29 March 2010

Hi Mom, Dad and kids!

Thanks for all the updates from back home. Sounds like Dad got a nice present for his birthday. Glad to hear that his trip went well. I can't believe they have the final four already. I think I have one out of the four on my bracket, didn't do so well this year. Oh well. Still fun to do it.

That's tough what happened to Phil. I'll be sure to keep him in my prayers. I hope he starts to improve soon. I was able to talk to Garcia this week. He wasn't really sure on the prices, but he gave me a list of hotels. If you want to check online I'm sure you can find which is the cheapest and the best deal. I heard they do a lot of packages, which includes hotels, that might be a better deal, not sure. You'll just have to look around online and see what you can find. The hotels he told me were: NH Krystal, Holiday Inn, Marriott and The Oasis Complex. He was going to try to get more info, but I bet you can find the exact same info online. Or talk to people who have gone to Cancun before and see how they did it. I know Calaigh went a few years ago, maybe her or her family can help you find the best deal? Eating at a Chinese buffet, our last night with Elder Quintero. Sure miss that kid.

I couldn't think of anything else for you to send me in the next package. You don't have to send one since I only have 10 weeks left now. It's not a big deal. But if you do end up sending one, just whatever you want to throw in is fine, there's nothing that I really need. The toffee you sent was great, still tasted good. Thank you very much. I'm going to wait to use the whitening strips a few weeks before I come home, I hope they work a little bit. I bought a mouthwash that supposedly whitens your teeth, it seems to be working a little bit so that's good. Elder Quintero, Elder Green, Elder Johnson and Elder Steed.

One of my good friends, Elder Quintero, went home this morning. He should be at the airport right about now, it's crazy. Do you remember him? He was my DL when I was in Lomas Verdes, the tough area. I can't believe he already finished.. where did the time go? I'll miss him for sure.Saying goodbye...

That is great that the ward had two convert baptisms. Glad to hear it. Teaching was a little slower this week. Hugo and Brenda were able to come to church again yesterday which was great. We have taught them all four lessons, they just aren't married so their progress will be slow. We can choose which lesson we teach, depending on what the Spirit tells us and what we think that they need at that time. We do our planning before time and plan out the whole lesson, who will teach what principles out of that lesson. We try not to be in a home teaching for more than an hour. We can usually teach a well explained lesson in 45 minutes. The Plan of Salvation is obviously a little longer and has a lot more doctrine, but I've gotten good at teaching it in a simple way so that it is easier for them to understand. That's pretty much the run down. I hope that answered your questions Mom.

Being sad... Elder Johnson wasn't ready for the picture.

Definitely excited for General Conference this weekend. It will be my last one in the mission. Then on Sunday night we will know about transfers. I am pretty sure that I will stay here because I just got here. My companion could very well leave this area because this is his third transfer here, but I will let you know next Monday.

Thank you for your great emails.

Have a great week. I love you very much! :)

Love,
Elder Green

22 March 2010

Hello again Family,

I hope that Dad had a fun birthday. Sounds like you all ate some really tasty food. Thanks for the March Madness update. I will have to update my bracket real quick after I send this email out. I had no idea who to pick, I think I have Kansas betting Duke in the final game. I am completely out of the loop but it was still fun to fill it out. Glad to hear that Chez and Dad are enjoying it all.

I wasn't able to talk to Garcia this week but I will for sure get a hold of him before next week. I'll ask him for a few cheap, but nice hotels that we could stay in. I'm sure he'll know a few.

Cruz Adrian Martinez Perez and family.

On Friday, we had a baptism of a little boy. His family has been inactive for over 9 months, but we went to go visit them and they came to church last week. Then on Friday their 8 year old son was baptized. I think it counts for the ward because he's still 8, not 9, but since they were inactive we prepared everything and my companion performed the baptism. I will send you some pictures of it. His name is Cruz Adrian Martinez Perez.
Elder Green, Cruz and family and Elder Gonzalez.

I finally got my package Friday, thank you very much. It was great. I will think this week and see if there is something I need for one last package. That's a crazy thought, only getting one more package on my mission.. I'll let you know next week. Thanks.

