2015...Wow

Axel Cecchi-another adopted son

Barbecue in the background (galleria); table all ready to go

2015 in Argentina started with a BANG, literally!  We had firecrackers all New Year’s Eve and well into the morning.  We celebrated at the beautiful home of a dear friend from the office named Axel Cecchi, who refers to us as mom and dad.  We started the evening reading the story of Christ’s birth and singing Christmas hymns.  He prepared an authentic  Argentine asado (barbecue) for supper.  We started with different kinds of empanadas and then crackers and cheese with green salad.  Then we enjoyed the potato salad and the baked potatoes.  Next we were served 5 different cuts of beef and chicken.  This was of course all you could eat!  Desserts were fruits and Janet’s chocolate-banana snack cake.  We were totally stuffed!  Next came ice-cream (dulce de leche flavored).  Finally midnight came, which meant that we celebrated with the non-alcoholic cider, toasting to a new year and kissing everybody.  But that meant more food, as they brought out sweet breads, cookies, chocolate bars, and sodas.  Seriously!  We were lucky to be able to roll out to the car for the drive home at 2:00 a.m.

We saw Timon from Lion King

Jackson at the Zoo with us

Bats in the belfry anyone?

 

We had heard great things about the Temaiken Zoo but had not been able to visit until we got up early and went there on Friday, Jan. 2 with our dear friends the Flinders and a boy that they were tending.  I truly think that this zoo is the cleanest place in Buenos Aires.  It was immaculately trimmed, spotless, and beautiful with all of the green.  Our favorite animals to see were the bats, the white tigers, the albino kangaroos, and the monkeys.  There was a huge aquarium that was very interesting with all shapes, colors, and sizes of fish.  As you walked through the display, they swam all around you and above you.  It was really a fun day.

On January 7, as we were thinking about our daughter, Amy, celebrating her birthday, we learned that my dad had passed on.  I had visited with him on Saturday, Jan. 3 for about 10 minutes and he actually seemed to be pretty coherent.  I understand that he fell that day and seemed to lose ground quickly after that.  I was saddened that I could not make arrangements to be in Idaho to be with family.  Our 5 daughters were able to be there and they tried to include us by phone and skype.  Dad and I had actually said our good-byes before the mission and we talked a couple of times a month, so I didn’t really feel the need to go.  He said to me many times, “Doug, there is no reason for you to come home if I die while you are in Argentina.  I won’t be here to see you anyway.”  I miss him and have felt a bit empty when I think about him not being around when we get back.

 

We have our schedule all set for 2015 with an Open Chapel set for every weekend until we are released except the weekend of General Conference.  It is quite a challenge to coordinate with all of the stake presidents and bishops across the two missions here to make that happen.  If things go as scheduled we will have presented in each of the wards here before we return!

We were asked by Elder Resek, an Area Seventy in-charge of the Church Education System here in the South America South Area to teach a Book of Mormon class in English to students enrolled here in the BYU-Idaho Pathway program.  The class goes for 14 weeks and is held each Thursday evening for 90 minutes.  It has been a real blast so far.  We team teach and use power point.  They are really anxious to learn.  These young and not so young people are the salt of the earth.  We have bishops and leaders in our class as well as marrieds and singles.  The Pathway program director, Elder Madariaga and his wife, (a Service Missionary couple) are there each week to support and help the students.  We have been so blessed to meet some of the Lord’s choice children here in Argentina.

BYU-Idaho Pathway class 2015
We just made the history book!  The first institute teachers in the brand new Pathway program in Argentina!!