Otro semana ya ha pasado! El tiempo va bien rapido. How are you all doing? I hope that everything is going well with all of you. Hope Braden and Bri are keeping the grades up. I also hope that Dad is enjoying his new truck. Our rides took their last ride yesterday, Elder Jones' tire went flat as we were making the journey home and the tire is gone, we probably won't get them fixed for a while, but if I stay here in Etla I definitely want to fix them. I'm also not as rushed today, but I still don't have as much time as normal.
(Your Christmas package has arrived at the mission office! Did you get it today by chance?)
1. I don't have the package yet, I'm hoping that I don't get it tomorrow at the District meeting. Because this is the last week of the cambio. Should I get moved, I don't have a way to haul everything around. It still isn't Thanksgiving yet so I still have Thanksgiving stuff that I will have to move as well. I'm hoping that I don't get moved, but if it happens it may be hard. Next Monday we´ll find out what happens I guess.
Speaking of packages, It would be nice if you could find out how it is that I need to address a package so that it can arrive to Logan Utah from Mexico. I know our address but maybe there is more to it if I'm sending it from Mexico.
(Do you go into the city much each week? Do you take taxis?)
2. We have gone several times, but mostly on Tuesdays. Because that is when the doctor is there. Mostly our Pdays have been rushed because we go with a family to wash and they are always wanting to give us food and we take a long time there. We just haven't planned our Pdays really well. Today we planned better, but we still used alot of time in the morning, I´ll send pics of what we were doing don't worry.
(Loved the pics of your hike last week, but you didn't send any of you!)
3. Ya I know, the person holding the camera usually doesn't get alot of pictures of himself. But I managed to copy the pictures that Elder Jones took, so attached to this email is some more pictures of our hike last week. There is also some pictures from Friday! We got to go to the Temple on Friday! Our Zone was the most successful in the mission for October and so the President let us go to the Temple. Elder Jones and I didn't get any baptisms here, but my baptism in Casablanca counted for October with Maria Agustina. But it was a little bit intimidating at first to go in Spanish. I understood a lot better than I thought I would and got a lot out of it actually.
(Are you eating well in this area? You know I worry!)
4. We have been eating good. All of the families are feeding us really well. We ate amarillo yesterday, and I got the recipe for you, but its in Spanish. Its not extremely hard to make, but there are two things in the recipe that may be kind of hard to find, but the hermana was confident that you could find them in a Mexican market in the US, though not as fresh. And if a biased oaxaqueño who thinks that americans only eat pizza, hot dogs, and hamburgers thinks you can find them, then I would guess that you could too. I'm going to try to send a package to you and can maybe send it in that, provided I can send a package, or else I will eventually find a way to get it to you so that you can try it.
(How is the work going? Any baptisms scheduled?)
5. Its going, just nobody is being pilas. We had people in church yesterday, but yesterday only one person came. Mario is one investigator who is really good, he speaks English and prefers to speak English over Spanish. He came to church yesterday, but he left for the Sierra all of this week to be with family, so we haven't seen him much. One of our investigators went to jail this week, they were actually really good and we have been working with them for almost the whole cambio, but... ya, our high hopes for them kinda just went down the toilet. They had a problem with a neighbor, apparently it got to be a little bit heated, and she hit her neighbor and broke her nose. She never acted anything like that around us, but anyway, that put an end to them. We are really bummed about that.
Our ward is really big, one of the two actually big wards in Oaxaca, the two big ones are Etla and Guelaguetza. There are close to 200 members every Sunday, and a lot more that aren't really that active. The only reason that the ward hasn't been split yet is that there aren't nearly enough people who pay their tithing. A lot of the ward is in the primary though. but because of the size, its harder to know and remember everyone. In Casablanca we knew the names and actually knew everyone in the ward. But its a really good ward, the bishop is kinda crazy though, but he is really good.
(I'm wondering how much money you get each month from the mission?)
