Well folks it´s been a while since I've really written ya all haha. I´m really sorry about that. The adventures still continue here in Bolivia. I'm now in the center of Santa Cruz de la Sierra, Bolivia. If you take a look at google maps, you notice a nice arrangement of rings for those of you that are still new to the city life I've explained here. my new area is literally the southern half of the first and second rings. It's pretty difficult because the majority of the people are just here to visit the center or go shopping.
Here's a really cool little art project you can use to write little notes to people if you´d like. Cool lil' artsy thing our mission president´s wife showed us in a zone conference.
They aren´t so open to talking here in the center and knocking doors doesn't work as much either because most of the first floors are business or small stores and the people all live on the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, floor etc. The Lord has luckily been very merciful with us because we´re received a lot of really good references from the members here.
Here´s a cool pic I snagged at the zoo a few weeks back.
I'm in a trio, or in other words I have two companions right now. On top of being the secretary to the president here, my companion is the financial secretary and the president trusts us to help out other missionaries so we were already in a trio a few weeks ago with an elder that had fell while running and needed to recoup because he had stitches in his knee. We helped him out to get pumped up about the work again, get healed up real quick and get a little more organized.
Here's I'm pretty sure the world's largest bird which is common to Bolivia... luckily just a scavenger or we'd probably be an endangered species: the condor. Although it may not seem this big in the pic I couldn't go up and stand right next to this guy. He stands like 4 and a half feet tall slouching and can have up to an 11 and a half foot wing span O.O
I took this pic on the way to the airport in the morning the other day.... I used to think the airport was really fun and exciting but now I thinking I'm going more bald just thinking about it.... I've already taken care of more than 30 successful flights and thousands of dollars of the church's money.
We´re now helping another elder that suffers from panic attacks which is quite a bit more difficult, he's a really good guy and wants to finish out the last 6 months of his mish, but proselyting really just kills him.
Here´s a big tortoise the son of my last house owner had.
Man, a lot has happened haha. I haven't had any other baptisms though since Dalsy and Edson back in May but that's all good.
Here's this crazy raccoon lookin' animal someone had as a pet I saw a while back. Forgot it's name.
Don't know if I told you all, but they've approved sunglasses and sombreros for several missions and our is one of them! :D
One of the last pics with the only Elder I've trained here in the mish (mi hijito) from Rancagua, Chile. Elder Flores on a bridge in Tarija. :)
We had a zone invasion of these way far out areas in my lat area in Tarija and we literally proselyted to people in like the middle of nowhere haha. Our Stake President wanted us to try proselyting there so we could open up a Family group in a less actives house pretty far from where our chapel is at to help reactivate a lot of the members out there.
In the pic above, the darker elder there is from Brazil and loves break dancing, he's one of my best friends and is with me almost every day now in the offices as the assistant to the president, the tall one with shady glasses is from Ujuy, Argentina, my other zone leader at the time in Tarija and I came back to Santa Cruz with him because he extended his mission and had to go home before the transfer and I had to be trained as the secretary, also a good friend. The last one is Elder Decoud, my companion now, we all came from the same zone, so I'm among friends here in the offices and loving it. Still miss Tarija though.... This is where the road ended.
Every once in a while professional chef members invite us to eat. :j sooooo sweeeeeet.
This is like a $150 sombrero from Colombia that you can fold in half and roll up to travel and take it out and it pops right back into shape. It's made of a highly woven fine material.... so I guess that makes it worth $150? I don't know you decide haha I just wanted a pic with the thing.
These were my first investigators in Tarija til they moved to Bermejo like 3 hours away, but they came back to visit me miraculously the only day I was given to say goodbye to everyone before I came here to Santa Cruz, they didn't know that was going to happen. They're the best. Brother Aramayo in the middle fell in a construction accident a long time ago and lost use of his legs.... he's slowly getting it back with physical therapy, his wife had circulation problems as a baby and now has one leg shorter than the other and permanently has to to use a cane and special shoe to walk but they were among the happiest of people I know. :) They helped pump us us to proselyte in the scorchin' sun every day in Tarija.
...and yes that truck has a giant Jesus Christ shepherd picture on the side. haha more next week, love you all!
