Wonderful visit with the Rosales

President and Sister Rosales were released on March 15 and we were both honored at the last FHE for the Temple.  She had mentioned more than once that they would like to invite us to their home.  She sent an email which I answered but I guess that she didn't have email for a few weeks and never saw my answer.  This weekend she saw it, called and asked if we could come on Monday.  Then she said that her husband had suggested that we could come on Sunday evening and spend the night and they would bring us back after lunch on Monday.  We were both surprised.  Neither of us really felt that we knew him at all and my conversations with her had been quite limited.  We were free, honored that they would invite us and went.  What a wonderful closure to our mission it was.

They picked us up about 3:30 which was earlier than planned and we got home about the same hour the next day.  They live in San Jose Pinula which is an area that is only about a 15 minute drive from here when there isn't traffic but apparently it gets extremely congested regularly.  It was like stepping into a different world from what we have experienced.  The air was cooler and fresher and their housing area was very nice.
As we pulled into their neighborhood there was a little shopping strip mall that had a little of what your would need short term.  The gate for the entire neighborhood was there and had a scanner and then when we got to their section there was a guard letting people in and out.

Their condo was the last one in a row so they only had neighbors on one side and a beautiful country feel across the street and to the other side.  Their home had four bedrooms, three baths and luxuries we haven't seen it the few places where we have been like a dishwasher and built in microwave.
He is a civil engineer and spent most of his time working for the Church in the Central America area.  They said that they have "tightened their belts" and have been able to buy some other properties which he has and will continue to manage.

Although he speaks little English and Mike little Spanish they were able to talk about cars, watch movies and play chess.  Zenia and I did cooking and spent lots of time talking about natural healing.
We all took a walk in the evening and it was so lovely.  The sidewalks were smooth, there was almost no one driving down the street and the air was cool and fresh.  It amazed me that it could be so different so close.

We had breakfast on the patio.

After breakfast they drove us past the chapel where they had attended before the served in the temple (it has changed now) and then she and I walked the streets of the market and picked up some things.  It was so interesting to be with a native and she how she asked prices, selected products and pulled coins out of her pocket (no purse) to pay for items. 

They shared with us their story of how he met her in Honduras several years after he had finished his mission, he showed us his album of pictures from his mission to Senahu, they told us about his two brain surgeries in Utah  and she shared her photo album of her year spent in SLC living with the family of a missionary who had served in Honduras while she studied English at some program at Granite high School.

I'm not sure that she has shared with anyone the fact that she studied English.  She seldom spoke to me in more than a few words while I worked on shifts with her at the Temple but she totally opened up, translated for him and wanted to know how to say things in English.  (She wrote me an email in response to our thanks for the visit and asked if I would be willing to work with her on her English. ) Of course I am excited to do so.

 One of the fruits that we bought at the market was a cashew.  I understand why they are expensive.  Each fruit only has one nut.  She made the beverage behind the fruit and nut with the fruit.  She had us try a marandon, tomarindo, zapote, and jocotex, nance.  We had three kinds of drinks.  We spent about two hours cooking the salad (curtido) to go on top of tortilla for enchilada's.  It had peas, beans, carrots, beets, and cabbage and she cooked every one of them separately and then combined them so that the beets would color the whole thing.   The following are not especially good picture of the people but show the meal. There was also hamburger with a sauce and guacamole to put on them.  I'm afraid that I'd do some combining on the cooking but as she said, all Guatemalan foods are very time consuming to cook. 

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Mike and I both fell in love with this wood carving.  It is such a typical scene in the country to see men carrying huge loads of wood on their backs.

Their living room was lovely with a sitting area in front of a fireplace and the other couches in conversation setting at the other end of the room.

I had to go upstairs one more time and out onto their balcony to get a picture of the beautiful view that they have from their home. I told them that that little trip was like the frosting on a delicious cake. It was such a pleasure to get to know them better and see their part of this interesting country. 

PS - He had an interview with the Area Seventy last week.  I'm waiting to see if we hear his name at conference on Sunday.  At breakfast, after telling us about his brain surgeries he said that his life is the Lords in gratitude of his healing.  Time will tell.