2/20/2012

So glad to hear all the good stuff that goes on at home!!! I´m glad
grandma Elaine is already feeling a little better.  I will keep her
and Grandpa in my prayers always.  Thank you for the Valentine´s
package!! I got it right on Valentine´s day and I had no idea it was
coming.  You guys are way to awesome and I love you bunches.  I love
the toys that you sent with it too, haha.  Those bubble things should
be fun with the kids we teach.  I really miss those birthday
celebration things with all the fam...especially the food haha.  But
oh well.  I am still eating plentifully and it is starting to show
haha.  But don´t worry--I am starting to exercise a lot better and I
think we are going to start playing some more basketball.  Glad to
hear that you enjoyed the camp.  The youth in Lakeview Ward have
always been waayyyy to spoiled with amazing leaders and always will
be.  Wow Taylor Ford already heads out?? and Elder Smoot already came
in?  Va bolando la vida. Que Loco!

Down in Ecuador, we are celebrating Carnaval.  For the past week or so
people have been feeling up buckets of waters, loading up the squirt
guns, and just going at it.  There is one place that is especially
terrible because people show no respect.  We usually can avoid it by
going a different way, but this time we were way too tired and we
didn´t want to go back the long way.  They saw us coming from a mile
away.  I really did not expect them to get us wet at all because we
have all of our books and stuff and they know that we are missionaries
and they usually show a little more respect.  Yeah....they got their
buckets and first got my Companion all wet.  They got me a little wet,
but I was just so mad and shocked that people could do that.  But I
got over it and now I know better, haha.  Besides that, rain totals
are remarkable.  I tried to take pictures of this one night but It was
pretty hard to see in the dark.  All the streets had water up to the
knees.  It started raining in the blink of an eye.  But this is not
rain like you think.  Rain falls on a whole different level. In about
one hour it came and went but I´m pretty sure it rained more in that
one hour than it does in an entire year in Utah.  I am not joking.
Our house has tin roofing and the noise was unbelievable.  Water
started coming in from the windows and it got a bunch of stuff wet.
My suitcase got a little bit and it got my shirts that I still haven´t
worn.  I hope that the mamita can get the stains out.  We shall see.
So that is the water story for the week.  This holiday Carnaval
doesn´t end till Wednesday.  They say today and tomorrow are the worst
days so they won´t let us go out and preach....

And this past week was another great week.  Finally broke the
no-baptism streak.  Ruben and Beto are super awesome.  They come from
a family a lot like ours kids wise.  There are six kids and they are
all really young.  The baby has been super sick but she finally made
it out of the hospital this past week.  Their mom was able to show up
to church with her two sons and that was a big surprise for us.  It
was her first time and she really enjoyed it.  It has been hard to
teach the family because they are not literate.  The parents, Beto,
Ruben--nobody can read.  It is way sad to see stuff like this but
their attitude toward life is awe-inspiring.  So much can be going so
wrong and life can be so hard but they have never not had a smile on
their face.  I love them all so much and they deserve the very best.
Saturday was Beto´s baptism.  Ruben´s was the next day because he
couldn´t leave the house on Saturday.  We shall continue to teach
them, but things seem really well because they have good friends who
are members and who live next door.

The investigator sent from heaven, Jessenia, is still moving forward.
She was really sick on Saturday and Sunday.  She ended up going to the
doctor so she was not able to attend church.  However she has almost
completely given up drinking coffee and she still says she is
preparing for her baptism this next Saturday.  She is the investigator
I always dreamed of teaching before the mission.  One who didn´t just
say "yes" or "no" to every question but one that really understands
and wants the light of knowledge that the spirit of God can give to
her.  The spirit in her home is incredible.

Well those are pretty much our investigators right now.  A ton of
people that we were teaching before are a lot less excited to listen
to us and that made this past week pretty rough.  We started knocking
doors and just one big bummer after another.  But everything turned
out in the end and we have found some new potential investigators.
Life goes on and I am really enjoying the work.  Everything is
starting to make a lot more sense to me as far as the people and
culture go.  They are way different, but I think I have found my way
into the groove.  We shall keep the work moving.  I love the work and
I know I am where I should be.

I love you all so much and I thank my Father in Heaven everyday for
the family that has been given to me.

Sincerely, Elder Preston Anderson