Hello everyone!
Hope everyone is doing well this week. So things have been going good this week, we've seen a lot of progress here.So I didn't take too many notes of what happened, and we've been feeling really busy this week.
So basically we've got a lot of good investigators at this moment. And so were basically going from appointment to appointment like madmen. Basically we've got a lot of people close to baptism all at the same time. So we've got Carolina (lady we taught for a while, then she went to Constitucion then recently got back after the earthquake) Margarita (her aunt), Felipe and Sebastian (sons of Margarita). We can tell that the earthquake affected them, becasue they are all progressing very well now. Carolina and Felipe have baptism dates for the 21st, and Margarita and Sebastian have dates for the 28th. So they're all progressing very well.
We also have Ricardo. He's the 13 year old kid we found a couple weeks ago. He too is progressing well with a baptism date is for the 21st.
Also we have Antonella and her cousin Katalina. Antonella is the girl that's been an investigator for a long time, but she seems to be progressing towards baptism. Her cousin is really good too.
Apart from them we have other investigators that are also progressing. So all this work came to Sunday and we had 9 investigators in church. Not too shabby. So yeah, things are going pretty good at the moment. We are gonna have 5 baptism interviews during this week, and I'm pretty sure we'll finish this month with like 7 or so baptisms if all goes well. But the thing is that changes are coming up and I'm pretty sure I'm gone. I will have been here for 6 months. So we'll see what happens with that.
So other things that happened this week. There was a pretty big aftershock, like a 7 or something. But it was pretty short. like 6 seconds of big shaking. No joke with the big one the strong shaking lasted at least a minute-minute and a half. So yeah, things are still shaking here quite often.
Also on friday we met with 2 area Presidencies in the stake center-general authorites (leaders of the church). So that was cool, they gave us some good talks and helped boost our drive to work.
And last night there was some electricity failure in some part in Chile and all of Chile was left without lights for a bit. So that was cool. We could see sooooo many stars during the night, it was nuts.
And so yeah, that's about it. If all goes well I'll write you next week after 5 baptisms on Sunday. But I'll let you know how it all goes. Love you all lots, thanks for all your support. The church is true! Talk to you next week.
Monday, March 15, 2010
Monday, March 8, 2010
Life in Talca
Hello everyone!
Things are finally getting back to normal here in Talca. But this week has been very interesting, a week different than any other week in the mission, including lots of service opportunites, and having to run for my life (more on that in a bit) So I'll go ahead and try my best to explain everything that's happened this past week...
So Monday afternon we headed to the stake center. There we went and we were gonna go help a member who's house got destroyed, but we weren't allowed to go in, it would be too dangerous. Then the leaders there told us to get there early in the morning to help unload trucks with food and stuff. So Tuesday morning we went over there and helped unload the trucks, then helped put all the food and stuff into bags to distribute. So that took a while, then we went back to the sector to help out around there. Then later that day we got the call from the zone leaders to meet at our chapel at 7 in the morning, that we were going to Constitucion. So I got pretty exctited, I really wanted to go help over there. For those of you who don't know, that is the city on the beach that got most affected by the earthquake and tsunami that occured after.
So Wednesday morning we got up bright and early and got to our chapel. All of the missionaries from Talca got in a bus and headed over to Constitucion. So first things first, over there it was a lot worse. We didn't even go to the worse parts, we went to the places not effected by the tsunami, but still it was a lot worse than Talca. So we arrived at the chapel there, and helped to clean up the wreckage there. The chapel itself was fine, but the walls around it all fell over So we did that for a couple hours, then we went over to the municipality ( is that a word?) Anyways, we went over to like the city. We went to the high school where they were collecting all of the clothes, food, water, all that stuff. There was literally a ton of stuff there. So that's where we worked, collecting together the stuff, moving it, getting it from incoming trucks, etc, until about 4ish. Then quite the experience happened.
So there we were, moving a ton of milk. And all of a sudden everyone starts screaming "Get out!" "Run" So all of a sudden we were all running to the hills. There was a tsunami warning. So there I was, running from the city to the hills. But seriously, it was nuts. Everyone just took off, the whole city was fleeing to the hills. So we got there, waited a bit, then found out that it was a false alarm (turns out a policman gave the false info...) Then we went to the designated meet up point, waited for all the missionaries and leaders to get there, then we headed back home to talca. So yeah, quite the experience in Constitucion. First time I've had to run for my life from a tsunami, and something I doubt I'll forget.
Then the next day was the first day we got back into our church clothes (for the first time in almost a week) to get back to real missionary work. Which was a good thing, I had been itching to get back to doing the normal missionary work. So we visitied our investigators, and all that jazz. And since then its been back to the regular missionary stuff.
So I would tell about all of our investigators and stuff, but I'm running out of time. However, they are doing really well. Weve got a couple investigators that are for sure getting baptized this month. I'll keep you posted.
So yeah, thats my report for this week. Hope you enjoyed hearing about my crazy adventures here in Chile. Things aren't exactly normal still, but they are normalizing. Thanks for all your worries, concerns, etc. But don't worry, everything is fine here with me. The church is true, this is the Lords work. Love you all and hope to hear from you soon!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
OH and some pictures. I didn't take my camera to Constitucion, but I'm sure you've seen more of it than I have. But heres some pictures of Talca.
Things are finally getting back to normal here in Talca. But this week has been very interesting, a week different than any other week in the mission, including lots of service opportunites, and having to run for my life (more on that in a bit) So I'll go ahead and try my best to explain everything that's happened this past week...
