December 15, 2014 - Hello All

So I am headed to a new area. I am sad because I wanted to be here with the Pimentel Family as they are getting prepared for the 27th of December. But such is life and I am off.

I will be going to Villa Liberacion. It is in the Stake of Hinamosa. I will be training once again. So it should be good. I will be starting the area up from scratch it looks like so wish me luck and that we can find a lot of families. I will be there tomorrow.

So this week we had the Mission Tour and Elder Cornish came and spoke. He taught us about the Atonement and it was so awesome. I learned so much! It was very spiritual and I am so grateful for the opportunity.

Elder Cornish made some pretty good jokes, we asked him doctrine questions and he taught us a ton. Pres. Corbitt also taught us a lot. We got fed and I also got a Flu Shot!

So we also had our Branch Christmas get together. It was alright. Nothing huge but the Pimentel family came and some less actives which was good! I took a lot of pictures with the members because I was pretty sure that I was leaving the area. Turns out it is true. But I love the people here. A big part of me did not want to leave!

Then today I started packing and we also went to find more info about the marriage. We now have all the info. It's just about getting all the documents ready and the appointment set. But I think we are good to go. Pres. Corbitt said that I could probably come back to see the baptism of the Pimentel Family in his letter to me today so that would be super awesome!

Uh what else. Well I am all packed. I have so much stuff wow haha. I need to get rid of stuff but I have the genes like me dad and I like to save!

W o the W is buho which is an owl. I learned that this week!

No snow? Wow that is crazy! I hope we get it in Utah.

Awesome that Utah beat BYU in Provo!

I am glad the Christmas letters all made it! That was fast!

Well that is all for now. I love all my friends and family! Be safe all please. Remember the Lord is always there for us and his ¨Grace is sufficient¨. Of that I truly testify everyday and have seen it on my mission. He can save and heal all of us. Only through Jesus Christ is there Salvation. I know the Lord has a plan for all of us! Lots of love!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

December 8, 2014 - Hello Family!

Well I think I forgot to tell you guys a W o W so this week it is Dádiva which means gift, but it is more of a religious word. Él es la Dádiva is the inicitive we are telling everyone about.

So it´s Christmas time, and that means time to wear Christmas ties. I wore mine for the first time on Thursday! I love the He is the Gift video and we have showed it to a lot of people here. I hope they keep seeing it and enjoying it. We are hoping to help people come unto Christ this Christmas. It is hard here though because people really like to drink and what not. But I can still feel the Christmas spirit!

We are still working with the Pimentel family in order to achieve the goal for Dec 26th to get married. I hope and pray we can achieve it!

Luis David got called as the teacher Quorum Pres. which is pretty sweet!

This week I did an exchange which was enjoyable and I got to know some of the investigators in the other area of Bocachica. We played some chess during the night as well and that was pretty cool. I like chess though I am not super great.

So transfers are next week. We will see what happens. A lot of people think I will go to a new area because I have a lot of time here but we will see. Our area needs some new people to help us out again. We are doing what we can though. 

Awesome about Utah Basketball beating number 8! Super cool! Keep it up! And the Utes in a bowl game! Wahoo! We gotta beat Colorado St. in Vegas too.

I hope you all have awesome Christmas houses now! Ours doesn´t have much, except for my mini Christmas tree but it looks good!

Today I used a face mask and we just relaxed in the house. It was super nice and I loved that!

So I was reading about Israel Barlow and our family history in a book mom sent me like last year. So good wow! I love reading about our family history! I want the 17 page article about Grandpa if possible! I remember you all talking about it!

I was also wondering if Aunt Theo has a biography? Just curious.

Ah well all is well. I have been doing just fine! We also talk with one family of members and they are some of my favorites. I want to visit them again for sure. He is the ward mission leader. It is the family Lireano. Such great members and so faithful! Love them so much!

Well I am just being happy and doing my thing here. I hope to finish the puzzle you guys gave me today maybe haha. I finished the temple part but I was lazy with the sky and tress. Ah such is life here in the mission. So little time haha.

We played some dominoes as well. Well I love you all! Be safe and smile big!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

December 1, 2014 - Hello All!

Hi Everyone!

Well this week has gone by well. At times it seems fast but other times it is so slow.

Mom I got the Liahona. Thanks so much. And for the letter!

So we got Hno Marion and his sons to attend the baptism this Saturday which was pretty awesome. They came to church (except for the mom because her daughter just gave birth and she was taking care of her). Then we had a lesson with them that night. And the big news is....

They decided to get married! They want us to find out all the requirements so that they can take the step. They are now shooting for the end of December! We will see what happens. Just because of them I don´t want to leave but we will see how it all works out in the end. They decided that if it was just civil marriage, then they could do it. And we are hoping we can do the baptism with them right after that! I pray we can get it with them, no matter if I am in the area or not. They are a great family!

Other than that we are working to find people who are truly prepared and interested. We found a cool guy named Nicholas who read all the pamphlet we gave him. Now he just needs to have an open heart and pray about it.

I have been enjoying the conference talks a lot. I read the one by M. Russell Ballard about the prophets and the organization and I learned a lot. I did that today as my comp got a haircut. I got one as well!

The Christmas Spirit is starting for me and here in the DR (though there isn´t any snow...) The church has a program we are using called El es la Dádiva or He is the Gift. They are using it world wide to invite people to come to Christ. The video is awesome. You should all watch it and share it with friends and family and try to invite new people as well. It is at christmas.mormon.org and only like 3 minutes. We are trying to get all the branch involved to help us out!

We had a meeting in the capital about the He is the Gift program. Then on Thursday my comp had to get a blood test cause he has been sick. We stayed home for one day sadly. I hate staying in the house. Makes you homesick and feel lazy.

Church was good. I got another surprise talk and a surprise lesson. We are some of the few Priesthood holders in the branch so we have a lot of responsibility. 

The trip sounds good! I am glad the rental care was a better choice. Lucky you got to see Connor. Can´t wait to meet that kid!

For Thanksgiving I made no bake cookies. They were delicious. I also made some more today because the district came over. They were good and I am super full now. No turkey here as it is very expensive. Sad day. I had some mashed potatoes at the zone thing and some pumpkin cake though. The best I could do here in the DR

Utah had some close games for sure. Awesome we are 25, even without a good offense. I hope we make a good and winnable bowl game.

Christmas season is here. Sounds like you are all prepared!

Oh, go Eagles. That is awesome!

Well I think that is all for now. I love you all! I am praying for you all! Be safe and smile big!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

November 24, 2014 - Hawaii was a Success!

First off, I got the package thanks a ton mom and dad. I enjoyed my picture book a lot. It brought back a lot of good memories wow. I truly miss my soccer team. That was some amazing times. It was great seeing the pictures of the temple as well and some others like seminary graduation. I also enjoyed reading my farewell talk. It is still weird to see the ward bulletin with Ron Mortimer´s name as Bishop but it is awesome!

