Zone Conferences and Uruguay

We traveled six hours to the town of Tacuarambo for our first conferencia de Zona with the Rivera and Tarcuarambo It is the cowboy/gaucho capital of Uruguay. We stayed at a little hotel that had a South American country feel from the 1930's. The next day we met the missionaries and fell in love with them. They are wonderful elders and hermanas. The assistants helped us alot because we still don't know everything. They are very good and obedient elders who are pretty much training us. We then traveled to Salto a town by the Argentine border and had zone conference with the Salto and Artigas zones. They are wonderful missionaries as are the missionaries in the Pysandu and Mercedes zones which we visited on Thursday.. We did a little better each time we did a conference, but we still have a lot to learn. the gospel is true and the Book of Mormon helps solve the questions of life and gives us peace and help which we need very much at this time. I am at a loss because I can't speak very well. It is a little stressful because we really don't know what we are doing yet, but we are learning. We both feel quite inadequate, but will take some of our own advice and "buck up" and do the best that we can. I haven't hardly been outside other than driving in the car, setting in meetings and here cooking and talking to missionaries on the phone for illnesses. Uruguay is something like California. There are palm trees in parts of Montevideo. There are flowering bushes and green grass, and the temple has some really pretty flowers also. There are pansies also. It has not been as cold as I thought it would be, but today is rainy and colder. In the northern part of the country there is a lot of farm land and lots of cows, horses and sheep. The land is quite flat but up in the northern part there are quite a few hills. They grow lots of oranges, mandarin oranges and grapefruit, but you cannot buy mandarin oranges in a can. you can't find anything Mexican, no chilli powder or green chilis. Well I had better get some planning done for teaching some health tips for interview week that is coming up the week after next. We had to speak in church today and dad had to speak at a youth conference for all the youth in Uruguay yesterday. We love you. keep us posted on what you are doing. We miss you but we are glad all is well. Love Presidente y Hermana Heaton/ mom and dad/ grandma y grandpa.