Christmas Day Phone Call

Elder Bell in front, then Elder Hulme, then Elder Guinn

The plan was, Xander would call around 3:30pm our time, and we would call him right back so the charges would be on our line.  We worked on a puzzle to pass time, and finally, after 4:30, he called.  We called back and heard, "We're sorry, this call cannot be completed on this line."  We tried adding 1, taking away 1, checking the country code, calling Comcast from my cell phone to see if we had some international calling problems, calling from all of our cell phones.  We could not get through.  Finally, Xander called back.  He had to go purchase some calling cards, and just make the call from their cell phone.

1)  He hates the dogs.  In Suriname, they are all straggly, barking, mangy beasts that roam the city and are irritating.  Fortunately, they are not vicious dogs.

2)  On Christmas day, all the elders had breakfast at the senior couple's home, the Jansens.   They love the senior couple and it sounds like the Jansens take great care of the elders.  Then they went to the nursing home and wheeled folks over to the church for a Christmas lunch.  He said that was fun.  He didn't think his lady could talk at all, but when he finally parted with her, she spoke perfectly and thanked him.  Later they went to the zone leader's house and watched Toy Story 3.  When we were talking to him, there were huge fireworks going on outside and dogs barking.

3)  He loves the fruit in Suriname, especially the mangoes.  They eat lots of rice and beans and noodles.  The milk is terrible, nothing like our milk.  I get the impression that it's kind of like diluted canned milk in a carton.

4)  He misses large grocery stores.  There are only small markets and you have to visit several of them to find what you need.

5)  He has not seen the ocean yet.

6)  He loves the city.  He suspects that he may stay in the city for the remainder of his mission.

7)  Lots of people ride motor scooters.  He saw one guy riding a motor scooter with two monkeys on his back, and the monkeys looked scared to death.

8)  He spoke some Dutch to us, but it was really hard to understand through the speaker phone.

9)  Just a few days earlier, he decided to get a Christmas tree.  He went into the front yard and cut down a frond from a palm tree.

10)  The Christmas package I sent him did not arrive on time.  He wasn't upset.  Makes me sad, though.

He wears flip flops inside because of all the sand that enters their house.

11)  He says there is one church building in Suriname, and 4 additional buildings that the church rents.  The branch that he attends is good-sized and has great church members.   The branch is larger and stronger than the branch he attended in Alabama.

12)  He told us to enjoy some skiing for him.

Overall, he sounded great.  He seemed happy. We are so glad he is learning, growing, and changing.  Gosh, we miss that kid.  I can't wait until Mother's Day.