Email from Monday, 23 August 2010

Hey family! Well, sounds like you all had a very good week. Thanks for the pictures that you sent me. It's nice to see you all. Well, this week has been successful. We baptized a younger kid this week. We also had transfers. I'm with Elder Medina. He is from Honduras. He is a good missionary. I'm kind of glad we have the change. It's a lot pressure having to train another missionary. Elder Medina has about 6 months in the mission, so I don't have to tell him what to do as I had to with Elder Coronado. I went on a companionship exchange this week. I went with a gringo. It was a lot of fun. His name is Elder Thomson. He is a good missionary. We talk English the whole time we were together. Our zone is really excited right now. We are going to set a record. Siguetepeque has never baptized more than 15 people in a month. We should pass that this month. I'm super excited. We are going to baptize 5 in my area this month. We are going to marry a family this next Friday and we are going to baptize them on Saturday! I'm sooooo excited!!!! The Lord is really working a miracle in our area. 4 of our baptism dates fell. The parents don't want to give permission to their kids to get baptized. We are going to keep on trying to get permission. If we can permission we will have 7 baptisms this month. That would be amazing, right!! We'll see what happens. I know if we have faith, anything is possible. It sounds like a lot has changed since I left. I really feel out of the loop, but I'm really enjoying the mission. I have never been so close to the Lord. I think it's a good thing that I feel out of the loop. I guess that means my mind is on something else more important. Yeah, I'm still teaching the English class. I couldn't teach the English class last Saturday because we hade companionship exchanges. Well, I have to get going. I love you all. I miss you.

Email from Monday, 16 August 2010

Hey everyone! Thanks for sending me those photos. Our back yard looks really nice. I can't wait to go swimming in the pool. This week has been really good. I learned a lot about faith this week. I'm really starting to understand what that word means. We have monthly baptism goals, and we have really been working hard towards our goal of 4 baptisms this month. I know we will reach our goal if we have faith and manifest our faith. We have 5 baptism dates lined up, and we have another that is pending. We have a family that we have been teaching and we finally were able to take out their birth certificates this week. The office had been closed for about 3 to 4 weeks, and we couldn't take out their birth certificates from another city, so we have the possibility to marry and baptize them this month. We are really working hard to get it all figured out. We will have to get them married in another city so that they can get married this month because here in Jesus de Otoro we have to wait 15 days. I'm sure really excited. All month we have been teaching them. They are really special. This will be the first family I have ever baptized here on the mission! We couldn't baptize the kid this Saturday. He drank coffee the day before his baptism. We are going to baptize him this Saturday. It's for sure. We bought him oatmeal to eat instead of coffee in the morning. He told us the other day that he hadn't drunken any coffee so I'm 100% positive he will be baptized this Saturday. I'm really learning a lot here in Honduras. I'm so glad I decided to serve a mission. This is the best thing I ever did. My companion from the MTC Elder Lloyd gave his very last testimony in a conference. He will be leaving in September. How strange, right? I saw his first testimony at the MTC and his last in Honduras. It was a really special moment for me. It made me realize how important the Atonement is to me. I don't truly know if I understand it. Its a subject I will have to study for the rest of my life. Well, we will find out today if we have transfers. I don't think we will be transferred this month. It would be odd if we got transferred. Well, you never know. Life is like a box of chocolates. My companion really wants to leave the area. He really isn't enjoying the mission right now. I try to help him but its difficult for him. He misses home. Well, I think I felt the same way my first few months on the mission. Well, I love you all. Thanks for everything.

Email from Monday, 9 August 2010

Hello family! Sounds like everyone had a successful week. I'm glad to hear your talks went well. This week has been a successful week for us as well. I'm really enjoying the mission. My companion is a little homesick but I've been trying to help him get over it. He is a funny guy. My Spanish is really coming along. I speak fairly well. I keep improving everyday. I study everyday. Ive been learning how to speak in a different form. There are two forms that I am learning. One is called the Tu and the other is called the Vosotros form. I can really speak well in the vosotros form. Vosotros is an older type of Spanish. The scriptures were written in vosotros. I like to speak in vosotros. Its fun. I don't speak so well in tu. I probably speak better in vosotros form because I read the scriptures all day. Well, we should have transfers next week. I think we are going to remain in the area. I hope I stay in the area. We are going to have success here. Yeah, the area that I am in does not have normal roads. They are dirt roads. We are always dirty in Jesus de Otoro. I think it's fun. My companion thinks otherwise. I try to stay clean but it's impossible here. We found someone that can cook for us. She started cooking last week. Her food is really good, so you all don't have to send me more food. We have to pay 30 limpiras every plate. It's worth it. We are going to baptize a little kid this Saturday. He doesn't know how to read very well, so we have been teaching him how to read every Saturday. He is really excited for the baptism. We are going to have a member baptize him. I am also teaching English every Saturday. It's actually really difficult because everyone is on different levels. So I decided this week that I'm going to actually prepare for the class on Saturday. I really don't have much time to prepare but I'm going to try to find time. Teaching is a lot harder than it looks. I can speak English, but I really don't know how to teach it. We have a book that we have been using, but it really doesn't explain how to present the material to the class. I was talking to a teacher the other day, and I told him that I teach an English class on Saturdays and he offered me a job at his school. How funny, right? Well, Thanks for your letters. I love you all. If you all want to send me a package, I would like shirts. I don't have very many clean shirts.

Hola familia! How's everyone doing? I'm doing just fine. I finally received the package that you sent me. It is the most beautiful thing I have seen. Thanks. Well, this week has been good. I confirmed someone a member of the church and I gave him the Holy Ghost. I really liked that. I have had a good week. I'm really enjoying the mission. My companion is doing just fine. We should have a baptism this Saturday. I'm not too sure though. We'll find out. Sounds like everything is just fine in Bakersfield. I fasted for the family yesterday. I fasted that dad would find work, and it sounds like he did. What a miracle, right? Sometimes we take those little miracles for granted. Well, you guys are going to be famous here in Honduras. Every time I find a new investigator I like to show them pictures of you guys. It really helps build trust between us. I also like to show the pictures of the kitties. They always get a good laugh from those kitties. They always tell me that the kitties look like dogs. I should probably tell them that they act like dogs as well. I don't think I have ever seen a cat swim! Well, the mission is great. I have not sent the camera chip. I forgot to do that. Sorry. I'll do it as soon as I see the zone leaders. Being a trainer is a lot like being a dad. I think that's why they call trainers dads here on the mission. It's actually really difficult. Everything I do he copies. It really makes me nervous. I hope I am doing a good job. I'm learning to be really patient. I really regret being such a brat to you all. Hopefully, these experiences will help me in the future when I have a family of my own. Well, I love you all very much and I miss you all. You are all in my prayers. Thanks again for the package.