August 2012 Well to answer your last question frist,
the next transfer date is today, and well, I was transferred to Santa Maria to
be in the Santa Marta zone. Im a bit excited but I really wanted to stay here
in Ijuí to help all of the awesome people we have met get baptized. But I know
that Elder Glazier will do well here without me. That little trip to the lake
house sounded like a lot of fun, but thats too bad that you left your books and
stuff. Just study as best you can the material really gets easier the more you
go. Theres also one more thing I would like in that package if it is not too
much. It is a book by Truman G. Madsen Called ´´Joseph Smith the Prophet´´. I
would like to have that if it is at all possible. They have it in paperback.
Dont get it confused with ´´The life and teachings of Joseph Smith´´, by the
same author. Your talk looks pretty good as well, I wish I could have been
there to hear it. But I sent most of the stuff about the week in an email to
Rachel, so you can read that one, sorry! Im kind of pressed for time. But oh, I
am so happy for Brant! He is going to LOVE serving in the states. It may not
seem as exotic or as cool serving in the US but there are many many elders who
would like to have the nice and cushy life in a stateside mission haha. But I
can deal without AC for the next little bit. But also he is going to love being
a missionary and everything. Also I want his adress ASAP. I love you and hope
you are having a great week!
-Elder Eskildsen
Aug 20, Dear Family,
Yes I have been called as a district
leader. It may sounds glamorous and all, but really it is just a bit of extra
work. I do like it though, but it is a bit annoying having to not only deal
with the free agency of investigators, but also with that of the missionaries.
It hasnt been too bad though, just a little bit more stressful. I wanted to see
Sister Taylor before she headed back for the US but it seems that she snuck out
of the Casa Grande a few hours before I got there. She also was a great
missionary here, and was always one of President Ribeiro´s most reliable sister
missionaries. Thats what a lot of missionaries said about her here on the
mission. Yea the Brazilians cant pronounce my name, but its all good, because
it makes it easy to identify the people who like me a lot (because they
actually take the time to learn how to say my name,). It´s so nice to hear
stories like that of Ashley and the Brownings to be able to demonstrate that
when the church works the way it is supposed to and the members really embrace
the less acitves and the investigators, miracles are sure to happen. Even just
knowing that paperwork and the members records, is working in some areas is
quite refreshing to me. I have seen too many people who have been baptized,
shortly thereafter gone inactive, and moved away and no one knows who they are
or where they live, therefore making them just a name on a piece of paper and
essentially nonexistant in terms on church membership. Order is good.
One thing I am really excited for
when I get back is to go to the temple again. Not having one here in the
mission is really sad and makes me miss going to the temple.
Thats so awesome that Chelsea is
going to Resistência! Im super excited for her, but it would have been cooler
if she were to be going to this mission here. But even then maybe she will pass
in Passo De Los Libres just like uncle sam, and then be able to see one of the
cities I served in from across the bridge!
This week has been pretty good, but
was a bit difficult as well. We have been putting into practice Presidents
council of Challenging everyone to baptizm in the 1st lesson, and several
people accepted a date etc, but many of the people that accepted the baptizmal
date werent home for the second lesson that we scheduled (which actually
happens alot here because even if your mark for the next day people generally
forget). We will have to really work hard to find all of those same people
again so that we will be able to accompany them well and get them integrated
into the ward and a testimony of the church. One thing that really suriprises
me here is how quickly and easily people claim to have received an answer from
God to thier prayers. sometimes people claim a testimony out of the fervor of
the moment and other times people just dont want to say that they havent
received an answer, yet many times they have genuinly been answered. We brought
Moisés a young man of 16 to the stake conference yesterday, but his mom didnt
end up being able to (or disposed to go) which is disappointing, because we
arent going to baptize moisés if his mom doesnt get baptized with him. Other
than that it has been getting hotter here and rainy and overcast, which I
personally like. Other than that the week was pretty normal, and I dont beleive
that I have anything else to say. Next week I will think more about what I will
write so that I can send a more descriptive email. Maybe I will send a voice
recording as well. Well I love you and hope you are all doing well!
