Nope, haven't hear anything from Maddy or Brinn in the past two months or so. Who is this Garrett guy? I have never heard of him before. I hope he is good, too. I'm going to write Maddy.
We heard a little about the eclipse here. Do you know if it's going to be visible in South America? I guess I'll find out tomorrow, haha. I'm impressed that you did the Badger bike/hike/bike three times! whoo. Did you go alone or with someone else? My exercise here is pretty pathetic. PDays are good because we play football for 2 or 3 hours but the rest of the days are almost nothing.
I wish I would have bought a nicer rain jacket. The one I have works pretty well for a few hours but then starts to let a little water in. Other than that, I have more then enough of everything else. Bringing a lot of socks was a good call. The only things we have to wash clothes are bleach and laundry soap. I already bleached my garments (whoops) and was then told by another Elder that you're not supposed to do that. I'm glad that I brought 3 pairs of shoes to work in.
We started working in a new part of our area this week. This area has nothings as far as our records go. No old investigators, no members, no contacts, references, nothing. So, we went to check it out. The area is full of people from Paraguay. It's called la Villa Paraguaya. It has a lot of little passages the weave between the 3 story block homes that are build touching each other. We found a few new people to teach, Richard and Hermano Gauto, but we stopped in the street a few days ago but a group of men. They told us that they knew that we are Mormons (a few were baptized way back when) and that we should never come back. They told us that they respected us enough to give us a warning but that they or someone else would kill us if we come back (it was about 11 in the morning). So, we left and don't plan on going back ever. There are enough people in the rest of area to keep us busy.
I like that Argentines know what they want. This often works to our disadvantage (if they don't want to listen to us) but they are all pretty honest in telling us whether or not their interested.
This week I learned that I react to disputes by withdrawing. Elder Vega and I were arguing about something on Friday morning and I decided to just stop talking instead of arguing more. Pro tip, not talking to someone doesn't help you get along better but it does avoid conflict. Elder Vega and I get along really well until we hit certain topics. I am learning how to deal with this. I don't know if it is better to alltogether ignore certain topics or if I should work on listening more humbly. The latter is more Christlike and it is hard. I'm working on it.
I've felt that my personal growth is slowing. I want to keep improving for my whole mission. How can I find motivation to keep working and growing?
I know that I am here for a reason. My testimony that God wants me here and now is strong. Now I a left to figure out why He wants me here and who I am supposed to bless. I believe that God has a plan for me and I want to do His will. I love you, Mom.
Elder Smith
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