a word from hannah m. (and ben)

The week we spent in Ixtlan with Grant, Hannah and Ivory was great. - Ben

Now Hannah's version...

We flew into the Guadalajara airport on Wednesday. After Adrienne Lehman arrived we went out to eat while waiting for Mike and Deb Leman to fly in. We enjoyed talking and getting to know each other during our 2.5 hour bumpy drive to Ixtlan. We had a brief tour of the AC community (consisting of 2 houses the church the school and the guest house). We then had our first of many late nights at Grant and Hannah's house.

On Thursday we enjoyed going to the city of Zamora. We walked through the open markets and then experienced a taste of home... Walmart and Home Depot. Grant and Hannah took us out to eat at a really good authentic restaurant in town. We discovered a use for cucumbers that night. They really help take the sting out of you mouth and lips after eating really spicy food. In the evening we were blessed to attend church. We enjoyed attempting to sing along with the congregation even though we didn't know what we were singing. We figured it was probably a great sermon but I think we only got about 4 words out of the whole evening:) After playing games and chatting late into the evening we headed back to our humble abode in the guest house.

Friday morning Ben, Deb and I visited the local pharmacy for a much needed antibiotic for me. It is quite handy that all antibiotics other than narcotics are over the counter in Mexico. We then spent the day helping Grant and Hannah with some projects around the house. I helped paint Ivorys room. Hannah was a big fan of Ben. That was because Ben hung three fans and two light fixtures. (that was Ben's line:)) That evening Grant and Hannah went to Zamora for a Bible study and Ben and I along with Ivory went to Matt and Ruth Gerber's house for the evening. Adrienne, Deb and Laurie joined us there also. (Herbie and Laurie Knochel from Phoenix flew in a little closer to the weekend to be here to help with baptisms) It was so nice to gather with English speaking people. Little Caleb Gerber decided that night that I was his new best friend and he stayed attached to me the rest of our visit :)

Saturday was a busy day for Grant and Hannah. They had several meetings so we babysat Ivory and toured the town along with Adrienne. We enjoyed seeing the markets and the many taco stands. We attended four converts' testimonies in the evening. Thankfully this time we had a translator so we were able to understand the evening. It was a neat opportunity to see how God works in the lives of so many people. The age range of converts varied from 24 to around 80. After testimonies several of us walked to the plaza and bought fresh tacos and lime covered cucumbers. Then we talked and played games at Grant and Hannah's again. One of the Mexicans played with us so that was fun.

Sunday was a nice day at church. We listened to sermons that were interpreted and witnessed four baptisms. It was a very encouraging day. after a siesta and lunch we went back to the church for a singing. Once again attempting to sing the right words. After the singing Ben enjoyed playing a game of volleyball with several of the members from church. It was a rather entertaining game to watch :) We then said good bye to Mike and Deb and Herbie and Laurie. Grant and Ben drove them to Guadalajara. They enjoyed the talks and a story of a rather scary experience Mike and Deb had in Mexico. (Ben thought it to be a good idea to tell me the story at midnight) Lets just say I had a hard time getting to sleep that night :( Grant and Ben enjoyed there peaceful ride home without out there rather wordy wives input on every conversation. Meanwhile Hannah, Adrienne and I enjoyed having good heart to heart talks :)

Singing Sunday morning before church

Ivory loved it.

Monday was our last full day here. Hannah and I went on a walk around the plaza visiting the various markets and stores while Ben accompanied Grant to a few jobs Grant had lined up. Hannah, Adrienne and I enjoyed relaxing in the sun and chatting for a little while before Hannah helped Roberto with his homework. While she was busy with that I attempted to play with some of the kids from the school. I tried to teach them how to play knockout:) For all those people who make fun of me for using my hands when I talk... It actually comes in very handy when explaining a game without speaking Spanish. They did eventually catch on and they really enjoyed the game. I was so excited that by the end they had learned two words... out and winner:) That evening we visited Roberto's mom, siblings, and Grandma and sang to them. That right there was the most powerful sermon. Roberto's Grandma was bound to her bed, frail, in a small run down house and yet she sang praises to our Lord. She had them all memorized and you could see the Joy and the love that she has toward our heavenly father. Ben and I walked out of her house with a whole new perspective on life. We then enjoyed our last evening playing games and chatting at Grant and Hannah's house. We also got the most amazing tacos and the local taco stand for supper.

We enjoyed experiencing the Mexican culture. There were a few things to get used to though.... such as not flushing your toilet paper, eating breakfast at 10 lunch at 3 and supper at 8, and trying not to think about the scorpions and black widows. (That was actually only hard for me not Ben.) We both like the relaxed atmosphere. We also appreciated seeing the continuity between baptisms here and the US churches. Ben's Favorite part was probably church. I would say my most memorable part was visiting Roberto's Grandma.... or maybe seeing a real pig head sitting on a meat counter... or maybe the chickens and goats that woke me up every morning....

We were so thankful to be able to spend some time learning more about Grant and Hannah's mission down here. We have been very blessed this past week. Thanks so much Grant and Hannah and little Ivory:)

We loved having Ben & Hannah here - they were so encouraging to us, and so good at being flexible and going with the flow. They helped a ton with Ivory on a busy weekend, and Ivory warmed up to them right away. We are so thankful for your friendship and were blessed by your week here!