Email Letter - 31 December 2008

Hey Family,

So it was good talking to you on Christmas but it’s just never enough time. Nothing really has happened in the last week since I talked with you but we are just so stressed out with all the work in the branch and with the huge area and with our other area that’s an hour and a half away so we are trying to keep things going while trying not to die.

My comp is not organized at all and is giving me a headache with how slow he moves and just how he does things. I’m trying to get him to speed it up and its draining me down. We will see how it all works out. We only had 25 in church on Sunday which is really quite sad because we now have the two branches together which was supposed to help us have more people and it hasn’t been going to plan.

We just have so much work to do to keep on top of things but I have started getting things in order and we are only in the church one afternoon a week instead of the 5 days a week they were in there before I became his comp. We are still working with all of our inactive families as well as trying to meet mission expectations of finding new people. We did have a good lesson the other day with a guy that is married to a member. We put a baptismal date with him for the 17th of January and I really think that he will be ready by then. He has come to church lots and really has a testimony but they have lots of older kids that are doing everything they can to keep him from making the decision. I promised him that if he keeps reading with his wife and keeps praying that his family will soften their hearts and that they will support him. I have faith that he will do exactly that and that he will make it to this date for his baptism.

We are excited to find new people every day and we are trying to keep the work progressing. I love you guys and I hope that this year passes just as fast as the last ;) take care.

Tay

Email Letter - 24 December 2008

Family,

So this week was a little bit full of surprises again. On Monday we had our interviews with President Castillo where he told me that I’ve been in the mission for a long time and that its time for me to start moving up and that the lord has a lot in store for me. I thought that was pretty cool and I think that I know what it is but I won’t say anything just incase I’m wrong. Ha-ha. Then that night we got a call while we were walking back to the house and it was from the zone leaders, they said that my comp is leaving me...yes in the middle of the transfer!! He’s going to Resistencia to finish his mission and its gets better so don’t worry. Oh and by better I mean worse. Elder Smith is leaving as well and I’m getting his comp.

The best part of it is that our area is the biggest in the mission and that I got put right back into the branch presidency!! I got a whole week and a half of being just a regular missionary and now I’m right back where I was. YAY!!! I’m hoping that it’s just for the next three weeks. What’s happening is that missionaries are going home early to start school and so they are leaving tomorrow and their places need to be filled which takes Elder Smith and my comp away from here. I feel bad for them because they have to travel on Christmas and Elder Smith might not be able to call home on Christmas but on Friday or something because he has more than 13 hours of traveling to do all by himself. What a way to spend Christmas.

I guess that just how life is in the mission. Ha. That’s all that has really happened this week. Other than that it has been pretty calm. I’m looking forward to talking to some of you tomorrow. Love you guys. Take care and before I forget we are officially in summer!!!

Love,
Tay

Email Letter - 17 December 2008

Family,

So this week a lot of stuff has happened. I’m going to start with Saturday and it went like this. On Saturday afternoon we had a meeting with our mission president, President Del Castillo where we talked about all of the changes that were going to take place the following day about Closing down one of the branches among other things. So we all sat down and he told us that one of our zone leaders is the new district president and after that we pulled out the maps of the new boundaries which included closing one of the branches and in turn making my area twice as big. I’m soooo excited about that...not!! It will actually be really good for us though because we got lots of new members.

He then announced that he would be making the other companionship the branch presidency which makes me just a regular missionary!!! I’m really excited now because I can just focus on the work. But wait the day gets better. We were about to finish up the meeting and President asked us who he was going to be working with to finish the day which was 5 more hours. And while all 6 of us missionaries sat there quiet, yes including the zone leaders I decided to raise my hand and try to impress the guy so he said “wonderful! Looks like I’m going to work with Eder King and Elder Patterson for the night” so we all went out and visited some inactive members and one of our investigators. I can only say that I have gained a lot of respect for President Castillo and I found out what he is really like on a personal level. I have realized that I don’t have to agree with everything he does but it doesn’t change the fact that he’s a good teacher and a nice man.

