Area: Quillabamba Comp: Martin
Dearest Everyone,
-I taught a man this week that was wearing only a towel with a toothbrush in his mouth! We knocked on his door, he opened it like that and let us in. We ended up talking to him for like half an hour, and he didn't put on any clothes at any point in that time. It went surprisingly well though! I was on divisions with the Zone Leaders, so he's in their sector, not mine. Good guy though!
-I held a toucan yesterday! It was surprisingly colorful. And it was fighting with the roosters, which was awesome!
-I've been here for 2 weeks and I still haven't met the Ward Mission Leader. He's totally active, it's just that if he does go to a meeting I coincidentally don't and vice versa. Oops!
-We have an investigator that did a psychological test on us to practice for his class or something. The immediate result he gave us was that I had a 'wonderful personality' and that Elder Martin was a 'chauvenistic, narcissistic pig', but upon more research gave us more specific results that cast Elder Martin in a much better light. Kaching!
-I went to church for the only time here in Quillabamba yesterday! Last week was elections (no church), next week there's a conference, and the next week I'll be in Cusco. It went well!
Anyways, things are good! Keep up the good work!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Thursday, June 23, 2016
Palm Tree 6, Coconut 6, "Week 1 of 4 in Quillabamba" Edition (6/6/16)
Area: Quillabamba Comp: Martin
Dearest Everyone,
-Quillabamba is great! It's not as jungle-y as I thought it would be, but that doesn't mean that it's not a cool place. It's really hot and it's humid and there's a lot of plants and it's actually wonderful.
-We live on the 6th floor, on the roof of our apartment building. It's actually really nice, because we have the whole floor to ourselves, more than half of which is a balcony. The only downside is that we have to go up 6 flights of stairs to get there.
-Elder Martin is great! He's from Draper, Utah, but he left for the mission from Mexico and his family currently lives in Chile. However, he definitely learned Spanish here on the mission, and he'll be up in Utah studying after he gets home.
-The Family History senior missionaries came to Quillabamba to teach about family history this week. I learned a ton! There's actually work to do! And for the first time in my life, I found a name!
-There were elections yesterday, so I didn't go to church and I'm not sure how strong the branch is. And next week, there's a district conference, so I'll actually only go to normal church here once probably.
-"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience." James 1:2-3. Trials are blessings!
Thanks everyone! Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-Quillabamba is great! It's not as jungle-y as I thought it would be, but that doesn't mean that it's not a cool place. It's really hot and it's humid and there's a lot of plants and it's actually wonderful.
-We live on the 6th floor, on the roof of our apartment building. It's actually really nice, because we have the whole floor to ourselves, more than half of which is a balcony. The only downside is that we have to go up 6 flights of stairs to get there.
-Elder Martin is great! He's from Draper, Utah, but he left for the mission from Mexico and his family currently lives in Chile. However, he definitely learned Spanish here on the mission, and he'll be up in Utah studying after he gets home.
-The Family History senior missionaries came to Quillabamba to teach about family history this week. I learned a ton! There's actually work to do! And for the first time in my life, I found a name!
-There were elections yesterday, so I didn't go to church and I'm not sure how strong the branch is. And next week, there's a district conference, so I'll actually only go to normal church here once probably.
-"My brethren, count it all joy when ye fall into divers temptations, knowing this, that the trying of your faith worketh patience." James 1:2-3. Trials are blessings!
Thanks everyone! Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Tree 5, Vine 30, "Tarzan" Edition (5/30/16)
Area: Quillabamba Comp: Martin
Dearest everyone,
-Transfers were today! Well, actually yesterday. They called me
yesterday to let me know that I had a transfer! I left today at 10:00,
and I'm now currently sitting in Quillabamba. It's one of the two
zones that's in the jungle, and although it's 5:30 at night and the
sun's down, it's burning hot and I'm dying. I'm not ready for Arizona.
-My new companion is Elder Martin, from Utah! I actually met him when
he started. He has 2 transfers less than I do, and he's officially my
last companion. He's awesome though!
-We sat next to a hippie from Colorado on the way here, and he was
awesome! He told us all about drugs, and politics, and religion, and
science, and lots of interesting things!
-I did my District Activity this week. I gave them 1 hour and 5 soles
(about $1.60) to make something to save their egg from a 4 story drop.
Almost everyone did it!
Anyways, things are going great! See you soon!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest everyone,
-Transfers were today! Well, actually yesterday. They called me
yesterday to let me know that I had a transfer! I left today at 10:00,
and I'm now currently sitting in Quillabamba. It's one of the two
zones that's in the jungle, and although it's 5:30 at night and the
sun's down, it's burning hot and I'm dying. I'm not ready for Arizona.
-My new companion is Elder Martin, from Utah! I actually met him when
he started. He has 2 transfers less than I do, and he's officially my
last companion. He's awesome though!
-We sat next to a hippie from Colorado on the way here, and he was
awesome! He told us all about drugs, and politics, and religion, and
science, and lots of interesting things!
-I did my District Activity this week. I gave them 1 hour and 5 soles
(about $1.60) to make something to save their egg from a 4 story drop.
Almost everyone did it!
