Week 29, Somewhere in the Jungle, Peru

HEY, Glad you guys had an awesome Thanksgiving! And thanks for the pics! It´s nice to see everyone, is that Brennan? You had to send me a picture of the dinner so I could drool over it!  Here Thanksgiving is a normal day so we just worked, it was really weird.   It's crazy that it's December in a few days! So we went to the Jungle today as a zone - that was cool. My first day here I challenged a lady to be baptized and she was doing awesome she didn't come to church this week so we have to wait longer to baptize her ahhhhhh!   Anyway, we have some more people we are working hard to get baptized too.  People here have the weirdest dreams - and they always tell them to us, but unfortunately I have not interpreted any yet.  I just about got into an argument with a Jehovas Witness Friday, and apparently since I don't know the years that Moses was a prophet, I don't know what I'm talking about, which is dumb because she looked it up herself and then told me that!  Anyway that's always interesting.  We found a lady with her 2 kids that has been inactive for some time but she told us she wants us to baptize her son, so that was really cool, and she came to church this week which was awesome!  That's what is happening now. I'll talk to you guys next week! Love Ya!

Week 28 - New Area

Hi Mom, so...... I´m in the Jungle.   I haven´t stopped sweating since the moment I got here.  I didn´t know that was possible.   I´ll be in a lesson with sweat just pouring down my face.  I started drinking 3 liters of water every day but I just sweat it all out.  It's a lot different being here in the jungle.   My new companion is alright - he thinks he is my boss though, so I guess I´ll work on my Christ like attributes... one of the which being patience.   I got moved up to senior companion, which I guess is cool.  My zone leaders said they want me training next change so we´ll see what happens.  It´s pretty brutal trying to sleep here with just a fan, and sweating all night, but hopefully i´ll acclimatize soon.  I like it here though.   I think I´ll be able to have a little bit more success.  The people are a lot more receptive.   Part of our area has about 500 inactives which is like 3 wards, so we're trying to think of what we can do here.  We do have a regular church building here so that is really nice.   Once again I got my welcoming present of having to teach gospel principles class.  It was a 12 hour bus ride to get here from Cusco, in the middle of the night, and then work the next day, so that was interesting.   Well that is what is going on now.  Hey Thanksgiving is this week!!   Kind of weird - I forgot about it until an Elder reminded me today.   Anyways let me now how it goes!  I love you guys.  Here is some more pics.   The one with the family is the family I ate every lunch and dinner with for 4 and a half months, and then there is some pics of my new area.

Week 27, Peru

Hi Family!  Thanks for the pictures. Hey, thanks a ton for sending me a package for my birthday.  I got it right after I left the internet last week.  It was nice to have some home made cookies! Hey I have my first transfer to another area tomorrow, so that´s crazy after I've been in the same area for 4 and a half months.   It's going to be weird to leave.  I think I'm going to the jungle part of Peru too, so thats what is happening now.  We had zone conference this week, which was cool.   It's kind of brutal to leave behind the people I started to teach - I wanted to see them baptized, but I guess as long as they're baptized that is what matters.   Anyway, here are some pics! Love you guys!

Week 26 - HAPPY BIRTHDAY, ELDER BARRETT!!

HI EVERYONE, Thanks for the Happy Birthdays!  You sent me a package? No, I haven't got it yet.  Wow - Brennan has grown a lot, he's going to be as tall as me when I get home.  I got an email from Grandma.  I'll write her back soon.  This week we started teaching a cool family -  they're married, which is like the rarest thing here.  That is one of the reasons why it is hard to baptize here - no one in peru is married practically.  Things are going good.  It is kind of weird having my birthday today without having my funfetti cake - just more rice and potatoes ha, ha.  I decided for my 23rd birthday there will have to be 3 funfetti cakes to make up for it.  It makes me miss you guys today!   Anyway I don't have much to say for this week.  We walked,  preached, and had a little more succes than last week.   We're trying to compete with the Jehovas Witnesses and the Missionary Movement and all the other missionarys out down here, so we usually have to unconfuse people at first.   I'm out of time - I love you all, talk to you next week!

Pictures

Week 25, New Post

Hi Mom, hey glad Cara had a good  birthday.  Thanks for the scripture. I'm getting better at having to give talks and lessons in church without notice, so I guess that's good.  I didn't really have a good week.  My companion was sick for most of it so we weren't able to do much.  I had a work visit with the zone leaders, it was pretty cool.  I learned a lot.   I'm always looking for ways to improve the way I teach, and my zone leader is pretty amazing at teaching, so I learned a few new things.  I think a lot just comes with time, but there isn't a perfect way because we have to teach everyone to their needs.   Sometimes that is really hard.   We're working hard to get some baptisms but it isn't really happening, at least for the moment.   I feel sometimnes like were just planting seeds. It's alright though,  I know why I'm here. Anyway,  I hope to have a better week, so I can have more to say, love you guys!