Second Week in El Sauce (Saw - Say)

Noemi Torrejón is the mom. She fed us last Tuesday when we don´t normally have lunch. She lives in the sector of Hermana Erthal and Hermana Pizarro. They live in our ward. Her daughter is the one by her in the photo. The Zone Leaders are the ones that are with us. Elder Alcaraz is the one by the sister in yellow, which is the sister Noemi. Elder Brooks is by me. He is the other Zone Leader. Elder Espinoza is my companion there.

All of the upper half or B, D, F, H, J, and the upper half of A, C, and E. That is only a portion. They changed the limits and we have a section that is called Esperanza, Santa Monica, San Luis, and Los Aromos as well, and everything North of the Highway that goes out that way from near the church. The streets all start with names of Presidents of Chile. The sector is really big as well.

From what I can tell from Google Earth, Braxton's area is about this big.  I don't know exactly where the borders go, but this encompasses the cities or towns he mentioned in his email.  It is another very big sector to cover. 

Karla is our only baptism for this weekend. Her kids haven´t attended yet. She isn´t married and we had 3 investigators at church. The wife of Oscar Acuña who is the dad in the family of 9. There are 4 children there, but only 2 of the children are baptized. There is a future marriage and 2 baptisms that will come with it. Another daughter, that needs to get married, but her Husband doesn´t want anything to do with us and 2 kids in the family. We also had a member that was baptized a little over a year ago, bring her neighbor to church. We planned a lesson with her and it happened to fall on the neighbor´s birthday, so we planned a party. She is 15 and her name is Lissette and her mom lets her listen and participate. We invited her to be baptized yesterday and she accepted the baptismal date for the 28th of November.

Piña is pineapple not Peña. Flor is Flower but Peña I don´t know what it means, but the area I am in is called Padre Hurtado for a Catholic Priest that did a lot to help it develop.

(I looked this up.   Peña means pain and also rock or boulder, so it could mean pain flower or rock flower or boulder flower.  None makes a lot of sense.  I will have to do more research).

I had heard about the bombings in Paris.

Things are going great and everything is coming along well. Every companionship in my District should baptize this change they all have at least 1 person progressing towards baptism with a date placed and the majority with attendances. 

Hello.  That is awesome that everyone in your district will baptize.  It sounds like you have been working really hard.  Your area is very large again.  It is a good thing you have bicycles.  Tell me more about your sector.  What do they grow in all that space?  How did your divisions and inspections go?

Inspections got cancelled and divisions with the zone leaders went well. I also had divisions with Elder Tenney in Peñaflor. We are going to try to do divisions this week again to get the Baptismal Interview in for their Baptism this Saturday as well.

When the Zone Leaders have a baptism, who does their baptismal interview?

Elder Velasquez their District Leader. They are part of a District as well. I haven´t even met the Ward Mission Leader. He is a little less-active.... We work mostly with the Bishop because of that. We don´t have a very good relationship there.... 

Well go to his house and introduce yourselves.  You can win him over. 

I don't know the two Elders on the left and right.  In the center are Elder Goode, Elder Chuquel, his trainer, and Elder Prisbrey, who was also trained by Elder Chuquel.  In the mission, the two elders on the outside who were trained by Elder Prisbrey would be grandsons to Elder Chuquel.  Elder Goode and Elder Prisbrey would be sons to Elder Chuquel.

With the mission family. The two others by us are the kids of Elder Prisbrey.

Nice.  Curtis said you are the Step-Dad to Elder Espinoza.  Does Elder Chuquel go home in January?

Elder Chuquel goes home in December. So does Elder Cardona. I am the 2nd companion of Elder Espinoza, but here the step-dad is if you finish training them. He is in his 3rd change, so he has finished his training. In my case Elder Chuquel was my Dad and Elder Vasquez was my step-dad.

They will both make it home in time for Christmas.  That will be great for their families.  Tell them to find me on Facebook when they get home, if you get to see them again.  I just became friends with Elder Vasquez on Facebook.  Did you know he did a lot of dancing before his mission?

