Hey hey!
Well there's not a terribly good translation for Halloween so "Feliz Halloween" was the best I could come up with. It's funny, Mexicans get a real kick out of the fact that we make this such a big holiday. They have a "dia de los muertos" (day of the dead) but it's more of a memorial day type of thing than costumes and trick-or-treating. We did get to celebrate it Saturday though, and we had a huge get-together/fundraiser. Our ward combined with a couple of the English wards that meet in that same building and we had a huge activity! There was a little bit of trunk-or-treating, but it was mostly other activities and booths, as well as the food, that made it such a big deal. They had cakewalks and dart-throwing and all kinds of cool stuff, and people would buy these tickets (like they would at a carnival) to do these activities and to buy food from the different places. And speaking of food, they had the most incredible fry bread that we had to try more than once... It was a way good activity, and a whole lot of people came. We were excited because we got to go with a little bit of our own outfits. We found these cowboy hats and sombreros, so one of the missionaries wore a poncho and sombrero and I wore the cowboy hat with a horse tie I found and a big ol' belt buckle and everything... the members loved it, even though it was super simple. We definitely did our best and made sure to talk to everyone there and found a whole bunch of potential but... it was all for the other missionaries here or for missionaries in the Mesa Mission. We were proud though, that we took full advantage of the opportunity so we feel like we'll be blessed in some way or another.
Other than that, we had interviews with the mission president on Tuesday and then a big mission tour on Thursday where half of the mission came and we met with Elder Larry Wilson, who I think is in the second quorum of the seventy. It was a super good meeting, and really helped me think about how we shouldn't be apologetic about inviting people to repent! This is an incredible opportunity we've been given, and these are eternal laws of God that we're obeying. We have to have confidence in who we are, who we represent, and how important it is to keep these laws so that we can reap those blessings that He has for us. It was also cool being able to meet with him and Elder Wright (who is the area authority here) as zone leaders and talk about our zones and get a little extra guidance.
I do have to say that was probably the shortest interview I've ever had... there wasn't too much to discuss, plus I was the last one. But the main thing I got out of it is that everything happens for a reason. We have to learn to sustain ourselves and everyone around us in their positions so that we can all reach our potential. The more we reach out to other people and encourage them, giving them confidence and helping them be sure of themselves, the more capable they are going to be in influencing others.
So yeah, we've been really really working with the few investigators that we have and it was cool - we got to go to the Visitor's Center twice this past week! It's an amazing tool to help people gain a testimony of the Savior, Joseph Smith as a prophet, and of the church. Whenever we take people there, they feel the spirit and they see the difference. There's something special. So one of the families we took (Alberto and Adriana and their kids) this week absolutely loved it, and they're really coming along. We still have to figure out how they can get married (they're not citizens or residents), but they're definitely getting close to baptism.
I also gained a testimony of teaching commandments with love as we taught this guy named Ramon last night. He has had a drinking problem for a long time, and he truly wants to stop because he sees how it hurts his family. We taught the Word of Wisdom very straightforward, and he was 100% committed to living it right there. He wants to be that example for his family, and do what God wants him to. He just needed a little push and some help, which is what we're here for :) We're also pretty excited for his family and are looking forward to good things in the future!
We also had a pretty sweet experience as we were contacting some former investigators the other day. We knocked on this door and it just looked super empty but we heard some music, so we were pretty sure someone was in there. We knocked a couple times but nobody was answering. I didn't feel like we should leave quite yet, so I knocked one last time super loud and we just waited... finally this teenage girl answered the door and started talking to us. I guess her brother had been taught for quite a while, but they had never really talked to her. So we talked for a little bit, testified of some basic things and asked her if we could come by and share more with her. She thought about it and said, "You know what? I was just thinking about it... and I'm really interested!" It was just such a cool, unexpected response! We're actually going to go teach her today, so hopefully everything goes well. It was just such a welcome break from everything else that happened that day.
So yep, that's what's going on right now...we're staying busier (and more tired) than ever and doing our best to keep everyone inspired and motivated! Thanks for all you do!
Love ya', ~ Elder Carlson
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