January 5th through January 11th

January 5^th through January 11^th:  Monday we went on an outing to see a restored organ in a church in one of the small towns east of Oaxaca called Tlacochuahuaya.  Say that fast 3 times.  Mom has wanted to find this town to see this restored organ.  Well, I have to say it was an amazing church.  Many of the painted walls were original with some of them having been restored and the organ was pretty cool also. 

Three cuties in front of the church in Tlacochahuaya.

The baptistry in the church in Tlacochahuaya.

The painted ceilings were beautiful and amazing.

The choir and organ loft.

Looking straight up at the dome.

The alter.

From the choir loft.

The restored organ.  It had a big bellows to provide the air.

L to R Elder and Sister Ray, mom and I, and Sister and Elder Roesberry.

We all gave this church a 10.

The courtyard of the convent attached to the church.

Next we decided to find the small town that makes red pottery, San Marcos Tlapazola.  Merritt had wanted to see this pottery, but we weren’t sure how to get there.  It was a little harder to find because there were no road signs.  It is really out in the middle of nowhere.  We first went to Tlacolula and then went through the town and asked a number of people how to get there.  The road was being worked on and we had to go on a detour through fields and the country side between the towns.  My nose-compass served us well, I did not get lost, but many doubted that I knew where we were or where we were going.  The pottery was very simple and utilitarian, but the women that made and sold the pottery were so cute and fun to tease and talk to, that it made it a very enjoyable side trip. To read more about these women you can follow the link below.

http://www.oaxacadream.com/articles/craft10.html

 

The small church in San Marcos Tlapazola.

I don't know where Ross is.  AWOL

The ceiling in this church was also painted beautifully.

The red pottery of San Marcos Tlapazola.

These are two sisters.  The one on the right had been to Arizona to demonstrate her pottery.

We teased each other and made each other laugh.  They are such happy people.

The sign that hangs over the door to their home and workshop.

It was a fun day and we enjoy being with the Rays and the Roesberrys and exploring all the small towns and interesting things to see and do.  The rest of the week, except for Saturday, was quite slow and mom and I had to find things to keep us busy.  But on Saturday we had 4 buses come and we had a wonderful day in the temple with the saints from Pachuca.  Saturday night, President Pena and I went to the airport to pick up President Atkinson and his wife, Kathy.  When we got out there, the airport was closed and being occupied by the teachers union.  We were lucky we made it to the parking lot.  We walked around the protesters, but could not get into the airport.  We saw through the window that their flight had been canceled.  We returned home and found out that half way into the flight, the pilot had to turn the airplane around and return to Houston because of the protesters at the airport.  Interesting times.  Sunday I went back out and picked them up.  Then Chris and I spoke in the Fortin Ward.  Mom did such a nice job, she had everyone in tears.  She told stories of some of the people who have come to the temple to do work for their ancestors and how we each need to come to the temple to receive blessings.  We had a coordinator’s meeting in the temple in the afternoon.  We tried to talk to our kids in the evening.  I think we got 4 of the 5.  I crashed before mom finished.  We think of our children every day and pray for them and know that they are being watched over by our loving Father in Heaven.  This is His work and we are thankful that we can be here and be a small part of helping to bring to pass the eternal life of His children.