Lynn and JaAnna Nelson Family: Week 97 from Mexico

3 July 2011

Hola! Things are really picking up as we near the close of our mission. Our schedule is filling up fast. Monday we enjoyed an evening with the FHE group at the Clarks. Their lessons are always very uplifting and taught with the spirit. We are really going to miss this group of friends.

Tuesday, since most museums are free on Tuesdays, Lynn and I decided to go visit a couple of museums in downtown Monterrey. They are both close to one end of the canal ride where we have gotten on in the past, and were full of displays about the history of Monterrey and Mexico in general. The Museo de Historia Mexicana had a temporary display on the main floor themed around Mexico in the '60's. It was interesting to see some of the things that were happening here in Mexico at the same time that Lynn and I were teenagers, some of which were very much part of American history as well. The museum is considered one of the most important museums of northern Mexico. There were many displays with life-size figures displayed with art work that made for very interesting displays. Right next to it was the Museo del Noreste which was more focused on the history on the northeastern parts of Mexico which include the states of Nuevo Leon [which is where Monterrey is located], Coahuila, Tamaulipas and Texas. There were six levels, each with displays for the different historical periods. We would have also gone to a third museum that was in close proximity, the Museo Del Palacio, which has works of art, photographs, and antiques but I was exhausted after the two so we called it quits. I only got a few pictures of the '60's display as they had a restriction on taking pictures in the museums. Oh, well, I guess memory will just have to do.

Wednesday evening we spent some time at the Neils. She needed me to help her learn how to do some things on the computer. We spent most of the evening with me showing her how to copy or transfer the pictures she had on several ScanDisks from her two cameras. As she didn't know how to transfer them from her camera to the computer they had just bought more ScanDisks so she had several very full disks. Now she knows how to transfer the pictures and can reuse the ScanDisks that she has. They also had a external hard drive that they had bought but thought it was just something for extra memory but she didn't know how to use it. I took a look and found that it was actually an external hard disks where she had a good place to copy all her pictures to and have a good back up. Her main goal is to prepare a Powerpoint presentation to tell about their mission when they get home but she had no clue as to how to do it. So on Saturday morning we went back so I could show her how to use the Powerpoint program. In the process I also showed her how to use Piscasa, which she had on her computer but didn't know how to use to organize, edit and share her pictures. She was very excited to learn both programs and will be spending the next couple of weeks in preparing a presentation with the hopes of having the basic presentation done before we leave so she can show it to me and I can give her some suggestions and pointers for improvement. Afterwards the Neils took us to a fish restaurant, Los Arcos, that they have enjoyed going to. We enjoyed the meal and the time spent visiting. The waiter even gave each of us ladies a rose as we were leaving. They are a very sweet couple and we will miss them immensely.

They have been replacing many of the bridges that were taken out last year by the hurricane, one of which is one that is by the destroyed Parque de Canoas. Lynn, during his many long walks, has been watching it's progress as it's been completed. It's now done and in use. We went by it yesterday and I took some pictures. I'll post some so you can compare to what it looked like last year.

As today was fast and testimony meeting I decided it was my last chance to share with the ward members here my testimony and to thank them for their friendship and love and patience with me as I've not been very successful in learning the language. The only way to do that was for me to read it so that's what I did. I'm getting pretty good at reading Spanish I just can't communicate or understand it when it's spoken to me, especial at the speed with which the people here speak. I have a few simple phrases down pretty good, such as “Buenos días, Buenas tardes, or Buenas noches” depending on the time of day, and “¿Cómo estás?” answered with “Muy buen”. I can say a prayer in Spanish and have had several opportunities to do so both in church and during our training meetings at the temple. I can sing songs in Spanish and can even pronounce the rolled “r” when singing, just not very good when talking. I've gotten very good at charades and use that a lot when trying to communicate. You would think after almost two years I would have been more successful, but I didn't put forth enough effort. I learned enough to get by and depended on Lynn for most everything else. Maybe if we go to another Spanish speaking mission I'll have a little more success the second time around. Who knows.