Trinidad Week 2 Change 2 (11/16/09)

No email from my parents this week, I guess both of them writing last week wore them out. :P

We had an OK week. Our district is struggling, but that's because Hermana Alejo and I are both sick, so we are in and out of the house.

But we did good, and we're excited to work this week. Elder Fajardo and I didn't hit a lot of the weekly goals that we had put, so we have taken the difference and added it to this week's goals, and we are ready to work to achieve the heightened goals. We have put a plan to be 100% obedient... we have really been slacking. We are going to wake up on time and do exercises, hold a faithful study session, including companionship study, and return to home on time (9:00) to be able to have a good planning session. Then in bed at 10:30. We're excited (well I am, I know he isn't) and I can't wait to see the miracles as a result.

As Elder Bowen taught us a few months ago, Faith + Work + Obedience = Miracles.

Not too many updates this week, we are excited to head to Montevideo this Friday and be taught by Elder Bednar. Or, rather, learn from him through the Spirit (that's one of the things he asked us to study before the mission conference.

http://lds.org/library/display/0,4945,5344-1-2783-5,00.html is the link to one of his CES addresses "Seek Learning by Faith" and it is incredible. Hence, we are excited to learn from him by faith. That's also why we're being totally obedient this week - to be worthy of the Spirit on Friday. As Elder Lawrence Corbridge taught in the 2008 October General Conference, everything depends on that. (Listen to his talk "The Way", it is also incredible.)

I am sending a package of letters, waiting to hear if you got the alfajores OK. Some of the letters are from Elder Belleau to forward - he sends his love and his thanks. We figured we'd save on postage.

Still waiting for reimbursements to get here... ever since dad dropped the cane on me for using too much money, I have been avoiding the ATM, almost to the point of hiding my personal debit card from myself. This Friday I have to do some traveling to conduct some baptismal interviews- I should have money by then. Oh - my watch band also broke, so I have to buy a new strap that doesn't go right with the watch (because it was like a contoured band, but this is just a normal flat band. Yuck. Pero es lo que hay.) And one of my glasses pads like disintegrated so I have to buy new pads.

Well I'll tell you guys that we are working pretty hard with a less active couple who are having some problems. They were baptized about two years ago, and in order to do so they stopped smoking. About 6 months after baptism, the husband took a bad fall (he's about 60) and fractured his neck as it hit one of his bed posts. After all of the medical stuff and his now invalidity (the state of being invalid?) they have stopped coming to church. We have found them again, and they want to stop smoking. The husband smokes a little, but the wife smokes a pack a day.

So we have put very specific goals for her, and she is going to be clean from smoking by Christmas. We're as excited as she is. We are also working out transportation so they can come to church (because he can't really walk). Vamos arriba.

Monday we have a FHE with a part member family - the husband (aka boyfriend) is from Cuba and has some serious trouble getting his immigration papers done, so he can't legally get married here. But we are reactivating the family and helping him get a good testimony so they can start seeing miracles, get married, and get sealed in the temple.

Eugenia is still doing great... we had a great discussion yesterday during Sacrament Meeting. She was like "Do you think that I have changed since getting baptized?" I answered in the affirmative, and she told me that she realized that she has changed, and that she wants to keep changing. Today in the sacrament meeting, she was taking notes and looking up all the scriptures and marking them - which is usually something I only do for General and Stake Conferences! lol out loud.

She's awesome and I look forward to seeing her progress.

Well I hope you liked the lengthy email - I had lots of time to write it since I didn't have to read anything. ;-) But I still love you all! :D

Saludos a Matt Long for me! Also to Weenie and Corry - I hope they like their alfajores. GET GOOD GRADES!

Trinidad Week 1 Change 2 (11/9/09)

Well my first week as DL wasn't too bad. Got all the calls done, although a few times we got them in late. It's rough with Elder Belleau and I in the same house, especially because he interrupts every phone call with "HERMANA ALEJO! WoooOOOoooOOoo!" or "YEAH! ORO POWER! WooOOOooOOoo!" lol. My missionaries are SO awesome. I have two greenies (oros) in my district, and they are just flying with their trainers. They are actually inspiring me to work harder. We are all getting pumped for the upcoming mission conference with Elder Bednar. The other mish will be there too, and I'll get to see Brian Graham! Woohoo! I'm secretly hoping I get assigned to play the piano/organ... but I'm keeping my mouth shut and letting the assignments be made with the Spirit. :D

I am doing great here. We're working with a few families, they are great. Really my first time teaching families and not just investigators. One of them we found this week, he's one of the dentists here and has filled out a lot of papers for future missionaries! They're really great and I can see them getting baptized this change.

Thanks for keeping up on my account, Dad. I had NO idea I was getting charged just to look at the card - that is pretty ridiculous. I'll be more careful about checking it, especially now that I know what is where. I had a pretty rough change - we needed to get study desks because they STILL haven't come after six weeks and the mission didn't want us to wait anymore. The financers are making process improvements, so we should be getting reimbursements quicker, which means less dependence on foreign funds.

Sorry I don't have much more to report. Nor do I have any fun new pictures to send you guys. So... I love you all and I hope you keep rockin it RP style! And here's a shout-out to my home-dizzle Weenie! :D

OH! I sent a box. Inside, there are four alfajores and a box of alfajores. The loose ones are for you guys - Surprise Negros for the big people and the white chocolate one for Em. The box is for Corry. If you decide to rob him of an alfajor, that's fine too. They are mint and taste incredibly like Thin Mint girl scout cookies.

So... I love you all (again) and hope you have a great week!

Transfers--Staying in Trinidad 11/3/09

Hey fam!

Changes today. sorry about that... it got randomly changed from Wed to Tues. But I'm glad you got an email to me anyways (even dad, whoa!) Here's the news... us four all stay together in T-dad. That's really weird, but that's the way the cookie crumbles. Elder Maxson, the District Leader, dies today, (MOM NOTE--not really DIES, but finishes his mission!) so I have been called to take his spot as DL. Elder Belleau, after redistricting (good luck with that, mom, btw) is also going to be a District Leader this change. That means that we'll be sharing the phone every night making phone calls. I have the Sisters from Villa Carmen, the Elders in Barrio Centro, and the Elders in Sarandì del Yì in my district. That means a LOT of travel for exchanges, baptismal interviews, etc. But we're ready for the challenge. :D We're excited for the new change. We did a change plan on Sunday, and have set some pretty high goals that we know we can reach if we work just a little bit harder. We've got some good investigators that we are working with, but we just need to keep finding to keep the investigator pool fresh.

Don't worry about the Ward because we're going to have a constant flow of RMs to keep it alive (Matt B., Chase, me, Gerg, Scott, Matt L., Kevin). :D I'm sure the Lord will keep it alive, because there are still people to convert in Utah. So get Tina back to work (whether converting or reactivating - it's all part of the missionary work!) Sorry the letter is a little short today, I had to write Tina a letter before she got angry at me. :D Pray for us this change (me and my comp and me and Elder Belleau).

Love you all a bunch!

(Email edited for Family stuff and gossip! :D) Photos in the mail yesterday, so I'll be posting them this week!