So Monday afternon we headed to the stake center. There we went and we were gonna go help a member who's house got destroyed, but we weren't allowed to go in, it would be too dangerous. Then the leaders there told us to get there early in the morning to help unload trucks with food and stuff. So Tuesday morning we went over there and helped unload the trucks, then helped put all the food and stuff into bags to distribute. So that took a while, then we went back to the sector to help out around there. Then later that day we got the call from the zone leaders to meet at our chapel at 7 in the morning, that we were going to Constitucion. So I got pretty exctited, I really wanted to go help over there. For those of you who don't know, that is the city on the beach that got most affected by the earthquake and tsunami that occured after.
So Wednesday morning we got up bright and early and got to our chapel. All of the missionaries from Talca got in a bus and headed over to Constitucion. So first things first, over there it was a lot worse. We didn't even go to the worse parts, we went to the places not effected by the tsunami, but still it was a lot worse than Talca. So we arrived at the chapel there, and helped to clean up the wreckage there. The chapel itself was fine, but the walls around it all fell over So we did that for a couple hours, then we went over to the municipality ( is that a word?) Anyways, we went over to like the city. We went to the high school where they were collecting all of the clothes, food, water, all that stuff. There was literally a ton of stuff there. So that's where we worked, collecting together the stuff, moving it, getting it from incoming trucks, etc, until about 4ish. Then quite the experience happened.
So there we were, moving a ton of milk. And all of a sudden everyone starts screaming "Get out!" "Run" So all of a sudden we were all running to the hills. There was a tsunami warning. So there I was, running from the city to the hills. But seriously, it was nuts. Everyone just took off, the whole city was fleeing to the hills. So we got there, waited a bit, then found out that it was a false alarm (turns out a policman gave the false info...) Then we went to the designated meet up point, waited for all the missionaries and leaders to get there, then we headed back home to talca. So yeah, quite the experience in Constitucion. First time I've had to run for my life from a tsunami, and something I doubt I'll forget.
Then the next day was the first day we got back into our church clothes (for the first time in almost a week) to get back to real missionary work. Which was a good thing, I had been itching to get back to doing the normal missionary work. So we visitied our investigators, and all that jazz. And since then its been back to the regular missionary stuff.
So I would tell about all of our investigators and stuff, but I'm running out of time. However, they are doing really well. Weve got a couple investigators that are for sure getting baptized this month. I'll keep you posted.
So yeah, thats my report for this week. Hope you enjoyed hearing about my crazy adventures here in Chile. Things aren't exactly normal still, but they are normalizing. Thanks for all your worries, concerns, etc. But don't worry, everything is fine here with me. The church is true, this is the Lords work. Love you all and hope to hear from you soon!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
OH and some pictures. I didn't take my camera to Constitucion, but I'm sure you've seen more of it than I have. But heres some pictures of Talca.
Monday, March 1, 2010
I survived the 8.8 Quake!
3-1-2010. 4:00am
Hello everyone. so sorry I couldn't get a hold of you earlier. it's Monday morning, and we just got power back last night. but I'm fine, no problems here. so don't worry. In a bit I'll be writing the big letter with more details, but for now, just know that I'm fine! Love you all!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
3-1-2010. 8:30am
Hello everyone! Thanks for all your concern and emails and worries and prayers. They are very much appreciated. But as you know, I am fine here in Talca. So I assume I'll be spending the majority of this message writing the events of the earthquake. SO if you haven't heard, but I'm sure you have, an 8.8 earthquake hit Chile, close to where I am. Yeah, so I guess I'll start from the beginning.
So, Friday night. So we went to bed at 11 like normal. So at 3:28am, I was awaken by the earthquake. So I was basically just startled and ran outside, without shoes and all. A couple seconds after me came Elder Viana. But the other 2 were slower, so we yelled at them to get out. SO there we were, us 4 standing outside of the house. SO the strong, violent shaking lasted for at least a minute and a half or 2 minutes, no joke. So looking back, I now realize how strong the earthquake really was (I think I was still a bit sleepy). Super strong, seriously. It's hard to explain how it was, but it was a lot stronger than anything I've felt before. The noise was so loud, I had to yell to communicate with the other Elders. Not too much happened to our house, other than things fell and got moved around. And from then started the time without electricity and water. So yeah, it finally stopped, we put on some shoes and went to a members house closeby. Then we were outside until about 6 in the morning, then we decided to head back to the house to sleep for a bit. Then like good missionaries we woke up at 7. Soon after that was a strong aftershock, I heard it was like 6.9. But it wasn't very long, but still it was strong. So all the houses and stuff by our house were very slightly damaged. So we really didn't know the extent of how bad it was until later. So then we headed to the church to go see where help was needed.
On the way to the church is when we realized that a lot more damage was done than we originally thought. Because then we were getting closer to the part where it's downtown, where a lot of buildings are hundreds of years old and made of adobe. Then we started to see the damage. There were houses and buildings here and there completely destroyed. So we arrived at the church, and not too much help was needed there. The church nothing happned to it. So then we went back to the house, got a couple things and then headed off to see the members and investigators to see how they were. SO that's what we did for that whole day. One members wall fell over, we helped with that. Another the 2nd floor wall fell over and crushed their car, but they're all fine. So that's what we did yesterday.
