September 19, 2016
First Week Down!!
Only like 90 some odd to go.
This week has been a roller coaster. As a companionship we have been on fire. My comp is Elder Diaz he is from Panama doesn't speak a lick of English so communication needs some work. But my Spanish is improving in leaps and bounds. However I can barely understand the Nicas, they all talk in slang and super soft (they are sssssuuuupppper humble here which is why it is easy to find people) and crazy fast, like super fast I can't pick up on most of it, but everyday I can understand a little bit more. Luckily the gift of tongues is a thing. Anyway Elder Diaz is a crazy motivated and hardworking guy, so we work well together. This week we baptized 4 people. 3 in a family Arlena, Axel and Keneth, and one old lady who is ancient named Angela.
They like everyone are super sweet and kind, but also super non committal and they aren't always the most honest. However we have picked up a ton of new investigators and have set a ton of dates this week, I think 10, we have three possibles for this week to baptize, not sure if its gonna happen with some of them.
I cant even begin to tell you all how crazy poor and humble these people are. It is easy to love the people because they are so real, if that makes sense.
What I have learned from Elder Diaz is a lot. We invite to baptize almost every time we meet someone, on the street, tracting, all the time. First lesson everything we make it very clear what our intentions are and what they can benefit from baptism and attending church.
Every week the Mission President sends out the top 15 missionaries companionship based on numbers, Elder Diaz and I were number one, really that means Elder Diaz is number one because 75% of the time I have no idea what I am doing or what they are saying.
It has been a bit frustrating at times, because i want to be able to do more but everything is so new here. I mean they don't have street signs or addresses, most of our investigators live in the mountains in shacks off of goat trails. Some, like Angela don't know how to read. Our messages are super direct and super simple. We use a lot of metaphors and symbolism that is super easy to understand.
The roads here are nuts, rocks and smoke, street vendors yelling, drunks will just grab us and cry and confess all their sins to us. One got a little hostile but there are advantages to being six inches taller and 50 lbs heavier than the average Nica man. My eyes were killing me from the smoke and dust that I broke down and bought fake glasses because I was tired of looking like I was crying.
The little kids here are super cute. The two hardest rules are we are urged to be home by nine thirty but we have so many people to visit that is hard to do. and the other is we can't hold the little kids because they are so cute. But Baseball is huge here. Most of these people live in little shacks that provide less shelter than the average tent, yet they have a huge baseball stadium in the middle of the city. I like to stop and play catch with the kids in the street. For the most part though we are hauling up and down the mountains. Like running up the mountains. Elder Diaz can fly, luckily my legs are twice as long as his!!
The Food here is amazing, I actually really like it. It is the water that sucks, but I am being diligent in using the filter and I put a drop of purification in each bottle. Soda is stupid cheap, like everything here, so people are always giving us soda, which is a bit annoying because it is so bad for you, but still it tastes so good after a 10,000 foot ascent into some tiny village. Dinner isn't really a thing, we will grab like a Gatorade and some chips, we are too busy, but lunch is the big meal here, rice and beans!! Almost every day.
Anyway that is my life for the next two years Love you all miss you!!
Love Elder Morrison
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