Una Buena Semana (week 86)

i loved your letters this week and let me tell you that you are right about that being the perfect weekend. that is just fantastic! man i am so happy that you went and ate pizzas there where i have been before. that place really is just a little piece of heaven. i love that place so much. i still can't believe jared is back... that's nuts.

Ya so my week was a good one. haroldo and dorris got married finally. that was the highlight of the week. that haroldo is a miracle and how he has decided to change his life. man his wedding though was great. very humble. it was just in his house and there were like 2 families from the church that went as well. it was great though because them getting married was the first big step in changing their lives. they are now no longer living in fornication and are keeping the commandments especially that one which happens to be maybe the 3rd most important commandment. they are going to get baptized the 27. ya so i cant remember if i told you this but haroldo has to get re baptized because the church lost his record. so he and his wife are going to get baptized the 27. they were going to get baptized earlier but there were a couple of problems with the next 2 weekends. they good news is that they are going to get baptized. chalio is still progressing well and he is going to get baptized not this weekend but the next. the reason that he isn't going to get baptized this next weekend is because it's the weekend of the independence of guat so its going to be nuts and we are not sure if he is going to have to desfilar or not. we don't know if he has to parade or not so that's why we are better off leaving it for 2 weeks longer. the good news is that those guys are progressing... the bad news is that we are having some trouble finding good new investigators. i really want to find new pilas investigators because man i want to baptize my last month in the mission. i am truly loving the mission though it's just the best and i love it. i love having time everyday to study and read the scriptures as well. it's just the greatest. i'm reading jesus the christ right now for the second time in my mission and that book is just the best. there is just not a better book than that one. absolutely incredible. well family that's about all i have time for this week. just know that i love you and think about you all the time and i hope that you all have a good week. love you all hasta pronto

elder call

teaching the pigs

this kid reminds me exactly like charlie like he is a latino igual its crazy. i cried yesterday talking to him because he reminds me soooo much of charlie and i miss charlie because he is the best

harolds and dorris and their two kids

Peten is the Best (week 85)

Loved your letters this week and i really really do love how you guys write me every week... it's just the best. i can't believe how crazy life has been at home. all the wedding stuff with the millers back and with school. mom that letter cracked me up. I cant even imagine how crazy things at home were during that week. your date to the city just sounded like the best. i met some guys here who have been to san fran a bunch of times and they say that it is one of their favorite city's in the world and they have been all over the world. man i just love the city so much. Dad your right though i will be home in time to go to some bens games.  man i just cant believe how time flies.

Right now i'm not in peten which is a relief because p days in peten in that crappy internet cafe with 1 little fan is torture. it's really just a really big sacrifice writing you guys because man its soooo hot in there and i always leave that place with a huge headache. haha ya so like i said i'm in coban and i'm soo baggy to be in coban. i love this place and i love how cold it is. its really hard for me to tell you guys what place i like best here in the mission but its really hard to beat peten. i love it up there. i just have so many memories of things that i did there and experienced starting like 18 months ago. its so crazy how time flies. i really feel like i have been here in the mission for like 5 months. i just don't get where time has gone. this week was a good one for the work in our area. we were able to put fechas with a family in our area. their names are haroldo and dorris. they are great and i love them so much. aholdo is like 25 and is a successful electrision for his age and is living with dorris. they have 2 kids. they are not quite married like i told you last week but they are going to get married this weekend. Ahoroldo says that he is a member of the church but we cant find any record of him so he is probably going to have to get baptized again. he isn't upset about that though because he is going to get baptized the same day as his wife.  haroldo is really making big changes in his life. the typical guatemalan who makes pretty good money and just drinks it all away. well that is what he has been doing for the last 7 years of his life. he has had really bad influences in his life. his father was a member of the church but he went very inactive and drank all the time. haroldo says the first time he drank he had 9 years and he was taking shots of whisky with his dad. ya i'm so glad my dad isn't like that. ya so he has been drinking all his life. ya he hasn't been drinking in like 15 days which is a record for him since he was like 9. i love haroldo and how is trying to change for his family. he says he has always wanted to change but has never been able to or been able to find the will power to do it but we gave him sincho and he is changing. i really love the people here in peten i just love them.  now chalio is also progressing a lot and he is soo pilas. his prayers at the end of our lessons are so good. i love chalio as well. oh and i havn't told you guys about my comp. so my comps name is elder tellez. he is from nicaragua and has about 13 meses in the mission. he is pilas. he was in cubulco as well.  He is a great guy and we have a lot of fun together and work hard. oh i haven't told you about my house either... i don't think. our house is soooo  nice its hilarious. its normally 3000 quets but its a members so we are living there for 1500 quets. our house is like a little cabin its made out of wood and has air conditioning. ya i wrote that right air conditioning i think we have the only house with air conditioning in all of guat haha i have never been in one at least until i moved into my house. and that goes for member house or missionary house haha. ya so i sleep like a babe freezing cold every night as if i were in coban. its the best haha i feel spoiled though because i remembered how much i suffered the last time i was in peten and i had to shower some times like 4 times a night because i couldn't sleep because i was soo hot. ya so that is a real luxury haha. that is all i can remember that happened this last week that is worth writing. i love you all so much. don't forget to always say your prayers and to read the scriptures. those 2 things when done with real intent are powerful. again love you all and i hope that you have a great week.

