Hola mi familia (y otras personas)
I had an eventful week. Successful in many ways and not in others :)
It's a relief that Marissa seems to be doing ok. Im glad that you enjoyed the beach, although I am somewhat jealous. I bet Josh learned a lot from being over in Italy. I love being in foreign countries, there's a feeling about it that envelopes me.
Every day Im thankful for the amazing family and friends that I have. Thanks to the work, I dont find myself missing all of you too terribly but I feel more love for you everyday.
My desire to learn has continued. There is so much to soak up in the scriptures. Unfortunately the deep doctrine tends to pull me in and sometimes I forget to focus on the simple and vital parts of the gospel. Don't do that!
Thanks for your prayers. Yesterday was an awesome sunday. Eileen, Walter and Carlos all made it to church. The class was perfect for them and they shared touching testimonies about how the gospel has helped them and how us Elders have guided them in changing their lives. It was inspiring for me moving forward.
For the first part of the week, the only form of transportation was by bike. So we didn't teach very many lessons but we climbed a lot of hills! The people we passed by paid more attention to what we were doing than usual. We received juice and food, which is not normal, two days in a row and had to carry it around in our bags :P Luckily the clouds seemed to come out and protect us from the heat while I was biking.
It was a tough experience but I felt like a MAN afterwards. Every true missionary has to ride a bike at some point right? Ok maybe not.
There was one driver, a lady, that made an effort to engage me in conversation while I biked over a bridge but she had to pull ahead. The same day we got a media referral and it was her! So we taught Wanda, the lady, yesterday. She is very very nice and slightly older african-american, with a daughter that is a member. She talked about how her daughter has found strong faith in God through the church and she is proud of her. A lot of potential there!
There have been some crazy heat waves. I heard about a lot of wildfires over in the west as well. A flock of turkeys invaded our yard for a couple of days but I dont know if that's related. ;)
I almost never eat latino food. There was one occasion where there was food that I didnt especially enjoy but I gulped it down. (Some kind of spinach quiche) Walter has given us some cans of food because he owns a little bodega (grocery store.) It's by a gorgeous catholic cathedral in Leominster. I need to take pictures of that area one of these days.
I will meet President Packard tomorrow at a "meet the President" zone conference in Connecticut. Very excited. I'll try to find a way to get a photo.
Yes I do read the Book of Mormon in spanish every day, along with in arabic. I find insights pretty often, whether it's reading the words more closely or finding a better flow/more clear sentance structure in arabic than in english.
This part of the vineyard feels like it's on the edge of becoming brilliant. I feel energized every day with the potential that is out there. It's a little sad because most of the results will come after Elder Torgesen leaves. We get transfer texts this next friday and he will be transferred back to Idaho! For one reason it's a good thing, he has been starting to pick up the New England accent...
Love you,
Elder Jared Ludlow Jr.
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