So then we headed to the house and met with the other missionaries. We then headed over to a new converts house to spend the night in tents over there. A lot of the people here have been sleeping in tents in open areas, because we don't know exactly if there will be another quake that does a lot of damage. So that was an experience. Oh yeah, something that happened there. So one of the people offered us some what they thought was red soda. I was pretty thristy and took like 2 quick drinks before realizing it wasn't actually soda. SO elder Christenson and I just looked at each other wondering what it was (he also drank some). They then informed us that we shoudn't drink it, it was actually some red floor cleaner they had put in a soda bottle. So yeah, soon after I was throwing it up. But other than that, I slept alright, I only woke up a couple times because of tremors. So the tremors, up until this point, still haven't stopped. Every so often there's a tremor. It still makes me nervous when it happens.
Anyways, so we wake up, and head home. Oh by the way it was Elder Vianas birthday that Sunday. What a birthday present, am I right? Anyways, then we changed into shirts and ties and headed to the chapel, where a small sacrament meeting was held. Only like 40 people came. So after that we did more of the same, checked to see if people needed help, taught a couple lessons, then headed home for the night. That day they put a curfew for the city, we had to be in the house at 9. I guess there's been a lot of robbing going on. During the day we were continually hearing about what was going on, and the severity of it all. The only source of info we had was by radio, so we only learned when we were close to a radio. So I assume most of you know more about the sevrity of it all. I'm just seeing it today. Yeah, so then we were in the house at 9. And we finally got electricity and water back on. During the past days the members have been very kind, giving us water, food when we needed it. But then we finally had electricity and water. (and we finally got to bathe). The bishop came over and brought us some food, that was really kind. So then we went to bed. I slept ok, I woke up a few times in the night because of tremors.
Then this morning basically we came to a members house to see how everythings going. So we finally got to see on the TV how things are. And I finally got to talk to you guys. So we still haven't been to the downtown part of Talca where it's all destroyed. But lots of the coast are gone because of the earthquake and tsunamis. We had visited Constitucion in like December, and now I can't imagine how it is. So were basically finding out how things are.
So yeah, thats my account of the earthquake and what we've done since. I've left out lots of small details, but the main thing is that were fine. So I can offically say I've experienced a natural disaster, and I wouldn't reccommend it to anyone. I really didn't like the feeling of not knowing what the heck was going on for 2 days. But now things are better, we've got light and water, the telephones are working better but not fully. Now we just gotta wait for the super markets to open up again. So yeah, our zone leaders just called us, and were meeting up in the stake center at 2. I think we're gonna go help all the people in the downtown area, or we're going to Constitucion to help there.
So I love you all, I'm fine, don't worry too much about me. If I forgot anything, or want to know anything else just write me. Thank you for all your concerns, and I'll be writing you next week!
Lots of love,
Elder Ryan Mayberry
Hello everyone. so sorry I couldn't get a hold of you earlier. it's Monday morning, and we just got power back last night. but I'm fine, no problems here. so don't worry. In a bit I'll be writing the big letter with more details, but for now, just know that I'm fine! Love you all!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
3-1-2010. 8:30am
Hello everyone! Thanks for all your concern and emails and worries and prayers. They are very much appreciated. But as you know, I am fine here in Talca. So I assume I'll be spending the majority of this message writing the events of the earthquake. SO if you haven't heard, but I'm sure you have, an 8.8 earthquake hit Chile, close to where I am. Yeah, so I guess I'll start from the beginning.
So, Friday night. So we went to bed at 11 like normal. So at 3:28am, I was awaken by the earthquake. So I was basically just startled and ran outside, without shoes and all. A couple seconds after me came Elder Viana. But the other 2 were slower, so we yelled at them to get out. SO there we were, us 4 standing outside of the house. SO the strong, violent shaking lasted for at least a minute and a half or 2 minutes, no joke. So looking back, I now realize how strong the earthquake really was (I think I was still a bit sleepy). Super strong, seriously. It's hard to explain how it was, but it was a lot stronger than anything I've felt before. The noise was so loud, I had to yell to communicate with the other Elders. Not too much happened to our house, other than things fell and got moved around. And from then started the time without electricity and water. So yeah, it finally stopped, we put on some shoes and went to a members house closeby. Then we were outside until about 6 in the morning, then we decided to head back to the house to sleep for a bit. Then like good missionaries we woke up at 7. Soon after that was a strong aftershock, I heard it was like 6.9. But it wasn't very long, but still it was strong. So all the houses and stuff by our house were very slightly damaged. So we really didn't know the extent of how bad it was until later. So then we headed to the church to go see where help was needed.
On the way to the church is when we realized that a lot more damage was done than we originally thought. Because then we were getting closer to the part where it's downtown, where a lot of buildings are hundreds of years old and made of adobe. Then we started to see the damage. There were houses and buildings here and there completely destroyed. So we arrived at the church, and not too much help was needed there. The church nothing happned to it. So then we went back to the house, got a couple things and then headed off to see the members and investigators to see how they were. SO that's what we did for that whole day. One members wall fell over, we helped with that. Another the 2nd floor wall fell over and crushed their car, but they're all fine. So that's what we did yesterday.
