Giving my first blessing

These weeks are flying by now! During our district meeting we did a activity where we wrote attributes of other people, and one of them on mine said manojo de pollo which pretty much means a bunch of chicken, I was glad to see that haha. This week I woke at 4:40 am and 6:22 am for some nasty reasons. My companion woke me up at 4:22 and turned on the lights, and the first thing I see when I open my eyes is a bunch of blood drops on the ground, good thing it was just his bloody nose that he has had for the past few weeks. However, I feel like he didn't need to wake me up just so I could see and remember that. Anyways so he was trying to clean it up in the middle of the night, but I guess he didn't finish, because when I woke up again, it was just all smeared on the ground. Then another night I woke at 6:22 and that brought back some bad memories from the CCM, when I had my 5 weeks of diarrhea.  Luckily, this time it was just one day, so I was very grateful about that. 

I had a crazy and memorable experience this week. We were walking in the street and this random lady stopped us and started talking to us, in English. And she was telling us about this crazy experience she had where she saw her grandma, but she was dead, and for that reason she told us she believed in Jesus Christ. She then started crying and then asked me to give her a blessing of strength that she will be able to return to her family in safety in the next few days as she is traveling back home. So, I gave my first blessing to this old lady in the side of the road, so that was definitely the craziest thing I have done so far.

With our investigators that we have right now, we are just doing everything we can to help them get to church. They have all the lessons necessary and are preparing themselves  to be baptized by keeping the commandments, well the ones that don't involve going to church.  For example, Carmin has work every Sunday, but she told us that she hasn't drank coffee since we had the lesson on the word of wisdom, and so that is how we know that they have desires to change, and we just have to be patient and work with them. And Angelica, she hasn't been coming to church because she was going to her dads baseball game every Sunday morning. She promised us that she was going to reject the invitation from her dad to go to his game, so she can go to church. So we will see this Sunday what happens.

Lights Out

We were teaching a lesson this week to these 2 sisters and then this Testigo who teaches their mom walks in and totally interrupts the lesson, that had never happened before, but it's all good, because they didn't believe a single word that she was saying and so it was kind of funny. This week we left for Chihuahua to have a meeting with elder Pingree, from the 70. That night sleeping at the Assistants house was the worst sleep of the mission for sure for me. There were no more blankets to use, so in the middle of the night when I woke up, I put on my white shirt for the next day and my suit and went back to bed. The mattress I slept on was terrible, in fact I wouldn't even call that thing a mattress, because it feels pretty much like pure springs. And, when I woke up that morning, my body was more achy than after any workout I have ever done. My eyes were super swollen and "I looked Asian" is what the other missionaries told me. Anyways, we had the meeting and we all learned a lot about the importance of planning and really receiving revelation for what we should do during the day. Then we took a bus back home to Parral and let me tell you, I slept every single minute of that bus ride, and I didn't want to get off haha. We finally make it back to the house and I go to turn on the lights and it doesn't work. So I thought that one of the switches just stopped working, like the one in the upstairs bathroom. But nope, all the light and electricity in the house was gone. So that was fun using the bathroom with my flashlight. Even though I had had so many problems with this house before, I really couldn't believe it because I had paid the electricity bill the very same day that I received it, to avoid any other possible problem with this house. So then I called the landlord and he said in the morning he would come. So the next morning someone came apparently and then the Landlord called me and said that they cut all the electricity because we haven't paid the bill.....from the month before. My trainer had not informed about that before he left, and also the bill wasn't even in our house, so I had no idea. So, then we go and get it paid and then I bring all of our food, well actually just all my frozen chicken to the other missionaries house to preserve it. And we sleep in their house that night, and so we go and work in his area. I invited one of their investigators to be baptized and she gladly accepted it, so that was exciting. The next day was Sunday, and after 15 weeks of being in this branch, our branch finally had its first branch mission plan, and so the members here are finally starting to get motivated to grow their branch. Afterwards, we go back to check our house and there was electricity, so that felt good. Than that night, we were finally able to find the families that we have been teaching and so this week, they are all coming to church with us. Because they have the lessons and are fulfilling their commitments, we just need to get them to church and then we can help them get baptized.

Elder Talbot

Chicken and eggs

I am alive, these past few weeks we have made a lot of progress with the people we are teaching. We have been back with Salome and Rosa and they are never home. I am still waiting for Azucena to return. We made Tortillas with our Investigator Angellica. We got our transfers and I am staying here for another 10 weeks. During the food one day, where 8 missionaries eat together, there was a veggie plate in the middle and no one had even touched it, so then I just grabbed the whole plate and put it next to my other plate and ate all of it. Somebodys gotta show these missionaries how to eat healthy. Oh yea so while we were trying to take out the money for the rent, we had 4 thousand pesos get stuck in an ATM, and because the bank is an american bank, they couldn't help us. Anyways, one day in a lesson with Angellica, she told us about how she prayed to have God show her the path to his church and then we showed up. I am so glad that she is able to recognize that God really does answer our prayers and that he has a plan for every person on Earth. On Sunday, on the way to church, we took a bus, turns out it was the same one that had the door fell off. And this time on our next adventure on the bus, it just stopped working, while he was slowing down to go over a speed bump. So we got off and hopped on the next one. I missed Sacrament meeting that day, so I really hope the man can figure out and fix his bus, because I am pretty sure a lot of people know about that bus now.... So I have been training Elder Lima from Brazil. And so we had a meeting in Chihuahua for the trainers and new Missionaries. However, before we left for Chihuahua we discovered another disgusting problem in the house. The house started to smell and so we go downstairs and open up the shower and find a nasty surprise, I hope you can figure it out what that was by the end of this  letter, because I don't want to write it. Also, the laundry washer floods the house when we use it, so that was the condition of our house when we left to Chihuahua, flooded and smelly. When we get back, we call the landlord and he sends his men over here to investigate. He tells us that we just need to buy acid and dump 1 liter down the drain every day for 4 days. Wells after 4 days, it didn't work. So then the guy came back and cleaned out all the pipes and said everything was good to go. So that night, we return from the house and see ALL our neighbors outside sweeping and mopping. I was a bit confused as to why they were all cleaning, at such a late hour. Anyways we go inside, and then we hear people banging on our door, turns out it was those same neighbors. So, we go outside and they were all next to our house, and they ask What's goiiing on? Lets just say they weren't too happy that all of the water that we were using to clean, clean dishes.. and go to the bathroom, was all going out into the street. So then we had to call the guy again to come fix it for real this time. I am starting to actually think that the problems with this house are not going to stop. Anyways, we had these amazing tacos and ribs for New Years Eve, and then stayed up to listen to all the gunshots, instead of fireworks, I don't know why. Now onto the progress with the people we have been teaching. We found a family and have been consistently teaching them. So far, we have taught them, the Restoration, The plan of Salvation, The Gospel of Jesus Christ, and have read the Book of Mormon with them. And after all that, I felt that they were ready to be invited to follow after the example of Jesus Christ and be baptized and I did so and they accepted! And the very next day, I invited Angellica to be baptized and she accepted it as well!  They said they were coming to church that week. Well, Jorge had nerve problems in his leg so he couldn't attend. and Angellica went somewhere else so that was a bit frustrating. But yea thats whats been going around here in Parral for the last 3 weeks haha have a great week everyone and remember to share the gospel with everyone, when the opportunity arises.

Elder Talbot

An Indoor Soccer Dribbling Facility Right in His Apartment

Drew never had an empty room back home that could be used for indoor soccer dribbling. He's got to be loving this!