January 27, 2010

Dear Family,

This week has been exciting as we had zone conference yesterday and are finding more and more families that are keeping their commitments. The zone conference yesterday was actually a mission conference because, as our mission is so small with only about 80 missionaries, we lately have had the mission meet together for the first 2 hours or so and then the 4 zones split up and we receive training from the zone leaders. It was a lot of fun and I actually learned a lot.

The theme was on contacting and how to receive regressos or addresses of people that we meet through different mediums. Elder Dawson and I had received assignment from the assistants about a week and a half before to give a 2 and a half minute talk about how to gain regressos. We thought about what to say during the week before and then prepared a little bit while riding on the train to the stake center near the temple, where the mission conferences are always held. It went well and I hope that what we said can be of some importance to the mission.

I continue to be impressed with the ability of almost all the missionaries to be leaders. The actual leadership of the mission is fantastic and is simply outstanding. They stand up there and talk about what needs to be done, what changes are going to be made, and how we can be more effective missionaries, all by the Spirit, and more impressively, all in perfect Spanish. It is amazing how they do it and they are great examples for me. It is said that the leaders of the mission, some of the zone leaders and assistants, cannot sin, that they are perfectly innocent. I am sure it is not true but they do do everything perfectly. I definitely have a lot to do to be like them.

This last week I have been trying to do some sort of part in my hair and yesterday I wore it to the conference. As you know with my stubborn hair, the traditional missionary part doesn´t work with me and yesterday proved that point for the 100th time. I really do like the way that it looks, especially as a missionary where you are socially allowed to pull it off, but when I do it the part is gigantic and it looks like it forms part of the Grand Canyon.

Last night as we were teaching Christian and Nina, the Romanian who has the strongest testimony of the Book of Mormon ever, just could not stop teasing me. He was cracking the funniest jokes and we were all laughing way hard, but I think that I got the hint that the part just isn´t for me, at least while my hair is longer. If I can do it when my hair is really short we will see what it is like, but for now my companion has banished me away from the gel, making it impossible to make any sort of part.

I am so excited for the temple in Payson. That is so neat! I love having the temple so close in our mission, making it possible (actually a mission rule) to go once every transfer. I have heard it in Spanish now and I actually understood almost all of it. The temple is a place that will always be a home away from home for me.

Before I forget, HAPPY BIRTHDAY CARI!!! Seven years old, holy cow! Way to go. It is crazy to think that she will only be 8 years old when I get back. I know that that is a long time away but it sure seems too close to me. I still remember that morning when dad woke us all up really early, saying that mom was going to give birth that day. I remember thinking how cool it was being in the hospital and how I wanted to cut the umbilical cord. That was a long time ago, but I was just twelve. And to think that a lot has happened since then and now I stand on Spanish soil preaching the doctrines of salvation to God´s children here. Crazy how time flies, and I certainly need to take advantage of every minute that I have here, before it is too late, and I am going home.

I think that your package will get here in time as I am optimistic that I will have a little bit longer before they give me the boot. But I hope that you can do a favour for me. I received a package from the McArthur´s today, and can you tell them thank you from me. I am horrible in writing letters on Preparation days because there really isn´t time. But can you say thank you so much and tell them that all of it will be greatly appreciated.

I also would appreciate if you could write the letters before 11:00 my time. So that means before 3:00 in the morning your time. The reason for this is because sometimes we start right off doing internet and I will be greatly depressed if I don´t receive your letters. This happened today but I was lucky that I didn´t get to finish all my time and I could still use the rest of my 45 minutes right now writing you. But sometimes it will not be so. Just FYI for the future.

I appreciate all of your prayers and if you could pray for our investigators I would appreciate it as well. They need more help than I do, but I am sure you are already doing that. Pray that we can find more people to teach and be baptized. There certainly is a reservoir of power that can be found in prayer. Thank you, thank you, thank you. Hey! And do you like the new Ensign? I love it. I looked at it the first time yesterday and I think that it is a wonder. I need to find more time to read it and soke in all of the wonderful spiritual guidance that can be found therein those inspired pages.

Thanks for all that you do for me and I hope that you know that I pray for all of you too, that you might receive more blessings from my service, as I try to do all I can to do what is right.

Have a great week and make it a goal to smile more often. Uncle P.W. gave me advice before the mission that everyday I have the choice to be happy or not. Happiness surely is a choice and we know what we have to do to get it. So let´s be happy everyday.

I pray that this might be so,

Love,

Rob