After she went to the temple, Sis. Valencia had a baptism to experience on her way home. The convert is a lady Sis. Valencia found and taught starting about 5 weeks earlier. Her companion arranged the service for 9 p.m. In the picture are Sis. Vergara, Sis. Castellanos who is the new missionary who replaced Sis Valencia and is baptizing on her first day in the field, and Sis. Valencia who is baptizing on her last.

On the way home we gather all the departing missionaries for exit interviews, a final "zone conference"--a meeting of instruction, dinner and testimony meeting at the mission home, and they go to the temple. This is the final zone conference which we convene in the council room of the mission office. The missionaries all all Mexicans except two sisters as noted. Elders Martinez Pineda, Gutierrez, Martinez, Castañeda, Villanueva, Rangel, Rodriguez, Cherón, Chan, Flores, Reyes, Garza, and Hnas. Sanchez (Nicaragua), Moreira, Rodriguez (Guatemala), and Valencia.

The missionaries are Elders Rangel, one of the assistants, and Elder Reyes the materials secretary. They went home the same day on March 25, 2009. This was the day of their final interview and is taken in front of the board that has all the missionaries on it organized by area of assignment. It changes every six weeks. Sometimes tough guy Mexicans pose with their nose in the air and their eyes squinting. Elder Rangel, who is one of the nicest young men you will ever meet, has the pose perfect. Mom is just too nice and can't do it without smiling.

Our minivan blew up. It is not burning oil but has "blow by" meaning that a ring in one of the cylinders is cracked or otherwise demolished. So, oil blows by the piston and out through the tailpipe. At least one liter of oil is required each time we gas up. The Church deals with this stuff, but this part of the Church is in Mexico City. They said to park it and rent something while they decide what to do. We contacted Hertz Rentals--I am not making this up--and told them we needed a minivan. This is what we got. We thought about parking it on the lot, but didn't want to get arrested (Ha!) for littering. To fully appreciate this Hertz Rental, click on the foto to enlarge.

Next door to the mission home is a vacant lot. It has been full of weeds and other growth higher than the fence. It is certainly a breeding ground for mosquitos and lots of other bugs and rats and vermin and. . . . In the meantime, Mom has been praying, sort of, that the city (Ha!) would clean it up. Well, her "sort of" prayer was answered. It took two evenings of work with big equipment but it was cleaned. Then a real estate company wrote a for sale add on the back wall and posted the big yellow sign which warned that litterers would be prosecuted. (Ha!)

There is traditional images of the Crucifixion and of the Virgin of Guadalupe. Inside there was also small basin to sprinkle babies at their baptism which can be seen in the center of the second picture. Over the top of the rectory was a canvas semi-circular awning type structure, white with green and red letters--the colors of the Mexican flag. It said, "¿Que te preocupes? No estoy. Que soy tu madre. Estás bajo mi sombra." "Why are you worried? I am not here. I am your Mother. You are under my shadow [grace/protection]." Worship of the virgin is a huge battle with our investigators. She is ahead of the Father and the Son in their priorities of belief, or superstition.

On the top of the pyramid we scaled is this prayer chapel. It was locked, but we could stick the camera in through broken windows and take a couple of pictures. Inside there was a recording playing two univeral Christmas Carols over and over. One was "Silent Night" and the other was "Rudolph the Red-nosed Reindeer." Yup. That's the truth.