Christmas week: For many reasons, it was hard to get much missionary work done this week. During Christmas, the country comes to a halt. The streets are not nearly as busy and noisy. It was very hard to find people home and if they were home, to find them available. Christmas is a family time and so it is here also. We made gifts for most of the people (new members) we have been visiting. On Christmas day we drove around trying to find people home and available to give them their gift. We didn’t give any out. 


Christmas morning we invited the missionaries in our district over to our house for a Christmas breakfast. We made a couple of big egg casseroles and lots and lots of pancakes. We found out in the Dominican Republic that missionaries love pancakes. After eating the missionaries played games for a while and then later went to the Stake Center for more Christmas activities before they resumed their work. The Hatches, the new senior couple, came over to help us with the pancakes. They then invited us over to their apartment for a very nice Christmas meal. They are both very good cooks. Hermana Hatch made a flan that we think is the best flan we have ever had. They raised their family mostly in Mexico. They have lived in Mexico for 25 years. 


The days leading up to Christmas were about the same. The stores were very busy with long lines going into the aisles. We didn’t go to the store Christmas Eve, but we were told that it is even more full. As we have been speaking to neighbors and other friends we realize that many here have forgotten the meaning of Christmas. The tradition here is to stay up until midnight and then share a big Christmas meal well into the middle of the night. This all started as a Catholic tradition of going to midnight mass together as a family and then coming home and enjoying a meal together. Most people are Catholic, but almost no one goes to midnight mass. They do, however, shoot off a lot of fireworks at midnight. They went from the fire of the spirit to the fire of the fireworks.  


The day after Christmas Madison, Corbin, and Wilson came to visit. It was great to see family. We went around the city Friday and Saturday before Madison and Corbin went to Machu Picchu for several days and we got to take care of Wilson. Wilson is 2 going on 16. I’m not too sure how normal it is to take care of a 2-year-old while you are on your mission, but we are glad we got to do it. Taking care of a 2-year-old in a foreign country is not easy! Not easy in any way. I’m sure there are cities that are more dirty than Lima but I’m not sure where they are. We have never been to one of them. So dirt and a 2-year-old is not the best combination. Did I say it is hard to watch a 2-year-old? We wouldn’t trade that time for anything. We spent a lot of time running after him and trying to keep him out of trouble. He’s still alive so I think we were successful.


As I mentioned, in some of our previous reports, I received a driver's license and so I’m going to be able to help in the mission in other ways. The Mission leaders have 2 cars assigned to them and they usually only use one of them. Since they live 1-1.5 hours away from the mission office the plan now is to leave one of their cars here. I will be able to use it to do errands and to do house inspections. The car was delivered this week so stay tuned. 


Christmas week was not our typical Christmas week. But most weeks on a mission are not typical. We are grateful to be here as missionaries and play a small role in building the kingdom in this part of the world. We hope you all had a great Christmas and felt the light of Christ in your lives.


Sus Amigos,

Hermana Y Elder Borup



Pictures or our new member friends

Christmas eve fast-food delivered to our door

same

Wilson making friends

Wilson is not real interested in shopping

Nativity in Kennady Park

Kennady park is also known as cat park

Lovers at lovers park

Peru knows how to do fries and burgers!

Enjoying the water and the Fountain Park

more joy!

Proof they came!

A Christmas gift from the Napa Family (he is a service missionary)

The keys to the car!

Comments

  1. Harold JacksonJanuary 5, 2025 at 8:55 PM

    Hola, Hermana & Hermano Borup. We enjoyed reading your blog. We had a similar experience on Christmas day with our Zone here in Sacramento. We made waffles along with bacon & scrambled eggs, ham but no hash browns. (The younguns got enough carbs with the waffles!) Hermana Jackson bore her testimony in Del Norte barrio this aftermoon. She made it thru one sentence in Espanol and then asked the First Counselor to interpret the rest. Still, she did better than I could. Keep up the good work. We enjoy seeing your facebook posts & blogs.

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