Hey Family!
This week has been pretty crazy. We haven´t really found any new solid investigators in a while so the past few days has seemed pretty slow, but we have our goal for this week! We actually had seven possible baptism dates for this last Sunday, and we ended up actually having zero. That was a little lame. One lady is a diabetic and got sick the night before and had to go to the hospital. But the others just weren´t at church or anything. I´m honestly not super down about it because I think Blanca and Jose and their family still need to gain a real testimony. Blanca is pretty ready, but I´d like to teach her a little more, and their kids haven´t been around enough for the lessons, and Jose has a drug problem we found out. So looking back it´s a good thing the Lord made fit for an extra week to work with them or however much more time it will take for them to recognize the changes the Atonement and everything will make in their lives.
Mario, the one who is friends with Carmen and Ruben has moved away. He´s been really sick, and probably doesn´t have much more time. It´s pretty sad because his marriage isn´t in very good shape and he has a few young kids. But after he moved away Ruben told us that Mario had let him know he´s actually already a member of the church. I guess something bad happened in his family and going to church meetings reminded him of how happy they use to be so he didn´t want to go anymore. But the crazy thing is that he almost got baptized... twice. He actually almost committed to baptism, without ever letting us know that he´d already been baptized. Anyway. He´s in a pretty rough situation.
Carmen has been getting food from the Bishop´s store house since he doesn´t have any money, and he´s already sold the chairs at his table and things like that to try to make it a little farther. But he´s been making meals with the supplies they gave him and inviting other people who are in difficult financial situations over to eat. He´s finally getting over an ulcer he had on his leg, and his work is starting to pick up a little. His story reminds me alot of Job. But it´s awesome to see the blessings he´s been recieving from his selflessness.
I´ve actually been studying Charity this week alot. I´m starting to focus on one Christlike attribute a week to try to show the Lord I want his help to be the best person I can be. It´s not hard to keep Charity in the forefront of my mind since most everyone here is full of it. They really care so much about their families and friends and whoever else they come across that they´ll do whatever it takes to change another person´s life for the better. It´s amazing the way that this work becomes easier when I´m trying to see these people as the Savior sees them, and let that love be the power behind what we´re doing.
We´ve had a few funny experiences this week. There´s a sister in the ward who has a son with special needs. He´s always super stoked to see us and gives us high fives and stuff when we pass him in the street. The other day we were walking to an appointment when I glanced back and saw him peeking at us from behind a light post. He quickly ducked behind the pole, but both his arms were pretty clearly visible on either side of it. We kept walking and he jumped behind a corner and was peeking back at us. We pretended we couldn´t see him so it wouldn´t spoil his fun. We went up a little further and he snuck out from behind the corner. When we looked back he ran behind the corner again. We decided to hide around another corner up ahead and try to trick him. We stood waiting for about thirty seconds, and then looked out to try to catch him sneeking up toward us, but he wasn´t back there anymore. We started to walk forward and noticed him about a block and a half ahead of us sitting on the steps of a store. I don´t know how he teleported himself up there so fast but I was pretty impressed.
One thing I´ve learned about the culture here, is that you can do anything you want that would normally be super nerdy or weird, as long as it´s to music, because then it´s cool. The other day we were walking past a group of about twenty people gathered in the street. They varied in shape size and age and were all just standing there. Backstreet boys were playing from the garage of a nearby house, as we got closer we realized they were all doing like a music video dance thing in the middle of the street. The dance moves weren´t super complicated but they were all really in sync. It was pretty goofy looking, but they all seemed to think it was pretty normal. How´s that for a neighborhood party?
This week we had to go help the sister missionaries for an evening. They had my companion talk to one of their investigators who had been coming up with excuses not to get baptized for weeks. We ended up baptizing her that night which was pretty cool. After that appointment we were on the bus headed to the church. One of the sisters started handing out pamphlets on the bus, and my companion went to talk to a man who was sitting alone. The other sister decided we should start singing hymns. So me and her were singing hymns for everybody on the bus. It was a little rough, because the sister is a tiny bit tone deaf, and she would do a note change on every chorus and at the start of every verse. She was a much louder singer than me, and I never knew when she´d do a note change, so alot of people probably thought I wasn´t very familiar with the songs. But it was fun.
This last weekend we organized a huge missionary activity for the primary kids. They all got little name tags and we taught them a little about the messages we usually share with people. Then each companionship got to take a few kids around to do real visits with less active members. We took two little dudes that were almost ready to graduate from primary. In the first appointment they just bore their testimonies. In the second we let them do the whole visit by themselves. We didn´t say a single word. They started and ended with a prayer and shared a message of the restoration with the members. It was sweet. It´s awesome to see so many young kids preparing for missions so early on.
Gram: I got your dear elder. That car wash that gramp had sounds like it was a blast! I loved reading all about Addy´s birthday. It sounds like you all had a pretty great time. Thanks for keeping me updated gram, I love you.
Bam: I also got your dear elder. Cabeza is the word for head. The part I ate was the top of the spine and a little bit from the back neck meat of what I think was a pig or a cow. That´s sweet that your finally getting new sisters at your house! You´ll have to tell me if they´re as great as the last two once they move in. Thanks for your letters bam, I love you.
Mom: I also got your dear elder. Thanks for letting me know about the USB cord on it´s way. And tell Christian thanks for watching out for me and reminding you. Haha. That was awesome to hear about the triathlons! I bet it´s been a blast seeing dad and the uncles do so good as usual. I was going to get a birthday package on it´s way to you today but we ended up spending our whole p day cleaning! Everybody had to scrub down their houses today because there´s a chance in the near future of a certain apostle visiting a few houses after a big mission conference. I hope he comes to us. But I´ll get that package out as soon as I can, and hopefully it will be there with in the same month as your birthday, sorry. I love you Mom.
Dig: that sounds pretty sweet about the three musketeers. Haha. Your e mail was hilarious as usual by the way. Your e mails always make my day a little more fun dig. So you made yourself a pretty sweet spear huh? That´s too bad somebody threw it away. I love ya diggy o.