So our activity was a great success. We had about 70 people show up. The only problem was getting people´s information. That didn´t work out but it was super fun. So much work though. We spent all of Friday and Saturday getting it ready. But it turned out super great! I was very happy that it turned out so well. Our mission President showed up at the end to give a small message as well. We had a great turn out and we showed the airplane and acted as if it crashed, then took the people through 3 rooms, representing each of the three glories. A lot of people liked it and had good questions. I was very happy with how it turned out but it was so much work! We had a less active who is super good at art help us make it all happen. He is a professional artist. It was super great!

We have been visiting the Pimentel family still and they are doing well, though marriage is still up in the air. 

Other than that we are trying to find new people and still working hard here! We really are trying to get the branch more stable and hopefully it will keep improving. I believe the Branch Pres. will be here every week from now on! A strong member named Eduardo got married in the temple with another member and they both have moved now sadly. But we are doing well here in Valiente. We will see what Thanksgiving and Christmas bring us though I am not sure if I will be here in Christmas.

A sad thing is our recent convert  has stopped coming to church and she hasn´t accepted our visits. That is really hard but I hope she can feel our love and the Lord´s love.

I finished reading Jesus the Christ. It was a very good book and I enjoyed it a lot! Now I am reading all the conference talks. I love the example by Elder Andersen about putting on your oxygen mask first. The talk by Pres. Uchtdorf about nature and light of a testimony is great too. And I enjoyed the talk by the sister on sacrament as well!

It has been a week that goes by pretty fast. Sometimes it is difficult to remember the good stuff. José Lusid and Marilin came to the activity which was good. We keep working with them. We are just doing our best out here and trying to improve everyday!

Too bad the Utes lost. Sounds like offense is a struggle. I hope we can beat Colorado! I hope the bball team keeps advancing and winning. The tournament sounds way cool.

I hope the trip turns out well for everyone for Thanksgiving!

Oh I went on an exchange with a new Elder Graff. His cousin served here and I knew him. He is a cool guy and I enjoyed teaching with him. It was a spiritual exchange but enjoyable.

W o W is grua which means crane. It came about telling a random made up story to Elder Ernst in the house. Ah the house is going well. I am happy. I love you all so much. Thanks for everything and all the support!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

November 17, 2014 - Temple!

Hi Family,

As you can see from the title line, we went to the temple this week with our branch. As missionaries we got to help as witnesses and to help with confirmations. It was pretty cool. The best part for me and the most special was that Luis David came. He got to participate in vicarious baptisms and that was pretty awesome! It is truly a miracle that I got to see this day and I hope and pray to help other investigators get baptized and go to the temple, because we all know that is the real goal. Temple attendance! I am very grateful for that opportunity!

Yesterday we had all of the Pimentel family but the mom because she was busy in the house. We talked about marriage with them and they said that they still need to talk about it as a couple. They want to be baptized but the marriage is the big thing. They also need to stop drinking coffee. We pray that they can get to the 13th of December but we will see. I am very grateful for them as a family to work with. They are reading (the dad mostly) and the kids are enjoying it they said.

At the temple store we bought them a bible and a triplet so that they can have them to study from. I pray that they will make the decision to get married. We need to find out the prices and such to see how much it will cost them.

We are also working with a less active named Angel and the lesson we had with him was super great. Very spiritual and he said that he could feel our love for him and the Lord´s love for him. He didn´t come on Sunday sadly but we are still working with him so he can get his life back on track!

I got the photos from Am and a letter from Dad. Thanks a million for that!

On Sunday I gave the lesson for the investigators and I gave a talk. The attendance with our investigators was really low. We are trying to do our best with helping the branch.

Last Wednesday we had a meeting in the capital which went well. After that we went with the Encarnacion Family and watched the Joseph Smith movie. I believe they enjoyed it but sadly none of them came to church on Sunday and I don´t think they will get to the 20th of December date. They don´t seem to be putting in enough effort to get an answer.

We also shared the movie with the Pimentel family and that went great. Yes so we watched the movie twice in a row. It was very good though and I love that family. They are great! It was spiritual and that way the kids could get involved as well.

Today we went to the capital and my comp bought some stuff. I didn´t really want anything though I need to start thinking about cool souvenirs in a couple months.

This week I have been a little sick with a cold (I think because I got wet from the rain..) but we just keep going.

Awesome that Utah beat Stanford. Sounds like we are a great defensive team this year!

The work this week was a little tough but we have an awesome activity coming up on Saturday. It is called ¨A trip to Hawaii¨and we have been inviting everyone. We are going to decorate the church on Friday and we pray that it will turn out great! I will see if I can forward on the invitation that was made.

Ah what else. Oh W o W is estirar which means to stretch. That is a good one.

Oh my comp says hi to everyone BTW! Be safe to all. I hope the families and extended families are all doing well! Lots of love to all!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

November 10, 2014 - Hi Everyone!

So to start off we had transfers and we now have 2 new missionaries in the house. One from Peru and the other from Utah. It is a good change and we seem to get along pretty well. I am happy to have that change. The house seems to be more spiritual which is good. It isn´t always easy to stay focused but we do our best!

I am working to find the good balance of having fun but being as obedient as possible. Lately that has been a little bit hard but I keep working at it.

Today we played some baseball, though I just played catch really. My comp always wants to play so I just go with the flow. Then I got a nice nap. I also got some Passion Fruit juice. That is very good and we get juice a couple times a week now. I also found some cookies and cream powder soy milk which I have fallen in love with! So good (regular milk doesn´t last here really).

So on Saturday the Branch President´s 8 year old son was baptized. I was asked to participate in the conformation which was the first time for me here in the DR (I got to participate once with Alex Cheney´s baptism I remember!)

The Pimentel Family came to church and yesterday we reviewed what it takes to be baptized so now they know what they need to focus on. They feel good in church and we are going to keep helping them and doing our best so they can feel the blessings of the Lord. Miguel a 25 yr old single adult came to church. He is reading the Book of Mormon and we see potential for him if he truly wants to change is life. We are hoping he can make Dec. 6th with his church assistance and a true conversion and testimony. The Pimentel family we are working for the 13th or 14th of December if possible.

We also have the Fam Encarnacion. The mom came to church for like 1 and a half hours which was good. That was the first time. Supposedly the dad was on the way, but he had a problem. We pray next week they can make it and he can truly feel a desire. We are planning on watching the Joseph Smith video with both families this week. Half now, half later. We are excited for that, so they can have stronger testimonies or receive them.

On Saturday we also made dinner for Marilin and Jose Luis as a service. I made my pasta with salami and onion and garlic and potatoes with sweetened condensed milk as the sauce. It looked good.

