March 24, 2014 Aeropuerto

Whats up everyone!

I had a pretty laid back week this week. Nothing overly special to report this week so this weeks letter might be cut a tad short. Sorry, I cant really control how things work out here... I just have to go along with it all.

Yes, he kissed a turtle

Firstly, we all went to go eat on Thursday afternoon at a members house. We go to sit down and she has a plate that is only fish... nothing but. Soup and a huge cooked fish. GREAT.... I hate fish. But, oh well, we ate it all and tried to have the best attitude while doing it. The bad part is what happened afterwards. We all got back to the apartment and immediately the sickness set in... It was terrible. All four of us, Elder Ricks, Elder Castillo, Elder Smith and I all got sick. We stayed in for the night and had to stay in the next day also. It was terrible. Nothing more tan a small stomach virus or something, but it got to the point where I had to go to the bathroom and throw up at the same time... imagine that feeling. I cant even begin to describe it... the amount of pain I was in that night. Oh well, Part of the adventure right?

The next thing is that I was asked to play the piano at a baptism for one of the new members in Puerto Real. I must say that I did a pretty good job with it. I didn't mess up, even though I only had to play two hymns. It was pretty cool to be the one playing instead of singing like I usually do. I am pretty proud of myself for it. I played Families can be together forever and I am a child of god. Pretty simple, but enough to give me a good sight-reading challenge.

Favorite meal gorditos

We are teaching a  girl about 18 years of age named Maria Jose. She is a friend of the daughter of the bishop in our Ward and has probably progressed the fastest tan any other investigator that I have had. She is super cool and will do just about everything that we have asked her. The rule now is that you have to attend the church services five times before you can be baptized, and right now she has three so we are only waiting on two more weeks and then she will be baptized before this new transfer ends. It'll be really cool to see her be baptized. The old missionaries left her because she was too young and didn't have much support from her parents. Now, she has told us that she is ready, she just needs to wait out the time in order to be baptized. Talk about someone who was prepared for us to find... crazy how little things like that work out.

Anyways, that's about it for today. Like i said, nothing huge other than us getting sick and what not. We are working hard as the heat kicks in here. Still hotter tan anything I have ever experienced in my entire life.... ugh sometimes its a pain, but I can work through it. I am loving the new apartment. SO much better tan the other one. Two air conditioners makes it a lot nicer at night because of how hot the apartment gets during the day. I love it.  

"yep, we walk . . . a lot"

I hope you all have  a great week this week. Know that I love you all and pray fro you each and everyday. I hope you know that. Thank you for your letters and kind words. I really appreciate those that write me each week. Thanks for all you do for me =) I truly cannot thank you enough. =) Have fun during Keats court of Honor on Thursday! I will be thinking aobut you bud! Do a good turn daily alright! Stay strong!

Kia Kaha!

-Elder Proctor

Trying on new suit coats

March 17, 2014 - Aeropuerto

Hey Everybody!

Game of Uno with the Elders

First off, I finally received the package that you guys sent! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH FOR THAT! I loved the Zours and the journals and especially the ward news letter! It was awesome to see how everyone else was doing! I absolutely loved reading and seeing those pictures from the other missionaries. I actually gave some of the zours to some of the young kids in the ward to let them try what American candy tastes like. Some of them told me that it tastes better than theirs... hahaha! SO, Thank you all so much for those nice cards and letters that you sent me. I loved hearing what you had to say and thank you so much for the words of advice. I really am happy that I have such a strong ward that supports their missionaries. Its a very comforting feeling knowing that. =) THANK YOU!

Well, March Madness has officially started I assume and I cant believe that I'm missing it. Feels like just yesterday I was there watching it downstairs with Keat. Crazy how fast that time flew by. Now I sit here with officially 8 months under my belt and I cant believe where the time has gone with that. I am nearly halfway done here. Still have a long journey ahead of me, but things are definitely picking up here in Aerpuerto. 

