Fred's World

How to be happy?

2012-01-27T13:19:00.001-07:00

The other day I was walking.

Well, so it was really last night on my way home at about 10:15. But that doesn't really matter.

Anyway, as I walked a thought popped into my head.
I was who I was.
I am who I am.
I can be who I want to be.

Now, I'm not going to claim that I came up with this. It seems very probable that someone already thought about about it long before me. But I thought it was an interesting thought, and maybe even a key to happiness.

So I'm just going to go over my thoughts on it.

I was who I was
I think that this means accepting that what is done is done. In that, it can not be changed. But I feel like there is something more to it than that.

It also has to do with realizing that it is over. That I have changed, and am not who I was.

(You may now go and listen to Who I Am Hates Who I've Been by Reliant K.)

I am who I am
This part is in part similar to the idea that you have to love yourself. I won't go quite that far, but I think that it is important to recognize who we really are, right now. What are our flaws, and equally important, what are our strengths. Then I have to realize that I am not a bad person. (Well, unless you really are a bad person, but in my opinion truly bad people are very rare. You probably aren't one.)

(Feel free to go listen to Wonderful by Gary Go at this point.)

I can be who I want to be
I have the power to be something better, whatever I wish. I really think that that is true in the greatest sense of the phrase, although I do not believe that it is the case in the lesser senses of the phrase. Meaning I can become a better, even a perfect person, given enough time, and if it is truly my desire.

(You may now go watch the Transcendence Music Video by Lindsey Stirling.)

So this leads to some important questions.

What are my options?
What is my goal?
Is what I am doing helping me attain it?
In the past, why have I struggled?
In the past, how have I managed to change?
What can I change in who I am now, and what can I do to become more like I want to be?
Why do I want to change?

It is something interesting to think about, at least.

Cheesy potato pork pockets

2012-01-22T17:49:00.004-07:00

So, I kind of like CWWYG cooking. It is fun! And you get to constantly invent things! Things like cheesy potato pork pockets!

Yes, so I was hungry, and I just happened to have a can of biscuits, about a pound of cooked ground sausage, some potatoes, a bit of cheese, a can of cream of chicken soup, and some red onion. So, obviously those things were all put together.

I cooked the potatoes in the microwave before adding them, as I knew that they wouldn't cook long enough otherwise.

And then I flattened out the biscuits, filled them with filling, and cooked them at 350º for about 20 minutes. The end result was actually surprisingly good. I ate four of them for lunch, which was about right for me.

I used about:
1 lb cooked ground sausage
3 medium potatoes, previously baked
1/4 lb sharp cheddar cheese
1/2 medium red onion
1 can cream of chicken soup
a dash of chili powder

I used the chili powder because as of now I only have two seasonings, italian and chili powder, and I figured that since the sausage was already a little bit spicy, the chili powder would go well with it, though I bet you could use italian seasoning if you wanted to.

This made about enough to fill 16 biscuits, or four meals for me. Not too bad, price wise. And pretty tasty, even reheated. Though it could have used some black pepper. And maybe a white cheese would have been better. And some fresh peppers wouldn't have gone poorly.

A new beginning- The "Adventure!" shirt!

2012-01-20T14:45:00.000-07:00

So, I've had this blog for a while, but I have never really had a reason to have it. That may or may not be changing. But, I've decided that for now I want to use it to kind of track my creative efforts, starting with something that I made a little while ago, but of which I am pretty proud.

My ADVENTURE! shirt.

I made this shirt a P-day in my mission. Well, okay, so I actually did little parts of it over a few P-days. Let me explain.

People eat of a lot of bananas and plantains in the DR, to begin with. There is no doubt whatever about that. This must be distinctly understood or nothing wonderful can come of the story I am going to relate.

(Bonus points if you catch the literary reference.)

Anyway, now that that is established, you will understand that I learned a little bit about them during my time there. And let me tell you, the most important thing that you can know is that they can be eaten both green and ripe. Slightly less important is that they can be eaten raw (if ripe), boiled, and fried. The third most important thing is that you can not boil or fry ripe bananas. It just doesn't work. And just a little bit behind that in importance is what is really important for this story. When you peel green bananas and plantains you have to be careful, because the skins are full of a sap that stains your clothes. And that isn't even the best part! The sap is transparent. Until you wash your clothes. Then you have a nice rust color on your clothes.

So, you always have to be on the look out, so that you don't stain your clothes.

Well, one day I had what I thought was a genius idea. A stain is really just another name for a dye, right? I mean, when you dye clothes, you are just staining the whole thing to be a different color. So, I had the crazy idea of dying a T-shirt with banana sap. Thankfully, at this moment we lived in a house with a big backyard that had several banana plants. So, I got a plain white T-shirt, cut some leafs off of the plants, and squeezed the juice out of them. I had to do it by hand, which was a little bit rough, but I was determined! Oh, and I found this frog.

So, I eventually ended up with a shirt that was apparently soaked with banana sap, then I hung it up to dry. And then, as the stain doesn't really show up until you wash it, I washed it. (Surprising, I know. ;D ) But, everything didn't turn out quite how I had hoped. The color wasn't very even, and so the shirt looked more like it was dirty than dyed. So, I had to think some more.

Well, thankfully I had a big plastic sheet left over from another project. (Maybe I'll write about it next time.) So I carefully wrote the word "ADVENTURE!" on it, and cut it out with my pocket knife. Then I mixed up a chlorine solution and sprayed it onto the shirt using an empty bug repellent bottle. Then, when it had reached about the color that I wanted, I dunked it into a bucket of water to stop it.

And so came to be my "ADVENTURE!" shirt.

And who knows. Maybe one day you will be lucky enough to see me wear it. ;D

A Photography Post

2012-01-12T20:05:00.003-07:00

So, today I carried my new old camera around with me for a little bit. I bought it used off of ebay, as 1. I can't afford a new one. and 2. They just don't make cameras like this one any more.

Now, I wouldn't have minded buying one it a little bit better shape than this one, but hey. Ya gotta work inside your budget, right? ;D

Anyway, it is a Panasonic DMC-FZ30. It is a pretty nice camera. Easy to use. Lots of manual control. Takes some pretty good pictures. Pretty cheap.

So, here is a little sample pic. Don't judge. I'm just getting going, and I'd never used the camera before. Well, and I only took a few pictures on the way back home for lunch.

Also, remotely related. I found the coolest new camera ever today. It is called the Lyto and it is seriously cool. Now, it may not look like much, but this camera does things a bit differently. With this camera, you focus after you take the picture. Yes, you read that right. This camera doesn't take normal pictures. It is actually capturing something that is called a light field. Which means that you can focus it as many times as you want after the fact. Don't believe me? Check out their gallery.

I want one. Now if only I had money. . .

New Year, New Life

2011-12-31T17:57:00.003-07:00

I've been thinking about writing something for a while now, so I figure that the new year is as good a time as any.

Recently I've been asked a question somewhat frequently. What is it like being back? How's it going?

To be honest, I doubt that I can explain it adequately. When I was still serving my mission I heard every once and a while that returned missionaries describe it as feeling that it had been a dream, and the description is not a bad one. Try to imagine starting your life over again three times in three years. That is about how I feel right now. I can still remember that January three years ago. When I really cemented the idea that I wasn't happy with who I was, nor with what I was doing. I actually just went and read through a bunch of the posts that I wrote then, and remembered how it had felt.

But here I am again, still trying to muddle my way through another new beginning. It has actually been kind of odd, because I got home about two months before I could start up school again. So, I've been reading a lot, watching a lot of movies, and trying to figure out what I'm going to do with my life. And now comes the stressful part, starting up life again. I'm going to go from my calm, but busy in a recreational kind of way, life, to going to school, taking fairly difficult classes, working (hopefully) in what should be a very challenging job, and all the other things that come with being back at BYU instead of being in the middle of a social wasteland for people of my age. (Seriously. When I left church today someone told me "I'm sad that you aren't going to be here anymore, there is no one else my age!" Yes, there are two of us.)

I'm not exaggerating when I say that it scares me. There are just so many things that I don't know what to think about. For instance, moving into a new apartment, with three people that I don't know. I've done it before, and it turned out well that time, but you just never know! Even just starting back to school has me plenty scared. It has been almost three years! I'm not sure what has changed, what is the same. Starting a new job where I'll be trying to learn a bunch of things that I have very little experience with.

And then there is the biggest thing, I think. Though it is heavily related to the first one. Trying to make some new friends. As I read back over those blog posts from 2009 I think that the thing that most struck me was the amount of times that I mentioned my amazing friends. They where, and have been even since then, a huge support for me. And sure, there are still a few of them around, such as the Unconquerable Naazju and Mighty Kralc. But, they are also married now, and have an absolutely adorable little girl to keep them busy.

But then again, as I have said many times before. Many times we resist change only because it is different from what we are comfortable with, not because it is bad.

And I do feel a little bit like a friend of mine, when she said:

"bueno,,,, nunca crei k diria esto en mi VIDA ,, pero kiero entrar a la escuela,,,,,no se porque,, pero tengo un aburrrrrrimientooooooooooo en mi casa, todos los dias es lo mimo!!!!!! jajaja"

Well, except that I probably would have expressed it a little bit differently. ;D

Keep living!

Depending on God's promises

2011-11-02T16:36:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone! This will probably be my last email from the wonderful island of Hispañola! But, well, yeah. Um.

Things are going pretty well here. We are still working hard and trying our best to keep the work going. We have a few people who are getting very close to their baptism, so we are all excited for them. It is amazing how miracles happen when we simply depend on the promises that God has made with us. Seriously. I have noticed that in my mission, when we have simply trusted in the promise of the Book of Mormon, many more people come to know that this is the restored church of Jesus Christ, and make the decision to be baptized.

The spirit is much more convincing than any missionary.

See you all soon! Have fun!

This is your last opportunity

2011-10-26T16:17:00.001-06:00

So, hello again everyone! First of a, a little reminder. This is your last week in which you can write me, and I will get the letter before the end of the mission. If it isn't sent by the end of the week, you have lost your opportunity!

In other, and more interesting, news. We had a pretty good week this last week. A few days were excellent, and a few a little less amazing. For example, one day we had nine appointments set with good investigators. And all of them fell through. But we still managed to teach a few people.

Things are going pretty well here in Licey, even though it is a little hard to get around. Sunday we had an investigator who said that he wants to get baptized this week. It was his second time in church. Unfortunately he won't be able to get baptized this week, but we are excited for his great desire to make this promise with God, and we know that it is something that is going to help him out a lot as he keeps learning and preparing for his not too distant baptism.

I love you all! Don't die!

Elder Hinckley

Dreaming

2011-10-19T17:49:00.001-06:00

I don`t have much time, but I wanted to say something here.

We are working hard here still, and have a few great investigators.
One of them went to an activity, and then had two dreams, one in which
he was being baptized, and another where he was receiving the gift of
the Holy Ghost. It was amazing! And that is really only the start of
the story. After telling us about that, he told us that the other day
he had found out that a coworker is a member of the church. Turns out
that it is the brother of our ward mission leader, who just happened
to be with us that day. Coincidence? I think not!

So, other than that, I just wanted to say Happy Birthday to my best
big sister, and to my favorite father! And also wish you all a very
Merry Christmas, now that we are well into the Christmas season. :D
(But really, it has already started here. It is kind of great. :D )

Love you all!

Busyness, baptisms, and birthdays

2011-10-13T16:48:00.000-06:00

Bueno. It has been a pretty good week. Kind of tiring, in that a lot of unexpected things happened, but things are still going pretty well.

But there was a happy event this last week! Jeniffer was baptized! Her sister was baptized about 7 months ago, and is set to be sealed to her husband in February, and about three months ago she started to meet with the missionaries too. And now she is officially a member of the church. And really, she has changed a lot! We are all very happy for her.

In other news. It seems like there has been a little bit of confusion about when I will be arriving home. If my calculations are correct, I´ll be arriving home the night of the 10th of November, just in time for my mom´s birthday! (Happy birthday Mom! ;D )

And seeing as how I am already talking about birthdays! Happy birthday Dad and Dana! I know that I am a little bit early, but I figure that I had better say it now, that I am thinking about it, than think that I am going to remember next week, which is never a good bet. ;D And happy birthday to everyone else that is getting older here soon, or that already had their birthday, and I forgot to congratulate!

Conference

2011-10-05T21:06:00.001-06:00

Thanks for the message Merry! And even more, thanks for helping out the missionaries like that!

Well my friends, we just finished another great General Conference! And for the second time in my mission I watched it in Spanish! My first conference in the mission I also watched in Spanish, and this, my last, also in Spanish. I understood a lot more this time. ;D

Even though, thanks to my amazing talent of forgetting, I can't really say much about the talks in specific, since I don't remember them very well without at least a little bit of help, and I forgot my notebook in the house. But, I hope that you all enjoyed it as well!

Take care! Love you all!

Same ol' stuff

2011-09-28T20:13:00.001-06:00

Hello everyone! So, I have a new companion now. His name is Elder Contreras, and he is a pretty cool guy.

We'll have to see if we can do some new and exciting things here in these next six weeks!

Other than that, not a lot to report. We are excited for General Conference, so we'll see how that goes. It is still hot.

Love you all! Don't die!

Licey, pt. 2

2011-09-21T16:27:00.001-06:00

So, last week I explained a little bit about Licey. Today I wanted to say a little bit more about it.

Licey is kind of a fun little town. There are a lot of good people here, and sometimes you see things that just make you smile.

The other day we were walking to an appointment and we saw a Mustang (car) that was stuck in a ditch in the road. There were something like twenty people around the car trying to get it out, but it was really stuck. So, obviously, we stopped to help a little bit. Someone brought their truck around to the front of the car, and brought a little bit of rope. So, we helped tie the car to the truck, and then pushed. But sadly the rope broke. So, they found a thicker rope. And we retied the rope that broke and used it too. But sadly there still weren't strong enough, and broke again. So someone found an even thicker rope, tied up the car and the truck again, and finally the car was out of the ditch!

That is something that I like about it here. If there is a problem, everyone that is close by tries to help. Kind of reminds me of when my friends and I helped get cars out of the snow one winter. :D

A different day we were walking and saw some kids fishing in a small pool by the side of the road. They had caught fish bigger than my hand. It made us smile.

Anyway, love you all! Until next week!

Licey

2011-09-15T12:22:00.002-06:00

So, thank you all for your patience! Today I am actually going to say something about Licey!