Then on Sunday we had our meetings where he announced the changes. I think for the most part everyone is happy and I think that it will work out great. On Monday we had our zone conference in Resistencia where president talked about how well he and I worked and shared some of what we did and how we did it. I think that he was impressed and I’m hoping that that night will end up working in my favor for moving up and getting more responsibility. It was a good conference where president talked about the importance of fasting and asked us if will we now start fasting not only the first Sunday of every month but the second as well so from now on our mission will be fasting at least two times a month if not more. He explained the power of fasting and how it will help us grow and have more success as a mission.

He told us about how our mission had 76 baptisms in November which has only happened two times in the history of this mission and that every single area in the mission has had a baptism this year which has never happened before. We are doing the work that most say cannot be done and I can see and feel the lord’s hand in all things. It’s amazing to be in this work and to see the change that the gospel brings in others lives.

I got a call Monday night from Elder Adams my last comp who asked me what I did to impress President so much. So I asked him what he was talking about and he said that in their zone Conference President just talked again about how well we worked together and about the things that we can all work on to become better missionaries. I was surprised to hear that he talked about that night of work even when I wasn’t there. It was a great day and made me feel much better about the work that I’m doing.

This week we are going to be having our Branch Christmas party and I’m getting excited for that. I think that I’m going to be singing something and I think that I might have talked the other elders into singing with me. I hope it all works out. I love you guys and I’m excited to talk next week. Take care and know that I think of you all often. Love you!!!

Tay

Email Letter - 10 December 2008

Hey Fam,

So things are going well down here and we are going to be having some big big changes this week in our district. President Del Castillo is going to be coming down to give us a new district president and to reorganize the boundaries and close one of the branches.

We are going to be getting lots more members and by lots I mean like 25 active members. That's like three times as many as we have every Sunday so it’s going to be good. We are very excited and from what we think my comp and I will stay as branch presidency but have Elder Smith and his comp as more help.

The reason that this is all happening is because the couple that we had serving in our area went home last week. We miss them so much and we are hoping the best for them. We think that one of the zone leaders will become the new branch president and his comp will be the secretary with two locals being the counselors. It should be interesting but we will see and I will let you all know how it goes in next week’s letter.

We have been trying to keep up the hard work but the heat and humidity just wears us down to the point where it’s just hard to walk. We get so tired but we just keep trucking along. Sometimes it’s tough but I can tell you that I have felt the help from our lord in all things as we serve him. We should also be traveling to Resistencia next week for zone conference which is always a treat with our wonderful but very direct president. Ha-ha. We love him but he was in the Seventy and it’s his way or the door with no questions asked.

Yesterday we had divisions and I was with...you guessed it Elder Smith. We had fun and worked hard. We talked a lot about home because it was my birthday and we are getting close to Christmas so we got ourselves a little “trunky” that’s what all the missionaries say when they think about home or something reminds them of home. Overall it was a good birthday but it could have been a lot better spent in the States with my good friend the snow.

I just want to tell you all how much I love you and how thankful I am to have you as my family. Thanks to everyone who emailed me! I think you all set a new mission record with the 43 emails I got! That’s something to be proud of and it took me almost an hour to read them. Thanks so much for the love and support. I love you all! Take care.

Tay

Email Letter - 03 December 2008

Family,

It has been a good week and we have been working hard. In the last six days we have had five people tell us that they are ready to get baptized and all we have to do is put a date with them and keep teaching and let the spirit do the rest.

It’s been a little bit cooler down here the last two days but it’s just getting ready to start hitting in the 100s pretty soon. We still aren’t in summer but we are getting closer and closer every day. We had transfers today and my comp and I are staying for at least six more weeks. He’s a good kid and I think that even though we are in one of the hottest missions we are hoping that we will still have a white Christmas with all of the baptisms. Ha-ha. We have a lot of faith that it will all come through.

Other than that this week has been pretty slow. We had the hour change from President Del Castillo and we are still trying to get used to that. I’m hoping to get my packages from the mission home in two weeks but the mail has been having some problems again here because they don’t think that they are getting paid enough and have gone on strike for who knows how much longer. I think that it will get resolved and things will get back to normal here pretty quick.

Like I said things are going well down here and I think that this transfer will go just as well as the last and hopefully just as fast. I’m coming up on a year and time is flying. It’s gone by fast and now I’m not even going to be a teenager anymore!!! I’m going to get running but I love you all very much and think of you often. Take care!

Tay