Primo Tapia

I'm in Primo Tapia everyone! New area! New companion! New investigators! Lets see what's happened this week:

Alfonzo: He's an investigator that's got problems with the Word of Wisdom. You name it, he does it. Smokes, drinks, and does drugs.

But he's a great guy. He's actually starting to leave it, and I think I'll explain a small miracle that took place with him.

So, he explained to us what was going on, that he smoked and stuff, and we started to explain to him how he was going to overcome those things. We had finished teaching the Word of Wisdom, and because of that, he decided he was going to leave that stuff behind. I explained to him that he was going to be able to overcome it only if he prayed every morning and night, asking SPECIFICALLY for help, and that he had to pray in any moment of temptation and read the Book of Mormon before even ATTEMPTING to smoke or anything like that.

We left and returned around 3-4 days later. When we had arrived before teaching the WoW, he had told us that he smoked around 3 to 4 cigarrettes daily.

When we returned, he explained:

"Well, I just want to thank you guys for your help. I've smoked once in 4 days, and I haven't even touched my beer since 2 weeks ago."

It was incredible. This guy, who smoked each and every day of his life since he was a teenager, in 4 days, left it alone completely. It was awesome! A total miracle. From then on, he didn't even smoke.

He told us he relapsed a day ago, but I'm confident he will completely leave these things behind. He already made huge progress on his own. I'm positive he'll get the help he needs soon. He's got a date on the 27th of this month. We're praying for him.

He's really the only good one we've got. All the rest are just numbers, because they haven't come to church, and really aren't keeping committments.

OKay, cool stuff for the week.

1.) This week it rained HARD. Like, it rained a ton. More than any other time on my mission I think, and it got really bad. In fact, it rained so hard that a transformer blew out! We were walking home from the bottom of the huge hill we live on, and suddenly, there's a flash of white light and ALL of the hill goes dark. All of it. The transformer exploded and the sound rattled the night. It was insane. It was pouring rain, to the point where the jacket you sent me Mom, (thanks for that, by the way. Saved my LIVE that night) was soaked. The water had started to just not fall off anymore, but stay there.

2.) Family, do you guys remember the Spray Paint artists from our Cruise a couple years ago?

There's a Spray Paint artist in our ward. He's not a member, but his wife is, and he's a cool guy.

The painting you see in the picture is pure Spray Paint. All of it.

It's so cool.

He told me he could teach me how to do it in 2 weeks. Not perfect, but at least I could get started. I want to see if I can later. I would love to learn that. He explained to me that it just involved learning parts, and then putting the parts together. So, instead of making a whole scene at once, he just puts a mountain with a sky and BOOM, it looks cool. Super boss. I'm going to try it later.

3.) I took a picture at a super cool spot in our sector. The ocean is so cool.

4.) Does anyone know of good talks on Cultivating Personal Revelation? I really need some of those talks so that I can start getting that going. I need some in this area to figure out what else I can do aside from contacting and asking for references.

5.) HOLY COW. I WAS WALKING ALONG THE BEACH WITH MY COMPANION, AND YOU WILL NEVER GUESS WHAT I FOUND. AN OLD SMITHS FRESH VALUES REWARDS CARD. HOLY CRUD. I was so amazed.

6.) Because of the rain, our whole sector got muddy. There's hardly any paved streets, and so there was a bunch of mud everywhere. That picture is just after a day of walking around. Mud, mud mud. Great stuff.

Okay, well, that's all for this week. Thanks for the support. See you all later!

Elder Carter

Bunch of Stuff

So, a lot has happened since the last big email. I'll try to get it all done.

I've been transferred to a new area called Primo Tapia. It's a small town on the coast of Baja California that's around 20 minutes away by taxi from Rosarito. It's a branch that has around 180 members, with around 30 active. It's a really tough area because of the distances. There are around 10 little towns that we have to cover, and because of that, many just say that they can't come to church because it's too far. It's kinda frustrating to see that people will only show their love for God if it's convenient for them. However, that's something they choose, and I cannot overcome it.

