Dusty's Email -- 8/14/2008

hey Que Tal??

So its coming down to the wire here. This is my second to last P-Day in the MTC. My branch President said that whether we have our visas or not we're heading out August 25th. But great news, you know the story that I told a couple weeks ago about my Branch President at the store with the guy who's Uncle is President of Mexico. Yeah, 50 visas went through this week:) He usually only does 10. So we're hoping and praying things will continue to move along. But President Dickerson says that if we don't get our visas we'll probably go to Georgia. That's what he said but we have no idea.

So we're doing another week of week of Spanish and its actually really hard to type in English because I keep coming up with the Spanish words.haha, but esta bien. Anyway things are going great here, we're teaching in Spanish, not just the task that everyone has every week but a progressive investigator also. We're doing both in Spanish and so we're teaching almost everyday on Spanish, its really sweet. There are times that the words just come and also thoughts to switch the subject or to ask a question and there is just some way that you're able to say it. Its amazing, the Spirit is so strong here.

I'm still a little sick. I feel fine but i have a sore throat and I'm coughing a bit and have a runny nose. But I'll take that over anything else, if this is the extent of the sickness i get here, that's fine. Others have had worse so I've been blessed.

I hope that you guys got my tape back, I sent it on Monday so it should be there any day. But how are things going? It sounds like its getting tougher as time presses nearer to the babies leaving. That's been tough for me too, and all I can do is just work my butt off in Spanish and trying to learn something at times to get my mind off it. But it will be for our benefit, I don't know what that is, but know that the Lord is aware.

One of my companions parents sent him part of a sports page about the Olympics the other day, yeah we were wrestling to all read it first. hahaha, but its fun. my district is so awesome, this last week everyone left that was older than our district, so now our district is the oldest and there are three below us. So we're getting to help them out a lot.

Well again time is just flying by, its time for me to finally be in the field and then I'm sure time just flies right on by.

Quick story, the other day my companions and I had to teach the investigator(member just acting the part) about the plan of salvation, and the situation was that his brother had died and we were teaching him about where he goes and what not. Well after we finished, he decided to share something with us. When he walked into the room we noticed he had a crutch and come to find out he had polio. He's from Peru, and so when it came to the age to serve a mission he wanted to serve so badly, but the church wouldn't let him because he was disabled and they didn't have missions like that back then.

He wanted to serve so badly, and when he was 21 he was called to serve in the bishopric and the bishop handed him a letter and told him to read it in Sacrament to the congregation, and in the letter the first Presidency announced that disabled members could now serve missions. He was so happy because one of his deepest desires was to be a full time missionary. He went to his Stake President to ask if he could serve as a full time missionary, and was praying that no matter the answer he would accept it as the Lord's will. The Stake President said no! He was so sad but was still able to serve somewhere in Peru but not as a full time missionary. But in a blessing a little while later it was said that how blessed he is, because he has put the Lord's will first instead of always being bummed about not serving a full time mission. Of course he was crying as he told this story, and so were we, the Spirit was so strong.

He then looked at us and said that you are healthy. Don't waste your time, enjoy it, but get to work, Because one of my greatest desires was to be a full time missionary like you, and I was never allowed. It really left an impression with me and it really changed the way that I study and do things now.

I hope that all is well and I love hearing about whats going on.

Love you guys
Paz
Elder Howard