So, Licey is a fun little town. Imagine a highway town in the states, and you have a pretty good idea of what Licey is like. A bunch of banks, a bunch of gas stations, and not a whole lot more. Everything is really spread out, which makes mission work on foot a little bit interesting. There are times where we are walking for more than 30 minutes, or even an hour, just to get from one appointment to the next. We try to avoid it, but sometimes there is just no other way.

To explain a little bit more about Licey, there really aren't addresses. If someone lives close to the main road they tell you which mile marker they live by.

There are a lot of goats, cows, pigs, chickens, and dogs. There are actually a good number of large chicken farms here.

The biggest tree in the northern DR is in our area. We went to see it today, but I can't upload pictures right now. I've seen some pretty big trees in my life, but this one is definitely impressive!

The ward here is pretty strong, and we have a great ward mission leader! It was his birthday yesterday actually! His sister-in-law is progressing really well, and will probably be getting baptized soon. We are very excited for her. She has made some huge changes in her life, but I can tell that she likes the difference that it has made. She even invites her friends to talk with us and go to church and activities!

Anyway, I love you all! Sorry about the late emails. We had a zone conference yesterday, and so our preparation day was changed to Thursday.

That is all.

2011-09-09T18:53:00.000-06:00

Still alive.

Don't die.

Know vs suffer

2011-08-24T19:33:00.001-06:00

Hello everyone!

First of all, I wanted to say felicidades to Kerry and Kyle again. They are getting married Friday, I think! Congrats! I hope that all goes well!

And now a little about my new area.

Licey is like a highway town. It is just spread out all over the place, with a bunch of shops along the highway. It is the most country area that I have had so far. We walk a lot. I am going to use my pedometer here some day to see how it compares.

It is really humid right now.

But, other than that, I just wanted to share something that I learned in my studies the other day! When I shared Alma 7:11-13 with someone the other day I finally figure something out that I think is very important. In verse 13 it says "Now the Spirit knoweth all things; nevertheless the Son of God suffereth according to the flesh"

Now, I had always wondered why Alma felt he needed to say that the spirit knows everything here, especially since he wasn't talking about the nature of the Spirit, but that of Jesus Christ. But I think that I finally understood. He mentions it to explain something very important. There is a grand difference between KNOW and SUFFER or experience. Even though the spirit KNOWS how we feel in our illnesses and afflictions, it isn't enough. Jesus Christ had to actually pass though it all, experience it. SUFFER it.

This has a lot of applications, but my time has run out.

Love you all!

To be, or not to be…Santiago.

2011-08-17T15:28:00.002-06:00

So, I'm kind of no longer in Santiago. I say "kind of" because I am now in a little town called Licey, which is right by Santiago. Some people think it is part of Santiago, and others that it isn't.

I obviously have a new companion as well. His name is Elder Reynoso, and this is his first area still, even though he already has six months in the mission.

I was kind of sad to leave Tierra Alta, but I really felt like I had done what I had been called there to do, so I didn't feel too bad.

But there are some perks too. First of all, the house has a water heater. I don`t really see myself using it, but it is there if I want it. Also, it has a few fruit trees. Like starfruit. Lots and LOTS of starfruit. I`m going to have to see if I like it.

I'll try and say a little bit more about the area this next week, once I know a little bit more!

Finally, some news!

2011-08-10T07:42:00.002-06:00

So, I've worked hard to be able to spend a little bit more time in this email today.

First of all, I wanted to congratulate Kerry more formally! Congrats on your upcoming wedding! That is fantastic! I am expecting pictures. (If you don't believe me, ask Clark and Natalia.) Also, speaking of the fantastic Earley family. Thank you for the pictures! I have been so happy to have them that I've been showing them off to pretty much everyone!

This last week has been very hot. VERY hot. I have decided that AC is vastly underappreciated in the states.

The work is really going pretty well here so far. We are starting to see a lot of changes in the ward and our area, and it makes me very happy. I'm sure that we'll be seeing a lot of people making the great decision to follow in our saviors steps and be baptized here soon.

In this area I have learned how vital the members are in missionary work. Without them, we can do very little. Sure, we can work a lot, and get to know a lot of people, but without working with the members that are already here we simplemente aren't effective as missionaries. Yes, it is more work to work with the members, but it is also 100 times more effective, in every aspect of the work. Every one of us has the ability, opportunity, and responsibility to help people find the joy that we have found in the restored gospel of Jesus Christ! I suggest reading Alma 6:6 and thinking about how we all can put it into practice, and not just for the missionaries, but also in our lives and with the people that we know and talk to every day.

Thank you for all of your prayers, support, and letters!

Just a short note. And I do mean short!

2011-08-03T14:57:00.001-06:00

No time. Love you all. Congrats Kerry! Got the pictures Clark and Natalia! Thank you! Love you all! Don't die!

The usual stuff

2011-07-27T16:15:00.001-06:00

So, not much time, as normal.

Things are going well. We went to a museum today called "Centro Leon." It was pretty neat.

I'll say more next week. Maybe. Love you all!

Working smarter, not harder

2011-07-20T10:33:00.001-06:00

So, this email will be shorter this week. We are working here in the DR. We are doing a lot of things to try and work better, since at this point it is hard to work more. (There are only so many hours in a day!) Mostly that means a lot more coordination with the members, and a lot more verification of who is doing what. Makes the work a little bit more complicated, but it is very good. It helps more.

I'm not actually very sure if this makes sense in English. I've been telling everyone for some time now that I don't speak English, and I think that it is true.

I love you all! Send me letters. With return addresses please! I got a postcard from my first companion the other day, Elder Noltemeyer, and I want to send him a letter in return, but there was no return address. If you see him, or hear from him, tell him that I'm doing good. And that it is hot here. Still. ;D

Changes are a comin'…

2011-07-13T14:39:00.002-06:00

So, I have decided to take a little bit more time today to talk about what is actually going on here.

So, the ward that I am in now has been struggling a little bit for some time. Not so much in the members, as that there have been very few baptisms. And there have been some very good missionaries who have passed through here. So my companion from before and I got to thinking, and we arrived at the conclusion that we, as missionaries, have to work more with the members. So we made up a plan with a few little, simple, tools to help us out in putting it into action, and now we are doing it. And it has been a really amazing experience.

I'm not going to say that everything has changed from night to day, because is hasn't. But I have never seen an area nor a ward change so much in so little time. And the changes have been absolutely amazing. We have been seeing a lot of miracles.

It all started with a goal that the stake has, that every member is going to help one more person accept the restored gospel this year. Now, this is a great goal, but there is one little problem. The majority of the members have very little experience and understanding on how to do it. So, for the first six months with this goal, very little has been done. But now we are here to change that. I really like the analogy that Elder Perry makes in his talk "Bring Souls Unto Me" from the April 2009 general conference. The missionaries are a well trained and focused team dedicated to the rescue of those that want to become closer to Christ. The members are the loving friend. When we work together, we can do incredible things.

So, we started to visit all of the active members, and some of the inactive members, of our ward, and ask them how we can help them with this goal. A lot of them said "Well, I've been thinking about someone for a long time now, but I've never talked to them." A few said "The people around here don't want to listen." But either way we set goals with them, and have talked with them about how they can share their testimonies with their friends, and invite them to learn more about the gospel. And we have seen some great results so far.

Just this last week we had a really great experience. We were visiting with a member for the second time, and he was feeling really down and discouraged. He had invited one of his sons to go to church with him the past Sunday, but his son didn't end up going. So, we tried to remind him of his faith, and we promised him that he knew someone who wanted to learn more, and who was ready to accept the gospel. While we were talking with him a friend of his came to visit, and listened quietly for a little while. Then he spoke up saying "I used to be really interested in your church." Turns out that 12 years ago he met with missionaries, and was very interested to learn more, but something happened and he wasn't able to learn more. But now he is interested again, and we have an appointment with him and his friend this week!

I really think that we are going to see even more great changes in the weeks that come.

Love you all!

And then again…maybe not.

2011-07-06T14:45:00.002-06:00

Not much time!

So, since my last email, I have had two new companions. That makes four companions in two weeks. I think that is a new record.

It is hot. The sun is really bright. I ate rice and beans with chicken today. I know that is a huge surprise.

In the coming week we are going to be starting a bunch of really exciting things in the zone here, so maybe I'll try and save a little bit more time to write about them how I want to next week. Love you! Don't die!

Clark and Natalia. I have sent you a very important letter. Pay special attention to the included instructions!

Maybe next week…

2011-06-30T15:15:00.001-06:00

So, how are you all doing?

I'm good. With very little time, as always.

Really don't have that much to report today. But I'm hoping that next week I'll have more to say! Love you all! Don't die!

Less than six degrees of seperation

2011-06-22T14:15:00.001-06:00

First of all, a little reply to my grandparents. I´m so glad that you mentioned your friends that are here in the DR! I saw them here, on Mother`s day! I talked to them about you and everything, but then I couldn't remember their last name to tell you about them. But yes, they are here and doing well. :D

So, I got what is called a "mini" missionary today. My companion had been struggling with his health for a few weeks, and since he was just a few weeks shy of finishing, they decided to let him go home and work on his health there. So he flew out Monday, and I got my mini missionary today. (A mini missionary is a member that has volunteered to be companion with a missionary for a little while.)

Other than that, well. Not a whole lot to say, and not a lot of time.

Help from the members

2011-06-15T16:07:00.001-06:00

So, I have received confirmation! There was born a baby!

(Yes, I know. My English spelling and grammar continue to get worse.)

Congratulations Clark and Natalia! I've heard that she is very beautiful, and healthy. And bastante grande!

Things are getting a little bit better here. We are working a lot on working with the members, and I think that things are going to go a lot better with their help. I also found a cool talk about this today. You can see it here: http://lds.org/general-conference/2009/04/bring-souls-unto-me?lang=eng&query=bring+souls+unto+me

To My Friends

2011-06-09T14:00:00.000-06:00

Primero. Kendel, my mom passed along your message. I feel your pain. :-(

Also, it sometimes amazes me how well your way of speaking translates to text. (Estoy un poco emocionado por hablar contigo en español. Vamos a ver si nos podemos entender o no. ;D )

Second. I have heard that it is possible that two of my friends are, or will shortly be, parents! If this happens to be the case here before next Wednesday, congrats! Send me pictures! I´ll make that baby famous here in the DR! ;D

Talking about the DR. It is still here. And we are still going at it! We've decided to try a few new things, so we'll see if they work here in a couple weeks. We have a few people that want to get baptized, but they all have some pretty tough problems to overcome first.

Until next week, take care!

Understanding

2011-06-01T16:12:00.001-06:00

So, first of all, happy anniversary to my parents! As my mom says, they have now been married for forever! (Even though I think that they still lack one year to reach the "been married for forever" stage.)

This last week has been, honestly, a little frustrating. We have had one thing after another come up, but we are working hard to resolve them. And we are learning a lot.

The other day I told my companion that I feel like I am just starting to understand how missionary work should be done. He agreed. (He only has 5 weeks left.) But then again, I think that is kind of how life is. At least in the gospel. We do something until we learn how to do it, and then the Lord gives us something new to do. Some new challenge. Something to keep us learning. I've seen this a lot in the mission.

As I think about that, and the fact that I have a lot of life ahead of me, I have realized something. I am going to be tired a lot.

Comings and goings

2011-05-26T21:17:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone, from the lovely city of Santiago, Republica Dominicana!

As a brief weather update. The weather has changed drastically recently. We were in a pretty bad drought, but now it is raining almost every afternoon. And it is really hot. Usually really hot in the morning and early afternoon, then it cools down when it starts to rain. Although sometimes it feels even hotter. Did you know that tropical islands are hot?

Also, in other news. My first companion is going to see his family tommorow! Yes, Elder Noltemeyer has finished his mission, and I was able to see him and talk to him a little bit today. I have included two pictures. The first is from my first day in the mission field. The second, from today, my trainer's last day in the mission field. It was a pretty neat experience.

Other than that, we are working hard here still. We are teaching a really amazing family that has a lot of interest in the restored gospel. We are very excited, and the members are getting excited as well. Basically there are a bunch of excited people around here.

We are also working with a few youths and other people, and working hard to find more! Thank you for all of your prayers, letters, thoughts, and well wishes!

Also. Happy birthday to a few of my friends and family! Yes, Casey and Kerry, I'm talking about you! Also, I'm a little bit behind on this, so happy birthday to Corey, Heather, Lloyd, Paula, Bryan, Heidi, Amanda, and Sean! Sorry that I'm not very good at keeping up to date on these. . .

Elder Hinckley and Elder Noltemeyer on their first day working together.

Elder Noltemeyer's last day in the mission.

El Hoyo

2011-05-19T11:36:00.001-06:00

So, I have included a few pictures of our area of Santiago here! Most of them are of a part of our area called "El Hoyo" (Sí, mis amigos, el hoyo.) But I'm sure that you can see that there is a lot of variety in our area!

I have also, just now, made a goal to not read back over the things that I have written. Because that way I don't notice all the awkward grammar that I am using.

So, we are working hard here, but not with a whole lot of success. Generally the people just don't want to do anything. We'll talk to them about the importance of everything, but they just don't read, pray, or go to the church. It is kind of frustrating to see so many people who don't do something so simple, especially when you know that it is something that will help them!

It makes me laugh a little bit sometimes. Here I am, working with just a few people and I'm sometimes frustrated. Can you imagine how God feels? Billions of children that he wants to help, that he is doing everything possible to help, but that simply don't have enough faith to test the amazing promises that he has given them.

But, anyway. As they say here "E' pa'lante que vamo!" (Para los que hablen español, ésta significa "Es para adelante que vamos.")

Mission work

2011-05-11T21:19:00.000-06:00

So, hi again! I really have very little to say today. We have found a few people that are progressing well, but mostly we are still looking a lot.

I gave a talk on Sunday! The bishop assigned my companion and I to talk a little bit about the "obra missional" (mission work). I talked about four parts of missionary work: The calling, the importance, the motivation, and the how.

I used these scriptures.

The calling: Alma 5:49 y Matthew 28:19-20
The importance: 2 Nefi 2:8
The motivation: Marcos 12:30-31, Mosiah 28:3, Mosiah 18:8-10, Alma 5:26
The how: DC 124:88, Jacob 1:19

I went a little bit long, but I thought that it went pretty well.

Love you and miss you all!

Eat pizza, because it is affordable there!

And a little child…

2011-05-04T16:10:00.001-06:00

So. Hi!

Bye!

Well, okay, I'm going to say a little bit more than that. So, I was informed that today I have been in the mission for a year and a half. That's pretty weird, huh?

Ummmmmmmmmm. We're still just getting started here. We'll have to see how things go from now on. Love you all. Don't die. Write your favorite missionary a letter, even if it isn't me.

