An Amazing Baptism! Carlos!

Thanks. everything went well with changes and Elder Correa and I are staying together for another change. Carlos got baptized two days ago and confirmed yesterday and I confirmed him but his father-in-law baptized him. Soley`s maiden name is Oñate, the Oñate family. They are from Babajoyo. I don`t know which part but I will talk to them about the wards because they know the parts really well. Santo Oñate Medina is the name of the father-in-law. He is going back to Ecuador the 21st of this month.

Don`t worry about the Rubic`s Cube I figured everything out and have it all memorized. Thanks. It is nice to have something I can play with a little at times. I can solve the cube in less than 2 minutes now.

Congratulations!  I am glad that you had your baptism.  I am sorry you still haven’t gotten to use your fancy white tie, but maybe next time.  It is neat that you got to confirm him.  I will have Curtis read the blog and see if he knows the family from when he was there. 

Congratulations on figuring out the Rubic’s Cube!  You can blame your Dad for your ability to memorize and solve that.  You get much of your analytical abilities from him.  I imagine if I spent the time, I could eventually do that, but I am not sure I want to or have the time.  Someday!  Curtis just came in.  He said he can solve the Rubic’s Cube that fast or faster.  You will have to have some contests when he gets home.  That would be better than wrestling matches! 

You promised photos today!!!!  

I`m doing good. Just that in this sector time passes really fast. It is in the center of Santiago with a lot of traffic and getting to everything takes a long time. We lose a lot of time and are always low on numbers, but doing our best. I`m just tired all of the time..... I am not sleeping the best lately, but I am doing all that I can.

Why do you think you are not sleeping well?  Every area is going to have different challenges.  I am sure your Mission President is aware that this area is lower on baptisms and teaching just because of where it is.  Try to contact all those who put you off in December and see if any will listen now.  Try different places like hospitals, doctor offices, dentist offices, orthodontists, gyms, libraries, parks near elementary schools, bike and skate parks and grocery stores.  Find places where the people who live there would frequent and try to build up your teaching pool.  When you got to your last area, you didn’t start with 20 people that you were teaching.  You had to build it up bit by bit.  You will have to do the same thing here.  

I am sorry you are not training this time, but maybe next time.  I am glad you will be able to be with Elder Correa on his birthday.  The package was delivered to the post office box this morning at 6 AM.  I was hoping you might be able to pick it up when you went in for the transfer meeting.  Are any of your CCM buddies training this time?

Elder Allen is training this time. Elder Ballard is a District Leader finishing training. Hermana McQuinn is finishing training. Hermana Tolk finished the training of a companion this last change. Hermana Kioa is Senor Companion so right now 5 of 12 are Senor.

I was not able to pick up the package because Elder Bertanga hadn`t picked up mail today yet, so it hadn`t gotten there.... Oh well a late present is better than nothing.... We do a lot of contacting and things like that usually with parks and little open spaces, but in the streets everywhere contacting.

We ate with Peruvians and had Cancha that is like corn seeds but cooked and it was amazing. We had ceviche. It was really awesome.

I tried everything including the red pepper there that was really spicy but my companion was dying from the heat and I was fine. It was funny.

I am proud of you for trying the peppers.  You were not a fan before your mission.  Maybe when you get home I can cook with a few and you won’t turn your nose up at what I make.  Is Colombian food bland?

I am going to send a picture of this last baptism and explain. This is the picture with the whole family. Carlos really wasn`t sure he was going to get baptized until the 26th of December when we stayed and shared with him a little bit longer before our Skype call. Because we stayed when we could have left to talk to our families, to set the baptismal date that took 15 or 20 minutes extra, he felt our love and said that he felt the date, which he kept a secret and only told us like I told you about the papers.

He was baptized on the 10th of January because it is his wife`s birthday and it was a surprise for her that she didn`t know he was getting baptized that day until he was in his baptismal clothes. It was a really awesome experience and we had told the family the 17th of January so that they thought the next week, but we planned it all out so that it worked perfectly. This last Fast Sunday and the day he was baptized he shared his testimony of why he was going to get baptized on Fast Sunday and after he got baptized he shared again about the experience of the 26th. It was a really special experience for me.

Share this one about Carlos getting his answer about baptism and the importance through love and sacrifice of the missionaries because both my companion and I were crying when we left that lesson.   Share the experience about Carlos telling us about the importance of us staying.

I really like the salads here. It is really simple but take lettuce and you can put a little bit of shredded carrots in a large bowl with a lot and you won`t believe me but try it.... Squeeze lemons over top of the salad and mix the juice in and you can put red cabbage or other types as well but that is what I like a lot is the salads.

That is a neat photo.  I assume Carlos is the one holding the baby, Soley is on the right and her parents are on the left side?

I see a lot of Chilean salads that are just tomatoes and onions.  Do you eat that much?  Is the lettuce an iceberg type lettuce or is it more of a dark green?

