My pants are full of starfish [Muppet Treasure Island]

Hey y’all! We are e-mailing after an awesome day at the beach!!! It was our beach p-day today and I tired myself out...I’m way too out of shape;)  I played a lot of volleyball and ultimate frisbee so I enjoyed it very much.

Last Tuesday we had zone conference and something that President Baker said was a little ominous. He said the Brethren have asked that he keep the missionaries in their assigned areas for 6-8 months, so I have hit my quota unless I go over. I have been really lucky to be here in this area for 7 months now. Whatever happens will happen!  (Below is Elder Bham's zone.)

I have really come to enjoy splits. I get to see how other Elders work and how they teach the gospel.

We had a Mormon Helping Hands activity this past Saturday at Enterprise Park, which is close to Compton. It was really fun and a lot of members, missionaries and community members showed up to fix up the park. The lady in charge said it would be in the next US News and World Report so I suppose you might see us. Quien sabe?

While here I talked to Spencer Fieeki and he said he talked to Elder Joshua Crandall the other day. I think Josh is almost done now. Crazy!?!

To finish up the week, I spoke on Sunday in our ward. I had been worried about not filling the 10 minutes I had been assigned, but I spoke for a full 17 minutes -- in Spanish! Santa Vaca! I felt so bad and asked the last speaker, Elder G., to forgive me. I took some of his time and felt thoroughly embarrassed. On the other hand, many members said they enjoyed it and that my Spanish has gotten a lot better. Thank you Spirit!!! My former companion Elder C. was also there visiting the ward with his dad, so it was like a huge party afterward!

This is about it. I really had a great week. I hope you did to! I love you all! Remember, missionaries do not have the full responsibility of doing this work. It is so much more effective if the members are involved. If they are, the converts will stay active. We teach 25 investigators to get 1 baptism, but 5 member-referred investigators also equals 1 baptism. Crazy huh?  Well I love you all! I can't wait to talk to you soon!:)

This transfer is half over? Are there squirrels in my pants? Did I just get served?

Well, to start off the week, we had a ward Noche de Hogar and everyone (including me) had a blast!!! We acted out several stories from the Book of Mormon and our group was Nefi building the ship. My favorite part was when Laman and Lemuel received a shocking hand shake from their brother...:) We have been trying to get the members excited about FHE and it made me really excited too! The next day at home teaching, Elder D. said something about a magic trick; it took me a few moments to realize that he had just quoted the Scarlet Pimpernel! We had a good time quoting and being incredulous that the other had seen it...thanks (?) to our 3 older sisters!

We were searching for an incomplete referral the other day when we ran into a woman who recognized me. We had been teaching a family a few months back and, after they moved, the neighbor (this woman) came to the church to tell us that she smelled gas coming from their former home. This lady remembered that I had taken her to the bishop that day.  We were able to teach her a good lesson and got a return appointment for this week! Crazy huh? Another woman we met had an LDS picture of Christ in her Catholic shrine – the same picture that’s on the pass along cards, except she had blown it up bigger.  It was sure interesting to see that picture in a shrine!

We had a Mini Missionary with us this weekend. His name is "L." and we had a blast with him. It would be fun to serve in his ward later.  Elder R. is currently serving there (he was in Mom and Dad’s MTC branch). We took "L." to the In and Out Burger one day and a member paid for our lunch as we walked in the door. I got a glimpse of what it would be like to be serving in Orem or Provo and I was thankful. So many people acknowledged us and said hi. It was nice to experience that a bit. It is usually never like that. :)

"I." brought a friend to church and they both had such a good time! We had a lesson last week on being missionaries and she took the initiative. This was an answer to my prayers that "I." would feel a stronger desire to come to church more and enjoy the gospel!! I will have to keep you posted.:)

Last week while we were at a dinner appointment with the M. family, they called Dad's cell phone and talked to him for a few minutes. That was so weird! I don't know how surprised Dad was, but they enjoyed talking to him and telling him that I am "gordo". I felt like those old sci-fi movies where someone communicates through time like on that Ghostwriter episode about Frank. So surreal! I couldn't hear anything that Dad said, but they told me that he sounds like me when he speaks Spanish.

I hope all is well and I love you all! Never be afraid of becoming who the Lord wants you to become! Next p-day our whole zone is going to the beach, so get ready to see how white I am! I will also get to see a few old friends.:) Lots of love! Happy Birthday Mom!

