Dusty's Email -- 03/29/2010

Family,

To start off, Dad...don't be hating, I never got suspended during the regular season or playoffs, just got thrown outta a game after I graduated for running my mouth. (I think it was the same Assistant Principal but at Higley. hahaha, but at least mine was after i finished playing, oh and church ball doesn't count;)

Sounds like things keep moving along there at home. Transfers come up this next week, so Sunday after the conference they will advise us of transfers...these transfers will depend where i finish the mission. Honestly, I would like to stay here, just get a different companion. My companion has the maximum time that a missionary can have in an area in this mission...so he´s got changes for sure next week. Even though we get along, I´m excited for the change. Excited to be with a different missionary, also one that is ready to work.

I would imagine that the mission would be advising you guys about my date here soon, i know that on the 25 and 26th, the secretaries bought the plane tickets...so they should be calling here soon.

The ice cream contact...haha...this is a good story, so he has a huge drinking problem, but we started to help him and he was at a week without drinking, nothing!! Clean! So we call him to talk about going to church the next day, and he was completely prideful...because he hadn't drank, he decided that all was well because he hadn't drank in a week, and that he didn't need our help anymore...it was a bummer, but everyone has to make their own decisions. When he humbles himself more he knows where the church building is at.

Dad, you´ve lost 40 pounds??? Dang, that's so cool, congrats, I´m sure that you look a lot different now, i´m excited to see it!!

I´m excited for the conference this weekend, I´ve been listening to the talks from the discs that you guys sent me...and by the way it is in English, but my companion kinda understands it, doesn't really speak it, but can understand more or less what is going on.

But I´m really excited for this weekend, we have a couple baptisms lined up. We had a good baptism yesterday, it was a daughter of a family that is getting ready to enter into the Temple, now the family is just short another son, and they will all be members. But it was cool, because her brother, who is a member, is 16, got to baptize her, and her dad confirmed her. Her mom shared her testimony in the service and it was really special.

I´m gonna send some pics i took today with Pickup, this is his last P-day, he goes home on Friday. This was the last time i get to see him until we go to Texas. Also i´ll send one of the district, but from last transfer, so two of the missionaries aren't actually in the district still...one Mexican and the other American....they are seated with my comp and i in the chairs, but the other four behind us are still there. The other is the baptism of the girlfriend of Alfredo...he´s the one that we baptized about 2 1/2 months ago and already has the Mel. Priesthood and is actually Young Men's President, he baptized her.

There is one where I have on a soccer jersey..this is with Alfredo, our neighbor Fernando, and me and my companion in the morning. The jersey i have on is of my favorite soccer team named the Chivas(Rams), and the other two have on jerseys of the Pumas, that day those two teams played against each other, the neighbor invited us all to eat, the other pic is all of together in the house right before we ate in the night time and right before the game started.

Things are all good, this week is gonna be a good one. All is well here in Mexico City.

Talk to ya later

Love

Elder Howard

Dusty's Email -- 03/22/2010

Hey,

I hope that all turns out well for the Blanchards, of course don't know what happened, but i hope that it all goes well.

This last week was a good one. We had a lot of work and things went well for us. My companion and I are doing well. He is still having his character problems, but like I told you, he gets along with me. He just has such a strong personality, that at times its difficult to work with the members and others due to his words and actions. But all will turn out well. Transfers are in 2 weeks.

I think I told you guys that Elder Christensean, my comp from the MTC is an Assistant right now. He asked me if i´d like to finish here or in another area, he told me what area I could go to and its a really good area. We´ll see what goes down in the transfers. I told him that it doesn't matter to me, I like this area and I feel like there are still things that i can do here.

Dad I am really excited for the general conference in a couple weeks also. I´m looking forward to the messages that we´ll hear.

One of my comps, Elder Alpuche, last night notified us( his ex companions) that he is gonna get married in July. He is just barely got home in January. He actually is getting married to a sister missionary that served here in this mission. They served in the same district for like 11 months. hahaha. But he´s engaged and they have planned the wedding for July. He wants Fillerup, Pickup and I to come back to Mexico City to attend his wedding. I guess we´ll see what goes down as that time gets closer.

Don't really got much to say today, things are just going normal. Oh, this last week Elder Ochoa, the first counselor of the Young Men's General Presidency came here to Mexico and met with only our missions - actually only 4 of the 8 zones - and ours was one of those zones. He and the 2nd counselor of the Area Presidency talked to us. It was really interesting to hear several of their comments and I think that what they said will help our mission to have more success.

But that's it. Sorry if this letter is really short but i gotta run. We´ll talk more in a week.

Elder Howard

Dusty's Email -- 03/15/2010

Familia,

Hey, another week comes and goes and here I am again writing you guys a letter.

Dad thanks for the story that you put in your email, I really like that, Joseph Smith was a very inspired man. The lesson is one that I´m gonna try and apply.

I´m glad that things seem to move along good back at home, despite the demands of the babies. Its good to hear that volleyball season started out well for CJ. Hope fully it´ll continue that way. I hope that they beat the snot outta Seton..I still haven't grown much love for them either.