I tried last week to make Marraquetas, or Chilean rolls.  I think the dough was okay, but then I put it in an oiled bowl to rise and I think I got too much oil in the bowl.  I had trouble shaping the rolls.  I am going to try it again this week.  I learned some things making it.  When it was done, I thought it needed more salt in the dough.  Do you eat these a lot and if so, what do you put on them when you eat them? 

I don`t know if I have had them yet. I have had the salad with tomatoes and onions and I don`t like it at all....

It is like iceberg lettuce, but lighter green. You can also put oils with it but I like it more plain with lemon. Usually 1 or 2 lemons depending on how much salad just figure it out and it should work out great. That is something simple that I really enjoy.

Okay.  I will try the salad with lemon. 

Here is a picture of the Marrquetas.  They are supposed to be crunchy on the outside and soft inside and pull apart in four pieces.  Have you had these?

Yes! They are the best. From the first day in Chile. They are really nice and we eat them a lot here.

What do you call them?  What do you put on them when you eat them?

Have you learned to love avocados?  Do they make a lot of guacamole with the avocados, or just slice them up to put on things?  What do you like best on the bread?  When do you eat Marquetas most?  Do you buy them in the street markets or in the evening on your way home?  Or do you just buy them at the grocery store?  Are they better when you buy them fresh and just eat them right then?

Pan Marqueta and you can eat them with ham and cheese, butter, avocado, and honey. Basically like making a sandwich but the bread is really great and it all depends on how you want it. Sometimes we would put hot dogs in them but I don´t make it like Completos with avacado and tomatoes just ketchup. Something like that but I eat them sometimes like Completos. Ya, this one you question, but Chileans love avacado.

I like avocado. They don´t really do avocados and there are not really tacos or burritos either which I miss. They basically use it like guacamole. I don´t like the bread just like that. Sometimes they put guacamole with meat on bread to make sandwiches that they call churascos. The breads are best fresh so that they aren`t too hard and I don`t eat a ton of them because sometimes people feed us bread with lunch but I don´t seek them out.

So you DO NOT like the guacamole on the bread with meat?  Is it like lunch meat?  Do they put peppers in their guacamole? What do you like to put on your bread?  Can you find tortilla shells in the grocery store to make your own burritos? 

I think I can get tortilla shells, but there aren´t a lot of them and I like it with bread and meat with guacamole. It all depends honestly. Not really like lunch meat look up what a churasco is on the internet and they don´t put peppers in the guacamole.

Okay.  I did look up Churasco.  It looks good. 

There are a lot of things like that are really amazing. I am really happy with visiting Carlos he has a gift when it comes to cooking. The food that they have shared with us has been amazing. They always want to share with us and most times that we visit them there is food.

That is neat that they are so generous.  Are they well to do?  Why are they living in Santiago?  Are they students?  Where do they work?  Is Soley able to stay at home with the baby?  Is it a baby boy or girl?

Baby boy, They are well off for Santiago and Carlos works as a Pharmacist.  They aren`t studying right now, but they could. I don´t know all the details and yes Soley stays home with Derek.

Well you have 1 photo that I sent already but I don`t know if you have gotten it yet and more information. We have 2 baptismal dates Jonathan and Camila. They are from separate families but in both cases their spouses are members and they have attended Church. Jonathan one time and Camila two times. Their baptismal dates are for the 25th of this month. I am really excited because more than anything it is verifying that they are living the gospel and that they have their testimony and getting rid of their doubts and then they will have their baptisms.

Jonathan is from Columbia and they got to our sector recently but before were being taught in the South Mission and they came to church yesterday.

Camila is a Chilean that we met in the church and taught her one time to see what her needs are and she has come two times. They are really awesome and have a lot of support, but just need to strengthen their testimonies to be baptized. Both are Catholic, but have Mormon spouses and are progressing really well. There is also another like this that is Natalia and we are trying to have more contact with her because it is like Camila because she isn`t a member either and has attended 3 times that we know of. We are working really hard to complete families and take them to the Temple.

That is exciting.  That is what the Pilot Plan is supposed to do as far as I understand it, to find part member families and bring the rest of the family to the Savior.  It will be really cool if you can baptize all three of these and if they will stay strong in the church because then in a year from now you could go to the temple with each one to be sealed.  That would be such an amazing blessing on your mission.    Keep working with them.  You are already ahead with these because they have the attendances at church which is what you were struggling a lot with in your last area. 

I know and they all pretty much know how they have to live as members and it is just verifying that they are willing to do it and make covenants which is a lot easier, but they all have doubts which I enjoy getting rid of.

There were 24 new missionaries in our mission that are going to arrive tomorrow.

That is sweet.  Just keep bearing testimony to them and it will happen.  Three more baptisms this change would be amazing!  It would be good for Elder Correa as well to experience some more success.  Has Elder Correa been a trainer yet? Is he Senior companion?