The District

This week, we honestly haven't had that much time to teach many people. Why you might ask... well the answer is that we had to move houses. We received word when Elder Valenzuela came that we needed to change because of the living conditions in the other house weren't up to church standards and the rent was too expensive.... So, we spent about three full days looking for houses. The rent here is ridiculous for the amount of space that each house occupies. About 6000 pesos, or 550 dollars or so for a little room about the size of my room and the bathroom combined. Its insane. But, we managed to find a place that a member had once lived in about three months ago. The landlord of the house happens to be one of our baptismal dates named Angela. She is a little crazy, but she managed to drop the price for us and now we have a house that has two air conditioners, three rooms, a living room and two bathrooms- all for only 4500. Pretty awesome =) We spent all of Thursday, Friday and Saturday moving and painting the house to make it right for the living conditions. Hermana Morales is pretty big on those kinds of things. So, we talked to a couple of the members to see if they could help us move all of our things over about 10 minutes from the other house. Surprisingly it only took two and a half trucks, (like the Tacoma size) to get everything over there. Everything worked out well and I wont have to worry about paying the bills for the month anymore. 

The Zone

Alright, well I have heard a lot about Prom, Eagle Court of Honor, braces, teeth, and things of that nature =) I am so happy for you bro. Keep up the hard work with everything. That eagle will help you with a lot of things. I promise. I didn't think it mattered, but it does. Especially now. Keep it up with Ball though! I cant wait to watch you play! Sades.... I am sorry about the teeth. I've been there haha... But it'll be over before you know it and you wont have to worry about it anymore. Stick it out and stay strong okay =) I love ya girl! You'll be perfectly fine =) Kia Kaha right? Mom and Dad. Thank you for the things you have done. I know it seems kind of routine to say that, but I promise it doesn't go unnoticed. The amount of support and love that you send me with each letter is great. I cant tell you enough, that's why it shows up every letter =) I just want to thank you both personally and tell you how great and how important you two are to me. I don't say it enough, and I need to work harder at that. Along with the struggles that I have here, I know that you two are always going to be behind me pushing me up. I cam across a song that I love the other day and it has a verse that says, "When destiny calls you, you must be strong. I may not be with you, but you've got to hold on." To me, this is exactly what it is with me and my family. I am here, for 15 more months, I must be strong even though you aren't here with me. That's what I plan on doing. Thank you for the support and the love. I cannot thank you enough for all of it. KIA KAHA for life. 

-EP

p.s. I love you guys. 

p.s.s. This is me celebrating 8 months at DQ with an oreo blizzard =)

Hurrah for 8 months!

March 10, 2014 - Aeropuerto

Whats Up Everybody!

Well this week wasn't overly special. We didn't have that much to do so we spent a lot of time just teaching some of the members and the recent converts that were here before we got here. 

Okay, so we got two text messages this week that really hurt a lot. One was from Wendy, the lady that we felt inspired to go meet with last week. She told us that she didn't have any desire to continue with the lessons... crap. So we are questioning what happened and why she doesn't want to continue. We are going to check up with her tonight to see what happened so wish us luck on that one. The other message was from a girl named Johsuemi. She was a contact on the street that I found while on divisions. She seemed really interested when we taught her the first lesson, but then she sent us a text and said that she didn't want to continue... crap times two. It sucks hearing things like that. So we are gonna pass by and figure out what happened with her. Wish us luck on that also. 

We were walking down the street and ran into a man named Raul. My companion was talking with another person but he came up to me and asked me what I was doing here just walking. I answered him and then began to talk to him about what we did as missionaries. He was super interested and I gave him a pamphlet about the restoration. He told me that he couldn't read... So I asked him about himself, if he believed in God and Jesus Christ and if he had a family. He answered Yes to all of them. I then asked him how old he was.... He said, "no lo se." Imagine that. He has a family (only a mom) cant read, and doesn't even know how old he is.... so sad. I felt so bad for this guy. I made an appointment to meet with him this week so we will have to see what happens with him. He seems like he could use the gospel in his life, so that's what I am going to give him =) 

The sad part is that I didnt take many pictures this week so I dont have that much to send. I am trying to take more pictures so thats what I want the cards that hold bigger amounts of memory. I will try to take more this week =) Forgive me on that. I know you all wanna see what I do everyday. But think, I get to skype you all again in about a month and a half =) Oorah!