6. We actually get $1500 a month. ($112.44 US) The problem is that that dollar sign doesn't represent dollars. Its just pesos. but we don't pay for the rent from that amount of money. So if its not used really wisely it can run out really easily. But I haven't had too much trouble with my money yet in any of my areas. We do have to be careful with it here, but we have been alright. Though we just lost the bikes, so we are gonna have to fix them and use more taxis in the meanwhile, or else just walk really slowly everywhere, which we can't always do. But we have been smart about planning our days if we are taking long trips to far pueblos like Santiago Suchilquitongo, Telixtlahuaca, Catano, and San Lazaro. We normally ride bikes to Catano and San Lazaro, but its a long dirt road filled with dogs. Saturday was pretty crazy. Without day light saving times it kinda is more difficult to be a missionary, because it is dark at 6:30 and its hard to knock doors or travel to other places. But Saturday night we headed to San Lazaro to a city with a family we are teaching there. And we started back at 8:30, when it was really dark. And on the dirt road between Reyes and San Lazaro, its really dark and is out in the middle of nowhere. We had one intense night ride. Elder Jones brought a small flashlight to help out a little bit. But the word was spread throughout the area that there were two missionaries on bikes returning, and ambushes of dogs were waiting for us all over the place. The first attack that happened I saw coming, we were riding side by side and I saw the dog come out of a yard on Elder Jone´s side, and all I could think to yell was, "on your right!" After that the dog came for Elder Jones and it actually pulled a yell from Elder Jones and almost got him, but he saw it in time because I had yelled and he beamed the dogs eyes with his light which stopped the dog. So then we went on our way thinking it was gone but it kept chasing us but we had the hill with us at this point and we were faster. Then later we came to a big pack of dogs, there were about 6 or them that were waiting in the middle of the road and they were barking like crazy at us. But we dismounted and got into what we have called our sandwich formation. Us walking together with our bikes on the outside. It doesn't comfort me very much with a pack of dogs around us growling and barking and trying to get close to us, but its worked so far. And then when we were almost home, one dog was hiding behind a car and we weren't expecting anymore of them. And it barked loudly and lunged out for me, it scared me really badly, the dog was just barely short of biting my foot and its head actually hit my bike tire. It made me yell as well, and Elder Jones hasn't ever seen me peddle so fast. We have had a lot of scary dog encounters, they hone in on the bike riders. But Saturday night was filled with about 6 ambushes, it was crazy. But the dogs have been unsuccessful so far. Anyway, I just had to mention that, because it was scary, but pretty funny after we were safely in the house.
(Any rumors about transfers next week? Do you think you'll move?)
7. I don't know. It would be unlikely because we don't have a lot of time here, but we think that maybe president may be judgemental and move us because we didn't have any success this cambio. In the end, we never know, but I hope that we don't get moved. I've never taught so well as Elder Jones and I have been doing. The only problem is the Spanish is sometimes difficult, but we actually teach really really well together, we have had the spirit more often in the lessons. We have more trust that started in the MTC. So we are more united, and its been really cool being together. But who knows what will happen?
(What happened for the Dia de los Muertos? Anything crazy?)
8. Mole was made like crazy, we didn't really get to see much of what happened though because we were just out working like normal. And the first day was our Pday so we weren't really in the town where the parties were. So I really don't know so much about the dia de los muertos. Sorry.
(Do you hate it how I ask you these questions every week? Would you rather just write what you want?)
9. I think the questions are good, they give me something to write, because sometimes I wouldn't know what to write. So ask what it is that you really want to know. I haven't had too much to say this cambio about the obra misional. We just haven't had anyone really progress, which has us bummed slightly, but the people have their agency to choose to come unto Christ or not, its a hard fact of the mission.
Well I gotta move on to part two of my letter, which is more pictures! Yes, there is a lot today. So I will move on to there. So between now and the time that I send them, I love you all! As always, thank you for all of your prayers and support. I love you!
Love,
Jordan
This is what we did today. Where do these pictures come from? Well the first is of a dead person... obviously. Its the bones of an ancient zapotecan who lived in Monte Alban! We got to go to Monte Alban today. It was really awesome. This skeleton was found buried in the remnants of his house. The museum says that all of the buried people from these cultures (the Zapotecas and Mixtecas) were all buried in their houses. Supposedly (not according to the museum) it is because they believed in a resurrection, and wanted to resurrect inside their own houses. There are also some pictures of some of the original carved stones that are stored inside the museum outside of Monte Alban. All of these pictures come from the museum. There is also more bones, and some pictures of masks and small figures that were found in the site of Monte Alban. One has some masks that are made of stone. And the last photo is not a photo of Han Solo after he was carbon freezed or whatever by Darth Vader. It is actually the person who discovered and started working on the excavations of Monte Alban, though I guess Darth Vader decided to freeze him in stone for some reason unknown to me.
I don't have enough time to send all the pics that I have of Monte Alban. I know you wanted pictures of me waving, so I figure those are a little bit more important. Waving in front of something Mexican had me stumped, but I thought I would try a few in Monte Alban. I didn't know how to do them and Elder Jones thought it was silly, so I don't think he took them too great, but hopefully they work for what your are doing. Next week I will send more pictures of Monte Alban, guess you will have more to be excited for. I just saw how many I ended up taking, I took 150 pictures there! Holy cow, anyway, guess that isn't a bad thing. but I can't send even a fraction of them to you. Hopefully next week I can send some. I love you all though! Remember that. Tell everyone I say Hi, and I will talk to you next week.
(I asked Jordan to send me some pictures of him waving to the side, like he was waving at someone for me to use on my Christmas card this year. I can't believe he actually did it! I'm so excited! Elder Jones must think he has one crazy mom! Hmmm...maybe he does!)
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