Patriotism

June 24, 2015

Chile won the quarterfinals in the American Cup.  Today was just yet another p-day.  I basically spent the entire day with Elder Furner who companion is really sick. We did our buys together, wrote together, and ate together.  We played both phase 10 and Monopoly and I won both.  I have never won games before the mission, but I am now on a 6 game winning streak.  Will the madness end? 

Elder Asplund is tired and his comp Elder Tornow has no mercy

Anyways, my comp basically shut himself in the room and listened to worldly music and watched videos.  He intentionally slept in until 11:00 and got super trunky. 

Miracle #274: We can/did buy all of our food for less that 10 dollars.  SOOOO much fruit.

The funny part of the day was when my companion, despite sleeping in until 11:00, went to bed 2 hours early.  We didn’t let him sleep though and he hated us for talking to him, but we did it anyways.  I don’t know who to be friends with someone who doesn’t want to even be here.  I did insanity workout with Elder Furner which is way more fun with 2 people, but it killed him.

June 25, 2015

Another really good day with my not so great companion.  Our absolute coolest part of the day was when J. and M. told us that they wanted to be baptized.  My comp was unfazed, not even a grin.  Come on bro.! This is part of what we hope for and work for…and you are not even excited about their decision to make this step.

Miracle #275: Despite all the dumb and annoying things that my companion did, I didn’t lose my temper

The funny part of the day was when we went to the house of a less active member who just barely decided to accept missionaries after 10 years.  My comp started interrogating the guy about his history but then I just took over and calmed things down.  In the end we learned that he has a testimony of the church and just majorly screwed up and wants to fix things now.

July 25, 2015

Today wasn’t the worst.  Elder R. was a lot more talkative today. That made my day a ton more enjoyable.  Most of the morning was spent planning a lesson about the armor of God.  Well actually we spent way too much time trying to get Elder R. and Elder A. on board with the lesson. It ended up all right because the lesson cancelled that night anyway.  Today flew by because we actually talked and I forgot what that felt like.

 Miracle #276: We had an amazing contact in the end of the day.  There was an open window and we were throwing cards at it.  When I made a care in, a man leaned out the window sincerely grateful for a little card about Christ.  When we said we had a free movie about Christ, he begged us to come back tomorrow.

The funny part of the day was when I was making a little paper warrior for the armor of God lesson and I designed him to be a patriotic soldier.  I am very proud of it.

Captain Mormerica

June 27, 2015

Two week til the end of the change….can I make it? Honestly, I am not suffering that much, but I am not enjoying myself either.  E. Turner and I talked to our comps about their issues and it wasn’t the most fun thing to do.  I really tried to keep a sense of love in my correction, but I don’t know if I succeeded.  I am at least grateful that my comp. tries to listen and says that he wants to work on his issues.  Unfortunately, I think that he might have a learning disability because he literally forgets everything especially scriptures and references.

Miracle #277: We went to visit a reference from another missionary which was given to my companion about 6 weeks ago, before I got here, but my comp. forgot about it until now. This contact was a very interesting man who had a Book of Mormon that was given to him about 35 years ago.  He traded me his old one for a new one. 

The funny part of the day was when we took some GIFs with Elder V. camera.

June 28, 2015

Today was a fun Sunday.  My comp. decided it would be cool to play with a Rubiks cube throughout the entire block of meetings. The saddest part of that whole scenario was that he couldn’t figure out 1 side. After church, he just sat and waited for me to set up the divisions. I really like this ward a lot, but they are not the biggest fans of my comp., so it makes it hard because they don’t want to work with him.

Miracle #278: The ward has really reached out to get to know me in just 4 weeks and our mission conference really helped me personally.

An rm from my last ward that I didn't get the chance to say goodbye to.  She was at the mission birthday celebration.

 I am not sure what the best part of the day was, but it probably had to do with the mission birthday.  We had a special mission conference to celebrate the 2^nd year anniversary of the Santiago South Mission.  We had a knowledge bowl about random scripture facts and it was rather entertaining.  We had a really good cake/cakes to celebrate!

June 29. 2015

Today was pretty good!  It started with an okay district meeting where I got a PACKAGE FROM HOME!!!!!! I love packages and this time it was patriotic themed, just in time for the 4^th of July this weekend.  I am excited because the finals of the America Cup will be held on the 4^th so we will be in early and while Chile plays, we will be celebrating the 4^th!  We have 3 gringos and my mom happened to send 3 little American flags.  I think that I am actually more patriotic now than before my mission. Chile is great and all, but there is no place like home.

Me and my merica themed package!

 For some reason I was pretty irritated the rest of the day.  I decided to pray for help and it was at that point that I resolved to work with what I have.

Miracle #279: I figured out that my comp does better if I propose solutions to problems rather than just critiquing him.

I have had a really bad cough lately, and my family knows that when I get a cough, I sound very croupy and it sounds like I might be near death.  Anyway, the members who live with us, made me use and inhaler for my cough.  That was random, but I think that it made me really tired.

June 30, 2015

Well my comp. actually ate all of the candy out of my care package….5 kitkats, 5 twix bars, and 2 Reeses packages.  This was candy that I specifically requested from home which upset me, but the dumbest part of all of it was that he completely denied doing it. I can’t stand the lying, it just makes me crazy, which is the worst part of the whole thing.  Naturally I am a hot head, and naturally I react with anger and violence.  I hate that it is my nature, and I especially hate it when people bring it out in me.  I wanted to punch my comp. in the gut (sorry family), but I did not.  I did get pretty steaming mad at him.  All the other elders just say, let it go and love the guy anyway.  That sounds so easy, but is just so hard for me.

Miracle #280: I did not hit my companion. Instead, while he was pooping out my candy bars (for like 20 minutes), I learned how to play ping pong. 

The funny part of the day was coming up with a solution for my problem.  I know that it is exactly what my parents would have done to us kids under similar circumstances.….I made my companion spend some of his precious hoard of cash on replacing my candy.  That kind of candy is really expensive here, but what the heck – he has the cash to do it.