Week 29

Hey Guys!

Well, this week, we've had a lot of hardships, a lot of adventures, and a lot of good times. 

Its ben a rather difficult week for us. We've been looking for many people to teach, and we haven’t found anyone who's been interested. But we're gonna keep looking. We've been planning a fireside for the 11th of March and we're gonna invite literally everyone we find, so we'll see what happens with that.

So, everyone I've ever talked to about a mission always talks about that moment when they realized that they could speak the language. I'm here to put all the rumors to rest: that doesn't happen. I can't remember a defined moment when I could say I was fluent, because it doesn’t work like that. Every day, I've gotten more and more comfortable with listening to different words and thinking in a different way. And every day, I continue learning more. This morning while talking with Jodi a little bit, I earned that she's completely mastered "vos" which is an even more informal form of speaking to people you know well. So she's got Central- American Spanish down really well.

This week, I've been thinking a lot about the things that have affected me most in my life. And I've got to say, one of the things that affected me most was my last year in high school, with my mom and my choir family.  We, as teenagers don't know what we have until later on in our lives. And I can tell you, after living here in Zacapa for almost 7 months, you really don't know how good you have it up there in the USA. There's really something special about Monte Vista choir that's stuck with me. I still have O Magnum Mysterium, Stars, and A Spotless Rose stuck in my head. I can't make them go away, and I don't want to. There's something that you can feel there, something different, that other people don't have, and that you can't describe. I knew what that something was before I left, but as I've been out here, among the people of Zacapa, living in another world, I know even more now.

Mom, what you give them is more than the music, more than the family, more than the love that they feel every day when they walk in.  What you give them is the Spirit. I don't care who you are, Christian or Atheist, poor or rich, black or white, you can't deny that feeling you get. 

Last week I talked about giving service, and helping other people. My mom is an example of that.

If you have the time, thank her. You're going to remember that choir for the rest of your lives.

Elder Reed