¡Hola desde Perú! (Hello from Peru!)
This past week was the week before transfers so the missionaries who want to take the OPIc (an oral English proficiency exam) come to the mission office to take this test. I was able to observe/proctor 2 sister missionaries who took this. These sisters had worked to prepare and they both did well. Their examples are inspiring!
On Wednesday, we moved over to one of the vacant missionary apartments
near the office. It’s great to be only 10 minutes from the office (walking),
but it’s been an adjustment in life style. We can’t just jump in the car and
drive to Walmart to get what we need; we have to either walk or catch a
taxi/Uber. And we can’t stock up on tons of stuff; we can only buy what we can
carry in our arms or fit in a taxi/Uber (which isn’t much!).
We’ve definitely felt the pull of Maslow’s theory (hierarchy of
needs/motivation) as we’ve had to grapple with meeting basic needs – clean water,
hot water, shelter, warmth, food, etc.. – something that’s very foreign to us pampered
Americanos! It’s difficult to focus on the “spiritual” when you’re scrambling
to figure out how to find food for dinner. We’re reminded of the story of David
O. McKay, which was retold by H. David Burton in the April 2011 General
Conference:
“In 1897 a young David O. McKay stood at a door with a tract in his hand. As a missionary in Stirling, Scotland, he had done this many times before. But on that day a very haggard woman opened the door and stood before him. She was poorly dressed and had sunken cheeks and unkempt hair. She took the tract Elder McKay offered to her and spoke six words that he subsequently would never forget: ‘Will this buy me any bread?’”
We hope our experiences are helping us empathize with others and
become more like our Savior who “… [took] upon him death, that he may loose the
bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their
infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh,
that he may know according to the flesh how to succor his people according to
their infirmities.” (Alma 7:12)
¡Que tengan una semana
súper fantástica! (Have a super fantastic week!)
Love,
Lane & LeAnn
In the mission office courtyard/parking-area learning about dealing with excess mission items.
Meredith and Corinne helped us load up a sofa and some furnishing to take to the apartment where we'll live until we get our religious visas... and maybe longer. (And yes, the sofa is literally "plastic-wrapped" to the top of the car.)
Loaded up in the car with a few furnishing for our apartment that have been in storage since the prior missionary couples left the mission during Covid.
Unloading furnishings to take into the apartment.
These musicians came singing and strolling down the street as we were moving into the apartment. Corinne gave LeAnn a sol (a Peruvian sol is about 25 cents U.S.) and dared her to go and tip them. Challenge accepted!
Pollo a la brasa (rotisserie chicken) - Preparing our first meal in the apartment. (And a big "Thank You" to LeAnn's mom who taught her how to debone a turkey leg. That skill is coming in very handy!)
Enjoying the first meal in the apartment.
At the front outer door to our apartment. It definitely has a "Harry Potter" vibe...pretty scary looking on the outside, but not too bad once you enter this door, climb the crumbling concrete staircase, and walk down the unlit corridor to the actual door.
Lane's (and Corinne's) mom, and Corinne's daughter and family at the outer front door to our apartment. They were able to fly to Peru to visit for a few days this week.
In our kitchen. You can see our "drinking" water sitting on top of our fridge. None of the sinks have hot water, but thankfully, we have a little 5 gallon "terma" (electric water heater tank that hangs in the shower area) for the shower which provides precisely 1 reasonably comfortable, 5-minute shower (then we have to wait for 35 minutes for the next warm water shower). If you look closely you can see our new favorite appliance, the "hervidor" (electric heating pot for boiling water), sitting on the far back counter. It heats water to boiling in about 2 minutes...AWESOME!