Denny: Your story about the bike jumps was sweet! sounds like your a pro. That´s cool that you and Dig are having alot of fun in the new neighborhood. Love you Den.
Shash: I was sorry to hear about your head injury! I hope your feeling ok! That sleepover sounds like it was a blast. Is taylor sayin shash now? haha. That´s a funny story it sounds like you and halee had alot of fun. I love ya sloosh.
Nay: Thanks for the story about Evan and Drew. That was pretty sweet to hear their thinking about me. The food down here has all really been pretty good. I actually had some spaghetti and pork chop tacos the other day, which was a little odd but pretty delicious. The whole fish with ketchup thing still doesn´t sit very well with me, I guess they put ketchup on their pizza here too which is crazy. I´m glad to hear your taking care of Persie for me. Tell her I said hello. I can´t believe you´re already doing stuff to get ready for college! That´s crazy! you´ve got to let me know how your ACT went when you find out by the way. So you´re back to the old question of dance or soccer huh? Well if I were you I would go with whichever I thought would help me the best in the future. I would also go with whichever made me the most happy. I would also pray about it. And I would also remember that there´s probably not a right or wrong answer, and that either way you´ll probably be happy about your choice in the long run. I love your idea about if you went to BYU and how I could pick you up on my way back for the weekends. That´d be sweet. But I´d still be wearing my red U shirts when I came by to get you. I love hearing about what you´ve been up to Nay. Don´t worry about your letters being too long or anything, I love hearing from you! I love you Nay.
Dad: That´s sweet that you get to take a trip down to Pheonix! I bet it will be pretty sweet to see the Jensens again. That story about the old couple with the corvette was pretty sweet. There´s a guy down the street from us that has a pretty sweet vette. To answer your question about the couples who don´t live together, it´s much more common that they do live together. But there are alot of couples who have alot of problems, so the husband just rents a room down the street so they don´t get in any major fights or anything. It´s a little strange. But anyway, thanks for your tips about Charity dad. I love getting advice from you. It always seems to be about something I need at that time. Thanks dad. I love you.
Thanks for your dear elders Dayna, Cristobal, Shay, and Katrina (thanks for the spelling tip by the way! I don´t know if I´m doing it still because I usually type really fast but I´ll keep working on it! Haha.)
I love you all!
Elder Dallas Robert Aguilar
Monday, April 26, 2010
Monday, April 19, 2010
Cockroaches!
Hey Family!
So this week has been pretty crazy. The Olivarez family with the seven kids have some cousins that moved in with them who´s father we had previously contacted, and they are actually a family of twelve. So we found a house with twenty one people that had all asked to hear more about the gospel! But sadly, they don´t seem to really want to let us in to share a message. I was pretty bumbed about it because at first the parents were just never home, but pretty soon we realized they´ve just been making up excuses. So we probably won´t get too far with them. After that things started looking a little rough. We had two baptisms planned for two primary aged girls, but neither of them could get permission from their parents! Our list of progressing investigators was starting to look pretty short. But, we kept working, and didn´t loose faith. We found a pretty large amount of investigators in the streets that are all super excited about the gospel. I´d like to tell you in particular about Jose Luiz and his wife Blanca. We found Jose on the street washing his car, and he invited us to come back and teach him. A couple days later as we were teaching the restoration, his wife Blanca who lives down the street (not uncommon here) showed up and asked him for the laundry. She then got mad at us, and said we should try to teach him the gospel because he´s not good enough and doesn´t deserve it and isn´t going to change. They then proceeded to argue (at the top of their lungs) for about forty minutes, each trying to prove to us that the other was at fault for the many problems their family has had. At one point I really thought it was going to turn into a smackdown. We kept reading them scriptures and trying to calm them down, and finally they cooled off. We invited them both to come to church, and they both ended up coming. They loved sacrament meeting, and they got to see some baptisms after church. That night we taught their family for the first time, and they all want to be baptized. We let them know that they need to make sure they have a testimony first, but our goal date is this Sunday. I´ve already found out that after a baptismal date is set, Satan is doing anything possible to stop it, so please pray for them to recognize the importance of having the gospel of Jesus Christ in their lives. Reuben Carmen and Maria are all doing great. Reuben and Carmen got the priesthood yesterday, and I really think Reuben will be a stake president before too long. We also found a woman named Beatrice that is supre excited about the gospel, and already seems to have learned alot about it before we even found her, just from praying to recieve answers through the Holy Ghost (it´s really pretty insane how well the Lord has prepared her).
So this week we had a war break out in our house. Us four, against about a trillion cockroaches. They´re all pretty big. Luckily there have only been about ten or twelve that have made it into the house, but outside in the back there´s quite a colony. We have a sink in the back outside and they´ve all been living under the sink and in the pipes and stuff. There are also some old pots and pans out there that we never use. A bunch of them were gathered in a pot so we lit some papers on fire and threw them in with the cockroaches then put the lid on with just enough space for the fire to stay alive but to keep them all inside. It´s all starting to get a bit out of hand.
One thing that´s awesome here is that the buses are all privately owned. All the drivers have their buses fixed up pretty sweet. The other night we took one home that had a bunch of black lights in it with some pretty sweet toys and decorations in the front. It was pretty awesome. There are also a ton of musicians that just get on a bus and sing or play for a while to make a little bit of cash. The other day there was a blind man with a karaoke machine that was a super good singer. It´s pretty cool because they all sing about the Savior and stuff so we don´t have to worry about any innappropriate lyrics to ignore or anything like that.
The people we´ve been teaching live right by a huge market. Every day I get two apples and two mangos for the total cost of what would be about eighty cents in the U.S. I´ve really been loving the food here. Yesterday we ate at the bishop´s and the meal was just chicken in an Italian sauce with beans and garlic rice and tortillas and it was incredibly delicious. I don´t understand how they make such simple food taste so good.
