27 February 2012

Querido familia, [Dear family,]

Me escapa el tiempo con velocidad no conocido entre los hombres.

[Time is escaping me with a veloicty unknown among men.]

So thus finished the last week of the change. The zone changed a lot since quite a few had 7 or 6 months here. Only us and 1 other companionship didn't have a change. One of the sisters who just barely finished her training is going to train a new missionary, a new district leader is coming, and another elder who is from Nicaragua is going to train a new missionary too. The zone is a relatively young zone: two with about a year, two who are still coming from the MTC in Lima, Peru, two who have about 6 months in the mission, and us old fogeys (Elder Stewart and I).

There is a Sister Diaz who is working really hard to gain a testimony by herself. She wants to enter into the covenant people next Saturday but is working through the loss of her nephew at the end of last week. We invited her to console her family by sharing with them the Plan of Salvation... or is it salvation plan. anyway she has been really looking and has lots of member friends. We took a piece of fudge cake to her since we still didn't have the cookie recipe till today, (THANK YOU!!).

We did 3 intercambios [exchanges] with the missionaries this week, the two that our president has asked us to do every week and one of emergency for some problems that they were having (tension right before the change sometimes rises haha). Anyway it was really gratifying to be with the one I was with and see his true desire to work, and the sincere guilt that he felt for not having worked well this week. I don't know why, but I felt compassion for his worries and happy for the wishes and desires that he has to do what is right. It was an interesting moment.

So that y’all know, I got some pieces of rubber glued onto my shoes from the pictures (pieces like the old things that you can see but better with a glue that seems really durable). It seems like I walk weirdly because my shoes always get more worn away on the sole faster than the other elders. Elder Stewart still hasn't bought new shoes or put new anything on the bottoms the whole time he’s been here! Ive glued new stuff on the bottom about 3 or 4 times now. haha. I need to learn to walk good, or maybe it’s for running a lot.

Also, the shoes a member got for me in Camana when he went to Tacna just got finished being re-soled. The members have helped me a lot with the whole shoe situation. She said the first place she went to said that in just a few days they would have it done. She went there to get them back and they said that a few more, but almost done. At last she went and the man was all frustrated and said, “Why did you take these huge shoes to me?? They are so big you don’t find this size here in Peru! You’ve sent me on a goose chase! (that’s the correct phrase in English no?... goose chase?)

Elder Stewart and I always play rock paper scissors to see who shares first what we learned in the first hour of study (personal study). The other day, it got so intense that he almost fell off his chair, just saved by the wall that stopped his chair from sliding out from below him. Haha it was so funny. He won.

The Sister Ivon... we are worried about her. Since she had her baby we haven’t really seen her. Her family always says she is of weak health and can’t come out for a few more weeks maybe. I don’t remember how that is... but we haven’t really thought that it had anything to do with reality, just tradition, but now we are starting to think that she might have gotten sick. Her family doesn’t admit many details but are nice too.

Today we want to do something to contact EVERY SINGLE person in the area. We are still thinking about it.. but I feel like there are a lot of potential people there but that we have difficulty finding them. We talk to at least 200 people per week, but if we could increase that to 500 or more, then those people could be found. There is another lady with whom we talked this week who said she wants to be baptized from the first moment we mentioned baptism. She said: "I feel like I should be baptized, and not like my parents baptized me, but in water. I don’t know why, but that’s the way I feel it should be done." That was impressive. Then we talked about how part of the preparation was getting married since she is living with the father of her son, and the next day she told us how she had talked with him and set up to get married! Her future husband wasn’t too happy about her listening to us and started to say how this and that.. things he has heard, saying how had she let herself be convinced to be baptized, and she said, no! they didn't convince me anything, I want to be baptized, and what they said is true.

We are focusing on looking for those who really are sincere in coming unto Christ.

I have been reading Our Heritage again. it is the BEST. Also, this morning I read from 3 Nephi  20 to 3 Nephi 24 I think  and I really, really like the opportunity to present the ministry of Christ among the Nefites and am so thankful that they have preserved the words that He spoke. Nos manda escudriñar las palabras de Isaías. [He commands us to study the words of Isaiah.]

 

Mucho amor [Much love,]

Elder Stewart and Elder Johnson at a chapel in Arequipa

Elder Johnson