Anyways, things are going great! See you soon!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Cow 5, Steak 23, "Argentina" Edition (5/23/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dear everyone,
-Congratulations on the mission call Truman!! ARGENTINA! Everytime anyone in the mission talks about Argentina, they mention that it has potentially the best meat in the world, and they have (at least) weekly barbecues, so that'll be great!
-We had a zone meeting this Friday at Urubamba! Urubamba is a wonderful touristy sector in our zone, but it's an hour and a half away from here, so we had to wake up at 5:00 to get there on time and we're still recovering.
-We did another Zone Activity in Urubamba, which involved a blindfolded obstacle course, and Elder Estigarribia and I beat everyone by a long time. Kaching!
-We did some service for a racist woman, who just kept telling me that, being an American, I probably don't know how to sweep or cook or anything like that. I mean, I don't, but that's just a coincidence!
Anyways, things are great! Keep up the good work!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dear everyone,
-Congratulations on the mission call Truman!! ARGENTINA! Everytime anyone in the mission talks about Argentina, they mention that it has potentially the best meat in the world, and they have (at least) weekly barbecues, so that'll be great!
-We had a zone meeting this Friday at Urubamba! Urubamba is a wonderful touristy sector in our zone, but it's an hour and a half away from here, so we had to wake up at 5:00 to get there on time and we're still recovering.
-We did another Zone Activity in Urubamba, which involved a blindfolded obstacle course, and Elder Estigarribia and I beat everyone by a long time. Kaching!
-We did some service for a racist woman, who just kept telling me that, being an American, I probably don't know how to sweep or cook or anything like that. I mean, I don't, but that's just a coincidence!
Anyways, things are great! Keep up the good work!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Bow 5 Arrow 16, "Burger Heaven" Edition (5/16/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-We just got done having a barbecue (is it a barbecue when it's just burgers?) with the district. I now know perfectly how to describe the Celestial Kingdom to my investigators.
-I had a conversation yesterday at church with an elderly member, who finished the conversation saying "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen." So apparently the conversation was a prayer or something?
-We finally got the Sister's Area Book after about 6 weeks of waiting, and now we know who the people are that we 'urgently need to visit.' Also for some reason the Sisters gave a baptismal record to the family of the person baptized, so the church has no record of that member unless we go and get it (which is not a sure thing that we even can do).
-Friday the 13th! It was rainy for the first time in a long time, and Elder Estigarribia was sick, so it lived up to the hype.
Anyways, thanks for everything! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-We just got done having a barbecue (is it a barbecue when it's just burgers?) with the district. I now know perfectly how to describe the Celestial Kingdom to my investigators.
-I had a conversation yesterday at church with an elderly member, who finished the conversation saying "in the name of Jesus Christ, amen." So apparently the conversation was a prayer or something?
-We finally got the Sister's Area Book after about 6 weeks of waiting, and now we know who the people are that we 'urgently need to visit.' Also for some reason the Sisters gave a baptismal record to the family of the person baptized, so the church has no record of that member unless we go and get it (which is not a sure thing that we even can do).
-Friday the 13th! It was rainy for the first time in a long time, and Elder Estigarribia was sick, so it lived up to the hype.
Anyways, thanks for everything! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Rose 5 Petal 9 (that's a 'Mother's Day' thing, right?), "Mother's Day" Edition (5/9/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MOTHER! I knew you could do it! It was great to talk to you! I hope that you enjoyed Mother's day! Here, they gave the mothers decorated egg cartons, so that they could store their eggs more beautifully I suppose.
-I went on splits this week with Elder Orellana, who's from the city where our pension's husband served his mission. They had quite a conversation that I couldn't care less about, and I'm sure I'll do the exact same with my mission buddies after the mish!
-We did a District Activity this week where, to practice our English, we went to contact tourists in the plaza. It ended up being really hard though, because most of them had thick English accents and I barely understood them. It was fun though!
Well, I don't have much more to report. I mean, we had the skype call and everything just 2 days ago. But keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY MOTHER! I knew you could do it! It was great to talk to you! I hope that you enjoyed Mother's day! Here, they gave the mothers decorated egg cartons, so that they could store their eggs more beautifully I suppose.
-I went on splits this week with Elder Orellana, who's from the city where our pension's husband served his mission. They had quite a conversation that I couldn't care less about, and I'm sure I'll do the exact same with my mission buddies after the mish!
-We did a District Activity this week where, to practice our English, we went to contact tourists in the plaza. It ended up being really hard though, because most of them had thick English accents and I barely understood them. It was fun though!
Well, I don't have much more to report. I mean, we had the skype call and everything just 2 days ago. But keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Ant 5 Crumb 2, "The One With The Last Conference" (5/2/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-We had our last conference with President this week. Next transfer, he's going to interview everyone, then he's gone. It went well though! We did it outside in normal clothes by some ruins right outside of the city. We made the mistake of leaving our stuff and going into an adjourning field for a minute, and someone came and stole President and Sister Harbertson's bags. That was sad. But besides that, it was great!
-We got a reference from an investigator in Lima this week. He came to Cusco to visit his brother, who's recently been divorced, and took him to church to find us. The brother told us his story, and it's incredible--he was a hitman before meeting the missionaries, and after a very long repentance process, he's getting baptized this month in Lima.