So then we headed to the house and met with the other missionaries. We then headed over to a new converts house to spend the night in tents over there. A lot of the people here have been sleeping in tents in open areas, because we don't know exactly if there will be another quake that does a lot of damage. So that was an experience. Oh yeah, something that happened there. So one of the people offered us some what they thought was red soda. I was pretty thristy and took like 2 quick drinks before realizing it wasn't actually soda. SO elder Christenson and I just looked at each other wondering what it was (he also drank some). They then informed us that we shoudn't drink it, it was actually some red floor cleaner they had put in a soda bottle. So yeah, soon after I was throwing it up. But other than that, I slept alright, I only woke up a couple times because of tremors. So the tremors, up until this point, still haven't stopped. Every so often there's a tremor. It still makes me nervous when it happens.
Anyways, so we wake up, and head home. Oh by the way it was Elder Vianas birthday that Sunday. What a birthday present, am I right? Anyways, then we changed into shirts and ties and headed to the chapel, where a small sacrament meeting was held. Only like 40 people came. So after that we did more of the same, checked to see if people needed help, taught a couple lessons, then headed home for the night. That day they put a curfew for the city, we had to be in the house at 9. I guess there's been a lot of robbing going on. During the day we were continually hearing about what was going on, and the severity of it all. The only source of info we had was by radio, so we only learned when we were close to a radio. So I assume most of you know more about the sevrity of it all. I'm just seeing it today. Yeah, so then we were in the house at 9. And we finally got electricity and water back on. During the past days the members have been very kind, giving us water, food when we needed it. But then we finally had electricity and water. (and we finally got to bathe). The bishop came over and brought us some food, that was really kind. So then we went to bed. I slept ok, I woke up a few times in the night because of tremors.
Then this morning basically we came to a members house to see how everythings going. So we finally got to see on the TV how things are. And I finally got to talk to you guys. So we still haven't been to the downtown part of Talca where it's all destroyed. But lots of the coast are gone because of the earthquake and tsunamis. We had visited Constitucion in like December, and now I can't imagine how it is. So were basically finding out how things are.
So yeah, thats my account of the earthquake and what we've done since. I've left out lots of small details, but the main thing is that were fine. So I can offically say I've experienced a natural disaster, and I wouldn't reccommend it to anyone. I really didn't like the feeling of not knowing what the heck was going on for 2 days. But now things are better, we've got light and water, the telephones are working better but not fully. Now we just gotta wait for the super markets to open up again. So yeah, our zone leaders just called us, and were meeting up in the stake center at 2. I think we're gonna go help all the people in the downtown area, or we're going to Constitucion to help there.
So I love you all, I'm fine, don't worry too much about me. If I forgot anything, or want to know anything else just write me. Thank you for all your concerns, and I'll be writing you next week!
Lots of love,
Elder Ryan Mayberry
Monday, February 22, 2010
Hola!!
Hello Everyone!
Hope everyone had a good week last week. This week was pretty good for us. So I'll start from the beginning of the week.
SO not much happened during the beginning of the week. On Wednesday we had the conference with the Mission President. They are always good, we always learn a lot and it helps us focus a bit more. But other than that, not too much out of the ordinary happened this week. I guess I'll just talk about the investigators and stuff.
So we've been looking for more people a lot this week, people who are going to progress. Most of the time we get into the house the first time, teach the lesson, but then for the 2nd appointment they're never there. It's a bit frustrating at times. For example looking back at Tuesday we had a day full of appointments, but only 1 actually happened. But looking for more people has been fruitful. So on Thursday we talked to a young kid in the street named Ricardo. We talked to him for a bit, then we got an appointment for Friday. We came back with a member that day, and it turns out they used to be neighbors a while back. The appointement went really good, he accepted a day to get baptized, and accepted to going to church. And he did come to church and had a good experience. So he is someone we are going to focus on, I'm pretty sure he'll be getting baptized sometime soon.
Also on Thurdsay we had a cool spiritual experience. So we were about to head to lunch, but we decided to take the long route to lunch. So on the way we found a person we contacted and taught a while back but haven't found since. It turns out she was not too good, her neice committed suicide. So we shared with her and she said she felt better. It just goes to show you that the Lord has a reason for everything, even if it means walking an extra 5 minutes.
Another cool experience, we went and taught this lady a bit at her fence, then got a return appointment for the following day. So we came back and her neice was there, who happens to be a new convert to the church. There we had a super good lesson, and the neice 'happened' to have her written down testimony with her, something she normally doesn't carry around. SO the lesson went really well, and it just goes to show you, again, that this is the Lords work, and that he is always helping us.
Ok, so one final spiritual experience. So remember last week we taught Carolina? I forgot to write last week something she told us. She said that we really have helped her in her life a lot. She said one day that she was about to leave and go do something stupid, but someone knocked at the door and guess who it was. Us. This week really helped me realize how much we can see the Lords hand in our everyday lives.
So among other investigators...Juan Carlos escaped from his moms house and went to his grandmas. This lead to his mom being mad, so she didn't let Jocelyn get confirmed this week. Ugh. And Juan Carlos still hasn't gotten the signature. Ugh. There's only so much we can do, and they rest, the other people have to do.
Also, we decided to go see an old investigator. Not sure if you remember Natalia, she lives like 20 minutes away in bus, and is 9. The only thing keeping her from getting baptized is that its hard for the family to come to church on Sundays, due to lack of transportation and money. But the good news is that it'll be easier for them to come to church now because the dad isn't working on Sunday, and the missionary who baptized the parents of Natalia will be coming here in March, and they want him to baptize Natalia. So hopefully that will give them the boost they need to get to church.