Have a great week everybody =) I love you all and I am glad to have you guys behind me. Prom, school, basketball, work, traveling to Vegas, running the dogs, talking to friends.... man I really miss all that stuff. Wish I could come and enjoy those things with you guys. I am glad, however, that you all are doing well and staying busy. I feel like I am missing a lot, but I know that its for a great cause... Thank you all for supporting me in this =) I miss you and cant wait to talk with you in May! Kia Kaha!

-EP 

Picture- We met a guy that made Pinatas from scratch. He made minions from Despicable Me, and this one was a dog that he was working on. I thought it was cool so I snapped a pic of it =)

March 3, 2014 Aeropuerto - Our Golden Investigator

Whats Up Everyone!

Hey guys so I had a pretty crazy week this week. A couple of events happened that have really moved the way I think aobut things here in Mexico and I am hoping its for the better. Im gunna jump right into it.

First off, we had a zone conference this last friday with president and his family. We also had a special surprise. Elder Arnulfo Valenzuela came from the area presidency. He spoke in the last general conference in october! Crazy right! He came here all the way to carmen to talk to us, him and his wife. He talked to us for about two hours and then we finished. The conference went well and we learned a lot. I know I did. After that, we went to leave, my companion and I, and President Morales came over to me and told me that I was going to be interviewed by Elder Valenzuela.... I immediately got super nervous... I walked into the room, shook his hand and he started speaking spanish.... CRUD. But the crazy part was that he started to ask me some questions about what I wanted to do with my life and what I wanted to study after the mission. He asked me if I could see myself finishing the mission and seeing myself return with honor. I answered him and then he told me basically everything that was in my Patriarchal Blessing.... I was literally listening to the same blessing over again as he told it to me. I was amazed at some of the things he said. Almost word for word what my blessing says. He told me to look for the attributes that Nephi has when he goes to get the golden plates. He knew that he could die... he knew the circumstances and the consequnces but in the end, he simple says, I will go and I will do. He told me to push along with that attitude and to always look forward, never back. It isnt everyday that you get to have a one on one interview with a General Authority so I was definitely taken aback with the things that he said. I will never forget him. He also told me to try to contact him when I finish the mission... I have plans to do exactly that =) 

A member took us for "Chinese" food.

The second event that I want to talk about was an experience that we had last night with an hermana that we went to go visit. We had no plans at about 730 or so at night and we were walking down this street trying to find someone to teach. Elder Smith was a little bit behind me and told me to turn down this upcoming street on our right. We started to walk and about 2 or 3 minutes later we found a lady, about mid thirties, walking outside of her gate to get something. We walked over to her and introduced ourselves, just to kind of kill the last half hour before we started to head back to the house. We didnt expect much of it but she had told us that she had been visited by the missionaries of our church about three years ago. She told us that she had to stop the lessons because she got really sick and couldnt continue them with the other missionaries. She was sad because she never could find us. We got inside and started to have talk with her more. We had a prayer and then I had the impression to tell her something. I said, "Hermana, we didnt have plans to come here. We were literally just walking and my companion told me to turn right down this street, It jus so happens that you were outside when we were walking down the street. Hermana, that isnt a coincidence. That was fate. That was meant to happen." I could tell that she started to tear up a little bit and said, "yo lo se" which means I know. We finished up the lesson with a short little testimony meeting between the three of us, and now, we have a meeting with her tomorrow at 8. Pretty6 crazy how the spirit works sometimes. We literally had no plans to do anything, yet we just randomly turned down this street and there she was... our golden investigator =)

Well, those are the two crazy events that I had this week. Nothing huge, but enough to make me flip my mind around about some things.  I know I can be better.  I need to do it despite the struggles and pains that I may face. I want to do whats right. Its as simple as that. 