 This new area is pretty cool, like, it's right next to the sea, and so I get to see it every day. In fact, it's so close that we are actually RIGHT NEXT to the ocean in our little house. I've taken a picture of it here and attached it. It's right next to the beach, but I forgot to take a picture of that. Maybe next week.

My new companion is named Elder F. He's 25 years old and from Mexico. Don't really know much else about him. He doesn't like talking much, and so I can't really get a lot from him.

 So, with that said, I'll try to talk about the cool stuff that has happened. I can't really put investigators because I still don't know all of them, but next week I'll have a list ready.

 1.) First, I had the WORST mission experience in all of history. There were fleas or ticks (not sure which) in my bed, and my companion didn't tell me until around 3 days after. I woke up for 3 straight nights with more and more bites on my body. I took pictures of the bites. They hurt. A ton. And itch. And in the shower, they burn. The ones I showed are just a few of the many bites I have. So, because of that, I took a can of bug killer and strewed out everything. Bed, stand, blankets, pillowcase, everything. And I just sat there spraying it until I drowned the stupid bugs to oblivion. I took a picture of one of them that I found. Just imagine that in your bed. So yeah, I just absolutely hated that.

 2.) I did my first street contact in English. Here is much more touristy, so sometimes Americans are here. I did my first contact in English, and it was hard. I tried saying "about" but instead tried to say "acerca de" in spanish. Super tough, but not many happen here.

 3.) So, this next thing makes me sad that I didn't have my camera. There were some clouds that were over the ocean that moved into Primo Tapia. It was so cool! The clouds hung there over the sea, and after a few minutes, it moved into our sector. The fog was so dense that water accumulated on my hair. It was pretty cool, but I didn't have my camera with me. The rest of the pictures are with members of my old ward, and with other missionaries. I also took pictures of Jello flowers that a lady in our branch makes. They are really cool. If any of you have questions, let me know. I'll be sure to send the answers.

Thanks for the support.
See you all later.

 Elder Carter


 

Transferred

Coby didn't have a lot of time this week to send out an email.  We did hear that he has been transferred to a little city south of Rosarito Mexico called Primo Tapia.  We have looked is up on the internet and it looks like it is about 15 minutes south of Rosarito.

It is a small little town that is right on the coast.  He mentioned that he could see the ocean everywhere.

We are anxious to receive another letter on Monday of next week.

Below is a map of where Coby is serving.  The star on the map indicates Primo Tapia.

Package Restrictions in 2015.

We received this notification from Coby Last week:

"Dear Elders and Sisters, it´s very important that you carefully read this information.

The following rules will take effect beginning in January of 2015! The packages that are received in the P.O. Box in San Diego are going to be canceled to send medications, Vitamins, candy, food of any type or any other thing that is ingested.


Also, the size of packages that will be received will be for the following measurements:
14.5 cm X 28.5 cm X 22 cm which is the equivalent of about 5.71 in X 11.22 in X 8.66 in.


Avoid sending excessive letters and packages, they should only be sent for things that are really important!


You´re being notified quickly so that you can inform your parents of the change of rules with regards to the postal service.


Remember that starting in January we will not receive packages that contain the previously mentioned or exceed the accepted measurements!"

Marathon

Okay, I'll explain the title in a bit, but lets go to investigators right now.

Sister P: No progress. Didn't come to church again. We're giong to have to talk seriously with the mom about why her daughter can no longer be baptized until late December, and explain that if the mom isn't active, we cannot baptize the daughter, because she will be inactive as well.

Brother J: Never found him this week! We went by a couple times, but the problem is he works almost all day and then goes to bed after getting home, so we basically don't see him anymore. We might leave him.