-We had a 'kilo party', with the idea that everyone needed to bring one kilo of food to donate to the needy. Right before the party started, the Stake Presidency called and told him we can't do that because that's like charging to enter a church activity. So we had to erase the word 'kilo' from everything. It went well though!
-We took the stuff out of the Sisters' room, since there aren't any Sisters anymore, and now we have a lot more stuff!
Anyways, things are going well! Talk to you this week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-We had our last conference with President this week. Next transfer, he's going to interview everyone, then he's gone. It went well though! We did it outside in normal clothes by some ruins right outside of the city. We made the mistake of leaving our stuff and going into an adjourning field for a minute, and someone came and stole President and Sister Harbertson's bags. That was sad. But besides that, it was great!
-We got a reference from an investigator in Lima this week. He came to Cusco to visit his brother, who's recently been divorced, and took him to church to find us. The brother told us his story, and it's incredible--he was a hitman before meeting the missionaries, and after a very long repentance process, he's getting baptized this month in Lima.
-We had a 'kilo party', with the idea that everyone needed to bring one kilo of food to donate to the needy. Right before the party started, the Stake Presidency called and told him we can't do that because that's like charging to enter a church activity. So we had to erase the word 'kilo' from everything. It went well though!
-We took the stuff out of the Sisters' room, since there aren't any Sisters anymore, and now we have a lot more stuff!
Anyways, things are going well! Talk to you this week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
College 4, Diploma 25, "Graduation" Edition (4/25/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-Congratulations Momma! I knew you could do it!!!
-We taught an investigator repentance by having her and our member hold chocolate in their hands until it melted. The lesson went really well, but it turns out that chocolate will not melt in women's hands.
-We have the best Ward Mission Leader in the world! He's made a ward mission plan, called ward missionaries, he's planning activities, and he's the best. Also, now that officially we don't have Sisters in our ward, it's really nice because all of the members want to help us.
-I gave an almost-impromptu talk on Sunday. I was a back-up speaker for our pension's husband, so we asked him and he said he was going to go and speak. So I didn't worry, but someone else didn't show up and I had to speak anyways. My first talk in this ward!
-We moved! Not much though. Just from the 2nd floor to the 1st floor. The room's a little smaller, but it's still really nice and it's got much nicer floors. Kaching!
Anyways, things are going well! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-Congratulations Momma! I knew you could do it!!!
-We taught an investigator repentance by having her and our member hold chocolate in their hands until it melted. The lesson went really well, but it turns out that chocolate will not melt in women's hands.
-We have the best Ward Mission Leader in the world! He's made a ward mission plan, called ward missionaries, he's planning activities, and he's the best. Also, now that officially we don't have Sisters in our ward, it's really nice because all of the members want to help us.
-I gave an almost-impromptu talk on Sunday. I was a back-up speaker for our pension's husband, so we asked him and he said he was going to go and speak. So I didn't worry, but someone else didn't show up and I had to speak anyways. My first talk in this ward!
-We moved! Not much though. Just from the 2nd floor to the 1st floor. The room's a little smaller, but it's still really nice and it's got much nicer floors. Kaching!
Anyways, things are going well! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Piano 4, Key 18, "Half-Birthday Transfer P-day," 1st edition (4/18/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dear Everyone,
-Transfers! We're both staying. So that means that potentially I'll either finish here or have 4 weeks in one last place. We'll see!
-We did an activity on Saturday where we had to take a lap (a big one) carrying our companions. I carried Elder Estigarribia until I got tired, then he carried me until he got tired, etc. Besides the fact that all my muscles ache, it went pretty well! The scripture that they based this activity off of was D&C 136:31. Fun stuff!
-Right before the activity, I was stretching and I somehow managed to kick my hand and jam all of my fingers. My pinky was swollen for two days. I don't know how that happened!
-Elder Jensen (from Spanish Fork) finished his mission, and spent yesterday with us since he was in Villa Union a long time ago. It was actually a lot of fun, and it was really weird because his brother showed up and we met him.
-We have a Ward Mission Leader!! Can you believe that?!
Anyways, things are going well!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dear Everyone,
-Transfers! We're both staying. So that means that potentially I'll either finish here or have 4 weeks in one last place. We'll see!
-We did an activity on Saturday where we had to take a lap (a big one) carrying our companions. I carried Elder Estigarribia until I got tired, then he carried me until he got tired, etc. Besides the fact that all my muscles ache, it went pretty well! The scripture that they based this activity off of was D&C 136:31. Fun stuff!
-Right before the activity, I was stretching and I somehow managed to kick my hand and jam all of my fingers. My pinky was swollen for two days. I don't know how that happened!
-Elder Jensen (from Spanish Fork) finished his mission, and spent yesterday with us since he was in Villa Union a long time ago. It was actually a lot of fun, and it was really weird because his brother showed up and we met him.
-We have a Ward Mission Leader!! Can you believe that?!
Anyways, things are going well!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Tree 4 Light 11, "Real Christmas" Edition (4/11/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-Merry Real Christmas last Wednesday! I hope it was amazing! We celebrated it with another sick day. Elder Estigarribia's still sick with the same thing all transfer, and some days it's worse, so there ya go.
