Wednesday, December 17, 2014

Baptism and Training New Companion Again!


















November 24, 2014

Dear All:

This week was really good, but my companion will be going home. I don’t know what my companion situation will be like, but I really really hope I get to keep training someone. I love being a papa. But we did have a lot of good success this week. Edwin came to a baptism with us this week to see what it’s like, and he loved it. I asked him if it’s something he’d like to do, and he said yes! He chose to be baptized 13th of December! Now we just need to work on his wife. She’s a little bit tougher.

Also I’ve been like inadvertently learning some really deep doctrine of the Church, which is really exciting. I don’t think I’ll post my thoughts about it because I figure people need to figure some of that out for themselves because just straight up hearing it doesn’t work. But that’s sort of what comes with studying the scriptures all the time, especially D&C. 

One day all of our appointments feel through one day so we decided to look for people who live close to our house because that’s what president told us as a mission. I started talking to this lady in our street for about 5 minutes, and I had talked to her kids a lot before. She invited us in and corralled all her kids and we had an awesome first lesson, and they all accepted baptism! Now we just need to put dates with them. But it was so awesome because she was like “my kids were just baptized in the Catholic church like a few months ago, but I feel like we should all get baptized in this church, this sounds really true,” and she was like paying a lot of attention in the lesson so that was awesome.

Obdulia is still coming to church so she’s on track to be baptized. We also put a baptismal date with her daughter Jessica, but she didn’t come to church because her husband wouldn’t let her. I’ll have to talk to him.

Things are really picking up. Sometimes I wish our success was more rapid but like mom said, I’m a fisher and I have a lot of friends who are hunters, but I’m really glad to be a fisher because reading emails from the U.S missionaries makes me really happy to be here where people really want to listen. But there are lots of trade offs: we get more investigators, but they get cars, ipads, clean water, washing machines, bikes, and they don’t get diarrhea as often as we do, infections in your toes from investigators digging out a ingrown toenail, etc. ahhaa It’s really not bad at all here. I love it there aren’t many days where I actually feel what I’m doing is hard because I love being here and I love what I do. 

I’m gonna share a spiritual thought in Spanish now, I guess.

como les dije he leído El Libro de Mormón, Doctrina y Convenios, y Jesús El Cristo, entonces ahorita estoy estudiando la biblia (nuevo testamento) porque el antiguo seria bien difícil. Pero hace mucho tiempo encontré una escritura que se encuentra en Marcos 6: 5. que habla cuando Jesucristo fue a predicar en Nazaret pero la gente le rechazó, y en 5 dice ¨y no pudo hacer allí ningún milagro, solamente sanó a unos pocos enfermos, poniendo sobre ellos las manos¨  pues podemos ver que Jesucristo mismo no pudo obrar ningún milagro entre las personas que no creían, entonces, aprendimos que Jesucristo, el hijo unigénito de Dios no puede hacer milagros cuando las personas no tienen la fe suficiente. Entonces hay una razón porque fe es una de los primeros principios del evangelio, Porque sin la fe no tenemos nada y no podemos recibir ninguna bendición. 

(i wouldn’t put that into google translator because its translates in word for word which will mess up the meaning in English)

Things are awesome here I love the mission, but time goes by really fast which is kind of sad because I love being here. I’ve got a Josh Groban Christmas album on my ipod so I’m getting ready for Christmas already. Thanksgiving isn’t really a thing here ahha. I miss you guys a lot! I hope everything is well. That’s crazy Josh will be back so soon. I’m excited for him. Also I forgot my cord for my camera this week so photos will have to be postponed again! 

Love you all!

Elder Latimer


December 1, 2014

Hey! That’s awesome that the Seahawks, Dawgs, and BYU won! Great week for football. I was in a trio for only 3 days with the other Elders and a super cool RM who has only been back for a month offered to be my companion for these next 2 weeks until we have transfers. AND I CAN’T SEND PHOTOS. They’re all here on my camera but it doesn’t show up on any computer because some guy that works at these internet cafes like killed it. I might just mail my memory card or something like that. I can see the pictures when they’re on my camera but not on the computer.

This week was pretty great. We started this really cool church initiative that you guys probably know about. In Spanish it’s called “Él es la Dádiva.” It’s a video about Christmas and why we celebrate it. And for this video were supposed to have like 10 street contacts every day and report on the numbers. Also the Church bought YouTube for one day to advertise the video and also a huge screen in Times Square for all of December. It’s estimated that if we have these 70 street contacts a week well have 15 converts this month. 

We taught Rigo last night. He’s super awesome. We taught some of his friends with him, and he’s basically a missionary and helped us teach a lot. He’s been going to institute, and stuff like that, and he wants to be baptized 13th of December so we’ll be seeing a couple of baptisms soon! President almost closed my area because I couldn’t find a member to be my companion. He called me and told me that, then immediately after this RM offered to be my companion! It was awesome, but it’s kinda weird because his girlfriend is in our ward ahah. I think I’ll get to train again. I really hope I can train Kaleb. That would be the coolest thing ever. 

Thanks to this new church initiative we’ve had a lot of new lessons, and awesome contacts. This is like part of the second coming. How the whole world will know who Jesus Christ is. It’s cool to be a part of it. Not a lot of crazy stories this week. Except for it’s a new rule in the mission that we have to wash clothes by hand so that sort of sucks but it’s really not that hard. I did eat cow stomach soup this week. It doesn’t taste bad but its uncomfortable chewy. And this morning I ate cow stomach and throat tacos. It was actually really good haha. 

It’ll be weird this first Christmas away from home but the time goes so fast I’ll be home soon haah. It’s just weird being here because it doesn’t feel like Christmas because there’s not like a lot of lights and music, and snow like there is at home, but that’s okay, I’ll get used to it.

