So it's been over a month since our last post. We have been very busy because it's audit season. We had a trip to Sal, and in Santa Maria they had a convert baptism. We walked down the streets to the ocean because there isn't a baptismal font in Santa Maria.
This sweet sister has been attending church faithfully for quite a few moths. The boy is her 12-year-old son who is already a member of the Church. The missionaries are Elder Mangeris and Elder Lunt.
In order to baptize in the ocean, they have to choose a beach where there are not very many tourists. In this case, it means a beach with lots of rocks. So it's difficult to walk out into the water in bare feet. The missionary had to help the sister go out deep enough to perform the baptism.
After the baptism. Such joy! I love this image of the missionary lifting her up from the water, lifting her up to a new life.
This is the group of young men and young women in the Santa Maria Branch. The boy in back on the left is the son of the recent convert. A cool story: This was the Sunday after the baptism, the day his mom was confirmed. He is a deacon so he was passing the sacrament. When he came to pass the sacrament to his mom, he locked eyes with her and smiled real big. It was her first time partaking of the sacrament, and her son was passing it to her. His smile showed how proud he was of her for taking this step and making the changes she needed to make in her life. This little family will be a pillar of strength for this little branch.
A New Branch President and Clerk
Training a new branch president (Elder Peterson) and branch clerk (Elder Smith) regarding finances. This is the only unit in the whole mission with a missionary branch president and clerk. The two gentlemen in the middle are the district auditors there to perform an audit. These young men are so awesome! At their tender young age, they take on so much responsibility. It is surely training for great future responsibilities.
Rain!!!!!!!
The rains came!!!!!!! Unfortunately, then they stopped. We drastically need more rain so the people in Cape Verde will have crops to get through the year. Prayers, please!!!!
Morning walk in the rain :)
The landscape is SO different after just a little rain. Most of the year it is brown dirt.
New Friends
On our way to Tarrafal for an audit visit, we saw this couple on the side of the road way up in the mountains, a long way away from town. We stopped to see if they needed help, and offered them a ride. They were very grateful. At the top of the mountain, at a natural park, they had taken the public transportation van to go to Tarrafal, but the driver was way overcharging them, so they got out. Not even 20 seconds later, we came by and gave them a ride. They were so grateful. They are from Germany, and with their broken English, we were able to communicate somewhat. Coincidentally, we also ended up at the same restaurant for lunch and were able to visit with them some more. They had never heard of our Church before. I thought by now everyone had heard of us.
A New Missionary from Ecuador
Sister Cachiguango is from Ecuador. She served in the temple there while she waited to start her mission. So she served alongside Sister Fryer, Sister Alvarez' sister. Funny thing, everyone here has such a hard time remembering and pronouncing her name, that they call her Sister Campo :)
Mexico's Independence Day
Our trip to Sal coincided with Mexico's Independence Day, so of course we had to go to Cape Verde's one and only Mexican restaurant to celebrate.
The owner of the restaurant is from the same town Elder Alvarez is from in Mexico, so she is especially nice to us. This is her adopted Capeverdian daughter, who speaks Kriolu, Portuguese, and perfect Spanish.
One of the young adults that we are very close to in Cape Verde is Tony Fonseca, on the right. He lives in Sal now, so we invited him to dinner. The girl just started as a waitress at the restaurant, and she is from Tony's hometown of Tarrafal. She is also a member of the Church.
Sister Alvarez, Tony, Elder Alvarez, in Mexican garb :)
Fun Times
At a restaurant in Sal, Sister Alvarez started playing with a young girl that was there with her family. Sister Alvarez had a little plastic froggy that jumps. This precious girl was so afraid of bugs that it took her a long time to get comfortable with the idea of touching the little plastic frog, but she was having so much fun watching it jump!
Since we had a late flight home, and had to leave the hotel, we stopped by the greenhouse and small zoo that exhibits local vegetation and animals. It's a big tourist attraction, even though it's quite small.
At the Sal airport heading home :)