Oh yeah, two other short notes. In drought years there are more mangoes. Isn't that cool?!

Also, two Sundays ago when we arrived at church there was a young girl that was passing by and asked me what was the church. I explained a little bit, and said that she could go in. So in she went! And she stayed all three hours. This last Sunday she was back, and brought her little sister and brother. It was kind of fun. :D

Still me

2011-04-27T17:24:00.000-06:00

Hello again everyone! So, this last week we passed through one of the greatest Dominican traditions! Habichuelas con Dulce! (Sweet beans!) Mmm, mmm good! It sounds kind of weird, but it is actually really good if well made. Look it up, and look for a recipe that calls for 1 lb of beans and 2 cans of condensed milk. Yummy! Everyone makes it around Easter.

Other than that we are working hard, trying to find new people. We really don't have very many right now, but it just means that we need to get to work!

There was something else that I was going to say, but I can't remember was it was. . . (Yes, I'm still me. ;D )

Homework

2011-04-20T16:24:00.002-06:00

Yeah, so, de nuevo, tengo muy poco tiempo.

Ummm. So, yeah, this last week was really weird. My companion, Elder Frazier, and I are basically starting from scratch in our area, which is to say that we both arrived here the same day, and so didn't know anything about it when we arrived. Our first day we headed out to an appointment that the elders before us had left us, and it started raining. And then it started to hail, which was really strange. Especially since they were hail stones the size of peas, or bigger. But we got to the appointment on time! (Which was a miracle!)

What else happened? Hmm. Well, a bunch of stuff. But. We are starting to feel a little bit comfortable in our area now! And we have a some great people that we are working with. Oh, and the members here really love the missionaries. Which is nice. They are always looking out for us and trying to see what they can do to help.

Your homework this week: Find some missionaries, and do something nice for them!

Oh, and there is a piano in the house, so I am practicing a little bit. I have already played all of the hymns in the simplified hymn book with the right hand only, so now I am working on this two handed thing. It is a lot harder!

Don't die!

Faith to overcome

2011-04-13T17:46:00.003-06:00

First of all, happy birthday Whitney! And Natalia! And. . .all of the other people that are having birthdays this month! Yay for being older! ;D And thanks for the birthday wishes!

And yes, Kendel, we have plans for you. ;D

Also, I would upload a picture of a cake here. But I forgot it. Maybe next week.

So, a little update. I am no longer in San Francisco. I am now in Santiago! My new companion is Elder Frasier, and we are pretty excited to be here. We don't really know what we are doing yet, but I'm sure that we will learn quickly.

Also, I want to share a short experience with all of you. Saturday was kind of a rough day. All of our appointments fell through, and all of our backup plans too. We managed to find a few people to teach, but mostly we walked a lot. And so we were a little bit frustrated when we started back toward the house at 9:15 pm, but we also had a little bit of help.

As we were walking someone called out to us "Elderes!" So we went to greet him. After talking with him for a minute we found out that he was baptized about ten years ago with his wife. So, we sat down and talked to them for a few minutes, and invited them to go to church. This turned out to be a little bit hard for them. Our chapel is being remodeled, so we have to go to another chapel on the other side of San Francisco, and they don't have money to take a bus. So we arranged to walk to the church with them and their three daughters the next morning. (We didn't have time to arrange for a ride for them.)

And we walked. For more than an hour we walked with this little family to arrive at church. I have to say that is was amazing to see them. It was a sacrifice that they were willing to make because even though they had wandered a little bit, they knew that the church is true.

Faith like that is what we all need. Where we don't worry about the problems or obstacles, but of the goals and duties.

Conference

2011-04-06T17:24:00.001-06:00

Okay, so I'm pretty sure that every missionary in the world says pretty much the same thing, but Conference was amazing! I loved it! So many of the talks were about things about which I have been thinking recently.

I also saw a few trends. Well, two main trends:

1. Service
2. Get married already

Yes, my friends. I hope that all of you, my unmarried amigos and amigas, recognize that the prophet and the apostles have a similar goal as me—that you all get married! ;D And no, I did not think a lot of Kendel and Casey during the conference, why do you ask?

Anyway, that's all the time I have today! Don't die! Sigan fiel!

Pictures, pictures, pictures!

2011-03-31T19:26:00.003-06:00

Hello everyone! How are you? Well, to make up for my short posts recently, I have included a plethora of pictures! Yay! The first is of a big cathedral that is here in San Fran. That is followed by some pictures of my shoes. As you can see, on the outside they look great. It is only when you take a closer look that you can see that they have a few problems. ;D

After that there is a picture of a young man in white with a couple of missionaries. He is Nicolas, and was baptized this last Saturday. He actually learned about the church in Nagua, but got baptized here after moving to take a class in the university here. He is great, and has a strong testimony of the gospel. (There were actually three people baptized this day, but only one from our area. One other from the other half of our ward, and another from another branch in the stake.)

And speaking of Nagua. We went there today! Yes, my friends, I went to the beach. Again! Huttah! It was fun, but I am now very tired. The beach is cool. Also, I am once again convinced that I actually am on an island.

Anyway, those are the noticias today! I hope that you have all had good weeks, have learned a lot, and are getting ready for General Conference! I won't be watching it in AC this time, but I'm sure that I'll enjoy it anyway. :D

Another short one…maybe next week

2011-03-23T20:16:00.001-06:00

So, I have some bad news my friends. My update is going to be kind of short today as well. And I really can only blame myself. I have become far too talkative sometimes, and so have less time to share with you all. I hope that you will forgive me!

And now I don't know how much time I have left. . . The little timer went away. . .

But, anyway. Things are going okay here. We are going to be moving to another chapel here for the next three months or so, which is going to make it a bit harder to get people to go to church (the new chapel is kind of far away.) But the only thing that we can do is keep working hard!

Love ya'll! I hope to have some good news next week!

Let Me Think…

2011-03-16T18:42:00.001-06:00

Well, the time flew by.

Ummm. Everything is fine. Nothing is broken.

Or, in other words. I don't have time, ni mucho para decir. Er, nor a lot to say. The work is progressing. They are going to remodel our chapel, which is going to make it a little bit harder.

Dominicans love fried food, and I have grown to appreciate it as well. But in moderation.

Huttah!

Big city adjustments

2011-03-09T20:19:00.004-07:00

Hello from the grand city of San Francisco!

Well, this past week has been quite the experience! I have been getting to know a lot of new people, and trying to get used to life in a big city.

San Francisco has a lot of people, and a lot of stores. It also has a lot of connections with the US. Pretty much everyone that we talk to has family that is in the states, or they have lived there. Or are about to go there.

We have also been having some pretty crazy experiences. For example, yesterday we were doing some contacting and we ran into a very interesting family. Interesting because when we started to talk to the mother she said that she had never met with missionaries before, but then told us that her husband loves to read the Book of Mormon, and that their son is named José Smith (Joseph Smith.) Yes my friends! It happens. But, there is a little problem. Her husband is in the States.

We've also been working with another great family, and last night they told us that they received an answer to their prayers, and they want to get baptized. But there is a little problem. They aren't married. And the mother of the family is about to go the US, and if she gets married right now it is likely that they will have to start the papers again. (The process normally takes a few years.)

So, the work is going well, but I'm having to get used to a very different set of problems.

Oh, and I've attached pictures of Lucia, who was baptized in Navarrete (the picture that I promised last time), of my district in Navarrete, and of me and my new companion. I have noticed that in pictures I almost always have my head tilted.

Anyway. Take care! If you meet someone from the DR, ask them if they know anyone in San Francisco de Macoris!

Lucia

Navarrete District

Elder Hinckley and Elder Alexis from Haiti

San Francisco--DR not CA!

2011-03-02T16:20:00.003-07:00

Well everyone, in a big change, well, there was a big change! Yes, my friends, I am no longer in Navarrete, the town that I have called home for the last six months. And, somewhat obviously, I am no longer companions with Elder Peña.

I am now in San Francisco de Macoris, East of Santiago. Now, most of you won't notice something important here, so I am going to point it out to you. I started out in Bonao, South of Santiago. Then Puerto Plata, North of Santiago. Then I went to Navarrete, West of Santiago. And now I am in San Francisco, to the East. Yes, my friends, I have been to the four sides of the Cibao (the northern part of the DR.)

My new companion is Elder Alexis, who is from Haiti. I am going to try to take advantage of the situation and learn a little bit of French and or Creol from him. (I would try to upload a photo, but every time someone touches my computer bad things happen. Maybe next week.)

But, to talk a little bit more about Navarrete, last week Lucia was baptized!

A few months ago my companion and I were walking to an appointment when we heard someone yelling from behind us. When we turned to look there was a woman a hundred feet away that was waving at us. So, we turned back to talk to here. Turns out that one of her daughters was listening to the missionaries in another part of the city, and she wanted to change her life. So, we set an appointment. And now, after a few months and lots of effort on her part, she has been baptized into the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints!

Anyway, I hope that you are all doing well! Write me letters! ;D

How's the work?

2011-02-23T20:02:00.002-07:00

Not much time. Sorry that this is going to be another short one, but at least you have two pictures to look at!

First picture, little baby Moises! Yay!

Second picture, the baptism of Rossy (Rosie.) She is another grandchild of María and Rigoberto, who were baptized a few weeks ago. She is very smart.

And now for the featured event!

I have been thinking about what is the number one thing that is holding back the missionary work in the world, and I have come to the conclusion that the biggest thing is that there aren't enough missionaries. There are MANY people that are ready for the gospel in the world. (Read the recent series of articles about the church in Africa for another witness of this.) There just aren't enough missionaries. And so I want to echo the call that President Monson made in the last general conference, and repeated in his message in a recent Ensign/Liahona. If you are in a position where you can serve a mission, think about doing it. Pray and ask you Heavenly Father if it is what you should do. Because there are people waiting to hear the gospel.

Love you all!

Happy Birthday?

2011-02-16T21:59:00.000-07:00

Well, sorry to say it friends and family, but not much happened this week. Well, at least not much of interest to you all. We are working with a lot of people, like always, there is always more than enough work!

The only thing exciting that happened in the last week was that Katherine (from the message last week) gave birth! A healthy baby boy of about 6 pounds. I have pictures, but sadly, due to technical difficulties, I can't share them with you all.

I'm hoping that you all passed the famous "Friendship Day" well!

Oh, and speaking of holidays.

Happy Birthday Clark, Heather R., Rachel, Hayley, Michael, and Tali!

About three weeks ago I made a goal to be at least a little bit better with birthdays. I'm sure you can all deduce how well it is going. ;D

Page 2…

2011-02-09T19:13:00.004-07:00

Well, are you all ready for the update on the second photo that I sent last week?

This is Amaury and Katherine. Well, and their son Gerency. We actually started talking with the father of Katherine, since he is a friend of a member (he is friends with the dad of Daniel actually, who was baptized recently) but one day Katherine was there, so we set an appointment with her and her "husband." Well, it turns out that they were very ready for the gospel. They love to read the Book of Mormon and share what they are reading. Love to sing the Hymns, and go to church. Their biggest problem was that they weren't married. But after learning a LOT about what someone needs to get married here, they are now married, and happy members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints!

Oh, and Gerency loves to take pictures with my camera. Maybe I'll send one someday. Who knows. ;D

Oh, and they are expecting their second son this week. :D Born into a family with parents that have made promises with each other.

A picture is worth a thousand words - here's two!

2011-02-02T16:57:00.002-07:00

Well, the message is going to be a little bit short this week, but I hope that the photos speak for themselves!

This week we had the grand pleasure of seeing a family get baptized! Maria and Rigoberto are an older couple that have been married for over 30 years. And really, we didn't find them. They found us. We were just walking in the street one day when Maria call out to us and told us that she wanted to change some things in her life, and that she wanted to be part of the church. We set a time to come and talk with her and her husband, and went our way.

When we told the members that we were teaching them, they told us that she had a big problem with cigarettes, and other things. But even though she smoked more than a box a day before, Maria stopped smoking cold turkey. She started coming to the church, and after a few more visits with her and Rigoberto, Rigoberto started to visit the church and was enchanted. And so they, and two of their grand daughters that live with them, got baptized Saturday!

As for the other photo. This is a sign of things to come. ;D

Two for one

2011-01-26T20:14:00.004-07:00

Note: Last week as Neil got ready to send his email the power went out. He resent it today. Today you get two messages in one—not that either one is long!

Last week:

Hello everyone! How's it going?

Things are going well here in Navarrete! We are starting a new transfer today without any big changes. Same area and same companion. A lot of great people. But the biggest news is the baptism of Carolina and Daniel! They are two young people who, after months of learning, waiting, praying, and trials have finally been baptized!

We are very happy for them, and excited for the chance that they have now to truly begin their journey in the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Daniel and Carolina

This week:

Well, I'm not going to write much here today because you can all read what happened last week. Nothing big has happened in this last week, so you aren't missing much.

But one day I'm going to tell you all a story about some very loving people. When I have more than two minutes to do it.

Progress

2011-01-13T17:21:00.001-07:00

Well, things are going pretty well here.

First of all, I have attached a photo from the Baptism of Osmailyn. He is only 9 years old, but has a lot of love for the church and the gospel. He is with his guardian in this picture.

We are seeing a lot of progress in these days here. A lot of people that are getting closer to their baptism. We are especially excited for a couple of families that we are teaching and that are progressing a LOT. In fact, we are hoping to have a wedding here soon!

Other than that, well, I don't really have a lot to say. We are working and trying to be the missionaries that God needs here and now. There's not much more than that that we can do.

Thank you all for your messages, letters, and prayers!

Just a quick one

2011-01-06T13:03:00.001-07:00

Hey everyone! I don't have much time today, but I wanted to say hello. That things are going well. Oh, and two more words.

Root canal!

Yay! ;D

Merry Christmas Everyone!

2010-12-22T17:22:00.001-07:00

First of all, my mom forwarded me the comment. Thanks Kris10!

This last Wednesday I actually learned a little bit about how to tejer, or weave, a net like that. I'm not nearly as fast or as accurate as Abraham, but it is fun to know. I just have to find the material to make a "needle" (agujo) and I can make my own!

Also, thank you Aunt Julie and Uncle LaMar and family for the package! It got here safe and sound.

This past week has been kind of interesting. The holiday seasons are usually a bit harder to work in. And for more than just the fact that we are away from our families. (I recently saw the song "I'll be home for Christmas" on a CD. I refuse to listen to it.) But because everyone is having parties and reunions with their families. And so, they aren't around, or aren't available to teach. But we are determined to do everything that we can to keep the work moving, and enjoy the holiday season.

