We have broken the record!!

January 11, 2013

Hey mama!

I like getting your "emails." I always read it on the computer and then get a hard copy in the mail after lunch. If you write your letters on Wednesday nights, I will get them on Thursday and then I won't have to spend time during email time reading them. That way I can write more in my emails. Just a thought!

Things here have settled down after the plague. We finally have some consistent teachers. Typically, a district will have two teachers for the entire nine weeks. One will come in the morning, and the other will come at night. Our district? We had 17 different teachers in the first four weeks. We have broken the record! It has actually been a little bit stressful. There is no consistency in our class sessions at all. We pretty much would have a different teacher every day and none of them would follow the schedule. They finally got it figured out, though. We have a really cool teacher. His name is Hermano Thompson. I think I have learned more from him in the four days that we have had him than I have in the previous four weeks! He seriously doesn't not speak a word of English to us... ever. All of our other teachers would just speak English the whole time. Hermano Thompson is legit though. I can understand what is being said so much better than I could before. You can tell that he really cares about us. He took the time to meet one on one with all nine of us. So in my meeting with him, we prayed together. We prayed that he would be able to meet the needs that I have and help me reach my full potential as a missionary. He is so invested in what he does, and it is so cool. He is from Hawaii and he speaks like 5 different languages. It is funny, because he is this white guy who is technically an American that can't speak English very well.

I like hearing about what is going on with your grandma lifestyle. I feel like I don't have a ton to write about because we do pretty much the exact same thing every single day. I don't know, maybe you find what I do interesting. Hey, ask Brett if he has some nephews here in the MTC. I feel like I have seen one or two of his relatives wandering around here! Also inform Brett that my companion, Elder Taylor, is an avid cyclist and he has done a ton of 100 mile bike races. We are still going strong on being healthy. The weight keeps falling off! Would you have guessed that I would have already lost 17 pounds? Yeah, me neither. Although, we have designated P-day as candy day. We can get candy for super cheap in the book store.

We went to the temple again today, and I wore my boots for the first time! There is a lot of snow on the ground, and they got the job done. I feel like el Jefe when I wear the boots. (I feel like the boss). Haha. Actually, a lot of missionaries wear boots around here. It is kind of a weird thought that I will only be going to the temple three more times in the next two years! I will miss going, but who knows, maybe when I am done down in Osorno they will be ready for a temple. ;)

I am glad to hear that Makayla and Lacey stopped by! They are both super nice, huh? I am glad that you got the whole blog thing figured out. Nick's mom sent me a letter and asked if I had a blog or if you sent out my emails to people. They gave me the email address, but I don't have it with me. I will write them a letter and give them your email and cell phone number so that you both can stay updated about what is going on with me and with nick. Also, get in touch with Nate's mom at some point as well. You mothers gotta keep each other updated! I think Nate is coming right at the very end of my stay here. Nick leaves on the 31st of this month, and I leave on the 4th of February. I hope I get to see Nate, but I think he reports on the 6th. :/ He has been sending me dear elders and he told me that Carter is working on his papers! How great is that! I seriously have the coolest friends around. All of us are going to do great things.

I need to write Jordan a letter. I have such little time to write letters on P-day, though! So many Elders here don't really follow the letter writing rule and they write letters during the week. I easily could break this rule, but I refuse. Wanna know why? Obedience brings blessing, exact obedience brings miracles. That is kind of one of my motto's here on the mission. I read the white handbook everyday to refresh myself on the rules. I do this because if I am going to do the Lord's work, I need to do it His way. The rules are in place for a reason. Each of them are extremely important.

The thing that I have been working on this week is charity. I need to make a concentrated effort on this because we all know that I am one of the most judgmental people on the planet. It is super easy to judge people who are not doing what they are supposed to be doing. I pray each night to feel a Christlike love for everyone. I have gotten a lot better about it, actually. I really have started to see the good in all of the missionaries that I work with. I pray to see a portion of the potential that Heavenly Father sees in them. It is amazing how your perspective changes when you stop thinking about people as just ordinary and annoying people, and you start to think of them as sons and daughters of our Heavenly Father and as Celestial beings. I still haven't mastered it, but I am making progress.

Well, I am out of time. I have to go get my haircut and my head vacuumed!

Love, Elder Warren

P.S. As far as our Spanish goes? Our teacher says that all of us know more now than he did for his first two transfers in the field. I don't know if I believe him, but it is reassuring to hear that we know more than we think we know!