The world is full of good people, and there are lots of them in Chile! One such couple, Hermano Aravena and Hermana Garay come often to the temple, where we have helped each other a lot with ordinances for ancestors. They live in Villa Alemania, where he is a stake president. She has gone almost completely blind in the last few years, but is sharp, with a great memory and is very independent and happy. 
We have discovered we have lots in common. They have 2 children in Provo, one in American Fork, Utah, another in Indiana, and have not seen their grandchildren for a couple of years, either. Whereas many of my ancestors were among the first immigrants to New England, hers were among the first Spanish in the New World (this week we did work for a female ancestor of hers born in 1519 in the Dominican Republic, and others born in the early 1500's in Peru, Conquistador headquarters, from which they branched out to Chile, etc.) She can't see, but her brother does the research and they do the temple work for their family.

Many people have been very generous. Alma knit the gray scarf (mostly on our way to and from Concepcion Temple) Viviana is wearing. I'm wearing one of the three nice blouses another sister gave me made in her factory. Another, Sister Nora Castillo, knit me a white neck warmer (worn with white in the temple,of course), because she saw that I was often cold in the temple (is it cold in order to keep us awake?) One sister jokingly said I looked like "La Reina Victoria". But where is my Prince Albert?


Sister Diaz across the hall just brought me some membrilla (quince) sweets she made from fruit picked on our trip last week to Casablanca. She has also invited 5 of us to spend 3 days with her in her home near Copiapo (north where there are beautiful beaches and the infamous mine where the 33 were trapped for 60 days)  next Sunday to Wednesday (Tuesday is a holiday). When attending dinner at someone's home, food or flowers are usually brought. 

Below photo, we (Alma and the Isaacsons) were delighted to see our dear friend Juana Castro, who until recently served as assistant to Sister Wilhelm in the temple presidency. Her husband is a sealer in the Concepcion Temple. They constantly invite us to stay with them in Concepcion (we did twice, earlier in my mission). Our Chilean friends are so hospitable.

We all love the Ojedas, who are in our ward and are temple workers. They also invited the Isaacsons and Sister Umber to spend a day with them in their childhood homes north of Santiago in the country. (I was on my trip south)

Below, my daughter Julie wrote that she is so glad to be able to enjoy her five children as I did/do. I did not, however, have 2 sets of twins! My youngest (and last) grandchild Phoebe celebrated her first birthday this week.

My daughter Emily gave me a beautiful tribute and sent some fun(ny) photos. We both solved the big curly-hair challenge: she straightens hers and I cut mine really short! (Guess what year the first one is from? Yikes)





My son Marc, always the joker, has other ideas for me! I DO have fun, but in other ways probably than Cyndi Lauper!



In light of Mothers Day and applicable to any dealings and teachings to others, I am inspired by this article by Maureen Proctor, written for her daughter as she became a new mother. Here is an excerpt:

 "You must teach (your child) not to fear—and that cannot come from a lecture or a sermon or a smart phrase on a refrigerator magnet. He will learn what it means to be human from you. He will see how to relate to the world and how to regard it from you. If you are afraid to try new things because of failure or to preserve your dignity or some winning view of yourself, he will learn fear. He will be afraid to strike out and try something that he may not be good at. He will cringe from circumstances he hasn’t tried before. He has to be willing to be really flawed at something before he can learn to be good at it. None of us ever knew anything that we didn’t have to learn. You cannot suggest to him that he is only lovable if he performs.

You teach him to see the world as a place to be brave because you are brave, because you are comfortable enough in your own skin to explore, to stand for something, to get out into the fray of life and fill the measure of your creation without always calculating the cost and finding yourself shrinking with timidity because you can’t guarantee outcomes. Mothers so deeply influence their children, so you are right. You must be who you hope he will be, embrace the world with a delicious sense of wholeness. Your quest to be whole begins in even more earnest when you have a baby, because you have two vulnerable eyes looking at you.

You will have to show him that he can stretch and reach and try new things. Teach him that it is ok to not know, to experiment, to forge where he hasn’t gone, to be willing to learn. Teach him that to have a capacity, we have to start by not having one and take it step by step. Teach him not be afraid of that first step. He is not someone you can pigeon hole. He can do this, but not that. Inside that baby body is a universe, with whirling stars and expanding galaxies and a spirit that was born in light with God. Teach him to try. Teach him that there is no such thing as failure. Help him believe in his divine source, by believing in yours."

I'm not sure I taught this bravery to my children, as I was a shy and in many ways fearful person, but somehow they learned to be brave, to explore, to trust their instincts. Hoorah! I hoped that they would not constantly compare themselves to others, but that they should do right in the eyes of God, caring less about the opinions of others, but finding joy and fulfillment in their own unique ways.

Sophia, who is perhaps a Chinese "tiger mom," is also creative. She is definitely the life of the party today! In class today Cecilia (on right) was saying that her 14 year old son Cris (on left) is shy. Sophia told her what she did with her shy son (now 21) was to have him practice 20 minutes a day imitating Barack Obama's manner of speaking and interacting with people; she and her son also delivered newspapers to earn the money to buy balloons so he could learn to twist them into animals, etc. at parties. He went on to become a confident student body president at his school in northern China.

If you are still celebrating Mothers Day, Happy Mothers Day! In any case, Happy Day and Happy Week! I appreciate the example and friend you have all been to me.