Yes he is my Senior companion and he has not trained and doesn`t think that he will. It happens Elder Vasquez never trained and today he got changed from Lo Espejo to be a Zone Leader as well as Elder Chuquel that was a District Leader in Peñaflor to be in Olimpo as a Zone Leader. Elder Smith that trained Elder Chuquel is a Zone Leader in Talagante and before was a zone leader for 3 changes in Peñaflor above Elder Chuquel. But now 2 of my 3 companions are Zone Leaders.

Well that is pretty awesome!  Soon you will be a leader in the mission as well.  Enjoy the time you have now because it becomes harder and harder as you have more responsibilities to take care of and more missionaries to be responsible for.  I hope you get to serve under one of these fine missionaries as your Zone leader sometime.  You will be a leader, I have no doubt.  Just learn as much as you can from watching your current leaders and learn what to do and what not to do.  Learn how to motivate without making others feel bad.  Lift and build others up.  Praise and congratulate and show love in many little ways.  Practice that with your companion now. 

We took pictures from the 24th floor of our pention for New Year´s with all the people outside for everything. It was really awesome you can see how large the city is and we have a good part where we serve.

Well at least you got to experience it a little bit. I am glad.  That is awesome!  Were there a lot of fireworks?  Did the people go out in the streets to celebrate?  Dancing and drinking? 

Ya, but we stayed in the pention, but took photos it was great.  It was really nice with Fireworks I will have to show you and explain in more detail a lot of things after the mission.  It will be like the Jamborees.

Yep.  I wish you would share more photos and experiences now.  I don’t want to wait for everything till you get home.  Tape your camera SD card inside a card and mail it home to me.  I would love to get hundreds of photos at once.  You have lots of backup SD cards now.  I haven’t gotten a paper letter at all from you.  It would be a real surprise to find one in my mailbox.  J

I`m out of time thanks for everything and I will talk to you next week. Thanks for everything and I will see what I can have ready for next week. I am not getting a lot of Family History done because I am typing the entire time in emails. Thanks for everything!

Thanks for answering my questions today.  Please have a happy and safe week and enjoy all that you do.  Tell Elder Correa Happy Birthday from us.  I am sorry the package didn’t arrive soon enough for a party on his birthday.  Have a late one for him when it does arrive.  Maybe one of your families can help you celebrate with him. 

I love you so much.  Hugs and Kisses!

Love always and forever,

Mom

Carlos from Portoviejo, Ecuador

Thanks for always helping when I ask you to look into something on Family History. I don´t always have a lot of time but I am good at finding a few new openings to work with. Thanks for all that you do.

Carlos’s Baptismal Interview will be this Thursday because our zone leaders want it closer to the date of the baptism. We had 121 at church this week, which is really low.

For our Visas, we had to go to 4 different buildings to do different parts and parts were in the North Mission and other parts were close to my sector and one was in my ward. It was good, but long lines and the forms weren´t too horrible just long waiting for them to call the numbers like they do at the DMV in Farmington, only there are hundreds of people waiting to be called. It was fine though. I am doing great.

It was my whole CCM group and yeah they were all there, too and we have to do it 2 times during the mission, once for the first year and once for the second year. It was a lot closer to my sector than the others, so it was faster for me. We sat there in the building and waited. I had my Rubic´s Cube so I wasn´t horribly bored, but we talked to people and contacted and things like that while we waited, but it all worked out.

With our group it was just for the one day and our companions were with us. We have to do it 2 times for our own during the mission, but if I have a companion at some point that needs to do their Visa I will have to go with them. But I won´t have to do it again for another year for my own.

I bet it was fun to catch up with your CCM buddies. 

Yeah, it was. 

On the Rubic’s Cube, I know how to get one side and up from there to 2 rows but to put the line and cross on the last side and then fix the corners I don´t remember all of the steps. But I know how to do the majority and I almost finished it once so far.  The directions for the Rubic´s Cube for me are confusing. I get the general steps, but they don´t always work.... Oh well I will have to print the last few pages and see if I can learn how they work. Thanks.

Alright.  Don’t get too distracted with the Rubic’s Cube.  I want it to be fun, but not to be a huge distraction for you.  There are lots of videos online about how to work a Rubic’s Cube, but you probably can’t watch those.  I will try to email you Dad’s directions next week and you can see if those work any better for you.  I have never taken the time to learn how to work one. 

I will print these out and test them out I learned a lot of the steps from practice and I have 2 thirds of it done without any aids. The last steps are the hardest so that is where I need to have the helps. I will learn it and practice these until I can recognize the patterns.

Looks like a lot has passed, (happened).  I hope that the package shows up this Wednesday as well.  Thanks for everything. I´m sorry that everyone seems to be sick or not feeling well. There are moments when I feel bad because I am perfectly fine here serving with confidence that I won´t have problems because I am serving a mission, but everyone else seems to be suffering.... The time passes quickly and we will find out how many actually are coming to our mission this next Monday and I will let you know what happens with changes and everything. Thanks for always writing a lot and I hope that going back to school wasn´t as bad as it always seems to be. I don´t like going back either, but lately their aren´t breaks so more than anything a break for me would be nice and I am certain that I will have a break for a little bit after the mission, but who knows. I might start working, dating, who knows there is a lot of time before that happens. Thanks for everything and always being available to write.

