No Pasa Nada

Hello allll,
This week, really, no pasa nada.  Not much happened this week. We found a couple families that came to church with us, and there was a baptism service on Saturday for the ward that they came to, so I'm hoping that they'll be able to progress, because literally we don't have anything outside of these people. This week we started working in an area that, really, we haven't visited yet. It's tough because it is super far, and if our appointments fall, we just contact. And I absolutely hate contacting to be honest, I can't really talk to the people or connect with them just because of my language, but it is one thing that I know will come with time and patience . . . it is just rough right now. 

This week my testimony of the Priesthood really grew. We had a thought to pass by one of our investigators who had been working in the farms for a minute, and we got there and his head was all swollen and he told us that he pretty much got knocked out by a huge piece of wood while he was working, and hasn't been able to work for a week.  Como, si o si we asked if he wanted a blessing.  I really don't like giving blessings, becasue I don't really have the confidence in my Spanish to do so, and this blessing was absolutley horrendous. I mixed two of the verb tenses up, and it was just bad. Push comes to shove, we found his wife in the chapel on Sunday, and unfortunantley, he couldn't come because he was working, but he healed almost completely.  Pretty cool I'll say. 

I have to announce it, but I'm losing weight hahaha. My pants that I bought that were "Slim Fit" aren't so slim anymore. It iss rough because I'm absolutely so sick of chicken and rice, but I gotta eat. AGHHH. It is aight though, I think Jackson always wrote that "its all good"  Here we are, "its all good."

I found a quote from President Monson this week- "We can't control the wind, but we can control the sails." And I think that this is absolutely true. Your mind is the strongest thing you have, and if you can't really control that, good luck honestly. I think it is interesting how much of the teachings of the prophets and stuff are really rejected by the world, but scientists come out and pretty much testify of it.  The Word of Wisdom for example. 

I started reading Jesus the Christ this week, and I think I'm 5 chapters in? Boy, is that tough reading. It is so full of Gospel doctrine though, if any of you reading this would like to know more about Christ, read that boooooook.

That is all for this week, not too much happened....

Elder Roper!

You Can Take a Kid Out of America, But You Can't Take America Outta The Kid

Hello all, 

GOOD NEWS, everything went well with our baptism this past Saturday. Except it started an hour late because literally no one showed up, but luckily we ended up having about 30 people there. And about half of our zone showed up too, so that was very nice. I baptized a 15 year old girl named Lesly, She was going to get baptized no matter what, the only thing that we needed was her mom to be baptized as well. Luckily we accomplished both, the work is hard, but the results are very sweet. The pictures aren't great, so I'm trying to get the pictures from my companion's camera. Missionaries aren't very good at taking pictures hahahah.

This week we ate.......... COW HEART, and surprisngly it was pretty tasty, pretty tough, but pretty good bwahahahha. We also found out that there's a group of WHITE, AMISH PEOPLE who live here in Pulcallpa with us, so that is quite interesting. The women here honestly get treated like trash, like not even funny. If the door is open, and the man of the house is right by it and wants it closed, he will always, without fail, ask the woman to come close it for him. Something the Feminists in the states need to come protest about.

We had our zone conference this week, and interviews with Presidente Li. I didn't understand much of the zone conference, but from what I understood, they burned us pretty good. I don't think there's ever a conference where they don't burn us, probably just something to light the fire in the missionaries to work harder. But all they say is obedience, obedience, obedience, and I'm sorry, but you can only preach obedience to us so much yanno? Frustrating, but from what I hear our mission is pretty disobedient hahah, so makes sense. 

My inner Trump side came out this week. We're runnin' a little low on the funds for transport this week, and my companion was like well just go ask them to take us and tell them we don't have money, they have to help us because we're poor. And I was like absolutley no, we are NOT going to do that. I came here to help people, not to ask for their help. It reminded me of Marcus Luttrell at the Patriot Tour - don't ask for free handouts! You can take a kid out of America, but you can't take America outta the kid. That really lit my fire that day haha. He was like well geez, you don't need to get all mad over this, it was just an idea. MHMMMM sure.

Yesterday we were searching for a house where we had an appointment.  We had called the guy like 8 times and he didn't answer, push comes to shove, we ended up finding another hermana that we had been looking for and we taught her, and she wants to get baptized ASAP.  The man called us after and told us he was working, but when we contacted him he told us that he never has work on Sundays, but he just got called in. Just another testimony that the Lord is most definitely on our side, and helping us in ways that we don't really understand or see every day.

Pretty eventful week to say the least, but the mission life is very sweet. This decision to serve has already had a huge impact on my life, and I am so so grateful for it. I never really knew the importance of the Gospel in high school, and just kinda went to church every Sunday because that's what we do, go to seminary because that's what Mormons do, never really acted on it, but the first couple weeks in the CCM (training center) were quite awakening for me. 

That's all for now, until next week! 

Elder Ropercito!

Buenas Dias

Hello my friends!

I have some very good news this week . . . we, si o si, will have a baptism service this Saturday and I will be doing one of them. Boy, am I nervous hahahahah, but I am so excited as well. The mom and the daughter passed their interviews with flying colors. I'm excited!

Last Monday we had a ton of rain, and it was funny hahah. There's a little ravine we have to cross that has a bridge normally, but with all the rain we had, the bridge was no where to be found. When we left, my comp put his boots on, but I had confidence in my Hush Puppies. Well . . . push comes to shove, my companion jumped over it and made it just fine, and I didn't lol. I got my pants pretty wet on one leg about to my knee, and it wasn't clean water either, pretty sure their gutter water is from of their toilets!

