Week 73

MOM HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! (this week)
How are you? Thank you for all of the great pictures that you have sent. I love them so much, keep them coming. What are your plans this week for your birthday? I hope you like what I sent you with Elder Hunsaker for your birthday. Mom how was it with Elder Hunsaker? He is such a stud isn´t he? I love that kid! He is a dear friend to me.

The MM lunch sounded like it was really fun with all those people. Tj gets home on the 15th and Taylor and Jean get home on the 1st! WOW how fast it goes by! and Brayden Miller? I get home the 13th of Feb  Wow I can´t believe it, it feels like I just started the mission....

This week we had divisions so I went out with another new elder who is very timid. We taught some people and he did great! I don´t know if it is just me but the missionaries that come out of the MTC are more prepared now than ever before. . . it is awesome. They already speak Spanish good when they get here but they don´t understand because it is to fast for them.

Elder Adair and I found a new lady to teach from Paraguay who is really cool. She is accepting to everything. We asked her to pray at the end of our lesson and she did it! She was nervous but we helped her. There are people who are willing to learn of Christ but they don´t know how or where to go. It is awesome to see how the Lord prepares people in such a way that no person could do it. . . only the hand of God. We will see what happens with this investigator but I have high hopes.

We are teaching English to the familia Leiva and they are so great! They plan on going to the USA to visit the temple and go to conference so we are preparing them with the language. They are gonna wait til I get there before they go and visit. I am sending a picture of them during an activity that we had where we played ping pong. They are on the right side. You spoke to them on mothers day.

On Sunday we had a lot of members who all want us to visit them this week and they are starting to give us references. Which is exciting because when I got here the excitment of the ward towards missionary work wasn´t great! Well that is it for now but I love you and thanks for everything.
Elder Smart

Where did you travel to for your leadership and new trainer meeting? 

We went to Parana which is about 5 hours away from Colon.

I love you mom SO SO much and I hope you have a good birthday week! I hope you know how much I appreciate all the things you do for me and for the family. Every meal you cook and every load of laundry you do.
I appreciate it all!! love you always mom
Your son

 

Week 72

Hey Family,
This week was an adventure. We had some traveling and some crazy experiences. On Tuesday night we had to travel to another zone to have a leadership meeting and a new trainer meeting. I went to both meetings. I can´t remember if I told you but I am district leader again. It was a great meeting and I learned a lot. It was fun to see some old faces that I had not seen in awhile.

When we got back to Colon we were dead tired from traveling. We went out and invited a less active member to help us visit some people and he at first said no and I convinced him other wise. We went out and he had so much excitement to get into houses and teach. It was awesome, it gave me the best feeling ever. We taught him and his family about temples and roasted marshmallows. (which they loved!) We talked about temples because the rededication is coming up for the Buenos Aires temple. I hope I can go before I finish the mission. We will see.

On Sunday we had cake at a members house for her birthday. It was fun to kind of celebrate fathers day with a family away from the family. Then we went to another house and had dinner. It was a food packed night. Got to save up for winter here. haha

Well those are the stories of my week. Happy fathers day! Love you!
Elder Smart

Did you eat the blood sausage?

Yes mom I ate the blood sausage.. it is like blood jello just thicker. I know it is gross. I miss your cooking alot mom, more than you know. I miss alot of things. I love it here but sometimes I get tired of being tired if that makes sense to you. I love you mom and I hope you have a good week.
Love your son

 

How fun that must be for you to see other elders that you have met in the mission. Like Elder Winger. How many were at Elder Wingers apt? 

9 people

What did you have to go to Rosario for? 

I went to pick up Elder Adair

How long does it take you to get there? 

8 hours....

You said Elder Adair waited in NY, did he know Rob World? 

No he doesn´t. He was in buffalo

What did you think of all the stuff I sent you? 

It was all so great mom thank you! the only thing that wasn´t necessary was the Oreos because they have those here but I still enjoyed them. Thank you.

Week 71

Hello mom! It is so exciting to hear about all the things that are happening back at home with Ashley's mission call and everyone! I got the package from the mission home and the pictures where so great! I can’t believe how everyone has changed and everything! You and Bailee and Parker and Colton! Dad is kind of the same as before.

I met Elder Saloman and he said hey you are Elder Smart! We talked about the ward and the different people he met while there in Willow Creek. He is a big old guy ha.

