1-3-11

Tuesday: We had a class today that was perfect for how I`ve been feeling. How many times has that happened now? We read a talk about "mental toughness." M. Russel Ballard said "Mediocre attitudes create mediocre results, and bad attitudes yield bat results. If [we] want success [we] need to have successful attitudes." I just need to cheer up and God will bless me. With regards to transfers, a Branch President told us that the bad missionary always stays because he still has something left to do. I don`t think the "bad" part applies, but if we try hard at everything we do, we can hardly have anything to regret or leave unfinished. One of the reasons I would never leave the mission, is the doubt that would follow me for my whole life wondering, "What would have happened?" And in the Eternal perspective, there would be numberless people that might be saved from the few words I have to give. We wrote the family, or tried to. I left the journal at the house...two hours away. So when we came home, we went to the Olivares` and I wrote the letters there. They didn`t have interenet, so I saved it, and will send it ASAP. We visited Jaqueline, a 21 year-old member, and sister of our investigator, Nicholas. We talked for a time. I felt awkward, like I was interrupting their friendship. But I can see how getting used to that situation could help me in the future. I went well. (I`ve decided that Elder Orellana looks like a big "Joseph Rojas" from the ward)

Wednesday: We woke up and I got to have fun wrestiling our washing machine. It wasn`t too bad, but we have to rinse our clothes in the tub, with the showerhead. I found out wringing out a shirt (and sheets) is very hard with one hand. We had rice and, surprisingly, smoked meat for lunch. It was delicious. We came back for a while. Hna. Olivares came over and told us her daughter, Belèn, had fallen off her bike and needed a blessing. That is cool, because I had been thinking how it is to be worthy of the Priesthood at any moment. It would be so scary to know you were unworthy and faced with deaath, or a blessing, and have that fear. That fear is what robs someone of the Spirit. It`s not of Heavenly Father. We gave the blessing and she hopped right up. Which is saying something for someone whose knee would move and pop at the slightest touch. We got a call from our Zone Leaders, telling us that the city was on Earthquake alert. That means it`ll be strong. So we got our clothes and water together "in case of emergency." I have a very great deal of fear, not for sinning, but for tsunamis 3 blocks away. Not too fun. And the fact that our cell phone`s out of minutes.

Thursday: Well...I`m alive. Although I didn`t get a lot of sleep last night. I tried to be ready to leap out of bed at the slightest hint of an earthquake. Not very relaxing. So, naturally, every time my companion snored or even farted, I jerked to attention. We got to talk with Hna. Olivares this afternoon. She told us that her Grandmother had told her stories as a child. Ancient Indian legends. One was of an eclipse. The great eclipse that lasted for 3 days! They weren`t members, who had read the book of mormon, either. This was a legend passed through the generations! The other one was about a youth who cut off all the arms of a "beast"--could also be "evil"-- and showed them to the king. Just like Ammon! It really happened down here! The doctors had said Belèn`s knee had been broken yesterday, but today it`s not and she was walking without a limp. One of the Spiritual gifts in my Patriarchal Blessing was "faith in Christ and his healing power." This was probably the first major one I`ve ever given. That`s so crazy! Also during the earthquake in February, the ocean carried the only two supermarkets in Tirùa out to sea. That`s why there aren`t any here anymore! (incoherent grumbling...jk)

Friday: I don`t know why, or how, but I came to a remarkable conclusion today: I can accept people for who they are and not have to expect or wait for things to be different. I can`t expect people to be something they`re not, or hope they`ll do something thy won`t, just because it would make my life easier or happier. With that realization came it`s own happiness and acception and I felt like a part of me had been completed. Later, I was wondering about my friends and how I saw them and who they were to me. I wondered how people saw me. Do they see someone with too much vibrato for his scrawny body? Do they see an irresponsible adult? A capable leader? A passionate, focused individual? I see myself differently that when I left, mere months ago. I see someone who`s comfortable with himself. He wants to help others, but doesn`t put nearly so much store in what they think. I see someone who`s constantly analyzing, but can be an easy conversation companion. And I see a son of God who had come closer to his Heavenly Father and happiness because he gave up and consecrated his heart for him. We celebrated New Year`s Eve with Resendo (Chicho) and his family. They gave us soooo much food! there were so many different kinds of potatoes. If I named them all, I would sound something like "Bubba-gump" potatoes.

Saturday: Today was new years! It is now the year 2011, the year that I`m not going to be in America for. Normally, I feel a rejuvination, but today I was like, "meh." It was our P-day, and we stayed in the house the whole flippin` (<-----Now I`m a real Elder...get it?) day. I would read a few chapters, go downstairs and get Orellana to play Ping Pong for a while, and then go back to reading. It was pretty okay by me. I hadn`t relaxed like that in months. The Olivares left to some Lake to celebrate, so we got cheated out of a meal, but I`m okay with that, too. I got sleepy and took a nap at 4 and woke up at 9. My comp. forgave me though. Sister Olivares was here with her kids, cleaning up the "Chapel." I felt bad and started sweeping and washing dishes. In Alma, I read...well, I read a whole bunch of stuff. but he said God gives men all that he seeth fit. Obviously he has everything. And he wants us to be happy and successful. So if we ever have something in our lives that seems hard or bad, it`s ours. Interesting, huh? Some people have their parents die. It`s sad, but Heavenly Father knows they can handle it better than someone else. Or in intelligence. 1800 years of stones and wood tech. But 200 years after the restoration, we`ve got iPhones? That`s no coincidence, it`s God giving us knowledge.

Sunday: Today was so fun and exciting. Well the latter part was. I woke up and started preparing my lesson for Sunday School that I`m suddenly in charge of. The members came and we got started. Today was fast and testimony meeting, which is really, REALLY hard with two families and a few adults. But we gave it a good run. We only finished 10 minutes early. The sister in charge of Young Women had to leave early, so she took my teaching time and they sprung the Priesthood lesson on me. I hastily rushed to prepare it, but everyone made excuses and the whole freakin` branch left an hour early! We played a Spanish pun game, and I could actually keep up with the family! At about 5:30 we had a 7.3 earthquake. That was the fun and exciting part. It was like an amusement park ride. Everything was shaking off the shelves. That was a bit messy. Other than that, it was great! :) Wepre still having 6-point somethingaftershocks, 5 hours later. The entire country turned off the electricity, and we weren`t sure for how long it would be for. but it came on at 8-ish. I was glad I already had my clothes, flashlight, and water ready to go. And we had to stay in the house, too. So we played ping pong with two balls. It was "¡Pulento!"