Has anything changed?

If one is going to compare two things it should be apples to apples or oranges to oranges not apples to oranges. It's a little difficult to make comparisons of Ecuadorean culture to Mexican culture because I have not been to Mexico for over 45 years. But somethings seem to never change. Ted and I visited his old mission when he graduated from BYU. We rode the same train he had riden and walked the same dirt roads he walked when he served in the South Buenos Aires Mission. What struck me as we watched out the train window, was not the change that had taken place but rather the lack of change. It so much looked like the mexico that I had known in the late 50's. The buildings were unchanged as were the roadways, utilities, stray animals, and modes of transportation. Also unchanged (happily) was the friendliness of the people. We were greeted with warmth and affection wherever we went. I felt like bringing some of those nice people home with me especially some of the children and give them a better chance in life.
Now here we are in Ecuador 2009. It could be said that things are the same here as they have been for fifty years (or hundreds of years). Much of the building is the same. The construction methods are still primitive by our standards. It may be that government policies for people having jobs gives little incentive to have modern construction equipment that might take away jobs. We saw a large building being constructed using a single, old cement mixer and moving the mud by wheelbarrow. But there were workers getting in each others' way. One of our fellow missionaries worked for thirty years for a power company. He said that the wires everywhere "scared him to death". Much more could be said about how things are the same here and nothing changes, but let's consider what has happened with the church.
President Kimball dedicated this country for missionary work in 1964. Since then miraculous things have happened. There are upwards of 80 thousand members. There are thirty plus stakes, three missions, complete functioning wards with primary, Relief Society, Young Men and Young Women programs, Institutes of Religion associated with the Universities, Seminaries, employment programs, and everything else that enhances the lives of the people especially the temple. For the past two days there have been members from Otavalo visiting the temple. There were many young people and recent converts to participate in baptisms. There were few opportunities to find out about their lives, but a few things did come out. Several of them are successful in business. Otavalons are world famous for their products: colorful clothing, wall hangings, leather goods, etc. One brother I spoke with has a sweater manufacturing business and employs over 120 people. He has accounts in New York, Minnesota, Wisconsin, and Santa Fe , NM. Another brother has a successful import/export business and so on. Yet in this group of indigenous saints visiting the temple there were also families that were much less well to do but seemed to blend well with their brothers and sisters. In the church there is a wide variety of people, not just their financial situation but even the way they look. There were people who were very black and very light and every color in between. There were two little boys who had to stand on the bottom step of the font to keep their head above the water and some who were very tall. They are all bound by a mutual respect (an attitude perhaps norished by their church membership), a common language, a unique cultural heritage, and a desire to blend all of these into a people who may be an important part of the future of Ecuador. Some things do change. Some things even change for the better.