Elder Green, Cruz's family and Elder Gonzalez.

I had to take out a little bit of money this past week, I'm sorry. We are both out of money now because the transportation money hasn't come yet. They changed everything around so it's not coming at the normal time. Plus, I had to loan my comp. some money because he is all out. "This is my new girlfriend, her name is Mimi. She's two years old, way cute :) Just adorable.

Most of the rivers, if not all, are dirty like that video I posted. They are all "black waters" here, or at least that's what they call it. And they all smell horrible. I think they use the rivers as a sewage system in some areas, it's just nasty. And there is garbage everywhere, but I'm used to that now after 21 months. They don't recycle here, the garbage system is horrible. It's just a really dirty place.

I hope you all have a great week. It's starting to get a lot warmer here now. I can't believe I complete 21 months in a few days, the time flew by. I love you all very much!

Love,

Elder Green

15 March 2010

More photos today!

Making tortillas...

J.J. said:

"It was a lot of work but pretty fun".

15 March 2010

Hello again family,

This past week sure went by quickly. Happy Birthday to Dad this Friday! I hope he has a great day! My mission call arrived exactly two years ago this week, how crazy is that?

Congrats to Chez for scoring his first goal, that's awesome! Way to go buddy! Still no package yet but I'm hoping that I will get it tonight in the junta. Elder Green, Feliciano Lopez Martinez, his son and Elder Gonzalez.

Thanks Dad for talking to Ron for me. I hope he'll have an open spot for me when I get back. I'm not worrying about school right now, and I'm NOT trunky Dad, so don't worry. :) I don't really get trunky. I still have to ask Garcia about some hotels in Cancun. I'll try to talk to him this week sometime.

Brother Martinez with his recently baptized daughter and wife.

Yesterday we had another baptism. Feliciano Lopez Martinez. The father of the girl who was baptized last week and the husband of the lady who was baptized two weeks ago. So now the whole family is baptized, except the 7 year old son. It was really neat to be able to baptize an entire family like that. We are working with some other investigators now. We found a young couple last week, Hugo and Brenda. We've been passing by with them regularly and teaching them and it's been going well. And yesterday they showed up to the chapel! That was really cool. The only thing is they are not married, and they live together. So we'll have to invite them to get married before they can get baptized.

Elder Green, Martinez family and Elder Gonzalez.

It's exciting having the official release date now. The time went by so fast looking back on it.. It was slow at the time, but now that it's passed it has gone by super fast. The elders that are coming back to Mexico with me are Elders Shawkey and Hoyt. They both go home in May, just a little before I do. They actually got their flight plans this week, so we'll see when I get mine. It'll be even more exciting to know what time I land in SLC. A small part of J.J.'s area.

I will probably have to buy the things I want here before my birthday actually gets here. That last week I'm sure will be very very busy. But if that's the case, I'll just use my money and then the birthday money will cover it once you put that in my account. I've been trying to be good at not taking out money these past few months. But it's tough because I had to buy the gas for hot water and the mission is slow at giving reimbursements. (However you spell that word)

J.J. and his comp went to pick up a less active family for Church. This is their daughter.

Well, that's about all from this week. I'll send some pictures of the baptism. Did you see that video I put up last week of the dirty river in my area? Not sure if it worked or not because this computer doesn't have the program to watch videos. But I hope it did!

I love you all very much! Hope you have a great week!

Love,
Elder Green

8 March 2010

Hi Mom and Dad! (And family) Thank you so much for the emails, they were really great this week! :) I really enjoyed reading them today. It's been a fairly good week for me here in Mehiko.

Bummer to hear about the Utes not playing so hot, but that happens. I'll be sure to check the March Madness bracket next week and then I'll fill it out and fax it to Dad, so he can have a copy of it. :)

Congrats to Chez-ro for making the team again! Nice work buddy! Sounds like you got some really sweet cleats to play with this year. I'll be sure to come to a bunch of your games once I'm home. When will the soccer season start? Fall?