Brother JL and Sister S: We went a couple times and both times he had another visitor that made it impossible to teach him. So, we've got another appointment. He says he doesn't want to try to read the Book of Mormon because the Bible doesn't say it exists. The cool thing is, if we show it to him, he will accept completely the Book of Mormon, because he accepted Joseph Smith and he accepted the idea that Peter James and John gave him the authority. We just gotta get him to read and we'll be golden with him. That, and we gotta convince him to come to church.....

We have a lot of potential investigators. A lot of names with a lot of people, but we just DON'T FIND 'EM. Grr.....

Alright, stuff that happened this week:

1.) All of our appointments fell through this week, so we just walked and walked and walked and walked. Like seriously, we walked around 30 hours this week. Super hard. That's why I say it was a marathon.

2.) Okay, this story is just nuts. Here we go.

So, yesterday we were trying to visit a family to say good bye to a sister that was leaving. However, she wasn't home and so we left to go visit another family. The street that they live on is Calle 6 (6th street) and so we started walking up to go visit another family.

Around 2 minutes in, we noticed some dogs that were.... trying to... obey the only commandment dogs have. Really horrible image there. ugh.

Anyway, we were about to pass them (something I was really disgusted to do) when all of a sudden, EVERYTHING went dark. The street, houses, everything.

My companion and I looked at each other and we just started sprinting to the principal street called "Las Torres" because the lights there are run by a different grid because of the huge power lines there.

We got to the street and started walking up to the next appointment, when all of a sudden, we see a huge group of people gathered around a certain place.

Here in the mission, we really can't afford to be noticed or anything by bad people, because if we do, we'll be tracked and jacked of our stuff. So, when we saw this big group with police and everything, we took off our nametags to avoid getting recognized (kinda).

Anyway, we had no idea what was giong on. People were running and some were shouting. There were police everywhere and we heard a car horn that was just stuck honking. As we crossed the street and came up around the site, we realized what had happened.

Someone, while driving, had lost control of their car and smashed into the power line, which was made of cement. They smashed into it SO hard that the line broke in two where the car impacted and fell on the roof, crushing the people inside. It was this crash that caused the power outage.

It was a terrible scene. We saw a liquid on the ground, and we were hoping it was gas or water. The car horn had been smashed and was just running the whole time. The car door on the passenger's side was open, and so we imagined that that person had survived. However, the drivers side was so destroyed that not even the door could be opened.

It floored me. It had taken place just moments before. We had been witnesses to the changes that took place. Just moments before, the driver was alive and well. In just a few seconds, he was gone.

I couldn't get myself to function. I stood, rooted in the place where I was, just praying that it wasn't anyone I knew. I can't even describe the horror that fillled my soul. It was just absolutely nuts.

That, by far, is the craziest story on my mission yet.

3.) I managed to sight read an entire hymn nearly perfectly! I was so proud of myself. I'm starting to get better. Slowly but surely it's happening. I'm so great right?

Outside of this stuff... Nothing really new happened. I couldn't take pictures, but this week is giong to be picture week. Bunches of 'em. Get ready folks.

Well, thanks for the support and stuff. I really do appreciate that so many of you are willing to support me week by week. I pray for you all daily.

Be safe, and have a good week.

Elder Carter

...

Okay, I gotta make this letter a little shorter. We have lots to get done today.

So, this week, we had a few finds, and some cooler things happened, but I'll get to the investigators first:

Sister P: Daughter of a less active family in the ward. She recently completed 9 years, and so, we're going to teach her and try to get her baptized. The family didn't come to church this week, so we're going to have to postpone her baptizmal date. She knows everything though. That's the cool part.

Brother JL and Sister S: Two people we got as a reference from someone (no idea how we got it really.) They are Christians, and, because of that, they have problems with interpretations of the Bible. Like, everyone here that's a member of a Christian Church has some really messed up ideas from interpreting the Bible wrong. However, he did tell us that he couldn't ask anyone but God if what we were saying was true. He seems like a really nice guy, and we'll be seeing him on Tuesday.

