I'm going to open up my own barbershop, what do you all say? My last like 4 or 5 haircuts I've done by myself, and they always seem to turn out pretty good. I just give myself a nice trim each time for free, or I pay a guy here like $3 to do it. So cheap here, yes, but back home the cheapest haircut I've had is like $6 now, and I'm a cheapskate. I've even cut my last 2 comp's hair as well and it's turned out pretty well. When I cut Elder Wright's hair, he looked great after, with Meyer it's good still but he had such long hair when I did it, so it was a bit more difficult for the trimmer. Doing it all myself is pretty easy, just the neck like is what's a bit harder, unless you have another mirror, which of course I don't have here. Miracle there's 1 mirror in these mission houses, haha.
I discovered something this past week. I love Sudoku. I never really understood it, or I did and I just didn't like doing them because they were too complicated or boring, but that has all changed. Once you beat one, you realize how fun it is and how much it works your brain to think and think of the right numbers for each square. A really cool member lady asked me what I wanted for my birthday this coming week and I just thought, ehh I don't know, who cares. Anything from anyone for my birthday on a mission is awesome and unexpected. Then THAT idea came to mind and I told her that I wanted a Sudoku book, so she told me that she got it haha :) I'll be doing those on the airplane ride home.
After being in the mission for so long with so many missionaries from all over the world and all around in Central and South America, I've realized how easy it is to determine where someone is from just by their accent or appearance now. For example, I hear a guy come talking to me saying "ehh...chavas...a huevo...cabal..." etc, that guy is from Guatemala, without even asking him. The people I can spot out the easiest though are Nicaraguans, because they all look the same, and talk the same. But it's mostly the face, all 3 of my Nica comps have the same kinda face with different features, and they've all been from different parts of the country, Masaya, Managua the capital, and León. It's a cool talent that missionaries can pick up on here in Panama because it really is a "melting pot" like I always heard about it here, all kinds of cultures from lots of different countries, all living here. Columbians are some of the most entertaining people to talk to though, their accent is crazy. Unless I'm listening really intently, I understand like 80% of what's going on, just because it's so unique. They're really loving and friendly people though, that's for sure, even if they have nothing, they offer what they have to you. And no matter their situation, their sentence starts with "ahí en mi país, Colombia...", and they go on about how amazing it is there. Maybe it really is.
This past week we had interviews with President Carmack which went really well. I love that man already, I wish that I could be around here in the mission longer to get to know him better, because he sure is familiar with the scriptures, especially the Book of Mormon. We got talking about the part in the Bible where Christ says that we are to forgive man, "not 7 times, but 7x70 times", and one would think, ok, I need to forgive my neighbor 490 times. Wrong. What He meant (taking into consideration that the numbers 7 and 70 were extremely sacred numbers in Hebrew culture, meaning perfection and exactness) was that when those two numbers are combined, it creates an infinitesimal number of times that we are to forgive people. Think about it, the number 7, 70 times, like 70 digits of 7, that's 777777777777777777....and so on, which is a number that cannot even be counted by a calculator. Christ tells us all that we are to forgive everyone, because He taught that He would forgive whom He would forgive, but we are required to forgive everyone. That's a lesson I've really taken to heart in the mission, the power to forgive and to accept forgiveness. Of course it's not easy to forgive someone that does wrong by you, but we HAVE to forgive others, it's a commandent from God. If I hold anger forever and ever against someone, I am continually sinning it seems. But if I can forgive someone from my heart, then that sin is erased and the Lord remembers it no longer. I didn't look up the 7x70 scripture in the New Testament, but I invite you all to do so, another one of the Lord's powerful parables.
On another note, it's my birthday this Wednesday. The last birthday of the mission, last one away from my family. Seems as though just yesterday I was baking myself a chocolate cake and dancing with glowsticks on San Blas for my 20th birthday. Now I'm just a balding, tall, gringo adult 21 year old man. Bleck. I love you all, thank you for all your love and care and birthday wishes, I promise you that they are well-received. Have yourself a wonderful week everyone :)
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