Hola!!!!
I am glad you had a nice birthday. I celebrated it here in Peru, too. Since I knew it was your birthday I went and bought a slice of cake to celebrate. I took a picture and might try to send it if I have time.
I remember junior year in high school was crazy. Kenzie will be kept extremely busy all year round with tests, sports and the ACT. Good luck in volleyball and have fun playing co-ed soccer. I remember having a ton of fun playing co-ed.
That is really cool how Dex will be able to work closer to home and in the days, But will he still be able to duck hunt? I am so going hunting when I get back. There is a really cool elder in my zone, Elder Osborne who got here six weeks after me, and we talk about hunting all the time. Elder Osborne and I have become really good friends. We get along really well.
Good luck Kaylee taking care of the entire eighth grade. That should be fun.
That's too bad that Helen passed away. I have a lot I could write about this but I will just let you guys imagine what I would say.
Utah sports sound like they are doing alright. 4th string qb for the win. Way to go USU. Let's hope U of U can keep it up and get somewhere. That is kind of sad about BYU and Bronco. It sounds like there isn't much he can do.
I feel so bad for Connor. I can't believe he had to come home. That would be awful. I hope he gets better and can go back out and work. Wherever he gets sent is where he is supposed to be. Send him my regards and that I hope he gets well. Don't worry Mom, I don't drink the water. We have 4 five gallon jugs in our room of drinkable water that we use. And the water in the juices people make for us has been made sterile. There are no worries.
I had a really good week. Elder Ruiz recognizes he only has one week left now and is working his butt off. We just go and go and go. We taught 38 lessons this week withut doing divisions with members. The goal of the mission is 32. We work really hard and walk a ton. We come home every night exhausted. After planning, both of us just crash into our beds.
I got to go to the temple this week! It was amazing. I love the peace and tranquility I feel in the temple. I listened to the entire session in Spanish and was able to understand almost all of it. Also, I sat next to a marine in the session who spoke English. That was kind of cool how I was able to talk with someone in English while I was at the temple. The temple is really pretty but is smaller than the ones I know in Utah. I took a lot of pictures while I was there.
We did these really crazy work visits in the zone this week. They split up every companionship and no one was with their regular companion. I went with Elder Cruz in Infantas. He has six months in his mission. Between the two of us we had less than 10 months of experience in total. His area is kind of struggling but it was good that I got to talk more. Also, his area is flat which was really good. I rolled my ankle really bad that morning on some cracked cement. It hurt really bad. By the end of the night, it hurt so bad I could barely walk on it. I am glad I just didn't have to climb hills on a sore ankle. In the morning it felt a lot better and it has just kept getting better.
Since my companion is leaving this next week, he went to one of his old wards to visit people yesterday. We did divisions with members. I was with a member from 8 in the morning until 9:30 at night. I had to keep track of everyone of our investigators in the church and then I had to teach all the lessons. The member never served a mission so I had to teach everything. He talked a little bit and bore his testimony but I had to be the guide for everything.
All in all, it was a really good week.
Love,
Elder Karter Isaacson
Monday, October 27, 2014
Monday, October 20, 2014
October 20, 2014
Hola Familia,
My first question, when did you get a laptop? I knew you got a new computer but I didn't know that you got a laptop.
Secondly, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I remembered your birthday all on my own. Even though Dad mentioned it I already had it written in my agenda to wish you a happy birthday. I hope it is good and I hope you like the outfit I ''Dad'' got for you.
Wow, It sounds like you had a lot of cars to work on this week. At least almost all the repairs are free. It sounds like you are working with Rich a lot Dad. Since I'm not there to push you to work I guess someone has to motivate you. You guys could fix just about anything, and when I say you guys, I mean Rich. Just kidding.
It sounds like the only sports team in Utah right now is U of U. Hopefully Real gets into the playoffs and all the other college football teams injuries heal up.
They do the soccer tournament about every six months. They did the last one over Mother's day because we didn't have to write emails because they had justed talked on the phone. My team did pretty good in the tournament. We got eliminated in the semi-finals 2-1. I took some pictures Mom, don't worry. I have tried to send some pictures but don't think they have sent. The computers in this place don't always like to send photos.