-Peruvian presidential elections were yesterday! That means that we didn't have church, and we just worked normally. No one officially won, because it requires a majority vote to win, and Peru is not just a 2 party country. But now it's down to 2-Keiko and PPK-and we'll see who wins in round 2 in two weeks!
-On Monday, at 10:30 at night, I got a call from President Harbertson. That was terrifying. It turns out that there's a creep investigator, and they left. We got to go over to their apartment very late at night though! That was cool!
-I went on splits with Elder Hanson, from my group. We basically only talked about how many days we have left.
Anyways, things are going well!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-Merry Real Christmas last Wednesday! I hope it was amazing! We celebrated it with another sick day. Elder Estigarribia's still sick with the same thing all transfer, and some days it's worse, so there ya go.
-Peruvian presidential elections were yesterday! That means that we didn't have church, and we just worked normally. No one officially won, because it requires a majority vote to win, and Peru is not just a 2 party country. But now it's down to 2-Keiko and PPK-and we'll see who wins in round 2 in two weeks!
-On Monday, at 10:30 at night, I got a call from President Harbertson. That was terrifying. It turns out that there's a creep investigator, and they left. We got to go over to their apartment very late at night though! That was cool!
-I went on splits with Elder Hanson, from my group. We basically only talked about how many days we have left.
Anyways, things are going well!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Session 4, Speaker 4, "General Conference" Edition (4/4/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-GENERAL CONFERENCE! Wasn't it awesome?! I learned that I need to be less prideful and I need to get married immediately after arriving home, so get ready for that!
-We watched it in English! Here in Cusco they actually put it on in English and there aren't any problems. And we met a lot of tourists! We met two from Idaho, one from California, one from Germany and one from Ukraine. There were a couple more, but they just left without talking to us.
-I also saw a lot of my friends! I don't know if you remember Elder Graham and Elder Pearce, but they're awesome and I spent a lot of time with them this weekend, which was awesome.
-We also had interviews with President Harbertson! We usually have them every other transfer, but this was the last time I'll have one. I have 2 left-1 for a new temple recommend, and another to go home.
Anyways, things are going well! I hope you all saw conference! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-GENERAL CONFERENCE! Wasn't it awesome?! I learned that I need to be less prideful and I need to get married immediately after arriving home, so get ready for that!
-We watched it in English! Here in Cusco they actually put it on in English and there aren't any problems. And we met a lot of tourists! We met two from Idaho, one from California, one from Germany and one from Ukraine. There were a couple more, but they just left without talking to us.
-I also saw a lot of my friends! I don't know if you remember Elder Graham and Elder Pearce, but they're awesome and I spent a lot of time with them this weekend, which was awesome.
-We also had interviews with President Harbertson! We usually have them every other transfer, but this was the last time I'll have one. I have 2 left-1 for a new temple recommend, and another to go home.
Anyways, things are going well! I hope you all saw conference! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Gift 3 Star Wars Relic 28, "The One Where My Father Nears Death (just a little more)" Edition (3/28/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest family and potentially others,
-HAPPY BIRTHDAY ON THURSDAY TO DAD! I can't believe you're however old you are! I would count and figure out an exact number, but I think that no one wants to know your actual age. Well, it's been a good most-of-your-life, and now that you're nearing retirement, enjoy it.
-Easter! It went well! I bought chocolate to celebrate, but I didn't eat any of it. We did our fast from lunch Saturday until lunch Sunday, since this week is conference and the next is elections (and we don't have church). So the first thing I ate was lunch, which filled me up right until today. I'll try to see when I can squeeze in the chocolate.
-Another child got baptized, and the font hasn't been fixed, so it was also with cold water. Despite the fact that last week it was a girl who really didn't complain, this week it was a boy who almost didn't even get baptized. It was interesting though!
-I went on splits twice this week! Once with Elder Salazar, from Ecuador, and the other time with Elder Ramirez, from Utah. It went great! We didn't teach much either time, but with Elder Ramirez we contacted like crazy. Success!
Anyways, things are going great. Tomorrow we have interviews, and this weekend is General Conference! See you all soon!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest family and potentially others,
-HAPPY BIRTHDAY ON THURSDAY TO DAD! I can't believe you're however old you are! I would count and figure out an exact number, but I think that no one wants to know your actual age. Well, it's been a good most-of-your-life, and now that you're nearing retirement, enjoy it.
-Easter! It went well! I bought chocolate to celebrate, but I didn't eat any of it. We did our fast from lunch Saturday until lunch Sunday, since this week is conference and the next is elections (and we don't have church). So the first thing I ate was lunch, which filled me up right until today. I'll try to see when I can squeeze in the chocolate.
-Another child got baptized, and the font hasn't been fixed, so it was also with cold water. Despite the fact that last week it was a girl who really didn't complain, this week it was a boy who almost didn't even get baptized. It was interesting though!
-I went on splits twice this week! Once with Elder Salazar, from Ecuador, and the other time with Elder Ramirez, from Utah. It went great! We didn't teach much either time, but with Elder Ramirez we contacted like crazy. Success!