Here in the Dominican Republic the big holiday is the 24th. I'm still not sure exactly what is going to happen, but that is what I hear.

Oh! Also, the branch here recently did a temple trip, and Carolina, that was baptized recently, was able to go! It was exciting for all of us. :D

Have a very merry Christmas!

About fishing for men and fishermen.

2010-12-15T17:29:00.003-07:00

Hello everyone!

First of all, thanks to my parents and my Grandparents for their Christmas cheer! Everything seems to have arrived in good condition.

Well, things are really starting to move here in Navarrete. We had a baptism this last Saturday, Carolina! (The picture is of her and the Young Women's presidency.) She already has more than six months going to the iglesia, and a lot of love for the gospel. She has had to change a lot of things in her life, but is very excited to be a member of the church.

I also learned that there is no such thing as an easy baptism. At least, I haven't seen one yet. Carolina lives with her aunt and uncle. Her aunt is very supportive, but her uncle a little bit less supportive. As in, before last Friday he hadn't said a single word to us, even when we said hello. But since he is the head of the family we had to get his permission to baptize Carolina. You are going to have to wait to see me in person to get the whole story, but let it be known that it was a bit of an adventure!

But Carolina was baptized, and this Saturday she is going to the temple with the branch! We are all very excited for her.

Also, yesterday we passed by the house of some of the members here, and the father was finishing up a fishing net that he made. I want to learn how to do it. (You can see him in the other picture.)

We are working hard, and doing our best to lift where we stand. I hope that you are all doing well as well!

Surprise Testimony

2010-12-08T17:10:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone! Things are going really well here in Navarrete. I have my new companion now, Elder Peña, and we are getting settled into the changes. He is seems like a really great guy, and I'm excited to be able to work with him.

I've included a photo of my previous companion, Elder Rivas, and my new companion, Elder Peña. (Rivas is wearing the red tie.)

Also, I wanted to share a cool experience with all of you. This past Sunday was the Sunday of Fasting and Testimony. We had a lot of our investigators show up, and one of them, Edward, really surprised us. We haven't taught him very much, but he still got up and shared his testimony that he knows that the church is true, and that he knows it because he prayed and received an answer to his prayer. We were both very excited about it!

Anyway, I hope that you are all doing well, and ready to enjoy the holiday season! Don't die!

Helping

2010-12-01T16:46:00.001-07:00

So, in a drastic change, I have a lot to say today!

First of all, I now have experience mixing concrete. We had an appointment with a new investigator the other day, and when we arrived he and one of his neighbors were getting ready to pour a part of the roof of their house. So we helped them out a little bit, and then arranged to go back Saturday and help them mix the concrete and pour it. It was fun, and a good experience. We were a little bit sore the next few days, but we were happy to help. And after helping them, we went and painted at a different house. It was a good morning. :D

Also, the other day I got a call from the mission president, Presidente Lee, telling me that I am going to be training a new missionary this coming transfer. I have to admit that I was pretty surprised to hear it, but it is what is going to happen. So, my current companion, Elder Rivas, and I are working hard to get ready for the coming change. He is sad to be leaving his first area, especially since the work here has been going really well, but he knows that it is part of the mission.

It does mean that I will be staying here in Navarrete for the holidays though. And I'm okay with that.

Scriptures

2010-11-24T17:37:00.003-07:00

Hello! My name is Elder Hinckley, and this is my companion Elder Rivas. We're missionaries of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. . .

Oh yeah, this is a letter to friends and family. Sometimes those mission habits are a little hard to break. ;D

But really, I'm not sure what to write here. The mission really has become "la vida normal," so it is a little bit hard to think of what I would like to share with you all. Well, first of all, Happy Thanksgiving! This is a holiday that doesn't exist here, so I'm probably going to eat chicken, rice, and beans tomorrow. But I do have some potatoes in the fridge, so who knows. Maybe I can whip up some mashed potatoes at least!

The weather has been nice, not too hot!

We have a lot of people that are really progressing well, and a lot of new people that have a great desire to learn more about their savior, Jesus Christ and to follow his example. This week we have really been trying to use the Book of Mormon more to help them understand that there really are prophets with us in the world today, and that this is the Church of Jesus Christ.

I have been learning a lot by studying the scriptures and trying to teach others. It really makes me a little bit sad to realize that almost my whole life I've had the opportunity to know a lot of what I am finally learning now, but that I didn't take advantage of this opportunity. There is great power and wisdom in the scriptures, and only now am I starting to see it. I hope that you all are trying your best to learn from what has been revealed through the prophets of God through all of history, from the beginning until now, because there is no greater source of strength, comfort, and wisdom than this.

Hello world!

2010-11-17T18:54:00.000-07:00

This is Elder Hinckley, writing from the mission. Not a lot is going on these days. Just working hard, and trying to figure out how to find the time to do everything that we need to. That is the hardest part in this area, that there is just too much work to do! But we are doing our best!

Umm. I don´t really have much more to say right now. We have a few baptisms that are coming up, and another wedding! I´ll keep you all up to date as things progress.

Actually, algo mas, this Monday the parents of a member of our ward got married. So far they don´t really want too much to do with us, though they are very friendly, but it makes me happy to see that they are still working to improve their lives for the things that they have learned from talking with us and with their daughter.

A turn in the road

2010-11-10T20:44:00.001-07:00

So, right now we are locked out of our apartment (long story) but other than that we are fine.

Things are going really well here in Navarrete. We are getting a lot of help from the members, and together we are progressing a lot.

This last week was pretty normal. The family from my old area in Navarrete got baptized, and the weather has been a bit better (in my opinion) than normal. I also got a packet of letters from my Mom's side of the family this past week. Thanks a ton! It really made my day! I would like to respond to each one individually, but there sadly just isn't time. But I want you all to know that I really enjoyed getting them!

So, lately I've been thinking a lot about, well, a lot of things. I officially have less than half my mission left, so it really struck me how large my disabilities are. How is it that our Padre Celestial has entrusted me, small, weak, and flawed as I am, with so large and important of a responsibility? I know that every person that I come across deserves someone better than the person that is in front of them. But that person isn't here. It's just me.

But. I also know that I am here not because a human sent me here on a whim, but that a God sent me here for a purpose. So I just try my best to trust in that, and obey and do the things that are asked of me. In other words, instead of giving up, I plan on trying a little bit more each day to do my best.

It is actually something interesting. The more time that I have in the mission, the more inadequate I feel. I started the mission not knowing anything, but with what now seems like a great confidence, and now I know more, and feel much more flawed.

It is an interesting turn in my life.

Limpieza de Costas

2010-11-03T17:58:00.002-06:00

So, hello everyone! How is it going? Are you learning a lot? Working hard? Eating your fruits and vegetables?

Again, not a whole lot to report here. Not that a lot isn't happening. But that the lot that is happening isn't terribly exciting.

I did want to write a little bit about a service project that we participated in this past week though. I don't know how many of you have heard of "Mormon Helping Hands," but this past week the district here did a project like that. We all went down to the local river and picked up garbage. I don't have any official numbers, but I believe that there were more than 200 people there, and that we collected at least 2000 pounds of garbage in the morning. It was a great experience, and a great opportunity to work with the people here to better their country a little bit, and show an example of what we can do if we work together.

Anyway, thanks everyone for your thoughts and prayers! Believe me, we, the missionaries, need all the help we can get!

Oh, and happy birthday to me! Tomorrow! (One Year!)

What to say, what to say…

2010-10-27T22:06:00.001-06:00

So, I really don't know what to say today.

We don't have much time, which is pretty much normal.

So. I'm still alive. Still working. It is still hot. I am happy that the new house has a passion fruit vine that is producing. We have a lot of people that are working toward good goals. There are still mosquitoes.

Ummm…

People are putting up their Christmas trees. That is pretty exciting. :D
Anyway, that is what I've got right now. Don't die!

Quite a week!

2010-10-20T16:43:00.004-06:00

Hello everyone! So, the last week was quite a week! First of all I was transferred, got a new companion (Elder Rivas from San Cristobal), then on Friday morning two of our investigators from my now old area, Liset and Jonny, got married! Then they celebrated in the night. And then on Saturday two of our investigators from my now old area, Evalin and her son Christofer, got baptized! So, in short, the week was a little bit chaotic, but very good over all. Well, actually, to put it a bit better, the week was a fantastic, wonderful, surprising and stressful adventure!

I have attached photos of my new companion, Liset and Jonny cutting their cake, and of Evalin and Christofer from their baptism.

Also, congrats to Clark and Natalia! I can't wait to hear more about how little Agabus Earley is doing! ;D

I have eight more minutes to write sometime, and I am waiting for the photos to finish uploading, so here we go! Let's see what comes out.

In the last few days I've been a part of a few interesting conversations. And I would like to say a little something about it. Never say to someone that they aren't ready for something, and never say it to yourself. This will never help anyone. If you would like, you can ask them "are you ready" or "do you feel like you are ready" or "am I ready to really do this?" But never say that they aren't ready, because when you do it is the same thing as saying that they can't do it. I have seen many examples of people who have had others say this to them, and because of this introduced uninvited doubt and they begin to doubt themselves as well. They doubt what they already know. They doubt their own strength, their own ability. Or, if we say it to ourselves we begin to doubt in ourselves. Instead of saying that you/they/he/her isn't ready, ask them how they are, what you can do to help. Celebrate with them what they have already achieved, and help them with what they are already struggling. Build them, don't plant unneeded doubts!

A very short note

2010-10-13T21:36:00.000-06:00

Hey everyone! So, first of all, I have a new companion now! Elder Rivas! He is a great guy, with lots of drive to be a great missionary. I'm still in Navarrete, just a different part.

I would write more, but I am now out of time due to some technical dificulties. I hope that you are all well!

General Conference

2010-10-06T20:59:00.001-06:00

So, have I said before that I am loving my time here in Navarrete? I only have three weeks, and still don't know my way around very well, but I am loving it. My companion, Elder Carpenter and I are working hard, and with a lot of great people.

We also had the great pleasure of watching General Conference this last weekend. I was going to write about some of the things that I liked from the conference, but I forgot my notebook so I can't really do too much of that. It did kind of make me happy to notice that a lot of the talks talked about trees. Even if one was the "tree of sin." ;D (I'm a fan of trees.)

I especially liked Elder Uchtdorf's talk, and for more than just the introductory example of trees and the following joke (which was the best joke of the conference in my opinion.) I can't remember the talk really well right now, but it was a great reminder of something that I think that many people, myself included, need to hear. That life is short, days pass quickly, and there is far more to do than what we could ever possibly do. But that doesn't mean that we have to try and do everything--but more that we should simplify our lives and do more of the best things, and less of the good things.

That is all the time that I have today. I hope that you are all well and happy, wherever you are!

Excitement

2010-09-29T22:01:00.000-06:00

Hello everyone! I am writing today from the same place as always. As always, the internet is interesting in the DR. But I am pretty excited about life here in Navarrete so far! We have a few really amazing investigators, and conference is this week!

So, I want to talk about 2-4 investigators today.

First, Liset and Johny. They are a middle aged couple that have two high energy sons. They also have about three weeks talking with the missionaries so far, and have decided that they want to get married so that they can get baptized. Especially Liset has a great love and interest in the gospel. She is always reading and learning.

Second, Evalin and Christofer. Evaline has been talking with the missionaries and going to church for almost a year now. Christofer is her 8 year old son. This past Sunday Evalin told us that she had prayed to know if she should be baptized, and that the answer that she received was that yes, she should. They are both working hard to get ready to be baptized the end of October.

Being a missionary is always exciting, but it is even more exciting when you have the chance every week to talk to people that have really had their hearts touched in their search for the truth.

Navarrete

2010-09-22T17:51:00.004-06:00

Hello from Navarrete again! Yup, I'm still here. ;D

So, today I want to tell you all a little bit about Navarrete.

Navarrete is a small town. It really isn't very far away from Santiago, but it feels like a small town in Utah that is a hundred miles from everything. Seriously, there are two towns that come to mind, two small Utah towns in which I have spent a fair amount of time: Roosevelt and Hanksville. My first day here I really felt like I was in a town like those. It has a few main roads that are paved, a lot of dirt roads, a lot of open fields, and it is a lot drier than Puerto Plata. (I know that it is still pretty humid here, but it is a lot less humid than Puerto Plata.)

There are also a lot of people here that are excited to talk to us. We have one investigator in particular that is amazing. Her name is Liset, and her love for the gospel is amazing!

I already feel like I am going to enjoy my time here in Navarrate a lot.

Random thoughts

2010-09-15T20:37:00.003-06:00

Note: Natalia, you probably already know this since I keep forgetting to put it here, but I got your wedding announcement a while ago. Also, I think my new companion has the same birthday as you. (18th?)

Another random note. I used my last stamp the other day. That means that in about ten months I used 100 stamps on letters. I figure that that means that I have written about 200 (probably quite a bit more) to all of you wonderful people over there in the states, and a few more letters to people here. And no, despite all that my handwriting has not improved.

Also, I have attached a photo of the new daughter of Rosario and Myrani (the family from last week.) She is now at home with her family! She weighs six pounds.
Anyway, I don't have much time to say a lot more today, but as some of you may have notice already, I have a new companion, Elder Carpenter. I am also in a new area, Navarrete! Which means that I am going to be watching conference from one of the largest chapels in the DR, and with AC! ;D

But really, I was sad to leave Puerto Plata, but am excited to have another chance to learn more about the DR, and especially to get to know and help even more people here.

A little pink house and the family that lives there.

2010-09-08T17:10:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone! I've included a few more photos today. The first two are from the little hike that we did last week. This was less than 30 minutes walking from our house. It is really kind of incredible to me that there is so much natural beauty here. And this is something small, so small as to not be considered tourist worthy in a tourist town! (There is a site that I think is similar, but much bigger, nearby that is called the 27 Chacos. I don't really know that much about it though.)

But today I want to talk a little bit about the third photo that I included, of a smallish pink house. This is the house of the Rosario family in our ward here, and is something that we have worked on, as missionaries, on average once a week, for the past four months. When I arrived here in Puerto Plata, there was an empty lot that had been cleaned up a little bit, and the first thing that we did was make a flattish spot where someone could put a house if they wanted. It was an interesting introduction to Puerto Plata. But today I'm not going to talk too much about our service, about what we did to help. Instead I am going to talk about this family.

