June 23, 2014 - Hi Family! World Cup Fever!

So I have official overcome my regular fever and my sickness and I now how World Cup fever! Ha ha pretty great, though I am doing my best to get unfocused on why I am here. Great news the USA beat Ghana and heartbreaking that they only tied Portugal, with the lead and everything. Darn but we can still do it! That gives us 4 points and Portugal only has 1 so if we win or tie against Germany or Portugal loses to Ghana, we should be in! There have been some crazy stuff going on in the soccer world, but you all know way better than me. I hear tidbits here and there. I at first heard USA lost to Portugal so I was sad, then I heard they won and I was super happy and a tie just brought me back to even Spirits. ha ha the joys of miss communication!

So this Saturday I got to participate in a baptism for the other Elder´s area! It was pretty cool! When I did the interview she asked if I could baptize here because she felt like the spirit wanted her to ask me. So I ended up doing it. It was pretty cool, though a little different to baptize someone and I didn´t even help teach. Her daughter and cousin also got baptized. It was a good service!

I hope everyone else is doing well. I have overcome my sickness which is nice. I am still really tired some days but overall I feel good again! A week and 2 days was difficult to be in the house but the Lord understands. Our area is not doing so well though. We have 2 baptismal dates for the 5th of July, but after that we don´t have anyone progressing really. It is a little tough but we will keep working hard. It is crazy that E. Turketo and I will be together for antoher 8 weeks. That is a long transfer but we get along well so it should be good!

Have fun Shantaye at youth conference! I hope it is great! Crazy that Ghana tied Germany! Wow I didn´t see that coming. We need a tie or a win and we can do it! Go USA!

Well there isn´t much more than that. I love you all very much. Not many photos this week which is unfortunate but we didn´t do much. We will keep working and trying to help people! I love you all! Be safe!

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Love,

Elder Chez Green

June 16, 2014 - Chickengoonya!!!

Hey Family! (Side note¨Go USA!!)

Oh what joys this week (sarcastic). I came down with the new virus that comes from the mosquitoes that just got here this season. It is called the Chickengoonya and the Dominicans have the hardest time pronouncing it. That part is funny. It hasn´t been fun but I just keep on keepin´on! I have spent the last five days in the house pretty much as my companion has also been sick (maybe with the same thing, maybe not). The sickness has passed through a ton of missionaries and almost everyone in the country is getting it. It isn´t fun but you just deal with it. It takes all of your energy and gives you really bad body pain, I have a bad rash all over my body and it also gives you a fever. It is not very dangerous besides the fever, but luckily mine never really got too high, 100.9.

Thank goodness I had the thermometer though. I am starting to feel a little better but still I don´t feel great. I am just super tired. Today we went to a Pday BBQ which was fun but I just sat around in the church and talked. I am still dead tired and I didn´t even do anything. It is not super fun but I am just smiling and going along with it. Don´t worry about me because I know I will get better soon.

So transfer news is that E. Turketo and I will be together for another 8 weeks (this is a long transfer). That will be pretty cool, though we were both pretty surprised. I hope all goes well, though they could still do a special transfer as well. It always just depends. Our house of 4 will be the same which should be fun. I enjoy who I live with right now which is good!

So like I said we really haven´t worked much. Hna Dios Dery and her son both want to be baptized so we are working for June 28th or July 5th, but I think July 5th will be more practical with the sickness. Other than that, there really isn´t much going with our area. We are contacting a lot and find people but they just don´t commit much. Such is life here in the DR.

So one funny thing this week is how the DR people say chickengoonya. They can´t say it for their life so instead they say like chickboo or the thing or just make up random words. Now they are calling it the chichigwa which here in the DR is kite. They have now just changed the name entirely. So chichigwa is W o W. Ah the Dominicans.

E. Lara is leaving the zone which it will be sad to see him go. I am looking forward to meeting some new Elders. There really isn´t much to talk about. Oh I watched all the D and C movies in Spanish, as well as the testaments and the restoration movie. And I have played checkers and chess. That is about all the things I do for right now. It is boring but I just keep smiling!

I hop the World Cup is going well and that everyone is happy! Go USA! Well I love you all! Be safe!

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Love,

Elder Chez Green

June 9, 2014 - Good Day Lovelies!

