We got an actual handwritten letter in the mail yesterday, with special letters for mom and Porter for their birthdays. I wasn't going to type it out and put it on the blog, but I found it so inspiring, that I decided to do it anyway, just leaving out the personal parts. I hope it is inspiring for you as well.
Sept 17
The 2nd Letter of Hayden,
An account written by the hand of Hayden.
Never mind, I'm not Nephi. And the reason that looks so messy is because there were lots of bumps in the road on our way to Cartegena. We're staying the night in one of the other Elders' pisos. It is a two hour bus ride, both ways. It is really not an enjoyable experience. Aside from the ocean. We can see the ocean most of the time, which is a great view with a few drawbacks: Hairy old men in Speedos and fat old women sunbathing totally topless. Not the best image.
I thought I was going to be able to get this letter out yesterday, but it turns out I didn't have the opportunity. We didn't pass by a mailbox, and I didn't make time to write. I spent too much time studying my Spanish, which I'm getting pretty good at understanding now. And that's good.
So I've realized I have still been selfish. Even though I am out here 24/7 working for the Lord. I still think about myself a lot. I heard a song. It gave me goosebumps. Alex Boye's "Have I Done Any Good in the World Today?" I'm going to apply that to my life, and try to become a new person.
Sept 23
Well, this week has been fun. I've had two issues though. On Saturday I rolled my ankle for the fourth time since I left the states, and had that whole fiasco with the keys. And also, my thumb. I was chewing on it, and I broke the skin. And then it got infected. And was about 1.5x bigger than usual. It was ridiculously painful. It still hurts a bit, but it is getting better. I just hope it doesn't go septic. Then I could die, but it is small, and recovering. so I'm pretty sure I'm fine.
The days here are super long. Every day takes all the energy out of me and I go to bed too tired to even write in my journal. But the weeks are short. I've already been in the field for three weeks. That's crazy! The members compliment me on my Spanish. I've improved so much in the past three weeks, but i have a really long way to go. I have a goal for my Spanish. I want to be mistaken for a native speaker @ 1 year. That time-frame is unheard of, for non-autistic savants. I can do it. I WILL do it. I'm going to be fluent before Christmas, and then I have seven months to increase and expand my vocabulary and choose an accent. Apparently, I have already started sounding good--accent wise. I occasionally drop the s's, and that is how Southern Spanish people speak. Dropped s's and a thick theta. You only pronounce the theta on these specific sounds: ci (thee), ce (thay), za (thaw), zo (tho), zu (thoo). The sound is very similar to the "th" in the words thought and thaw. It really helps with hearing and spelling. If anybody has any tips with learning faster, let them rip!
I love you all! You're the best family ever!!
Os quiero mucho,
Élder Oliver
PS. Watch "Joseph: Prophet of the Restoration for FHE or family movie. It's flipping fantastic. It will strengthen your testimonies like no other video.
And then a few thoughts from my birthday letter:
Happy Birthday Mom!
Holy Moly. I've already been out here for two months. That's crazy! I'm running out of time here. We're already half-way through a transfer, and we are really close to setting some baptismal dates. I'm telling you, this place is amazing. It's dirty, and the people are rude, but I don't care...I love it!
I really like a scripture in Alma, you probably know it well. But I'm going to change it a little bit though:
Now they never had served, yet they did not fear the world; and htey did think more upon the salvation of others than they did upon their personal lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.
And they rehearsed unto me saying: "We do not doubt our mothers knew it."
Adapted from Alma 56:47-48
This mission isn't mine, it's not for me. It's not so that I can become more successful. It's not so I can get blessings. It's for the people of Spain. This is the Lord's mission. Everything I do is for these people. I sleep at night so as to have strength enough to continue. I shave, cut my hair, and groom it nicely to be presentable to them. I write to you every week to build the confidence of my siblings for those they will teach in the future. I study the Gospel every morning so as to understand it, that I can better explain it to those I come in contact with. I am learning Spanish so as to build trust with them, and communicate to them the truthfulness of the everlasting Gospel. I am overcoming fears and weaknesses so as to strengthen their faith in Jesus Christ and his Atonement.
No comments:
Post a Comment