5 months in the Mission!

Tues, February 25, 2014

Hey Everyone!

I officially have 5 months in the mission today!!!! The time has been flying like crazy and the rest of the time is going to go crazy fast if this part has already gone this fast.

 

This week was pretty good! We talked to the Dad´s of Raul, Eduardo, and Mauricio and they said that they could be baptized as long as they behave well and show that they have actually changed and want to follow Christ. So, we are super excited for that and if everything goes as planned then we will have their baptisms this Saturday!! So, I´m really excited for that! Crazy that this saturday is already March! Also, this last week we went over to la familia Pereyra to do service, and this week it just so happened to be with giving haircuts! So, we cut the hair of Manuel, Gaston, and Cristian!(Sorry but I don´t have pictures). That was pretty fun and they actually turned out really well. 

 

And, the only nice thing we have in our area is a really big basketball stadium where the professionals play. Anyways, Elder Cannon and I decided that we really wanted to play basketball and, because there aren´t basketball courts here, we decided to take a shot in the dark and ask the boss of the stadium if we could play there. And, he said yes!!! So, we have permission to play in this stadium every morning for half an hour and I have been loving that and it has been way more fun playing basketball every morning. 

 

Then, one day we were walking and then this girl in front of us just randomly like freaked out and started crying and we went over to talk to her and she never really said what was wrong but she just said that she didn´t want to live anymore. So, we talked to her and comforted her and brought her back to her friends house where she was living(Her name is Maira and she has 2 kids and was basically living house to house). Then, when we went to pass by a couple days later, her friends husband let us in and told us that she had left to go live with the dad of her children again. But, he then continued to tell us that he is a member of the church and hasn´t been in about 6 years but liked when he went. So now we are talking to him more and teaching his girlfriend the discussions.So I´m excited to see where that goes. 

 

The only other thing I wanted to add in is another quote. This one is from Gordon B. Hinckley again; I´ve been getting a lot of quotes from him lately! But, he said, "I don´t worry too much about the future, and I don´t worry very much about the past. The past is gone, and you can´t change, you can´t correct it. The future, you can anticipate, but you can´t necessarily do very much about it. It is the present you have to deal with. Reach out for every good opportunity to do what you ought to do." I really like this quote. Everyone always talks about the past and how you have to move on and all that jazz, but I especially like his point about the future. Even though we can try to anticipate it, there isn´t a whole lot we can do about it. What we do right now, in the present, is what is truly important and is what is going to shape what we do tomorrow and who we are and what we have accomplished when we reach "the future". If we can focus on becoming better, happier, and more successful today, then we are going to see the fruits of our labors in the future. I hope everyone has an awesome week and I would love to hear from everyone. I love getting emails and letters. Thank you to everyone for your constant support. I hope to hear from everyone soon!

 

Les Quiero,

Elder Joshua Clarine

 

 The pancakes we made for lunch one day with ice cream on top.

 Multi-zone conference with Elder Diaz (He's an elder from Peru that I met that is pretty cool.)

Baptisms!

Hey everyone,

This week went really fast and it was super busy for us. We had the baptism of Carla, Manuel, and Cristian on thursday but it was really hectic. Carla was an hour late, Cristian refused to be baptized and a lady in our ward took all our baptismal clothing out of our room!! But, Manuel was two hours late and when he went to get baptized, Cristian wanted me to baptize him too!!! So we had all 3 and it was really cool. And, Gaston was out of town but he still wanted to do it so we did it the next day, Friday. So all four happened and went well and I´m super happy for them. And, Mauricio, Raul, and Eduardo are still coming to church and they really want to be baptized and they have all the lessons and are ready to be baptized, but their dads won´t let them :( So we are going to try to work really hard this week to change their dads hearts so that they can have this experience. And, Elena still wants to be baptized but we still have no idea when she can get married. So, we will just keep waiting and praying. Antonia this week was kind of annoying. We explained where the church was like 500 times, and wrote on every pamphlet the directions and she didn´t show up and then when we passed by her house yesterday after church she called us liars. She said we didn´t tell her where the church was, so I asked her to bring any of the pamphlets or cards we had given her, she brought ALL of them, and EVERY SINGLE ONE had the address. So she is mad at us because she couldn´t find it. And, Carmelo, an old guy with a bad memory, is really good to teach but he forgets things alot and tells us the same story like 5 or 6 times every time we are with him. It´s kind of sad, but he remembers who we are and that we teach him about Jesus so we´ll see where he goes. And, 

 

Mauro, my first baptism from a couple weeks ago, the brother of Carla, Manuel, and Cristian, invited us over for asado(barbeque). That was last night and it was really good. We had cow.....the heart, large intestine, and kidney. The kidney was weird but pretty good, the intestine was pretty gross, even though I ate a lot (the stuff in the intestine would gush out when you cut into it and it had a mushy and gushy texture), but the heart was awesome! It was really soft and it actually tasted really good. So, up to this point, I can mark off the stomach, heart, kidney, and large intestine of the cow that I have eaten (and so far I´m not sick). 