The father of the family, who goes by Rosario since he is a return missionary, is a sort of jack-of-all-trades. He is always looking for some small job that he can do to support his wife and two daughters. In the morning he works as a Moto-concho, or motorcycle taxi, and mainly does deliveries of groceries. In the afternoon he is either working on the future home of his family, working as a waiter at private parties, or doing whatever else he can find to make that little bit of extra money so that he can buy what his family needs, and so that soon they can have a home of their own. He is also the Young Men's president in the ward.

He and his wife have two daughters, Naomi (5) who just started school this past month, and Onauri (3) who is always "Bien bien bien!"

His wife, Myraní, was pregnant when I arrived. She is a hard worker, and is always looking out for her family, friends, and neighbors. She is also my primary source for when people are going to have a birthday. :D Even last week she was doing all that she could to help in the family, even though she was about to give birth.

And yesterday their third daughter was born. I don't know any specifics yet, nor photos. But I do know that she was born with respiratory problems, though was improving even only a few hours after her birth.

But you know what else. I know that they, as a family, will get through it. Because they are hard workers and know what is important in life. They have the help of their family and many other people who care about them.

Unrelated topics? You decide.

2010-09-01T17:59:00.004-06:00

Hello everyone! I was going to include a bunch of photos today, but the internet is really slow, so there is one. This photo is of a member of the ward here, Jesus, who guided us on a little hike today to some waterfalls. On the way we passed a cocoa tree that had one ripe fruit on it. So, we took it with us to eat later. That is what is in his hand. And you probably didn't know it, but there is actually fruit around the seeds! And it actually tastes really good! Looks kind of gross, but tastes good! (For those that don't know, this is where chocolate comes from. Well, from the seeds. Which you don't eat raw.)

Anyway, a quick thought or two. First of all, something that I have been thinking about for a while. A lot of us have a conception that faith is a belief in something that we don't know or can't see. But as I have been reading and studying lately I've realized that I don't think that that is entirely correct. Because the descriptions of faith that I have found, it isn't a belief, but a hope. A hope in things that we don't see or don't know. There is a big difference. (See Heb. 11:1, 2 Nephi 32:21 and Ether 12:6)

Keep on learning!

Greetings and an update

2010-08-25T20:12:00.001-06:00

Hello again everyone from the wonderful tropical island of Hispañola! Today, we are seeing slightly cooler weather of about 90 F with 90% humidity. Oh, and partly cloudy.

First of all, there is a birthday this next week! Happy birthday Emily! I hope that it is amazing! I don't know if you will see this message or not, but it is the best way that I can think of to send to birthday wishes. :D

Anyway, things are going well here in Puerto Plata. I'm a little sore from helping someone dig a hole yesterday morning, and a little sunburned from today´s activities, but things are going well.

I just want to talk about a few little things today, so this is probably not going to be a very long email, but we´ll see.

An update on the family that lost their daughter. This last Sunday the family came to the church, and there was a remarkable difference in the mother. When I first saw her the day that her daughter died she was grief stricken, and almost didn't respond to anything that was going on, and the next day when her daughter was buried she almost collapsed. Even the next Sunday she wasn't completely alive, but this past Sunday she was very different. She was calm and composed, and didn't seem at all sad. She even talked a little bit about her daughter in one of the classes, saying that God had sent her an angel, and that she had returned an angel to him. Later that day we went to their house and talked to her a little bit. My companion mentioned the big change that we saw in her, and she talked about how she had decided to pray and fast about what had happened, and for peace, and that in the end, she truly felt as though the grief and pain and been washed away. She then brought us a few photos of her daughter, and as she saw them, there was no pain in her face, only peace and love for a daughter. In my opinion, this is the really power of the gospel, the knowledge of the plan of salvation, and of the Holy Ghost.

A little something from the DR

2010-08-18T14:39:00.002-06:00

So, this is going to be a bit short today too. I´m just not feeling very wordy today. :D

First of all, Congrats to Clark and Natalia Earley! I know that I´m a little bit early, but that is what you get! Just so that you know, I ate a little bit of cake in memory of you two the other day. Thanks! ;D

Anyway, everything is going pretty well here. We are working, teaching, building houses, helping prepare for new babies, and wearing ourselves out. But hey, that is what the mission is for!

Also, we went to an Amber museum today. It was pretty cool.

Oh, a quick story, this past Saturday a family was baptized in our ward! Not from our area, but it was still a great experience to see a whole family join the church! (And a first for me!)

Take luck! ;D

Perspective

2010-08-11T19:18:00.003-06:00

So, first of all, this letter is going to be bien corto (really short) because I had the great pleasure of receiving many emails this week, packed full of goodness! And really, that is what every missionary wants, many letters, so I´m very happy about it overall. It does mean that this is going to be a bit shorter (and more full of typos) than normal.

So, this week I have had many new experiences, but I want to take the little time that I have to talk about one that was very new to me, and very powerful.

This last week, we were about to leave to work in the afternoon when we met some members and found out that the daughter of some members that live relatively close to our house had drowned that morning. Now, needless to say, this was a little bit shocking, though it took me a little bit to realize exactly what had happened (although I knew the word for "to drown" it isn't one that you hear used a lot, so it took me a bit to realize what they were saying.)

So, when we discovered what had happened we changed our plans in that moment. Instead of going to our appointments, we headed over to the house of the family. Now, I can't really say that I know a lot about what happens when someone dies in the US, I've never had someone that I have known really well die. But when we arrived at the house, there were already more than 50 people there, and more were arriving all the time. We stayed there for a while, did what we could to comfort the mother and father, and then headed out.

Then next day, Sunday, the child was buried. We all piled into cars, and many people onto their motorcycles and scooters, and drove in a line out to the cemetery to put her body to rest. But the thought that came to mind in though all of this was this: That when someone saw this line of mourners headed to the graveyard, maybe one of them said, seeing how many people were in the line, "Someone important must have died." And someone else replying, "Yes, a child."

Two stories

2010-08-04T19:52:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone!

So, today I have a couple of little stories for you. The first is one that a member told us as we were walking to an appointment the other day. We were talking about some of the service that the church does to help people, and the member told us a story about how after a hurricane hit the island, or at least passed by, there was a news report about it, and one person that they interviewed said something to the effect of "After the storm, only two people came and helped us--the Mormons, and The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints." We all kind of laughed at that one.

Also, this last week, well, this Monday actually, there were two birthdays in our area. One was of Neomi (the one smiling in the attached photo), who claims that she ate her whole cake all by herself. (Her little sister disagrees.) The other birthday was somewhat of a surprise. About a week ago we planned a Family Home Evening with a family that we have been working with, with the plan that we were going to make empanadas for the refreshments. So, we stopped by earlier in the day to drop off a few of the ingredients (the mother is a pastry chef, so we also stuck around for a few minutes to see how she makes the dough) and we found out that it was her birthday that day! It is always fun to see special things like that happen during the mission, and this is the second time with this family. I'm pretty sure that it is because they are something special.

The work keeps on going, and every day there are little examples of how it is the work of the Lord.

Mosquitoes, tram rides, and wisps of hope.

2010-07-31T20:28:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone! Good morning from the DR! Things are going pretty well here in Puerto Plata, where we are avoiding most of the really heavy rains and mosquitoes!

Today for our preparation day we went to the Teleferico here in Puerto Plata. I don´t know what they are called in English right now, but it is really very cool. It took us up to the top of the mountain that we live near. And you know what? It is not nearly as hot up there! Which means that it was completely worth the slight expense. And really, it is very beautiful up there. There is a large botanical garden, with many paths and great views (well, when they aren't hidden by clouds.) Anyway, I have sent a few photos from the day to my mother, so maybe she will send a few of them along.

In other news, the work goes on! Sometimes there are slight set backs, and sad news. But there is something I know that helps me keep going when things are a little bit tougher and I am a little bit tired. The hope that maybe what I am doing will help someone.

I actually looked up a scripture about this the other day for one of our investigators, let me see if I can find it again. Ah yes, Alma 26:31. I like this scripture a lot, because it talks about how our hope is that maybe we can help someone, somewhere, maybe, possibly, invite the gospel into their lives, and how even that small wisp-like hope is enough to keep trying. (For more information, read the whole chapter. :D )

Anyway, I love you all! And hope that things are going well for you!

Being more bold

2010-07-21T14:31:00.002-06:00

So, first of all, something that I have been forgetting to mention for the last little bit. I recently got a big pouch full of letters from my family from a Grandparents Camp that was held a little while ago. Thank you all! It really meant a lot to me!

Also, the weather recently has been pretty wet here in Puerto Plata, and so it has be much cooler than normal. As in, I almost felt a little bit of chill at night with a fan blowing on me. I think that this is a sad sign that I am getting used to the heat here. I'm not really sure what to think about that.

Anyway, things are going pretty well here. Yesterday was pretty interesting. We had Zone Conference in Navarrete, so that was very exciting. There were a lot of changes announced, so we are all going to have to get used to the changes a little bit. One thing is that we are going to have a little bit of additional training about how to better give commitments. Anyway, the conference went a little (a few hours) over time, so we arrived at a cita (appointment) with a new family that we found just the other day a little (few hours) late. Thankfully they were very gracious about it, and we were able to have a lesson with all of them there. They had a lot of questions for us, and the lesson went very well, and at the end my companion, Elder Bautista decided to read a little bit of the reading that we were going to leave for them, a part that talked about baptism. This was, I believe, mostly in response to something that we had been told in Zone Conference, that we should be more bold about mentioning baptism in the first lesson. And you know what, it was true. As soon as he finished reading, one of the family members said "I want to be baptized." Honestly, it really caught both of us off guard, but it was a truly great experience!

That is all that I have time for right now! Just keep swimming, and don´t die!

Technical difficulties…again?

2010-07-14T16:09:00.001-06:00

Due to problems at the internet center, there is no general update today. Sorry!

Toothpaste

2010-07-09T15:23:00.003-06:00

So, my good friends, today I have something very special to share with you. Today I am going to talk about toothpaste. Yes, you read that right. Toothpaste.

The other day I was in La Sirena here in Puerto Plata, just about ready to pay for my groceries, when something caught my eye. Toothpaste. Now, I have to take a minute here to admit that I have historically not been the best a brushing my teeth as frequently as I should, so I have also not normally spent much time looking at toothpaste. But this day something indeed caught my eye. Cinnamon flavored toothpaste.

Now, this was indeed something intereting, because I have never been much of a fan of mint, but cinnamon, that is a different story. Now, this is obviously cinnamon oil, not cinnamon bark flavor (imagine cinnamon bear candies, or any cinnamon flavored candy actually), but I am still completely okay with that. So, even though I still had toothpaste at home, I bought some, and I have to say that since that day I have been a much more diligent user of toothpaste.

Now, this might seem like a completely pointless discussion so far. I mean, toothpaste just isn´t that interesting of a subject. I`m pretty sure that even dentists don´t spend that much time talking about it. But I wanted to point out something that I think is interesting.

I had never been very good about brushing my teeth like I should, but then I bought a different flavor of toothpaste, and now I am much improved, even though I don´t use the new flavor every day.

I really think that this principle has the ability to be applied to missionary work, and our lives. Because it wasn't because the activity itself changed that my behavior changed. It was still brushing my teeth. It was the flavor that changed.

Or, in the case of missionary work, as missionaries we are doing the same thing, pretty much, several times a day, every day, for two years. It could be easy to get bored doing that—to get tired of it. But the key is that you can do the work in a large variety of different flavors, and you can change the flavor without changing the work. And you know what makes it even easier? Our work involves people, each of which already have their own flavor. So all that we really have to do, in order to add variety to our lives is work with them—talk to them, ask them questions, use examples from their lives. I really think that this is when we stop having lessons where we as missionaries are teaching, and start having lessons where the people are learning.

Anyway, that is my thought of the week! I hope that you are all well, and that you are enjoying whatever it is that you are doing! I´ve sent a few photos to my mom from the fort that we went to the other day, and from a service project, and I´m sure that she´ll pass them along.

Is it hot where you are?

2010-06-30T14:41:00.003-06:00

So, first of all, congrats to Adam and Charlee on their new baby boy! That is great!

Second of all, it has been nearly a year since I received my mission call. Isn't that weird!? I can still remember that day, and how I thought that I was so sneaky in how I revealed it to my friends. ;D

And third, something that I forgot to mention the other day. Last week (aka, the week before this one) I finished reading the books of Moses in the Old Testament, the Gospels in the New Testament, and the Book of Mormon (all in Spanish) and Jesus the Christ in English. It was kind of fun to hit all of these accomplishments in the same week!

Today we went to an old fort here in Puerto Plata, and it was fun to be able to find out a bit more about the history of the country! For instance, possibly the most famous figure in Dominican history, Duarte, was held prisoner there for a while. I took lots of pictures, some of which I will try to send along next week.

Oh yeah, and the ocean is still beautiful!

Also, this last week I decided to set a few goals to work on for this transfer. They are: Moroni 7:45, John 15:13, and Alma 13:28. Kind of lofty, and not something that I think that I am going to accomplish in this transfer, if in my life, but they are some things that I would like to focus on a bit more. Mostly because I really feel like this is the best way in which I can improve my life, by thinking more about and better of other people.

Let me tell you a little bit about why I think this, starting with a fact about the Dominican Republic. It is hot here. Sometimes it is really, really hot. So it is really, really easy to think about how hot it is, and how uncomfortable I am, and how I wish that I could just jump into a big pile of snow while drinking a fruit smoothie (such are the dreams of a cold loving person on a tropical island.) But you know what I have learned? Thinking about how hot it is doesn't make it any cooler! Strange, I know, but proven true! So what can I do? How about think about what more I can do to help someone else?

And you know what? It works. I really have found that thinking about someone else's needs instead of thinking of myself helps me get through the hot days. And you know what else? I really don't think that it is limited to hot weather. I really think that life is better if you worry less about yourself and more about someone else.

But don´t take my word for it. ;D

It's all about changes!

2010-06-23T13:23:00.002-06:00

Hello again everyone! I have some fun things to celebrate today!

First off, I am ecstatic to know that two of my very good friends, Clark and Natalia, are engaged! Congratulations you two, that is awesome!

And, to continue in the same theme, congrats to my cousin, Jake, on his wedding, and my other cousin, Wil, for getting sealed! These are great, positive steps in your lives, and things that really bring a lot of joy to my heart to hear.

In other news, I am still here in Puerto Plata, but my companion is not. Yes, friends and family, today was transfers, and it touched my companion on his last transfer. So, he is in Santiago now, and I am here with my new companion, Elder Bautista, who is my first Dominican companion. I´m definitely going to get some practice in Spanish now!