Gram- I got your dear elder at the start of last week and I loved it. I definitely agree with what you said about learning things in life and relying on the Lord. One thing I´ve learned tons about is the many different ways the Atonement can help me get over my less admirable qualities and strive to be more like Him. That´s awesome about gramp´s flowers that he made. I´m glad to hear he´s been having a good time at the school. Love you gram.
Bam- I got your dear elders also. Thanks for keeping me updated on the fam and all. That´s great that we live so close now and you can just come on down for dinner or whatever whenever you want and we can visit you anytime. I got your package as well which was awesome. I can find milky ways and snickers here but they´re not a very good price, and there´s not really any reeses or kit kats or anything like that so it was sweet to have some good old American candy! I love you Bam. Thanks for your support.
Egans- I got your dear elder and I love hearing about the baby on the way. I love the name too by the way. My companion has actually told me numerous times (he has a pretty bad short term memory) that he´s going to name his first kid Trey, so he was super stoked to hear about that too. Thanks for the stories about Evan and Drew, I love hearing stories about the little cousins. I can´t believe Evans already so concerned about impressing the ladies with his fresh breath. What a little stud.
Dig- Yes they did think da bomb was pretty impressive in the MTC, haha. And as a matter of fact the UFC elder did cry a little from it. As far as your question about if people have told me to get away from their property and stuff, no I haven´t really seen any of that, but people don´t really have yards here or anything and all the houses are fenced off pretty good. I have had some pretty crazy experiences already though, and I´ve been writing all about them in my journal. I´ll be sure to tell you about whatever crazy ones you want to hear after my mission! That´s sweet that you got to do all that stuff at scout camp. I remember those good old days. Shotgun was my favorite, and Tanner was always the best at the knife throwing stuff. That´s too bad you got sick from the fritos. In spanish if you call someone a frito that means they´re lazy. Well I hope you´re feelin better Dig. I love getting your e-mails dig I think they´re hilarious. I met a kid in the stake who looks alot like you and he´s funny too. It´s sweet to find people that remind me of home. Well anyway, thanks for helpin me to laugh a little each week diggy-o. I love ya!
Shash- That stinks about how you hit your eye! I hope it´s feeling better. It sounds like your sleep over was pretty sweet with your new friend. I´m glad your having alot of fun in the new house and everything. I love you slooshby.
Mom- That´s awesome about Fui´s call! New York will be sweet. Tell him I said congrats! I have been getting the dear elders and packages and stuff. I can´t wait for that package to get here. By the way I still haven´t found out a way I can get pictures to you yet. I really need a usb hookup for the camera. I´m excited for you to get all the pictures up and stuff to make the house complete. I´m glad things keep getting better. I love hearing from you mom, and I use things that you´ve taught me every day to help the people here. The knowledge of the gospel really is the greatest gift like you said, and I really can´t even put into words how lucky I am to have had parents that raised me in the gospel. I definitely feel the support of your prayers. There´s no way the results we´ve seen could ever come about with out all of help we get from the Lord. I love you mom.
Denny- That bike activity at scouts sounds like it was pretty fun! I´m glad your having a blast with your new friends. That´s sweet about your soccer goals! Keep up the good work! I played soccer today but I didn´t make any goals. Love you Denny-o
Nay- Yes, we too have to shower with buckets. Our water boiler is broken so we put an iron in a bucket of water and it actually heats it up pretty fast. It´s really not that inconvenient, but it´ll be weird to come home to fully functioning bathrooms in a couple years. It sounds like you´ve been having a blast lately. That´s awesome. I´m glad that Sam guy is so cool. He better be if he´s gonna be hangin out with my little sister. I say that alot I know but still. I know what you mean about the time thing. Time is something we definitely don´t have enough of here. And don´t worry so much about impressing people! The only opinion that matters is the Lord´s, and He always sees your full potential. I love you Nay.
Dad- Yes I did actually read an article just before I left about Brian Johnson. That´s pretty sweet. I really want you all to record the games for me while I´m gone. Ya I´m pretty sure you found the house. We actually live downstairs and the other companionship lives upstairs. I definitely know what you mean about the power of prayer. It guides every part of my day. I don´t know what I would do without it. I love you Dad.
I love you all!
Elder Dallas Robert Aguilar
So this week has been pretty crazy. The Olivarez family with the seven kids have some cousins that moved in with them who´s father we had previously contacted, and they are actually a family of twelve. So we found a house with twenty one people that had all asked to hear more about the gospel! But sadly, they don´t seem to really want to let us in to share a message. I was pretty bumbed about it because at first the parents were just never home, but pretty soon we realized they´ve just been making up excuses. So we probably won´t get too far with them. After that things started looking a little rough. We had two baptisms planned for two primary aged girls, but neither of them could get permission from their parents! Our list of progressing investigators was starting to look pretty short. But, we kept working, and didn´t loose faith. We found a pretty large amount of investigators in the streets that are all super excited about the gospel. I´d like to tell you in particular about Jose Luiz and his wife Blanca. We found Jose on the street washing his car, and he invited us to come back and teach him. A couple days later as we were teaching the restoration, his wife Blanca who lives down the street (not uncommon here) showed up and asked him for the laundry. She then got mad at us, and said we should try to teach him the gospel because he´s not good enough and doesn´t deserve it and isn´t going to change. They then proceeded to argue (at the top of their lungs) for about forty minutes, each trying to prove to us that the other was at fault for the many problems their family has had. At one point I really thought it was going to turn into a smackdown. We kept reading them scriptures and trying to calm them down, and finally they cooled off. We invited them both to come to church, and they both ended up coming. They loved sacrament meeting, and they got to see some baptisms after church. That night we taught their family for the first time, and they all want to be baptized. We let them know that they need to make sure they have a testimony first, but our goal date is this Sunday. I´ve already found out that after a baptismal date is set, Satan is doing anything possible to stop it, so please pray for them to recognize the importance of having the gospel of Jesus Christ in their lives. Reuben Carmen and Maria are all doing great. Reuben and Carmen got the priesthood yesterday, and I really think Reuben will be a stake president before too long. We also found a woman named Beatrice that is supre excited about the gospel, and already seems to have learned alot about it before we even found her, just from praying to recieve answers through the Holy Ghost (it´s really pretty insane how well the Lord has prepared her).