Are you still there?  Write more and tell us about your week.  At least a paragraph or two, please.

It has been good mostly the routine. We are working like normal and I am doing well. There isn´t a lot special for this week, just working to have Carlos´ baptism this week and it was pretty awesome yesterday because Carlos bore his testimony as the last one in the meeting and it was really special.

I hope you wrote about it in your journal.

Ya I am working on keeping up with everything and remembering all of the experiences. Ask Curtis if he knows where Portoviejo and Babajoyo are. Also ask him if he tried Mate in the form of Terere. Thanks for everything that you do.

Okay. Thanks for everything. I have been a little slower today writing and it has taken quite a bit of time. Sorry I am trying and I am not going to get to Family History today. It gets harder and harder to get around to it. I still have to do a few other things as well. Thanks for all that you do and I am trying to keep excited about working but it is a little hard at times.

I am sure Curtis will know both of those places.  I remember them from when he was there.  Why?  Is that where Carlos is from?  Does Carlos have any family in Chile with him other than Soley?

Carlos is from Portoviejo and Soley´s family is from Babajoyo. That´s why I asked and no he doesn´t have family in Chile but Soley´s parents are visiting here until the 21st.

Hey I´m out of time but I will be on next week. Sorry that I didn´t send photos this week but I will next week and more. Thanks for everything. I love you!

Happy New Year

Thanks for everything I hope that everything is going well and that you are enjoying everything.

We work a lot with the parks and everything that is around. We are working really hard and no we can´t do splits with the priests. We can only with Elders and there are a lot of opportunities. I´m not too worried I am just working hard to help the people and keep doing my best each day. Thanks for all that you do and always writing to me. I really appreciate all that you do and that you are always looking out for me in every little thing. It means a lot to me.

Okay. I will find souveniers don´t worry too much about that. More than anything I am looking for things that I want and that will last and be good for a long time. I am doing just fine and everything is going well. I haven´t taken money out yet because everything here would charge extra fees. I don´t know where I need to take out money to not get charged and I can´t remember where it was and I have not really been worried about that.

Okay.  It is not a problem.  Just look at the little icons on your Checking card and try to find a teller machine that has the same icons on as the card.  Then it shouldn’t charge a lot of fees.

Okay. More than anything the 3000 peso charge is a 5 dollar fee and not exactly something that I like..... I am being really good about money like always. I never lack and usually I have a little extra saved away for the emergencies or the moments when I have to use more to be okay but I am being very good about the money don´t stress. I will probably at some point use some but thanks for always having it ready. I just don´t usually want to use it if I don´t really need it. That´s how I live life simple and happy. My companions never understand how I can give away so many things without even having a hard time they really like that. They say that the American missionaries usually don´t share or keep their packages for themselves but that has surprised every one of my companions that it isn´t that important to me. I enjoy seeing them happy more than enjoying the food or toys or anything else. I love to give but at the same time I like to be prepared for the future not living outside of my means. Thanks for your concern and I will do my best to have my memories and everything as well thanks and I love you a lot. I don´t know how much more time I have but I really appreciate all that you do for me.

We got six to eight inches of snow last night.  That is our first good snowfall of the year.  Clain is out shoveling it right now.  I am sure you will miss that opportunity!  Did you ever get to shovel snow down there?

Ya right..... Snow...... It just rains. In the mountains there was snow but that was it.

Hey I found two new people from records can you look into the parents of this person they were in a record and I just created them but they need more information. The code is: 9M6D-9M5 Thanks!

I´m out of time thanks for everything and I will talk to you next week thanks!

  

Merry Christmas!

I know but we will see. I am doing good with everything and I picked up the package yesterday at the concert in Maipú. It was really good and we performed 4 times. In Talagante, 5 de Abril, Olimpo, and Maipú. President Barreiros said that they are going to do other concerts in the future so I will have other opportunities to sing in the mission. It was really great. The thing that I like most is that I get to keep all of the music to remember the choir.

Photos of the Choir that sang in the La Navidad program this weekend.  

Choir members on the bus, probably going from one location to another for the program.

Thanks and I am doing my best to enjoy every tiring day of exhaustion that I have. I am really tired after this last weekend getting back to our apartment around 11 or 12 every night. It was a really crazy week with very few lessons. But I am doing just fine even though my sector is really low on numbers.

Elder Correa hasn´t received anything and he said that he doesn´t receive packages. He really wants to work on his English and get it down. A lot of the Latin missionaries like the quads that we have in English because there aren´t any in Spanish. They tend to like the blue ones with silver like I have and I don´t know for certain but something special for him like that maybe a middle sized blue quad with silver and if you have the opportunity you could put his name on them. Juan Sebastian Correa Mejia. I know that he would love that, but I don´t know if it is too expensive or anything. His birthday is the 17th of January if I am still with him it would be really great and if not I could give it to him when I see him. But that is what I have been thinking. Thanks! Love you!

