Let me tell you, The MTC was great, but the field is so much better. The Latinos are SOOOOO nice! My companion and I left the MTC at about 5:00 a.m. ( which means that we got up at four). We traveled to SLC airport and got there about 6:30a.m. That's when I called you. Yes,that lady that let us use her cell phone was a member. She was a convert, which is why she let us use her phone. I did thank her, and then she said "Thank you so much for what you do. I'm a convert, so I know what you do. Thank you again." After a one hour flight (I was with a group of 6 people, all going to Las Vegas). We arrived at 8:00a.m. when we got off the plane, it was like the Wizard of Oz, we were DEFINITELY not in the MTC anymore. For anyone that hasn't been to Las Vegas, there's a reason that they call it "Sin City." But that's just the "Strip". Everywhere else is just fine.
When we arrived, we met the mission president and his wife (Pres. Christiansen). What great people. We had a short spiritual thought, and then traveled to their house. We had a group picture with all the new missionaries (some arrived the day before). Then we went over some paperwork, had breakfast and had interviews while we talked about driving safely. The VC (vehicle coordinator) is Elder Mannnion, an awesome senior Elder. Really funny too.
Then we went to one of the stake centers (there are somewhere between 15 to 20 stakes in the East half of Las Vegas alone) and we met our new companions. My trainer is Elder Couoh. He's a Mayan from Yucatan, Mexico. All the other Elders in the Area were saying how lucky I was. I can see why...He's a very simple guy, but a very great teacher.
The first night we had a couple of appointments. My favorite was with the Familia de Valle. There's the parents Alvin and Florecita, and the kids; Jesse, Chelsea, Bryan, and Alvie. Alvie was soo cute. Too bad I couldn't hold him though. We also met the Elder's quorum president, Hermano Reyes. A pretty cool guy, very animated. When we went in, he was watching soccer on the tv. Typical lol.
The next day it was full on mission work. Our total key indicator was: 1 lesson taught with member, 8 other lessons, one contact, one referral, 2 new investigators, and 1 lesson with a recent convert. The two new investigator were contacted right off the street. They seemed genuinely interested and allowed us to make an appointment. They are Alfonso and Guillermo.
We also had dinner with a member family--Hermana Deanda. She made us a Cuban sandwich with homemade french fries. I was hoping to lose weight while I was out here, but I don't know if that'll happen. She almost shoved another sandwich down my throat. It was a delicious sandwich, and I wasn't full, but I knew I shouldn't. After I told her no, she made one for my companion and then split it in half. She offered again. I couldn't refuse this time. It was right there and it was sooooo good. Then she laughed when I took it. The Latinos are so hospitable. Several times I was offered something to drink at different appointments. In fact, the first night, Jesse Valle got my companion and I a drink without us even asking. So did the Hermana Reyes ( the wife of the Elder's quorum pres.).
Later that day we went to Mutual to find some older young men to come with us later that week. I met the Bishop and some of the youth. Mom.... it's a Spanish WARD, not a branch, a WARD. Bigger than ours too. There were so many youth and of course, all were friendly.
After that, we went to another appointment. It was with Daniel and Gloria. Gloria is a recent convert, and her husband Daniel is very interested. WE talked for an hour about scriptures and how to make ourselves better disciples of Christ. Their kids, Chelsea and Daniel, were also quite fun. I talked to Daniel Jr. for a little bit. He just talked and talked about his cinnamon roll that he was eating, or the movie cars, or about his kindergarten class.
Oh, just to let you know, a lot of the Latinos here can speak English, which is good at times. My Espanol is doing pretty good actually, my real problem is listening. Some of them speak very clear Spanish, while others kind of slur their words together. It's not too bad though. I know the Lord will bless me.
I would love a family calendar. I showed my companion the family pic you sent me earlier -he was like "wow".
Yes we are in a bike riding area, but we get 900 car miles a month. And even then, if we bike, the area is very flat. I'm not too worried about my knee.
Te amo mucho Mama.
Con mucho amor,
Elder Parker
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