We had fast Sunday which went well. Hno Marion (dad of Pimentel Fam) said he wanted to get up to share but didn´t know if he could but he said next time he will! That would have been so cool, but next time!

Too bad RSL lost big. Tough luck. Also too bad the Utes couldn´t pull off a big upset. Sounds like they had a good chance. Well gotta keep playing hard!

I can´t believe how quick the time is passing wow. It is weird. Days like weeks, weeks like days!

I am happy to be in the same area, as we have some great investigators. It isn´t always easy but it is good. I hope to keep helping people come unto Christ!

I am close to finishing Jesus the Christ. Only 4 chapters left! Wow that is crazy!

W o the W is holgazán which means lazy (more or less)

I hope everyone is doing well, especially all of my missionary buddies and their respective families. Be safe everyone!

I believe that is all so I hope that I got to questions and such!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

November 3, 2014 - Stake Conference and Miracles

Hi Family!

Well the miracle is that the Pimentel Family made it to Stake Conference. Barely, but they made it! Wahoo. We told them to meet us at 8:30 at the church but there was no power the whole night. We called at 8 20 and they weren´t answering so we decided to go to their house. Turns out their phone wasn't charged so they didn´t get up on time! Ah so we were stressing a little that the bus was going to leave us! But they hurried and got ready which turned out great! And we all got on the bus right at 9 when it was supposed to leave. Whew! And it was a good conference. They got to meet Pres. Corbitt and the Stake President as well. An Area 70 also talked named Elder Acosta from the DR. It was a fun conference. The night before we had some youth investigators come to the youth-adult session which was awesome!

The highlight with the family is that they truly enjoyed the conference and Hno Marino (the dad) said he is reading the Book of Mormon everyday because he likes it a lot. They have a lot of questions but we are working with them to put a goal for baptism. They need to get married still though.  Their kids are participating a little as well, though the dad is for sure the most excited about it all which is good. We are way excited for them.

The mission is going well. There are a lot of ups and downs lately and it sure isn´t always easy, but we are very happy about the family we are working with. The other family is not progressing as well. Their daughters and son came to the night session but the parents don´t seem to have made a good decision yet. We will keep working with them though. As for other investigators we have some, but they still need to show more of a desire.

As for the transfers, I am staying with my comp again which I somewhat assumed. Pres. also asked me to be District Leader again.

Too bad the Utes football lost. Darn but sounds very close. Awesome that the bball and football teams are both ranked! Way cool go Utah!

Too bad RSL only got a tie. Sounds like they dominated pretty well.

Awesome that the whole family will be getting visits this holiday season. I hope you all enjoy it!

Really those are the highlights from the week.

Oh funny story is that we met a guy on the road who started talking to us and telling us that after the Second coming only the Russians and Chinese will be left. It was interesting but I guess that is his opinion.

There are a lot of Characters here for sure. Well life is good. Not easy but good. Today I took a long nap because on Saturday we couldn´t sleep because it was so hot and there were no fans. But its all going better now!

I love you all. Hello to family, friends and all the ward members!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

Youth Activity, Package, Baseball

October 27, 2014 - A double, an RBI, Stolen base and a Run Scored

Yep you guessed it, those are my stats from today! 6 missionaries came over and we went and played some baseball with all the Dominican kids. It was super fun and I know my comp was in heaven. I think we ended up tying them but it was so much fun! I played first base and feel as though I contributed well. I am not a big baseball guy but I truly enjoyed it so hey. Glad to have my glove thanks again!

This week we had an activity that turned out really well. It was crazy and everyone ended up dirty at the end but we had 4 investigators show up and 4 less actives. There was a message and then games and if you answered wrong you got shaving cream in the face. Also a search for candy with your mouth in a pile of flour! I used my jolly ranchers as the prize. Thanks for sending the odds and ends candy. For a minute I thought someone took my candy but now I see it was just odds n ends haha.

So I got a package from the Mortimer's and a huge thanks to them for that! Way cool and a lot of stuff I wanted, like UNO and Beef Jerky and the precious Granola Bars. Who knew that Granola Bars here are so expensive so they are like gold! Great stuff! Thanks a million to them! And the great note that helped a ton!

I also got the talks from Am on General Conference! Wahoo! Thanks a million Am. I loved all of them and was happy to read them again. I am also reading Jesus the Christ and I am on page like 450! I am reading it super fast but enjoying it. It is helping me understand the bible way better!

Transfers are next week but I am pretty sure that I will stay here with E. Aplanalp. He is a good guy. He loves the Giants and is happy they are winning. I will keep being happy. That is the important part!

We had the Pimentel Family at church! All 5 of them! Wahoo. But the tough thing is they aren´t married yet. Neither is the Encrnación family and only their 2 daughters made it to church this week again. We are going to keep working hard and we have hope for them! We have some less actives we are working with and other people who are either just starting or people we are going to drop for a while.

Awesome that Utah won in the last seconds. Beating USC wahoo! Great to hear RSL is in safe. Against LA will be a blast! We can do it! Also great to hear that the Utah basketball is going well!

Thanks for being a great family. I love you all and I hope we can all be together forever!

Awesome Shantaye went to Husky Howl as the Power Puff Girls. Grandma´s party sounds great! Way cool.

Be safe everyone! I think that is everything for now!

W o W is ñapa which is DR Spanish. It is like bonus. So if you want them to top off your drink for free you just sya ñapa!

Well be safe all! lots of love

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

October 20, 2014 - Hello All!

I hope all is well. I was just playing some UNO and eating some fried chicken. This morning we played a little baseball (catch and took some ground balls). My comp was in heaven I believe which is good. I had fun as well and I am happy to have the glove!

Yes I got my package, thank you so much! I am very grateful for the stuff especially the socks! Thanks for the glove and the Thai sauces. I was running low but I am all set now!

I am feeling better. I was just a little down after some things that happened but I am feeling better now. Thanks for asking everyone though.  We are still working with one family that seems interested. We are hopeful that they can come to church next week! The father read most of the pamphlet we read to them so we are excited for them. I feel good about them, I just pray they are ready to make a decision. They are the family Pimentel. 4 kids (one doesn´t live with them) and their parents. We don´t know if they are married though.

Luis David gave a talk on Sunday and it was really good. It was about baptism I was happy about that! He did a great job. He is ready to get or has the Priesthood now. I am looking forward to that! He has also invited his cousin to come to church with him which is awesome!

I really miss Thailand and Thai food. Sometimes I smell stuff here and it reminds me of that great place! Ahh good times.

On Sunday I gave the lesson in Priesthood but there were only 2 attendants plus the missionaries. That was a little sad.The class was on Joseph Fielding Smith´s teachings book. They have that in English right? We are working hard but the branch needs a lot of help. We always offer our help but we don´t know exactly what is needed but we will keep working with them!