 Two photos of Braxton with Elder Chuquel, his first trainer in the mission.  

 Photos taken by Hermana Gutierrez at the concert.

Okay, I knew about Chuquel being basically engaged and yes I knew about his missionary that he met when he was with Elder Smith his trainer that came to Lo Espejo and found him. Elder Chuquel has been a member for a little more than 2 years with a year of that time in the mission. I know the Bertangna couple well. They are in the office and I know Cecilia really well. She works in Al Cantara and came to the concert yesterday and took the pictures. She works to keep Al Cantara running. She does laundry, works and everything for the church, but isn´t a missionary. I also know the Andersons well. We just got a new couple the McCain couple from Idaho. Elder Correa didn´t sing in the program, but Elder Vasquez did with me. There were 24 missionaries in the choir 6 of each part. It was really good I went with Elder Hatch to all of the practices and my companion worked with his companions while we went to practices.

I got my package yesterday and we opened it this morning during the morning of Preparation day and we started decorating, but didn´t finish. My companion is frustrated because he wants to open the presents, but loves the scriptures and we read them in Spanish and English to help him learn and understand. I love your Epistle of Letters to Missionaries. I read a lot of the cards and things this morning. We opened 9 of the 12 Stars after reading each scripture and guessing and we will do one a day until Christmas.

Thanks I live in the street Santa Rosa on the West side it is like 259 or something like that for the street number. it is in the middle of 3 department buildings. I am going to take treat bags to District Meeting on Wednesday to give to my District. There aren´t enough for the whole zone so just the District will get them. We did a White Elephant as a mission last Thursday and I got a Santa mug and I gave a Mate cup and straw to someone I don´t know who got it, but it was an Elder. We also are doing a zone white elephant but we each have a name to give something to. Mine is Elder Fernandez that used to live in my apartment in Lo Espejo. He is a District Leader now in my Zone, but isn´t mine. He went to Republica then one change later, so did I. In my apartment it is just Elder Correa and I and I think that just about covers all of the questions, but I will do my best to keep up with them all.

With the Christmas concerts for the mission there were 4. We had one in Talagante on Friday, 2 on Saturday one in 5 de Abril, one in Olimpo, and on Sunday we had one in Maipú it was really great. I am doing really well and I am going to send a few pictures of the week. We are going to start with Christmas and work back.

This photo is of the mission at our Christmas party that we had and with the whole mission. Have fun looking and finding me. 

After I opened the box and took out the papers yesterday. We waited to go through everything until today because we were exhausted and I had to carry a 24 pound box through metro that was about an hour from my house and put it down to rest during metro but still had to carry it for like 20 minutes. But I am happy and so is my companion just that he wants to open everything. We are going to have a great time. Thanks for sending everything and I know that it was really expensive, but I appreciate all that you do for me. We are going to hang the chains later we put them all together today but need to put them up. We also played a couple rounds of bingo with the two of us. We are going just fine though just really tired. Thanks for everything!

This is the invitation for the concert that we had in color if you hadn´t seen it. It was really awesome and with all of the performances our mission president said it was like 2 Stake Conferences or about 1000 people but in Chile that is a great turnout. I don´t know if that was total or just Maipú because Maipú was packed.....

Other food that we had with our family from Ecuador. It was really interesting and new and I wasn´t exactly used to it, but I liked it overall. Ask Curtis if he has seen this before?

These are called Arepas. We made them with a less active member and we had them with cheese inside. They are really good. We had them another time in a Family Home Evening with less active members and active members. 

Each year our mission makes a mission card with photos of the whole mission and all the missionaries, so I am going to send a photo of this year´s to you. That way you can know who all the missionaries are in my mission right now and where they are all from and who has been my companions. Elder Ballard from my group is training right now, if you didn´t know and he is training the first Bolivian in our mission, Elder Barrero or something like that you can find them in this photo and look at the whole mission enjoy.

Nearly Christmas!

Figure out what your companion wants to do and we can work with that.  Does the cyber you are using have cameras?  We will go to Cache Valley on the 26^th for the Parkinson party so that is probably not the best day for us.  The others should be fine.
   

We are going to be at a cyber and we have to verify if it will be open on the 25th. My companion is going to Skype on the 26th because his family can that day. We will be in a cyber for everything, so don´t worry too much.

What time are you going to Skype on the 26^th?

He will Skype on the 26^th, but I don´t know the hour yet.  We can do them separate if we need to.  Let me know. My companion just said at 4 which is 1 in the afternoon for you.... I don´t know. What do you want to do about it?

Will the Cyber Café be open on the 25^th?  That would be the best for us, but if not, we can do the 26^th at 1:00 our time.  I think it is actually noon our time.  We are four hours different now, I think.  Right now it is 11:50 a.m. here.  What time is it there?

