you to
    do a certain project
3. You are asked to do “big” projects but no one will give you the requirements for a
    “big” project.
4. You have to cut and paste everything that you are required to enter into CHAS at
    least 3 times because someone can't look it up themselves.
5. You tear up about medical equipment, school desks, mattresses or other donations.
6. At least once a week someone asks you why in your country Humanitarian projects
    don´t include what they saw donated on the World Report in other parts of the world.
7. You really get to see the country you are serving in and meet amazing people along the way.
8. The name of the Savior on your badge brings celebrity status to ordinary you.

And a Paraguayan sunrise that brings hope of a new day and a new week. We know God hears and answers our prayers and yours. We know miracles happen everyday in this His work if we have eyes to see. And we know when things are feeling overwhelming like we won't make it through, it is usually because our pride is blinding us to the blessings Heavenly Father is trying to offer us through His Son. We leave the yoke of the Savior,which is easy and light for our own way.

Have a great week and gather in His family in anyway you can.