To answer Mom's question, this is my 8th area. I think I could very well finish in this area but I would be happy with that, I like being here. There are some really cool members, the house is nice, and it's a good place to baptize. Speaking of, we had another baptism on Saturday. Her name is Paola Kristel López Garcia. She is the daughter of the lady who got baptized the previous weekend. She is 14 years old, I'll send you pictures. And the other good news, the dad came to church yesterday for the first time. So we put a date with him for this Saturday and hopefully he'll get baptized. That was really exciting.

Elder Green, Sister Paola Kristel López Garcia and Elder Gonzalez.

Zone Conference went well last Tuesday. They actually didn't talk hardly at all about the new mission being made. And they talked briefly about the new mission president coming, but my District didn't hear that part because we were with the President while they were talking about that. But it doesn't affect me anyways. The Elders will know if they get changed to the new mission or not in two transfers I believe. They will do transfers like they always do, and then the missionaries who are in the 5 zones that are going to the new mission, they will go to that new mission and that's where they will stay. So it's pretty much just all chance and depends where you are. But that is the transfer of July, so I won't be here.

I talked to President at the Zone Conference and I DID get my release date. And yes, he will send me home a few weeks early. But I'm okay with that. Gives me more time to work this summer and save up for Mexico. (Speaking of, I already have a job lined up too I think. But I'll get to that in a minute) My release date will be Monday, June 7th. :) The secretaries said that they should be calling you next month sometime, maybe in 4 weeks or so. I think they just ask you which airport I'm flying home to and all that. So just a heads up there. But that is my release date. It's exciting to know the exact date, but very nerve racking...

Elder Green, Garcia family and Elder Gonzalez.

Now to the job part. I didn't want to get a steady job because with all of the trips I have planned this summer, it would've been tough to keep that. So what I did about 3 weeks ago is I emailed Kory, and asked if he could talk to his dad for me. He said he did and that he's pretty sure that I can work for his dad as soon as I get home, counting cars. So that is my work plan for the summer. I believe it's a good paying job, I've done it before a few times with Kory. I could also look for another job as well if I needed to.

I think I'll worry about the school when I get home. I don't want to stress about it right now. I assume I'll go to SLCC, but I really need to decide what I want to study and major in, and that will affect where I go. But I still don't have an idea..

Christmas break would be fun for Mexico, but it's the busiest time of year so it will be very crowded and probably more expensive. When is the kid's registration? We could always do the beginning of August if they don't have anything, a few weeks before school starts. But I'll let you decide. Christmas and Easter break are the two busiest times of the year. I'll talk to Garcia and see if he knows good hotels and get some details.

Elder Johnson and Elder Green holding up Dana.

I hope I get my package tonight at the junta, but I'm not sure if it's arrived or not. I'll let you know when I get it. I do not want a package for my birthday since i will be coming home 8 days after it. Maybe just a few bucks in my account to buy things here, and that's all. Or maybe a letter or something to read on that day, that would be fine. I thought about coming home the 31st of May, a week earlier. And then basically being home for my birthday. But Prez and I had a nice talk and this is the final date we came up with. I didn't want to go home too early anyways. June 7th seems like a nice day. :)

Yes, Elder Shawkey is the one who rides motorcycles. It would be cool to be able to visit Amberlee when I go to Cali in July. Sounds like she'll get a new mission president the week before, so there's hope!

J.J. at a dinner appointment with one of the first families he met in Mexico City in 2008.

Thank you Mom for sharing that experience about Dallas Stewart, that was really cool. I heard about the big earthquake there, and wasn't there one in China too? Seems to be hitting strong lately...

I haven't seen my Mission President's wife for quite a long time. Every once in a while she'll come to the transfers, but I haven't seen her in probably 5 or 6 months.

Dad is correct when he says that the poorer people are more receptive to the Gospel. But it's always been like that, even says so in the Book of Mormon. I can't remember what chapter it is in Alma, but I read it a few weeks ago. I think around 35 or 37.. Says that exact thing.

Well, I believe that is about everything from this week. Lots of big news, I know. I hope you all have a great week. I love you all and miss you!

Love,

Elder Green

The rivers in Mexico City...

