Hola!
This week was awesome, we did some serious work this week with our recent convert Juan Carlos. Every day he wants to visit his friends and family and teach them the gospel. Right now we are teaching several people with him, and he is super open to bear his testimony all the time. He also can speak Guaraní so he can translate for Elder Harmer and I if they don’t speak Spanish. I remember one time back home, my sister Anne was showing me pictures of her mission in Taiwan. She showed me a picture of one of her converts at the temple with her husband, and I asked her the question, “When you see how she has progressed through the gospel and has changed her life, are you proud of yourself and the work you did with her?” And Anne said, “I’m not proud of myself, I’m proud of her.” Now, being on a mission and seeing the people I have taught progressing and continuing to change and improve their lives through the atonement of Christ, I can truly see what she meant. You do lots of work as a missionary, and you try your best to help people, but in the end it is their efforts, the changes they make in their lives, and their testimony that really makes the difference and makes you proud of them.
This week we have also spent a lot of time walking around in the fields surrounding Ita Paso, visiting members and doing lots of contacting. We try to spend as much time outside the apartment as we can. Covid is getting pretty bad again in Paraguay, and the government introduced a curfew from 8 P.M to 5 A.M. So we make sure we spend as much time as we can out in the fields and visiting with different people.
With walking in the fields come some interesting experiences. Some include the following:
-Elder Harmer and I were walking down a path in the fields and a man on a motorcycle whizzed by. He had something strange that was tied to the back of his motorcycle, it kind of looked like a baby carriage or something. Upon further inspection I realized that it wasn’t that at all. It was a freshly cut off cow head. Still raw and pink, just strapped on to the back of this motorcycle, like it was nothing.
-Elder Harmer and I were again walking as we usually do, and we walked by a butcher shop. As we walked past, there were several wheelbarrows full of what I thought was just meat. Upon further inspection I realized that it wasn’t just meat, it was hooves. A whole wheelbarrow full of just cow hooves. I don’t think they were planning on selling them but you never know.
-Also by the said butcher shop, there were several dogs that were running around. The dogs appeared to be stained red, I thought it was just from them playing in the mud as it had just rained. Upon closer inspection, I realized they weren’t dyed red from the mud, but they were dyed red from blood. They were playing in the cow blood that was all over the ground and were running around and jumping on their owners and kids and having a grand old time just covered in blood.
A lot of the experiences and times I have right now are crazy and hectic, and it’s important to remember to take time out of your day to study the scriptures and reflect on the atonement of Christ. One of my favorite parts of the day is when I get to do my personal study for an hour at the beginning of the day. I grateful for this time in my life where I can study the scriptures and doctrine of the church this rigorously. But, even though we aren’t full time missionaries forever, we can still take time out of our days and quietly read the scriptures and quietly reflect on the blessings the Lord has given you. I invite all of you to do this and pray regularly!
¡Hasta luego!