elder call

Peten (week 84)

just let me tell you guys that i am just so happy to get your letters every week and to know that you are all doing great back home.  i cant believe that rach is now married... i just cant beleive it. mom i hope that your birthday was great because i was thinking about you a lot. l love you lots and i hope you had a great day.

Wow so ya i can't believe that i am here in peten. i was pinching myself all week because i thought i was dreaming but then i realized that i wasn't at all because i was soaking wet walking around all day from all the sweat. ya it's just as hot as i remember. this week was great though. we had a district meeting in san andres and i saw a ton of people that i knew from a year ago. the best though was that we had district conference on sunday so the entire branch of san andres came down to the conference and i saw all the people that i had known before. the best part was seeing jorge and delfina. they are going to get sealed in the temple this next month. i cant believe it and i'm so happy for them. also ruban and his wife daisy who i taught and they got baptized like 2 weeks after i had left are going to get married and sealed in the temple the same day in the cap sometime in September. let me tell you that that is the best. so crazy. when i saw delfina and jorge i saw that they were holding a baby but i never thought that it was theirs but it is. how time flies they have a baby and i was there for when they got married. so crazy how time flies. man i love that family and i'm so happy that i got to see them again. i will go visit them again though when i go to san andres to do divisions here in the near future.  this week in our area was good as well. it's different than san jose because i'm right on the beach like i was in san jose. that is one of the most beautiful places on earth i'm convinced... its incredible but it is just so freakin hot. our area is good though although we didn't have the help of the members at all this week. that is a lot different than coban because in coban i had a member with us visiting all day everyday. we put a fecha though this week with a patajo named chalio. he went to church as well as the priesthood session of the district conference. the district conference was great though and i was able to feel the spirit so strong. i know i have said it before but i will say it again my mission president is just the best in the entire world. i'm not kidding you guys would loooooooooooovvveeeeeee president curtiss he is the best. a 70 also was there and he gave a couple great talks. overall it was a great week and my comp and i started going to the gym we go every morning at 6. life is all good right now. i'm loving it. something my mission president said that i loved is that repentance isn't a bad thing even though we often times look at it like that because it often time hurts to do it but its the biggest blessing that we have.  we can repent and the feeling we get when we truly repent is the most dulce feeling you can have in all your life. i have experienced it and i cant wait to share with you my personal repentance stories and personal revelation i have received after the mission. i have a strong testimony of the church and i love sharing it with anyone and everyone here in guat especially in a language i have just come to love. i love love love spanish so much and i'm going to be so sad that i cant speak it every moment of everyday when i get back. repent family when you need to because like i said the feeling you get when you do it is the best feeling you can get. love you all and hope that you all have a great week!

elder call

I Got a Change (week 83)

First off happy birthday mom. i cant imagine what it feels like to be turning 35 how time flies. let me just tell you that you are the best and i love you so much. i'm positive there is not a better mom in the world. how did i get so lucky to have you as my madre. i'm not just saying though mom your really are the best and i just don't get why even though everyone says that you don't believe them. it's good though because if you believed them you would be sooooo cocky just think about how cocky you are with your lemon squares hahaha no but really mom i love you so much and you're the best. wow i cant believe chel is going to get married that's nuts. i cant believe it. i'm so happy for her.  i'm sure the wedding will be great. where is the reception and what temple is she going to go to?