I'm pretty stoked to hear this talk that President Nelson is going to give tomorrow, but really nervous at the same time . . . I hope he doesn't call all the missionaries back. hahaha

We saw a rainbow yesterday as we were proslyeting! That was fun! I really struggle with working on Sundays, probably one of my least favorite things about Sundays. 

Also, we didn't get changed areas or companions or anything. Also I apologize for how bad my spelling and grammar is in these letters, it is tough to go from Spanish to English.

I have a bunch of scriptures I've been meaning to share, but keep forgetting, so here they are!

Corinthians 13:11

Omni 1:25

Alma 37: 6 - 7

That's all for this week! (:

Elder Roper

 I got a haircut this week.

My companion and I eating some pizza.

Happy Birthday to my mom!

Our living area gets so dirty!

A salesman came selling fish in our neighborhood today.  

Our pensionista bought a bunch.

I have a feeling this is our dinner!

I spotted Scott and Kendrick in the Ensign!

I'm loving my mission!

I am learning so much!

This Week Was An Improvement

Hello my friends and family!

This week was an improvement for sure. But first off let me just tell you all that it is absolutley pouring!  That seems to happen EVERY, SINGLE, P-DAY.  Never fails. I also got to play with a machette this week for a bit hahaha, we did a big service project with a member and some other elders, and I've never been so happy to use a shovel and get a couple blisters! 

WOW though, President Monson passed.  Pretty sad I'll say. We woke up Tuesday and went to breakfast and our pension didn't say anything she just showed us the phone and it was in English, and she wanted me to translate it. It was one of those things that I wasn't really sure was a joke or not, but man. That hit me like a truck!  I remember being super sad that day, but studied the Plan of Salvation like crazy in personal study. It really amazes me that we get to see the Plan of Salvation in action. I remember in Seminary they taught that when someone passes, we're sad here but they're having a party on the other side of the veil. I get goosebumps thinking about it and even now typing it.  Ever since Gramma M. passed in August, I've really had a different kind of view on life and death.  I think about that day and how thin the veil was in that room.  Crazy stuff, but very humbling and brings peace as well. 

People are funny here. We try to teach the Restoration only with scriptures and refrences from the Bible, because the people don't like it when we use "Our Bible".  We taught a hermana the other day, and she was all for it.  We invited her to church and she was like "uhhhh no I can't, I have to go to my own chapel tomorrow."  Sooooooooooooooo we were like, wel,l you think this is true no? and she couldn't really give an answer hahah so that's always fun.

Our pensionista always tells us that she feels protected when we're in her house, and that she thinks of us as her personal angels. Every. Single. Day.  So that is really great I think. 

I really can't believe that my first change in the field is almost up, I don't think my comp and I will go anywhere, but I've heard President likes to change things up. A LOT! 

I think the 20th I'll be able to bust out the white pants and white tie for the first time. We have our family we're teaching and they're doing great. The mom has problems walking, and she finally felt good enough to go to church yesterday, so I'm really excited for them. 

That is all for this week (:

Elder Roper

We eat so much chicken!

It rained so hard, my planner got completely soaked!

Que Tal Mis Amigos

Que Tal Mis Amigos

This week lowkey SUCKED.  Christmas was really good, and New Years as well, but the work struggled this week. It seemed that everything good we had going just flip flopped. The old lady we had told us she didn't know how she felt about being baptized. The other family, her mom pretty much has dengue, and literally could not come to church, but her daughter did so that was dope. We gave her a priesthood blessing, and of course they wanted me to give it. I just tried to say whatever came to my mind - what I felt and it was cool. She had so much pain in her body that she couldn't move her fingers and her daughter said that after we left, she started movin them pretty good.  So the power of the Priesthood is real my friends.

My testimony of prayer has really grown. Saturday I got super down and super homesick, and I read my little (lol pretty much) anti depression manual, and read some good scriptures and really had a good prayer, and the rest of the day I felt like a real missionary finally haha. I felt like the language was really good that day and I could really speak. 

I went on another work visit, this time because the Zone Leader wanted to work with my comp, who as of now is the District Leader.  It was tough, because the elder is from Ecuador, and booooiiii is his accent strong! All we did was contact and walk around, so it was alright.  Every day we walk and walk. That same day we also woke up at 4:30 a.m. to to clean the freeway - just like prisoners do in the states lol.  Awesome no?

I've found that days I really study hard and focus in my language study I can understand and really share my thoughts. But the days I don't, just kinda give a half effort, goooood luck. I've gotten to where I can read the Book of Mormon and kinda guess at words, and understand about 80 percent of it.  So progress is progress I guess. 

I had a wonderful experience with my stomach this week lololol. We were running late to an appointment because my stomach was acting up, I think I took 3 trips to the bathroom in an hour. Whatever we ate sure didn't agree with my stomach.  I was fine as we walked to the appointment, but boy, as soon as we sat down. FREAK. I said to the hermana, "Podría usar su baño, porfavor?" and my comp just started laughing. I was expecting her to lead me to the back of her house or something, but NOPE.  Literally right in the living area. Like 4 wooden posts, wrapped with plastic so you couldn't see through bwahahahahahh - freakin a! Talk about embarassing!  And then we taught the law of chastity!  So pretty entertaining day to say the least. 

So not every week is baptisms and lessons, we only taught 14 lessons and found 1 new investiagator this week, but this week we're gonna hit it hard for sure. 

Elder Roper!