Today was our last Sunday in the Tolhuaca branch. Mary and I both spoke in church and I taught the priesthood lesson. I guess we made the most of our last Sunday. Afterwards, the branch members were nice enough to have a linger-longer for us.  Here is a look at the spread.

These are all items very traditional for a gathering here - including Coke and fruit juice.

They gave us a gift as well.

We will display it at home and will be reminded of many happy memories gathered in our 11+ months in the Tolhuaca branch.

The protests have kept up all week. It seems that anybody that has a cause can join in to promote that cause which approach seems less effective to me.

I hadn't been downtown since it all started and I needed to check to see if the immigration office had modified hours so I went today. Several large banks and retailers had their windows and doors covered with wood or they left down their roll-up protection they usually just roll down at night. There was plenty of graffiti but the rain seem to have subdued the crowds. (I saw people there trying to sell the horns, flags, etc. that protesters have been using but there weren't many people buying.)

I saw one march while I was there.

 This one seemed to have primarily an indigenous people's complaints theme although there were many different flags many of which didn't seem to have a connection. The smoke is from a road flare being carried by one protester.

We hold a special fast tomorrow and will pray for calm to be restored.

So, we have had some excitement in Chile over the past several days.  It seems that a protest which started because of increased fares for public transportation expanded to include grievances in a number of different areas.

The missionaries were advised to stay inside unless they had fixed appointments. We stayed inside until the early evening and then went out to see what was happening.

The busy street we use all of the time was blocked off and there was a large group of young people gathered close to the intersection with the busiest street in town. We got up close but Mary was uncomfortable so we backed away before taking a picture. Stores, including the very busy mall close to us, and restaurants that are never closed during business hours were closed. Most of the vandalism we saw on Sunday morning was cleaned up. 

Here's hoping things calm down soon.

Yesterday, we took some things to the sisters in Pitrufquén and saw these Azaleas in the neighbor's yard.

It is a wonderful time of year.

Thursday evening, we taught our first English Connect class. There will be 25 classes in all.

It should be an interesting adventure.

This is a very beautiful time of year to be where we are. Everything is greening up and many of the farms are covered with yellow Canola flowers.  Here is a picture we took on our way home from Victoria.

A couple of weeks ago, we visited with a family and the father accepted our challenge to prepare to be sealed to his family. Before I left, I asked his 6-year-old twins to draw me a picture of the family and bring it to church.  Here is what the little girl drew.

I sent it to her father pointing out that, without my prompting, she drew the family in white. From the colored pencils of babes.

This week we say goodbye to seven missionaries who are finishing up - five of whom we interacted with.  We were able to go to the temple with four of them and two of their companions on Tuesday.

Of the five we worked with, three are Latinos, including the two sisters on either side of Mary. As noted before, we are particularly sad to say goodbye to the Latinos because odds aren't good we will see them again.

As I have stated before, one of the great blessings of our mission is the opportunity to interact frequently with the young missionaries. Yesterday, I had the opportunity to interact with a companionship while helping one with his BYU application.

Please meet Elder Zuniga (Honduras) and Elder Prophete (Haiti). Both are highly intelligent men to whom you are drawn by their cheerful demeanor and contagious smiles. I call Elder Prophete "Elder Colchón" (Elder mattress) because he asked for new mattresses twice when we were new to the mission. He is such a delightful man that I couldn't tell him "no." (Also, the president told us to be responsive to mattress requests so the missionaries get their sleep.)

OK. This recurring theme may be getting worn out but us old guys like to tell our stories.

Yes, the trunk and back seat are jammed full, so full that our seats had to be moved all the way forward. On top we have all the components of a metal bunk bed - wrapped in a tarp because it was a rainy day and we didn't want the hermanas to have to sleep on wet mattresses. Most of the space inside was taken up by a third bed and some large, heavy suitcases. We were so full, Mary had to carry something on her lap again. We drove just over 50 km this way and I am pleased to report that the load was very stable.

This post may not hold up to my usual high standard of being very interesting to some of you. However, it is interesting to me.

As we drive around Chile, we see many automobile makes of which I have never heard. I found an auto service company that displays the logos of all the makes it services.

This isn't a complete list but it gives you a sense. Additionally, we see models from the makes we recognize that are foreign to us. For instance, we see a lot of VW pickups here.

No need to thank me for making this one of the most special days of your life.