Sunday June 9, 2024

It seems like every week here is the same, but every week is different,  it is like we do the same things over and over but it is with a different set of missionaries.  So each experience is different and we are able to help out another set of missionaries as we help them with the health needs that they have.  This week was spent on the roads again, to hospitals, Dr appointments and a Zone conference.  Hermana Chappell is always busy getting appointments for missionaries, and normally sending them to the hospital, but this week we actually took two hermana's to the hospital.  Hermana Chajchalac, like we have talked about the last two weeks went in this week to the hospital Del Valle in San Pedro Sula to get her gallbladder removed.   She has mostly recovered from having Dengue and is now recovering from the surgery.  We normally would not ever take anyone to the hospital, they would have to go on a bus or have a member from their area take them, but since these two sweet sisters are here in Tela, there is no way we are going to tell them to go and get on a bus and travel the two hours to San Pedro, get the surgery and then return on a bus.  So we got up very early on Wednesday morning and went to the hospital, she had the surgery and spent the night.  We stayed with the Ostler's that night.  We have spent several nights at their house since we have been here in this mission, but for me that was the most enjoyable evening that we have spent with them.  They were for some reason much more relaxed, and so we just had a great visit, spent the night there and then we went out for a late lunch with them on Thursday before we had to go back to the hospital to return back to Tela.  Which was great, but then there was the situation with two Elders who had also been patients in the hospital, both of them had Dengue.  That was a first, the two companions, both with Dengue.  Anyway they also were released that same afternoon, and their assigned area is Mezapa which is on the way to Tela, so there were 6 of us in the car from San Pedro to bring them all back home.  It took a little extra time to go down in to Mezapa, but it all worked out ok.  I hate driving at night but there was no choice, and we made it here safe.  I know that we are so blessed with divine help when we are out on the roads.  I know that we have been blessed in so many ways while here.  They have painted lines in the middle of the road in places, and there are even a few places where they have the white line on the sides of the road, but for so much of the road there is just darkness.  The hermana's went to church today, then after church, both the elders and the hermana's came over for lunch and we spent a couple of hours together, it was really nice.  They have a great time together, it is amazing how you can get 6 people together from 4 different countries and put them together and they still have so much in common and can have such a great time together.  This church and its teachings are a big part of it, because we all have the same values and hopes and dreams.  

President Mencía asked me this past week to speak in Telamar today so that was actually a great experience because it gave me the opportunity to say goodbye and share my testimony with them all.   It truly has been such a wonderful thing for us to have been able to be here this past 17 months and to get to know so many wonderful people who are trying their best to be good faithful members of the church.  We have been able to get to know a lot of them from the two branches here, Tela and Telamar.  We really do spend most of our time in Tela, but have come to know many from Telamar as well.  After church President Mencía asked us if we could take him and two Aaronic priesthood young men to take the sacrament over to Hermano Medina.  I was anxious to go see him anyway, because the last time we went to his house we gave him a blessing as he was going to see a Dr. the following day because of a long period of having stomach pain.  He was so very thankful that we would come out and bring him the sacrament.  I asked him what the Dr had told him was going on with his health.  He said that he has been diagnosed with liver cancer.  He didn't say what stage it was but he said that they all got together as a family and he told them that he is not going to have any treatments, they are way too expensive and there is no guarantee that it would help that much anyway, so he said that he has medication he is taking to help with the pain and that already he has much less stomach pain than he had before.   His story is so awesome and he  has told us so many times before that being a member of the church has completely made his life so much better than it ever would have been otherwise.  He said that he believes in miracles but he is also ready and willing to accept this news and move on if that is what he has to do.  President Mencía said in the car on our way back to the church that it is when people are living like they should and they are prepared and ready to take this next step it is so much easier for them and their families to go through difficult events like death.  They truly are as faithful as any I know anywhere.  I would like to get a picture of us with their family sometime, I don't think we have ever taken a picture with them, and for me,  a picture would help me to remember them and the great experiences that we have shared here.  

This past week on Tuesday was our last Multi Zone Conference in La Ceiba.  Two weeks ago was our last Zone council in Progreso as well,  We have one more Multi Zone Conference in La Lima this next week on Tuesday that we will be going to, and that will be our last conference here.  We took several pictures with missionaries this past week so guess what?  More pictures.....

Left to right.  Elder Thomson and Elder Armas

Elder Williams, Los Chappell, Elder Brown,  Elder Jenson

Hermana Cubur, Hermana Chappell, Hermana Nieto

Los Chappell, Elder Torres

Elder Penrod, Elder Chappell, Elder Chappell 

Elder Chappell, Elder and Hermana Chappell (we are 4th cousins once removed)

As we were driving back from La Ceiba we took a few pictures of the scenery along the way.  Hermana 

Chappell has said several times that the drive from Tela to La Ceiba is her favorite drive because of the beautiful countryside that we go through.  Just this side of La Ceiba there are fields of pineapple which I think we have posted pictures of before but here is another one.  This country really does have some beautiful areas and we have come to appreciate the beauty of this part of the mission.  

Last P day I went with the Elders and we each got our haircut, they were both so very happy after the haircut that they had to do a dance..... 

This next one is today when we were all here together for Sunday Lunch.....

We also went to Dennys for dinner this past week and while we were there there was this big group of women who had a birthday party there, they were all dressed in yellow, they sure had a good time.  

While we were in San Pedro Sula this past week President and Hermana Ostler gave us a shirt and pants to give to Elder Cruz.  They have had several people donate shirts and pants to them to give to the missionaries here who need the extra help.  Elder Cruz was so happy to have a new shirt and a new pair of pants.  I don't think we have ever seen anyone so happy over a shirt and a pair of pants, but he was very happy about it.  He didn't even want to take the tag off the pants, he wanted everyone to know that he had new pants.  

And for the last picture for this week, my wonderful eternal companion.  Thank you Colleen for this past 43 years and perhaps just as importantly this past 17 months.  This mission has been much more difficult than either of us ever expected it would be for many reasons, but I feel like we are better people for having had this experience.  We have both grown in so many ways, most importantly I know that our Savior sent us here to Tela Honduras to be able to not only help the missionaries of the San Pedro Sula East mission, but also to have had the blessing of spending this past 17 months with these wonderful people of Tela and Telamar.  We have been blessed so much and I hope that we have been able to have been of assistance to some of the people here as well.  I feel like the Lord's hand is in all we do, things just fall into place at the right time and in the right place.  I know that He is involved in our lives in every way.  There are people who are in our path that we get to meet and help and at the same time, we are placed in the paths of others to that they can help us as well.