1 March 2010

Hello Family,

This has been a fairly busy week, getting all settled in to my new area. But things are going well now. Lots of info for this week. I'll start with my companion, Elder Gonzalez. He is from Tamaulipas, Mexico. He said it is the border of Texas and Mexico, just so you know. I've never heard of it before. He has 9 months in the mission, is 20 years old, and is a convert of 3 years. He is a good guy.

Elder Gonzalez and Elder Green.

The new area is pretty good. Not near as rich like my last areas have been, so that makes it good for working. The house is really nice, I'll send you pictures after I send this email. It has two rooms, a small kitchen in one of the rooms, and it even has its own washing machine. How nice is that? I've never had a house with a washing machine.. sure saves a lot of time on Mondays. I feel happy here though, I wouldn't mind finishing my mission in this area, but we'll see what happens.

J.J.'s best buddy.

Tomorrow is our Zone Conference with our Mission President. I heard he will be talking a lot about the new mission president that will be coming in July. He is from Texas I believe. And they talked a lot about the dividing of the missions and creating a new one in July, it's going to be complicated. Half of the missionaries from this mission will be changed to that mission and that will be their new mission. It'd be weird to say you served in two missions huh? But luckily, I won't have to worry about any of that. I guess they are taking 5 zones from this mission and 5 from the North mission.

Baptism of Sister Clara Garcia Cervantes.

It's been cool having my area right next to my very first area. It's also right next to Whisky, where I was with Garcia in May-July. So I'm between those two. Yesterday was our Stake Conference and I was really excited for it because I knew I could see some really cool members. When they saw me we all got excited and it almost felt like coming home.. :) It was way exciting. Great to talk with them. They couldn't believe I had 20 months in the mission, because last time I saw them I could barely even speak. Crazy how fast time went by..

Sleeping room.

Dad, will you please send me the number of your fax? I want to print out a March Madness bracket when they come out and then I'll fill it out and fax it to you, how's that sound? When will they be coming out?

Seems like Dad has been busy busy busy. But I'm glad business is booming for him. I would love to go to Venezuela with Dad and be his translator, too bad I won't be home. Maybe some other day though.

Study area and boxing ring.

Congrats to Isaac on his mission call! Is that the same mission Clarke went to? The two brothers in Brazil, that's way exciting. I'm not sure if I'll be home before he leaves, but we'll see. Glad you were finally able to watch the videos that I posted up. He's a really cute boy, I took a few more pics with him the morning I left. The members said that he is always asking for me. I miss that cute kid.

Let me know if you figure anything more out about our Mexico trip. If we have to wait until Winter time then that's fine with me, just whenever you think is best. Sorry about my trip with the buddies kind of getting in the way of all that. I thought we'd go early August which is why we planned ours in July. And yes, I plan on going back to SLCC in the fall I think. I think Christmas time in Cancun is one of the busiest times of the year, so just a heads up there.

Thanks you Mom for getting the package out with the whitening strips. Those will be great to have.

Small kitchen area in big room.

Yesterday we had a baptism in this area. It was a lady who they had been teaching for several months. Her name is Clara Garcia Cervantes. She was going to get baptized with her husband and daughter, but at the last minute they didn't want to. So we are going to keep working with them this week to see if they can get baptized or not. I went and taught them like twice last week to get them ready for the baptism, it was a pretty program we had for her.

The Elders have a washer - a first for J.J. on his mission!

Elder Shawkey (one of my best friends here who is going to Acapulco with me) was in this area last change, and so he came out because she wanted him to baptize her. I'll send you a pic with him and me in it. I love that guy. He's the one from Cali. Actually, we were talking and we found out that his house is in Amberlee's mission. And I'm going to Cali before we fly to Mexico remember? Maybe I'll stop by and say hi to her, if her President would allow it.. But not so sure he will. That'd be fun though to see her after so long. Okay well I think that is about all from this week. We are going to play soccer in the Chapel at 4 and then we have the junta afterwardsRoom next to the bedroom where they iron and hang their clothes.

I hope you all have a great week. I can't believe we're in March already! Love you all!

Love,

Elder Green