Jeff's Mission Experience: Life is Good!

This week has actually gone rather well. Things are still a little bit sluggish in the area of finding new people but the great news is that we have been working really hard with the people we have and have been seeing some good results. It has been the week of preparation for the next two weeks and what they will hopefully have in store for the Lord. So remember the name Jimena Nogales? I started working with her in the middle of my first transfer here. That is about five months ago. Well, Elder Marsden and I started working with her again awhile back and it has been good. Not only is she coming to church and is super cool now, but her dad is getting active too. And the best part... she´s getting baptized this weekend! But that isn't the best part! Remember the name Rocío Lozano? Well she is getting baptized this weekend too. The coolest thing is that Rocío is 16 and Jimena is 15 and they are good friends now and they are getting baptized the same day and they are totally into it. I'm super stoked about that. Gonzalo Tapia, the eternal investigator who has been trying to get married for six months. Wedding bells will ring on the 18th of September at about 11:00 am and he will be baptized shortly after. That is a story of perseverance. My goodness gracious has it been a long time coming. Okay. So lot´s of names to remember. Next name: Pilar Jeres and her daughter Maria. Elder Marsden and I also picked them up again recently and they said that they will be baptized on the 19th as well. Now that one is still a little bit up in the air, but hey, they are progressing again. And Isabel... well, still being Isabel and still stuck with her (I wouldn't think the word dirt bag would be too strong) boyfriend because he won't marry her, he won't leave her house and he won't talk to us and she is too much of a softy to do much about it. We are still working that one out.... but yeah, so things are looking up. Things are going good now. I love my bishop... just in time to leave... :) The ward is working better. There are quite a few less active members that are coming back.

So we recently did divisions with the elders. Elder La Loma and I worked with a new Elder in the mission. His name is Elder Ayllon and he is Bolivian but he grew up in the states since he was 6. He's a way cool kid. We ran into a really funny old man while knocking doors who wouldn't tell us his name then we got him laughing making a couple of jokes and he told us he doesn't believe in anything then went on to tell us how he prays to god every night. That is good at least... right.

I have been having a cool variety of experiences in the mission lately and I am loving it. I have got to tell you, the best part of the whole thing is the entertainment. You get the whole gamut walking the streets in another country. If I could I would take more pictures to show you but sometimes it just isn't practical. For example, an 80 year old woman with no teeth but so many cocaine leaves in her mouth that they were falling out. You know the good life!
Chaucito queridos.