Week 5 - went by in a flash, and I am a little late on this update. The photos we take of the families and the area remind us of what our work here means, even though it's plenty challenging at times as we continue (slowly) to learn the language. Mery Laura, her brothers and father were delighted to see us. Her brother Jhonathan (on the right) is now an internationally acclaimed artist: Hermana Johnson commented on how much she liked the painting he made for a school project (on the wall behind), and he pulled it down and gave it to her! This will come back with us as one of the great memories we have of Cusco and the wonderful people and famililies here.
Bishop Moreya (below, with his esposa (wife) and Martin,(one of their sons) is a great example of leadership and service. He had collected a LOT of family information during an 18-day trip their family made, as far away as Lima, and we spent about 2 hours one evening helping them enter some of it in familysearch.org. He leads by example in Historia Familia, and he blesses the lives of the members in his ward (barrio) as they follow him.
Hermana J is now in a "selfie" taken by Hna Essig. Her companera, Hna Ruiz is finishing her mission and headed home, so this is a moment to remember. We made a visit to another delightful family and all the girls (except for a darling 2-month old) got together for photos in the courtyard.
We had a houseful for this visit, waaaay on the west side of town. Hna Nelson (front left) is also finishing her mission, which we didn't know til the tears started to flow, as this was her last visit to this family.
Lots of talent here, these lovely members (and soon to be) own and operate a dressmaking shop. Fancy dresses for all occasions, and their work is superb. We're finding out that there is an abundance of hand-craft skills here that we just don't see very often at home.
We paused on the street to take a photo with Elder Tandazo. He practices his English on me, and I do the same with my Spanish on him whenever we get to work with him and his companion Elder Webb.
Speaking of hand-craft skills, Hermano Wilson could be my next new best friend. Look carefully at the exquisite silver necklace and other pieces Hna J is holding. He handcrafts them, and the cases in his showroom display his talents. He also carves beautiful animals from dark wood. And in the other side of his home/workshop he and his family make jackets, packs, and do custom embroidering.
His daughter Milissa (left) is quite the family historian, and her Mi Familia booklet is full! We just have to assist her with recovering her password, and it will all go into familysearch.org. We also discovered that the Hermana in this family makes the best hot chocolate in Cusco! Talent just overflows in some families.
We've been in Cusco for nearly one "transfer cycle", which happens every 6 weeks. At this time, the missionaries finishing their service will go home, and the other missionaries may get reassigned to another area, usually after serving 4 - 6 months in one location. Elder Tandazo is finishing, and going home to Ecuador, and Elder Webb has been in Cusco for nearly 7 months, so changes may happen soon. We like to take the missionaries out for a nice meal, which they don't get very often on their limited budgets - though they do get plenty of nourishment at their "pensions" which prepare 2 meals per day (lunch, dinner) for them. When we offered, the choice was - your guessed it - hamburgers. When they finished, their plates were empty. Hna J and I split a philly cheesesteak, and still took half of it home.
Worksheet time! For our first visit, we get some essential information that will enable the family to open familysearch.org accounts. We're finding that many of the members have opened accounts in the past, and occasionally (well, frequently) have misplaced or forgotten their login information. Luckily there is a procedure to recover that and when we help them open or re-open their accounts and either see the family history they already have entered, or put new information in, they are delighted.
When we found out that Jose and Cledy didn't have a family picture, we were delighted to provide them with one! It was Sunday afternoon, and they had all dressed down to relax, but for the picture, they all got their Sunday best on again. Little Luz (6 yrs) discovered the games on Hna J's iPad, and when our visit was finished, she wanted to come home with us! We uploaded this photo to their FS accounts, along with a photo of them when they were dating - which their kids thought was hilarious. OK, everyone changes over the years.
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