"We are going to the temple in the morning and I am looking forward to it."

I felt a lot better after praying.  I don't have a lot of time to write but tomorrow is P-Day.  We are going to the temple in the morning and I am really looking forward to it.  I guess I will try and catch up with things tomorrow if I can.

Learning To Lose Yourself In The Work

Some things are going to change.  Tonight I missed one answer on our scripture quiz.  THe answer was 3 Nephi 27:8 and I wrote 3 Nephi 28:7.  I really got upset when that happened.

After the exam we had family home evening out on the lawn.  I was really impatient for it to get over.  Anyways, it went slow.  Brother Segrera came by with his wife and they sat down.  Elder Casey then told us about how he had been homesick and had prayed for an answer.  Then this morning he had an interview with Elder Segrera.  He told Elder Casey that he would need to lose himself in the Lord's work. That sentence really struck home.  I realize that I must break some ties so that I can fully devote myself to the Lord's work.  I am not so sure now but I must develop the faith to know that my loved ones will be blessed and safe while I am away.

I don't know exactly what is going to happen.  I guess I will have to pray.

"Our district went bowling."

We had some fun yesterday.  Our district went bowling.  Actually it was a little strange.  We had to wear our suits there but we could take off our coats.  It was also strange but good to hear modern music.  Most of the music that was piped in was soft romantic stuff.  It made me think of Linda.

I really don't feel guilty when I think about her.  The two months we were apart before my mission have really helped.  I can usually forget about her during the day and the Lord's time, but when I've got a P-Day or some prep time I do a little day dreamin'.  We have had some great times.  The things that I remember about her are not so much the things we did but more the looks that she gave me.  Sad, happy, thoughtful, I like you looks and others.  She is really special to my heart and I don't think she has been anything besides positive for me.  But then that's the way she is.  I don't get homesick for her at all.  I got that all over with during two months at home.

Wow it's Thursday morning and two very short weeks have gone by.

Feeling Patriotic

Good morning!  Ugh!  I'm not so sure about that.  I didn't get much sleep last night.  There is a despredtador (alam clock) that keeps going off in my head.

Last night at the Devotional, Elder John H. Groberg spoke.  His topic was Joseph Smith and his influence.  He also talked quite a bit about the importance of bearing witness of his divine calling.  He also talked about journals.

Just before he spoke the choir sang "The Battle Hymn Of The Republic".  I don't know why music affects me so much but it sure does.  During the song I just closed my eyes and thought of all the things that mean America to me.  Being able to do anything you want to practically

I thought a lot about Snowmass when I was there alone and when I prayed to Heavenly Father.  That for some reason comes to mind when I think of America.

Towards the end of Elder Groberg's talk, I once again started thinking of my father.  I think that I am just beginning to realize how important he is to me.  I hope and pray that I can develop the faith necessary to know that he will come to a knowledge of the truth, and accept it.

I just realized that some of my sentences are starting to look weird.  I can attribute that to thinking in Spanish.  All my sentences are coming out backwards and I suppose it will get worse.

I have writer's cramp already and I still have about 8 zillion letters to write!

More Tomorrow

I don't have time to write now because it is late.  I want to remember some things that I felt tonight during a song that pertains to my country.  Pero manana!

Sleepy Elder Brown & Spanish Mishaps

Well it is 6:00 in the morning.  I have been sleeping a lot better the last few nights.  The Lord has blessed us with a few cooler ones.  The temperature has been from 80 to 85 degrees in our room.  They said that they are working on the air-conditioning and trying to get it fixed soon.

Some pretty funny events have occurred in class.  Usually they happen when someone either mispronounces a word or uses a different word altogether.  Elder Nelson called himself "a burrito".  The word he was trying to say was "aburido" which means boring.  Elder Laycock called our teacher Hermana Hurtado "a bore".

This morning when I woke up, I realized that another group of missionaries would be leaving.  This week has gone by really fast.  About the only things that don't go by fast are Language Class and dinner lines.  Elder Brown and I had to wait one whole hour for breakfast yesterday.  You would think that we were standing in line for a BYU Basketball game or something.

Elder Brown sure is funny sometimes.  I can predict what happens every morning.  After we get up and shower and get dressed we have 30-45 minutes to read the scriptures.  Anyways we both start reading at our desks.  Soon after that Elder Brown moves over to the air vent by the window.  He usually read there for about 10 minutes.  Then he lies down on his bed and about 5 minutes later I can hear contented snoring.  This event occurs every day.  I don't even have to turn around to see what he is doing.  I can hear what he is doing.

Elder Brown is a really good guy though.  Maybe I'd like him so much because he is about the only person I know besides Linda that whistles worse than I do.

Elder Brown just woke up to turn a page.  I think he will be sleeping again within five minutes.  Whoops, sooner than that.  This must be a record.  Either that or he is learning how to turn pages in his sleep.  I guess I had better wake him up so that we can be ready to go to class.

"I know now that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God."

I just read some of the journal entries that I have made.  Some are good some are bad.  But I feel proud of the fact that I am getting my life story down in print.

I feel as though Satan is working on all of us.  Last night was a bad night.  It was the second time that Sister Ortado taught us.  I went into class really depressed.  We took a break and I just thought of my folks and family and of Linda.

When we got back to class I, Elder Laycock and my companions got the giggles.  I haven't had that bad a case for a long time.  Anyway, we weren't doing very well and I think that Sister Ortado took it as kind of an insult.

She had to leave early so when we got done with our assignment we talked about it and I think that we all felt pretty bad.  Things just kind of heaped up on me so I just let go when I prayed last night.  I haven't let my heart out to the Lord in a long time and I really laid it on the line.  I said that I would need to know what the spirit felt like.  I wanted to know how many people I would have to hurt, insult, infuriate before I could humble myself and become a willing and submissive servant of the Lord.

I felt a lot better after shedding quite a few tears of anguish.

Today is Sunday and I have received some answers to my prayers.  I prayed to know how to tell when I felt the spirit and what it felt like.  Well this afternoon for family home evening we had a lesson on prayer that fairly rapidly turned into a discussion on the Holy Ghost and how to know when it is there.  Thoughts and ideas really flowed forth from everyone and now I know that those feelings that I have had in the past are from the Holy Ghost.

I also prayed for a testimony of Joseph Smith for it is through his revelations and ideas that the Church was brought into re-existence.  The answer to that prayer came in part this morning in priesthood when we had a lesson on Joseph Smith.  This lesson prompted me to think about him.  I also pondered about him and my ideas about him when I read The Book of Mormon today.  Well I was thinking to myself that he would have to be pretty smart to be able to write a book that hasn't contradicted itself or been disproved in over 150 years.

I know now that Joseph Smith is a prophet of God.  Tonight President Pinegar spoke at a 10 day fireside for all of us who came in on the 21st of June.  He spoke about obeying mission rules.  My testimony of Joseph Smith's divine calling came when we closed by singing "Praise To The Man".  I sang with all I could and while I was singing I saw in my mind a picture of the prophet Jospeh Smith being martyred.  I could almost hear him crying out, "My Lord, my God."  That very same spirit that I had thought and learned about this afternoon filled my whole body with the knowledge that Joseph Smith was a prophet of God.

After that meeting we went to our culture class.  That class really gets me excited.  I have a feeling that it has the opposite effect on Elder Brown.  He is from a city and I think that he would rather proselyte in the Washington D.C. (He is an intellectual Government man).  I am not trying to take anything away from him.  I think that, that is how he is inclined.  However, I am sure that he will learn to love the people as I hope I will.

My writing and spelling are failing me and my hand is about ready to fall off so I will call it a night.