Los Colombianos

There was a small group from Columbia this past week. They had been here last year but it was a couple of days before I finally recognized them. On Wednesday morning it dawned on me that they had been there the year before so I asked them if they recognized me. They said that they did. Then the memory of their previous visit came back to me and I recognized them. They had left Columbia Monday night and traveled thirteen hours before arriving in Guayaquil and settling into the alojamiento (lodging building). There is a temple in their own country but it is more than twenty hours away. They didn't waste any time before coming over to the temple and beginning their work. The five girls and two boys were the only patrons in the baptistry that morning. Since there was time left for more ordinances after they had all taken a turn, they did another session. In the afternoon the process was repeated. The oldest boy, Maicol, had completed the day with one hundred and seventy baptisms! The other children were not far behind. All week they came morning and evening to participate in the baptistry. On Thursday morning they came at 9:00AM. The adults had told them that they should not come until 10:00 because all of the adults would be busy in other parts of the temple and would not be able to be with them in the baptistry. Still they came early and patiently waited until the adults could come and help with the ordinances. All of them were surprisingly attentive and respectful all the time they were in the temple. After a morning trip to the beach on Friday they returned in the afternoon to do one more session before beginning their trip back home. We asked Maicol how many times he was baptized. "Eight hundred" he responded. As they were preparing to leave, they came up to the missionaries apartments to say goodbye. In the very short time of four days, these young people and the missionaries had developed a surprisingly close friendship. Tears were shed and hugs were given as they said their goodbyes. ...Our missions will end and circumstances are such that we probably will not see them again, but we will not soon forget them, those wonderful young people from Pasto, Columbia, South America. ...There was another unforgetable experience this week. I was sent to deliver a message to Sister Fuhriman and eventually found her in the nursery where a two year old boy was crying. The two sisters in the nursery were not able to console him. When I walked in, they said he needed a man and handed him to me. He immediately calmed down and was good with me but he would not go back to the sisters. I carried him to the sealing room when it was time for him to be sealed to his parents. Holding him during the sealing ceremony was a precious moment for me. One that will probably not be repeated while we are here. He was good the whole time. His name is Helam. ...The rains have come! It has been dry for a long time. The country has had to cut back on power because the water levels in the reservoirs has been too low to run the generators. The lights illuminating the outside of the temple have been off for a long time now. Now the rainy season is beginning! Everyone is hopeful that it will be a good rainy season. (II Nephi 9:51)