So this week we had a war break out in our house. Us four, against about a trillion cockroaches. They´re all pretty big. Luckily there have only been about ten or twelve that have made it into the house, but outside in the back there´s quite a colony. We have a sink in the back outside and they´ve all been living under the sink and in the pipes and stuff. There are also some old pots and pans out there that we never use. A bunch of them were gathered in a pot so we lit some papers on fire and threw them in with the cockroaches then put the lid on with just enough space for the fire to stay alive but to keep them all inside. It´s all starting to get a bit out of hand.
One thing that´s awesome here is that the buses are all privately owned. All the drivers have their buses fixed up pretty sweet. The other night we took one home that had a bunch of black lights in it with some pretty sweet toys and decorations in the front. It was pretty awesome. There are also a ton of musicians that just get on a bus and sing or play for a while to make a little bit of cash. The other day there was a blind man with a karaoke machine that was a super good singer. It´s pretty cool because they all sing about the Savior and stuff so we don´t have to worry about any innappropriate lyrics to ignore or anything like that.
The people we´ve been teaching live right by a huge market. Every day I get two apples and two mangos for the total cost of what would be about eighty cents in the U.S. I´ve really been loving the food here. Yesterday we ate at the bishop´s and the meal was just chicken in an Italian sauce with beans and garlic rice and tortillas and it was incredibly delicious. I don´t understand how they make such simple food taste so good.
Gram- I got your dear elder at the start of last week and I loved it. I definitely agree with what you said about learning things in life and relying on the Lord. One thing I´ve learned tons about is the many different ways the Atonement can help me get over my less admirable qualities and strive to be more like Him. That´s awesome about gramp´s flowers that he made. I´m glad to hear he´s been having a good time at the school. Love you gram.
Bam- I got your dear elders also. Thanks for keeping me updated on the fam and all. That´s great that we live so close now and you can just come on down for dinner or whatever whenever you want and we can visit you anytime. I got your package as well which was awesome. I can find milky ways and snickers here but they´re not a very good price, and there´s not really any reeses or kit kats or anything like that so it was sweet to have some good old American candy! I love you Bam. Thanks for your support.
Egans- I got your dear elder and I love hearing about the baby on the way. I love the name too by the way. My companion has actually told me numerous times (he has a pretty bad short term memory) that he´s going to name his first kid Trey, so he was super stoked to hear about that too. Thanks for the stories about Evan and Drew, I love hearing stories about the little cousins. I can´t believe Evans already so concerned about impressing the ladies with his fresh breath. What a little stud.
Dig- Yes they did think da bomb was pretty impressive in the MTC, haha. And as a matter of fact the UFC elder did cry a little from it. As far as your question about if people have told me to get away from their property and stuff, no I haven´t really seen any of that, but people don´t really have yards here or anything and all the houses are fenced off pretty good. I have had some pretty crazy experiences already though, and I´ve been writing all about them in my journal. I´ll be sure to tell you about whatever crazy ones you want to hear after my mission! That´s sweet that you got to do all that stuff at scout camp. I remember those good old days. Shotgun was my favorite, and Tanner was always the best at the knife throwing stuff. That´s too bad you got sick from the fritos. In spanish if you call someone a frito that means they´re lazy. Well I hope you´re feelin better Dig. I love getting your e-mails dig I think they´re hilarious. I met a kid in the stake who looks alot like you and he´s funny too. It´s sweet to find people that remind me of home. Well anyway, thanks for helpin me to laugh a little each week diggy-o. I love ya!
Shash- That stinks about how you hit your eye! I hope it´s feeling better. It sounds like your sleep over was pretty sweet with your new friend. I´m glad your having alot of fun in the new house and everything. I love you slooshby.
Mom- That´s awesome about Fui´s call! New York will be sweet. Tell him I said congrats! I have been getting the dear elders and packages and stuff. I can´t wait for that package to get here. By the way I still haven´t found out a way I can get pictures to you yet. I really need a usb hookup for the camera. I´m excited for you to get all the pictures up and stuff to make the house complete. I´m glad things keep getting better. I love hearing from you mom, and I use things that you´ve taught me every day to help the people here. The knowledge of the gospel really is the greatest gift like you said, and I really can´t even put into words how lucky I am to have had parents that raised me in the gospel. I definitely feel the support of your prayers. There´s no way the results we´ve seen could ever come about with out all of help we get from the Lord. I love you mom.
Denny- That bike activity at scouts sounds like it was pretty fun! I´m glad your having a blast with your new friends. That´s sweet about your soccer goals! Keep up the good work! I played soccer today but I didn´t make any goals. Love you Denny-o
Nay- Yes, we too have to shower with buckets. Our water boiler is broken so we put an iron in a bucket of water and it actually heats it up pretty fast. It´s really not that inconvenient, but it´ll be weird to come home to fully functioning bathrooms in a couple years. It sounds like you´ve been having a blast lately. That´s awesome. I´m glad that Sam guy is so cool. He better be if he´s gonna be hangin out with my little sister. I say that alot I know but still. I know what you mean about the time thing. Time is something we definitely don´t have enough of here. And don´t worry so much about impressing people! The only opinion that matters is the Lord´s, and He always sees your full potential. I love you Nay.
Dad- Yes I did actually read an article just before I left about Brian Johnson. That´s pretty sweet. I really want you all to record the games for me while I´m gone. Ya I´m pretty sure you found the house. We actually live downstairs and the other companionship lives upstairs. I definitely know what you mean about the power of prayer. It guides every part of my day. I don´t know what I would do without it. I love you Dad.
I love you all!