Hna Marilin came to church which was great. She is having a lot of financial problems with her family and with her pregnancy. But she keeps being firm and strong. We really want to help her but it is hard. I am not sure exactly what we can do now besides wait and be patience because I don´t think she will be able to get married anytime soon sadly.

I hope RSL can get a streak going to make the playoffs running! Awesome that the Utes won again! Boo ya keep it up. We need to get a bowl game and do well in the PAC 12. Awesome the bball team looks good too!

My comp says hello to all of the family!

The pancakes we make were out of a mix but now we do from scratch. My comp usually does them though.

I have been enjoying the clouds and sky and rainbows lately. I am trying to find joy in the little things!

Well I think that is all. W o W is adios which is goodbye! Take care all!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

October 13, 2014 - Wahoo! Playoffs!

So I saw RSL is officially in. Even without a lot of starters! Wahoo. I am wearing my RSL shirt to celebrate! Today I even got to play a little soccer. Boo yah. I was remembering the glory days from RHFC! 7 straight wahoo!

So anyways this week has had a lot of ups and downs. I fought a little bit of depression you might say but I have also been super blessed. So I just keep working hard!

So mom we ask the sister to cook for us when needed still!

WoW is jactar which means to boast. It is from the Book of Mormon!

So this week we found a new family. Last night actually. I hope they can progress and make the right decision! We have been working with a lot of people that aren´t keeping their commitments so we will keep looking for more. Little by little we go. We are talking to almost everyone we see in order to have success. I am enjoying the work though it is very hard as well!

This week was Fast Sunday and that was super great. We had a good meeting and some youth came to church which was cool. We are also working with a 19 year old less active and we talked to him about his patriarchal blessing, so I hope he can get it to help him be active and go on a mission!

The tough thing here is the Branch Pres. works a lot and he misses Sunday meetings a lot. The Branch has a lot of work to do!

Well the work keeps going. I am not sure what else happened this week. My comp loves pancakes so we make a lot of those for breakfast. All is well here!

The Internet guy is dancing right now ha-ha. Ah the DR. We have met some crazy people (it sounds mean but its true) lately. They were screaming stuff at us and what not, but I just laugh. I am talking more English because my comp is learning but all is well. I love you all and pray for each of you! Be Safe

Tell my friends and the ward hi please!

Lots of love!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

October 6, 2014 - Conference was just GREAT!

Hello everyone! I hope you all enjoyed conference as much as I did! Even though I got most of it in Spanish. We got to see Saturday morning for an hour in English but then the WiFI fell so we only got to see that one in English. The rest were in Spanish. It was hard but good as well. Harder for my comp than me! The part that stunk is on Sunday afternoon the internet fell and we missed most of the prophet´s message. But it was super good I would say I am a happy camper!

So I loved all the talks. Way cool they were in their native tongues as well! I loved Elder Huge Martinez´s talk because of that. He spoke very well and it was cool to say that I know him. It helped me relate even more to his talk and I felt the Spirit very strongly for that one, as well as others!

I loved the talk by E. Bednar and the one by Jorg Klebinant! Jorg´s talk was great with the 6 points that I loved! He was bold and great! All were great and helped answer some questions and make me better when I apply them!

I like how Tad R. Callister talked about the importance of dedicating time to our family. That is big! That was a big theme, family and how parents can help their kids, like family prayer and study and family home evening! I liked Tad´s talk because it reminded me of the oldies song ¨Little boy blue and the Man on the Moon¨ and how that song is sad but good. We don´t want to be like that though haha.

Elder Nelson gave a great testimony of the prophet, which was another theme (prophets called of God today). They also talked about the Sacrament.

I loved E. Andersen´s example of putting on our air mask first, and that was an example I shared at the beginning of my mission in San Pedro. It was cool to see it applied in conference!

This week I also found a favorite scripture in Jacob 3 verse 1. ¨...Look unto God with firmness of mind, and pray unto him with exceeding faith, and he will console you in your afflictions and he will please your cause...¨

Very powerful and I love it so much! The Book of Mormon is great and true! Of that I know!

This week I met an Italian guy on a bus and invited him to the church page as he was on vacation. I got to talk about Italy with him with a couple Italian words, and he spoke to me in Italian slash Spanish. It was cool though!

I got the package from the Mesa park YW. Thanks a ton! It was super great and arrived just in time for conference! Wahoo!!

Today we played some soccer and cleaned the house. Now we are emailing then we will rest a little before teaching! We are still searching for families to teach. We have some but we hope they will keep progressing. We have had trouble lately with getting people to church, and only 1 investigator came to conference because it is like 25 min away walking.

Bummer RSL lost but way to go Utes. RSL will keep trucking along and make the playoffs. I have faith!

Well W of W is babosa which is snail here. My comp likes to fake fist bump people then make it look like a snail. It is pretty funny. Some people get mad, and others just laugh. I like it. We always try to be happy and joke around to get to know people! He is learning quickly, though sometimes it is very hard. All is well in the ¨Old Ship Zion¨ as our Prophet said!

Be safe. Lots of love to all!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

September 29, 2014 - Ho Ho Hello!

So the moment of truth is now...

My new companion is from....

Utah! Yep that´s right! La mata (the tree) as they call it here. He is from St. George. His name is Elder Aplanalp. He likes baseball a lot. His father served here in the DR in 1984 when there was only 1 mission here which is pretty cool.

W of Week has to do with his nickname. He said that the people here always called his dad ¨Aplandora¨ which means steamroller. Pretty cool!

Being ZL was fun but I am excited to train. The baptism was really good on Saturday! We had 3 young investigators that showed up and a lot of youth as you can see from the pictures. There were some members that made it as well, which was good. Luis David asked me to do the ordinance and then E. Aplanalp participated in the confirmation on Sunday which was cool! We are excited for him to receive the Priesthood very soon. Other than that, our investigators are not really progressing so we are on the hunt again to find those that really are prepared and ready!

Pres. came to our district meeting again which was super cool. He talked bout the importance of obeying the rules and being responsible. Then he shared the story in John 4 about Jesus and the Samaritan at the well. It is a good story and he loves it. He also talked about the importance of trainers and thanked me personally for my work as a ZL in front of everyone. It was cool but I didn´t want all that attention on me.

The trainers meeting went really well in the capital last Tuesday. I learned a lot and I can really see why Pres. only wants the best and most obedient to train. I am doing my best to be as obedient as possible!

I have enjoyed these days and have really seen the hand of the Lord. We have been trying to talk to almost anyone in the street and have found a lot of less actives and some new people through that. We are putting in practice what Pres wants and we have seen the blessings!

A bummer that The Utes lost by a point and that RSL also lost.