Well, I think thats about all I got for you guys. So I love you all, the church is true, and I'll write you all next week!
¡Chao!
Elder Mayberry
Hope everyone had a good week last week. This week was pretty good for us. So I'll start from the beginning of the week.
SO not much happened during the beginning of the week. On Wednesday we had the conference with the Mission President. They are always good, we always learn a lot and it helps us focus a bit more. But other than that, not too much out of the ordinary happened this week. I guess I'll just talk about the investigators and stuff.
So we've been looking for more people a lot this week, people who are going to progress. Most of the time we get into the house the first time, teach the lesson, but then for the 2nd appointment they're never there. It's a bit frustrating at times. For example looking back at Tuesday we had a day full of appointments, but only 1 actually happened. But looking for more people has been fruitful. So on Thursday we talked to a young kid in the street named Ricardo. We talked to him for a bit, then we got an appointment for Friday. We came back with a member that day, and it turns out they used to be neighbors a while back. The appointement went really good, he accepted a day to get baptized, and accepted to going to church. And he did come to church and had a good experience. So he is someone we are going to focus on, I'm pretty sure he'll be getting baptized sometime soon.
Also on Thurdsay we had a cool spiritual experience. So we were about to head to lunch, but we decided to take the long route to lunch. So on the way we found a person we contacted and taught a while back but haven't found since. It turns out she was not too good, her neice committed suicide. So we shared with her and she said she felt better. It just goes to show you that the Lord has a reason for everything, even if it means walking an extra 5 minutes.
Another cool experience, we went and taught this lady a bit at her fence, then got a return appointment for the following day. So we came back and her neice was there, who happens to be a new convert to the church. There we had a super good lesson, and the neice 'happened' to have her written down testimony with her, something she normally doesn't carry around. SO the lesson went really well, and it just goes to show you, again, that this is the Lords work, and that he is always helping us.
Ok, so one final spiritual experience. So remember last week we taught Carolina? I forgot to write last week something she told us. She said that we really have helped her in her life a lot. She said one day that she was about to leave and go do something stupid, but someone knocked at the door and guess who it was. Us. This week really helped me realize how much we can see the Lords hand in our everyday lives.
So among other investigators...Juan Carlos escaped from his moms house and went to his grandmas. This lead to his mom being mad, so she didn't let Jocelyn get confirmed this week. Ugh. And Juan Carlos still hasn't gotten the signature. Ugh. There's only so much we can do, and they rest, the other people have to do.
Also, we decided to go see an old investigator. Not sure if you remember Natalia, she lives like 20 minutes away in bus, and is 9. The only thing keeping her from getting baptized is that its hard for the family to come to church on Sundays, due to lack of transportation and money. But the good news is that it'll be easier for them to come to church now because the dad isn't working on Sunday, and the missionary who baptized the parents of Natalia will be coming here in March, and they want him to baptize Natalia. So hopefully that will give them the boost they need to get to church.
Well, I think thats about all I got for you guys. So I love you all, the church is true, and I'll write you all next week!
¡Chao!
Elder Mayberry
Monday, February 15, 2010
Hello All!
Hi everyone! Hope all is well and that everyone had a nice valentines day (which by the way the also celebrate here). This week was a pretty interesting week. So it all starts on Tuesday...
So on Tuesday we went and had breakfast at a members house to say goodbye to Elder Jorgensen. We had what they call panqueques. I've been told it's like crepes, but with manjar (like dulce de leche, don't know how to explain it, but its like a frosting that's sweet.) SO those were tasty, then we went to the bus terminal. So he met up with his other comp (don't remember if I told you but Elder Jorgensen went to a different part of Talca, a differnent zone though). So then I had to wait in the terminal for like 4 hours with the other missionaries who were waiting. So then at like 4:30 Elder Sarmiento and the others finally arrived. So then it was back to work as usual.
So to fill you in on the new comp, his name is elder Sarmiento, he's from Ecuador. He has 10 months in the mission. He teaches differently, I just have to get used to how he teaches. Every missionary teaches in his/her own unique way, and I just need to get accustomed to how he teaches.
So this week was pretty uneventful. We did a lot of door contacts, because we have a lack of investigators at the moment. But one big thing did happen this week... Jocelyn got permission to get baptized! So that was really cool. Then Juan Carlos started acting weird, he actually hasn't asked his moms permission. So now he's acting weird, like he wants attention or something, and says hes gotta think about it. It's understandable, but just the other week he was gung ho to be baptized. So were still working with Juan Carlos.
But the good news is that Jocelyn got baptized this week! I'll include some pictures from the baptism. The other missionaries in the house were supposed to have one too, but she decided to go to the beach for Saturday and Sunday >.< So needless to say they were kinda disappointed.
So yeah, that's basically what happened this week. Sorry this letters so short but I just don't have much more to say. The church is true, love you all, and keep writing!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
Photos:
1) Me, Jocelyn, her Grandma, and Elder Sarmiento
2) Jocelyn and me
So on Tuesday we went and had breakfast at a members house to say goodbye to Elder Jorgensen. We had what they call panqueques. I've been told it's like crepes, but with manjar (like dulce de leche, don't know how to explain it, but its like a frosting that's sweet.) SO those were tasty, then we went to the bus terminal. So he met up with his other comp (don't remember if I told you but Elder Jorgensen went to a different part of Talca, a differnent zone though). So then I had to wait in the terminal for like 4 hours with the other missionaries who were waiting. So then at like 4:30 Elder Sarmiento and the others finally arrived. So then it was back to work as usual.