Elder Dallas Robert Aguilar
Monday, April 12, 2010
Month 3
Hey family,
This week has been pretty good. Yesterday we had three confirmations in sacrament meeting (Carmen Reuben and Maria). It was pretty awesome to see the new members and the incredible changes in their lives. I dont remember how much I said about their situation last week, but Reuben had been avoiding us and we heard that he decided he couldnt give up his drinking and decided he didnt want to learn more about the church. However the rumor wasnt completely true, as rumors usually arent. On tuesday we went to talk to Carmen and Maria and share some scriptures. Reuben answered the door and greeted us very warmly. We began to talk with him, and he let us know that he was sorry for avoiding us, and that he just wanted some time away from influence of us or his friends to really ponder and pray to know what he needed to do at this point in his life. I dont know what kind of experience he had but he shared with us a very strong testimony of the church and the Saviors gospel, and let us know he wanted to be baptized. Carmen, who had been quietly observing (which is rare for him since he really loves to talk alot), suddenly just said "tommorrow, baptize him tomorrow." Reuben laughed a little bit and just said that would be ok with him. His baptism was a very neat experience, and all three of them are coming to do baptisms at the temple with us this wednesday which is pretty awesome.
So I keep forgetting to tell you all, that the chariot bike things like Nacho Libre has are everywhere here. Ive only seen one with a motor like Nachos, but its pretty sweet that there are so many of them. One of the member families here actually love that movie, we always have to divert the conversation back into references or family night when we are talking to the son that is our age because I dont think he realizes we avoid all the media as missionaries. They are an awesome family though. Thats one of the greatest things about our area is the strength of the members. We have a ton of support and a ton of food always. But anyway, those chariots are everywhere along with dirt bikes and four wheelers which are legal on the roads here. Yesterday we saw three guys on a four wheeler that pulled up to a stop light. When the light turned green they did a wheely for a good fifty yards. It was pretty sweet.
Today I had to go to downtown Guadalajara to sign some papers and give some fingerprints for visa stuff. We got to go to that town square with that enormous cathedral that Guadalajara is famous for. It was super big and super cool. We had some delicious tamales while we walked around a little and then headed back to the offices so we could go back to our areas.
We contacted a family recently named the Olivares family. They have seven kids and were very excited to hear about the gospel. Weve gone by their house several times to teach them and serve in any way we can, but the parents are never home. Yesterday we went to see if they happened to be there even though they had already let us know that they always go play soccer as a family on sundays. As we approached the house we noticed a man sitting on the sidewalk looking pretty down, so we went and talked to him. It turned out he is related to the father of the family, and has ten kids of his own. He said he has been having a really hard time lately with money and with his family, and that he has looked everywhere and cant seem to find any real evidence that the Lord loves him and his family. We told him we had a message for him that would answer his prayers. He didnt believe us. But after talking with him for a while my companion convinced him that we really want to help him. He invited us to come teach his family tomorrow. I hope the spirit will be there and let him feel the great amount of love that the Lord has for him and each member of his family.
Dad- Thats pretty sweet about Damirs new clutch. One thing that you would definitely love here is the cars. Everyone is constantly working on their cars, and ever intersection is a starting line for races. Its pretty sweet. Yesterday I saw an old old caddy with a huge white spoiler on the back that looked like it was supposed to be for a formula one car. Thats sweet that you found that shaver charger at the DI. The power here works perfect for everything, its just the same as at home. Speaking of cords, do we have any usb hookups for the camera that I brought? I want to be able to e mail some pictures home but I dont really have any way to get them onto the computer. Also itd be sweet if you could send me some pictures of the fam that I have in my files on the computer. Thanks for the tip on the money thing. I assumed it would take a charge out so thats why I took out a larger amount. Down here, what I took out will last me a while so it shouldnt be too soon that I take some out again, but thanks for watching it for me. By the way our house is actually on Adrian Puga and Cenobio Paniagua, its right on the corner and its bright reddish orange. The church is at 72 between the streets Gomez Farias and 12 de Octubre. Thanks for your testimony dad, and thanks for your prayers, especially the ones for our investigators. By the way a brother in our ward Martin Luna is struggling a bit, as well as our investigators Manuela and Mario. Thanks. I love you dad.
Nay- My first fast and testimony meeting here was alot different too. In the ward were in theres actually a line of about fifteen people as soon as its time for testimonies, and people keep going up to wait on the stand to share their testimonies until its about ten minutes over time and the bishop has to tell everyone to sit down. Its pretty awesome. Thats cool that your party thing went so well. thats funny about the eggs too. That stinks about the ipod and everything though. That is your luck. Haha. By the way did you tell Marqui thanks for that dear elder she sent me so long ago? I feel bad that I havent had time to write her (or anyone) a letter since I got here. I love you nay. Keep having a good time and hanging out with good examples.
Dig- Thanks for the e mail bro. That party at dylans sounds like it was a blast. Thats a pretty sweet game you guys invented. I can just imagine Dylan singing on that guys porch. Thats awesome. Keep writing me Dig, I love showing my comp how smart and funny you are with the lines from your emails. Love you Dig.
Denny- I didnt get your dear elder yet but I cant wait to get it! I love hearing all your stories and stuff its sweet. Love you Denny-o
Shash- I love ya sloosh. I keep thinking about how big your going to be when i get back its crazy! I cant wait to hear from you next week. Love ya Shoo.
Mom- Looking back I definitely agree that our home was always a very special place. And like you said no matter where we are at our family is still just as unified and full of love. I am so thankful to have grown up in such a great environment with such incredible parents and brothers and sisters. Thanks mom. So I do know Elder Sargent. He was actually in my flight group on the way here. He was with us today when we went to do the visa stuff but he didnt say anything about getting robbed. Hes probably just a little embarassed. Haha. The dear elders havent arrived yet, they usually come on tuesdays every week or every other week so I should get them tomorrow. As far as the packages go, they have to come through the mission home. In fact our house doesnt even really have a mail box. We got someone elses cable bill by mistake from the mailman the other day, who had just left it on the cement leading up to our house, so they dont worry to much about consealing things. haha. Once again its safest to have a picture of the Savior or something on there just in case. Thanks Mom. Love ya!
