The Adventure Continues: Update

Emacula

Tonight I taught the conducting course to the kids at Mutual. I think some of them got it and some of them didn’t. It is fun to try, though. Two of the girls are from Haiti. They have had a bit of a reputation because they sort of stand off from the other kids in the branch. I think it is just that they want to fit in but they go to a different high school and they speak Creole-influenced English. One of them, the younger one about 15 named Emacula, was sitting in the room reading her texts on her phone. Gaye’s student had not arrived and appeared to not be coming. That is always frustrating. I asked Emacula if she would like to take the lessons and she quickly responded that she would. She and Gaye hit it right off. She has an aptitude for music. This might be something that keeps her involved in the Church and might save her life. Most people just want to be loved and accepted.

Yesterday we were at the grocery store where a lady came up to me and asked if we are still doing the glasses. That goes back a ways. When President Alvarado let it be known that he was coming with musical missionaries with a Christmas program, he also said he wanted to participate in a glasses clinic. So I tried to arrange for space at the Rite Way grocery store to set it up. Sandra is an employee who just saw a need and helped me get to the right people. It turned out that we did not do the clinic, but twice after that first encounter I saw her at the store. She always initiated the conversation, asking if I got what I needed. Today she was interested in getting glasses for her husband who is having a hard time reading lately. He is about 40 and his arms are getting shorter. We told her we could help her at the church in the afternoon and made an appointment to meet around 4:30.

I was there helping with the music lessons when Sandra and her husband walked through the door. I got out the glasses, did the reading test, and found a pair of glasses of the right strength so he could read comfortably. They are from Guyana, like many other people here. They have three children, but only the youngest is here. The other two, both young teenagers, are still in Guyana living with her sister. That is also a common arrangement. That would be hard.

After the glasses were chosen I asked them about the Church. The conversation was easy to get started, which sort of surprised me. She said she had actually gone to church in Guyana, three times. Did she like it? Yes, she did. I invited her to come and meet with us any time, I obtained her phone number, and I told her I would be in touch with her to make sure the glasses were working and to see if we could come and visit them. She said that would be fine.

I will pursue this. Sandra and Andrew have a nice spirit about them. It will be good to get to know them and to share our testimony of the blessings of families with them.

I don't want to be gross, so turn away if you want to. Scratch one rat. It stuck its nose into one too many peanut butter and apple treats. Note that it had eaten all the bait, however. Next time I will tie it on with dental floss. Anyway, now it has gone to Rat Heaven. Do rats go to heaven? I think they will need to change some of their behaviors if they do. There was also ample evidence that it had come in on the ledge. The little critter had learned that it could walk along the 2-inch wide ledge around two blind corners and get a reward at the end. Furthermore, it had to come up two flights of stairs or climb over a three-foot wall in order to get to the ledge in the first place. That is quite impressive, actually. So I think I will be setting another trap and leaving the D-con out forever. Smart or not, they give me the creeps. There are also some other critters that are now recorded. Photos are posted below.