4 so yes it is 4 hours different now. So it would be 12 for you then. On the 26th. I don´t know if Cyber will be open on the 25th but I will ask and let you know before the 25^th, probably the next Monday to verify if it will be open.

The Parkinson party is in the evening, so we could Skype with you before we go up. 

I have been trying to answer them all. I will let you know and I only have 1 hour for Skype so it will be little bit short and quick.

Elder Correa has been here for 3 months and it is a really hard area to have people to teach. They are all so busy and plans fall through with everyone.... It is really frustrating. We try passing by to confirm our appointments for everyone and calling to plan things during the day and a lot fall through.  The ward is great, but they are really only available on the weekends. They work a lot. We had 160 people at church yesterday, so it is fairly consistent. We are doing everything that we can to have success.

Carlos came to church with his family this week, so he has the needed attendances.  We just have to finish teaching all of the lessons that we haven´t yet, which will be a challenge and plan his interview and everything at the church building that is half an hour away.... That is probably the hardest part about church is that it is so far away but yet the people come which for me is a miracle in many ways. I am really excited and doing all that I can.

We have been practicing a lot of songs. We have about 6 or so songs that we will be performing as a choir.  I am losing a lot of time in my sector for choir practices and performances this week, so it will be really crazy. We also have our Christmas party that is a reunion of special changes because missionaries are going home that day as well. So it will be large. I have a choir practice Thursday morning at 8 and the reunions until 4 in the afternoon. So 5 in the morning for you until 1 in the afternoon.... It will be a long day, but it will be good. I´ll keep working on writing more and doing my best to keep you informed.

They are finishing their missions. It is just when they end because they had a change at one point that was 8 weeks long and caused this need of special changes.

Ya things are good with Elder Correa and I know there are a lot of people. Look for Cerro Santa Lucia in Google Earth and that road by it is the edge of our sector on the south side and inside of Santa Rosas to the East is ours until it hits a large road that is east of another that is called Portugal. That is the other border and there is another street south of Diez de Julio. That is our other border. All of that space is our sector. Our church is on the corner of Republica with Gorbea if you want to know how far away everything is for the sector. The other part of our ward is west of Santa Rosas that right now is the sector of Simi Squad. That is more information for you.

That´s awesome that everything is going so well and that you are enjoying this time of year. I am barely realizing where we are in the year. I just barely got here it feels like and now it has been a half month.... I don´t understand how the time passes so quickly, but it does and there is never enough time to do everything that we would like to accomplish, but enjoy everything and serving the people in the time that you have.

We walk usually or use metro if we need to go to other parts, but walk a lot. My shoes are fine and no, I don’t need insoles.  I am doing just fine.

Simi Squad is a companionship that uses computers to make El Rescate or the books for each sector, The Rescue in English, that have all of the members that live in your sector. They also have a phone to receive all of the calls for references and they find the people that have moved and where they are living now and send their directions and do a lot of the hard work for the mission. They are in the office until 6 in the afternoon and then head out for 3 hours a day to teach. They lose a lot of time but help the whole mission.

There are 3 right now because one ends his mission on Thursday. Elders Baumann ending his mission from United States and Elders Trejo and Bittencourt. Trejo from Mexico and Bittencourt from Brazil. They all have more than a year in the mission but are working hard. We also know that they are going to be changing sectors. They are going to switch sectors with the Sisters in our Zone so they will be in Republica and the Sisters will be in Diego de Almagro 1.

Brother Schneiter said he would send you an email with the link to a YouTube video of the presentation they showed at the Ward Party. 

  

I have the link.  Also, my small speaker broke.... The charging port, the little metal ends inside are broken so I cannot charge the speaker which makes it useless for music.... I don´t know I have been looking for a speaker here but don´t stress about it. I haven´t found anything yet, but I am going to find something that I can use because I miss having music....

I am sorry.  I know that must be a pain.  Music is awesome!  Does your companion have a music player or speakers?  I can get you another speaker if you want and send it with this package that I have ready.  I would have to move it to a box, but that would be okay. 

I don´t know.... I think I can find something but don´t stress about it right now. I am doing okay. I am working with everything I am going to try to send a few photos to you before I have to be off. This one is of lunch with our family from Ecuador ask Curtis if he has seen this before. It was really good and a different flavor than what Chileans eat normally so it was really awesome. Chileans like food bland and boring and other countries have more interesting flavors. But things are going really well.

  

Please send that photo again.  It only sent the top half of the photo.  Weird.  I thought that Chileans ate a soup like this.  I have seen it on the Mission Blog.  It is called Cazuela, with rice corn on the cob, meat and squash in it. 