So to fill you in on the new comp, his name is elder Sarmiento, he's from Ecuador. He has 10 months in the mission. He teaches differently, I just have to get used to how he teaches. Every missionary teaches in his/her own unique way, and I just need to get accustomed to how he teaches.
So this week was pretty uneventful. We did a lot of door contacts, because we have a lack of investigators at the moment. But one big thing did happen this week... Jocelyn got permission to get baptized! So that was really cool. Then Juan Carlos started acting weird, he actually hasn't asked his moms permission. So now he's acting weird, like he wants attention or something, and says hes gotta think about it. It's understandable, but just the other week he was gung ho to be baptized. So were still working with Juan Carlos.
But the good news is that Jocelyn got baptized this week! I'll include some pictures from the baptism. The other missionaries in the house were supposed to have one too, but she decided to go to the beach for Saturday and Sunday >.< So needless to say they were kinda disappointed.
So yeah, that's basically what happened this week. Sorry this letters so short but I just don't have much more to say. The church is true, love you all, and keep writing!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
Photos:
1) Me, Jocelyn, her Grandma, and Elder Sarmiento
2) Jocelyn and me
Monday, February 8, 2010
6 Months down!
Hello Everybody!
So here I am 6 months into the mission! How crazy is that. Time flies. Anyways, so this week has been both a good week and a bad week, but for the most part a good week. Actually a pretty good week. And we got news on whats going on for transfers, but I'll leave that to the end. :)
So last week ended with the news that Amalia would be baptized this week. So early in this week we went there, and she told us that she wanted to be baptized during the middle of the week, because her children wouldn't be there on Sunday to see it. So why not? we said. So she got baptized on Friday. So that was an amazing experience.
Right after the baptism it was time to go see if Pamela, the mom of Jocelyn and Juan Carlos, would be giving her permission for them to be baptized. So we got there, but she said she still was in the process of thinking about it. Ugh! It's a bit frustrating sometimes. But the thing is I know that those 2 will be baptized, but when I don't know.
So yeah, that's basically all that happened during the week. It was a pretty normal week other than the midweek baptism. So then Sunday was a really cool day. We woke up to rain that day! Of course it stopped later on and got hot, but still it was nice to see a change. So during Sacrament meeting we had our 3 confirmations, and the other Elders had their 2. So we had 5 confirmations in total! That was cool, I got to do one of them too. And another cool thing, is that Alejandro blessed the Sacrement for the first time! And Gonzalo and Luis got the Aaronic Priesthood also. Basically a lot of really cool things happened during church on Sunday. Oh yeah, something funny, so it was fast and testimony meeting, and our ward mission leader got up to bear his testimony (I don't know if I've told you too much about him, he is pretty old and a bit stubborn, and very hard to work with. He cares more about if people do their family home evening than the missionary work). But yeah, he got up and pulled a baby bird from out of his pocket and showed it to everyone and somehow linked it to his testmony. Then he just put it back in his suit pocket, and there it stayed for the rest of church. He's quite the character.
So sorry this letter is so short, but not too much happened other than what I told you. Basically we're out of investigators, and we have to find more new ones. But the last big news of the day is we found out about the transfers.
So we all assumed that Elder Jorgensen would be leaving to go be a zone leader. And sure enough, that's what's happening. My dads leaving! Haha. But yeah, he's leaving, and the rest of us are staying. He's actually going to be in the same city, but in a different zone. So that's the big news, I'm getting a new comp! His name is Elder Sarmiento I believe, and he's a latin! So that'll be exciting. We don't know too much about him, but we think he's from Ecuador also. Oh, and he was just training Ben Walter’s MTC comp, so that's cool. But basically I'm nervous that I'm gonna have to show him around the sector and to all the investigators and stuff. At least I have the Lord on my side.
So thats about it! Things will be pretty different for the next email, I'll let you know how my new comp is and all that. Hopefully we can get the permission from Jocelyn and Juan Carlos’ mom this week.
Anyways, love you all. Thanks for all your love and support, and I'll write you all next week. The church is true!
OH wait. Forgot one thing. So they have made a new myldsmail and all the missionaries have to switch. It's Gmail, but run through the church. So we all got new email addresses. I just made the new account, and my new email address is ryan.mayberry@myldsmail.net. So dont fret, even if you send messages to the old email address it will forward them to the new one, but better off just sending to the new one. If you have any questions just ask me! Ok, love you all and talk to you next week!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
Oh yeah, and some pictures for you!
1)US and Amalia
2)Us and Amalia and her family
3) The leather cover I bought for my English scriptures (a late Christmas present to myself)
So here I am 6 months into the mission! How crazy is that. Time flies. Anyways, so this week has been both a good week and a bad week, but for the most part a good week. Actually a pretty good week. And we got news on whats going on for transfers, but I'll leave that to the end. :)
So last week ended with the news that Amalia would be baptized this week. So early in this week we went there, and she told us that she wanted to be baptized during the middle of the week, because her children wouldn't be there on Sunday to see it. So why not? we said. So she got baptized on Friday. So that was an amazing experience.
Right after the baptism it was time to go see if Pamela, the mom of Jocelyn and Juan Carlos, would be giving her permission for them to be baptized. So we got there, but she said she still was in the process of thinking about it. Ugh! It's a bit frustrating sometimes. But the thing is I know that those 2 will be baptized, but when I don't know.
