Happy New Year 2019

A brief review of wonderful 2018 in photos.

We are thrilled to have a new Church president and Prophet, Russell M. Nelson. He has led some amazing changes in church procedures and practices that will strengthen the faith, actions, and success of individuals and families. His love for God and his responsiveness to the needs of members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and for all people of the world, is so obvious! He is 93 and full of energy, light and purpose!
https://www.lds.org/church/news/look-back-at-the-most-tender-moments-president-nelson-shared-with-church-members-in-2018?lang=eng

Still enjoying the lights at Christmas, at the temple and around the neighborhood, grateful, as we begin a new year, for all my experiences of 2018 in Chile...

Chinese Embassy and police station down the street

left: one of many beautiful old homes in the neighborhood
(this one turned into a senior living home)
right: the road to the big water tanks next to the temple... a water supply for Santiago

 New Year's is the time to reflect on the past year, 2018. I spent the entire year happily serving as a missionary in the Santiago Chile Temple, with free time to explore the culture, history, geography of a beautiful country, and to interact with wonderful people, which include great young missionaries from around the world, as well as senior missionaries (mostly North Americans). 

Sunday was our last Sunday with a 3-hour block of services, classes...in 2019 we will have only a 2-hour block, with more responsibility placed on families and individuals for gospel study at home. I moved my Christmas things around to serve lunch to the Wallaces, Sister Umber, and Sisters Araya from Concepcion, Chile, and Shields from North Carolina, USA. 

We all love to sing, so Sister Shields pulled out her ukulele (signed by her friends in Chile...we could barely find a square centimeter to write) and sang our favorite hymns. She finishes her 18 month mission Jan.1, 2019, and will be traveling with her mom before returning home to Charlotte area, NC. She speaks great Spanish, having learned it all here. She and Sister Araya say they are best friends. 

(below) Elders Lloyd and Beck play soccer with some kids. The court is mostly empty these days after the MTC (training center) closed with these last young wonderful missionaries, above.

 2018 was an amazing year: some of my favorite experiences and photos (not in chronological order)....

(Below 2 photos) Valle del Elqui near La Serena in September

 A fabulous trip north (new friends/hosts in Antofogasta, Calama, San Pedro de Atacama, geysers, volcanoes, salt flats, lagoons, Valley of the Moon, huge copper mine at Chuquicamata; the sea at Antofagasta with 3 friends, lovely la Serena, Coquimbo, and more.

 

Isla Negra, favorite home of Pablo Neruda, Nobel prize poet. It's the same wild Pacific near my home in California.

Valparaiso with its street art and "ascensores" to climb steep hills

Visiting Santiago's many beautiful and interesting museums and public buildings (Presidential palace). It's been fun living in a big vibrant city. View from Cerro San Cristobal.

Sharing daughter Anne's marriage to Neil Chandler in England with my 5 children and their spouses and a couple of grandchildren (July 13, 2018) including #17 and last grand-child, Phoebe. It will be a few years before great-grandchildren!
Emily and Ken Taylor, Ming Lu, Cordelia, Peter and Rebecca de S., Me, Anne and Neil, Marc and Fernanda de Schweinitz, Julie, Peter and Phoebe Carlston.

Getting to know, serving with, and unfortunately saying good-bye to many wonderful new friends...missionaries and locals.

In  February, an incredible road trip with 4 missionary friends south in Chile, with volcanoes, waterfalls, lakes, rivers.

 Chiloe Island has amazing wooden churches.





We saw the gorgeous Concepcion Temple, below, (Chile's second temple), before the landscaping. We later went back to the open house before dedication October 28, and felt the love of our Savior for the people of Chile.

Poulsens, Munzings, and Castros in Concepcion (on my birthday)

Teaching English (and learning from) these wonderful women,

Below, the gorgeous Cajon de Maipu dam, almost on the border of Chile's neighbor Argentina.