Anyways, things are going great. Tomorrow we have interviews, and this weekend is General Conference! See you all soon!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Store 3, Shelf 21, "The One With The Tattoo-ed 14 year old" (3/21/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-We have a 14 year old investigator who's just the best. We went this week though, and he had a fake earring in and a tattoo on his neck which I thought was fake but he's hid it all week and maybe not. So that's fun!
-We ran into the Stake President of Sicuani this week and he remembered me!
-Last Monday, we went to some ruins as a zone. Finally, after being in Cusco for 3 months, I went to one of the millions of ruins here. Fun stuff!
-A little girl got baptized on Saturday, and the heater didn't work, so she got baptized in freezing cold water like Jesus did. It was impressive though!
-Another sick day! And again, I was not the sick one. It's always bothersome because I want to work, but I also like the ability to clean everything.
Anyways, things are going well! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-We have a 14 year old investigator who's just the best. We went this week though, and he had a fake earring in and a tattoo on his neck which I thought was fake but he's hid it all week and maybe not. So that's fun!
-We ran into the Stake President of Sicuani this week and he remembered me!
-Last Monday, we went to some ruins as a zone. Finally, after being in Cusco for 3 months, I went to one of the millions of ruins here. Fun stuff!
-A little girl got baptized on Saturday, and the heater didn't work, so she got baptized in freezing cold water like Jesus did. It was impressive though!
-Another sick day! And again, I was not the sick one. It's always bothersome because I want to work, but I also like the ability to clean everything.
Anyways, things are going well! Keep it up!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Pie 3.14, "Pie Day" Edition (3/14/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-Happy pie day!
-Elder Estigarribia! He's still awesome. And he was already here in Cusco, so we just picked him up in the Plaza de Armas and went to my sector in a taxi. Much better than a 10 hour bus ride!
-I went to Calca this week! It's essentially the "Yunguyo" of our zone. It's just this really small town in what's called 'Sacred Valley of the Incas", which means that it's actually beautiful and really cool. It was fun though!
-Do you remember my Beloved Son Elder Hogan? He's in the office, meaning that he's here in Cusco! I'm going to see him all the time!
-We walked a ridiculous amount this week. We had a ton of appointments, but we walked. But we have a focus right now on helping people instead of just getting higher numbers, and it's going great!
Anyways, it's been a great week! Things are fairly uneventful here, but that's the best! Take care!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-Happy pie day!
-Elder Estigarribia! He's still awesome. And he was already here in Cusco, so we just picked him up in the Plaza de Armas and went to my sector in a taxi. Much better than a 10 hour bus ride!
-I went to Calca this week! It's essentially the "Yunguyo" of our zone. It's just this really small town in what's called 'Sacred Valley of the Incas", which means that it's actually beautiful and really cool. It was fun though!
-Do you remember my Beloved Son Elder Hogan? He's in the office, meaning that he's here in Cusco! I'm going to see him all the time!
-We walked a ridiculous amount this week. We had a ton of appointments, but we walked. But we have a focus right now on helping people instead of just getting higher numbers, and it's going great!
Anyways, it's been a great week! Things are fairly uneventful here, but that's the best! Take care!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Computer 3 Mouse 7, "Transfer Day" (3/7/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Estigarribia
Dearest Everyone,
-Transfers! Elder Murillo's on his way home, which is sad. It's been a good two years, but it's sad to see him go. And guess who's coming--ELDER ESTIGARRIBIA!! Remember him? I lived with him for 4 transfers in Yunguyo and we're best friends? He's my new companion!
-We have a rule that we don't tell people how much time we have left, and we were doing great until Bishop announced in Sacrament meeting that Elder Murillo's going. I don't even know how he knew. But that was a nightmare.
-We went with the pension to eat pizza (as a going-away thing) on Friday, and it was great! Maybe we weren't perfect at the whole keeping-it-a-secret thing.
-A lady from another ward here took us to Chili's last Monday (as another going-away-thing). I love it right before people leave!
-This giant, bear-like dog attacked Elder Murillo twice this week, but Elder Murillo's great at hitting it in the face with his bag and we've had no problems!
Anyways, things are going well here! I'm excited for my new companion!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-Transfers! Elder Murillo's on his way home, which is sad. It's been a good two years, but it's sad to see him go. And guess who's coming--ELDER ESTIGARRIBIA!! Remember him? I lived with him for 4 transfers in Yunguyo and we're best friends? He's my new companion!
-We have a rule that we don't tell people how much time we have left, and we were doing great until Bishop announced in Sacrament meeting that Elder Murillo's going. I don't even know how he knew. But that was a nightmare.
-We went with the pension to eat pizza (as a going-away thing) on Friday, and it was great! Maybe we weren't perfect at the whole keeping-it-a-secret thing.
-A lady from another ward here took us to Chili's last Monday (as another going-away-thing). I love it right before people leave!
-This giant, bear-like dog attacked Elder Murillo twice this week, but Elder Murillo's great at hitting it in the face with his bag and we've had no problems!
Anyways, things are going well here! I'm excited for my new companion!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Day 29 Month 2, 'Leap Day' Edition (2/29/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dearest Everyone,
-Happy leap day! I hope you all are celebrating your hearts out, and that Leap Day William brought you all that you could ever wish for!
-For the first time in our two transfers together, we had to take a sick day. And guess who was sick? ELDER MURILLO. Can you believe how healthy I am?