 

One other thing, next week, we have a multi zone conference on our P-Day, which is really convenient since we only have one of those a week haha, so I may have to write on Tuesday next week. We´ll see.

The last thing I wanted to leave with everyone was another quote from Gordon B. Hinckley that reads, "Be happy in that which you do. Cultivate a spirit of gladness in your homes. Sundue and overcome all elements of anger, impatience, and unbecoming talk one to another." I like this one a lot and how it reemphazises the fact that we choose to be happy or not to be. If we force out the negative emotions then we will automatically have more of the good ones fill our life. Thank you to everyone who writes me and keeps in touch and I hope to hear from everyone soon!

I forgot to tell everyone that I went to the zoo today. It was pretty cool, it was pretty ghetto but kind of impresice compared to a lot of the other things here! I´ll send pictures

 

Les Quiero,

Elder Joshua Clarine

 

 

 Carla before her baptism.

 Gaston after his baptism.

 Manuel before his baptism.

 

Tucan at the Zoo.

Week 15 in Sáenz Peña‏

Hola Everybody,

First off, Happy Valentine´s day to everyone!!! This week didn´t have that much happen other than the news on the investigators. Elena, talked to her lawyer and is still trying to get baptized but they are just waiting for a date to actually do it. Carla, Manuel, and Cristian didn´t have their baptism because their Aunt died one hour before their baptism but they still want to so we are going to have it this saturday. Also, their little cousin, Gaston, has been to church a couple times and now he really wants to be baptized with them so we will do his as well. Also, these three boys, Raul, Eduardo, and Mauricio came to church and loved it and told us they all want to come every week and dress just like us, the missionaries, andthey want to be baptized on the 22nd. So I can´t wait to see them progress! But, the only problem they could have is their parents not allowing them to do so, but I have met their parents and they seem really nice and we´ve talked about it before so I don´t really see a problem. That´s pretty much all that happened this week. Sorry it wasn´t more exciting or longer or something this week. 

 

Elder Cannon is awesome and I am super excited for this transfer and for working with him. The only other thing I wanted to share is another quote from Gordon B. Hickley that reads, "Today will never come again. Have I done any good in the world today? Have I helped anyone in need?" I really like this quote and I love how we can apply it, whether in a mission or in real life, that we need to constantly be looking for opportunities to help others. If we just go through our lives and take care of ourselves then we have not really done any good in the world. Thanks to everyone for always giving me support, writing me, and keeping me updated on the things happening in the real world. I hope to hear from everyone soon!

 

Les Quiero,

Elder Joshua Clarine

 

 Next to the coke sign while on divisions with Elder Warth(I forgot to mention that I went to Quitilipì with Elder Warth again for another day. It was really fun) The sign says, "Do you have your Coke for today?"

 Elder Cannon and I with Gaston, the cousin of the Carla and Manuel.

Staying in Ensanche!

Hola everybody!!

Soooo, transfers happened this week and I got my wish! I am staying in Sáenz Peña in Ensanche Sur for another transfer and Elder Burnham left. My new companion is Elder Cannon. He seems really cool and we get along really well so far and I am excited to work with him til, at least, the middle of March. Also, this week we finally got a new table. The old one was plastic and about to break in half, so it is nice to have a real wooden table now. 

 

So, this week we talked to Elena about getting married before her baptism and she said that she was going to do whatever it took to be baptized and she went to the marriage office to do it. So, we should find out how long it will take to get married within the next couple of days. And, we found and taught this pastor of an Evangelical church and he is actually really receptive to the message and told us that he is going to study our book, The Book of Mormon and Doctrine and Covenants, and if he feels like it is all correct then he is going to change and tell his congregation to change! So, I´m interested in seeing where that will go. 

 

And, we had the baptism and confirmation of Mauro!!! It was super awesome! He asked me to do both the baptism and the confirmation so it was awesome to do that and to see how much he has changed. A ton of his family was there and they want to learn more about it, along with his girlfriend, and we have planned to baptize Manuel, Carla, and Cristian this saturday (They are all his younger siblings). So I am super stoked for that and it has been awesome to develop this relationship with their family and I love seeing them and seeing how much happier and unified they are now!! 

