Yes everyone, this week has been a week of adventures, people giving me even more funny looks than normal, more shouts in English, eating mangos in the mountains, almost falling into the beach, finding a family, climbing higher and higher up to the the last house, sweating like crazy, and picture/video taking.
In short, quite the momentous week. Let me begin by saying, the 4th of July here in Panamá just isn't the same as America, not sure why...but for some reason they don't celebrate it, haha! For that day, I did all that I could to demonstrate my pride of being an American, I had a red, white and blue tie, my USA bracelet I made, and to top it all off, I had an American flag hanging out of my shirt pocket next to my nametag, it was hilarious! I had people shouting at me in English, or just saying "EYE FELICIDADES!", haha, crazy people.
This week I told Saavedra that it would be a week of adventures, or in other words, doing something different for once. It is so easy to fall into a routine on a mission, doing the same thing día tras día, and one needs to liven it up. I said that we should visit areas that I still hadn't visited in my 4 months being here in Veracruz. First adventure day was climbing up and up a mounatin in an area called Costa del Sol where the church is, but just behind it and farther and farther into it. We kept going up and up, and one thing we found was amazing...we saw a pet monkey!!!!! Woot! It's called a monotiti, and it's tiny but with a really long tail. It was on a leash at this person's house outside, so I went up to it, pet it, took pictures and videos with it, as any good tourist would, haha. It was chirping like a bird, really funny. I told Saavedra that I wanted to keep climbing higher and higher, wanting to take a picture. When we got to the top, we ended up talking to these 4 cool kids that I took pictures with and talked to their older sister and set up an appointment with to go talk to them later. It was really fun. Lots of fresh mango trees up in the mountains, so we all ate mangos and sat on the rocks up high. I'm sure that that lady recognized our sacrifice of arriving to her house, because I was covered in sweat, and my legs were super sore the next day, lots of good excercise as well. It was nice to get out of the norm and visit other areas, because Veracruz is actually quite the big area. If I were to be staying here for a 4th (insanely long time for the mission Panama) change, I would go back to those areas again and find more people, because it's a pretty area. The day after that, after I had taken the flag out of my pocket and just went back to normal gringo elder instead of crazy gringo tourist with the USA stuff, we went on adventure #2 to an area called Chumical, which is on the completely other side of Veracruz. Most people if going there would use a taxi, but that's lame, takes away from the adventure experience, so we walked. It's like the opposite of the city area of Veracruz, it's all campo, lots of wide open areas with tall grass on either side. Lots of nicer houses too, apparently quite a few gringos live there as well, but didn't look into that anymore. We went wandering and stumbled upon the house of the old branch president. I knew he lived out there, just didn't know exactly where because I had never been out there and Bradford and I never went when we were together. Glad I had found it, because we had arranged a cita with him and Hermano Lincoln for Friday, and we planned on just going around asking people if they know where he lived. That was a fun day, lots more pictures and videos.
OK, change of subject now, I got a package from my mom this week, thank you very much. It had a skinny black tie that I had back home, and I made it into a mola tie, looks sweet, white and red on top of a black tie. Also got my new camera, which made me happy. Not sure if I mentioned before but the other one had fallen and broken on divisions, so I was up the river without a paddle. Now I have a camera and back to taking lots of pictures :) I decided this past week that I will be taking on another challenge and setting another goal for the mission. Like I mentioned before, I want to read all of the Standard Works of the gospel on my mission, you know, Old and New Testaments, Book of Mormon, Pearl of Great Price, and D&C. All I have left is the Old Testament, and I'm working on that right now, exactly only 1000 pages left, hahaha. Other task for me is now reading another huge book called "Jesus the Christ". It's in the Missionary Library and it's sweet, lots of deep doctrine about Jesus Christ, pre life, mortal life, and post mortal, really cool. I'll be working on that for the next few months of the mission, along with Book of Mormon always.
This past week we also had capacitacion meetings with Pres. Ward and the zone. It was pretty cool, learned a lot about "siendo un buen maestro", that's what the theme of the mission is this year, becoming a great teacher, like the greatest Teacher of them all, the Savior. We did normal practices where you take the role of an investigator and stuff, which nobody likes doing, let's be honest, but it's fun doing it from the investigator's end of the lesson. This time we got to do it as like really tough roles as diehard Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, Evangelicals, and 7th Day Adventists, because there are a lot of those here. I chose Testigo de Jehová and Catholic, which is really fun, because after having lots of lessons with people telling me, "yo nací católico y me muero católico", I know how they think, haha. Trying to "stump the missionaries" with tough questions is fun too, which I did, pulling out doctrine and scriptures. I really did learn a lot at the capacitacions, and it's always good to get that well needed boost of desire to teach and work harder.
This week we have changes, and I'm pretty positive I'll be going, because President already told me, just don't know where yet. I've been talking to Elder Bradford on the phone a bit, says he's gonna be training out there in Bocas this change, woot, should be cool for him, he wanted to train. Don't know where I'll be going, but I know that wherever I go, the Lord is preparing and has already prepared people to receive the missionaries.
I've seen lots of advancement in Priesthood power this week, yesterday. I was able to participate in the ordination of my 3 baptisms boys in giving them the Aaronic Priesthood and making them all Teachers, because they're all 14 years old. Great being able to be a part of that special experience in their lives. Knowing that through me, Heavenly Father has shaped me and molded me as the clay that I am, baked me in a kiln, and made me to be the Instrument in His hands. Like it says in the Missionary Comission that my mom sent me, I am doing exactly what He would be doing if He were here walking on the earth still, my thoughts are His thoughts, my words are His words.
One thing that I heard recently which I would like to end with were the words of a recently returned missionary who said, "The mission is not the best two years of one's life, but they are the best two years FOR ones life" which is completely true. I am going to have a lifetime of amazing years with my future wife, children, and eternal family, but all only comes as sequential blessings from the best two years FOR my life, serving the Lord as a missionary.
2 great scriptures this week. The first is funny, which relates to tomorrow, July 10th, in Leviticus 16:29, noting that the day tomorrow (day before changes) is a day to do nothing, no work at all, and I am going to take the Biblical advice, haha :) Secondly is a wonderful scripture in Alma 3:26, which talks about how the Lord will judge all of us, according to our works, even those who were unable to, or rejected, His Gospel in their mortal lives.
Thank you all for all that you do, I love you very much. Please pray for my grandpa, he is not doing very well, and I know that God will listen, hear, respond, and answer your prayers. If He does it for me as His humble servant and missionary, He will do it for you too, that's my promise.
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