EL MAR

Hello world,

I'm writing you all from the Caribbean. I'm doing good. Salcedo is hard, but hard is good so Salcedo is good.

We are working really hard. I'm doing all that I can. The really good couple that we are teaching said that they don't have plans to get married. He has a testimony. He knows that this is the true church. I don't think she has as strong of a testimony as him, but she knows too. The hardest part about the mission is seeing things happen like that. We have taught a lot of people here in Salcedo that get to know that what we are teaching is true, but aren't willing to make the necessary changes to be baptized.

But some good news is that the kid we are teaching, Francisco, went to church. He has a baptismal date for the 13th of this month and he would be my first baptism here. He is a really good kid. It's kind of hard for him to focus in church but I didn't pay attention when I was 15 either.

I've learned a lot from the mission and I'm grateful for the opportunity God has given me to be here.

I had to go to Santo Domingo to get my residency renewed so we left Sunday night to Santiago. Monday morning we left at 6am and got back to Salcedo at 3. It was a little rough, but we got the see the OCEAN!!! It was awesome. This country is pretty.

Coast to Coast

So many things happened last week...

First off, this happened last week but I forgot. There are so many apartment buildings in our small area that Elder Benitez didn't like so me and my new comp are going to contact everyone. But we were contacting this building and we saw that the people on the 4th floor were busy so we contacted some people on the 3rd and we started walking down the stairs and it had to have been the spirit because I stopped halfway down the stairs and we contacted the family on the 4th floor and they are so cool! We had a good lesson and the mom told us that she is going to make food for us on Friday! They are awesome.

On Tuesday the mission office called us because I had to renew my visa. We slept in Santiago on wednesday and went to Santo Domingo in the morning. I got to spend my 4th of July with all of my American friends from the MTC! It was super fun. Then we went from Santo Domingo which is on the south coast of the country all the way back to Puerto Plata which is on the north coast of the country.

So I saw the ocean on the southern coast and on the northern coast on the same day.

THEN... this is not a joke. 5 minutes after we get back to our house in Puerto Plata they call again and say that the papers for my companion came and he has to go. So we get back on the bus and go to Santiago. I spent the whole day in Santiago while my companion went to Santo Domingo, but when he got back he said they couldn't do the medical stuff he needed to so we had to go again on Monday. I spent my Pday in a bus. But we got to go to the MTC and I saw the temple and it was so cool to go back!

The people don't know the difference between pecar (to sin) and pescar (to fish). So on an exchange in Santiago this kid told me that if we have faith in god he can help us to not fish. hmm

Pictures,

Us in Santo Domingo.

Me and my comp on our roof in Puerto Plata the same day.

Me and the house of the Lord. I love the temple!