Men in black suits

Still Crazy After All These Months

Well, I am still here in Inglewood. They took Elder D. away from me, though. He is now in West Hollywood. This will be my 5th transfer here and that is almost 7 months (once this transfer ends)! My new companion is Elder W. from Washington State. He is pretty cool.

Last preparation day we went to Hollywood, so it was ironic that Elder D. was transferred to that very area. Hollywood was fun but I’ve had my share of the world for a while!

A few days ago I asked the bishop if we could get some paper to make copies, and he asked me to give a talk in church this Sunday. Later that night we were teaching "I.", and I challenged her to come back to church. She said she would only come if I gave a talk in sacrament. "Sweet! You can come this week since Bishop asked me to give a talk 40 minutes ago!" It was not a coincidence!

We got a referral in El Segundo, which has never happened in the history of our area! "R." is now on the map and we hope he lets us come back again.

I was on splits with the ZL's at church and a man spoke on the public image of the Church. With the Mormon Musical and Mitt Romney, we are very much in the public eye right now. The things I learned were that we must define ourselves, not let others define us for us. He invited us to all speak out in the conversations at large about what we truly believe and what our experience has been. We really can make a difference through the internet, too! Every member a communicator! That sacrament meeting we were also able to bless the sacrament which was kind of weird. I have not done that in a while!:)

 "I." came to church and another less-active YW came, too, and I introduced them. They really hit it off and seemed to help each other feel more comfortable. It was cool to see them bond. I think we may have found a connection! Sorry to be quick today! I love you all! Happy Birfday Lauren and soon to be Mom! Take care!

P.S. “I want to live in such a manner that when I wake up in the morning, Satan says ‘Oh no! He's awake!’” ~Unknown

He's Singing His Own Theme Song? [Emperor's New Groove]

Happy Easter!! I hope you all enjoyed a peaceful but exciting Sabbath! First off, Happy Birthday Adriane!!! I loved Conference and have enjoyed talking to members and investigators about it as well. Did any of you see Elder David Archuleta in the missionary choir on Saturday? Yeah, it was kind of fun to see him singing as a misionero.

For those of you who did not hear, Y canceled her baptism. She says she wants a sign that she needs to be baptized. Kind of frustrating. Good news is, that her sister and mom came to church! We also had a great lesson about General Conference with her sister C.

We had an amazing Plan of Salvation lesson with a family one night for ward home teaching. It turned out that they were having a birthday party and there were several other less-active members of their family there. ALL of them committed to go to church on Sunday, but we don't know if they did since they don't live in our ward and those in our ward attended a different ward since their work schedule doesn't permit... but yay!!! The member who came with us was extremely helpful and even invited them to go to church with him since he newer as well! Member missionaries work wonders!

We found a 14-year-old boy named J. when going to a return appointment for a return appointment we didn't expect to make. When we saw him, we both knew we had to teach him -- we got a kind of spiritual shock when he answered the door. We asked if they (he and his step-dad) believe that Christ suffered for them. He immediately said, "Yeah! I do!" Then we asked if they had ever asked themselves what the purpose of life is and why we are here. J. said "I have!" In my mind I thought, where did this kid come from?? (heaven, but still...) We have not been able to catch them at the right time since, but we are still optimistic and excited!!!

J., the Bible man who almost ate us, has really come out of his shell, so to speak! He really wants to know more and has many questions, but he said he wants to read the whole Book of Mormon first, so we will go by again in a week or so. He has become more friendly and was impressed that we actually do speak Spanish...:)

We had an awesome Service Saturday by helping out the 1st and 2nd wards. One project was cleaning out an older house, which included throwing an old train model over the balcony...:) The other project was painting a fence for several hours and eating Peruvian food for lunch! We also had a good time with the other missionaries there!

H. and his family have become so friendly! We are almost a part of their family! We discovered that H. likes country music and that we like some of the same artists!! We had a fun time laughing about that. We will be going over tomorrow night and talking about the gospel with the entire family!!

Well, it was a bit shorter today because we don't have a lot of time! Make sure to stay safe and remember that missionaries love you! Sister B. and I love serving and hope you loose yourselves in the work at home! Transfers are in two days and I have been feeling that "Change is coming! No way we survive this!" (Mulan) but, if I am transferred then I will go. Can you believe time runs faster, the longer I’m here? Dang. I love you all!!!! Keep smiling!!