Happy New Year 2019! May it be your best. May our world leaders use more wisdom and courage to solve the huge problems and situations we face. May we try harder to improve ourselves and to help and cooperate with others. May we recognize the love, forgiveness, and guidance we can all receive from our Heavenly Father to face our daily challenges.

(for some reason I can't delete the photo below without deleting many of the others, but these women are worth 2 photos to me!)

Christmas finally arrived!

Christmas!

Christmas means (somewhere down the list in importance) all kinds of goodies: this version of Chilean manjar (dulce de leche) layered cookie called alfajor was made by a temple worker friend.
I made lots of cookies and found a place to buy the German goodies I don't make so well, to share with German friends here. Since my German and French teaching days maybe I have lost my touch, but for those who think I should grow out my hair, please think again!

I brought friends back to Santa Lucia to meet this lovely member of the church who makes, among other things, wool nativities of which we bought a few, like mine below.

Nina shows off the handwork made for her by a 93 year old sister.
We have all enjoyed so many homemade gifts given by generous Chilean friends, who think we might not remember them otherwise.

Jones, Isaacsons, Sister Wallace (he took the photo), Blacks, Sisters de Schweinitz and Umber. Scott I. made a really nice program with Christmas carols and scriptures from Luke, Sister Jones played the piano and we all had a wonderful Sunday evening singing followed by delicious pumpkin pie Nina made from pumpkin she brought from home (can't buy here, apparently).

Christmas eve Alma and I were invited to have dinner and spent a wonderful evening with the Palma de Ferrari family in our ward.

Sergio (about to serve a mission in Merida, Mexico, after having finished his first two years of medical school on a scholarship which he is able to retain) Daniela (who was a mission companion of my friend Charlotte Smith from Palo Alto), Alejandro (who knew Bruce Wright who also lived in my home ward...it's a small world...they are both excited to be able to reconnect!), Miriam, Mateo, Alma, and Benjamin (mission planned for next year. This is one of the many wonderful strong families we are privileged to learn from and enjoy in our ward.

Despite the long, long distance between me and home, it has been a truly joyful Christmas for me here in Chile! I have felt the peace, joy and love which come with Christmas, knowing my children are all gathered together, the receiving of cards and messages from friends near and far, the exchanging of goodies and small gifts with new friends here, and celebrating through carols, poetry, stories, shared food with other missionaries and friends.

The temple grounds' lights added to the magic of Christmas eve

Wonderful omelette breakfast cooked by the Wallaces Christmas morning.
We then got a ride with the Blacks to the La Reina stake center to share a devotional, lunch, skits, videos, gift exchange game with the 180 young missionaries of Santiago East Mission, their other leaders and President and Sister Brotherson.

I sat at a table with President Brotherson, Elders from Brazil and Uruguay, Alma, and Jessica and Jennifer Brotherson, both visiting from Virginia. Sister B. was tending to their other daughter who was feeling sick.

The Hughes are the office couple for Santiago East mission. He wrote a fun "missionary" Night before Christmas, she and other sisters made stockings with clever gifts for each missionary. The Blacks teach Pathways, lead Addiction Recovery meetings, organize, carry out many humanitarian projects, and more!

Missionaries are off to enjoy the rest of the day, with the task to clean thoroughly their apartments this New Year's. President B. says they are an amazingly obedient, hard-working, faithful, spiritual group of 18-20 year-olds, many of whom have never been away from home on Christmas. These qualities reflect well their parents and their mission president efforts, too! The tanned leg of this sister shows how much she is out talking to people!

Back home in Salt Lake City, after a long night traveling the world, delivering gifts to good (and maybe some not so obedient) children, Santa has fallen asleep.
I hope you, too, had a fun and joyous Christmas, and that the celebration of the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ will remind us daily that the light and truth of His gospel, His teachings, and finally His Atonement can give us strength to face our daily trials, redeem us from sins and weaknesses, and allow us to live again with Him and our Father in Heaven. These are the true Christmas gifts.