Last February we set aside two mornings for missionary training. At the end of the first day, we were surprised to open our "mission call" stating that we were assigned to a Spanish speaking ward in West Jordan. What a laugh for two oldsters who don't speak Spanish! Well we jumped in and the ward members were very welcoming. Most speak great English and we thought it would be good for us to try to learn Spanish.
After a few months of figuring out what service missionaries are supposed to do (help people find jobs, connect with medical/dental care, obtain scholarships, and whatever else the bishop asks us to do to help ward members become self-reliant), we were asked to serve as ESL Specialists for the 60 wards and units from Tooele to Park City. We came home and almost laughed, stating to each other "Aren't we glad that neither one of us is too proud to say no to a calling?" Well with time and prayer, we came to the decision that we could do this, with the Lord's help.
Here's our show and tell. Check out our ESL Resources website. It's not fancy but it's our best technique for communicating the information we've gathered. Be sure to see The Joke Page.
We've had ups and downs these past nine months: feeling like we belong and aren't butting in, helping young people go forward in their education, amazing parties that last for hours and offer new taste treats, ward members who are faithful, humble followers of Christ, other senior missionaries who sacrifice their time, means and energies for the glory of God, learning things we would never face in our sheltered Holladay ward. The downs include wishing we understood Spanish better, observing what a challenge it is to start over in a new country, the manana mentality, and not having a handbook of instructions. But it's all worth it and fun to do together!