Other than that, not too much to report. We have a few people who are making a lot of progress in their decision to become members of the church. One in particular is Benicio. He is an older man, and has had to make a lot of changes in his life to get to where he is. For instance, he smokes, but in two weeks he has gone from five to ten cigarettes a day to one or even none! And you know what is even better than that? I have really seen a difference in him is these past few weeks. It isn't so much something physical as it is a difference. . .hmm. I´m not really sure how to describe it other than that he is different in a way that makes me very happy. That really is the power of the gospel of Jesus Christ. Of the knowledge that there was someone that sacrificed for all of us so that we can really have better, happier lives.

Because that is what the gospel is, really. It is here to help us. To help us to be happier, more independent, and more awake to what we do and what we can do.

Technical difficulties…

2010-06-16T17:22:00.002-06:00

Due to technical difficulties at the internet cafe in the DR there will be no post this week.

We hope to return with updates at our regularly scheduled time.

Fearful or fearless

2010-06-09T18:26:00.002-06:00

So, today was our day to go into Santiago to buy things at the stores there, and it was actually a very interesting contrast. Not in the scenery of the city or anything like that, but of the climate. In Santiago, it was sunny and fairly hot and humid. But when we returned to Puerto Plata, we were wet. Literally, the moment that we stepped out of the air conditioning in the bus we because damp. I think that there are really three classifications of humidity: Dry, Humid, and Wet. Utah is dry. Santiago/Bonao is humid. Puerto Plata is wet.

Anyway, this past week, up until now has been fairly uneventful. There was some pretty exciting news though. Two of our investigators, Luis and Julianna (and older couple), finally had their papers come in so that they can get married! Apparently they have been waiting for this for a long time, and we are all very excited for them!

Tomorrow is Zone Council (Or something like that. The name was just changed and I can't remember what it is exactly in Spanish, which makes it even harder to translate into English.) so that should be exciting! They are always fun an' very enlightening, and I'll finally be able to say hi to my first companion again! I'm pretty excited, even though it means that we'll be leaving pretty early.

In other news, I've been reading a lot lately, and as I am almost done reading The Book of Mormon in Spanish for the first time, I am getting pretty excited. But I have also been noticing some interesting connections and contrasts, and I want to take a minute to talk about one of them that I came across in my reading yesterday. I read all of Mormon, and two verses that I came across made a huge contrast with some of the verses that I read quite a while ago. The two verses in Mormon are Mormon 2:3 and Mormon 6:7. These two verses talk about the terror that came to the wicked Nephites when they were faced with a numerous and powerful army of Lamanites. In the first it says that because of this great fear, they lost the will to fight, and in the second about how it was like the fear that fills the wicked. Now, I have always thought that it was interesting to see who and why people in the scriptures feel fear, and so in this occasion I was reminded of something that I had read a while ago in Alma 56:47. In Alma Helaman is describing some of the things that have happen with him and his army of Anti-Nephi-Lehites, and how they "Did not fear death."

So, this brings up the question: Why did one army fill with terror, while the other marched forward, determined to fight?

I think that the answer to this question is huge and very insightful, but I want to talk about just a small part of it right now. I really think the difference, in its essence, was in what the people had based their lives. The army of Mormon was made up of the proud and the worldly, who had their hearts set on the things of the world. The army of Helaman was made up of the strong, though youthful, sons of a faithful people, who had been raised in homes with loving families, and taught the gospel of God. Upon what were the hearts of the army of Mormon set? Their money and riches. And the hearts of the army of Helaman? The liberty of their families, and the promises of the lord. And so the army of Helaman was firm, fearless, and successful, while the army of Mormon was fearful and, eventually, dead.

Take courage, oh sons and daughters of the most high God, and set your hearts not on the things of this world, but on the things of God. Do this, and find peace, joy, and courage.

"Mawage. Mawage is wot bwings us togeder tooday."

2010-06-03T15:03:00.005-06:00

Hello again everyone! How is it going? Before I get to the important thing in this update, I would like to describe a little bit about what we did for our preparation day today. We took a nice little break in a resort, walked on the beach, and then helped someone move in the rain. It was pretty great. :D

So, today is a pretty special day. Today, I believe, my mother's parents are going to celebrate their 60th wedding anniversary! Congratulations! Also, and I may be incorrect on this one, but I believe that my parents just finished 28 years as well! So, I would like to take a moment here to talk a little bit about marriage. It is kind of a strange topic for a missionary to talk about I think, but also very important.

First of all, I want to talk a little bit about one of the biggest lies about marriage that I have come across in my life. And that is that you should find that perfect person to get married to and marry them. Now, I'm not saying that you shouldn't try to find someone that you think is amazing to get married to them, because we all should. But I really think that this attitude (about the perfect person) leads people to turn too easily away from their spouse if they find someone later who seems better.

The idea, which I`m not sure that I am conveying particularly clearly here, is that before you are married, try to find the best person that you can, and make the decision to get married carefully. But once you are married, there is no other option. Your goal no longer is to find someone perfect for you. It is to work with what you have. To revel, to enjoy, and to find joy in the decision that you have made, and the
person that you are with.

And guess what. They aren't perfect. They are going to forget things that are important to you. They are going to do things that will hurt you, though hopefully not on purpose. But you know what? You aren't perfect either. You are going to forget things that are important to them. You are going to do things that will hurt them, though hopefully not on purpose. But that isn't the point. The point is that you have someone that, at the absolute minimum, you loved. And in anything that there was ever love, there can be love again. And in any relationship in which two imperfect people are willing to sacrifice and love, there will be joy.

Sadly not every relationship will last forever, because all it takes to end a relationship is for one person to stop trying, while it takes two people to keep a relationship going. But I know that we should always do everything that we can to never give up. And to remember why we chose what we did.

It's a small, small world!

2010-05-26T19:19:00.003-06:00

First of all, happy birthday yesterday Kerry! I hope that it was great! Elder Shawhan says happy birthday too!

Okay, so something strange, but in my opinion wonderful has begun to happen in my life. I've begun to forget what language things are told to me in! When I think back and try to remember something that someone said to me (a difficult task for me in any day) I often think of it first in a different language than what it was actually said to me in. It is kind of weird.

And now, a story quickly. My companion, I, and a couple other missionaries here in Puerto Plata have been going running twice a week early and the morning, and it is really fun. We usually run down to the beach, rest there for a little while, and then run back to our houses.

Anyway, one day while we were resting near the beach a man walked up to us with his dog and asked, in English, what we were doing there. At first we were a little bit surprised, but eventually we said that we were missionaries. Then we found out that he had been living in Utah for twenty years working at Kennecott Copper Mine, and that he had raised his family there and everything. Not only that, but I think that he was maybe the second or third person that I have met in my mission that knows where Riverton is!

Anyway, he mentioned something that I thought was kind of sad. That in groups he has noticed that members of our church are usually very good people, which is good, but also that he had never met a member who was like that when they were alone. This really made me pretty sad, to think that after living in Utah for twenty years, and overall being fairly impressed with members in general, that he hadn't met someone that would stand up and do the right thing when they weren't in a group.

Now, I feel like there are quite a few people that I know who would pass this test—who would be something different, something special even when they were alone. But I have to admit as well that I have seen a lot of members who are not so firm in their faith. So, what is the difference? I think that the answer is easily encountered in the scriptures. Like in Helaman 5:12, in James 1:6, in 3 Nephi 14:24-27 and many more places. That we need to encounter that firm foundation on upon which we can build our lives. This is what everyone needs to find in their lives, because when we find it, when we find that one thing that we can treasure in our hearts, that will guide all of our actions, when we find something in which we can have true faith, then we can really start to act for ourselves, and not be tossed about by the whims and fancies of the crowd.

Lessons from a piano

2010-05-20T14:11:00.001-06:00

So, I guess that my last post was number 300! Yay!

Also, thanks to my Grandma and Grandpa, as well as Uncle Lloyd for your comments!

Now, a quick note. Happy birthday on the 14th Casey! I don´t know where you are living, or your address, so I can´t actually send you anything, and I don´t think that you read these updates, so you may never get your happy birthday wish from me, but this is the best I can do. Maybe someone will forward it to you for me.

Anyway, not much time left, but I have a small story that I want to share, and we´ll see where it goes from there.

Last night we, my Companion, Elder Shawhan, and I, were at the chapel getting ready for a piano class that the missionaries teach, and we discovered that the pedal for the electric piano that was in the chapel didn't work like it was supposed to. We opened it up, and discovered that it was missing a spring. So, we started looking for a spring. It only took us a few minutes until we thought about the pens that we always care with us, each of which has a spring in it. So, I opened up one of my pens and we tried for a few minutes to get the spring out, without much luck. So, I took my pen outside of the chapel, and stepped on it. It didn't break like I had been expecting, but the spring came loose and after a little bit more work we managed to get the spring out, put it into the pedal, and put the pedal back together. And the best part of it was that it worked!

Now, it would be simple to apply this story to a half dozen (at least) gospel principles, but seeing as I only have three minutes left I´m probably going to have to leave most of this up to each of you. But here are a few ideas to get you started. Persistence in difficulties. Seeing the potential. Personal sacrifice. There are more, I´m sure, but that is all that I have time for.

I hope that you all have great weeks!

A tropical island

2010-05-12T21:04:00.004-06:00

Hello everyone! How are you all today? Have you done anything neat and unusual today? I have! Today, I walked on the beach of a tropical island!

Yes, my friends. I am actually on a tropical island. I discovered that this afternoon. And the ocean is blue. And the ocean breeze is nice. And, um. Hmm. I'm really not too sure of what else to say about all that.

Anyway, today was transfers again, and I have been moved to a new area! Yes sir, I am now in Puerto Plata, tourist central of the DR! And for good reason from the little that I have seen of it. The ocean is absolutely beautiful! And with the breeze coming off of the water, it is actually really nice temperature wise. Very humid, but it really isn't too bad so far.

But along with this kind of interesting tidbit, I have some real news! Julio, who was baptized a little while ago, has already finished reading the Book of Mormon! Yes, from cover to cover! I am very happy for him. And not only that, but he has already started reading through it a second time!

But I also wanted to take a moment to talk a little bit about something that is very important in the church, and that is visiting and home teaching. I think that I didn't really understand the importance of visiting and home teaching before my mission, and really it was only when I was working with new members and a smallish branch in Bonao that I began to understand why they are so important. I hope that my explanation makes sense.

In any part of the church that is larger than just a few people, there is a chance that someone is going to sit in the back row. That they are going to be shy, quiet, and a little bit difficult to talk to. And sometimes, people just start to go missing, and it isn't until someone says, ¨Oh, where is Filano today?¨ that everyone realizes that they have been missing for a few weeks, and no one knows why. This is where visiting and home teaching comes in. These are programs that are designed to help make sure that every member of the church is looked after. And so, the point of these programs is not in the numbers, which only record if someone stopped by in the past month or not. The purpose is to make sure that every member has someone else that is thinking about them. Someone that notices if they are missing from an activity or meeting. Someone that is there to help them when they need help. That is the point of these programs. To help people support those people that need help. Because all of us need help sometimes.

Apologies and thanks

2010-05-05T14:02:00.002-06:00

Hello everyone! It has been a very interesting week, so I'm just going to jump right into it.

First of all, a big apology to Natalia for forgetting her birthday. You would think it would be easy to remember since it is in the same month, and the day is a multiple of mine, but I still forgot it. Whoops! There is an apology on the way in the form of a letter. Oh, and HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Second. This past Monday I received a small package from my Mother that contained a CD and a booklet that is full of testimonies! It has the testimonies of many, many prophets, both scriptural and modern. But even better than that it has testimonies of some of my family and friends! Thank you, all of you! It really means a lot to me! I started going through it just standing by the table in our kitchen, but ended up sitting on the floor reading some of your testimonies. It was great. There is always power in a testimony, because the Holy Ghost always testifies of truth, and there are no truths greater than in a testimony of Jesus Christ and his restored gospel!

In other news, this week has been pretty interesting. We had two exchanges this week, so I taught with three different companions. It was kind of interesting, but at the same time, very fun and I learned a lot.

But I think that the highlight of this past week for me was Sunday. Julio, who Elder Noltemeyer baptized when we were together, bore his testimony AND taught a class this last Sunday. It may seem like a small thing, but this was his first time doing both, and he did a great job. Julio is kind of a quiet guy, and sometimes it is hard to see his potential, but in these two moments he really showed that he has what it takes to be a leader! He has a great testimony, and I know that he is going to do great things in his life.

Anyway, that is it this week, since I am out of time. Transfers are next week, so I'm sure that there is lots of excitement ahead.

Walking in mists of darkness

2010-04-28T21:55:00.002-06:00

Good morning from Bonao!
So, the rain has fled to other parts, which means that it is HOT. But, I'm okay with a little sunshine and warmth every once and a while, I guess. ;D

Not a whole lot happened in this last week, to be honest. I have thought a fair bit about some things though, so I'll talk about those things and we'll see how things go.
First of all, recently I've been noticing just how often people that I don't know call out "Mormones!" or something like that as we are walking in the streets. We probably hear that from forty people a day, and sometimes in even more creative ways. For instance, yesterday we were walking and a man who was selling green bananas from his truck using a microphone changed his sales pitch a little bit when he saw us. Those bananas became the bananas of God "Because everything is of/from God." It is just another reminder that we, especially as missionaries, need to do what is right, because we are recognized as men of God, and many people are watching us to see what we do.

The other thing that I was thinking about was as we were walking to church the other day. All of the missionaries in our apartment were walking together, and we were walking in an area where the sidewalk is a little bit narrow, so we were walking single file, and I was the last missionary. And as we were walking, I starting thinking about how I could only see a tiny bit in front of me, so I had to decide quickly where I was going to put my feet. But then I thought about this a bit more over the last few days, and I've started to form an example from this. I think that it is still wandering around in my mind a bit and kind of half baked at the moment, but I want to share it quickly anyway. And that is that in our lives, we can't see very far ahead. We know pretty much what is going to happen in the next second, and more or less what is going to happen in the next minute, but we really don't know all that much about what is going to happen even in the next hour of our lives, even though it is a short period of time. This is like Lehi's dream, in 1 Nephi 8. We are surrounded by a mist of darkness, or uncertainty, that make it impossible to know where the next step is going to take us. But along with this we have something to help us in our mortal trip, the word of God, in all it's forms—in the scriptures, the words of the prophets and our other leaders, in the whisperings of the Holy Ghost. And it is though these that we can move forward in our lives, even though many times we can't see where we are going.

Constanza and patience.

2010-04-23T20:28:00.001-06:00

Hello everyone! I hope that all is well wherever you are! Things are good here in the DR. Hot. Humid. But at least it is kind of cloudy!