Conference this Saturday and Sunday! Make sure you all get questions ready so the Lord can answer them through his servants. I am excited. We may be able to see it in Spanish but I am not sure. We will see!

Wow I didn´t know that the speakers can give their talk in their native tongue! That is super cool but interesting. Now when I get home I will have to have a feed in Spanish and in English. 

Well that is all for now. I love you all!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

---

September 22, 2014 - Voy a Entrenar!

Hi Family,

Well I have some biggish news! As you could see from the title (for the Spanish speakers) I am going to be training a new Elder coming in. I will stay in my area here in Valiente. That means I am being relieved as Zone Leader. It was a good experience, and a fast one as well. But I learned a lot and now I am on to a new learning experience of helping a new Elder adapt and learn! They changed where the ZL´s live now. I didn´t expect it but I look forward to it! Pres. said that training a new missionary is the most important assignment in the mission and that is why he changed us from ZL to trainers. He also did it with his last 2 assistants and a lot of other ZL´s. I am excited and nervous as well. It will be a good experience for sure. E. Palomino will also be training for his last two transfers. E. Palomino and I were together for a transfer and a half, so about 2 months.

Today for pday we bought a nice lunch, washed clothes and printed photos. The lunch was meat and fritos and mondongo (mashed fried plantain with a garlic butter sauce. My first time eating it. So good!). A good meal and a little pricey at 700 pesos for the both of us but we got 400 pesos cause we won the raffle in the mission! Wahoo!

The baptismo for Luis David is planned for Saturday at 5pm. We are looking forward to it! He is super ready for baptism and to receive the Priesthood. We are excited for him. Most of the rest of our investigators are not progressing so with my new comp we will be on the hunt once again!

WoW is telaraña which is spiderweb.

I am having some pants made for me that fit better and look great. Hopefully by next week!

The room we went in, in the temple is called the sala de asambleas solemnes in Spanish. I am not sure in English.

Awesome RSL won. The other day it was cloudy and a little breezy and I got thinking about how I truly miss watching the RSL games and going to Utah Ute games as well. As I really miss sports some days but all is well. I am enjoying it here. It is pouring rain as we speak. I hope all my clothes don´t get too wet. We will see ha-ha!

Pres. also announced that we will be able to go to the temple more often! Wahoo! The Preparation Days are changing and the rules are getting more strict (following the ¨White Bible¨now like we should) but it shouldn't be too bad. They just don´t want us to travel super far and they don´t want us to be in large groups. It is all good though!

We will see tomorrow who my new comp is, coming from the MTC. We had our council with Pres. Corbitt and it was super enjoyable. I loved it a lot. He taught us more about the Atonement which was super cool. We also talked about how we can make the mission even better.

Well I think that is all. Take care everyone! Lots of love!

Love,

Elder Chez Green

September 15, 2014 - Hello All!

I hope life is going well. Today has been a day of cleaning and getting things prepared for tomorrow at the Leader´s meeting. The sacrifices we make as leaders, but all is well! We got some nice rain today which was good, though it makes it a lot more humid.

So last Tuesday was amazing. We got to attend the temple! Wow such a great experience. I am grateful to have one so close to my mission, and in the country I am serving! So before we entered for the session, we enjoyed a message from the temple President and our Mission President. We got to meet together in the Solemn Assembly Room in the temple (in Spanish salón de semblellas I believe) This temple is one of 12 that have the room. It was a privilege and may be the only time I get to enter in a room such as that.

The session was very spiritual. I felt as though I received personal revelation and I understand a lot better the Gospel in certain aspects. The temple is so beautiful inside as always and it was a great experience. I will try to send pictures or photos another day, as I took a lot.

I have been studying a lot lately and I finished Reading the Joseph Fielding Smith book for Sunday school this year (in Spanish of course!) I am now Reading the Liahona and Jesús the Christ!

The Hodson Herald was fun to check out really quick!

Well we have a new baptism date for Luis David. He wants to be baptized the 27th of September, and he is progressing so fast that we are working for that now. He is more responsible then a lot of the youth members in the branch. The Leaders here all say he acts like a member so we are excited for him to keep improving and learning more!

This week E. Palomino and I took over for the mutual because the leaders didn´t show up and or tell someone in advance. We shared a message from For the Strength of Youth and played a game. It was enjoyable and we feel like it was worth it. We are trying our best to help the Valiente Branch here.

So transfers are next week. We will see but I am pretty sure that E. Palomino is going to leave. That will be sad but that is for next week!

Awesome Aunt Kathi got to ride in a Hot Air Balloon! Way cool! Sounds like something enjoyable for sure!

W of the Week is año. Yep year. Because I completed a year. Time flies wow. We went to the district meeting in Frailes (our zone is splint in two meetings because it is so big). We enjoyed it and feel like the Sister missionaries are improving a lot.

This week I read the talk ¨His Grace is Sufficient¨ and wow it is so great. I recommend that everyone take time to read it. He explains the Atonement and grace so perfectly. Read it!

Well I love you all. Be safe and we will talk next week! Our house is nice and clean which is great. I also have clean clothes!

Be safe, and remember ¨Good afternoon, good evening and goodnight!¨

Love Chez!

Aka

Elder Green

September 8, 2014 - Hello Everyone!

Well today I believe we will have power and I will have sufficient time to write you. I want to give a little more info from last week and then talk about this week. We will see how it all turns out. First off I love you all very much! I hope all is well and everyone is holding strong.

So this Tuesday we will go to the temple. Or tomorrow. I am very excited for that experience! I look forward to it! Pres. Corbitt has been focusing a lot on it and that we take advantage of it. He asked us to bring our patriarchal blessings so we can read it in the temple. A good reminder for all of us! We will also have a special meeting with the Temple Pres. I am excited.

We had the Mission Tour where Elder Martinez (of the Seventy) and his wife spoke to us along with Pres. Corbitt and his wife. The mission is undergoing a big change so we can be more obedient to the mission rules and it will take time. They are being more strict on our Preparation Days (they want us to avoid using Pday because it can sound like ¨play day¨but it isn´t.) We are working to get the rules more direct so the missionaries can obey them and the Zl and STL (sister training leaders) have a meeting with Pres. in the following week so we can get firm decisions.

Our investigator Luis David is progressing very well. We are so excited for him! He is thinking about changing his date because he is progressing so well. The other date with Gullermina fell through but we are hopeful that she can keep progressing. We have found new people to teach as well, which is great. We are working hard and E. Palomino is a great missionary. I am learning a lot from him and in my studies as well! It is super cool! I like learning. I am starting to understand more of the bible and help answer questions with it. It is a great experience and I am so grateful for the scriptures as well as modern day revelation!