Brother J: He's a guy we met when we went to look for a reference. Good story about that: We looked for the reference, found a house that had roughly the same number, and contacted the person that came out. However, they didn't want anyting, and we asked them for a reference. They gave us their two neighbors, and we knocked on the neighbor. We found Jose's brother, and then put an appointment. We found José afterward, and he seems really cool. He felt the spirit at least and recognized it, and said he was willing to read the Book of MOrmon. We'll see how our appointment goes this week.

OKay, now fun stuff:

1.) Elder E and Elder T were robbed this week on an interchange! They took everything. Cell Phone, backpacks, Mission Manuals, everything. Elder T lost everything, even his nametag! The scariest part was, they were robbed just 3 blocks from where we walked by, around 20 minutes later. Like, at 8:40 they were robbed, and we walked by, around 3 blocks away, at 9. It was nuts. Needless to say, it scared me so bad that I took the covers of my scriptures off so I don't lose them, and I'm leaving my very studied and carefully marked triple in the house and taking a copy of the BoM with me, marked with the scriptures I need.

2.) I hit my head really hard this week! I wanted to take a picture but it didn't turn out. I was walking next to a toll booth or something and it was like, 8:45 at night. I didn't see the wood that was attached to the top to provide shade and I was walking fast because we were a little far away from the house, and WHAM! I hit my head hard. It hurt so bad that I almost started crying. I wanted to get ticked off, because everyone gets ticked off when they hit their head, but then I just kinda brushed it off and realized it was just a dumb mistake. It hurt. Left a good line of blood on my head, and I had to put shampoo AROUND it for the next 2 days because it hurt so bad to feel it in the wound.

3.) RICE CHEX PACKAGE! I finally got it from Grandma Wardle and Aunt Kari! HOLY COW I LOVE RICE CHEX. I MISS IT. IT TASTES SO GOOD. However, with the recent changes in the package policy about how you can't send ANYTHING that is ingestible, I guess this is my last time eating it. I'll try to savor it. I sent a lot of pictures because I love rice chex.

4.) STINKIN COMPANION. I love this guy. I'm going to miss him so much when I leave. We're pretty similar. I mean, he's got weaknesses and things that bug me, but I know I bug him too, so we're even, and I just be patient. It's cool.

Okay, this is about all. I'm about ready to leave this area, so I gotta push to leave it good for the next elder that comes in. Lets hope we find.

See you later family!

Elder Carter

I became Elder Sant

Yeah, you read it right. I'll explain here in a bit. First, I've got to talk about investigators AND, (that's right, there's more) I think I'm going to start talking about less actives too, so that way you understand a little more about what I'm going through.

I - Sister G: She's just not progressing too much. The problem is that she has NO TIME TO DO ANYTHING. It's a rough ordeal, but we're going to see if we can't just teach her a bunch about the church and see if she will understand that she has to sacrifice to get to church for just an hour, and then we'll be good. She's super cool though.

LA - Brother J C: He's a cool kid of 19 years. We found him a while ago, and we reactivated him almost immediately. He was going to church, but then for some reason, he stopped. He invited his whole block to talk to us and even his girlfriend, so he's awesome. We're just working on his attendance now, and then we'll be set with him. Super cool kid.

LA - Sister A: She's a great little old lady that just loves when we come over. However, she does have a problem with Smoking, so we're going to be working with her on that. If she progresses, we'll be sitting pretty. We have plans with her to help her quit, so we're going to be working on that.

Those are the main people of interest right now.

Okay, now, for this week's adventures:

1.) First, I want to talk about something absolutely hilarious that happened a few days ago. Brother M, our new convert, was reading the Book of Mormon, and he told us he had questions. However, when we asked him, he said he could only remember that it was in 2 Nephi. He told us it was somewhere in the middle, but he couldn't remember what chapter. So, I, being full of faith, said:

"Are you guys ready? I'm going to flip through 2 Nephi and open up the chapter you read. Got it?"

