Needs Mail

This week as been a pretty good week. However, Jaydan is now two weeks without a letter from anyone....at least through the mail. (He likes letters) He's getting his emails but really likes getting mail and wonders how long he can go. He is also still waiting or his package. Hopefully he'll get them soon. (he should...they were sent weeks ago)

Jaydan and his comp are working pretty good but Jaydan thinks they should really be working a little bit harder. He said that after lunch when they go home to "do their duties" they get distracted in other stuff. So, Jaydan told his comp that it can't happen anymore. He reminded his comp that if they want the Lord to bless them then they had better work as hard as they can and not be lazy. (even just a little bit) So for now on "poop~poop, brush~brush" and nothing else. (Jaydan put those things twice since their are two of them) Then to hurry back out and keep working. He said that things have been going pretty good since that little decision.

As Jaydan tries to remember the events of the week his mind goes blank and he just sits until of course his time on the computer is over then it all comes to him.

They played a "comp trust" game. This is where they guide each other around while the other one has his eyes closed. Jaydan guided his comp through a Railroad Station and did pretty good until his comp didn't listen and he fell. Jaydan of course laughed (he can't help it..it's in his genes) and then went over and helped him up. They have a lot of fun like that.

Friday was busy with planning for next week. Both Jaydan and his comp need to keep pulling the other back to the task at hand. (I guess they both get distracted) They also had baptism interviews for the Saturday baptisms.. "OH, did I say Baptism? Yes I sure did....I got another..I mean "we" another one." (Hooray for Jay!) Clair is the investigator and Jaydan describes her as "the sickest investigator you could get". (I think that means really awesome) Clair reads all the time and more than the missionaries ask her to. She always knew a lot when they taught her because she would read and study and was just ready. When the missionaries called to set up a time with her she told them that she wanted to invite her whole family to come too. She thought it was really important for them all to be there....she would like to invite the "whole world". Jaydan thought that was the coolest thing ever. What a joy to teach Clair.

Jaydan is pretty good with his money which is a good thing since his comps have had a bit of a problem with it. Jaydan buys cheap food in quantities and doesn't waste it on other things. Jaydan is just being smarter with the amount that he has.

It was good to go to Church on Sunday. The missionaries went to pick up some less active girls but one of them had been up all night taking care of her little brother and so she didn't want to go and the other siblings decided to go to a church that was closer. It was still an LDS church and Jaydan was just glad that they went.

Jaydan thinks his comp is a little weird but realizes that's how things are. However, it really annoys Jaydan that his comp is always touching him. He hates it! (of course he does!) (Hopefully Jaydan can work that out with his comp without beating him up....but I do think that is kind of weird too)

Mucho amor de
THEE Elder Ropelato

Been in 3 Countries

Today Jaydan went to Brazil since his new area is right on the border. That makes three Countries for him now. (Argentina, Uruguay & Brazil)

Jaydan's new comp is Elder Bates from Arizona. Elder Bates has about 11 months left. He is very obedient so that is something good and just what Jaydan said he needed. Jaydan has a problem though being reprimanded though for little things. (pick your battles right?) Jaydan realizes that there isn't a "perfect" comp and that to make things work you just need to build off the good things.

The Ward is better than the one in his last area. However Jaydan will always love his first one! There seems to be a lot of cool members where he is now and it's easy to love them. Jaydan can even communicate a little now and really likes that a lot better than just sitting there the whole time looking "retarded". (Jaydan's expression..not mine)

The changes were busy and crazy. The first day that Jaydan got to his new area they just worked on contacting people. Jaydan lives in a "four Elder" house and the other two are Latino's. One of them was in the CCM with him. On Thursday things were pretty normal except that they did have a District Meeting because of the changes. They even had a few lessons they were able to teach. Friday was planning day and interviews for Baptisms. Saturday they spent more time planning. Jaydan gives suggestions but he said that the Senior Comps don't like it when the younger ones give suggestions. (hopefully Jaydan will remember that and be a better Senior Comp) So for Saturday I guess they just planned and got things ready for the Baptisms and played some soccer since that's what they do every Saturday.

Two sisters were going to get baptized but one of them had a tooth infection and so they other one decided to just wait for her sister to feel better.

Jaydan is a bit frustrated with so much time being wasted and said that he could really vent but really didn't have enough time. (he is learning patience....more than he had already learned from Kimi and Jared. I just had a thought that maybe that is why Kimi and Jared are like they are....to help Jaydan handle is comps better) One thing that is frustrating Jaydan is they have a time limit on the computers to keep the missionaries from going on other sights. Jaydan wouldn't mind so much but this comp is on his back reminding him of his time and it distracts Jaydan from his thoughts and so it is taking him longer.

