Sister Norman wanted to have a Marimba Band on Monday for Family Home Evening to celebrate her birthday and a temple counselor's birthday. They went all out with decorations and pine needles on the floor (as is tradition) along with the band. The pine needles made it a little difficult to dance, but they are supposed to make it easy to slide your feet while dancing.
We are standing behind the marimba before the fiesta began. This is in the courtyard of the president's home and we used the open garage as the dance floor.
The marimba band played all kinds of music. They were awesome and typical of the Guatemalans. They use a special kind of wood for the marimba that they grown in Guatemala.
There was a dance instructor that taught us how to do the basic steps and then we sometimes reverted back to our teenage years and did the twist, pony, swim, and even the bunny hop. It was a lot of fun. There were about 30 people that came, so we got better aquainted and enjoyed a fun "birthday party."
We went shopping on Monday before preparing for the party and then went to a new Dollar City on Tuesday morning for some things that we really didn't need.
The temple was so busy Tuesday night. We had the 2:00 session and then they started the last session at 8:20. So it made a long day. The last session is supposed to start at 7:00. Anyway, there was some thunder and lightning and it was difficult for this ward, that comes every Tuesday, to get there on time, so when they arrived, President Rosado started a session for them.
Every day this week was busy and it was a joy to see new brides, missionaries, and older people receive the blessings of the temple. There was a mother and daughter who stayed the whole week and did ordinances every day. We had one session where there was a whole room full of sweet Guatemalans from the country. They were short and had tiny hands - but giants spirits. What a joy to serve here.
Dale woke up Thursday morning with some concerns for his heart skipping beats. He said that it had been getting worse this last week. So we are checking it out to make sure all is well.
