The parables will never be the same.

We just finished making a tour of the mission for zone conferences. The missionaries divided into groups and acted out the parables of the Bible. They will never be the same.

The lady missionaries from the Duitama zone.

Duitama zone has the largest number of lady missionaries. I always enjoy being with them, and they make me feel tall.

What no forks?

For our lunch break, we ordered in some yummy Chinese rice. The restaurant forgot to send forks. We were hungry and decided to eat it any way we could. I remembered that I had a plastic spoon in my bag. Just twenty minutes before President Hacking had made fun of all the things I had in my purse. I'll bet he wished he had a spoon in a bag.

All of the Bogota zones.

Lunch was late in arriving, so we played a game called, "Do you love your neighbor?" This just shows part of the group. They look calm here, but check out the next photo.

Like scrambled eggs.

This game was very active, and it had everyone on their toes. We all enjoyed playing and watching.

These missionaries were hungry.

Elder Butler and Elder Larson were enjoying the lunch break in Bucaramanga zone conference. Missionaries are always hungry.

The painted pants.

We do get a laugh from the ladies that wear the painted pants. These are women, not always the young women, that wear just tights and no skirts over them. They look like they are wearing spray painted pants.

A special evening in Cucuta.

We love visiting with the members and the missionaries. Here we are with a special family and the stake president on the right, President Manosalvo, from the Cucuta stake.

Lunch at La Calera pueblo.

When our two new couples arrived, we introduced them to the yummy traditional meat that is cooked over coals. We went to a little typical pueblo, La Calera, to enjoy the feast.

Best meat in town.

This was just as good as it looks. This plate of food is the typical food for a Saturday or holiday cooked at little roadside stands. The potatoes are baked and rolled in salt. On the napkin is the traditional arepa.

A new dish for us to try.

We flew to Cucuta for a Noche Blanca and some members made this new dish for us to try. The food was wrapped in banana leaves and then we steamed them. This is a wonderful experience here in Colombia to see a new culture, eat new food and meet wonderful people.

Hayaca Cucutena.

When unwrapped this is what the food looked like. It looked like it was a lot of work to make it.

As good as it looks.

The end result was a delicious dinner. I don't know what all was in it, but it was very good.

The Granada stake president and his wife.

The stake president and his wife came to their youth activity all dressed up with the fake mustache and all to support the youth in their folkloric baile. It was a fantasic evening. Each ward or branch performed a dance from a different region of Colombia. The costurmes were beautiful.

No money involved here.

At the end of the performance, some of the young people from the different wards modeled their costumes that were made with no money involved. These were incredible dresses made from paper and plastic bags. Each ward had the assignment to make one dress where they did not have to spend any money.

The bear in the garbage can.

Dr. Weidmer, our mission doctor, loves the story of President Hacking pushing a bear in a garbage can when he was a teenager. He wrote an article about it, and later gave us this little bear upside down in a garbage can. Dr. Weidmer calls President Hacking the fearless mission president.

Newest additions.

Our family is growing here in the mission home. We bought two canaries to sing for us. I don't know how to teach them to sing, and they are not singing for us. Now we have to figure out what to do with two no-singing birds.

Finally, they have arrived.

We were so excited to welcome two new couples to our mission. The Petersons', on the left. are from Brigham City and they will be working with CES. The Boulters' on the right are from St. George and they will be helping us in our office. We have been so impressed with both couples. They will be a great asset to our mission.

The end of two good years.

This was a very special group of missionaries. It was sad to say good bye to them. We have them here from Bolivia, Chile, and Ecuador. They became good friends as well as good missionaries.

One of our biggest new group of missionaries.

There was 18 new missionaries in this group. It is hard to see their faces, but believe me, they were glowing with excitement. We have just one N American, Elder MacKay is 6'6" and so we had him sit down on the far right to not be over whelming. Elder Nunez from Argentina is on the back row on the far left had been on visa delay for three months. The group is large, so I will not be able to list them all by name, but we have them from Argentina, Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru. These are some sharp missionaries.

Our first group of North Americans to go home.

This was our first group of North American missionaries to go home. They were full of energy right up the end. We have Elder Barnard from Wyoming, Elder Smith from Utah, Elder Moen from Idaho, Elder Larsen from Texas, and Elder Lee from Utah.

The singing five.

These elders loved to sing. They said when they were in the MTC (CCM) in Provo, they were always singing, and everytime they got together here in Colombia they loved to sing as well. Before they left our home for the last time, they serenaded us with their beautiful harmony. We will miss them as missionaries and will miss their musical talents as well.

Covered a lot of miles.

As you can see this shoe was well worn. The hole goes right through the sole. This shows Elder Smith covered a lot of miles.

Summer to winter.

This photo shows what the parks are like in Bucaramanga in the summer months. This was taken last December. Who would have ever thought the grass would grow back in the winter time, but the next photo tells the story for the month of August.