February 18, 2013

Well I’m going to write a quick email cause I’m low on time! 

This week was good, we visited alot of members and took pictures with them to print out and leave with them so we visited like everybody. My favorite thing we did this week was visit M-r-h-, the little girl whose birthday we missed and we just hung out and then they took us to the woods to gather wood. Smith and I brought a ton wood back for them which was nice cause there is no man of that house, just the mom and her lil girls. So I enjoyed that. 

My comps feet were destroyed so we didn’t do much walking this week just stayed mainly in the center of town.   

Our investigators are not great right now. This week I really want to find some news and get some wheels turning. The good thing is this week I’m doing splits with an Elder that was in Yalijux before. And I’m going to see if he has anybody in mind to teach that he was teaching yaaaaaa. 

Last night was fun, it was so cold in San Fran so we made a fire in the church to keep us warm... don’t worry we didn’t sleep close enough for it to burn our blankets and the church is made of sticks and metal sheets so the smoke left easily. That’s about all I’m going to send some pictures now!

going to get wood

gathering wood

the girl we missed her b-day

bringing back some wood

a tired pig

Elder Smith and Elder Asdel in San Francisco

sleeping in the church in San Fran

staying warm

trying to stay warm and dry last night!

 

Your questions:

So can you still see your breath in your house? Not everyday but yes, we got some nice hot sun this week and then a crazy wind rainstorm

Have you gotten any travel plans yet for coming home? No, I should get an email soon that is for you to fill out about then a few weeks later get the dates and times. My comp has his and he gets to lax at 12:30 I’m hoping for that same flight just in 6 weeks.

 Yes I got the package, thank you!

Yes we are in the hunt for some news

 How has church attendance been lately? This week 68 in Yalijux and 15 in San Francisco

 Are you getting much help from the members in finding people to teach? yes and no

Do all these little villages go to church separate or together? We have Yalijux branch and SF group

How has the music teaching been going? Its going ok, my comp and I sing loud and the very few that read sing with us and the rest just sit and listen, once they all have the songs memorized they will sing again.

Hopefully your Spanish skills are staying sharp. I’m forgetting random words I knew but my grammar and all that is fine and that’s what really matters with Spanish.

Love you all have a great week!!!

February 11, 2013

So how is E-g-n-- and the other guy coming along? They aren’t progressing, aka: they listen to us but they never come to church.

With L--n-rd- it just got really hard...  he lives in San Fran (2 hour walk from Yalijux) he just started school in Semarac (another hour away) Monday to Friday and its impossible to catch him. Its really tough with him so we probably wont be focusing on him much.

I would think it would be hard for people to grasp how things are supposed to go when they have never seen how meetings run here in the states. Oh yeah, its way different. I feel like I know 3 churches, English, Spanish, and Kekchi alllllll way different from the last. It kinda sucks cause they all should be the same. But that’s why I’m here in Yalijux, teaching people the correct way of doing church.  If the missionaries weren’t here the church would get real apostate real fast. Like some areas here in the mountains where there are no elders now the churches are doing really bad or closed.

This week was good! My comps feet are destroyed from the rubber boots but his feet will toughen up soon ha. I have no time really but I’m gunna send some fun pictures cause I like sending pictures way more then writing letters. 

But first off this week was good like I said. We found some nature and nature made us clean on Tuesday while waiting for our truck to Yalijux (we were in Serit Kiche). Then we made it up to Yalijux and by then the day was over. 

Wednesday I explored a cave for my 22 month mark and it was awesome! Dangerous but don’t worry I’m alive and I don’t plan on going back. 

Then we just had a normal work week. One day we went down to San Fran to find L-- and he wasn’t there and San Fran is a all day thing so that day was lost. 

