My dearest family,
Wow! 7 months! it's amazing how fast
time is flying by. It's hard to believe, to be completely honest. I can't even
think about how 7 months ago we were driving down to Provo. And then to think
of all the changes I've made and how much my life has been changed for the
better in just these past 7 months, it's amazing. Anyway, a pretty decent week
this past week, and I'll get there in a second!
Mom - It's interesting... I've had
that same discussion with people on facebook about trek. People just don't
understand the point behind it. I really like what Dad had to say about it, and
I completely agree. And the thing about the concentration camps, are you
serious?? My goodness. As somebody who has actually tried Trek, and done it, it
is one of the best things ever, if you do it right. Just like anything else in
the gospel, we have to do OUR part. We can't just read the Book of Mormon and
expect to get an answer. We have to read, ponder, and then pray. We have to
act. We can't just ask God for something, and then just sit around waiting for
it to happen. Like Pres. Alvarado shared with me last week, Gordon B. Hinckley
tells us to pray, and then get up off our knees and go to work. I say this to
tie it into Trek in the sense that we can't just go on Trek to just go. We have
to go and do OUR part and remember what the Pioneers did, and we have to try
and learn from it. Not doing so is like reading the scriptures while listening
to rock music, or praying with a vain repetition, or going to church because
it's expected. If you didn't get something out of trek, it's because you didn't
try. Faith is action. There is no witness until after a trial of our faith
(Ether 12:6). There's a reason faith is the first principle of the Gospel:
because it is absolutely necessary for our salvation, and is necessary to bring
to pass other principles (such as repentance), and ordinances (such as
baptism). Thus, we must show our faith and always be anxiously engaged in a good
cause, and always be wanting to learn, from ALL righteous and uplifting
experiences (i.e. Trek), and that is when we receive revelation, and truly
understand what we must do in this life to return to Our Heavenly Father. :)
Whew. Anyway, that's my thoughts on all that! And I didn't know the date of
your anniversary as a member, that's really cool. :) And Mom, I want you to
know that I feel like I can stand with the 2060 stripling warriors in saying
that "we do not doubt, our mothers knew it." I don't doubt either,
because my mother knows it. :) I love you Mom! Thank you for everything. :)
Dad - your Halloween ideas sound
awesome. I'm sad I'm going to miss it... but I can't believe it's only 3 months
until October! I expect some pictures from how things are going, and especially
from Halloween night! I would definitely love to see how everything turns out,
and what everything looks like. And that would be great, having some goop. As
far as other stuff I'd need... probably a couple cans of mosquito repellant,
because they're wanting us to wear that stuff all day now, since three
missionaries have caught Dengue. It's a pretty bad disease, and can be fatal.
Not commonly fatal, but can be. It's basically like the worst flu/fever ever.
Body aches, vomiting, all that good stuff. So, maybe some mosquito repellant?
And if you're wondering about any food or anything to send... just whatever
gummy candies you think I'll like. :) I have discovered a great love for gummy
candy, like Lifesavers gummies and stuff, so anything like that would be great!
Thank you so so so much! Also, what I said about Trek above also applies to
what you said. I totally agree, and I will keep doing my best to keep building
my foundation. Anyway, know that I love you too, Dad, and that I wouldn't be
the person I am now without all your support and all your help. You've always
been there to turn to, and I feel like I can compare myself to Nephi or Moroni,
because while they weren't as clear as the stripling warriors, by reading their
words, they had a deep respect and love for their fathers. Likewise, I love you
very much, Dad. :)
Marilee - I will reply to your email
separately, sis!
Whew! Long one today! Haha, but this
week was just kind of normal, although I had the beginnings of an ingrown
toenail... However, Elder Morrison, who lives in our apartment, has had them
before, and so he helped me out. He lifted up the edge that was going into my
toe, and put some cotton under it, so now I just have to wait until the toenail
grows over that, and I should be good! Any tips, Dad? Anyway, besides that, we
spent a lot of the week over in Peñuelas, because we worked a lot in
Guayanilla. We finally found some cool people, who are willing to talk to us,
so hopefully we'll be able to start teaching them soon!
On Friday, we had tradeoffs, and I
went with Elder Morrison to Peñuelas, and we found a cool kid named Hector.
He's 19, and we asked him if he wanted to learn more about Jesus. He said yes,
so we'll be seeing him on Wednesday! He seems like he could really progress.
Besides that, my bike has been behaving better this week, and both tires are
still pumped up. However, my brakes (in just 2 months!) on the back tires got a
little worn down, so I had to buy new ones. Oh well, such is life.
To be honest though, we basically
focused on contacting this week, since we really don't have too many
investigators. We literally only taught one investigator lesson. The rest were
recent converts or with members. We taught Radames and his family, and they are
just full of confusion. They need the Plan of Salvation, especially the Atonement,
and they need it bad. They are just so worried about what happens to people
after death, and who are the people who are going to el infierno and
everything, and it's just frustrating, because the dad, who was baptized 11
years ago, but wasn't truly converted, has a deep knowledge of the Bible, and
uses it (to the best of his understanding), and it just confuses everyone. They
won't read the Book of Mormon, or come to church, so it's just frustrating.
Anyway, the Tesch's, the senior couple here, said they'd love to help us out,
and Elder Tesch is extremely knowledgeable. I think that will be good. :)
Other than that... not too much has
happened this week. :\ A lot of dogs chased us around, and I got a good kick in
on one! We were riding, and this dog started chasing me, and I kicked it good
right in the face. :) Victory. And lots of other dogs like to chase us, and
there's seriously a ton of them here in Guayanilla. Goodness. Um... and that's
about it!
I'm sorry, it wasn't the most
interesting week haha.. OH, we did get wet yesterday, because we got rained on
a lot. And we taught Hno. and Hna. Caraballo, who are amazing members. Truly
converted. Incredible. They gave us a lot of food, too, so that was nice. :)
Anyway, besides that, nothing too interesting. Keep an eye out for tropical
storms and hurricanes for me! And know that I love you all so very much, and
keep you in my prayers always. I thank you for everything you do for me and for
all your support. You are the best! Have a great 4th of July, I'll be out
working, but I hope you guys have a blast! Take pictures and tell me how it
goes! Let freedom ring!
I love you all so very very much,
and look forward to hearing from you next week!
Con
muchísimo amor
Elder
Kimball Ray Gardner
Puerto
Rico San Juan Mission
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