 |
| David and one of his first 'investigators'! |
Hola Familia!
it's soo good to hear from you! I feel so bad for Toby! The 4th
was surprisingly dead here, we did not come across a single party. Most
people I think go to Dallas or Arlington or something to watch big
shows. So we didn't do anything that night, just
ride around, get a few contacts, it was really slow. But I did here a
few fireworks and every time I did I cringed for Toby! But he'll
survive. Sounds like all is well and I miss you like crazy! I'm glad
to hear that you are all doing stuff and staying
busy, cuz i'm sure it is quite boring at home now without me! just
kidding, un chiste! Rain sounds nice right about now. Sounds like
some crazy weather! it's just solid sun and heat here.
This week was slightly easier, estoy mas acostumbrado a la obra
ahora, pero solo un poco mas. It's still hard, but my butt is now used
to the bike seat, which was probably the hardest part about the first
week haha. My legs are still sore but I am more
used to that as well as the heat and sweating. I'd say we bike 20-30
miles a day. My companion has an odometer thingy on his bike and the
average he says is a little over 20 a day. But the last two days I know
have been more than that.
The language barrier is killing me! I can't be myself in Spanish.
I feel like I am just a robot elder that can only ask how are you,
where are you from, and bear a short simple testimony. Alright I can do
a little more than that, but it is still hard
to understand. I do a lot of fake laughing, nodding my head, and
saying "si" when people are talking to me. I guess it's kinda one of
those fake it 'til you make it kind of deals. But I feel like I am not
speaking enough Spanish. it is too easy to speak
English here! Too many non Hispanics, and even the Hispanics speak
English, and sometimes even prefer English! But I need need need more
Spanish if I am going to fulfill my purpose here. So I want some
general conference talks in Spanish, or the book of
Mormon on tape in Spanish, just something that I could listen to to
tune my hearing. You should talk to Nancy and see what she did for
Drew. Drew said he did something like that that helped him a lot. Or
just talk to Drew directly. Once I can be myself
in Spanish and English, I think this work will really take off for me.
So this week we just did a lot of biking. A lot. GP is pretty
flat, but there are hills. And every hill is a big hill when your on a
bike. We stayed busy. There is couple that has been meeting with the
missionaries for years, and the only thing holding
them back from being baptized is marriage. So this week we went to the
Dallas Temple with them to go on a tour and inspire them to get
married. The temple is about a half hour drive. It worked better than
expected. We had a short lesson in the waiting
room in the temple. Man that is like a golden ticket right there! The
spirit is so strong in the temple, especially for someone that is not a
member. I wish we could do that with all our investigators. It would
seal the deal every time! So we did get a
commitment from them to get married and baptized. It wasn't very
solid, but I could tell they were in deep thought about it all and a
temple marriage is something they want. So we will see!
We had a zone meeting on Tuesday where I got to see Elder Powell
and Adams and a few others from the mtc. I felt like I hadn't seen them
in months! It was awesome to see them and hear about their areas. I'm
the only one on a bike, but Elder Powell sounds
like he's got it pretty rough right now. He is in a really dead area
with a not very motivated companion. Makes me grateful to be where I
am!
So my first Sunday here we were told we were going to be speaking
in sacrament meeting, in Spanish. But the other speakers ended up
taking all the time, so we got out of that one. Phew. But this week we
got asked to teach eq, in Spanish. Didn't get
out of that one. That was rough, but Elder Sheffer helped me out a
lot.
We spend a ton of our time in a certain apartment complex. Densely
Hispanic with lots of kids. The kids always ask to see my muscles and
want to arm wrestle me. It is difficult to explain to them humility.
But they like me and I like them. Sorry if
I said that last week, I can't remember. We eat with a member 4-5
times a week. The other times we either eat at home or go to subway, bc
Elder Sheffer loves subway. No rio here, and I haven't had any good
bbq yet. Just Mexican. We could use gift cards
I guess, I just don't know what restaurants. There are tons of fast
food places here, but idk what restaurants there are at the moment. So
ask me about restaurants next time!
We do laundry at our apartment complex laundry room. It's like 2
bucks per load to wash and dry. It's not bad. The Hermanas in our area
have to put all their stuff in a shopping kart and walk down the street
a ways to a laundromat. haha!
Oh, a giant shower cap is a fitted sheet, you guessed it!
Congrats Ryan! I'm happy for you!
That's the only pic I can send today. Sorry, I've been trying but
it is just really slow. I don't have a lot of pics from here in
Texas. My companion isn't much of a picture guy. The only time he
takes pictures is at baptisms, which is loco right?!
But I feel bad asking him to take pictures and slowing us down for
pictures, so I don't take much. But, i'm in Grand Prairie, Texas.
There isn't much to take pictures of any way.
Andy Feller emailed me, I told him to text you his email address so he could be added to the forward list. fyi.
Also, if possible, I would like you to try to get Zach Harwood's
email for me. My roommate. Just ask him if he would like to be added
to the forward list and let him know I would love to hear from him!
You could get his number through my phone or just
do it through facebook. I would really appreciate that!
Sorry, I am asking for a lot. I'll try to cut back on my requests.
But hey! I love and miss you all more than you will ever know and
more than I ever thought I would. I love you with all my heart, but
I've never been one to get homesick. I'm homesick. But the only relief
to that is hard work under the blazing sun,
and that's what I do every day! Stay safe and follow Christ's example
in all you do. Adios!
Elder Williams
No comments:
Post a Comment