Before you are out of time, tell me if there is anything you need or want for Christmas.  Are you okay on all your medications?  Are you taking your vitamins and allergy pills every day? 

I won´t need medications for a really long time... Basically I will come home bringing a ton with me. I have been using them, just they don´t run out.... I don´t have any Rubix cubes right now.... I just can´t hang on with one.... I don´t have a lot of needs and I gave away all of my Cristus Statues to companions. I also have given away many tie pins and ties and traded a lot. I am doing great. Material things aren´t that important. The sentimental value is much more important.

I have noticed a few ties in photos that I didn’t think I had sent you, but then I have sent so many now, that I have forgotten which ones I did send.   You have never been too attached to stuff, except for your Gameboys and DSs.

From Left to Right, Brother Mario, Sister Sandra, Gid, Elder Goode, Elder Espinoza and Lissette

This was our visit with Lissette, with Gid, the son of the Bishop. We were also with Sister Sandra and Brother Mario. Mario isn´t a member, but he doesn´t have a desire to change right now. My companion and I with them.

Nice.  Is that French fries you are going to eat?  Has Gid been going out on visits with you a lot?  How did things go with the Counselor in the Bishopric?

We didn´t go out with him, but we can when we need help. Gid helps us sometimes. We have around 5 members that have gone out with us or are willing to right now. We have a lot of help. It is a mix of potato chips and cheetos and other chips here in Chile.

Interesting!  I am glad you are getting some members to help you.  Who is your Ward Mission Leader in this ward?  Is he working hard to help you?

Also, I gave away my Rubix Cubes in Bollenar, so now I don´t have any.... Oh, well. They were good gifts to people who really will use them. One to my Ward Mission Leader there and the other to his nephew who is less-active. I made an impression on his nephew, named Edgar and he was going to Mutual with us.

Things are going really well. I don´t have pictures with Karla yet. We have a Family Home Evening today with her with another recent convert named Marisol, who is also a single mother with a 4 year old. We are going to be there later, so we are going to take pictures there and I will have them for next week, as well as baptismal photos. We still don´t know who will baptize Karla. We are waiting for her to choose, but we told her that she has to choose at the latest by Friday, so that we are ready for Saturday. 

What is the nephew’s name?  Was he in those videos of the family singing?  Which one? 

How old are Karla’s children?  Does she have a husband?  How come the kids have not attended church with her?

I hope you get to baptize Karla.  You have been waiting a long time to wear your white tie.  I am excited for you.

I said that the nephew is named Edgar and the family singing is in Lo Espejo. Karla has a 13 year old, a 9 year old, a 6 year old, and a 5 year old. She is not married and she is single. She never got married, but is separated now and isn´t going to be living with him. The first week the younger 2 came and the other 2 slept in and this week all the kids didn´t want to get up. They are going to come to her baptism on Saturday, so it will help and we are planning for them in December. 

Okay.  I wondered about the singing family, but the older guy looked a lot like Ulices, or at least the photos I have seen of him.  That will be good that you can work with them and hopefully have more baptisms in December.  Are the kids boys or girls?

The kids are a mix. The oldest is a girl, then a boy, then a girl, and then another boy.

Then the 13 year old would be in Young Women’s.  That is a good place to get her involved.  Do they have Cub Scouts down there for the younger boys?

Scouting is rare down here.... Things are going really great though.

Elder Cardona and I when we finished being companions.

That is a really great photo of both of you.  Where did he end up to finish out his mission?  Did they put missionaries back in your old sector?

He is in El Monte in Talagante and they put Elder Oliver and Elder Rivera in Bollenar.

I am glad they put missionaries back in your area that can keep working with the young men you had progressing there. 

Yes, I knew that (that Elder Vasquez danced before his mission) and I lived with the majority of my companions for 3 months. I kinda’ got to know them really well. I am out of time talk to you next week. I hope to have baptismal photos as well to share. Love you bye! 

I love you, too.  Have an amazing week!  Thanks for the new photos!