Hola Familia y amigos!
man this week was crazy fun because we were spending it with some really
cool people. One person that I want to talk about is Luis. Luis has been in
contact with the missionaries for 15 years. during those 15 years he has really
turned his life around. now, he is preparing to be baptized! he is so solid!
when we visited the temple with him he told us that he felt the spirit really
strong, and that he knows that church is true. He is already participating in
the iglesia. In sunday school he actively contributes to the conversations, and
has easily made friends with people from the ward. The reason why Luis is really
cool to me is because he has so much faith. he is still working to gain a
testimony of the book of mormon, but he already knows the church is true.
We tried to have a family home evening at his house last week, but only one
person was able to make it. that is something that you will see a lot as a
missionary: your plans will fall through. thankfuly the person that came,
Romina, was a ton of fun, and really befriended the wife of Luis (se llama
Carolina).
That same day we were coming out of a members home, and I saw a lady
waiting in the gateway of her neighbor's yard. she had shouted "Halo" which is
what you do to enter someone's house when they have a gait. the neighbor didn't
respond, and so I went to talk to her about how I knew what she was feeling
(rejection at the gate). She laughed, and when I came to shake her hand to
introduce myself, she went in to kiss me. don't freak out because this is a
common way that you meet someone of the opposite sex here, but as a missionary,
we don't do it. unfortunately she kept going in and while trying to strain my
head away, she kissed me on the cheek! It was funny for me and she was confused
until I told her about the rule. she was really nice. her name is Patricia, and
we set up an apointment with with her.
on Wednesday I got to do an intercambio! intercambios are when missionaries
switch companions and sectors. my companion didn't really explain it to well,
but about 5 minutes before we left the apartment, he said "oy by the way your
going to spend the night there too". that's another thing you learn as a
missionary: you role with the punches and go with the flow. I was with Elder
Parker. Elder Parker is from Boise Idaho, but he loves the city of Seattle, and
really wants to live there. naturally, we had a lot to talk about. we got to
meet with some cool members, and teach a little. it was a lot of fun, because it
felt like a fresh start. I really felt like a missionary then. I was initiating
conversations with people, I was setting up appointments, and I was sharing the
gospel.
your first 12 weeks in the field, you are assigned a trainer. the first
twelve weeks is like trying to drink from a firehydrant, but I felt like the
intercambio was like a quiz to see how I was learning, and Im pleased to say it
didn't go too bad.
The next day I returned to my sector and learned a valuable lesson. when
you are with someone, you need to be focused on that person and nothing else. Im
not going to lie, sometimes it is difficult to stay focused in a lesson,
especially if you don't speak the language amazing. sometimes your mind drifts
to other things, like what you were supposed to do 15 minutes ago acording to
your schedule, or how late you are for something, or if you are behind on your
contacts for the day. if you don't course correct your thoughts, you don't
listen to the investigators, and you cant help them. I know Fernando y Romina,
who are recent converts said to me during a lesson "Elder Williams, por que esta
preocupado"? I had not been in control of my mind, but instead I was thinking of
another thing that I had to do that day. it is so important to dedicate your
time to the people, by completly focusing on them when you are in their
presence
on Friday night we had a family home evening from the barrio. Luis brought
his guitar to the activity, and I got to play the guitar and sing teach me to
walk in the light with my campionon. at first I was thinking, "am I allowed to
touch a guitar"? thankfuly my campion assured me that it was ok. IT WAS SO
AWESOME to touch a stringed intstrument again. the noche de hogar went great,
and the hermanas in our barrio made brownies so that was a win.
the next day I had a really cool opportunity. there is a recent convert in
our ward se llama Marta. she is an abuelita that truthfully reminds me of
Grandma Jean (shout out to grandma Jean I love you). she has a son who is a
percussionist in the most famous caumbia band in Chile. the Palasio family is
huge here in chile with Cumbia music. Nelson, the member of the band, has two
kids. Evans and Eveline. they are fraternal twins! they were so cute, but also a
little sick, and so we gave them a priesthood blessing.
Sunday was crazy, because I gave a talk in sacrament meeting. I had spent 4
days preparing it, and I had it completly written down. Ive got some good news
and some bad news. the good news is that the talk went really well, and everyone
understood me and enjoyed the talk. the bad news is that everyone thinks I can
speak spanish now. I can read spanish, I can speak it Ok, but understanding it
when an abuelo without any teeth is talking to you is near imposible for
me.
That night we were just wrapping up the day, and we decided to stop by the
house of a contact. her name is Rosy, and we were expecting here to cancel
because it was kind of late, but when we stopped by, we saw that there were 4
other people in the house, who all sat down when we came in to share with us.
THIS NEVER HAPPENS. there were 5 peruanos there that took time out of their
schedules to listen to us. we taught about the restoration, and realized that we
didn't have enough books of mormon for them to read. It truly is amazing to see
how the Lord prepares people to hear his message. It is a miracle for me when
someone says "pasen" and lets us into their home.
It is such a huge blessing in my life that I have the chance to compartir
the gospel with the people of Chile. I know that through the gospel of Jesus
Christ we can return to live with our father in heaven with our families for all
of eternity!
Love,
Elder Williams
this week for our p day we drove an hour to the mountains to play in the snow!
we had to take a really crowded car there, and it was cold cold cold, but a lot
of fun tambien
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