-We had stake conference this weekend! That makes 2 conferences in a row! It went well though.
-We had a zone meeting in the middle of the week, and we had to do weekly planning there so that the zone leaders could see how we were doing. They didn't even come to start checking anyone until most of us had finished though, so we won!
Anyways, not an eventful week. Sorry! Enjoy your leap day!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-Happy leap day! I hope you all are celebrating your hearts out, and that Leap Day William brought you all that you could ever wish for!
-For the first time in our two transfers together, we had to take a sick day. And guess who was sick? ELDER MURILLO. Can you believe how healthy I am?
-We had stake conference this weekend! That makes 2 conferences in a row! It went well though.
-We had a zone meeting in the middle of the week, and we had to do weekly planning there so that the zone leaders could see how we were doing. They didn't even come to start checking anyone until most of us had finished though, so we won!
Anyways, not an eventful week. Sorry! Enjoy your leap day!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Handshake 2, Second 22, "Elder Holland" Edition (2/22/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dearest everyone,
-Elder Holland came! It was amazing. First, we all shook his hand. He told us to tell him our name and where we're from, but when we shook his hand and told him that he kept holding our hand and staring at us for a second. I kind of felt like he was examining my soul. Then he said to all of us, "I don't really care what your name is nor where your from, I just needed you to stay for a second so I could look into your eyes and give you a personal interview." Then he proceeded to say that most of us were ok, but that some people were struggling. President also wrote the whole mission today, and said that after the conference, Elder Holland told him (by name) who the disobedient missionaries were. Crazy!
-I went on splits three times this week! The first was with Elder Ramirez, and that was planned and normal. The next was with ELDER HOGAN, my child!, who was here without anything to do, then the next was with Elder Cubillas, who was also here with nothing to do. Fun times though!
-Spiritual thought: Elder Holland, (referring to people who lose family members despite prayers asking for them to live), said that God gives us what we want or something better, and that He's obligated to give us the best. That's not an exact quote, but if it seems like your prayer isn't answered, there's something better in store!
Anyways, basically all I've thought about for days is Elder Holland. So have a very Holland week!
Holland Holland,
Elder Steele
Dearest everyone,
-Elder Holland came! It was amazing. First, we all shook his hand. He told us to tell him our name and where we're from, but when we shook his hand and told him that he kept holding our hand and staring at us for a second. I kind of felt like he was examining my soul. Then he said to all of us, "I don't really care what your name is nor where your from, I just needed you to stay for a second so I could look into your eyes and give you a personal interview." Then he proceeded to say that most of us were ok, but that some people were struggling. President also wrote the whole mission today, and said that after the conference, Elder Holland told him (by name) who the disobedient missionaries were. Crazy!
-I went on splits three times this week! The first was with Elder Ramirez, and that was planned and normal. The next was with ELDER HOGAN, my child!, who was here without anything to do, then the next was with Elder Cubillas, who was also here with nothing to do. Fun times though!
-Spiritual thought: Elder Holland, (referring to people who lose family members despite prayers asking for them to live), said that God gives us what we want or something better, and that He's obligated to give us the best. That's not an exact quote, but if it seems like your prayer isn't answered, there's something better in store!
Anyways, basically all I've thought about for days is Elder Holland. So have a very Holland week!
Holland Holland,
Elder Steele
Heart 2 Flag 15, "President's Day/Valentine's Day Spectacular" Edition (2/15/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dear Everyone,
-Carnavales! They didn't really celebrate Valentine's day yesterday, because they were too involved in Carnavales. It was fun though, and they did actually throw buckets of water at us.
-The new room continues to be great, except for the infestation of jumping mini-tarantulas.
-We succesfully set up bunk beds for the sister missionaries, and in the 3 nights that they've used them they haven't fallen down. I'm ready to be an adult!
-We had an investigator tell us that aliens are storing up the best humans, so that when Jesus comes and everyone dies they can restart the human race. That's a new one!
Anyways, things are great! Keep it up! This week Elder Holland's coming!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dear Everyone,
-Carnavales! They didn't really celebrate Valentine's day yesterday, because they were too involved in Carnavales. It was fun though, and they did actually throw buckets of water at us.
-The new room continues to be great, except for the infestation of jumping mini-tarantulas.
-We succesfully set up bunk beds for the sister missionaries, and in the 3 nights that they've used them they haven't fallen down. I'm ready to be an adult!
-We had an investigator tell us that aliens are storing up the best humans, so that when Jesus comes and everyone dies they can restart the human race. That's a new one!
Anyways, things are great! Keep it up! This week Elder Holland's coming!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Race 2 Lap 8, "The One with the Drunk Panay" (2/8/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dear Everyone,
-We moved! The place is great. It's about the same size as the last place, but it's infinitely better. It's got wood floors and 2 bathrooms! Can you believe that? And the showers are GAS SHOWERS! Those almost don't exist here because they're sooo nice! And there are only 2 of us, so I have my own bathroom. It's much better compared to concrete floors and one shared bathroom with an electric shower head.