We have had some good luck with baptisms while I have been here but I think they are going to slow down for a little bit. The investigators now need to attend church 3 times for all 3 hours. That makes it a little more difficult. I think the baptismal rate will go down for a month or two and then climb back up. Pres. Erickson is really focused on keeping recent converts right now which is really good. The last president focused more on getting baptisms and I have been able to recognize that in my companion.
This week was a lot better. We worked a lot harder, taught more lessons, and found more investigators. My companion went through a trunky slump and didn't want to work but now he has realized that his time is really short and he is working hard again. I like it. It felt really good to get out and work hard.
I had the best contact this week. I saw a man with a U.S.A. jersey on and went to talk to him because I could have a connection with him through the jersey. As I started to talk, his family walked up. They just kept coming and coming. By the end of the conversation I was talking with 12 members of his family. They didn't live in our area so nothing came of the contact but it was still really cool that I was able to contact 12 people at once.
Thanks for the quote Dad, I know exactly what you mean. If you can't control it, then don't let it bother you. There are a lot of things I can't control that are in the mission and that quote will help me out. I need to let things not bother me that I can't control.
Love and Miss you,
Elder Karter Isaacson
P.S. I probably shouldn't send you the address but I will when I learn what my address is. My house is really easy to find, but the addresses here are really weird.
My first question, when did you get a laptop? I knew you got a new computer but I didn't know that you got a laptop.
Secondly, HAPPY BIRTHDAY MOM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I remembered your birthday all on my own. Even though Dad mentioned it I already had it written in my agenda to wish you a happy birthday. I hope it is good and I hope you like the outfit I ''Dad'' got for you.
Wow, It sounds like you had a lot of cars to work on this week. At least almost all the repairs are free. It sounds like you are working with Rich a lot Dad. Since I'm not there to push you to work I guess someone has to motivate you. You guys could fix just about anything, and when I say you guys, I mean Rich. Just kidding.
It sounds like the only sports team in Utah right now is U of U. Hopefully Real gets into the playoffs and all the other college football teams injuries heal up.
They do the soccer tournament about every six months. They did the last one over Mother's day because we didn't have to write emails because they had justed talked on the phone. My team did pretty good in the tournament. We got eliminated in the semi-finals 2-1. I took some pictures Mom, don't worry. I have tried to send some pictures but don't think they have sent. The computers in this place don't always like to send photos.
We have had some good luck with baptisms while I have been here but I think they are going to slow down for a little bit. The investigators now need to attend church 3 times for all 3 hours. That makes it a little more difficult. I think the baptismal rate will go down for a month or two and then climb back up. Pres. Erickson is really focused on keeping recent converts right now which is really good. The last president focused more on getting baptisms and I have been able to recognize that in my companion.
This week was a lot better. We worked a lot harder, taught more lessons, and found more investigators. My companion went through a trunky slump and didn't want to work but now he has realized that his time is really short and he is working hard again. I like it. It felt really good to get out and work hard.
I had the best contact this week. I saw a man with a U.S.A. jersey on and went to talk to him because I could have a connection with him through the jersey. As I started to talk, his family walked up. They just kept coming and coming. By the end of the conversation I was talking with 12 members of his family. They didn't live in our area so nothing came of the contact but it was still really cool that I was able to contact 12 people at once.
Thanks for the quote Dad, I know exactly what you mean. If you can't control it, then don't let it bother you. There are a lot of things I can't control that are in the mission and that quote will help me out. I need to let things not bother me that I can't control.
Love and Miss you,
Elder Karter Isaacson
P.S. I probably shouldn't send you the address but I will when I learn what my address is. My house is really easy to find, but the addresses here are really weird.
Monday, October 13, 2014
October 13, 2014
Hola Familia y Amigos,
It sounds like a lot has happened in the last two weeks. Kyle hopes to go to Germany, maybe he should learn German first before attempting to do that. Kenzie sounds like her normal self. Staying up really late doing her homework and not going to bed. Too bad Dex didn't get a deer but at least he will get to go duck hunting. He won't get that many though without me there do shoot them for him. (Just kidding, sort of) Kyle's got a girlfriend. Kyle's got a girlfriend. Kyle's got a girlfriend. Maybe he is taking the advice of Elder Cook's talk. He can get married before I come back. That just means one less night of long suffering. I have never heard of the Lamanite Ward, sorry Ron Kirby.