ya so as you can see i have got a change to............... ZONA SAN ANDRES. i am not going to be in san andres but it will be in my zone and i will be able to do divisions there and go to san jose and visit all my converts and all the people that i love soo much. i'm soooooo excited like soooooooo excited.  that was my number 1 pick if i could have picked my change i would have picked that. i'm going back  to peten and i cant believe it. i am jumping up and down right now. you know what that means as well?  It means that i have been able to go back to every one of the areas that i have had in the mission and that just never ever happens. man i really can't believe it and i'm serious... i don't think i will until i get off the bus and feel the humid bloody hot heat hit my skin. i'm going to die but hopefully it will help me get down to my goal weight for when i get home haha. so that is the good news. the bad news is that i had to say goodbye to everyone here in my area. that blew. god had blessed my comp and i with sooo much success. we killed it together. i'm sad i'm not going to be with my best friend elder brito is the best. i loved our time together.  wow i don't want to go into detail right now because i will cry haha but i am so sad to leave the people i love here. marcia caronlina and edwin have changed 100 percent they are pilas in the church and will stay that way i'm sure. henry is the man and he said maybe our kids will be comps in the mission haha. edson, jefferson, claudia, y octavio wow that was a hard goodbye.i love that family so much. they are just the best. ingrid y syda are so sweet and i will miss them along with natividad.  it was a very hard sunday very very hard. i love all these people so much. i am so grateful for the time i have had here and i am going to die of the heat in peten. i'm really excited though and cant wait to get working. i love you all so much and hope you have a good week. oh and i don't really write you that much because i can just tell these stories when i get back and it will be way better haha. love you all have a fantastic week!

Elder Call

in front of the curch with 7-10 converts in this area

edson jefferson and claudia

carolina edwin and marcia

henry

eating kak ik with marcia edwin and carolina. they are the best 

Great Week (week 82)

loved your letters this week and i'm so happy that you are all home safe.  i love the cabin and am so happy you have had the time of your lives. so i feel like i am missing everyone's weddings like everyone's haha. man how crazy.  i'm happy that they are all getting married though haha. that's great.

This week was great. like i say just about every week. i cant believe how fast the time goes. it's changes again. i am going to know if i have a change this saturday. so by next monday i will know if i am going to get a change. i'm hoping i get to train a new missionary and that is my dream. to finish my mission that way but it's the lord who will decide.   this week was fantastic because daniel ended up getting baptized on saturday in rabinal. i'm sad i wasn't there but like i told you guys the most important thing is that he did it. and he did. oh and a really funny story about daniel is that his name isn't daniel. its henry. he told us that on the friday before his baptism. he said that there was something he needed to tell us and one of the last things he had to repent of before he got baptized and that's that  his name is henry haha. the story is this. when he was contacted in rabinal by the missionary's he answered the door and said that his name is daniel because he didn't want to give the missionaries his real name. haha he ended up going to church though and started reading the scriptures and feeling the spirit and receiving an answer to his prayers. then making the decision to get baptized  hahah. its hilarious and one of the best stories. he just never imagined joining the church ahha. ya but he is henry and he is the man i love the guy so much.
Elder Call

ya so that is just about all the things that happened this week. i wish i could send pics but i cant because this computer doesn't read my card. we went to a waterfall as a zone today that was sooooo beautiful. it was great i loved it. overall just a fantastic week. love you all and have just a great week

This he just sent to me in an email and I thought he might want to remember it.

ya me voy as we say here in guat. i'm sad like so sad i just cried in my house last night because i had to say goodbye maybe for the last time to hermano octavio because i don't know if i'm going to get a change.  

Good Week (week 81)

Loved the pics of you guys up at the cabin. i had forgotten that you guys were even there until i saw the pics haha. that's so fun and i am so happy for you. i cant believe that i haven't been to the cabin in 3 years. where has the time gone and i can't wait to go back with the family. I think about you guys daily and pray for you. just don't die before i come home. i think that goes especially for Ben haha.