Well thats all for this week. Its been a little slow since it was the second week of vacation for easter here (I guess about everyone in the country gets about two weeks of every year for easter) so we havent had too many appointments and things since nobody has been in town. The streets are usually super crowded but this last week there was literally nobody around because they all headed down town or to the ocean. It was actually a little spooky. Anyway I have a feeling the week coming up is going to be pretty sweet so I cant wait to tell you all about it!
Love,
Elder Dallas Robert Aguilar
This week has been pretty good. Yesterday we had three confirmations in sacrament meeting (Carmen Reuben and Maria). It was pretty awesome to see the new members and the incredible changes in their lives. I dont remember how much I said about their situation last week, but Reuben had been avoiding us and we heard that he decided he couldnt give up his drinking and decided he didnt want to learn more about the church. However the rumor wasnt completely true, as rumors usually arent. On tuesday we went to talk to Carmen and Maria and share some scriptures. Reuben answered the door and greeted us very warmly. We began to talk with him, and he let us know that he was sorry for avoiding us, and that he just wanted some time away from influence of us or his friends to really ponder and pray to know what he needed to do at this point in his life. I dont know what kind of experience he had but he shared with us a very strong testimony of the church and the Saviors gospel, and let us know he wanted to be baptized. Carmen, who had been quietly observing (which is rare for him since he really loves to talk alot), suddenly just said "tommorrow, baptize him tomorrow." Reuben laughed a little bit and just said that would be ok with him. His baptism was a very neat experience, and all three of them are coming to do baptisms at the temple with us this wednesday which is pretty awesome.
So I keep forgetting to tell you all, that the chariot bike things like Nacho Libre has are everywhere here. Ive only seen one with a motor like Nachos, but its pretty sweet that there are so many of them. One of the member families here actually love that movie, we always have to divert the conversation back into references or family night when we are talking to the son that is our age because I dont think he realizes we avoid all the media as missionaries. They are an awesome family though. Thats one of the greatest things about our area is the strength of the members. We have a ton of support and a ton of food always. But anyway, those chariots are everywhere along with dirt bikes and four wheelers which are legal on the roads here. Yesterday we saw three guys on a four wheeler that pulled up to a stop light. When the light turned green they did a wheely for a good fifty yards. It was pretty sweet.
Today I had to go to downtown Guadalajara to sign some papers and give some fingerprints for visa stuff. We got to go to that town square with that enormous cathedral that Guadalajara is famous for. It was super big and super cool. We had some delicious tamales while we walked around a little and then headed back to the offices so we could go back to our areas.
We contacted a family recently named the Olivares family. They have seven kids and were very excited to hear about the gospel. Weve gone by their house several times to teach them and serve in any way we can, but the parents are never home. Yesterday we went to see if they happened to be there even though they had already let us know that they always go play soccer as a family on sundays. As we approached the house we noticed a man sitting on the sidewalk looking pretty down, so we went and talked to him. It turned out he is related to the father of the family, and has ten kids of his own. He said he has been having a really hard time lately with money and with his family, and that he has looked everywhere and cant seem to find any real evidence that the Lord loves him and his family. We told him we had a message for him that would answer his prayers. He didnt believe us. But after talking with him for a while my companion convinced him that we really want to help him. He invited us to come teach his family tomorrow. I hope the spirit will be there and let him feel the great amount of love that the Lord has for him and each member of his family.
Dad- Thats pretty sweet about Damirs new clutch. One thing that you would definitely love here is the cars. Everyone is constantly working on their cars, and ever intersection is a starting line for races. Its pretty sweet. Yesterday I saw an old old caddy with a huge white spoiler on the back that looked like it was supposed to be for a formula one car. Thats sweet that you found that shaver charger at the DI. The power here works perfect for everything, its just the same as at home. Speaking of cords, do we have any usb hookups for the camera that I brought? I want to be able to e mail some pictures home but I dont really have any way to get them onto the computer. Also itd be sweet if you could send me some pictures of the fam that I have in my files on the computer. Thanks for the tip on the money thing. I assumed it would take a charge out so thats why I took out a larger amount. Down here, what I took out will last me a while so it shouldnt be too soon that I take some out again, but thanks for watching it for me. By the way our house is actually on Adrian Puga and Cenobio Paniagua, its right on the corner and its bright reddish orange. The church is at 72 between the streets Gomez Farias and 12 de Octubre. Thanks for your testimony dad, and thanks for your prayers, especially the ones for our investigators. By the way a brother in our ward Martin Luna is struggling a bit, as well as our investigators Manuela and Mario. Thanks. I love you dad.
Nay- My first fast and testimony meeting here was alot different too. In the ward were in theres actually a line of about fifteen people as soon as its time for testimonies, and people keep going up to wait on the stand to share their testimonies until its about ten minutes over time and the bishop has to tell everyone to sit down. Its pretty awesome. Thats cool that your party thing went so well. thats funny about the eggs too. That stinks about the ipod and everything though. That is your luck. Haha. By the way did you tell Marqui thanks for that dear elder she sent me so long ago? I feel bad that I havent had time to write her (or anyone) a letter since I got here. I love you nay. Keep having a good time and hanging out with good examples.
Dig- Thanks for the e mail bro. That party at dylans sounds like it was a blast. Thats a pretty sweet game you guys invented. I can just imagine Dylan singing on that guys porch. Thats awesome. Keep writing me Dig, I love showing my comp how smart and funny you are with the lines from your emails. Love you Dig.
Denny- I didnt get your dear elder yet but I cant wait to get it! I love hearing all your stories and stuff its sweet. Love you Denny-o
Shash- I love ya sloosh. I keep thinking about how big your going to be when i get back its crazy! I cant wait to hear from you next week. Love ya Shoo.
