Missionary Highlights

[29 March 2018]

It's good to be in a place long enough that you grow to love the people and see them as individuals. You get a chance to understand their customs and appreciate their way of life. We have so many dear friends here that feel like family to us.

We have watched them accept callings and grow from those experiences as they serve. We have watched them handle difficult challenges as they exercise their faith in the Lord Jesus Christ and His promises. We have seen the light come on in their eyes as we have taught them the truths we have learned about the temple and the blessings of making covenants. We have seen and felt the love and concern the leaders and members have one for another. We have seen them act in faithfulness even when it has not been easy to be faithful. We have watched their children grow, learn to walk and talk, get baptized, and bear strong testimonies, among so much more. We have mourned with them at the loss of loved ones. We have worked alongside them in natural disasters and in preparation for events such as marriages and baptisms and funerals. We have learned so much from them. They are patient with life, with each other and with things that are out of their control. 

They are not afraid to work hard. I was talking with the Relief Society President in Rama América the other day in her home. She is a young mother with 3 children, a 6-year old boy who attends kindergarten, a darling 3-year old boy who loves Elder Lyon, and now she has a brand new one-month old baby girl.

I was holding her little princess while she was putting things away. We were waiting for "superacion personal" (the Relief Society mid-week activity) to start. I was going to teach them how to make chocolate chip cookies (which is not an easy thing to make in Tupiza, but that's what she wanted to learn).

Since no one had shown up yet, I offered that if no one else came, I would tend her little one while she took a much-needed nap. She gets up at 5 in the morning to complete the final cooking that she started the night before after her children were in bed. She tries to get to bed herself by 11. She leaves when her kindergartner goes to school and comes home when he gets home in the afternoon. She takes all this yummy food and her new baby to a restaurant. She and her sister work at the restaurant making more food there as well as sell the food and serve the customers. She comes home and tends her babies, supports her husband and does it all over again the next day. Not to mention, being a great Relief Society President. Her response to my offer to let her take a nap, with a smile, was, "Hna Lyon, thank you, but I'm used to this kind of work". She really doesn't feel like her life is hard, it's just the way it is, and she is happy serving her family. Others did show up and we made the cookies. I loved holding her baby girl.

Here is a picture of 3-year old Benjamin who didn't have a problem taking a nap while we cooked. 

Benjamin asleep on the floor while his mother is working
with the Relief Society sisters.

Here are a few other highlights of our month along with pictures.

We visited the Quiriza branch. While Elder Lyon met with the Branch President I got to go visiting a family with the Elders. I especially enjoyed visiting with this dear family. They all live in one house, a mother, her two daughters and their children. I don't think any husbands are present. While the Elders played with the children (or better said, the children played with the elders), I had a wonderful conversation with these amazing, faithful, hardworking women. They shared spiritual experiences and how the Lord has helped them get through really hard things. It was one of the highlights for me as a missionary. I felt like they needed to share these things and I was privileged to be the one they shared them with.

Family in Quiriza -

We had another zone conference in Potosí. Charlie and I like to go up the day before to get acclimated to the altitude. Since the conference didn't start until the next afternoon, we took in some of the sights of Potosí. We took a tour of the Monastery San Fransisco. We got to see down in the crypt where the wealthy were buried. (After letting the bodies decompose for a time, the monks would go down and clean off the rotted flesh from the bones.) We saw the main chapel and the confessionals and the loft where the choir sings and the cupboards where they keep the band instruments. Then we climbed a very short, steep, narrow, windy stair well to get onto the roof. Pretty breathtaking!

Altar in the Cathedral San Francisco in Potosí

From the choir loft in the Cathedral San Francisco in Potosí

Climbing up to the roof.

The walkway across the roof of the cathedral.

Looking the other direction.

View of Cerro Rico (the pointy one) and Potosi from the top of the Cathedral.

Here is the closest thing we get to snow. We had a summer hail. We hear the sisters made a
snowman.

Hail in our patio.

You can see the little "snowmen" created by the hail sliding off the corrugated roof.

There is a hill close to our house called the hill of the cross (Cerro de la Cruz). It has a cross on top. We hiked it with all the missionaries here in Tupiza and had a devotional at the top. It wasn't a bad trail and I was never scared, but the steepness and the deep steps coming down sure did a number on my legs. It was well worth any discomfort.

Elder Lyon (looking much older now) climbing to the summit of Cerro de la Cruz. You can see how steep the trail was.

The Tupiza missionaries.

Devotional at the top of Cerro de la Cruz with Tupiza in the background.

Panorama of the city of Tupiza. The old part of town is across the river at the top left.

We have been working with the Duran family. Here is a picture of their little one-year old boy who has learned to pray.

Matias Duran showing us how to pray. He's about 20 months old. (Sorry it's so blurry)

The Relief Society Birthday was celebrated this month. This is how Rama Tupiza celebrated. We met at the Chachadita (a member's restaurant). We had a lovely lesson, meal and were even given some favors to take home. Rama América celebrated on Sunday with the sisters giving all the talks and a musical number. After our lesson in RS we had yummy cake and a fruit drink.

The Relief Society Birthday dinner at Chachadita's in Tupiza.

Isabel and Richar were married last month and this is a picture at Isabel's baptism with her boys and some of the branch members. Her boys were so proud of her.

Isabel's baptism.  From the left: Teresa Alfaro, Teresa Orellana (RS Pres), Maria Teresa Meruvia, Isabella
(her three children are in front), Clementina Tejerina, Sister Lyon, Nohelia Duran
(Matias is her son - in front in the Spiderman clothes), and Mery Ajalla

We went visiting with President Huarachi and passed by some of the houses that were destroyed in the flood.

Houses damaged by the flooding.

This is one of my favorite images of Tupiza that I will cherish forever. All of the children love Elder Lyon. We were sitting in the hallway of Rama América chapel waiting for Noche de Hermanamiento (Fellowship Night) to start. These little neighborhood boys wait for the church gate to open so they can play on the church's basketball/soccer court. They came inside and immediately ran to Elder Lyon. I love the look on Charlie's face. I think he loves them too.

Boys at the church with Elder Lyon - very outgoing and happy.

It's hard to put into words the deep feelings of our hearts as we share our mission in this blog. It is such a blessing for us to serve in this way. We love what we are doing, and we love these dear people.

We have seen the Lord's hand in this work as we just happen to be in the right place at the right time or when things don't work out like we had planned, such as an appointment falling through. So often, we are able to fill that time with something else that needed to happen. 

Our children are still a part of our lives. We love Skyping with them. They are all doing good things in their lives and raising their families in righteousness. We are grateful for modern technology that allows us to be a part of their lives as we serve. Our grandchildren are growing, and their parents are growing as well.