So yeah, that's basically all that happened during the week. It was a pretty normal week other than the midweek baptism. So then Sunday was a really cool day. We woke up to rain that day! Of course it stopped later on and got hot, but still it was nice to see a change. So during Sacrament meeting we had our 3 confirmations, and the other Elders had their 2. So we had 5 confirmations in total! That was cool, I got to do one of them too. And another cool thing, is that Alejandro blessed the Sacrement for the first time! And Gonzalo and Luis got the Aaronic Priesthood also. Basically a lot of really cool things happened during church on Sunday. Oh yeah, something funny, so it was fast and testimony meeting, and our ward mission leader got up to bear his testimony (I don't know if I've told you too much about him, he is pretty old and a bit stubborn, and very hard to work with. He cares more about if people do their family home evening than the missionary work). But yeah, he got up and pulled a baby bird from out of his pocket and showed it to everyone and somehow linked it to his testmony. Then he just put it back in his suit pocket, and there it stayed for the rest of church. He's quite the character.
So sorry this letter is so short, but not too much happened other than what I told you. Basically we're out of investigators, and we have to find more new ones. But the last big news of the day is we found out about the transfers.
So we all assumed that Elder Jorgensen would be leaving to go be a zone leader. And sure enough, that's what's happening. My dads leaving! Haha. But yeah, he's leaving, and the rest of us are staying. He's actually going to be in the same city, but in a different zone. So that's the big news, I'm getting a new comp! His name is Elder Sarmiento I believe, and he's a latin! So that'll be exciting. We don't know too much about him, but we think he's from Ecuador also. Oh, and he was just training Ben Walter’s MTC comp, so that's cool. But basically I'm nervous that I'm gonna have to show him around the sector and to all the investigators and stuff. At least I have the Lord on my side.
So thats about it! Things will be pretty different for the next email, I'll let you know how my new comp is and all that. Hopefully we can get the permission from Jocelyn and Juan Carlos’ mom this week.
Anyways, love you all. Thanks for all your love and support, and I'll write you all next week. The church is true!
OH wait. Forgot one thing. So they have made a new myldsmail and all the missionaries have to switch. It's Gmail, but run through the church. So we all got new email addresses. I just made the new account, and my new email address is ryan.mayberry@myldsmail.net. So dont fret, even if you send messages to the old email address it will forward them to the new one, but better off just sending to the new one. If you have any questions just ask me! Ok, love you all and talk to you next week!
Elder Ryan Mayberry
Oh yeah, and some pictures for you!
1)US and Amalia
Monday, February 1, 2010
I'm six months old this week!
Hey Everyone!
So this turned out to be really excellent. So basically Sunday was excellent. And Friday. So yeah, here goes the weekly report...
So this week was pretty normal. But ever since the interviews we had with the President, the mission as a whole has been focusing on getting in more doors. As a mission we used to have a hard time with this, so now we are kind of focusing on it, to have better investigators, etc. So this week was the first week where we saw the magic happen. Heck, we knocked a street and got into like 3 out of 4 houses! It was crazy, now I know we can get into houses, we just need to help them to progress. And this is hard sometimes too, we weren't able to find anyone when we went back for the 2nd appointment. How can (its an expression here, que lata = how can, basically means how disappointing). So yeah, this week was pretty normal save getting in houses, and then something pretty darn cool happened Friday morning.
So we were just studying Friday morning and the Bishop called and informed us that a missionary from the ward just finished his mission in Columbia, and that he wouldn't be released until Sunday. So we got to go out with him the whole day! So that was cool. He is a super good missionary, very powerful and bold. It was a wierd experience, he was home, but still a missionary. It was weird to see how it would be, being home. Also he was funny just because he kept telling us about all the Chilean stuff he missed. He also came home with an accent, one I can notice, and one that makes the people here think he's not Chilean. So that was cool. That day we went with him to go get the permission from Juan Carlos’ mom. But that didn't go too well. She still said she had to think about it, and was very hurried and had to go. But she told us she’d have an answer by Friday. So we’ll see how it goes. If she gives permission, her daughter and son can get baptized this Sunday. So lets all hope and pray for that.
So then Saturday was also good. We went by Gonzalo and Alejandros house to go pump them up for the baptism. We asked Alejandro if he wanted to give a talk, and he said no, but then Gonzalo volunteered to give one! For his own baptism! That was very cool and surprising.
So then Sunday, the big day. Everything went well that day. Both Luis and Gonzalo got baptized, and 2 investigators from the other missionaries as well. And the cool news is that all 4 of us got to baptize! So that was really cool. And the talk Gonzalo made was very good, everything just went super well. And just when we thought we couldnt get blessed more, the Lord surprised us with one huge blessing...
So we hadn't gone to Amalia’s house for a long time (remember her, she's the one who lives with the boyfriend who's excommunicated, it's bascially a very complicated situation). But we called her Saturday night, and she said we had a lot to talk about on Sunday. Then we made an appointment for right after church. So it turns out that she and her boyfriend broke up. Sad news yes, but she realizes that more blessing will come for when she gets baptized! So like I said in the past, she's been going to church forever, and knows everything too. So we just called over the zone leaders to interview her, and she's getting baptized this Sunday!! I really am overjoyed for her, yes I feel her pain too, but I'm so happy to see her get baptized, something she's wanted for so long. So,, that will be a great day to see her be baptized.