Mom- Looking back I definitely agree that our home was always a very special place. And like you said no matter where we are at our family is still just as unified and full of love. I am so thankful to have grown up in such a great environment with such incredible parents and brothers and sisters. Thanks mom. So I do know Elder Sargent. He was actually in my flight group on the way here. He was with us today when we went to do the visa stuff but he didnt say anything about getting robbed. Hes probably just a little embarassed. Haha. The dear elders havent arrived yet, they usually come on tuesdays every week or every other week so I should get them tomorrow. As far as the packages go, they have to come through the mission home. In fact our house doesnt even really have a mail box. We got someone elses cable bill by mistake from the mailman the other day, who had just left it on the cement leading up to our house, so they dont worry to much about consealing things. haha. Once again its safest to have a picture of the Savior or something on there just in case. Thanks Mom. Love ya!
Well thats all for this week. Its been a little slow since it was the second week of vacation for easter here (I guess about everyone in the country gets about two weeks of every year for easter) so we havent had too many appointments and things since nobody has been in town. The streets are usually super crowded but this last week there was literally nobody around because they all headed down town or to the ocean. It was actually a little spooky. Anyway I have a feeling the week coming up is going to be pretty sweet so I cant wait to tell you all about it!
Love,
Elder Dallas Robert Aguilar
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Easter
Hey Fam!
It has been an incredible week. I was on divisions with one of our room mates for about four days this week, and it was super exciting to get to know his investigators and watch even more people´s lives being changed by the gospel of Jesus Christ.
My mind keeps coming back to Alma 26:12 this week as we see incredible things happening in the Lord´s work. One of our investigators frequently has a woman named Maria and her daughters visiting his house as he helps her alot with her kids and finding work and things. She was always just in and out and never really wanted to stay for a lesson. We had dates set for the man (Carmen) and his two friends Reuben and Mario. They all seemed very sure of the gospel and were very excited about the blessings they knew they would soon recieve. About Wednesday of last week while I was on splits, Elder Moberg my companion found out that Reuben and Mario actually had alot of doubts and hangups, and were no longer planning on baptism. Carmen was still sure in his testimony but Elder Moberg was pretty down to get the news from the others. Then on Friday evening when he was there teaching a lesson, Maria came by. After he was done teaching she asked if she could talk to him for a second. She told him that whenever we were over, or whenever she read the Book of Mormon she felt a burning in her heart, and wondered if he knew what it was. He let her know that it was the witness of the Spirit letting her know it was true. Saturday her and Carmen came to conference, and she let us know she wanted to be baptized. We got permission from the President to have her baptized the next day on Easter with Carmen. Sunday when we went to pick them up from conference, Carmen was complaining about a leg problem he´s been having lately, and said he didn´t want to come to conference and wasn´t sure if he could get baptized. Maria told him to stop making excuses, and that no matter what he chose she was entering the straight and narrow path to the Savior, and not ever looking back. We were blown away by all of this of coarse. Later after conference Carmen decided he was making up excuses and that he knows the church is true and wanted to get baptized. Elder Moberg baptized him and I got to baptize Maria. It was great.
We went to pick up other investigators for conference before Sunday afternoon session, but to our dismay they weren´t around. We took a taxi back to church only to find the cab driver was a member who hadn´t been to church in eight years. He decided to take a break and come sit in for conference. The Lord is watching His children very very closely, and I love being a part of this work.
Mom- That´s awesome that you know Elder Moberg´s mom! that´s super cool I hope you two got a chance to meet up. That´s awesome about the Costco thing. Our zone boundaries actually barely miss the Costco here so it might be a while before I can get you some pictures. Also I came to realize we don´t have any time for letters in the mail on p days so I might not be able to send many. But I´m writing in my journal nightly and making sure to include things you´d like to hear about when I get home! By the way don´t worry about the Easter package thing, we had an awesome easter, and Elder Moberg´s mom actually included an easter basket for me in the four packages he got! I guess the package system is pretty reliable, but I do hear it´s still a good idea to put a picture of the Virgin Mary on them. By the way I need our new home address and phone number! Love you mom, I´ll talk to you pretty soon for mothers day!
Bam- thank you so much for your contributions to my mission. I know I won´t have anything to worry about with my reserve food fund. How´s it goin with the BYU booth thing? did that already happen? Love you Bam.
Gram- How are you and gramp doin? I met our bishop finally in the ward we attend because he´s actually been out of town. It turns out his mom is an Aguilar! he said the history of the Aguilar family all comes from the same place so we´re actually distantly related. He said I look alot like his cousin. I thought you´d think that was pretty exciting. Love you Gram.
Dig- How´s it going? we got to watch conference in english and I loved it too! That talk on patience was incredible! It helped us alot because these little kids kept knocking on the door and running away during that talk. It was probably my favorite too. The weather here is pretty warm. It´s actually not very humid but it is very hot. Some days it´s cloudy and perfect like in San Diego too. That´s awesome that you saw those real players. One of our investigators (Reuben) actually played pro for atlas, pumas, and cruz azul for ten years! that´s crazy huh? Dad sent me acouple of your notes from conference and they were awesome. Thanks Dig. Love Ya!
Shash- That´s awesome about your new friend! sounds like your having alot of fun together! That´s funny that she has a blanket for a door because there are actually alot of people here with blankets for doors in their houses! Even for bathrooms! Love ya Sloosh.
Denny- Yes we did get to watch conference thank goodness even though it´s on a tv. It was pretty sweet. I hear you went snowboarding with Nay and had a sweet biff. Cool! Love you Den.
Nay- The kids and the dogs here are pretty awesome. I actually watched a little boy about two years old fight his little puppy during a lesson the other day. It was hilarious! it was like watching a mini gladiator. Neither of them got hurt don´t worry. The eighties dance thing sounds pretty sweet! Thanks for talking care of persie for me. Why´d ya have to tell me about that Miley movie!? haha. That´s sweet that you liked it so much. Love you Nay.
Dad- Thanks for those quotes from Dig´s notes they were great. Thanks for your support and example Dad. I loved your letter about the last week in the ward by the way. I also really appreciate all you and the Bishop did for the ward. I´m sure Brother Banza will continue to do great too. Thanks Dad. I´ve had some pretty wild food experiences already since I got here. I´ve had a shrimp and octopus soup. The broth was cold water and ketchup. It actually was pretty great other than the ketchup part. For some reason fish and ketchup is ok down here. We ate at a lady´s house and she asked what kind of meat I wanted on my tostada. When she gave me the options I went for cabeza. She told me I was crazy and didn´t know what I was saying. When I finished it all with a smile on my face she said I´m really going to fit in down here. haha. That was pretty cool. Love you Dad.
