Cambios

Every mission in the world experiences change week. It's the week when the missionaries who have finished their mission go home, and the ones who are just starting their labors arrive. Anybody who has ever changed the visiting or home teaching assignments in a ward, or who has scheduled workers for a temple shift knows that once you change one person, a domino effect starts and many more people than originally intended end up receiving changes. Because we never have the same number of people going home as are coming, President Sloan and the assistants spend a good deal of time before cambios (changes or transfers) trying to make sure that the right people end up in the right places.

I don't know about other missions, but cambios (changes or transfers) here are exhausting. Late Monday night, the new North American missionaries arrive from the MTC. The Sloans and the assistants meet them at the airport. Although they are strong spirits, they are a little shell-shocked once they realize that all that Spanish they've been studying for two months in the MTC is quite different from actually having to speak it every day, all the time. On Tuesday, the new Latino missionaries arrive and all begin to get acquainted with Quito. The Sloans and the Assistants go back out to the airport to pick them up. They have dinner with President and Hermana Sloan. Meanwhile, the new trainers have all traveled to Quito and all of the male trainers and new male missionaries bunk in a single apartment here in the city. The smart ones go to sleep. The foolish ones stay up and talk.

I have to interrupt the recitation of the itinerary to tell a story about Hermana Rivera, one of our new missionaries. It was decided that this time, once the Latins arrived at the airport, all of the new missionaries would be taken to the park, given a Book of Mormon and told to teach someone about the book and give it to them. This is the part where the rubber hit the road for the North Americans. I was not there, but I understand some of them swallowed pretty hard.

When President Sloan called later in the evening, he told me that Hermana Rivera had given her Book of Mormon away, and returned to get another. She took off, gave that one away and returned to the car for another. President Sloan reported that he saw her SKIPPING across the parking lot. "Honest to goodness," he said, "she was SKIPPING across the parking lot." I don't know about you, but I don't remember the last time I saw a full-grown adult woman skipping. She gave away three Books of Mormon while everyone else gave away one. Hermana Rivera is an animal!

The next day, we have a six-hour training session. The new kids meet their trainers, spend some time planning with them, and take off for their new assignments. Meanwhile, the zone leaders are traveling to Quito to prepare for zone leader council the next day. There were probably 40 people at dinner in the mission home on Wednesday night, including the missionaries who were finishing their mission the next day, the zone leaders, the office staff and the Sloan family. Hermana Sloan is embarrassed because of the carloads of food she buys at the SuperMaxi weekly. She is always feeding missionaries for one reason or another. For example, she brings bags of cookies to zone conference to give away during interview day. She laughs and says the people at SuperMaxi probably think she's quite the cookie pig.

Throughout the day on Wednesday, missionaries are moving through the mission to their new assignments. They get lost. They can't find their new companions. They don't know what to do. They call the office. I spend my day answering panic-stricken phone calls and running upstairs to the training room to apprise the Assistants. Finally, late in the day, everyone is safely in their new sector.

That evening, we had yet another lovely and tasty dinner at the Sloans, and then the spiritual feast began. The departing missionaries bore their testimonies. This time, two sisters and a former assistant left. They have all been wonderful missionaries, leaders and trainers, and we will miss them. Then, in response to requests from missionaries about how President Sloan studies the scriptures, he taught us how he looks for principles embedded in the scriptures that he can apply in his own life. As I sat next to their vast picture window looking out over Quito and listening to President Sloan teach, I thought of the Oliver Cowdery's recollection of his role as scribe as Joseph Smith translated the Book of Mormon: "These were days never to be forgotten—to sit under the sound of a voice dictated by the inspiration of heaven, awakened the utmost gratitude of this bosom!" I felt at that moment that I would, for the rest of my life, look back and remember the precious blessings of my mission.





Thursday, the Zone Leaders and Assistants met with President and Hermana Sloan in Zone Leader Council. There they review the performance of the mission and counsel together about how to improve training and performance. Our zone leaders are solid future leaders of the church, and when they are together in a room, the power of the spirit is palpable. It is my favorite meeting of the whole change cycle. They are 20 and 21-year-old men charged with the responsibility of leading the preaching of the gospel in their individual zones. And they carry the responsibility with grace and humility. Finally, training ends and they go back to their zones.

Oh, I forgot. The office elders spend the day running back and forth to the airport seeing off the departing missionaries. I continue to carry messages and materials up and down the building.

On Monday, Hermana Ward and I agreed that if we survived change week, we would celebrate at Rusty's. Rusty is an older gentleman who has served American/style hamburgers here in Quito for over 30 years. And he has ROOT BEER! With that kind of motivation (okay, we probably would have gone to Rusty's even if we hadn't survived the week), we all made it through with flying colors. In the spirit of change week, Elder Ward even asked Rusty what he knew about our church. He said they are Christians (many people think we are not) and he had differences with our theology. But he also added he has been serving missionaries with pleasure for over 30 years. Apparently, it only took four days after his original opening for the missionaries to find his restaurant. We love Rusty. I'm sure he will serve many more of us in the years to come.

By the time I got home on Thursday night, I was completely exhausted--much like, I'm sure, everyone else involved in change week. I've taken this weekend to get mentally and emotionally prepared for the next round of endeavors that begin next week--zone conferences!

Please don't misunderstand. I wouldn't have it any other way. I love my mission.