They had a good lunch (I think today) and everyone was joking and laughing and having a great time. The girl Jaydan was sitting by hit him in the face while passing some food or reaching for it without asking for someone to pass it to her. Twice while she was eating her food made a popping sound. Jaydan's not quite sure how to explain it but in the process her food was going all over Jaydan and herself. Everyone just laughed and joked about it.

Jaydan and the others are going home to clean their house since the President is visiting every house in the mission and having interviews with everyone this week.

Jaydan will be writing more after cleaning to tell us about the good things that happened since he was rushed on the computer.

Jaydan loves us all back home and thinks of us always. The time is going by quickly for him. The language is about the same...slow and steady. (I really think it's coming since he can participate in the conversations)

That was it for today....Jaydan was tired of his comp bugging him about the time.

pretty good week.....NOT

Jaydan and the other Elders found a really cool place today for their p-day. It was in a Mandarina Narnaja and Lemon Orchard and they also found a really cool bridge. I guess one day when Jaydan was bored he learned to braid with four stands. (the kid is talented!)Tuesday and Wednesay they were in divisions again. Jaydan was with Elder Inostraza from Chile so he had to speak Spanish the whole time which was good and fine with him. During divisions it seems that everything fall through no matter how sure the lessons are....it has almost become a given. During their divisions the missionaries were talking to a really "hardcore catholic lady" who told them it was fin to talk to her but also made sure that the missionaries knew she wasn't planning on changing anything about herself. You know the type...I was born a catholic and bapieze a catholic and so forth... Jaydan could really care less what religion anyone is....it just doesn't matter to him. Anyway Elder Inostraza was teaching about the Restoration and she was just miling nodding her head "no" and he just went right on teaching and Jaydan was actually understanding everything that was said while they were in that house. (which is always nice) The Elder kept teaching and she kept nodding and so Jaydan decided to change things up a bit he would throw out a question to her. He asked her how she knew the Bible was true. Her answer was "because I read it". Jaydan told her no and they had a little bit of a discussion and maybe even argued a bit. About that time a light bulb in her house shattered and Jaydan figured that little discussion was over. Jaydan told her that the only way she could really know that it was true was by praying. He told her that is how we know that the Bible and The Book of Mormon are both the word of God. He challenged her to just pray and ask if both these books are true. To pray with all her heart and pure intent and if she did she would recieve an answer. (true or not) Jaydan felt good because he knows that if she really does pray and get an answer she will know that they are both true and she will also know that our Church is true also. (So...there you go~Jaydan's first argument in Spanish....and the bulb shattering might have been some kind of sign...."Jaydan said so")


When Jaydan was with his comp again they worked hard but things kept falling through so it was hard. Their lunch with some members also fell through and the lunch they made for themselves was delicious. (no idea what it was) Friday is planning day and Jaydan and his comp had to go to another area to do a baptism interview. (Jaydan' comp is the District Leader)

It rained a lot this week and was raining really hard on Saturday. The Elders had found a lady named Maria and she promised them that she would go to Church with her daughter. The Elders told her that they would pick her up. There were also suppose to be about six more investigators coming with members or the missionaries and everyone of them fell through. Not one investigator came and that really bummed Jaydan out. The missionaries found some less active members to work with.


Today for p-day Jaydan and his comp and two other Elders took their sling shots and went out to the forest to hunt. That's when they found the bridge in the middle of no where. They played cards on the bridge and had tons of fun out there and they didn't even kill anything....amazing and they still had a fun experience. It was an adventure instead of staying in Centro the whole time. They walked a lot in fact Jaydan thought it was too much. Oh, and there was a guy who was going to go across the bride with his bike and oranges but decided to stop and watch the Elders play cards instead. He watched for like 45 minutes without ever saying a word. Jaydan said it was kind of weird but funny to talk about afterwards.

Another guy (dude) came out onto some street and was talking to the Elders. The Elders had been shooting at rocks and the guy told them they couldn't shoot the birds because what sounds better....birds chirping or not? This guy feeds the birds and waters them and even has a bird bath and a little house he made. He told the missionaires it was in the little house that the birds go to make other ones and that's all that they really use the house for. (Jaydan thought that was a bit weird....ya) Talking to this guys was just interesting.

Oh....one more thing about divisions. Maria (the lady spoken of earlier) was touched after listening to Jaydan go over things with her and testifying about everything that was said. She was crying her eyes out and so Jaydan gave her a handkerchief and called it good. The spirit was really strong and it felt good. After the divisions Jaydan said his Spanish "sucked" again. He couldn't understand or say anything again. (so frustrating for him)

Jaydan is looking forward to having a family home evening with a less active family tonight.

Change is on the 14th so who knows what will happen next. (God knows!)

Mucho Amor De Elder Ropelato