Six Weeks but Who's Counting...

Baby Eli and CP enjoying a moment

The weeks seem to slip by here in La Molina. For several weeks now in the temple both RA and I are able to complete all of our assignments as Obreros or ordinance workers.  The language is still a challenge of course but we are learning a few more words and things every day. Having worked in the Bountiful Temple for so many years helps a great deal here.  There is no question about the need there is in the temple for us. Most of the Peruano workers are there for one shift or one day. That means RA and I are about the equivalent of 10 other workers.  We sometimes take the earliest session and some days the last one on the shift.  We are not trying to get to or from work, or to a second job or to family. We don't have to ride a long time on the crowded buses to get to or from the temple. Our lives are pretty easy here.

We have always loved our Peruvian and Latino friends in Utah and appreciated their great food, hospitality and friendship but being here for these past weeks we have only grown to appreciate and love them more.  We observe the effort they give to accomplish what they do and often with so little.  The other Monday and Tuesday we watched a singular construction worker replace a section of sidewalk near our favorite grocery store Tottus.  He started early in the day on Monday and was digging out the area that needed concrete. The concrete was delivered in reused concrete bags and set to the side of his work site.  He used pick and shovel to clear the area.  Following the site prep he manually began mixing the bags of cement, the rocks and sand together on the street with his shovel and a little water, no cement mixer required even though it could easily have taken several mixers full. He worked throughout the day mixing and pouring and troweling. By nightfall on Tuesday in the lights the portion of the sidewalk was done.  I doubt he earned much for his solo back breaking construction job.  The area was taped off and now we walk on it on our way to the market.

We also had a couple boys come and install a bathroom vanity around our sink.  Their work was much the same. They carried the wood and their tools, used hand saws, measured and cut and framed it in then called the shop with the measurements for the doors.  They went outside and waited in front of our apartment for several hours while the shop made the doors. RA took them out some fruit, cookies and sodas while they waited.  The doors came, which they installed, then off they went with their tools to catch a bus back to wherever they were going.

Such is the nature of the Peruanos here. They make do with what they have. They are happy and they work hard.  We live in some amount of comfort and luxury by Lima standards. We have easy jobs in a beautiful place that is AC'ed and we wear white suits.  We are treated as being very special and appreciated for the little sacrifice we make in being temple workers. We are complimented for our ability to speak a few words with our best pronunciations. Spanish is a beautiful language, especially as we hear it from our fellow workers in the temple.

The only thing we miss of course is family and friends. The time is going by quickly and we will once again enjoy the company of grandsons and a granddaughter.