 

The last thing I wanted to share is a quote from an ex prophet, Gordon B. Hinckley, and it reads, "The course of our lives is seldom determined by great, life-altering decisions. Our direction is often set by the small, day-to-day choices that chart the track on which we run. This is the substance of our lives--making choices." I love this quote. Not everyone can or should leave their homes for 2 years to go teach about the gospel. But, everyone can make the small day-to-day decisions to live a better life, be a better example, help others, and point your life in the right direction. The huge decisions aren´t as huge as they seem, it´s all the small ones that lead up to that decision. 

 

I am super thankful for the support everyone gives me and for the opportunity I have to be here in Argentina. Thanks again and I hope to talk to and hear from everyone soon!!

 

Les Quiero,

Elder Joshua Clarine 

 

Elder Cannon and I with Mauro before his baptism (Argentine people don´t believe in smiling in pictures)

 

Mauro and I after his baptism.

 

The old district at our last district meeting

 

 

Transfers Tomorrow

Hola once again!

Crazy that transfers are tomorrow!! We still have no idea what´s going to happen, but if I had to guess I would say that I am staying here and I am getting a new companion since Elder Burnham has been here FOREVER. I really don´t even want to leave. I love the people here and am really excited for February in Sáenz Peña. We normally only have like 50 people in church and this last week there were 16 investigators in church from the 3 companionships in Ensanche Sur. It was crazy! We set a record in the church, in or district, and helped set the zone record of 29 people in church in one week. It was super awesome! So, I would love to stay here another transfer but I will gladly go wherever the Lord needs me next transfer. 

 

This last week I got to do divisions in Quitilipi again, but Elder Warth wasn´t there. This time I did them with Elder Valverde. He is super cool and it was really fun working with him for a day. This week was awesome!! We ended up having 6 people at church with us. 5 from the Pereyra´s, Mauro, Luciano, Camila, Manuel, and Cristian, and then Elena. We had some incredible lessons with Elena where she would tell us the doctrine or principal before we even explained it. She is super prepared, but she isn´t married so we have to wait for her to do that and down here that usually takes a month. But, I think we will baptize her the same night she gets married, she is awesome. The gypsie girl, Maira, broke up with her boyfriend because he doesn´t like her family or her beliefs and the straw that broke the camels back was that he said that the Book of Mormon is from Satan. She said that she prayed and knew that it was true so she left him to follow God. So, that is an awesome story and I feel like she will progress. But, she is going to Buenos Aires for a month so her baptism won´t be til March. 

 

Also, we found another lady, Yanina, and her son, Emilio, and they had taken lessons from the missionaries before but her husband didn´t want her to get baptized, but her and her husband broke up a year ago and now she wants to listen again. So I have faith for her and we will see where that goes. Lastly, I want to talk about Mauro from la familia Pereyra. 2 weeks ago he was smoking 3 packs of cigarrettes a day and now we are going to baptize him this saturday and he completely stopped smoking yesterday!! It´s incredible what the Lord can do when people are willing to follow him. Mauro is the coolest person I have ever met on my mission and he asked me to baptize him and I´m super excited to do that!!! He wants to get the priesthood so that he can baptize Luciano when Luciano gets back from his trip to Sante Fe, and Luciano wants to get the priesthood in order to baptize his son in 6 years when his son is 8. Luciano even asked me to be his kids Godfather but I told him that we can´t as missionaries haha I really love their family and am super happy that they like me too. 

 

This week was awesome and I just wanted to leave everyone with a quote from Elder M. Russell Ballard that says, "I am so thoroughly convinced that if we don´t set goals in our life and learn how to master the techniques of living to reach our goals, we can reach a ripe old age and look back on our life only to see that we reached but a small part of our full potential. When one learns to master the principles of setting a goal, he will then be able to make a great difference in the results he attains in this life." I hope we can all strive to do our best in life and to push ourselves a little further than we think we can go. Also, this last saturday I hit my 4 month mark in the mission!!!! Crazy how fast the time is flying! 1/6 of my mission is already gone!! I am always greatful for the support I get and I love getting emails and cards from you guys. Talk to you all soon.

 

Les Quiero,

Elder Joshua Clarine

 

 My part of the room :)

 A painting of a soda brand, Cabalgata

Luciano and me

 Us teaching Luciano and his niece

Brother and sister Mercado and I

Last week of training

Hey everyone!! 

Crazy that this is my 12th and final week of training and then I´m back to a good old normal missionary. Transfers are a week from tomorrow so I can´t wait for that. We think my companion is leaving and I will probably just stay here but no one knows yet. 

