This morning we went to find another hotel. I was all for staying in our missionary suite, but everyone else wanted to move. :) We found a place right on the beach. It is a resort actually, but since we didn't have a lot of options and didn't want to spend all our time looking, we took it. We went to lunch at the Parada families home. They are a member family that Griff got really close to when he served in Santa Marta. Brother Parada was the Branch President when Griff was on his mission here. He is now the District President. There is President and Sister Parada, Melany (who is serving a mission in Peru), Zeneth and her daughter Isabella, Kevin and Nelson in their family. Zeneth speaks pretty good English but no one else does. They LOVE Griff. Sister Parada told me thank you for sharing my son with her. She said that he was like a son to her. I was talking to Zeneth and I told her that where we live that there are quite a few Mormons but that many were not active. She was so surprised. She asked how that could be when we have Temples and the Prophet so close. It made me think about how blessed we are and how we take those things for granted. The Parada's have a rug on their wall that they attach missionary tags of the missionaries that they have helped while they served in Colombia. Griff never gave them one before he left so that was one of the gifts he brought them. Sister Parada was giving him a hard time about it and then she opened the tag and was so happy. Griff put it right up on the rug. They gave us each gifts and even had gifts for Bill, Erin, Jordan and Josh. They are so thoughtful. Again, they have very little materially but have everything that truely matters.....a close family and the gospel.
After the Parada's, we went to visit a family that Griff baptized. They are the Osorio family. The taxi dropped us off on the street and we had to walk on roads that they couldn't drive on. Their were people outside of their houses watching us. Griff said just to walk fast and not to make eye contact with them. The Osorio family live in a really small cinder block and cement home. Sister Osorio is the Relief Society President in her branch. President Parada said that she is so faithful. She comes to church every Sunday with her children rain or shine. Her husband isn't a member but he is grateful that his wife and children have the gospel and how it has blessed their lives. He told Griff that if he would come back and baptizee him he would be baptized. Griff told him if he worked with the missionaries and gained a testimony of the Book of Mormon that he would come back and do it. When Griff found them they weren't married. Sister Osorio wanted to get baptized but they had to be married first. It is very expensive to get married in Colombia so Griff and his companion helped them make things to sell to get enough money for them to get married. They have 4 children. Natalia is 13, twin boys that are 11, and a little girl who is 9. Natalia just hung on Griff. She was so happy to see him. She begged Griff and Whit to let her come to the US and live with them. She said that her dad said that they could adopt her so that she could live in America and have a better life. It has been such a wonderful experience to see how Griff changed their lives with the Gospel and his and Heavenly Father's love and how they changed Griff's life with their love.
We went back to the beach by our hotel with the Parada's and Natalia and went swimming. The water is so refreshing. It is so hot and humid. It was a great day! The hardest part of today is that Caitlin is at the hospital in labor. Roxanne, Whitney's mom, has been her nurse today so she has kept us updated. Hopefully we will get good news in the morning.
Goofey....
Loved this sweet, humble family!
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