surprises

Dear Family,

It has been quite the week here in Cajamarca. The rains came back to visit - for the moment they're making quite a bit of noise on the roof. Luckily the streets don't flood here: the whole city is designed to transport all precipitation (which, incidentally, carries most garbage left in the street along with it) downhill and to the rivers through a series of gutters and canals. But that doesn't solve the problem that we came all the way to the internet station without rainjackets or umbrellas. I'm told that "summer" starts here in May and lasts till about December. They say it won't rain any more in May. I think it's the third month I've heard that (and I've only been here about two..). Summer here implies frigid mornings and hot days with infrequent rain. I've been good about using sunscreen, mostly because it provides a little bit of moisturizer and the air is pretty dry here.

My new companion is Elder Iverson, who comes from Albuquerque, New Mexico. He's got about 5 months in the mission, but his Spanish is wonderful. I imagine it has to do a little bit with the culture he lived in. Anyways, we're working fantastically together. This week was something special: we spent a lot of time searching for new people to teach, and the Lord put people in our path in unexpected ways. We sang hymns ("Families Can Be Together Forever") and bore testimony standing atop a large, cement sombrero, the central feature in one of the nearby parks. We helped unload groceries from the back of a taxi and talked to everyone we could. We climbed flights of stairs in large (and slightly unsanitary) apartment buildings. Hundreds of people got to hear the phrase, "Somos misioneros de la Iglesia de Jesucristo..." and several of them got to hear in depth why we're here.

There was a baptism this week, and Saturday afternoon I was a little worried about the organization of the event. Who was going to fill the baptismal font? Who was going to do the baptizing? Who had the keys to the chapel? Who was going to talk? Would there be a musical number? I was a little surprised, however pleasantly, to find that the bishopric had planned it all already. Although we still had a little part in the program (a little talk about the baptismal covenant), for the first time in a while, I was able to attend a baptismal service in peace. Nevertheless, that was only the beginning of my joy. In Sacrament Meeting, a new Ward Mission Leader was called and sustained. I also received the opportunity (another surprise) to confirm the investigator who was baptized. Also, there was an activity announced for this week involving the Relief Society Presidency and the Missionaries (lots of surprises this weekend), a giant Family Home Evening. Somewhere, somehow, the entire ward decided that it was going to work with us. I love surprises.

Today we walked around downtown, looking at what the stores had to offer in the way of handcrafted, cultural items. We didn't buy anything, though we did decide to come back another day. We walked around the Plaza de Armas and took several pictures. After that, we hiked the short distance to the Santa Apolonia Church - or rather, to the base of the enormous staircase and garden that leads up to the church - and took pictures from the bottom. You can imagine a little what it's like if you picture the stereotypical 1000-step, treacherously steep stairs of famous, ancient-American ruins (it doesn't have quite so many steps, however).

I'm loving the work here. There are so many amazing things happening, and I don't want it to stop. I appreciate your letters and your prayers, and I hope all is going well in those wedding preparations and schoolwork.

Love,
Elder Withers