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Okay, I got lacy again and didn’t write. This journal thing is really hard for me. It has been an interesting week though. First off, we have been able to find some people to teach! We’ll see how far it goes, but one went to the priesthood session of conference this past Saturday. He actually can’t read and lives a very poorly (including no telephone) in a run down little house. SO he has to have someone read the Book of Mormon to him. He’s pretty cool though, extremely humble. He talked to us as we passed by his house. Every time we teach him, he thanks us at least 5 times for being here on our missions. Did we find someone when we were walking for hours in that one rich area that was so far away? NO. But someone just talked to us as we pass by on our way home and that turns into a real investigator. Another new investigator has a friend that we actually know. He talked to us on the street a while back and tried to tell us the he is Jesus. But he seemed more normal this last time that we talked to him. Who knows. This whole week, Elder C. was sick with diarrhea and stomach pain. It was bad enough that we stared home Thursday and Friday in the morning. I got to sit around and study a little longer. I also watched the movie, “On the Lord’s Errand” which it the movie about Thomas Monson. It was a good movie, but the extra time in the house was boring. One of these days I have to make the complete witch to just using my spanish scriptures. I just know that I’lll end up using my English scriptures more later on. Before the year mark, I’ll probably use only Spanish. I am already at the 7th month mark! Now people don’t comment on how new I am, haha. Pretty soon they’ll start saying how little time I have left. I caught myself thinking about what it would be like to serve a mission as a senior missionary.
Other stuff that has happened: We had an unofficial zone class that was pretty cool. Basically the highlight of the week was General Conference. We had to view the conference in the stake center which is a ways away from our house. Then we were there all day Saturday and almost all day Sunday. It was pretty cool though. It was almost a social event. People brought food for lunch both days and it was PACKED on Sunday morning. Too bad not one of our investigators showed up on Sunday. I’m grateful that we were able to watch it in English more than anything else. It is so different when it is translated into Spanish. You lose the delivery. You actually lose some of the words too, not just because you don’t understand everything, but because it doesn’t translate all that well. I only slept though one talk! Apparently it was a really good talk too, so I will have to watch it later. The mission is really cracking down on the rules and making them a lot stricter. For example, we can’t live chat in email on our p-day anymore with our family or friends. There are other rules about technology too, but not as hard or sad as that one.
April 8, 2017
Man it has bee a week. I’m kind getting sick of my companion. As much as I hate myself for saying that, it’s true. We’ve had some issues this week. I try to be patient with him, I really do. When he wants to do to Carl’s Jr. every single p-day even though I don’t want to waste the time or the money. I don’t say anything. I might complain internally a little by not outwardly. Do I stop him from going and asking for 10 minutes about protein powder? No, I let him do it because I know that he wants to and I don’t want to be a nag. These are little things, but there is a very long list of little things. He hasn’t gotten up on time a single time in the last 9 week and he often goes to be later than me which we are not supposed to do. I never once get mad at his rock music that he is not supposed to listen to. I try and set an example but too strict with him. I only get after him about the rules that he breaks that would make him lose privileges. Anyway, the only reason that I am writing this down is because after zone class, we came home to start our planning. I asked him as I usually do, “Elder, what criticism do you have about me that you think I should change?” He got really upset and started off by telling me to stop acting like I know everything. It is really hard for me because my job as his trainer and senior companion is to make sure that he understands and lives the rules. Maybe I execute my job poorly or in a pompous manner, I don’t know. Then after that rant he goes on a rant about how he understands everything in Spanish but just can’t speak it and if he could speak it, then he could teach our investigators everything they need. He talks a lot about worldly things that he has experienced that I really don’t want or need to know about, including relationship advice. Then he launches into his next rant about his personal life that I won’t go into detail about. Basically the whole conversation turned into a very one-sided argument/chew out session about basically how I’m a prideful and typical missionary who doesn’t really care about everyone, with a fair amount of swearing. Who knows, maybe theres some serious things I really do need to change in my conduct, but I don’t want to focus on the bad things soI guess Ill just end it here.
Finally, he got up and went to the bedroom to do what ever, pray, cry, sleep, I don’t know. I let him go and I just sat there and waited for an hour until he was ready to go to work. Then we went out and taught. Honestly, the drama and contention just makes me tired. I feel like we really don’t have the spirit as a companionship. The thing is, my companion isn’t a bad guy, and I am certainly not blameless. But, I personally do not feel like I can help him with his problems. Nothing from my experiences can help him. I think that the Lord put us together for my benefit, so I guess that I have to figure out what it is that I need to learn from him.
Just today I decided to try an experiment in that I wouldn’t remind him, motivate him, push him, or nag him to do anything. Basically the plan was for today , I wouldn’t lead at all. He doesn’t like how I lead and nag, so I wanted to see how he handled the situation when I didn’t do anything at all. What happened was we spent an hour and a half planning in the morning instead of 30 minutes, and then we spent a lot of time sitting and slowly searching for people after lunch. The day wasn’t awful, it was just that everything was done very very slowly. I did learn something though. My first response to him should be one of love and concern. I just can’t figure out how to get him to work and work correctly without coming off as a nag that he will end up hating. I guess I finally understand how my mom feels. I and just TIRED.
April 9, 2017
Well today was okay. I can’t complain or anything, honestly. The only thing was that it was Fast and Testimony Sunday. This really is the best Sunday for investigators which makes it a great day for missionaries except when none of your investigators show up. Then you are just fasting. I was fasting specifically for one particular investigator to show up…which we found out in the morning that he wouldn’t be able to go. I was just frustrated. I prayed and basically said, “If it is not for us to have any of our investigators come today, then please let the Hermanas have their investigators come.” I found out later, that the sisters had 6 investigators come to the meeting which is kind of unheard of. That was a great answer to prayer. We gave a blessing to one of the guys we are teaching later in the day.
April 10, 2017
Oh my goodness, today was a day. What do I even say about it. It started off normal, then the zone leader called me and I spent and hour translating a talk in to English. Then we walked for about 30 minutes trying to find a special kind of protein powder for Elder C. Someone had told him that he could buy it for 20% off at this place on Monday. So we walked all the way there to find out that what he thought was protein powder was actually frozen yogurt. WASTE.OF.TIME.
Then Elder C. saw a DHL truce and started talking to the truck driver because he dropped his tablet and broke it. He has to send it through DHL to get repaired. LONG STORY. After that we mailed some letters, bought food, and looked for protein powder again. I’m not sure why he wants protein powder so bad. He doesn’t really work out even in the 30 minutes a day that are supposed to work out in. And the powder is so expensive here. I think that I am just losing my patience. But these are the little things that are really starting to bother me. That’s really it honestly I don’t have anything to complain about except that it was a total waste of our one day off. On a cool side note, I got my package! Thanks! I’m gonna share the cadbury eggs with the district, 5 was perfect because my companion doesn’t like chocolate, in fact he hates it.
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