Ned & Mary in Guatemala

  Spare Time Activities Missionary applications, Taxisco Branch and the Communications Department don't take up all of my avialable time. While Mary is doing other things, I often do family history research.  I set a goal recently of having 6,000 ordinance cards for my and Mary's cousins ready for temple ordinances.  I had to hurry a bit so that my dad's service in the temple didn't eliminate some. Note: Most of the ordinance cards have been shared with the temple because you are only allowed to have up to 300 in your personal account. That works for me because many ordinances get completed each day temples are open around the world. As I have mentioned to some family members before, I hope that my helping my ancestors with their posterity will motivate them to help me with mine. 

  Monthly Communications Missionary Devotional - September 6, 2023 This morning we participated in the monthly Communications Missionary devotional and we were the presenters. When we were asked, we told the meeting cooridnators that we don't do much with Communications now, but they wanted us to present anyway. It was a blessing to remember the various activities we have been involved in and the people we have met.  Towards the end, we spoke of how most of our time this year has been spent in helping get missionary applications completed and submitted. As part of that discussion, we shared these pictures of candidates we have helped, and expressed what a blessing it has been to have this assignment.

The Hazards of Guatemala City Traffic - September 4, 2023 We had our first accident on Monday as we were returning from a dentist appointment. Above, is the report we submitted to the Area car manager. As you can see, we are convinced that the other driver was at fault. As it turns out, if a government vehicle is involved, the other driver is always at fault. If said driver does not agree, his car can be impounded until he comes to his senses. Gratefully, there were no injuries. 

Friday Night Group Date Night, Aug. 25, 2023 Here we are with most of the couples who live in the same high-rise apartment building as we do. Together we walked to this excellent burger restaurant and enjoyed visiting. These couples come from Alaska (Adams), Arizona (Bishops), Idaho (Poteets), Texas (Oleas) and Utah (Carpenters & Lunts). (The brother from Texas is originally from Chile.)

Our 45th Wedding Anniversary Trip to Antigua - August 23, 2023  Our 45th wedding anniversary is August 31st. We decided to take another trip to the historic town of Antigua. The primary purpose of the trip was to get Mary's wedding ring repaired by a jeweler member there. He did a nice job.  We have been looking for one of these little wood statues for some time.  It is not uncommon while driving on rural highways to see men walking with a load of wood they have just cut on their backs. As you can see, he has a stabilizing strap on his head. As part of our self-guided walking tour, we went to one of many large cathedrals in town. It is hard to get a picture to give the proper perspective of how huge this cathedral is. It was built in the 1600s and has had to be rebuilt/repaired more than once. The big earthquake in 1773 that destroyed much of Antigua, resulted in Guatamala City becoming the national capital.  Bruce and Lise Carpenter who live in the apartment next to...

A sink-hole on our way to church. Saturday, we learned that the road we normally take on Sundays to the branch where we serve had developed a sink hole. The repair time estimate is 40 days. Bummer. Yesterday, we said goodbye to Elder Bogden, a delightful Elder from Las Vegas. He will be missed. The district president joined us for the photo.

 Missionary Applications Assignment In February, we were asked to help with the processing of missionary applications from Central America. Mary helps with the translations for all 7 countries and I help get the applications from Guatemala through to SLC. When we started, there were over 150 applications awaiting processing from Central America. As of this morning, there are only 37, in spite of many new ones being entered in the mean time.