Arrived in Peru

OFF TO PERU – Here we go…    

                   

Up at 4 AM and will arrive in Lima Peru at 11PM. I have three hours so I might as well write. We have 5 large suitcases, two carry on’s and two computers, It was $350 to take it all with us but I guess 18 month’s justifies the money. I am a little nervous about who is meeting us and getting all this luggage. We are staying with my son and his family until we find an apartment. I will love being with his children while serving in Peru.

What a great week we had in the MTC. Learning to do record preservation – photographing records, which will be a part of our calling. I am sure glad Bob is familiar with photography because I have a lot to learn. This is going to be part of our calling. We will be finding out more soon.

Bob and I are the only two missionaries on the plane. President Carrin and his wife were suppose to go with us but his wife got sick. They will be coming in a couple of days. I have been reflecting back on the MTC experience. There is nothing like it. The young men and women who serve this church are truly like the armies of Helman and they have been taught in their youth. The senior couples are coming in larger numbers and are amazing. Some have been on four and five missions. We traveled this morning with the MissionPresident going to South Africa. This is their third mission. I asked him about going to South Africa and he said “the church is really taking me out of my comfort zone.” His wife said she always put on her application she does not want to go to Africa but she is willing to go where the Lords has called her.

Last Friday night after our language training class, each person going to a foreign country got up and bore their testimony. I had my testimony written out and decided to go first. It was a great meeting. There were about ten different languages spoken by some pretty incredible senior missionaries. I am thankful to Elder Miller and Palmro for working with us and being so patience.

It is not easy leaving home and family. A mission changes everything for parents, children and grandchild. As soon as I committed to this mission to many things happened in our life that made me realize when God has given us so much we need to give back.

The first devotional we attended at the MTC the Executive Secretary to the MTC spoke. Sorry, I do not have his name. He spoke about prayer and asked the question “how much of your prayer time do you focus on you and how much time on others?” He challenged us to spend a lot of time on the second half. Between that talk and a week going through “Preach My Gospel.” I think I could be a much better visiting teacher and missionary.

I have just finished reading the December 2011 Ensign. There are such beautiful messages. I have never had the time to read an Ensign from cover to cover.

Arrived in Lima January 14 at 1 AM. It was an uneventful plane ride, but getting through immigration took two hours. When we reached customs the custom agent waved us through when he saw our missionary badges. That would have taken another hour. We were pick-up at the airport by Dulio Delgado. He is over Family History at the Lima Administration Building. He said he had never waiting so long at the airport for new missionaries involved in Family History. Bob was able to communicate with Dulio. He is much further a long in Spanish than me.

We had Saturday off so we spent it with Jim’s family. Cher had an activity for Young Women’s so we went to their church building and met a few members. A member of the stake presidency was there and gave us a tour of the administration. We were told they have an apartment for us that will be ready in about two weeks. We went shopping because we are not getting an apartment where missionaries have lived and bought there own furniture.

The church is negotiating leases for Sr. Missionaries. We saw another apartment like the one we will be living in. The church also provides the furniture. That is new. Most of the missionaries here have had to get their own furniture.  The church also pays for the electricity. Bob and I only have to get Internet Service and pay for the gas for the stove. Nothing is insulated so it is cold during the winter (Jun - Sep). It is summer here now. Summer here is in (Dec - Mar). The cost for an apartment is going to be about $510. We will be paying the church the $510. Sr. missionaries can deduct housing and utilities. We then make a donation of $510 to the missionary fund. This program start Jan 1 and Bob and I are the first couple to get a church leased apartment.

We start our assignment tomorrow at the 8AM in the Administration Building. We will find out tomorrow what we will be doing. For the next three months we will be filming records at the Peruvian Archives in Lima. I will get to see the other side of indexing. There is another couple coming in March to do Record Preservation. They will spend 18 months photographing records.

The Sr Missionaries are very close. When new couples come, a current couple has to host the new missionaries. We are living with my son and his wife. Attached is a picture of the house. It is huge. It has five bedrooms and five bathrooms. Every house has it own high gates and electric fence above the gates. My son lives in a gated community. Our new apartment has a twelve-foot fence and electric above the fence.  The apartment is one block away from the South American Headquarters and the temple. The church’s main concern’s is safety. In the last couple of months all the Sr. Missionaries have been moved to very safe apartment buildings.