So, this message is going to be a little bit short as well. I've still got a lot of writing to do today, and am a bit tired. But! I at least have to talk a little bit about those most exciting moments of the last two weeks!

First of all, one week ago we, as a zone, went to a water fall called White Waters that is up near Constanza. I've sent a bunch of pictures from it to my wonderful mother, so if they make it to you you´ll have some kind of an idea about what it all looked like, but if not, I just want you to know that it was beautiful! Every part of it, even before the waterfall. Reminded me a bit of hiking in Utah really. But much more humid. And a different smell and different sounds. But still, it was a good time. And I didn't mind the sancocho afterwords either.

And then this last Saturday José Luis Rosario was baptized into the church! He is a pretty cool guy with a lot of potential and a lot of intelligence. It was actually kind of interesting, because in addition to him, there was another baptism in the ward the same day, which was a first for me. One baptism in each area.

Anyway, out of time, but I wanted to leave you with one last thought.

No matter what the challenge or problem, it can be overcome with faith and patience. Don´t be afraid to take that step into the unknown when you are in the path of righteousness, and don´t forget that sometimes, you are going to have to wait.

Zone Activity pictures

2010-04-23T20:14:00.005-06:00

House on the way to Constanza.

Another house on the way to Constanza.

Valley at Constanza.

On the hike to the falls.

Bottom of the falls.

Sometimes it's fun—sometimes it's hard.

2010-04-14T17:34:00.002-06:00

Today we went to Constanza for a zone activity, and it was very, very fun! It is absolutely beautiful up there, and I took a lot of pictures. I'll try to sent some next week, because I don't have my card reader this week, and I don't have time since we got back a bit later than we were planning. So, I'll talk more about the trip next week.

I wanted to talk about something that one of our zone leaders said Monday really quick before I have to go. He said (More or less. He said it in Spanish, but this is a fairly decent translation.) ¨Why is it hard? Because we are following in His footsteps. Was it easy for him? No.¨ Elder Beckstead

This struck me as very, very true. We are trying to follow in the footsteps of our Savior, Jesus Christ. And even for him it wasn't always easy. So why do we so often think that it should be different for us? There is a scripture that came to my mind right now that talks about this same thing, but I can't remember where it is right now and don't have time to search for it, but it basically said that He suffered all, and do you think that you are better than him? That you we are so much better that we don't have need to suffer as well?

It is something interesting to think about at least, though I wish that I had more time to explore this thought.

Anyway, all is well in Bonao. Lots of rain lately, but I like it that way. :D

Conference—mostly.

2010-04-07T14:41:00.003-06:00

Hello everyone! How's it going? This is going to be a short email because I just don´t have time to write a lot, but we'll see how it goes.

First of all, the last week was kind of really odd. It was the Holy Week, which is a big holiday here, so there weren't a lot of people around. And, in addition to that, we had conference, and transfers. It was really very odd. But good too.

Conference was good. We only have Spanish here in Bonao, so I will admit that there were times where my mind wandered a bit, but I still really like it. I was very happy that there were so many talks about the family! I have, in these past three months, come to an understanding of the great power of the family, and was happy that so many of the leaders of the church talked about it as well. I really believe that if we want a better world, we need to have better families. This is the best and fastest way to improve the world.

We had one funny thing happen during the conference though. The signal was routed through a VCR, and toward the end of the second session a message, in English, appeared on the screen saying that the VCR was going to turn itself off in (and then there was a counter below with seconds.) When it had about five seconds left, one of our zone leaders realized what the message meant and went running out of the room to keep the VCR from turning off! It was pretty great.

My favorite moment of conference though was the talk by President Uchtdorf about patience! Amazing! I can´t wait to have the chance to read and study it! That is the kind of thing that we can get from men that are inspired by God. We can get those perfect messages that we have been waiting to hear, even when we didn't know it.

Two Peas in a Pod

2010-04-02T21:05:00.003-06:00

Elder Noltemeyer and me in front of the house of Jimmy, sitting like we sat sometimes when we taught lessons there.

New things ahead

2010-03-31T16:17:00.002-06:00

Hello again everyone!

So, today I received a new companion! Exciting that. I'm sad that
Elder Noltemeyer is no longer my companion, because he is a great
missionary, but like Nefi said, "Iré y haré." (I will go and do. . .)
Anyway, my new companion is Elder Hawkins, and he is also the new
district leader here. Which means that we will be traveling a fair bit
this transfer as he goes on intercambios (I can't remember the
English word for this right now.) with the other missionaries in the district.

Anyway, this past week was kind of weird. We had three people in our
area end up in the hospital for different reasons. The first was
Jamilis, who was anemic. Second was María for a boil or something
like that on her arm. Third was Mari, the mother of Jimmy, and I'm
still not sure what happened to her, though I hear that she is feeling
much better. So, we spent a fair amount of time in a couple hospitals.
Thankfully all of them are feeling better now.

I wanted to talk a bit more about that attitude of Nephi though. The
attitude of "Go and do." This is something that we can never forget
the importance of. It is though this attitude that we can become the
tools that God needs here on the earth. It was through this attitude
that the gospel was restored. And even though many times, possibly
even every time, what we are asked to do is difficult, we still need
to do all that we can, and trust that with the help of the Lord we can
do all that he asks of us. Like it says in one of my new favorite
scriptures, in Alma 7:15 "Venid y no temáis." Come and don´t fear.
Because we are not alone, and we can do it with His help.

Indoor plumbing, it´s gonna be big.

2010-03-24T12:12:00.002-06:00

This one is going to be a bit shorter.

So, this last week was a bit of an adventure. In our apartment we usually have running water because the apartment complex has a water pump that pumps water up to some big tanks on top of the buildings, but Saturday, I think it was, the water pump broke. The finally replaced it yesterday. So, I was able to have some new experiences! Like bucket showers. It really gave me a new appreciation for running water. Especially in the heat!

Happy birthday Relief Society!

Fireflies and lizards can be very distracting. Especially since we don´t have much of either where I am from.

For the youth activity the other night they put up a volleyball net between two palm trees. There was something very perfect about it.

One of the families that we have been teaching has a young son named Jeferson who is three years old. He has a TON of energy, and it always running around, yelling, and climbing things. Anyway, he loves to give us high-fives "duro." (Hard.) Anyway, one day my companion had a band-aid on his finger, and when Jeferson saw it he refused to give him a high-five with that hand because he didn't want to hurt my companion. Just one more example of why we need to become like little children to enter into the kingdom of God!

The Power of a Testimony

2010-03-17T10:09:00.004-06:00

Thanks again everyone for your comments!

This past week we had a lot of fun with Guanavana! We were given three over the course of the last week. First we made some juice with milk, and it was okay. But then we added a little vanilla, some lemon juice, and froze it. I liked it a lot. :D I actually ate some a week ago today, and the flavor along with the (relatively) cool weather and someone mowing their grass and I almost felt like I was back home in Utah, eating home made ice cream, enjoying the cool spring air and smelling the freshly cut grass. It was a nice vacation. ;D

This last Saturday was the baptism of Julio! We are very happy for him, because he has shown a lot of faith and worked hard to be able to make it to this point. And I know that he can do a lot to help his family, all of which are members, but only his mother, Maria Luisa, is active.

Speaking of Julio though, we had an interesting experience at this house Friday night, right before his baptismal interview. He has a friend who is Evangelical and ever since his friend found out that he was thinking about being baptized he has been doing everything possible to convince Julio to be Evangelical instead. Friday night he showed up at Julio's house to "teach him." We needed to go to a birthday party for a few minutes at the branch president's house, but we returned a few minutes later and began to talk with him (the friend) about some of our beliefs. A few minutes later his father also arrived. And we all had a very interesting discussion about the Bible for a while. But we didn't go anywhere with it, just talked in circles. But then my companion shared his testimony of the Iglesia, of the Book of Mormon, and of Joseph Smith, and well as declaring that he knows that these things are true because he has received a testimony of them through the Holy Ghost.

Then they talked a little bit more, and asked a question, which Stephany, a member that was with us, answered, and then she shared her testimony.

They talked a little bit more, asked another question, which I then answered and then shared my testimony. After which the father was silent and his son tried to refute, but couldn't.

It was truly a great witness of the power of a testimony, and the Holy Ghost, because the feeling of everything changed drastically when we began to testify. I'm not saying that they are bad people, because they aren't. In fact both my companion and I agree that the father is someone that we wouldn't mind talking with. He knows a lot about the Bible, and has faith in Jesus Christ, and I truly believe that he was trying to help. But my testimony now is even stronger than it was.

Jesus Christ is the Savior. Joseph Smith restored his church. And the Book of Mormon is true.

What's in a name?

2010-03-10T08:27:00.002-07:00

Thanks to Grandma and Uncle Lloyd for your comments! Mom sent them out to me, and they made me smile. :D

I have a lot to say today and practically no time, so we´ll see how it goes.

I had the opportunity to try a couple of new fruit juices this past week, guanavana and zapote. I really liked the guanavana, and the zapote was pretty good too!

Plastic chairs are ridiculously comfortable.

It was almost cold on Sunday! Miracle of miracles! ;D

I smile every time that I see the children here playing a "Pioneer game." And by that I mean things like racing tires down the road, where you use a stick to control the tire, and other things that are very difficult to describe, especially quickly.

I now have eight minutes to write the rest of this. Here goes!

I have gotten a lot of comments about my name from the members here, and especially from the other missionaries, probably because my last name is the same as a prophet. Someone told me once that there are probably a lot of people watching me, and that there is a lot of pressure to do what is right because of my name, and it is true I think. Those people that know about the prophet expect something more of me. But I have also thought of something else with regard to all of this.

As a missionary I carry two names on my chest in practically every moment. The name of my family, about which I have received almost numberless comments, and the name of Jesus Christ, about which no one has commented.

And as I was thinking about this I thought, "If people expect me to be something more because of the name of my family, shouldn't they expect even more because of the other name that I wear?" It is really interesting to think about. That all of the missionaries in the world have been called to be representatives of Jesus Christ, to do what he would do, to feel what he would feel, and to teach what he would teach, to the people that they have been called to serve. I don´t think that there is a responsibility greater than this, nor a name that one could carry that would raise the expectations higher. We are called to be the representatives of the only perfect person who ever lived. And we should try to remember that in every moment.

Observations and thoughts from the DR

2010-03-03T08:32:00.002-07:00

Hello again everyone! As always, some quick notes and observations from the DR!

The salt here is floridated-floridized. I think this is because the water system is not the greatest in many parts of the nation, and also because we eat a lot of salt.

Um. Oh! Fritos (fried platanos) are superior to french fries, by a long shot. If you want to put it to the test, buy some platinos, peel them, cut them into 0.75 inch long pieces, fry them for a bit so that they are somewhat soft, squish them flat, and then fry them again. Oh, and put a bunch of salt on them. Delicious! Probably not particularly good for you, but they sure taste good!

I have a lot to say today, so we´ll see how it goes.

First of all, this past Saturday, in celebration of the Dia de Indepedencia here in the Dominican Republic Natalí was baptized! She is great, and has a strong testimony of the church. We were very happy that she was able to be baptized!

But there was something else this past week that has really been interesting. Lately we have been having a lot of success bringing some of the lost members of the church back to the church. This past Sunday, we had more of these lost sheep in the chapel than investigators! And really, I feel a huge amount of joy in this. That we have been able to help people remember those feelings that they had before, and that they have started to remember their testimonies that they had forgotten.

There is one man in particular, Lino, who has brought us a lot of joy. We first met him one morning when we were going to teach a woman, but we don´t teach women alone, so we needed another man to be able to teach. While we were waiting at the door, Lino came and stood beside us. We didn't really know what to think of it at the time, but we counted our blessings and went in to teach. After a few minutes in the lesson, we discovered that Lino is a member! So, we invited him to come to church, and since that day, he hasn't missed a single Sunday, even though he sometimes works from 7pm until 7am Sunday morning!

And more than that, he even walked with us for five hours the other day to help us teach. He is a little bit timid, but his testimony is very strong! I am glad that he now remembers what he had known before and is doing all that he can to help others as well!

But, on the other hand there is a woman named Carmen. She has been a member for 13 years or so, and was even a stake missionary for a while. But she hasn't been coming to church. We have visited her a few times, and visited her again yesterday when she told us that she was going to the Evangelical church near her home. There are not words to describe the sadness that I felt when she told us that. Sadness that she has forgotten who she is, the plan that God has for all of us, and the purpose of the church. I felt somewhat like the people in Mosiah 25:9-11 after hearing about the afflictions and liberation of the people of Limhi and Alma. I was filled with joy because Lino was with us, with a testimony founded in Jesus Christ. That he had remembered. But on the other hand I was filled with great sorrow for Carmen who had forgotten.

It has really emphasized something that I have been seeing a lot in the scriptures lately, and that is that we need to remember! This is where it all starts. Alma was truly converted when he was reminded of the gospel by Abinidi. His son was converted when he remembered the words of his father, and like him Enos was converted when he remembered the teachings of his father. We need to remember what we have been taught! But perhaps even more, we have to remember what we have felt. We need to remember those promptings of the spirit that we have received in our lives. We need to remember our spiritual experiences, because they are the key to our testimonies. It is only though them that we can, in truth, know that these things are true. That Joseph Smith was a prophet of God, that the Book of Mormon is scripture, that this is the true church of Jesus Christ, and that we have a living prophet in this day.

Remember!

Hello again everyone!

2010-02-24T15:47:00.002-07:00

I don't know how long this email will be, because I am really tired right now and don't feel like I have too much to say, but we'll see how it goes. Especially since it never seems like I have enough time!

Some notes.
Spanish: Apparently the proper yes and no responses are reversed in Spanish. I can't think of an example right now, but it is like if someone says something negative, you say no to agree, where usually in English we would say yes to agree. It is kind of difficult.

Candy: Humidity affects candy. It is different for some of the different kinds, but the ones that I have noticed it the most with is those valentines heart candies, and Pez. They get really soft.

Also, I was able to print some pictures today, so if you are in my family (as in, parent or sister) or you frequently get letters from me, watch for photos!

In other news, during companionship study the other day, we came across an interesting thought when we were talking about the place of judging others in life and the Gospel, and that is that many times it is easier to judge than to talk.