I did get your package this last week, thank you for all the candies. The people here love the candy from the states....I do too:) Mom, I usually pass out the things that you send but there are times when I forget, but for the most part, I do it.
Things were good this last week with my companion, a lot more relaxed. I think that his chat with the Bishop helped out a lot, and I talked a little with him too. He apologized for getting mad and frustrated at certain times, I asked him if there was something that I´m doing recently to spark him...he said no...that he´s just felt more frustrated since he didn't have changes this last transfer. But things will be good. Its not like we´re fighting, there are just time when he explodes...and its like, uh what happened???

We baptized the mother in law of the Bishop this last week. It was a really nice service. Her grandson baptized her.

After the service the Bishop pulled us aside and said that he didn't honestly think that she would get baptized. But he was happy that she did it, and that all work out well.

On Saturday we did divisions in the morning with the Zone leaders. Elder Heward came with me, and did the baptismal interview for us, then I did an interview for a companionship in the district. After the interview we had an appointment, but it was so hot, that I told Elder Heward that I wanted ice cream...even though we had this appoinment. We went across the area to buy some really good ice cream that is sold cheap on Saturdays in my area. I don't know why, but that ice cream seemed more important in my mind than the appointment.

As we were asking for our ice cream, a guy came up to me and started talking to me in English. He was a little drunk but was telling me that he wanted our help. That he had lost everything, family, friends, everything because of his alcohol problem. Then when he saw us the thought came to his head that we could help him.

So he gave me his number and I called him later and told him about church on Sunday and he said he´d come. On Sunday we met up with him and he came to church. He met the Bishop and the counselor, and we made a plan on how we are gonna help him. So we´ll see if we can help him get his life back. I was thinking about it, and I don't know why I was thinking that my desire for ice cream was more important than going to the appt...but through small and simple things the Lord brings to pass great things. I¨ll keep you updated with how this goes with Julio.

Gotta run, thanks for your letters and everything. I´ll talk to you guys in a week.

Elder Howard

Dusty's Email -- 03/08/2010

Hey,

This last week went pretty well, but not the best of weeks. We had an investigator that the whole week kept changing her mind, that she was going to get baptized, then she wasn’t . Even up until yesterday. Then she decided that she was going do it, but she didn’t pass the baptism interview. So we`re going to have to wait a few weeks. She’s just a super indecisive person She`s really cool, she signed up on the list yesterday to feed us this week, and she really loves having us around, just kinda stressful.

Wow, Shalae is getting married. When is her wedding??? I imagine that it’s here soon.

Sounds like things are calm and just moving along. The same here. The time continues to move on and the work continues to grow. My comp has still kind of continued with his attitude and the Bishop of one of our wards noticed and yesterday talked to me first and then him. I really appreciated what the Bishop said to me. He`s helped me out in this situation. But my companion misunderstood a comment I made during a lesson and thought that I was making fun of him. I wasn’t even talking about him or to him. But he got up and stormed out of the house. It was real embarrassing and awkward.

He walked home almost alone because he was pretty much running to the house...and I couldn’t really keep up. After about the first 20 minutes in the house I asked what the heck happened. He told me that I was making fun of him with my comment and all. I explained what I said and apologized if he thought I was talking about him, because it was a remark that I made towards the investigator...about the investigator and had nothing to do with him. He continued to be mad. He went to bed mad and got up mad. I was fine. All smiles because I knew what I said. The whole time I was thinking back to the talk by President Monson from this last conference, his talk in Priesthood meeting. There was a certain quote that he said that I liked, “a mans a fool who takes offense to an insult that wasn’t intended”. But all got better.

I have to run. I hope that all is well back home. I hope that I get my package this week, because we have Multi zone conferences this week. We`re going to take the mission picture where all the missionaries get together and we take a huge picture. Do you guys remember we did this last year too.

Love ya,
Elder Howard

Dusty's Email -- 03/01/2010

Hey,

I´m glad to hear that everyone is good and that things are well. I´m sorry to hear about Grandpa...please keep me update on his condition. Also wish Pop a happy birthday for me!!!

Things are going well in the area. I can tell that my companion is sick of the area. He´s got another 5 weeks to go here....at the end of this transfer he´ll have 30 weeks here – that’s about 7 months. So yeah, he´s ready for a change. I´ve seen him a bit different the last couple days, like quicker to anger, I don’t know if maybe he´s mad that he didn’t get transferred or what. But just seems like a small thing can just spark him into being mad. We haven’t fought at all, but just some things that I´ve noticed.

Oh and yes mom I did go to drivers school one time. I remember that it was a day that rained a lot, and I was thinking, “Wonderful, the one time that it rains, and I´m trapped inside this dumb class.”

So Alfredo, a 25 year old guy that we baptized the 10 of January, was given the priesthood and ordained as an Elder last night. It was really cool to be there and watch him as he received it. He also gave a talk yesterday in church on prayer and did really well. It really motivates me to see the progress that he has made, I’ll have to tell you more about his story later...but know that the first time we saw him, we were a bit scared. But how the Lord can change a man that gives all his heart to Him.

The work continues to move on here. I saw Elder Pickup today and we talked a bit. He´s in his last 5 weeks as a missionary. I can´t believe that its getting close for him to head out.

But I’ve continued to study more about the Gospel and its really cool the things that I’m learning. As I study each topic more in depth, I’m reading scriptures that I’ve read a bunch of times, but understanding different things from them. I´ve really learned how to focus myself and study a certain topic. I think that it’s something that´ll help me in school when I get back.

But all is well and the Work continues to progress. Thanks for your letters and all. I´ll talk to you guys later.

Elder Howard