Well family that´s all for this week. I can´t wait to hear from you all. By the way dear elder still works down here so you can continue to use that if you´d like. I love you all!
Elder Dallas Robert Aguilar
It has been an incredible week. I was on divisions with one of our room mates for about four days this week, and it was super exciting to get to know his investigators and watch even more people´s lives being changed by the gospel of Jesus Christ.
My mind keeps coming back to Alma 26:12 this week as we see incredible things happening in the Lord´s work. One of our investigators frequently has a woman named Maria and her daughters visiting his house as he helps her alot with her kids and finding work and things. She was always just in and out and never really wanted to stay for a lesson. We had dates set for the man (Carmen) and his two friends Reuben and Mario. They all seemed very sure of the gospel and were very excited about the blessings they knew they would soon recieve. About Wednesday of last week while I was on splits, Elder Moberg my companion found out that Reuben and Mario actually had alot of doubts and hangups, and were no longer planning on baptism. Carmen was still sure in his testimony but Elder Moberg was pretty down to get the news from the others. Then on Friday evening when he was there teaching a lesson, Maria came by. After he was done teaching she asked if she could talk to him for a second. She told him that whenever we were over, or whenever she read the Book of Mormon she felt a burning in her heart, and wondered if he knew what it was. He let her know that it was the witness of the Spirit letting her know it was true. Saturday her and Carmen came to conference, and she let us know she wanted to be baptized. We got permission from the President to have her baptized the next day on Easter with Carmen. Sunday when we went to pick them up from conference, Carmen was complaining about a leg problem he´s been having lately, and said he didn´t want to come to conference and wasn´t sure if he could get baptized. Maria told him to stop making excuses, and that no matter what he chose she was entering the straight and narrow path to the Savior, and not ever looking back. We were blown away by all of this of coarse. Later after conference Carmen decided he was making up excuses and that he knows the church is true and wanted to get baptized. Elder Moberg baptized him and I got to baptize Maria. It was great.
We went to pick up other investigators for conference before Sunday afternoon session, but to our dismay they weren´t around. We took a taxi back to church only to find the cab driver was a member who hadn´t been to church in eight years. He decided to take a break and come sit in for conference. The Lord is watching His children very very closely, and I love being a part of this work.
Mom- That´s awesome that you know Elder Moberg´s mom! that´s super cool I hope you two got a chance to meet up. That´s awesome about the Costco thing. Our zone boundaries actually barely miss the Costco here so it might be a while before I can get you some pictures. Also I came to realize we don´t have any time for letters in the mail on p days so I might not be able to send many. But I´m writing in my journal nightly and making sure to include things you´d like to hear about when I get home! By the way don´t worry about the Easter package thing, we had an awesome easter, and Elder Moberg´s mom actually included an easter basket for me in the four packages he got! I guess the package system is pretty reliable, but I do hear it´s still a good idea to put a picture of the Virgin Mary on them. By the way I need our new home address and phone number! Love you mom, I´ll talk to you pretty soon for mothers day!
Bam- thank you so much for your contributions to my mission. I know I won´t have anything to worry about with my reserve food fund. How´s it goin with the BYU booth thing? did that already happen? Love you Bam.
Gram- How are you and gramp doin? I met our bishop finally in the ward we attend because he´s actually been out of town. It turns out his mom is an Aguilar! he said the history of the Aguilar family all comes from the same place so we´re actually distantly related. He said I look alot like his cousin. I thought you´d think that was pretty exciting. Love you Gram.
Dig- How´s it going? we got to watch conference in english and I loved it too! That talk on patience was incredible! It helped us alot because these little kids kept knocking on the door and running away during that talk. It was probably my favorite too. The weather here is pretty warm. It´s actually not very humid but it is very hot. Some days it´s cloudy and perfect like in San Diego too. That´s awesome that you saw those real players. One of our investigators (Reuben) actually played pro for atlas, pumas, and cruz azul for ten years! that´s crazy huh? Dad sent me acouple of your notes from conference and they were awesome. Thanks Dig. Love Ya!
Shash- That´s awesome about your new friend! sounds like your having alot of fun together! That´s funny that she has a blanket for a door because there are actually alot of people here with blankets for doors in their houses! Even for bathrooms! Love ya Sloosh.
Denny- Yes we did get to watch conference thank goodness even though it´s on a tv. It was pretty sweet. I hear you went snowboarding with Nay and had a sweet biff. Cool! Love you Den.
Nay- The kids and the dogs here are pretty awesome. I actually watched a little boy about two years old fight his little puppy during a lesson the other day. It was hilarious! it was like watching a mini gladiator. Neither of them got hurt don´t worry. The eighties dance thing sounds pretty sweet! Thanks for talking care of persie for me. Why´d ya have to tell me about that Miley movie!? haha. That´s sweet that you liked it so much. Love you Nay.
Dad- Thanks for those quotes from Dig´s notes they were great. Thanks for your support and example Dad. I loved your letter about the last week in the ward by the way. I also really appreciate all you and the Bishop did for the ward. I´m sure Brother Banza will continue to do great too. Thanks Dad. I´ve had some pretty wild food experiences already since I got here. I´ve had a shrimp and octopus soup. The broth was cold water and ketchup. It actually was pretty great other than the ketchup part. For some reason fish and ketchup is ok down here. We ate at a lady´s house and she asked what kind of meat I wanted on my tostada. When she gave me the options I went for cabeza. She told me I was crazy and didn´t know what I was saying. When I finished it all with a smile on my face she said I´m really going to fit in down here. haha. That was pretty cool. Love you Dad.
Well family that´s all for this week. I can´t wait to hear from you all. By the way dear elder still works down here so you can continue to use that if you´d like. I love you all!
Elder Dallas Robert Aguilar
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