Awesome the Utes could win in football! I saw a guy the other day here with a Utah shirt. I thought about asking him for it or buying it but it was Sunday so I couldn´t (just joking) But I don´t think anyone knows what it is but me. I enjoyed it though. Gave me a smile!

Awesome that RSL won as well. I am wearing my jersey as we speak here in the internet place!

Lately I have been craving a Jamba Juice but I will just have to wait. Or a nice freezy like they have in Thailand in MBK! Those sound delicious. Or horchata. Something good from the 3 cultures that I love, the US, Thailand and Mexico.

Wow Brian Call is home. How time flies! I remember his farewell! Awesome that Aaron Pyper is going on a mission. Good for him! Where is he going?

Well that is all for now. Keep praying and remember to ¨feast upon the words of Christ!¨

I love you all!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

August 25, 2014 - It's not raining, it's pouring!

Hello my lovely family! (I sound like Jay with that starting line, anyways)

Well today was a good day and now I will tell you all about it, along with my week. Today I woke up and started to wash some clothes. Then cleaned a little bit. At about 11 20 we left to La Caleta, which is the area right next to ours (their area includes the airport). There is where we got together with about 14 missionaries and played soccer as well as some Skip-Bo! (yes you read that right, I found Skip-Bo in the house and I have claimed it. Now I just need to find Uno and I am set!) It was a fun Pday and then we went and ate PicaPollo or fired chicken. After that, we decided to walk back to the house, but cross the highway and walk by the ocean. We got the nice sea smells and it was relaxing. I enjoyed it a lot. Then I showered and we are now here at the internet. A good Pday and I was happy to get out of the house, because in the morning it was raining hard. Today was cloudy too.

So to the subject line now. This week it has rained a ton! I think there is a storm passing around. Saturday was super rainy. So rainy that we made the decision not to leave, because it wouldn´t be safe or very productive. It was hard because we had appointments but we wouldn´t have made it very well. So we stayed in. We had just finished an intercambio or exchange so the other Elder´s didn´t make it back to their house. They had to cross the highway, and to do it in the rain and at night is dangerous so they crashed the night with us. We put our beds together and slept 3 and 3. It wasn´t very comfortable and I wasn´t feeling super great but we survived! While we were waiting for the rain we ended up playing card games and what not, to see if the rain would stop but it didn´t. So it has been a rainy week! But it has really helped the climate stay cooler so that isn´t bad. My stomach has been giving me some little issues but I am trucking on!

WoW is susurro which means whisper! Siga el susurro del Espíritu!

So on Saturday night the rain was pouring and we hadn´t had electricity for 2 days. They turned it on Saturday night. But there was a fault, or the voltage was too high. So we saw a glowing light and we looked out the door and saw everyone screaming. It turns out the transformer was overloading. Then it exploded and started an electrical fire. We just stayed in the house but we could see the glow of the flames. It was super interesting. Then they turned off the power and the fire went out in that instant. An hour later it came on again and the same thing started. But they then fixed it. It was super interesting! But we just stayed in the house and we are all safe now!

So we have a baptism planned for Friday! We feel she is ready to go and we are looking forward to it. We are also excited to invite our other investigators that are progressing. Especially Luis David and Guillermina. Yesterday we had a very spiritual sacrament meeting and I really enjoyed it. It helped because I got a talk from Amberlee that talked about how to better prepare for Sacrament meeting. I enjoyed that a lot. I also got my birthday letter from Aunt Theo. Thank you to her!

I got the package as well! Thank you so much. Some delicious treats as well as some needed things. Wahoo!

Tough RSL lost but they will keep plugging along I know it!

There are about 250 total missionaries in our mission.

This week we get to meet Elder Hugo Martinez who is the 2nd counselor here in the Caribbean now. He is in the 2nd Quorum of the 70. That should go well. We have a meeting on Wed. And then Thursday another meeting for all the Leaders.

Well I love you all so much. Thanks for everything! Lots of love to all my peeps!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

August 18, 2014 - I didn´t know Mr. Krabs lived in the DR!

Well where do I start hmmm. So the title just gives it away right. Well last night my comp caught a crab. It was walking towards us while we were sitting and talking with our ward mission leader. I spotted it first and then we ended up taking it home. I am not a huge fan but we just took some pictures and then released it so all is well. You will now get to know Mr. Krabs in photos. (The subject line is a reference to Spongebob FYI for all those folks that don´t understand!) He is an interesting little guy but now you all know him!

Today was a relaxing Pday again. Sometime they are good but this one I mostly just slept and worked on my temple puzzle. I would have liked to do something but there are so many places closed on Mondays, including museums, galleries, and tourist attractions that it is sometimes hard to find things to do. But it went well and we now have a clean house, a new washing machine (the old one stopped working) and my puzzle is starting to look really good!

So this week were the changes and in our zone there were 19! Wow that is a lot! And there are 7 new missionaries in our zone. We still have 32 missionaries total, which is the largest zone in the mission (or tied for the largest). Wow lots to do!

This week we had some fun with a gathering in the church where we had to act out a word. It was fun and an investigator came. The branch is really small and they have some issues but we are trying to help them! We have three goals for baptism. The closest is in two Saturdays. Her name is Alejandra and she is 19. She is super solid, she just needs to understand the importance of coming to church a little better. So we are going to teach her that a little more. But she said she feels like a member which is awesome. She has some friends in the church as well.

Then we have Luis David who is 14. We just found him about a month ago but he always comes to the activities and he is going to start seminary today! Wow so cool! He is investigating a lot about the church and knows a lot. He really just needs more time and to get a stronger testimony. We usually have to wait 3 months to baptize someone under 18 but we may be able to move it up, depending on the ward support.

And lastly we have Guillermina who is also progressing really well. She said that she has felt and received an answer, now we just need to help her keep progressing. She is reading the Book of Mormon, well the chapters we assign her. We just want her to keep progressing but we have high hopes for her as well in September. We have a Family night tonight with some members in the ward so we hope that she can receive help from that.

This week we had a meeting for the new leaders and wow was that inspiring! Our mission President is very spiritual and an inspiring man! Wow! I had such a great experience and I felt the spirit very strong during that meeting. The Spirit was testifying of this great work we are doing and that our Heavenly Father knows us and watches over us. I now have a stronger testimony because of that. I learned a lot! Some of my very good buddies are leaders now as well. There are about 7 or 8 of my group from the MTC of 16 American Missionaries that are leaders. That is super cool!

So thanks to Elder Mortimer and the idea of Am we did the miracle minute in our zone. We gave one Elder the chance to share as there isn´t a lot of time, but it was great! I hope to keep doing that! Thanks for the advice!