Hey everyone and I just want to say first off, that I love you all! This week was a good one with a lot going on. I got the privilege to write a long letter to Pres. Hernandez as changes or transfers are coming next week again so this may be a little shorter than usual. I can´t believe Pres. Hernandez leaves so soon!

We had a leadership meeting which was pretty cool and I enjoyed it. I learned a lot but that reminds me I need to prepare a talk for the zone. Oh goody! It was the last leader meeting until the new President comes. We will see how the change goes but I know it will be good. He comes in 1 week now I believe. Wow that is fast! The district is doing well and I did some baptismal interviews. When the people are prepared those are super spiritual events. I enjoyed them a lot and I am excited. We also did a cosecha which means harvest where we get together as a zone in an area and do contacts or visit less actives. That was great and fun, and we bonded more as a district.

I weighed myself the other day and I am at 178, right where I was at when I was 16 years old, so I would say that is good! Happy me.

I also did 2 exchanges or intercambios this week. They were both super fun. I enjoyed them and learned a lot. I made pineapple teryaki chicken for the peeps in my house which was great.

We don´t have a lot of progressing investigators right now, just Hna DiosDery and her son Enderson but they are praying about a baptismal date. I hope they keep up all the good work. I know they are super prepared which is awesome! Other than that we are working hard to find new people that are actually interested and will commit. That is a trouble here in the DR, commitment. But the good news is we have helped a lot of less actives come back to church. 

Today we went to the conde and la duarte. We visited an old catholic church and passed by some cool shops and just enjoyed ourselves. I had fun and then we napped and I also read a little about the world cup. I am super excited for it though I don´t get to see it. Oh well so swell!

W of W is aguantar which means to bear or put up with. pretty good one I would say! Well I love you all. Be safe. A special shout out to Aunt Theo and Grandma and Grandpa for always helping me out. Thanks a ton. Be safe and be sure to keep on going.

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Love,

Elder Chez Green

PS The song dig a tunnel from Lion King 1 and a half has been stuck in my head lately. Random I know but interesting haha! Love ya! 

June 2, 2014 - Hi Family!

Hello Lovely family!

I just wanted to tell everyone hello first off! I love you all! We had another baptism this week which was super awesome. It was with Hna Eufemia. Let me tell you a little about her story. She first met the missionaries in December of 2010 and since then she has been reading the BOM and visiting church. Yes for almost 4 years! She hasn´t been able to be baptized because her spouse doesn´t have any records so they can´t get married. So she got special permission to be baptized which is super awesome and she is now an official member after more than 3 years in the church. Talk about enduring to the end. She has a great testimony and we are very excited for her now that she can receive a calling and truly progress in the church. So we had the baptism on Saturday night and it was pretty great!

Other than that we haven´t really visited the Valdez family as they are still visiting another church. Samuel is doing well and now has a white shirt and tie. We also have Hna DiosDery and her son Enderson which are super solid. We invited them to pray about a baptismal date and we hope it can come soon. She has visited the church a lot before but now her spouse doesn´t live with her so the time just may be right. We sure hope so and are working well with her! She has 3 kids, a new born baby that is about the same age as Connor then a 6 yr old and Enderson who is 15. The rest of our area is progressing little by little but there are always difficulties. It is also difficult to listen to so many meetings here in the DR when they really don´t want to do much but we will keep working no matter what! 

So today we had the last activity with Pres. and Hna Hernandez. It was a little sad. We had a BBQ and played soccer. I forgot my soccer shoes but it was still fun. I scored a goal like Alvaro Saborio did against Seattle a couple playoffs ago when he flicked it with his back heel. That was the highlight of the day as well as sharing and talking with my buddies in the mission.

I hope Cara is improving! I am praying for her a lot and I did a special fast to keep her in my prayers! I hope the rest of the family is doing well, especially all the cousins!

I got the package and it was great! Thanks for the magazine, ties are beautiful! ( I gave one to E. Turketo) the foldable cups, chicken n a biscuit and all of that great stuff! I am super happy for the RSL mug and towels as well as the meds to help keep me safe and thermometer! Thanks a million!

A special shout out to JJ happy birthday! I hope it was great. As well as to Jay and to Kevin as one has passed and one is coming up!

W of the W is comadrona which is midwife here in the DR! I am not sure what it is in other countries. Well I think that is all. I love you guys. Be safe and smile big. Don´t worry be happy now! Doo doo doo do dooda doo da do!

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Love,

Elder Chez Green