Everyone laughed, including me, but nonetheless, I had faith. So, I separated 2 Nephi from the rest of the Book of Mormon and slowly started to flip the pages and I stopped in the middle.

It landed in 2 Nephi 19. I started reading out loud, trying to see if he recognized it. In that chapter it talks about "Unto us a child is born" and so I asked him, did the chapter talk about a child?

He told me that yes, and so I read the verse, and he said:

"THAT'S THE CHAPTER!"

Miracle. Just a gosh-darned miracle. Super awesome. We taught about Isaiah and how he could understand it more.

Speaking of which, Dad, you need to get a copy of the Book of Mormon in Spanish, and then, when the family reads in 2 Nephi, read the footnotes of the Spanish version to them in English. It explains A LOT more than in English. Hebrew words, when metaphors start, what the context is, and what certain words have to do with what he says. It's crazy.

2.) I WAS SO SICK. This is why I say I became Elder Sant.

You remember about a month or two ago how Elder Sant got really sick and went to the hospital? It was exactly the same with me.

I got sick on Tuesday. I felt bad and I just felt so bad I couldn't leave the house, and not only that, but I had some unstoppable urges to use the bathroom if you know what I mean. So then, I stayed home and recovered as far as I knew. I woke up on Thursday and started working again.

By afternoon, I felt a little worse, but I thought I could just tough my way through it.

By evening, I was ready to die.

We were in Ward Council that evening when I realized that this was much worse than just a stomach ache. It hurt SO bad, and I couldn't even get myself to want to move. I was having cold shivers, and above really anything else, I was super weak. So we went to the doctor, and it turns out that I had a STOMACH INFECTION! Woo! Those are fun.

So, he gave me some pills, some advice, AND SHOTS. I hate shots. More than anything in the whole world almost. I hate them. Spiders and needles just scare the crud out of me. The worst part is, THE DOCTOR CAN'T GIVE THEM! So basically, Elder C has had to stab me with needles for the past 4 days. Today will be the last time I have to get a shot, but you'll never guess where I've had to get them.... Looking at the picture, you can take a guess.

The first time he injected me, he was really nervous, and so when he went to inject me, he was trembling so much that he stuck the needle in too quickly. So quickly, in fact, that it felt like he stabbed it into me. Not joking. It hurt SO bad. I was sore all night, and all the next day too. It was horrible. He got better after that though, so the next couple of times weren't that bad. But gosh darnit. I. Hate. Shots. Hate them. With my whole being.

3.) I've started hating my diet. The thing is, I have to eat stuff that's really quick and easy to eat, because I want to get in bed on time to have energy for the next morning, so every day I eat the same thing: Cold cereal in the morning, and hot dogs at night. I'm sick of hot dogs. Any suggestions of quick, simple, good tasting meals or things to eat?

4.) I'm starting to play the piano a ton now, and I might even play in sacrament meeting. Is there some way I could get a piano that can roll up and be compact? That way, I could practice in the house when I have nothing to do. Are they too expensive, or could someone send me one? I'd help me a ton with practicing the sacramental hymns that are just nightmares to play.

Okay, well, this week as been basically normal, but with those awesome things happening. Stinkin sickness is hard. But whatever.

If anyone has questions about my sickness or whatever, feel free to ask me. I'll answer them.

Pictures: The picture that has me with my finger on fire was my attempt at being a FireBender from Avatar. Pretty legitimate-looking right?

I don't know if I sent the picture of Peter with the Book of Mormon or not, so I'm sending it again just in case.

The picture of Elder C with the syringe and me with my face in my pillow, clenching my teeth so that I didn't scream. I hate shots.

Okay, have a good week everyone. Thanks for your help and support. Don't forget to pray.

Elder Carter