Also, last week with the pic of the dog following us, I don´t think I even explained it. The dog followed us from the middle of centro, walked with us for 40 minutes to chango mas, waited outside for another 45 minutes, followed us back to where we were going to write and waited there for an hour and eventually left. It was just crazy because we didn´t give it any food or anything, it just liked us for some unknown reason. 

And, last week we had to drop a really promising family because the moms boyfriend moved in and he is super catholic and hates us and wouldn´t let us talk to them and always flipped us off when we walked in the street and this last tuesday he tried to hit me with his car but someone from the street yelled at me soon enough and I dove out of the way just in time and then we left that neighborhood right away. But, we still teach there, we just make sure not to pass by their street. And, we are teaching another awesome family where the mom is a member but is less active and hasn´t come to church in over 15 years. So, a lot of her kids are working towards their baptism and two of them told us that they want to quit smoking so we are helping them with that and 3 of them came to church this last week so we are really excited for them to progress. They always want us to come over more and do family home evening with them and it is awesome, because at first they all hated us and only the mom would talk to us and now she is like the most uninterested one, they all love to have us over. and, we met another old lady named Anita that said that she is catholic but she doesn´t feel right there and is looking for more truth and trying to change and she feels like god sent us to her so we have high hopes for her. But, her husband is really catholic and we don´t know if he´ll let her change. 

Also, we talked to a gypsie this week who isn´t heavy in their religion and wants to learn more about us. But, something new I learned, is that the gypsies don´t actually get married, they just put their hair in a bun if they are married and down if they aren´t. So, since she is married in the gypsie religion she will never have her hair down. Kind of interesting. 

But, the last thing before I wrap up is another good quote from Richard J Maynes. It reads, "Our life is designed for us to learn the lessons that we need to live eternally." I really like that, in the sense that we can see all of our trials and problems and weaknesses as the things that we have to do and the things we have to improve and that these are the reasons we are here on Earth. To progress in these ways and always make ourselves better people. I love all the emails I get and love hearing from everybody.Thank you for the support and I will talk to you all next week.

Les Quiero,

Elder Joshua Clarine

 

 We got excited to find a basketball court, went to play last pday, 

and it didn´t even have a hoop :( just a ghetto backboard

  

An awesome family. from left to right: Brother Ilario, me, Santiago, Samira, and Sister Rosa. Ilario is the brother of rosa and she takes care of him because he is blind, and she also makes us lunch once a week and cleans our clothes!! She is awesome.

Week 11 in Saenz Pena

Hola everyone,

There isn´t a ton this week but there were a couple fun stories. My companion from the MTC, Elder Warth, and I got to do divisions this last week which meant that we traded companions for a day and I got to work with him for a day. That was an awesome and cool experience and I hope we both stay this transfer so we can do it again!!! When we were working we started teaching 3 little boys in the street and by the time we ended we had a crowd of 12 people around us that all accepted a baptismal date but this was in his area so I don´t know where that will go but it was still cool to experience. Then, on thursday we made tacos with la familia mercado which was really cool since they dont do tacos here. They all loved them but two of the daughters thought they were really spicy and they weren´t spicy at all!! haha There are now only 15 days til transfers and when I finish my training! It will definitely be fun to see where I go and who my new companion is. There was another group of like 20 boys in our area that are like they thugs and they make the neighborhood the most dangerous in Sáenz Peña but we started teaching them the lessons and teaching them english here and there and now they love us and said they would protect us so the only dangerous people we had to worry about before are now on our side haha. There isn´t that much more this week and I don´t have a lot of time to write but I am always thankful to those that write me and keep in contact. I just wanted to share a short quote before I finished. It is from Gordon B Hinckley and it says, " The best antidote I know for worry is work. The best medicine for despair is service. The best cure for weariness is the challenge of helping someone who is even more tired." I think we can learn a lot from this and if we focus more on helping others then we will be happier and won´t feel as bad about our own lives. I love it here and can´t wait to hear from everyone!

Les Quiero,

Elder Joshua Clarine

 The end of the goat that we ate on christmas. This is hermano Mercado!

 

our christmas present to ourselves of 108 empanadas

 Elder Burnham and I with all our christmas presents (But most were his
since I still haven´t gotten my christmas package.

 

Elder Goodwin, Elder Anderson, and I at the Christmas activity

 All the food we had after shopping the week of christmas. This was the first
time our fridge and cupboards have been full for awhile.

 

The pizzas we make in our apartment when we don't have a lunch appointment.

 

Before the baptism of Catolina, Andrea, and Mercedes

After their baptism

Elder Warth and I in Corrientes (his companion in the MTC)

 

At the river in Corrientes

At the only Mcdonalds in the mission in Corrientes

 

The dog that was following us forever

The dog 40 minutes later after we did our shopping