P-Day update week 23, 07/25/2022
Buenos días!!
Our first week back in action, we were able to get out and work! We were able to see some fruits from our hard work!
We did quite a bit of traveling this week just checking up on our people and making sure nobody had forgotten about us. Our first stop out of Zacapoaxtla was to Cuetzalan. Here in my area the temperature is very mild, cold if anything. That's thanks to us being in the rainy season so most of the time it's raining and there really isn't any opportunity for it to get hot here. Cuetzalan is a different story. It rains a lot there but because it's at a lower elevation it's normally much hotter. Here in Zacapoaxtla it's the middle of summer and probably about 50 degrees while I write this email and it probably won't get hotter than about 70 degrees. Definitely different from the Alabama summers I had grown accustomed to! But like I said Cuetzalan is different. The climate is the same as it is back home, hot and humid. I actually quite like it. I find the climate almost nostalgic haha! Anyway, we were able to go to Cuetzalan with the other companionship to eat with a hermana that lives there and that was about it. You see, about a week ago the mission president and his assistants decided it was best for us to not go to Cuetzalan and prostelyte anymore. The reason is that because there isn't any leaders that live near there, so if we were to have a problem with somebody, we wouldn't have anyone to go to or any help to find there. So they made the decision to stop letting us go and teach new people, but they said we can continue with the people we're currently teaching! So we can keep working with our friends out there for the time being. Also! On our way to and from Cuetzalan we normally ride on a combi. When I first got here I would get really motioning while riding in them, but not anymore. Although it still isn't a very comfortable way to travel. But when we were there this last time the member we were eating with told us about a charter bus that travels from Zacapoaxtla to Cuetzalan and back! So we thought we would give it it try this time. Amazing! It was five pesos more expensive but it was well worth it! People weren't crammed in like sardines. I wasn't rubbing elbows with anybody, and I was able to take a great nap!! We're definitely going to have to use the bus more often!
Our next big travel day was to Huitzilan!! You all know my feelings towards Huitzilan, and the fact that we've been sick and Hermana Vicky has been out of town means we haven't gone a single time this transfer. That is, before this week!! So we got up nice and early to head out to Huitzilan, I was very excited to go myself, but I think even more excited to show Elder Mendoza my favorite town in the area! They've also started fixing the road that goes from Zacapoaxtla to Huitzilan, so the ride is much less harsh, though I kinda liked being tossed around a little bit on the trip. It reminded me of some Disney rides!! After a nice ride we arrived and had breakfast with Vicky and her family. They had quite a few family members visiting so we had the chance to meet some new really amazing people! Not all of their family are members, but they're all "Da really great kine peepo" so it was really nice! After eating with them we had another lesson with our friend Marty and his family! It was a kinda short lesson, we have taught them a few times before and felt they were ready to be baptized, so we talked about faith and baptism. Then invited them to be baptized! They said yes!! So they will be getting baptized on the 7th of August! We're so happy for them and so excited to see them continue to grow in the church! Once we finished our lesson, Hermana Vicky let us know that the food was ready. I was very excited. They always give us great stuff!! This time they gave us Tacos de Cabeza! It was only the second time I've had this type of taco, but it was soo good! They have a very smooth texture, think of it like "slimy yet satisfying"!! We had a nice meal with them and then had to make our way back home, overall a really good trip!
We had the opportunity this week to take part in a sports activity on Saturday! It was a combined activity with our branch and with the branch in a nearby town called Teteles! But before we could have the activity, President Luis needed help to cut the grass at his house so we could have a good time there. And of course I'm always up for a nice lawn cutting service project, especially since I haven't mowed a lawn in six months! But it was a little different than what I thought. Usually one would cut grass with a lawn mower, not this time though. We got there and they handed one companionship a weed whacker and a rake, and the other, garden sheers and a machete. I can't make this stuff up folks!! So Zacapoaxtla 2 used a week whacker to clear out half of the work, and Elder Mendoza and I used the big scissor/Machete combo to clear out the other half...It was so cool!!! I've never seen someone cut grass with a machete before but man was it something! We weren't able to finish it all in one day, so we had to come back and finish it later. And the next time Elder Mendoza and I got to use the week whacker! The experience I gained cutting the lawn of Sister McNeal in my ward paid off! After not too long we were able to get everything done and have ourselves a nice clean area for our activity on Saturday :))
And as for the activity, it turned out to be a lot of fun! Like I said it was a combined activity with all the youth from our two branches so we had a pretty good turn out! When everyone got there we had elotes asados, which is basically just grilled corn on the cobb which is covered jn mayonaise and cheese! Super super good. I haven't had them grilled like that but I was pleasantly surprised! They also grilled up some bananas, wasn't ready for that but once again very good. We put a whole bunch of condensed milk on them with jelly and they just started disappearing. Who knows what happened to them? And after that we played a lot of basketball. The teams were: the Elders, the adults, and the youth. We played a few games and lost most of them, but I think we started to realize our reputation was on the line. So we decided to turn it up a little. The rest of the activity was filled with a lot of running and a lot of getting hit in the face by the adults "trying to get the ball" hahah! After the games we finished with a little barbecue and finished off with that. Overall it was a really fun activity. I probably got a little too competitive in the basketball matches but besides that very fun!
So probably my favorite part of the week was definitely Sunday! If y'all remember, last week we set a baptismal date for Karla and her son Ulises! We headed to the waterfall nice and early and had a beautiful baptismal service. The water was a little cold, like crazy cold actually! But with a little courage we were able to get in, and everything went by perfectly. Usually something happens and it doesn't turn out how you wanted it, but this baptism went really perfectly! After the baptisms we headed to the church for our services. There, they were confirmed and given the gift of the Holy Ghost. I don't think I've ever seen a confirmation that hasn't been a spiritual experience. It's great because you KNOW that the spirit is there. A new disciple just received the gift of the Holy Ghost and so it comes in with power! I looked over and they seemed so content with this choice they've made, I'm so proud of them!!
This week we really have been focusing on building our unity as a companionship and working hard to find new people to teach. It's been a little bit of a struggle having people listen and being able to make contact with people, also some of our friends haven't talked to us in a very long time and we've had to stop teaching a few. But it's in the moments like the baptisms of Karla and Ulises that everything is worth it, knocking on the doors, and stopping people on the street, it is all worthwhile. Just knowing that they have opened the door to eternal salvation is more than enough means for me to keep working!
A cat.
Alright that's about it this time. I received a package today with some birthday decorations so I was able to celebrate today! The big 19, I'm old now!! And now I have plenty of American snacks to enjoy for a while!
So I'll just leave you all with a spiritual thought. This Sunday after the baptisms, I was asked to give a talk. I decided to talk about Elder Bednar's talk "and we headed them not". I invite you all to listen to it!! But I'll just give a quick testimony. This life is super hard. The only way we can make it in this life as disciples of Christ, is to make and keep sacred covenants with our Father in Heaven. It is the way we can become closer with him. When we become baptized and confirmed members of the church of Jesus Christ, we start on the path to eternal joy! Now that we're on that path it is our duty to hold tight to the word of God and not let go. I know that this is the way we can arrive to Eternal Life with our families. There is no other way, except to accept Christ and live his Gospel. I live you all, don't do anything I wouldn't do this week!
-Elder Garnica
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