And really, it is true. It is very easy to, when someone does something, sit in your corner and think to yourself "Hah. Look at that person. I'm better than them because I don't do that." Or, and even better example is when someone does something that you find hurtful or offensive. It is easy to harbor these emotions and thoughts. It is much harder to talk to the person about it. To say, "You know, it really hurt me when you did (this/that.)" But what is it that we should do? We should talk to them! Because it is the only way that things can change for the better, or, at the very least, it is the best and fastest way. It really is kind of the theme of our companionship right now, because it is something that keeps coming up in our study and lessons. "Nessacite hacer que debe hacer hasta que quiere hacerlo!" (You need to do what you should do until you want to do it!)

Hmm. I have ten more minutes, and a topic. But I don't think that I can present the topic in the manner in which I would like to in only ten minutes. So I'll just say this. I know that the church is true, and if you want to know it as well, read the Introduction of the Book of Mormon. In it, especially in the next to last paragraph, is an outline of what you need to do to have this knowledge for yourself. The steps are simple, and can be found throughout the scriptures, but this is a good place to find a summary.

Lots to say today!

2010-02-17T20:10:00.003-07:00

Quick note: Naazju- it was close, but Hestia.

Lots to say today!

First of all, a fun Spanish-English thing. If you say "I´m hoping, wishing, waiting for it" in English, it would become something like "Estoy esperando y esperando y esperando por lo" in Spanish, because the verb esperar is used for all of the ideas of hoping, wishing, and waiting in English! Kinda crazy!

Next, here is an example of a Dominican style meal!

Ingredients-
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 small red onion
two cloves of garlic
1 tbs dry oregano
2 tsp salt
1 can Pidgeon peas with coconut
1 chicken bouillon cube
1 tsp Sazon completa
1 tbs Sazon liquido
2 cups rice
4 eggs
1/3 lb salami

Put the oil in the pan and put it on the stove, medium to medium high heat. Dice the onion and add to the hot oil to fry. Mix the garlic, oregano, and salt. (We use a mortar and pestle, and it works very well.) After the onion has fried for a few minutes, add the garlic mixture and fry all for a few more minutes.

Open the can of pidgeon peas and add all of it to the pot. Add about one more can of water, the bouillon cube, sazon completa and liquido, and bring to a boil. Add rice and cover, leaving the heat up high.

Once most of the water in the pot is gone, move the rice around, add a little bit more water, and put a metal bowl or plate over the rice and cover again. Reduce the heat to low and let cook for 20 minutes.

When the rice is almost done, scramble the eggs and add the salami, with whatever seasonings you want.

Put some of the rice on a plate, top with the egg and salami mixture and enjoy!

This is more or less what we ate the other day.

I have some more exciting news though! Natalí is going to be baptized! Her father finally game his consent! We went to her house the other day because the people that we had planned on teaching weren't there. It was already 9:00, but we wanted to give it a try, and she lives close to our apartment, so we headed over there.

When we arrived just her and her father were home, so we sat down and asked if we could share a short message with them. Her father said that we could share a short message with Natalí. We thanked him, and then Natalí offered a very nice prayer to get us started. Then my companion opened up his Bible, determined to share a scripture but not knowing what one to share. He eventually turned to Matthew 17, I think it was, where it talks about how if you had the faith of a mustard seed you could move a mountain. As he stared reading, Natalí's father started quoting the scripture from memory!

Anyway, after that we talked a bit more about faith, Natalí shared her testimony, and he agreed to give his consent! Then he said that the scripture that my companion had shared was his favorite!

In short, because I am out of time, I know even more firmly now, that Heavenly Father answers our prayers, and that there are miracles in the world still! And that this work is a work of joy!

Hola everyone!

2010-02-10T19:47:00.003-07:00

Greetings from the Dominican Republic!

Things are going great here! It´s still hot and sunny, but we do our best to not let that get in our way! Transfers are this next Wednesday. Neither I nor my companion want to leave Bonao, but both of us feel like something is going to change. Hopefully we are just worried because we like it here so much, and feel like there is still a lot of good that we can do, and not because either of us are actually going to leave.

Anyway, today I have three stories to tell you. And I´m going to start with the shortest of them.

We were walking to the chapel this past Sunday and I saw something that made me smile. We walked past a carneceria (meat stand) and there were some men in there cutting up the meat for the day, and out in front of the stand two dogs were waiting for scraps, very patiently. It´s not much, but it made me smile.

Second.

Every once and a while I have an interesting night. For instance, one night not too long ago I kept dreaming that we were teaching someone lessons. And I kept waking up, and it was hard to go back to sleep! I felt guilty that I was trying to sleep because we were teaching someone! So I had to remind myself each time that no, we weren't actually in a lesson. It was a dream, and it was okay to go to sleep. Ah, good times! :D

The last story is the story of a young man named Jimy Rosario. Jimy has been investigating the church for a while, but he eventually decided that he wanted to be baptized! But he is only 17 years old, and so we had to get the permission of his parents. His mother has been sitting in on our lessons for quite a while, and had no objections. His father on the other hand was a different story.

When we talked to his father his objection was interesting. He said that he didn't like repentance. Now, at first this seems like a very odd thing, but with a little bit of explanation it really makes a lot of sense.

The explanation of his father is that he thinks that we should be careful in our decisions. That if we think about them before hand, and pray about them, then there would never be a need to repent of something that we have done, because we will have made the right decision the first time. He was worried that his son was rushing into something that he wasn't sure he believed in, and so he wanted to talk to Jimy about it before hand and make sure that he really believed it.

Oh, that all fathers were so concerned about the decisions of their children! The world would be a much better place!

Oh, and Jimy was baptized on Saturday!

It was a great day! And a great opportunity for me to look back on my own baptism as well. I suggest it, if you like to smile.

Just a short one

2010-02-03T17:14:00.001-07:00

Hello everyone!

Gonna be a bit shorter this week, because I just don't have time, or all that much to say today!

Anyway, things are good here in the DR! I got a bunch of notes from my mom's side of the family, thanks to everyone to wrote one! It meant a lot to me!

Anyway, I've been reading through the Book of Mormon again here on my mission, but in Spanish this time, and what do you know, there is some really great stuff in this book! But then again, it is the word of God, so what should you expect? There is one thing from this last week that really stood out to me though, and that is that the Gospel, the real gospel, is a gospel of learning. We are not supposed to follow blindly. We are not supposed to do something because someone says that we should. We are supposed to exercise faith and discover for ourselves those precious truths!

I actually really like how it is put in 2 Nephi 32:7. Toward the end of the verse Nephi talks about how he is sad because of the incredulity, ignorance, and stubbornness of his people. Because they don´t want to search for knowledge! This is key! There must be a desire to know, otherwise there can be no true faith. But the real question is, how do you spark this desire? I think that this is the question that every missionary needs to find the answer to. This is our great question. How do I spark my investigators desire to know? Their desire to be like our Father in Heaven, who knows all?

A Quiz and Some Language Lessons

2010-01-27T16:50:00.003-07:00

Hello again everyone! I have a ton of stuff to say today, and not a lot of time in which to say it, so, here we go!

First off a quiz!

1. How many people can ride in a small car in the city at one time?

Answer: Seven

2. What vehicle do you use to move mattresses, rebar, and washing machines?

Answer: A scooter or motorcycle.

3. What do you call Fruit Loops?

Answer: Like every other kind of cereal, corn flakes!

4. What do you need to do if you want to make lemonade?

Answer: Live in a country other than the DR, because I have yet to see an actual lemon here! Lots of limes and oranges, and passion fruits, but no lemons.

Anyway, those are a few of the things that I am learning here.

Another thing that I am learning is that you will be interrupted during a lesson. Usually when you are bearing your testimony. It really is pretty amazing, but eventually you learn to live with the fact that it is going to happen, and then it isn't such a big deal.

Some more stuff: The other day my companion and I were doing service and he wanted to learn how to climb a coconut tree! He almost got to the coconuts, but not quite. I did eat my first fresh coconut though! Not too bad! They have a lot of water in them!

And now some language lessons! First off, I want to describe something. Here it is called Bolla, or something like that. (I really have very little idea of how to spell it.) Anyway, in English it is pronounced like boo-yuh. And basically it is noise or sound. Now, let me try to describe the bolla in Bonao.

It is the sound of gently falling rain, of music with a beat, and clacking dominoes, mixed with the sound of mufflerless motorcycles and crowing roosters, all encased in a nearly echoless openness.

That is the bolla of Bonao, more or less.

And now one more word: Esperar

Esperar is a verb, which is roughly equivalent to the English verbs to wait, to wish, or to hope, But in reality, it is more than that. It is an example of a difference in ideology that I kind of like. The idea that to hope is more than just dream that maybe, one day, something will occur. But that it is more like saying that, something is coming, and I'm waiting for it. This is an important thing to think about, because the interpretation of languages is not the interpretation of words, it is the interpretation of ideas, and different cultures link different ideas together in different ways. And honestly, I think that esperar is better than any of the English equivalents, because is has a connotation of something more than what we often think of when we say, "I hope so."

Anyway, love you all!
Don't die!

Bonao

2010-01-20T10:09:00.002-07:00

Hello everyone! I hope that everything is going well for you all! And that you are ready for this, my description of Bonao!

Bonao is absolutely beautiful! I think that I fell in love with the town my second day here. It was raining a little bit, more like a heavy mist than anything, and we were headed out to a part of town called Marie Auxilliadores that is out in the campo, or country, side of town, and to get there we follow a little foot path for a while past some fields and small houses, and it was just absolutely beautiful! The green fields, the flowers and the palm trees. The cows out grazing, and the mountains in the distance. Amazing.

And even the city itself, with the colors and fresh smell and sensation of rain. Beautiful. I can't remember where the line is from, maybe from the new Sabrina, but I think that Bonao is meant to be seen in the rain. It is beautiful in the sun as well, but it is something special in the rain. That is just how it is supposed to be.

And I think that I started to really love the people within a few more days. It was a bit of a whirlwind there in the beginning. I didn't know what was going on, who was who, or even what people were saying for the most part. But when you see how much the gospel can help people, you can't help but want to share it. And even this is hard sometimes, because I only know so many words. I only know a little bit of grammar. And honestly, I only know a little bit of the gospel. But what I do know of the gospel, I know can help people. And what I do know of the language is enough to maybe help someone a little bit. So, I keep trying, and sometimes I feel like I´m not progressing at all, but then I´ll say something, and I think, I didn't used to be able to say that. Or, I just learned that word. But I think that one of my favorite moments was when we were in a lesson with some investigators and one of them commented on how much better my Spanish was, in just one week! It really is amazing, and I know that I couldn't do it without the Lord's help. I have honestly seen his hand in what we do time and time again.

Also, we had the pleasure of being instructed by Elder Bednar this past Saturday, which was pretty darn awesome!

Anyway, that is about all that I have for now. I had some other things written down on a paper, but I don´t know where I put it now. Oh well. :D

Oh, and one more thing. Don't forget to write your favorite missionary, even if it isn't me! Because they love mail!

Testimony

2010-01-13T16:47:00.000-07:00

I have been wanting to write this for a while, but I just haven’t had time to do it right, and it still won’t be all that I want it to be, but I hope that it makes sense at least. (And you will just have to wait another week for more information about Bonao and the work here!)

I want to talk a little bit about testimonies today. I don’t think that very many people really understand what a testimony is. I know that I didn’t used to really have any idea, and I am guessing that what I know now is really only a glimpse of the truth.

A testimony is where you bear record of something that you know, and there are two kinds that I know of. The first is when we tell someone about something that we know is true. For instance, I know that it rained today, or that there are a lot of roosters in Bonao.

But I think that the most important testimonies are those of the soul, of the heart. When we reach into the deepest crevices of who we are and share them with someone else that is important. These have power, because they are testimonies that are worth living by, and they are the testimonies that we should pay the most attention to. They are also the most difficult to share.

But now that we have that out of the way, I want to tell you a bit about my testimony and how it came to be, and the story starts with a young boy who was brought up by goodly parents.

This boy is me, and while I did most, if not all of the things that I was supposed to do as a child and a young man, I don’t know that I ever really had a testimony of them. I believed some, and I knew in my mind about a lot of things. But I didn’t really understand, and I didn’t know them.

There are a couple reasons why I think this was the case. First of all, it is easy for me to doubt things that I can’t see or touch. I am heavily based in the physical world. I almost need to see what is going on around me. For example, as a young child I can remember getting a filling at the dentists office, and they had to give me a shot to numb the pain and I cried, "Let me see it!” meaning the needle, because I knew that if I could see it, then I could understand it, and if I could understand it then I could bear it.

I like to run my fingers over the backs of pages in my notebook and feel the texture there. I love to listen to good music through good headphones, or especially speakers, and just feel it all, and get lost in the sound and caught up in the emotions.

But that isn’t enough to truly know the most important things. To gain my real testimony I had to listen to the spirit, and exercise faith in what I felt. And now this is what I know.

Like James, the brother of Jesus, I KNOW that God hears and answers our prayers, because I have felt his guidance. I know that he has a hand in our lives, because I have seen his powerful hand in my life in this last year. Time and time again I have known that something that has occurred came by way of his influence. And possibly more important than anything, I know, like Job, Mathew, Mark, John, like Joseph Smith and like in Elder Holland’s powerful testimony is this past conference, I know that Jesus Christ was resurrected, that he lives, and that he has restored his church to the world today.

I am no prophet, but you don’t need to be to know some things, and to know them with all your soul, to hold them in that shining place within you.

Mailing to the Dominican Republic

2010-01-10T20:52:00.003-07:00

Neil asked me (his mother) to let everyone know about mailing options. There are four options available: pouch mail, the Miami service, dearelder.com, and regular international mail through the postal service. The addresses for each service are found in the sidebar.

Pouch mail has these restrictions: Single sheets, folded in thirds and taped at the top with a single piece of tape or postcards. This method uses regular US postage.

Miami Service: The Santiago mission has contracted with this private company to receive letters and packages from the US in Miami. Using this service requires regular US postage. Letters and cards can be sent just as you would within the US. Pictures can be included. This service does take about two weeks. Packages can also be sent through this service, but the mission does not recommend it because of the cost that the missionary incurs on delivery.

Dear Elder: By going to this website you can send a letter by selecting the Dominican Republic Santiago Mission. Type your letter (or copy and paste a previously written letter) into the place provided. This service is free.

International mail: Letters sent this way cost the current mail rate to the Dominican Republic. The mission recommends this method for packages. You may use DHL, Fed EX and Global Priority Mail (US Post Office). Make sure you include the phone number as part of the address as they do not deliver packages.—the mission office is called and they go and pick them up. They recommend you keep the tracking number in case there is a problem with delivery. They will try to track it from their end and say they are almost always successful.
I am sure Neil will appreciate any and every piece of mail no matter which method you chose!