So yesterday I gave a talk. It was a surprise to me, but luckily the house is just upstairs, I ran up there and grabbed the Liahona. And I had one prepared in my mind. It was on the talk by Pres. Uchtdorf  "Are you sleeping during the Restoration?" and I started it off by sharing the scripture in 1 Thessalonians 5 verses 6 and 8. I thought it went well, though I tried to make a joke at the beginning and no one laughed. I think it is the culture here that it didn´t translate or something. I said " this scripture is for those of you who are tired" and it talks about not sleeping. I thought it was funny anyways.

So WoW is ... wow I think we will go with "celular" which is cell phone because we got a new one today that actually works"! Wahoo and it is yellow and cheap but it works!

So the zone has people from all over. From the Guadalupe Islands to Peru, Honduras, Nicaragua, Mexico and lots of States in the US. There are 12 sisters and 20 Elders.

In the house we have E. Vargas from the DR and E. Coello from Honduras. 

Well I think that is all my lovely folks. That that that´s all folks! (the piggy from looney tunes!)

Be safe and have a good week. Know that I love you all!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

August 11, 2014 - Hello All!

Hey family

Well I am at another Internet place, I hope I can get it to work alright. It seems like this will be a little bit of a battle but that is alright. The important part is you hear from me right!? Well I wanted to say I love you all first off!

So this week I ate an interesting food that is in the picture I sent. It is called Mondongo. I am not a huge fan. It is stomach and intestines of an animal, I am not sure what it was. I ate some of it and then gave the rest away. An experience. The Latinos like it but I don´t.

So we have some investigators we are working with which is going well. We have a goal now for one investigator and we have a lot of others in church.  We also have some youth we are working with that we feel are progressing.

We will have a new zone as transfers are tomorrow. I am staying with my comp like I thought I would. E. Valencia is going to train a new missionary again! Way cool!

Another investigator named Julian said that dad is a Vacano or cool dude because of his beard. A lot of people really like it but they also ask if he is "Christian". It makes me laugh and I say yes.

W o W is patrocinar which means sponsor. Like LifeVantage is RSL sponsor. Speaking of RSL, congrats to them for winning and to Nick My HomeBoy Rimando on the shutout record. Way cool! Awesome MLS All-stars beat Bayern Munich as well! I like that!

This week we had a lot of meetings and our proselyting was low. We met with the Stake Pres so we can be united in the missionary work (we met with the Mission Pres as well at the same time). then the next day we had a meeting with all the sister leaders and zone leaders to talk about specifics and how we can help this mission grow and progress. Our mission Pres has a lot of great plans! Then we had our last zone meeting. This zone is changing a lot so we will see how it all goes.

Well I am not sure what else to say. Life is good and we keep working hard here. I am happy to be here, though it isn´t always easy. We will see how transfers go with new missionaries in the house and what not.

Take care and smile!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

August 4, 2014 - Hey All!

Hello everyone!

I hope all is well! I am doing well. Dusty and dirty from Valiente but it is good. We also got a little rain which doesn't seem to come very often but that was cool! So there was a "big storm" coming called Bertha. That turned into a little rain here in Valiente. Perhaps it was more in other places but it didn't do much for us, other than scare some investigators from coming to church but we still had 6 at the meeting which is awesome! That is great news!! It was pretty awesome to see that!

So the wife of our ward mission leader is super awesome. She cooks for us and we go to her house to pick it up everyday and bring it back to the house in Rubbermaid's. It is like 7 minutes away and we pay her 100 pesos for each meal. She does it for us everyday unless we won't be home. It is super awesome and she is super nice. As ZL there just isn´t much time to cook and the other missionaries don´t know how. And the problem with the power here means our food would spoil quickly. So this way is easier and probably cheaper!

This week I have had a cold which hasn´t been super great. We have rested a lot in the mornings because my energy levels were down. A lot of coughing sadly. I think it is being in an area with a lot of dirt and pollen in the air but I am feeling better now. Sister Lireano (the sister that cooks for us) made me some tea from chinola (passion fruit) tree leaves. They say it cures the gripe (common cold) super fast. It is good and warm which soothes. I am feeling better now!

WoW is cadena which is chain!

We had our district meeting and Pres. Corbitt came to it and taught us the story of the Samaritan Woman at the well in John 4. It was super cool. We have a meeting with the Stake Pres of Las Americas tomorrow and a Leadership meeting on Wed. with Pres and the other ZLs. We are looking forward to that and hopefully all will go well there!

Also I got pictures of the Cheney family which was awesome for my bday. So cute! And one with Grandma and Grandpa too! Awesome stuff! I can't believe how fast Crew is growing. I remember when he was a baby. Now he is walking and smelling flowers! wow! ha ha awesome!

My companion is doing well and I knew him before, because we lived in the same house but not super well. His parents are converts and got baptized when he was 5 yrs old. He still remembers and has pictures of the baptisms. That is why I want one of mine. It is awesome.

Well that seems to be all. I love you all so much. The scripture for this week is Hebrews 10 verse 23 to 25! One I like.

And the Mormon Message of Mountains to Climb is awesome! I love you all. Lets get "unbreakable spiritual strength!" ' E Eyring

I can feel the love of God everyday here and I know there are angels protecting me and all of you my family and friends as well. So be safe and of good cheer for God is with us. And live worthy for all the blessing he gives us! I love you all!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

Birthday gifts . . .

July 28, 2014 - Hello Lovely Family

Hi Everyone!

I just wanted to say I love you all very much! Like I said, I am not sure how much time I will have now being ZL but I hope I can send you all some good info! I may email in the mornings too or in the afternoons. Just depends. There isn´t a lot of power here so it makes it hard.

First off thanks for all the gifts! I got the tube and the packages form the Cheney and Gma and Gpa Barlow, as well as from Whit and JJ and Am and Damian (envelope). Muchas gracias por todo! I mean thank you ! haha

So this week is truly just a blur but I will try to take something cool out of it and make it into an email. My mind is a little fried to be honest with so much to learn and to tell people that I have just kind of forgot. Haha but such is life!

My comp has 19 months and is a super good missionary! He has been ZL for almost 5 months. A lot of work.

Well I love you all so much. If the power goes out right now I want to be sure you get this! I love you all!

-- 

Love,

Elder Chez Green

I am back!

I had to change computers but we will see how much time I have left with the battery. I hope sufficient but who knows. So this week the spiritual part was we had the baptism but it started late. So we visited the 1st counselor so he could come visit the baptism. He is less active but it was super spiritual. Then he showed up on Sunday as well. It was pretty awesome! We felt like he needed the visit and we hope he keeps coming! We have been working hard but the investigators didn´t make it to church. Two new ones did but the progressing ones did not make it sadly. We will keep working with them. There are some big challenges in the zone but we hope that it all goes well and keeps getting better. We have been talking with Pres.Corbitt about some things and how we can help the zone. It is all changing little by little. We hope it keeps getting better.