-We were going up a very steep hill, and a drunk panay (elderly, very Peruvian woman) approached us. She told us about how her husband was a drunk and she couldn't take it anymore, and why haven't we been visiting her?, and a lot of ridiculous things. Eventually we convinced her to go home, which was going down the hill. She started down, and we started up, when suddenly I hear her running. I look over just in time to see her catch up to me and grab me by the arm. She tried to pull me down, but she was an elderly lady and I am not. It was pretty amusing though!
-Carnavales! Do you remember that from last year? The month-long water fight, where everyone's included whether you want to be or not? It was pretty lame in Yunguyo, and here it's also pretty lame but it's better! It started yesterday, and they've gotten us twice with water guns and once with foam. It's actually a lot of fun though!
-In Alma 28, it talks about a gigantic war between the Nephites and the Lamanites (go figure), and how tens of thousands died. Then, in verse 6, it says: "And now surely this was a sorrowful day; yea, a time of solemnity, and a time of much fasting and prayer." Maybe this community was now made up of fatherless children and widows, but they still knew where their comfort comes from.
Anyways, keep it up! Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dear Everyone,
-We moved! The place is great. It's about the same size as the last place, but it's infinitely better. It's got wood floors and 2 bathrooms! Can you believe that? And the showers are GAS SHOWERS! Those almost don't exist here because they're sooo nice! And there are only 2 of us, so I have my own bathroom. It's much better compared to concrete floors and one shared bathroom with an electric shower head.
-We were going up a very steep hill, and a drunk panay (elderly, very Peruvian woman) approached us. She told us about how her husband was a drunk and she couldn't take it anymore, and why haven't we been visiting her?, and a lot of ridiculous things. Eventually we convinced her to go home, which was going down the hill. She started down, and we started up, when suddenly I hear her running. I look over just in time to see her catch up to me and grab me by the arm. She tried to pull me down, but she was an elderly lady and I am not. It was pretty amusing though!
-Carnavales! Do you remember that from last year? The month-long water fight, where everyone's included whether you want to be or not? It was pretty lame in Yunguyo, and here it's also pretty lame but it's better! It started yesterday, and they've gotten us twice with water guns and once with foam. It's actually a lot of fun though!
-In Alma 28, it talks about a gigantic war between the Nephites and the Lamanites (go figure), and how tens of thousands died. Then, in verse 6, it says: "And now surely this was a sorrowful day; yea, a time of solemnity, and a time of much fasting and prayer." Maybe this community was now made up of fatherless children and widows, but they still knew where their comfort comes from.
Anyways, keep it up! Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
February 1, "February Fools' Day" (2/1/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dear everyone,
-We taught a class at FSY (EFY) this week! It went well! We had half an hour to convince 100 kids between the ages of 14 and 15 to read the Book of Mormon. We had them translate a scripture from Reformed Egyptian to Spanish, and it went great!
-A member asked us to wash her windows as a service project. We went, and it turns out that her windows weren't just dirty, but were covered in dry cement. That was fun!
-Our pension got back from her vacation, during which we ate a gigantic lasagna that she left for us. After 5 days of lasagna 3 times a day, I'm ready for college!
-We now live with the Zone Leaders! We live kind of far from the sector, but there's 6 of us living together, which is actually really fun!
Anyways, things are going well! Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dear everyone,
-We taught a class at FSY (EFY) this week! It went well! We had half an hour to convince 100 kids between the ages of 14 and 15 to read the Book of Mormon. We had them translate a scripture from Reformed Egyptian to Spanish, and it went great!
-A member asked us to wash her windows as a service project. We went, and it turns out that her windows weren't just dirty, but were covered in dry cement. That was fun!
-Our pension got back from her vacation, during which we ate a gigantic lasagna that she left for us. After 5 days of lasagna 3 times a day, I'm ready for college!
-We now live with the Zone Leaders! We live kind of far from the sector, but there's 6 of us living together, which is actually really fun!
Anyways, things are going well! Have a great week!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Fight 1 Round 25, "The Most Very Interesting Week" (1/25/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dearest Everyone,
-Transfers! Nothing. We're both staying! Which actually makes me really happy, since Elder Murillo is the bomb diggity and we've got some people really progressing.
-We had a worldwide missionary conference this week! It was great. It was called, "Teach repentance, baptize converts", and they said exactly what President Harbertson's told us for my last 18 months.
-We've received the special assignment to teach a one-hour class on the Book of Mormon at Cusco's first ever FSY (EFY, but I guess they changed the name). We're 2 of 8 missionaries in Cusco that are doing it, and we've got an awesome plan. To be continued!
-There's been some gossip about us and the Sisters in the ward (I don't even really know why they involved us, but we haven't done anything), and it escalated to the point of a fist fight between two adult women downstairs in the house where we lived.
-On a very related note, we spent the rest of the week looking for a new apartment!
Anyways, things are very interesting here in Cusco! Keep it up! Live your dreams!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest Everyone,
-Transfers! Nothing. We're both staying! Which actually makes me really happy, since Elder Murillo is the bomb diggity and we've got some people really progressing.
-We had a worldwide missionary conference this week! It was great. It was called, "Teach repentance, baptize converts", and they said exactly what President Harbertson's told us for my last 18 months.