Miss you all take care.

Elder Latimer

December 8, 2014

Dear Everyone:

That’s super awesome that Josh came home. I was thinking about that a lot this week. It’s so crazy it seems that he just left. But I’m also approaching the halfway mark soon. Time flies here. I don’t know it if does there. But it’s a pretty common thing to work with a member when your comp goes home here. Lots of missionaries have done it apparently. We are having lots of success in our area!

We have two baptisms programmed for this Saturday, Rigo and Edwin. Rigo is super freaking awesome. I was nervous we weren’t gonna be able to teach him all the lessons in time for the baptismal date he chose, but I went with a member to teach him (because my comp got permission to go play with his fam that day), but we went and he learns so fast. He just kept saying “what more should I know, I want to know more?” So I taught him ALL the lessons in like 2 hours. It was super awesome. I’ve never taught a lesson like that before. And one of his friends from institute is gonna baptize him so were really excited for that!

Edwin is progressing a lot. It’s kinda sad because his wife is kinda shy and isn’t progressing a lot, but I think his baptism is the thing that will get her going. He is also going to be baptized this Saturday too! 

President says we have to wash by hand so that were not a burden on the members, but the other Elders in our district are changing their house soon to a house with a washing machine so well get to wash with them! ahah. I have a lot of funny stories this week that I forgot to tell you guys. 

1: There’s this drunk guy that’s like always unbelievably drunk, but he actually knows a lot about the bible so it’s really funny to talk to him. I’ll list some of his priceless quotes here

·        “If anyone ever disrespects you tell me, and well come shoot them up! (makes ridiculous drunk pistol actions with his hands)”

·        MEXICO AND THE U.S TOGETHER! THE CANADIANS CANNOT CROSS THIS LINE! (draws a line in the dirt) AND IF THEY DO WE PULL OUT OUR PISTOLS AND WE KILL THEM!”

·        “I’m not gonna lie... (looks ashamed), I’m a little bit drunk...” (no voy a mentir, ando pistiado)

·        GIVE ME A WORD! (we start to teach him) NO SHUT UP I KNOW EVERYTHING”

2. There’s this hilarious kid named William, who is 4 years old who is the kid of a member family. He always runs out and screams “LATEEEMERR” when I come to their house and hugs me. This Sunday I asked if his grandpa was home so I could talk to him. William said, “yah, follow me!” We went to the back of the house and his grandpa is sleeping in his rocking chair and William smacks his grandpa super hard on the chest and screams, “ABUELO!!!!” His grandpa just about had a heart attack and feel out of his chair ahahah.

3) I had to fart really bad after eating in the house of a member, and I told one of the Mexican elders when we were washing to dishes, and he was like, “dude just do it.” I said, “no, it’s gonna be really loud,” and he was like, “be a man, do it.” So I did this really horribly fake cough to cover it and I probably lit off the loudest fart ever in their kitchen hahahaha. It was so funny but no one heard because we were laughing so hard ahha. Not very missionary of me but it was very necessary. 

I’ll send my memory card home soon because it’s frustrating that I can’t send the pictures. The mission is going by really fast, and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that I’ll get to train Kaleb. I’m not sure what else there is to tell here. I want to send Christmas gifts home to you guys but I’m not entirely sure how to here, and if there’s any specific things you want? I’ll probably send some really cool Mexican tops, you can to way cool tricks with them like pick them up and stuff. 

It was an awesome week though. Miss you all. Love you all!

Take care!

Elder Latimer


December 15, 2014

Dear Everyone:

I’m training again! His name is Elder Lindeman. He’s from North Carolina. He’s pretty cool, so I’m excited to train again. As you can see from the pictures, Edwin got baptized! It was awesome. It was a super awesome experience. Hopefully his wife will follow soon. I think so. She just doesn’t like pressure and ultimately has to make the decision for herself.

Were gonna have some more baptisms really soon. Rigo said he knows that the church is true and everything and he wants to be baptized but he wants to wait a week or so more to do it because he wants a stronger testimony about the prophet and the Book of Mormon. So thats okay.

I do have access to skype here. I just have to figure out which member family were going to visit to do it. A couple have offered so it’s a possibility. Just send me your skype address, and I’ll call you guys. I’ll figure it out later on exactly what time I’ll call. But it shouldn’t be a problem.

This week was pretty cool. We went to a huge mall and sang Christmas hymns for like an hour there were a lot of people there. It was an awesome experience. There was like 100 of us, and that’s only the missionaries here in Culiacan. It’s crazy, I already have 8 months and I SPEAK SPANISH. I had that realization today when I woke up. I’ve been able to speak Spanish for a while now for like 5 months. But I just had an epiphany, and was like, “Wow, I speak 2 languages so that was mind blowing.”

I want to send stuff to you guys for Christmas. I have stuff I’ve bought. I just have to figure out how to do it, so they will probably get there late so forgive me. But I have these really cool tops that have these really long strings you wrap around them to make them spin. They’re super sick and I can do super awesome tricks with them like throw it up in the air and catch it in my hand and bounce it off my knee and a whole bunch of jazz.

I miss being home in the cold for Christmas with all the lights and music. Christmas is different here, so it’s easier not to miss home because there’s not a lot that reminds me of home so that’s good I guess.

Nothing really crazy happened this week. It’s always really fun though. Just thousands of little things I love here that I can’t list. I love being in the mission. It’s unbelievably fun. It’s just awesome being friends with all the missionaries.

Thanks for writing and I’ll keep looking out for the packages that you sent. 

Love you all! Take care!

THE Elder Latimer