Que pasa!

Hello,how's it all going? Glad to hear you all had a great Thanksgiving.

You guys are gonna be jealous of me, (especially Dad). Elder Dallin H. Oaks came and spoke to us last Tuesday. Two things he said stuck out to me: the first is that we carry a mantel, just like Elijah. Through study in class and in the scriptures, that statement summed it all up for me. I never realized how much responsibility I had as a missionary until then. The second thing he said was "You are all sons and daughters of God; everything else you are is subordinate to that."
Then, Elder Jeffrey R. Holland spoke to us on Thanksgiving! I have to admit that I enjoyed his talk more that Elder Oaks, mostly because it applied to me more. Once again, two things stuck out: as he spoke, he briefly mentioned homesickness. He told us that if we feel that way, that it was good. He even said he wanted us to feel that way. I was shocked! But then he explained…he told us, through a quivering voice "How do you think God feels about being away from His children?" I had never thought about that before; Because He loves us, He is homesick for us. It makes perfect sense. The other thing that especially struck me was when Elder Holland said that when we don't forgive ourselves, we are denying the Atonement.
So with that in mind, in order to clear my mind from guilt, I want to say that I'm sorry. I'm sorry for every time I groaned when you asked me to do a chore. I'm sorry for every time I forgot to do something you told me. I'm sorry for every time I raised my voice at you when I was upset. I'm sorry for not listening to you when we would talk. Most of all, I'm sorry for every single tear I ever made you cry. I can't believe I had to leave on a mission to realize how important you all are. Especially you, Mom. Please forgive me.

I love you all so much. Keep sending the mail. I'm doing my best to reply to them. I'm sorry it's not such a long e-mail. Take care. Se amo mucho.

Con mucho Amor,
Elder Parker