I have had it before with Chileans but this was different more Ecuadorian. The flavor was better. I don´t have time to send it again.... It took forever to load.... Sorry I really don´t have time to send it again. I really have to go. We have an hour and a half to do all of our shopping still. We had to be in Maipu for the morning for a Choir practice so we are a little rushed today. Thanks for everything and for all that you do. From Republica to Maipu in Metro is about an hour. You can look up the metro routes if you want. We are in the stop for Santa Lucia so there and line changes and everything really interesting. Thanks for everything and enjoy the cold..... I want to be cold..... I am warm but it isn´t as warm as Utah gets in summer but I am in the street more so it feels like it. The winter here was really nice for me to have time to feel nice when I got to the mission with the cold. Thanks for everything and I will keep writing all that I can and doing my best.

Elder Correa and Elder Goode in Diego de Almagro

One of the missionary moms posted on Facebook that there was a fire in a chapel in the Republic Stake.  Was that your church building?  Did you hear about it?

It was at another church building and yes I heard about it. It was in Parque O'Higgins not my church building. Mine is in the Stake Center and there are two wards there Rebublica and Diego de Almagro. 

Can you just upload all of them to my Dropbox account next week?  Please!  I am so happy to see your happy face today.  Keep on smiling!

No I will just keep sending you photos through email. I have a few this week. Starting with my new companion and I. He is from Cali, Columbia. Things are going really well though. It was a harder week with a lot of time in the street.... We are having a hard time finding times when people are in their houses because they all work so much and aren´t home.... We haven´t had more than 2 lessons in a day yet.... It is really frustrating for me..... I want to have more lessons to have more progress but it is interesting. Our attendance at Church was 161 and our goal for the end of the year is 167 so we are pretty happy with that. Right now we are working to find more investigators and help them progress this month. We have a couple but not a lot honestly. My last sector had around 20 investigators and here we have less than 5..... It is really interesting....

Really rough....  We only had 11 lessons last week and I don´t like it this way..... I am working really hard and contacting a lot we had 89 contacts this last week. We have one new investigator that we are going to work really hard with this week he came to church this last Sunday to have his baby blessed in the church and his wife is a less active and her parents are active. We have been teaching about Family History and I really need your help. SUPER IMPORTANT......  Can you help me find out how to link the Family Search accounts so that when one person does something on their tree it shows up on the others? Because it isn´t happening and this family wants to have their trees connected and I don´t know how to do it...... They are really awesome and are from Ecuador..... Imagine that.... I am looking for a baptism of the husband of Soley who is Carlos. We had 3 lessons with them this last week and are going to start into the lessons with Carlos this week and work really hard to help him be baptized this month. Thanks and I really need to know how today.

He has 16 months and he has 3 months in this sector and had 1 baptism that was basically ready when he got here. He is really excited because his last companion was really lazy and wasn´t working hard but I am sick of being on my feet all day..... We are looking for ways to be in the houses more..... Thanks and I will keep sending photos. We decided to cook Plátanos and we had beets and a salad it was really good. I am learning to cook with him and he is learning English from me. 

Thanks for the photo.  It sounds like they need someone in this sector who is a good hard worker.  That would be YOU!  Has your companion had any baptisms here?  How long has he been in this sector?  How long has he been out on his mission?  I am happy your attendance is close to your goal. 

Yes..... They want it to have the correct name code for each person and it always shows up person unknown. Carlos wants to add Soley and have all of her branch of the family show up but it won´t because he can´t find her and she has all of the branch finished.... Each want to do their side of the family and join them together just by adding the other.... It is really frustrating because Carlos is doing all of his family that aren´t members and aren´t in the system and Soley will have to add them all individually.... The parents of Soley as well will have to do it all the hard way and they all want what Soley has but don´t know how to get it.... I am really frustrated with it because I don´t have a lot of time and I can´t individually do it all at once. We need to start focusing more on the lessons and not just doing their family trees..... I need a way to make it all show up faster. Soley has all of her grandparents and to great grandparents. Carlos has his parents but to create them all with take a lot of time for 4 accounts.....

If they add something for a living person it will not show up in the other account.  Each person will have to add the living people to their own account.  Once they get to the deceased people, then they should be okay.  It is like adding a bridge from the living to the dead. 

When I first opened my account, I had to add Dad, all of our children and grandchildren, my parents, dad’s parents and each of our grandparents.  It was the grandparents who were deceased.  Then when I added each of them, it populated the rest of that branch of the tree. 

I had to do the same thing for Dad’s account and for your account.  It is meant to protect the living people in the tree.  No one else can see the living people I add except for me.

Is this the problem they are having?

The thing is that they all have accounts.... and they want them to have all of the information..... I will have to work with them to explain everything about the system and that is really annoying.... Oh well I will have to explain and work with it.....

If entering in all the information for the living people is a burden for them, then have them just work with one account and not two or more.  I have several couples in my Sunday School class who just share one account.  It works out alright. 

Here are some photos of the city from an apartment we were visiting in with our Ward Misson Leader. Also do I have a Skype account to use for Christmas calls?

More photos of other parts only a little of this is in my sector most of my sector is the other direction. Are you sure there isn´t another way to connect all of the accounts?

