Week 74 - Being Chaste, Idea of Serving a Mission, Teaching Old People, Friendly Members

Well, we had general conference this week, I watched it in Spanish.  I really liked how Dallin H Oaks taught the first two commandments, it is what almost every single person here in Paraguay needs to apply, probably almost everyone in the whole world. (For a video of his talk click on the following link.  He gives lots on interesting statistics on % of people living together, age at marriage, % of babies born into single parent homes.... https://www.lds.org/general-conference/watch/2013/10?lang=eng&vid=2724154478001&cid=5   I also really liked how they emphasized staying chaste, because those two things are things the whole world desperatly needs to hear. And I hope they did. I know that the messages were inspired, and that if we apply them, we will be blessed enourmously.

Fidel went to the conference and he said it was ´pure spirtual nourishment´ and for me, it really was.

It´s not that they cancel things here (like the primary program), the church just isn´t as organized here in Paraguay, and not everything gets done sometimes.

 

Before college, I always knew that I should serve a mission, but I feared the idea of serving one, so I just kinda avoided the idea.  Then when the time came I tackled the idea, and I knew it was the right thing, so I did it. and I am still learning how good of an idea it was - every day. If someone understands the gospel, and has a testimony, and is able, they will go on a mission. I was more focused on the mission during college, because I graduated from high school and it was time to face my future. I probably should have made that shift before.

We are going to try again with C*rl*s this saturday, pray that everythign goes well.

I also know that my English is getting progressivly worse.  It was kinda funny, because the Spanish had a delay,since the translators say everything after the speakers and at first I thought that the speakers were saying Amen while they were walking away from the pulpit, but that was just my mistake. 

 

I don´t know why, but I´ve been finding a lot more old people to teach here in Villarrica, they just seem to be the most open to listening sometmes, which is completely opposite to how it was in Asunción.

 

For a while now I have been hearing squeaking sounds when we are walking around or teaching people, I recently found out that they are bats all of them, there are tons of bats here.

 

General conference is just nice in the mission becasue it´s something different than normal, that´s what makes it so great. We watched general conference in the chapel in Villarrica, they have cable there, and I guess Villarrica gets BYU tv, so that´s cool. All in Spanish. I liked the talk by President Monson about home teaching.

 

We taught 22 lessons this week. 

 

My shoes were filthy, but I cleaned them. It has rained at least once a week for about 4ish weeks.

 

I haven´t met anyone who´s seen snow. 

There are quite a few Paraguayans who are as tall as me, I imagine they have seen people as tall as my companion, but I hadn´t thought about it before.

 

My favorite fruit is mandarina.

 

It depends on the investigator if they stay the full three hours of church.

 

The members here are the most friendly I've met.

 

Elder Bowles