Fin

Julio Astudillo, Sandra Córdova, Mishell, and Alexander (whom I adore).
Feria- The fair where I was at 5:00 am buying a pig...we promised Sandra (Córdova) that we would help out.
It was a huge mistake to name her Matilda, I was the only person who cried when they killed her. I pulled her all the way from the fair. Interesting experience though...I´ll never eat pork again...maybe. I guess after 5 years of killing a pig every week stops affecting you after a while. Ese Alexander!
Zone Otavalo and our Jersey´s. Some of my best friends are here in this zone!

The view from the balcony of my new apartment! I love living in Centro, life is so much easier...and pretty.


So this is it, my last update...at least as Hermana Whitney Tanner.

I can hardly believe that it has come to an end! I´ve loved my time here with all it´s ups and downs. I´ve had success but really the only person who benefitted from my experience is me (and maybe a few of you who learned to love me more-absence makes the heart grow fonder). It´s definitely been a crazy but amazing experience that will never cease to bless and enrich my life. I know that I´m a harder worker, more loving, and all around better person for all of the experiences I´ve had. Thank you too all of you who helped me along the way. My leaders in the Mission field, family and friends at home, and the people who let me be a part of their lives here in Ecuador. I love you all, and I´m so grateful for each one of you.

I am ending things on a really high note! Sandra Córdova and Julio Astudillo were baptized yesterday April 16th, 2010. It was a really stressful week. They both needed additional interviews and we really wrangled every possible source that we had to get it done. President Montoya, first counselor to President Sloan was actually going to be here in Otavalo so we were able to arrange a meeting with him. He was so great and waited even when Sandra and Julio came late! We were so grateful for him, he has also been called as a Mission President in the Valencia, Venezuela mission and leaves in June for the Provo MTC. Anyway, Sandra and Julio are officially the newest members of Barrio (ward) Rumiñahui (Room-in-ya-wee,there isn´t any translation).

For those of you who cared about the pig story. Sandra sells Fritada, which is like fried pork (I´m not the biggest fan), and what with her baptism she has been really busy so we promised that we would help her out this Saturday. It was an unforgettable experience to say the least. We woke up at 4:45am to buy the pig at the fair, it was quite a process but we finally found the right one for $90! I had to tug her all the way to Sandra´s, we bonded, and the name Matilda Tanner was tossed around. I couldn´t do it so Julio had to put the knife in the heart...yeah, horrible, I cried. The skin is a valuable comomadity here and I didn´t know it but they blow torch the outside of the pig to sell the skin (yes, to eat). Anyway, I miss Matilda and now understand why we can´t eat pork here in Mission Ecuador Quito.

It´s been tough to say goodbye and to have to keep saying goodbye. I love Ecuador so much!

Loving you from Ecuador,

Hermana Whitney Tanner