-We've received the special assignment to teach a one-hour class on the Book of Mormon at Cusco's first ever FSY (EFY, but I guess they changed the name). We're 2 of 8 missionaries in Cusco that are doing it, and we've got an awesome plan. To be continued!
-There's been some gossip about us and the Sisters in the ward (I don't even really know why they involved us, but we haven't done anything), and it escalated to the point of a fist fight between two adult women downstairs in the house where we lived.
-On a very related note, we spent the rest of the week looking for a new apartment!
Anyways, things are very interesting here in Cusco! Keep it up! Live your dreams!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Conference 1, Talk 18, "The Zone Meeting of Much News" (1/18/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dear people,
-In the Zone Meeting today, they extended cell phone rights to all missionaries (we've overcome discrimination!), and they also told us that ELDER HOLLAND's going to come! Yay!
-We did a service project where we had to move a lot of things, and at one point I was standing in the back of a truck, holding a board in place that had 16 giant spiders. It was the most terrifying moment of my life. It only helped a little that they were all dead.
-We had a Family Home Evening with a less active family and they made us homemade pizza! Success!
-We heard a lot of gossip in the ward this week, which luckily turned out to be lies but now we have to move! So hopefully we'll find a place to go to!
Anyways, things are going well! Thanks for everything!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dear people,
-In the Zone Meeting today, they extended cell phone rights to all missionaries (we've overcome discrimination!), and they also told us that ELDER HOLLAND's going to come! Yay!
-We did a service project where we had to move a lot of things, and at one point I was standing in the back of a truck, holding a board in place that had 16 giant spiders. It was the most terrifying moment of my life. It only helped a little that they were all dead.
-We had a Family Home Evening with a less active family and they made us homemade pizza! Success!
-We heard a lot of gossip in the ward this week, which luckily turned out to be lies but now we have to move! So hopefully we'll find a place to go to!
Anyways, things are going well! Thanks for everything!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Race 1 Lane 11, "The One With the President" Edition (1/11/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Hello everyone!
-President Harbertson went to our ward yesterday! He said that he'd never visited and wanted to pay it a visit. It was great! There were a lot of very funny things that happened at church, making it a great Sunday for the Mission President to be there.
-A youth from my ward in Sicuani came to our ward yesterday! He walked in hesistantly and sat on the back row, until I waved him over. He saw me and lighted up. It turns out that he's going to be here for a couple months in a special academy, and he lives with his inactive brother, so he was worried about going to church without knowing anyone. He knows me though! Success!
-The Sisters had a baptism on Saturday, and the water smelled terrible. It smelled like sewer water. The Bishop called the official people to ask what to do and they said that we couldn't do anything, so we decided that we should just put bleach in the water. It worked though!
Anyways, things are going great! Keep up the fun!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Hello everyone!
-President Harbertson went to our ward yesterday! He said that he'd never visited and wanted to pay it a visit. It was great! There were a lot of very funny things that happened at church, making it a great Sunday for the Mission President to be there.
-A youth from my ward in Sicuani came to our ward yesterday! He walked in hesistantly and sat on the back row, until I waved him over. He saw me and lighted up. It turns out that he's going to be here for a couple months in a special academy, and he lives with his inactive brother, so he was worried about going to church without knowing anyone. He knows me though! Success!
-The Sisters had a baptism on Saturday, and the water smelled terrible. It smelled like sewer water. The Bishop called the official people to ask what to do and they said that we couldn't do anything, so we decided that we should just put bleach in the water. It worked though!
Anyways, things are going great! Keep up the fun!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Martinelli's Bottle 1, Glass 4, "The New Year's Hangover" Edition (1/4/16)
Area: Union Villa Comp: Murillo
Dearest everyone,
-Happy New Year's! The fireworks were so loud that I actually woke up for about 2 minutes. It was terrible. But besides that it was great!
-The ward had a New Year's Party. We went to help set up and also to eat dinner there, and when we left at 9:30 (it started at 7:00) there was no one and the party seemed like a failure. Apparently, by midnight, over 150 people were there, making it the most successful activity I've ever heard of in the mission. Success!
-I taught Elders Quorum yesterday, without notice, making that the 2nd time in 3 weeks. I think I should just come with a lesson prepared just in case.
-There were more drunks this week that I've ever seen in Cusco due to New Year's, reaching nearly half the amount of drunks that are normally in Juliaca.
-It hailed! Can you believe that! Merry Christmas!
Anyways, things are going great! Keep up the festivities!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
Dearest everyone,
-Happy New Year's! The fireworks were so loud that I actually woke up for about 2 minutes. It was terrible. But besides that it was great!
-The ward had a New Year's Party. We went to help set up and also to eat dinner there, and when we left at 9:30 (it started at 7:00) there was no one and the party seemed like a failure. Apparently, by midnight, over 150 people were there, making it the most successful activity I've ever heard of in the mission. Success!
-I taught Elders Quorum yesterday, without notice, making that the 2nd time in 3 weeks. I think I should just come with a lesson prepared just in case.
-There were more drunks this week that I've ever seen in Cusco due to New Year's, reaching nearly half the amount of drunks that are normally in Juliaca.
-It hailed! Can you believe that! Merry Christmas!
Anyways, things are going great! Keep up the festivities!
Sincerely,
Elder Steele
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