-Elder Eskildsen
Oh and the adress will be this:
Élder Eskildsen
Caixa Postal 0339
Santa Maria -RS 97010-970
Brazil
Thats awesome! I cant
beleive Garrick is already home. Time really passes by fast on the mission, and
Im sure that he agrees with that. I now officially have a year on the mission
and it feels like it has gone by really quick. Me and several other elders from
my group got together today on p-day and went to one of the only chinese
restaurants in the mission. Its not incredible cheap, but the buffet was
exceptional and I got my fill of chinese food.
Its good to hear that you passed your test! and did Rachel and Bergen both pass?
I cant beleive Jake Taylor is already getting married! Is it that same girl that he was dating before his mission?
This week was kind of hectic and a lot changed. There was an emergency transfer because of some things that went wrong with some other missionaries in a different zone and they were switched out of the area they were in, and my area was affected by it. Elder Jensen went to Uruguiana to be with a brazilian companion named Elder Lourenço, and Elder Strout, who is from my group in the MTC came here to be my companion. It is kind of cool serving with someone from my own group,. President told me that I am not going to be companions with him for very long, but that in the next transfer I am going to train a new elder. Im gonna be a dad on the mission! Im pretty stoked for that, but also its risky because I have no clue who it is that I am going to be training. That made this week a bit crazy, and we lacked a day of work because my companion had to leave. We spent most of this week trying to establish a teaching group and spent a lot of time looking for new investigators. WE found quite a few of really good people, but none of them went to church because it was really cold and rainy. When it gets really cold and anytime it rains here not even most of the members go to church, so during such weeks it is really hard to get investigators to go to chruch. We had many people say that they would go to church but none of them did and I am expecting to hear the excuse of ´´it was cold/raining´´ a lot. But they can go next week. The only problem is that we will have to look for even more investigators this week and still try to balance the old ones. Things will get pretty good though this next week. I know we are going to baptize in this transfer still, we just need to work hard.
I got a letter from Chelsea today. She sent it before she got her call, but it is pretty awesome that she is going to Argentina. Did I tell you ‘Im living with an Argentinian at the moment? He is one of the LZs. I hope that everything is going well!! and I love you!
Its good to hear that you passed your test! and did Rachel and Bergen both pass?
I cant beleive Jake Taylor is already getting married! Is it that same girl that he was dating before his mission?
This week was kind of hectic and a lot changed. There was an emergency transfer because of some things that went wrong with some other missionaries in a different zone and they were switched out of the area they were in, and my area was affected by it. Elder Jensen went to Uruguiana to be with a brazilian companion named Elder Lourenço, and Elder Strout, who is from my group in the MTC came here to be my companion. It is kind of cool serving with someone from my own group,. President told me that I am not going to be companions with him for very long, but that in the next transfer I am going to train a new elder. Im gonna be a dad on the mission! Im pretty stoked for that, but also its risky because I have no clue who it is that I am going to be training. That made this week a bit crazy, and we lacked a day of work because my companion had to leave. We spent most of this week trying to establish a teaching group and spent a lot of time looking for new investigators. WE found quite a few of really good people, but none of them went to church because it was really cold and rainy. When it gets really cold and anytime it rains here not even most of the members go to church, so during such weeks it is really hard to get investigators to go to chruch. We had many people say that they would go to church but none of them did and I am expecting to hear the excuse of ´´it was cold/raining´´ a lot. But they can go next week. The only problem is that we will have to look for even more investigators this week and still try to balance the old ones. Things will get pretty good though this next week. I know we are going to baptize in this transfer still, we just need to work hard.
I got a letter from Chelsea today. She sent it before she got her call, but it is pretty awesome that she is going to Argentina. Did I tell you ‘Im living with an Argentinian at the moment? He is one of the LZs. I hope that everything is going well!! and I love you!
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