Monday, January 30, 2017

Week 78 - No payphone / Stars / Barbed Wire

Hey Guys!

Well, this week was an interesting week. We don't have to have a payphone anymore, because we managed to fix the sisters' phone, so we've been running to their house every night to grab the phone so we can talk to the rest of the zone. It's kind of a hassle to have to go there every night.

This week I got to know a different part of Los Amates! We had divisions to go do baptismal interviews, and the pace I went to is basically like one of those far-away villages like the kind I had in my first area in Zacapa. The village is called Mariscos (for those of you who don’t speak Spanish, that literally means "Seafood." Not too sure why they named their village Seafood) and you can only get there by hour-long bus ride. So we got there at about 4:00 in the afternoon on Friday, I did 4 baptismal interviews, which all turned out great, but then, after that family had unexpectedly given us food, we headed out of there at 6:30 and quickly realized that there were no buses at that time of night to take us back. Luckily, some random guy who was going to the capital passed by in his pick-up truck and offered to give us a lift. He didn’t have any room inside, so we hopped in the truck bed and went cruising on out. There were a LOT of stars there. Honestly, that place is beautiful. 

After that, after we had a baptism in our area (Yay!) on Saturday night (back in Puerto Barrios).  Later I was running with my companion to the sisters' house to get the phone again, and I accidentally entered the front yard of one of the houses. So I ran faster to get out, tripped one time, caught myself, got back up, ran even faster, and jumped over a bush to get out of the yard. Then, while in mid-air, I saw a knee-high barbed-wire fence waiting for me.

Have you ever had one of those horrible moments when you realize something very painful is about to happen to you and there is absolutely nothing you can do about it?

Luckily, the fence wasn't very tall, so I didn't get too badly injured. But the little barbs that they have are like fish hooks. My companion was watching the whole episode from the side, and when I looked to him, wincing in pain, saying, "Hey, help me out here" he just started laughing. So I took about 7 minutes unsticking myself from this stupid fence and we WALK the rest of the way to the sisters' house.

When we get to the sisters' house, at about 9:15, we realize that President Crapo had called, expecting that we would have the phone and be in our house already. So we got the phone, took the dats, and got home as fast as we could to call him back

Every story has its spiritual metaphor. This story does, too. When we’re running to the sisters house that night, I just wanted to get the phone, take the dats, give follow-up, and go back to the house and finish the day. I had acted hastily in a moment that didn't really need to be rushed. I tripped once before falling into the barbed wire fence- I could have taken that as a warning and moved a little more calmly, and maybe I would have seen the fence beforehand. We don't always need to be rushing. There are some moments when it is much better to slow down, analyze the situation, and then decide what you're gonna do. The Spirit oftentimes works in this manner. If we are constantly rushed and worried, we may suffer unnecessary pains in life. Look for the guidance of the Spirit, and do all things with prudence and order. Don't start later than you should, because this will cause you to rush as well. Do it the first time, and do it well the first time.

-- 

Elder Jeffrey Reed

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