Washing bedding, wake, and funeral for Pedro Osorio

 Taking the bedding of the abuelo to the river to wash on their heads.

 The washing place in the river.

 From the hanging bridge over the water.

 Killing 30 chickens.

 Plucking 30 chickens.

 Almost done.

 Some of the neighbors and family that came to eat and pay their respects. The abuela is on the left running around serving people.

Feeding everyone bread and morcafe, a fake coffee. At midnight they will feed them chicken soup and in the morning feed them again. They stay awake all night to watch the body.

 The next morning we helped make pinol and I made more tortillas for lunch.

The big pot of pinol.

 Everyone walking to the catholic church.

 Family carrying the coffin and in front of friends.

 The abuelita got a ride to the church because she has been awake all night and is too tired to walk all that way. Elder Rangel is driving.

 All the flowers people brought to show their condolences.

 Coming into town from the aldea of Palimonix.

 Inside the catholic church.

 Alan dedicated the grave and then the men filled in the grave.

 3 members of the rama Rabinal, Nohemi and Alejandra Sumale and Armenia Alonzo.

 Silvia and Juanita Osorio,(wife of Pedro-who died), and Maricruz Lopez Garcia

 After the men filled the grave in.

All the flowers go on top. Nov 1 is day of the dead and everyone goes to the cemetary to put flowers on the graves and it's like a fair in town with venders along the street selling food and toys. (The procession was Nov 1, the wake was Oct 31)

FHE and a funeral

 I made sugar cookies and Alan made gingerbread cookies for FHE, hearts by hands.

 Went to the Osorio's house to help out with a funeral. Cleaned the yard and Alan prayed with the family.

 I got a lesson on how to make tortillas.

 It was fun and the ladies loved having a gringa try and make tortillas with them.

Some of the lovely ladies who helped teach me how to tortillar!?

Alan tried also, he kept saying his dough had something wrong with it.

 Getting the fire ready for water and making chicken soup.

 Fire heating up.

 New fruit to try, called anona.

 Alan helped go get the casket and I'm holding onto Christ.

Lunch of chicken soup and tortillas for everyone.

Fray Bartolome and our house

 This is the house we will be living in when we move to Fray this week or next week.

 We went out so Alan could be sustained as the Branch President. We looked at the house while we were there and it seems to be infested with centipedes and ants.

 This is our kitchen sink behind the house. We are trying to figure out how we are going to cook because we may not be able to get 220 electricity to our house for our electric oven and stove.

 This is the drive way back to our house.

 This is the road from our drive way to the church.

 The chapel.

We had 51 there today and the room only holds about 60, so we are growing.

Mud, birthdays, and baptisms

Walking to a member's house after the rain, trying to hug the barbed-wire fense to stay out of the mud.

Making panchas for FHE choir practice with Cubulco and Rabinal. 48 people came and we made 96, and still ran out.

 Corn mixture they wrap in banana leaves and boil a few hours, then unwrap and serve with tomato sauce and cheese sprinkles.

 Maria Tomasa celebrating her 82 birthday with kaq'ik, rice, and panchas.

 This is her favorite meal and her family worked on it all day.

 4 baptisms in Cubulco and another cake to share after a lunch of chicken, rice, and tortillas.

 The group from Cubulco

Elder and Sister Fisher  from Guate Temple, Elders Merlos and Dubon, Alan, 3 of the people being baptized from Rene Ramos' family, and Sonja.

 Paublo

 Margarita

 Jaime

 Josep

 Walking over the hanging bridge to Palimonix with the temple missionaries, the Fishers.

We visited the Osorio family, the grandma-Juanita who is 79 years old.

Elder Fisher opened the area of Salama 41 years ago as a young missionary, this is the apartment he lived in for 2 months. After being there 1 month they had a very bad earthquake and the kitchen at the back of the house fell into the ravine and there was rubble all around. The owner thought they might be dead because everyone was in the street but them. When they came out in their white shirts she thought they might be angels. We talked to her 74 year old son who still lives there and even went inside. What a thrill for him to find his old living quarters, only 2 blocks from the church in Salama!