I hope that these photos help you see a little of the view and that the apartment buildings are huge.... I live in one that has I think 24 floors.... I honestly don´t remember they all have a lot.... Thanks for everything and I am out of time enjoy your week and I will work with what I have for now and help them to all work through one account and add everything into one and if they want to they can create the others for their own accounts but I will explain that so that they can all have the people in their accounts and then we will start working on teaching Carlos. He is really receptive and I don´t doubt that he could be baptized in a short amount of time. Thanks for everything and enjoy your week!

No we cannot use computers of members we have two options Skype in cyber with cameras if it has them or in the church using the computers there and we have 4 days that we can Skype for 1 hour. 24-27 any of these days.

I understand thanks. More than anything it is really frustrating because it would be so much easier if everything just showed up.... Oh well thanks and I have to go bye! Love you!

Love you, too.  Thanks for the photos.  Good luck.  You can do anything.  Nothing is impossible with the Lord.

I understand and I will let you know next week which day my companion and I are going to Skype we are going to talk about it and plan it out. Thanks for everything and I will work with the families to help them have their family history tree. Thanks for everything. Love you!

I am grateful to another mom for posting this fun photo of Braxton.  When they meet up for transfers or other meetings they like to get together with their mission family members.  There is a tradition in the mission that your Trainer becomes your Father.  Braxton's trainer is Elder Chuqel with the pink tie.  Elder Chuqel has also trained Elder Prisbrey, who is on the far right with the light blue tie.  Elder Smith, in the center,  trained Elder Chuquel, so he is Braxton's Grandfather.  He also trained Elder Stevens who is second from the left, so elder Stevens is an Uncle to Braxton.  This is Braxton's Heritage in the Mission.  I can't wait to see how it continues to grow throughout his mission.  

I am grateful to another mother for posting this poster on Facebook, also.  Braxton was selected to sing in the choir for this program which will be presented on December 19th, 20th and 21st in the mission in three different locations.  He was excited to be able to sing and perform again.  He loved doing that last Christmas with the Syracuse High Madrigals.  I am sure practices are adding a bit of fun to his December as well.  I hope he will remember this as one of the highlights of his mission, to sing about the birth of our Savior, in Spanish.  I wish I could be there to watch and listen.  I hope it touches hearts and brings new people to investigate the church.  What a wonderful Christmas blessing! 

One Baptism, A Transfer and Photos Finally!!!

Thanksgiving I forgot to do stuff and was really busy.... It was really busy this week. 4 of our investigators passed their interviews, but only 1 was baptized. That was Isabel that I sent photos of the other day. Ashlee is going to get baptized this week and the other two are going to wait for a while, but still are going to keep coming. I am really excited to be in another sector, but there will be a lot of challenges here. I know that I will learn and get used to it and the sector will improve. There is a lot to do here, but I know that it will all work out. I am really happy and excited with changes and I have better computers to use to email, so it will be really good!

Elder Vasquez baptized Isabel and she hasn´t been confirmed yet. The boys didn´t feel ready, but they are still progressing. It is fine. Things will work out. I am doing really well and I sent the photo to your email Saturday night or for you Saturday afternoon. I sent a lot of pictures from my camera you should have a lot of them....

I didn't get the photos.  The email program must have blocked them.  Can you send them again?

I will send the photos that I have, first of Isabel and afterwards others. Look for an email from my camera they were all from my camera. I sent you another message with all of that information.....

The Guerra Zapata family that are really great and they are progressing still. Elizabeth, the mom, needs to get married, to be baptized and the two kids will when she is or with more times attending church.  Their father doesn´t come..... he is the father of the youngest and the photo was taken at the church.

The family of Melanie. She the taller woman. She was baptized by Elder Fernandez in the other sector and yesterday her sister Miriam in pink and Israel the guy holding the young kid were baptized by Elder Decker and Elder Villablanca that are in the other sector. They are a great family and I was teaching the sister of Melanie and Miriam.

Here is a photo of me with Miguel and Javiera. She is the sister of Melanie and Miriam and they are progressing, but still haven´t come to church.... They didn´t even come to the baptism which was frustrating..... Oh well, they are really great though. I am really excited though for my new sector. These photos are the people from my last sector basically.

The Soto Flores Family. Jessy, the mom is the one that I gave an inhaler to. They are converts of Elder Smith and Elder Chuquel. They are really great and it was really great to visit with them. All of them speak English, except for the Dad, who isn´t the dad of any of the kids, but they are awesome! Great people that were in my last sector.

I am basically out of time for today, but I will let you know more about my new sector, Diego de Almagro 2. It is in the zone Republica and before I was in the zone Ochagavia in Lo Espejo 2. My companion now is Elder Correa from Columbia. Things will be really good here and I will get you a photo of him for next week. Thanks! Love you bye!

It shouldn´t be a problem anymore with photos at least while I am in Republica so for at least a month and a half I will focus on finding good photos for you! Love you bye!