Ned & Mary in Guatemala

Thanksgiving 2022 Thanksgiving is not celebrated here, but due to the generosity of the Area attorney and his wife, Rob and Clare Lang, we had a wonderful dinner with other senior missionaries and mission presidents the Wednesday evening before. They were generous including providing a nice, carbonated fruit beverage for every couple.           . I'm not sure what the occasion was but, later, we  got to watch fireworks out our window. Unfortunately, we didn't get a picture of the best ones. Those were quite impressive.

Giving Machine Progress Things are progressing in implementing Light the World Giving Machines. Here, we received training, along with people from the child cancer treatment organization which will benefit from the donations.  The screen was small and we had to stand back so all could see.  The following picture comes from one of the malls in which we hope to install a Giving Machine. Unfortunately, we took the picture on the wrong side so the two words (star & Xmas) are backwards. They don't have Thanksgiving around here and that seems to result in Christmas decorations being on display earlier than we are used to. The following comes from a home improvement store. Finally, one of the missionaries in the branch where we serve finishes his mission today. His name is Elder King and his home is about 1.5 hours north of the mission home. He is a good guy and we will miss him.

Our First Earthquake   Last night as we were praying, we felt our apartment building moving quite unusually. This posting shows 5.8 but we have heard reports going up to 6.1. Being in a 12-story building during an earthquake brings a different feeling than the earthquakes I have felt before. We will need to get a report on road conditions before driving to the branch tomorrow. That town is closer to the epicenter.

El Dia de Los Santos - Nov. 1 Tuesday was something of a holiday. It follows the tradition of el Dia de los Muertos (the day of the dead). Here it is called El Dia de los Santos (saints). The tradition is that the spirits of deceased family go to their family homes on this day. However, evil spirits try to get in the way of that. Somehow, building kites and flying them keeps the evil spirits at bay. Here are a number of photos with brief comments.                               We came across a number of groups roasting hogs on the spit.                                                             Now here is an "after" photo.                                        I would say they got everything they could from this guy. Now for some pictures of the "kites" and the crowds. This is what the streets looked like on the way to the kite building and display area. Here are some photos of the crowds inside the display area (a soccer field next to a cemetery).              

Halloween 2022 . The Area President and his wife, Brian and Jill Taylor, invited us older missionaries to a Halloween gathering Monday evening. Here are some of the costumes that were worn. As you can see, another couple shops at Dollar City like we do. Elder Taylor's aunt had a tradition of having a cake walk for holiday gatherings. Therefore, he and his wife put one together. I think he was the most animated walker of the group. Instead of cakes, we had Krispy Kreme donuts which Mary and I bought on our way home from the office. It was a fun gathering with wonderful food. We walked home with several other couples and capped the night off with being stuck in the elevator in our apartment building. We didn't exceed the number of people which the sign said should enter the elevator at once. All we can figure is that, on the average, we weighed enough more than average Guatemalans, so we got stuck. They lowered us to the first parking level and most of us walked up so as to not t