"If you labor all your days and bring one soul unto me, how great shall be your joy" D&C 18:15

Monday, May 19, 2014

Xela had its birthday this week and turned 490!

Hola Familia!

Wow this week has flown by! I am finally getting the hang of being in the city! This week was actually a lot of fun!

This week all of the stakes in Central America held a semana de la familia, or family week. So every night there was a certain activity for the families. One night it would be like a game night and the other would be talks on how to strengthen your family. A lot of our investigators went to these activities and had a great time, and some of the members even brought families of their own who were interested in the gospel! It was super fun. Then on Saturday they had a stake talent show. Of course our zone had to particpate in it! We did a funny skit about having members give away Book of Mormons and we included some crazy things that alway happens to the missionaries in Guatemala. It went really well! I have it on video so you will all have to wait to see it when I get home.

Sunday we had stake conference, and got a new stake presidency. Two elders from the seventy came and gave talks that were really good!

Also since the heart of Xela is in our area,(including the central park) we found out that Xela had its birthday this week and turned 490! Like I've said in my emails before, The people here just love to celebrate! They closed the streets and had parades with marching bands. Apparently the president of Guatemala even came and spoke. They had live concerts in the park, fairs and everything! This made it so nobody was in their house! So this week we are hoping that the people are tired from partying and stay inside their houses so we can teach them.

Well I hope you guys have a great week!

Tortilla Total: 1045

And now because I have McDonalds in my area - Big Mac Count: 8

The zone dressed up for a skit

Xela's 490 year birthday celebration

Celebration

A street in Xela

Monday, May 12, 2014

Bagels, Donuts and Root Beer

Hola Familia!

This past week has been a great week! I have been getting used to living the life in Xela. I have found bagels, donuts, and even root beer. The place where I got root beer is getting me caffeine free Dr. Pepper, so that will be great!

Besides all the extra things, that Xela has compared to Huehue, Elder Rodas and I have been working really hard on finding investigators who are willing to progress and accept the gospel. We actually found like 4 or 5 people who are coming to church and listening to us which is great! One of our investigators is named Carlos, and he has a baptism date for the 24th which is also his birthday. So, if all works out, that will be a great day! Also, there is a mom named Sandra whose husband is already a member and she is working on being baptized. She is expected to give birth to her first child today! Then hopefully she will be able to be baptized.

One crazy thing that I have learned about living in Xela Central, is that when Xela Ju (the soccer team) plays the whole city is watching! And I thought dad was the craziest Utah State fan, but he doesn't even compare to these people. Everyone leaves the streets, bars and restaurants to watch the game. The day of the game they are all decked out in red and blue colors! It's crazy! And when the team scores a goal, the city literally shakes! haha I hope that someday I can come back and be a part of that crowd. But for now, I love the opportunity I have to share the gospel! I can't believe how fast the time goes by and that we only have 2 years to share the gospel. That is nothing, compared to what the Savior did for us! I hope you guys all have a great week! And, it was fun skyping on Mother's Day. We'll be able to do it again in December haha! Nos vemos les amo.

Tortilla Total 1032

Dressed as a Chapin

Big Macs

A catholic church

An indoor and outdoor restaurant

Monday, May 5, 2014

Xela

Buenos Días Familia!

All went well with changes! I am now in Xela Central which is the city of the city of the mission! It's actually really cool. All of the buildings are more European style. They even have cobblestone roads. It's actually really weird because I run into like 20 gringos everyday who are from all over!

My new companion is named Elder Rodas, and he is from here in Guatemala. I am really excited to learn from him, because he has 23 months of experience. Our area is supposed to be difficult, but we are working really hard and finding a lot of people. We have a baptism date with a kid named Carlos the 23rd of this month so we are working hard to prepare him.

Today was a super fun p-day. First I had to go take pictures of all the cool buildings in Xela, and right by our house we have McDonalds so we hit that up almost everyday. After that we went to this restaurant that is up on the hill, where you can see all of Xela! Because there are so many gringos here, you can find some good places to eat that sell hamburgers, and this restaurant was one of them! We took the whole zone there and it was super fun!

Well that's all that has happened this week! I pretty much just spent my time learning the area, and learning about the zone! I hope you guys have a good week! Les amo y les quiero!

Tortilla Total 1012

Elder Corbett and Elder Rodas with another missionary

Xela

Xela Parque Central

Elder Corbett's new house

Elder Corbett's bedroom

McDonalds

Lunch with the zone

Ordering a hamburger