So yeah, this is the Lords work. We've seen so many blessings here in this sector. And as the cambio (change? Transfer? Somethign like that) comes to a close, we have no idea what's gonna happen. So we're pretty sure Elder Jorgensen is gone, he has been here for 6 months. But we also think they might close one of our sectors (4 sister missionaries are coming in, and like 17 elders are leaving), and take one of us out and one from the other companionship out, then join the 2. We basically don't know what's gonna happen, but I'll be sure to keep you guys posted. So that's about all I have for you, I've included some pictures of the baptism, and from today (we went back up the the hill of the Virgin Mary). And by the way, I don't know if you guys have noticed, but during this next week I'll be turning 6 months old in the mission! Time flies! So I love you all, the church is true, and I'll talk to you all next week!The Pictures
1)Me, Elder Viana, Elder Christensen, and Elder Jorgensen
2) Us with Gonzalo and his family
3)Us with Luis and his sister
4) All of the people being baptized and baptizing
5)Gonzalo and I
6)Dogs! So we went up to the hill, but this time we walked from our house with like 10 new converts. So like 7 dogs followed us all the way up the hill. And we passed this perrera, also known as a chilean dog pound. So thats why theres a ton of dogs there. And the dogs here chase cars, and when i say chase, they run alongside cars going down the highway going like 50mph, and bit at the sides. Its actually really funny, yet dangerous at the same time.
So this turned out to be really excellent. So basically Sunday was excellent. And Friday. So yeah, here goes the weekly report...
So this week was pretty normal. But ever since the interviews we had with the President, the mission as a whole has been focusing on getting in more doors. As a mission we used to have a hard time with this, so now we are kind of focusing on it, to have better investigators, etc. So this week was the first week where we saw the magic happen. Heck, we knocked a street and got into like 3 out of 4 houses! It was crazy, now I know we can get into houses, we just need to help them to progress. And this is hard sometimes too, we weren't able to find anyone when we went back for the 2nd appointment. How can (its an expression here, que lata = how can, basically means how disappointing). So yeah, this week was pretty normal save getting in houses, and then something pretty darn cool happened Friday morning.
So we were just studying Friday morning and the Bishop called and informed us that a missionary from the ward just finished his mission in Columbia, and that he wouldn't be released until Sunday. So we got to go out with him the whole day! So that was cool. He is a super good missionary, very powerful and bold. It was a wierd experience, he was home, but still a missionary. It was weird to see how it would be, being home. Also he was funny just because he kept telling us about all the Chilean stuff he missed. He also came home with an accent, one I can notice, and one that makes the people here think he's not Chilean. So that was cool. That day we went with him to go get the permission from Juan Carlos’ mom. But that didn't go too well. She still said she had to think about it, and was very hurried and had to go. But she told us she’d have an answer by Friday. So we’ll see how it goes. If she gives permission, her daughter and son can get baptized this Sunday. So lets all hope and pray for that.
So then Saturday was also good. We went by Gonzalo and Alejandros house to go pump them up for the baptism. We asked Alejandro if he wanted to give a talk, and he said no, but then Gonzalo volunteered to give one! For his own baptism! That was very cool and surprising.
So then Sunday, the big day. Everything went well that day. Both Luis and Gonzalo got baptized, and 2 investigators from the other missionaries as well. And the cool news is that all 4 of us got to baptize! So that was really cool. And the talk Gonzalo made was very good, everything just went super well. And just when we thought we couldnt get blessed more, the Lord surprised us with one huge blessing...
So we hadn't gone to Amalia’s house for a long time (remember her, she's the one who lives with the boyfriend who's excommunicated, it's bascially a very complicated situation). But we called her Saturday night, and she said we had a lot to talk about on Sunday. Then we made an appointment for right after church. So it turns out that she and her boyfriend broke up. Sad news yes, but she realizes that more blessing will come for when she gets baptized! So like I said in the past, she's been going to church forever, and knows everything too. So we just called over the zone leaders to interview her, and she's getting baptized this Sunday!! I really am overjoyed for her, yes I feel her pain too, but I'm so happy to see her get baptized, something she's wanted for so long. So,, that will be a great day to see her be baptized.
So yeah, this is the Lords work. We've seen so many blessings here in this sector. And as the cambio (change? Transfer? Somethign like that) comes to a close, we have no idea what's gonna happen. So we're pretty sure Elder Jorgensen is gone, he has been here for 6 months. But we also think they might close one of our sectors (4 sister missionaries are coming in, and like 17 elders are leaving), and take one of us out and one from the other companionship out, then join the 2. We basically don't know what's gonna happen, but I'll be sure to keep you guys posted. So that's about all I have for you, I've included some pictures of the baptism, and from today (we went back up the the hill of the Virgin Mary). And by the way, I don't know if you guys have noticed, but during this next week I'll be turning 6 months old in the mission! Time flies! So I love you all, the church is true, and I'll talk to you all next week!The Pictures
1)Me, Elder Viana, Elder Christensen, and Elder Jorgensen
2) Us with Gonzalo and his family
6)Dogs! So we went up to the hill, but this time we walked from our house with like 10 new converts. So like 7 dogs followed us all the way up the hill. And we passed this perrera, also known as a chilean dog pound. So thats why theres a ton of dogs there. And the dogs here chase cars, and when i say chase, they run alongside cars going down the highway going like 50mph, and bit at the sides. Its actually really funny, yet dangerous at the same time.
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