This week we were able to baptize a lady who had been waiting almost 2 years to be baptized. Once all her problems with marriage papers were worked out we were able to baptize her. Her testimony after the baptism was very powerful. It is moments like that that make me realize why I am serving a mission.
The language seems to just keep coming little by little. Sometimes I feel like it will never come, but then I realize it has just been three months and I can actually communicate with people. I may have to ask people to repeat a lot of things but, oh well, we can get the points across.
My companion is definately a little trunky, but who wouldn't after 2 years. He may be searching for ways to waste time a lot but I am starting to feel more confident and making him come work with me.
Conference was really good, what I could understand. It was really cool how we could listen to people speak in their native tongue. I could understand the native speakers better than I could understand the translations. I was able to understand principles of the talks but if the speaker started telling a story I would usually get lost. People here in Peru don't understand that we should go to all the sessions. The only session that was filled was the Sunday morning session. All the others, besides maybe priesthood, there were more missionaries watching the conference than there were members.
I don't know what happened to the mission blog. The soccer tournament was really fun. Everyone showed up in the jerseys they had made for each zone. Ours are the blue, long sleeve ones that are the France Jersey. You can make personal jerseys here really cheap and have your own design put on it. I scored the first goal of the entire tournament. That's right me. Not a Latino like everyone would expect, but a Gringo. There are other athletic Gringos in the mission and they can play pretty well. Everytime I have played soccer the Latinos take it very seriously and they play very physical. It was super fun.
Well I don't have much more time, but we are still teaching the Familia Villegas. We don't have that many investigators right now so we need to go find so more this week. That means contacting. Yay, not. I have heard about Mitch and Kaden. Don't worry Mom, Peru is really safe and I haven't felt threatened at all. Only some of the dogs are a little scary.
Love and miss you all,
Elder Karter Isaacson
It sounds like a lot has happened in the last two weeks. Kyle hopes to go to Germany, maybe he should learn German first before attempting to do that. Kenzie sounds like her normal self. Staying up really late doing her homework and not going to bed. Too bad Dex didn't get a deer but at least he will get to go duck hunting. He won't get that many though without me there do shoot them for him. (Just kidding, sort of) Kyle's got a girlfriend. Kyle's got a girlfriend. Kyle's got a girlfriend. Maybe he is taking the advice of Elder Cook's talk. He can get married before I come back. That just means one less night of long suffering. I have never heard of the Lamanite Ward, sorry Ron Kirby.
This week we were able to baptize a lady who had been waiting almost 2 years to be baptized. Once all her problems with marriage papers were worked out we were able to baptize her. Her testimony after the baptism was very powerful. It is moments like that that make me realize why I am serving a mission.
The language seems to just keep coming little by little. Sometimes I feel like it will never come, but then I realize it has just been three months and I can actually communicate with people. I may have to ask people to repeat a lot of things but, oh well, we can get the points across.
My companion is definately a little trunky, but who wouldn't after 2 years. He may be searching for ways to waste time a lot but I am starting to feel more confident and making him come work with me.
Conference was really good, what I could understand. It was really cool how we could listen to people speak in their native tongue. I could understand the native speakers better than I could understand the translations. I was able to understand principles of the talks but if the speaker started telling a story I would usually get lost. People here in Peru don't understand that we should go to all the sessions. The only session that was filled was the Sunday morning session. All the others, besides maybe priesthood, there were more missionaries watching the conference than there were members.
I don't know what happened to the mission blog. The soccer tournament was really fun. Everyone showed up in the jerseys they had made for each zone. Ours are the blue, long sleeve ones that are the France Jersey. You can make personal jerseys here really cheap and have your own design put on it. I scored the first goal of the entire tournament. That's right me. Not a Latino like everyone would expect, but a Gringo. There are other athletic Gringos in the mission and they can play pretty well. Everytime I have played soccer the Latinos take it very seriously and they play very physical. It was super fun.
Well I don't have much more time, but we are still teaching the Familia Villegas. We don't have that many investigators right now so we need to go find so more this week. That means contacting. Yay, not. I have heard about Mitch and Kaden. Don't worry Mom, Peru is really safe and I haven't felt threatened at all. Only some of the dogs are a little scary.