I hope you all know, Keaton, Sadie, Mom and Dad, Zoey and Rider, that I love you all. More than you know. Its hard to really get this message, along with the feelings, through to you on a computer screen every monday. But I want you to know that it comes from every fiber of my heart that I love you. I want you all the personally to know that. 

Have an amazing week this week you guys.... =) Les quiero mucho!

-Kia Kaha!

Elder Proctor

February 24, 2014 Aeropuerto

Whats up guys!

This week has been packed with things to do so I will pick the most important ones that stood out this week.

Firstly, we have been teaching a family, rather the mom of the family, named Teresa. Shes about 50 or so and has four huge sons that look as if they're Tongan. Its inane that a little lady such as her could produce these huge men.... But anyway, we have been teaching her and her son Douglas. Hes a truck driver and has a truck driver mouth, but he is super fun to talk to. Reminds me a lot of Grandpa Reese =) But we've chatted with him a couple times and have had a lot of fun teaching him about repentance. They're supposedly catholic, but hasn't attended in forever and have never read the bible. They tell us they're scared to read it because they know they're not following it the right way... Really sad right? But we have some appointments with them this week so hopefully we will be able to straighten things out with them. Teresa is such a strong mother for her boys. Despite the fact that they all drink and smoke, she alone always tells them how much she loves them and cares for them right in front of us. She likes to teach with us about the things we have to say. Like she always offers her opinion on things and then tells the sons what to do to fix it. She would have been a great missionary! =) I love her and her family so much. Super fun to talk to, shoot the breeze with and just to be around. 

We are still working with our only baptismal date, Angela. Le gusta hablar muchisimo. She talks a bunch, but we have found a way to stop it =) Just cut her off when she talks hahaha.... Rude a little bit, but it works when she rambles. We have been stuck on the Plan of Salvation with her for the past little while because she has a lot of questions about why we are here. But we are slowing working with her date planned for the 22nd of March. Just after the transfers. 

Apart from the two, we don't really have SET investigators. We are teaching some part member families like hermano Favion. Hes ten and has a date but its not really firm yet. We don't want to set a date with a young boy whose parents are less active members. Its a tough situation. We also have Hermano Luis Angel and his novia, Girlfriend, Ferani. Hes a member and wasn't baptized too long ago but he is breaking the law of chastity with his girlfriend... they're living together outside of marriage... so we are working on breaking that up so that she can be baptized...(She is the one with the little girl with Down Syndrome) Its a tough task but we are doing our best. On top of these, I don't remember if I mentioned hermano Fernando when I was back in Barrio Carmen, but he lives in our area now! So... We met up with him and have a plan to teach him this Tuesday =) I am super excited to pick up right where we left off with him. Hes super sweet and he also told us that he may go pro with soccer.... That's insane for someone at his age. But we are planning on teaching him when he isn't going to school or working. =)

Apart from them, we are still working to find more people through the members because we cant knock doors anymore so its making it a little more tough. Our ward council is new and doesn't know much so we are trudging along with them as well. I didn't burn a  tie at six months... I like all the ties I have... Don't wanna burn one. Sorry. Your letters are great! I love hearing the events that you have been going through throughout the week. It really helps me to know that things are getting along just fine without me there to keep everyone in line =) HAHA JK. I haven't gotten your package yet because no one has come up from Villahermosa to bring the stuff so I am sure once someone comes, Ill get it =)

I know my family loves me beyond compare. I love them the same way, if not more than ever. You guys, each and everyone of you, all mean the world to me. I am doing my best to make you all proud, despite my weaknesses and struggles, my goal is to make you all proud of me and that's what I have been working for ever since I got here. You have seen my downfalls I am sure, but with the letters that you have sent, I am happy knowing that I have you all behind me. =) Thank you for always being there for me, both individually and together to help me through my struggles and problems. I cannot thank you enough for that. God Bless. THE CHURCH IS TRUE!

Kia Kaha!

-EP