I am about 20 or 30 minutes from the capital. It has a lot of dirt roads here but its good. The problem really is the power here. It is not very consistent or good. My comp is waiting for me to finish so there isn´t much more I can say right now.

Our branch has about 60 active members I believe so that is cool. There are challenges like always. Today for Pday we just rested in the house and ya that is pretty much it. I love you all!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

Happy Birthday Elder Green

 The group for the last time!

 Birthday gifts

 Birthday cake!

New companion - E. Palomino from Nicaragua

July 21, 2014 - Surprise Transfer!

Hey ya'll so first off, thanks for the birthday wishes but I have a surprise for you. On Wednesday we had our interviews right. So that went super well and our Pres is super awesome. Very spiritual and he wants to help get this mission going even better. That is pretty awesome I would say. I enjoyed talking with him and it went well. He talked about the importance of trust and loyalty not to him, but to the Lord. Pretty awesome! Anyways we talked for a while. I was the first of the district to be interviewed and I wasn´t sure why. It didn't click or anything. But then E. Turketo and I were teaching and Pres called us about 6 35 pm, 2 hours after the interviews. He then asked me if I would accept the calling as Zone Leader in the zone Las Americas. I said yes and from that day on I hurry and said goodbye to people and started to pack.

Yep so I am now ZL in Las Americas! Wow I didn't see that coming, and especially not a special transfer like it happened. Right in the middle of the normal transfer! Wow ahah. But here am I in Las Americas. It is really close to the airport. And our area is almost all dirt roads! It is crazy. We are in a branch and it is a house. We live right next door to the church. Literally right next door! That part is pretty cool. The church is on ground level and we live above and to the right of it on the second level. To get to my area I got a ride from the AP's´s which was nice as I had a fair amount of stuff.

My new comp, E. Palomino from Nicaragua! We lived in the same house in Los Mameyes for a transfer and now he is training me to be ZL! He is a good guy and I am excited to learn a lot from him. I really don´t know much but I am working hard.

Our zone has 32 missionaries, the biggest in the mission I believe! And 14 of them are sisters! Wow that is big! We have a lot of work ahead of us in order to improve this zone but we are working on goals in order to do so.

So today my comp got me cake, which was pretty awesome! He is a good guy! I am planning to share it with him and the other elders in the house. He is a great! I ate fried rice with some fries and chicken for lunch. We are going shopping after this so hopefully I can buy some good stuff for dinner.

So the bad news is right when I got here a problem started with the water pump. So we are doing buckets again. Not super fun but it happens so we are still smiling.

So time flies here. I am not sure what I am missing. Thanks for all the gifts. I really appreciate it. They are all so great. I love the Jersey that I got. Wahoo! Well life is going well. I am super tired now. I got to go to a meeting and I have been traveling a lot. I haven´t visited so many areas in 4 days. It is pretty crazy but I am learning a lot. Well I will try to do better next week but I love you all! Be happy don´t worry!

Bye!

--

Love,

Elder Chez Green

July 14, 2014 - Hi All, So first off don´t worry about what I am going to tell you!

I say that because everything had a happy ending so I want you all to be happy! But last night we were waiting for the bishop so he could visit a new investigator with us and a man walked up to us. He smelled drunk and started asking us questions and we talked a little bit. Then he asked for our cell phone kind of jokingly, but then he said give it to him so nothing else happens. Then he asked for the new Nike watch I bought as well. So we handed it over obviously because that is mission rules and it isn´t worth a conflict.

So we walked to a members house right after and told a less active of about 16 years. He went straight after the guy. Then we told more of the members family (they are a huge family of like 7 siblings, one of which is the bishop, and they all have kids. It is like 30 all together I believe and they all live pretty close, but anyways) the family like went after the guy and the whole community united to put him in custody. We were not involved but we could hear the ruckus. So they took him to the police station and they put him in custody. We then took our statement and they found our stuff but they had to keep it for evidence. At this point everyone knew what was going on, but the bishop walked us back to our house and then we talked to the ZL´s and it all seemed good. Then this morning they asked that we come back at 8 am. So we went and it turns out that the guy who robbed us, his brother is a police captain. And that the guy who robbed us is ex police. So we meet his brother and Mom and they asked us to forgive him really. So we talked to our Mission Pres and he said that would be a good idea. We were using our Christ like attributes. It is crazy how I am changing on that side of things here. I didn´t really even feel mad at the guy when it happened. But anyways we talked to them and we decided to drop it (E.Turketo and I). Then we met the guy and his name is Ramon. And he apologized to us and we talked to him about repentance and forgiveness. Then our Mission Pres wanted us all to go to the office so he could meet them all. He said that we all forgive him but he wants us to start teaching him! Yep that is exactly what happened. So we now have all the info of the family and we will see how it goes.

But pretty much to sum up the story, we went from being robbed to finding a new investigator. And so ya that is the story. It wasn´t really a dangerous situation, because E. Turketo and I didn´t feel in danger when he robbed us. But it all turned out well. We will see if he comes to our appointment in the church on Friday night. We will be sure to be accompanied by a priesthood leader just in case but all seems well! So we will see if he has the desire to change. Very interesting experience but I thought I would share it with you all. The Lord works in strange ways! But please don´t worry. It happened on a street corner and there were people around and the members house was literally 20 feet away, so we were not worried. And the odds of 2 against one is pretty good if anything goes down (E. Turketo used to box as well) But ya that is the story!

I am about to finish the Book of Mormon in Spanish for the first time! I am super excited! I invite all of you to read it! It is super great. Take a chance! Go on make my day! :)

So that took up part of our P day to get that all resolved. Then we played some soccer and as a zone we got free pizza because we cleaned our houses! Boo ya pizza party!

So I have almost all of my bday gifts, except I haven´t gotten the tube yet. It is hard to see them everyday and not have the desire to open them but I am fighting it haha!

We also had a zone meeting on Thursday and I shared a talk for the whole zone. I felt like it went pretty well honestly!

W of the W is haragan which means lazy chair(boy) or a recliner chair. But they use it here as slang to say like someone is super lazy. Tu eres un haragan. It is pretty funny!

Oh so we have a new motto for the mission. GOOD JUDGMENT! I like it but I feel like a lot of missionaries could abuse it. We will see.

Crazy about Germany smashing Brazil. And then like I predicted they won it all. I saw glimpses in the street of some of the game but congrats to the Germans! I like their team a lot. Super young and enjoyable to watch!

Wow Lebron went back to Cleveland! What a surprise!

Interviews will be coming this week on Wed.. Our mission Pres is super loving which is great and any questions I don´t know in Spanish, he speaks English! Wahoo!

Well I love you all! Be safe and don´t worry about me. I am safe and sound (like the TSwift song from hunger games) Love yall!

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Love,

Elder Chez Green

Mission President Corbitt and his wife