So transfer calls came in again and me and Elder Garcia are
staying put, just as I expected, but Elder Foote is finally leaving Dayton
after ONE YEAR there. Wow.
I think we are the only Spanish area that doesn't have a car,
but that's alright. We get around on buses and bikes just fine. And it's
summer, so why not enjoy a nice bike ride every day? So life goes on here
in the mission. Really I'm doing just fine and lots of good things
are happening. We really enjoy where we are. C… came to
Sacrament again yesterday. The G… family and J… and V… still need to
change their work schedules so that they can come, so pray for them that they
will have that desire and that we can help them get there, because they are all
really great people.
Btw I'm totally developing good habits - my newest trend is that
I buy and eat carrots :) For a time I used to just buy them but I never
would actually get around to eating them. But now I actually consume them and I
feel invincible for doing it, it's a small victory in every bite. Maybe
there's a gospel analogy that you could pull out of that. Maybe the difference
in joy that can be experienced between mere belief and acting on faith.
Maybe there's something in there about the difference between knowing the
gospel and living it. Be creative. Sorry for the tangent. I really only just
wanted to tell you about carrots, promise.
I enjoyed watching part of the Brasil vs Mexico and USA vs.
Portugal games. The world cup helps us get into people's homes and become their
friends. I don't remember if I already told you but we get to watch up to 30
minutes of every game. It's a bummer that both of those games ended in a tie,
but it was still a good time ;)
A common theme in church yesterday was Gratitude. Many people
quoted Elder Uchtdorf's talk from the 2014 October Session. Gratitude isn't
just something we say after the fact, rather it's a spirit that we have in all
circumstances. I like that he says that the spirit of Gratitude is the parent
of all virtues. If we want to become Christlike, we must have the attitude of
Gratitude!
Just know that I'm grateful for all of you. Time is flying. I'm
grateful for all the experiences I'm having and for all that I'm learning.
Here are some random quotes that I heard throughout the day
yesterday that I liked:
"Remember: Enjoy the journey" - Bro. Johnson
and... "It doesn't cost anything to dream big." (Spanish
investigator who believes that Mexico is going to win the world cup haha)
But I like what he said anyways. It doesn't hurt to aim high. In fact, we need
to have goals in our lives, both temporal and spiritual. Have goals and work
for them and let nothing stop you. It's the attitude of "work hard, pray
hard, play hard!"
Anyways, Goodbye now. Until next week!
Elder
Graf
Pictures from last week.
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| Here is me, Elder Benavides (the assistant that went into Spanish work for his last transfer and now he goes home tomorrow!), Elder Carranza wearing my "I love Mexico" hat, and the one and only B... . After teaching M... and C... they gave us corn on a stick covered with chili and cheese (just like the corn you see on the movie "Nacho Libre" haha) |
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| Elder Benavides snapped a picture of me waiting under a tree by the church in Kentucky while we were getting our bags to head back to Norwood. We kind of looked like bums hauling our bags around on the buses. |