This last week I was in an area close to mine with an Elder named Elder Handley. He is from New Jersey. I sent you a picture with me and 2 other missionaries well he is the one on my right side. The one on my left is named Elder Farley. They are both awesome guys I plan on hanging out with them when I get back. Me and Elder Handley went to Rosario on Wednesday afternoon and got there and did the necessary things such as visit McDonalds. We went and stayed in Elder Wingers pench after with a bunch of missionaries that I have met over the mission. 

We woke up the next morning and I was going to see Elder Hunsaker but he was far away from where I was and there wasn´t time to go see him :( Mom definitely go to his farewell he is an awesome guy. I sent things with a  Hermano here who is going to give the stuff to Elder Hunsaker and Hunsaker will get it to you guys.

I went and picked up my new comp and I was nervous he would be strange.... But he is sooooo cool. He is fun and has a lot of love for the people. He speaks good Spanish but he is getting used to the way they speak here. We went to a house the first day and a little kid asked him if he had pictures of his family and Elder Adair said no and the little kid said. "Bueno andáte" Haha (Alright leave) I laughed so hard. Then that night we visited a family and they gave us blood sausage (the blood is from a cow) and I didn´t tell him what it was until his 2 or 3rd helping haha. He was glad I didn´t tell him.

 We are having fun here in colon. I love introducing things to him because everything is so new to him and he isn´t used to things that are normal to me. I always ask "is it not like that in the united states?" because I can´t remember at all.....

The lady that is programmed is really great. She like I said has been investigating for 6 years. But what I think has helped alot right now in this moment is that we have included alot of new things with her. We gave her a hymn book and we have helped her to befriend a member in the ward. She has her date for baptism but we will see what happens because she tends to go to Buenos Aires alot to visit. We are trying to make everything work as far as time.

Well I will end for now but I love you and will talk to you all next week!
Love, Elder Smart

I will send the locro pictures next week to you ok. I love you mom so much and you look so good in the pictures from the cabin! I can´t believe how everyone is so different! It scares me... Do I look different in my photos mom? Well I love you and will talk to you next week,

Love, Elder Smart

Tell us all about your new companion. What's his name? Where is he from?

He is a stud. He was waiting in New York for his visa for a month! Elder Adair from Logan Utah

What do they do on the river? Any fish? 

Yes there are fish and stuff but they don't do much on the river.

That is a cool little boat. Do you know who it belongs too? Or what they use it for? 

No it is just there.

I sent two suitcases. One large one and a smaller one that fit inside. I hope they will be OK for Elder Santana. Do you know if he got them?

Yes he did and he says thank you! He might try to write you also to tell you personally!

Week 70

 Hey  family, how are you? I am really good. I will tell you first off that I am staying in my area and that I am going to be training a new missionary. I am going to go to Rosario to get him on Thursday. I am also the district leader. I am so excited because my friend here Elder Handley from New Jersey is training also, so we will be here together until the end of his mission! So exciting! Maybe I will train that kid Saloman from the Willow Creek Stake. I will at least see him!

I also might see Elder Hunsaker and his mom in Rosario. I am going to try to see him. You sent me two suitcases? and how much was it? Santana asked me the other day. I am going to get my package on Thursday and I told Elder Hunsaker to just leave it there in the mission home.

This last week we had a really spiritual lesson with the lady who had problems with her ex husband. She cried and said her first vocal prayer. It was way cool! We also taught a menus (less) active family and in the activity they all cried and now they want us to go back to their all the time. They went to church on Sunday and it was awesome to have the church just a little more full.

There is a lady in my area that has been investigating for 6 years or so and never got baptized ever. Well she is going to be baptized on the 16th if all goes according to plan!

Thank you for the package and everything and I will talk to you more next week! 

Love you always!
Your Son!

How are the people that their baby crawled out the door? Are you still teaching them? 

Yes we are teaching them and they are doing good! The Baby just crawled to look out the doorway right when we were there so when the mom came and grabbed the baby the missionaries yours truly was there ;)

Your dessert that you took to family home evening was great!!! Do they not have pudding down there or was it the worms that weirded them out? 

Just the way it looked freaked them out alot. And yes they have pudding here.

You talked about Locro. Did it really have pigs feet in it? Did you get sick? 

No I did not get sick. Yes it had pigs feet.

When do you think you will get your package?  

Thursday

How is the training going with Elder Goodman? 

I didn´t train him I was his step dad, cuz I was his second comp

When you go to the river and take sunrise pics, how early do you go? And is that on your P-day? 

Yes on p-day and at about 7:30 it pops up.

Do you know how many new missionaries you got today?

24 I think

How are your investigators this week? 

Our investigators are really good right now.