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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