Well as for my week it was good. Now that i think about it i don't think i have even told you guys about Edwin. we put a fecha with him like a month ago. he is the brother of marcia and the son of carolina. i think i have told you guys about them. they are the best. marcia was my second convert in this area the one who wants to serve a mission in a year. ya we baptized her brother this saturday. he is 16 and super pilas. i think i havn't told you about him just because i have too many things to tell you every week and not enough time.  He is great though and has changed a ton. they used to have a lot of family problems and stuff but now everything is peace in their home. edwin when he bore his testimony said that everything has changed since we arrived at his house and it has changed for the better. they are having more peace at home and he feels the love of the savior in his life. he said he didn't really want to change at first but after he started to read the book of mormon he started feeling a desire to follow Christ and to be baptized. that is the power of the book of mormon and there is no other book like it. it changes lives all for the better. i love edwin and i'm so grateful the lord gave him answers to his prayers and to ours. he is literally an answer from god to our prayers. now Daniel is going to get baptized this weekend in rabinal en baja verapaz. he decided to get baptized down there because that is where his family is and he wants them to be there. he is sad though like us because we are not going to be at his baptism. the good thing though is that he is going to get baptized and that is really the important part. he has changed a lot too and it makes me so happy that he is choosing to follow the lord in his life. getting baptized and keeping the commandments couldn't be more different from what the world teaches us.  it makes it all worth it and that i am here in this freakin random country speaking another language. that wasn't a complaint though the mission is the best and i wouldn't trade this time for anything. keep reading the scriptures as a family especially the book of Mormon because it is powerful and invites the spirit like nothing else. pray often as a family as well. i love you all and have a fantastic time at the cabin. the best place on earth.

Elder Call

Where Did Julio Go? (week 80)

i am serious though when i write that subject where the heck did it go? i thought we had just started it. crazy. loved your letters and you guys just live the dream and i loved hearing about your adventures as a family and that is just what it is all about.

My week was fantastic. to be honest i really can't think of anything that happened other than the baptism of ocavio y claudio. solo para que sepan.. they did get married on friday and baptized on saturday. it was a miracle to see where they have come from. i just don't think writing it over email does it justice. they have changed completely. the wedding was very humble haha because my comp and i organized it and we basically did it last minute because we didn't know if hermano octavio was going to be home this weekend.  so once we found out we put a little thing together. they were very thankful and i think they enjoyed it. i just tried to explain to them that this is not the important wedding but the next one when they are in the temple. they are the best. saturday afternoon they were baptized at three in the afternoon. the baptism was a lot better planned because we had more time. probably the best baptism service i have had in my entire mission, the spirit was just so strong.  we had a friend of theirs give a talk in the meeting and everything it was the best. hermano octavio wanted me to baptize him so i did and my comp baptized claudia. i also baptized zaida.  overall probably one of the best weekends and overall weeks in my entire mission. the lord has blessed my companion and i soo much these last 3 changes we have had a lot of success.  i just cant wait for you all to meet the familia villalobos sanchez. they are not a normal guat family so you guys are actually going to be able to meet them over a video call. they have internet in their house which is the equivalent of having a ferrari in danville haha. ya so they are just the best and the change they have made in their lives gives me sooo much joy i just want to scream. zaida is great as well even though she only has 10 years she has made just a great difference in her life as well. she is very different now and after her baptism then how she was when we first met her. they were all given the holy ghost in sacrament meeting. oh freak i almost forgot after the baptism of octavio and claudia they bore their testimony's and that was just the besttttt. they basically said that when we knocked on their door they felt like jesus christ was with us and how we are their guides and stuff. it was the best and i cant wait to tell you it all when i get back because it was the best. today for pday we went to my old area of san cristobal and climbed a mountain it was dope. overall just a fantastic semana.  I think about  you all every night and pray for you. remember that this life is very short and we need to make the best of it right now. we need to constantly repent and improve. oh i almost forgot we had zone conference with the the president as well this week and it was super spiritual. i was able to feel the spirit soooooo strong and that is just the best. i have a grand testimony of this church and that jesus is the christ. i love you all and i hope you all have just a great week.

Elder Call

octavio and claudio after the wedding eating the cake.

pic of the baptism