Love and miss you all,
Elder Karter Isaacson
Saturday, October 4, 2014
October 4, 2014
Hola Familia,
I know this letter is a little early this week, but it is because we have ''mundial'' this p-day, or the mission soccer tournament. It was kind of sad knowing that when I came today to write that I would not have a letter from the family. I look forward to reading about your week every p-day.
I don't get to watch all of conference this week. This Sunday, in Peru is elections. Every year the first Sunday in October is elections. Everyone in Peru is required to vote or they will get a huge fine. Almost everything will be closed tomorrow, including the church. We are going to try and watch some of the sessions with investigators or members over the internet today and tomorrow. It might be a little difficult though because I don't know if the internet is fast enough to keep up with the video. Either way, next week the whole stake is going to watch all the sessions next week in the stake center. I hope I can watch it in English because I will get a lot more out of it and understand a lot more.
I contacted a lady earlier this week and we have started teaching her and her 2 children. It is really fun to teach them because the 2 kids are really fun and really smart. I wouldn't be suprised if the kids are smarter than the mother. The kids are really into the lessons and want to get baptized. They have been doing all the assignments that we have been leaving with them. Hopefully, in a few weeks we will be able to have a baptism of a family.
Elder Ruiz woke up sick this morning. I think he is actually sick but I also think it is a small case of trunk-itis. He has 23 months in his mission and is completely exhausted, mentally and physically. I have to keep working really hard and am going to have to push him to continue to work hard.
I have been trying to work on getting over the fear I have in the mission. I am scared when I talk. I strart to close up my body like I want to curl up into a ball and disappear. When I do that I don't think as clearly and it makes everthing worse. I am working on just studying the language and the lessons where I can feel more comfortable to just talk. I need to realize that I will probably never see these people again and it is ok if I make mistakes while I talk. Hopefully I can get over this fear.
I am expecting a big letter next week because it will be two weeks without a letter. I hope you all enjoy Conference (in English), you will probably get more out of it than I will, but I might be suprised how much I will understand.
Love and miss you,
Elder Karter Isaacson
P.S. Someone just told me how USU beat BYU 35-20. Go USU!!! It is a little sad for BYU though because they are ranked right now.
I know this letter is a little early this week, but it is because we have ''mundial'' this p-day, or the mission soccer tournament. It was kind of sad knowing that when I came today to write that I would not have a letter from the family. I look forward to reading about your week every p-day.
I don't get to watch all of conference this week. This Sunday, in Peru is elections. Every year the first Sunday in October is elections. Everyone in Peru is required to vote or they will get a huge fine. Almost everything will be closed tomorrow, including the church. We are going to try and watch some of the sessions with investigators or members over the internet today and tomorrow. It might be a little difficult though because I don't know if the internet is fast enough to keep up with the video. Either way, next week the whole stake is going to watch all the sessions next week in the stake center. I hope I can watch it in English because I will get a lot more out of it and understand a lot more.
I contacted a lady earlier this week and we have started teaching her and her 2 children. It is really fun to teach them because the 2 kids are really fun and really smart. I wouldn't be suprised if the kids are smarter than the mother. The kids are really into the lessons and want to get baptized. They have been doing all the assignments that we have been leaving with them. Hopefully, in a few weeks we will be able to have a baptism of a family.
Elder Ruiz woke up sick this morning. I think he is actually sick but I also think it is a small case of trunk-itis. He has 23 months in his mission and is completely exhausted, mentally and physically. I have to keep working really hard and am going to have to push him to continue to work hard.
I have been trying to work on getting over the fear I have in the mission. I am scared when I talk. I strart to close up my body like I want to curl up into a ball and disappear. When I do that I don't think as clearly and it makes everthing worse. I am working on just studying the language and the lessons where I can feel more comfortable to just talk. I need to realize that I will probably never see these people again and it is ok if I make mistakes while I talk. Hopefully I can get over this fear.
I am expecting a big letter next week because it will be two weeks without a letter. I hope you all enjoy Conference (in English), you will probably get more out of it than I will, but I might be suprised how much I will understand.
Love and miss you,
Elder Karter Isaacson
P.S. Someone just told me how USU beat BYU 35-20. Go USU!!! It is a little sad for BYU though because they are ranked right now.
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