And then we helped with a birthday party, de-graining and crushing corn. Then the next day was the party and we only went for like 10 mins.... it sucked. I felt so bad we had to leave but we had to walk to Senahu. So when we go back I’m gunna get her a present. I’m pretty sure she turned 12. So yeah we walked to Senahu yesterday and my comp got his feet wrecked but we made it so yeah that was my week it was short but good. P-day all I did was organize my stuff. Its super hot and we didn’t want to do anything.

picture time

Thrift store vest

thrift store vest

Serit Kiche waiting for the truck to Yalijux

Cave exploring on my 22 mark - tiny bridge over lake haha

Lake in the cave - throwing up 22 months and a kiss

Shirt after the cave

walking to Senahu yesterday and found a tractor ha!

That’s all love you all and have a great week!!

February 4, 2013

Happy Birthday Mom!!! Well I hope you had a great birthday and it sounds like it was after reading your email with all the adventures! I’m glad everything worked out. I also wrote you a letter but who knows when it will get sent cause the post office is never open and I’m only in Senahu for a very short time every week.

Well there was a nice chunk of questions in my email so I will answer those and then proceed to me week. Well I actually like sending pictures and explaining them better than trying to write a letter... I’m no English major. Ha, speaking of being a English major I think I’m going to study Arabic when I get home what do you guys think of that?

How are things going out there for you and Elder Smith? Good. still trying to work through the rain but we are still getting stuff done, just a ton of rain is not helping.

Do you have any new investigators? Yes we do, one named E-g-n-- and one that I forgot his name but he is a member’s brother that he gave us the reference. They both seem like good possibilities and they both have families. It’s so hard to find good families especially here in Yalijux.

How is L--n-rd- C--l C--l doing? good/bad he needs to go to church 7 times before he gets baptized because he is underage and school just started up so its hard to find him =/

Where you able to start teaching that couple that wanted help getting married? We can only find the wife, the men here seem to ¨yoo chi b´eek¨ aka go on walks, men are never home they are always out on a walk.

How are your feet doing? Are your shoes holding up still? Not a problem, I only use rubber boots so I’m set

Did you hear anything about no more sister missionaries being called to Guatemala? I have not heard a single word

Ok my turn.

1. This is me cutting the lock off the fence to the church/my house because it no longer worked, I used a tool for sharpening knifes...it worked.

2. A candle I may or may not have already shown you. We never have electricity cause we have solar panels and there is never sun so its a tin I made filled with gas with a ripped t-shirt stuffed into a battery works amazing.

3. just walking in the mud in Yalijux, one reason we always wear rubber boots

4. Just a little waterfall my comp went and found after district meeting while waiting for our truck to Yalijux (in Serit Kiche)

5. Same place, (can you see my green boots? they are sick!!!!! I’m the only one with green ones cause only I know where to get them hehehhe)

                                                          6.same place

7. Tzalamila we went on a huge walk this day! Sooooooo far haha but it was awesome we also got a ride for about 5 mins in a car from a lady from Scotland I told her my last name is Hay and my Grandpa likes to wear kilts and she laughed. She lives in Guatemala City and does humanitarian aid type stuff. Her last name was Sinclair. Duces.

   8.in Tzalamila, you can see about an eighth of the walk I did that day haha

                9. A huge slide super steep and probably dangerous, in Tzalamila

                                                    10. The slide

            11. The day in Tzalamila pointing where I will be in the next hour or so

                  12. The day in Tzalamila pointing where I was an hourish ago

            13. One of our destinations that day, thankful for the food and hammock!

14. PURE BEAUTY!!!!!! A KEKCHI SHOWING EMOTION!!!!!!! That right there is worth a million bucks and a half. She is making a bag, not the type of bag I showed you last week. She is making the type I have that is red white and black with designs and says AJ Asdel, I sent a picture a while ago

                                   15. Chilllllllin

              16. My food, my comps food. Yes that is all we have.

17. Today at the Spadling's making some pumpkin spice cookies! Thanks for the stuff to make it.

Well that’s all I got I hope you all enjoyed and I hope you had a great birthday Mom. I love you all and have a great week!