Mi Hijo!

Hey everybody!

Well, the biggest news for this week, is that we finally had transfers! I'm still in the same area, but... drumroll... I'm training! My new companion is a greenie, straight out of the MTC. His name is Elder Macias, he's from Mexico, he's twenty years old. He's a little bit of a clean freak, but that's okay.

 

Me and Elder Macias

 

So I'm going to answer a few things first. No, when I got flung onto the table I did not get injured. It was fun.

 

Second, The reason that I don't have a whole lot of time to write, is that before I do anything else, I have to write to the mission president and that usually takes anywhere from half an hour to forty five minutes.

Oh, and yes we still have a pensionista, she lives about 5 minutes from our apartment. 

So, the major things that happened this week.

On Tuesday, I had to get up super early and go to La Molina for transfers we got there at about 6:30 in the morning, and we had a reunion for all the trainers and trainees. That reunion went until about 4 in the afternoon. It was super long and pretty boring. But that's where I met my new companion Elder Macias. The rest of that day, we spent putting away his stuff in our apartment, and we went to a few appointments we had that night.

The following days we spent exploring the area, meeting the members, and working, so, there's not much to report there.

 

 

Really the biggest thing going on for me right now is that we have an investigator we're teaching that has her baptism date set for June 7th. Her Name is Nycol Fuentes. She's 18, laughs a lot, and really likes to make fun of my companions. We've been teaching her for a little while, and we finally got her to a point where she feels ready to get baptized. So that's pretty exciting. She's going to be the first baptism this area has had since January. That's because our ward here is really, really terrible. It's okay, we're working on ways we can fix the problem from the inside, but it's a lot of work for us.

So, the other big thing that happened this week is that a couple days ago I got sick. Really sick. With fever, dizziness, complete body pain, the works. It started Friday in the night, and went for almost all of Saturday too. The interesting thing is, it should have lasted for a lot longer. When I woke up Saturday morning, I could barely move, but I asked the other Elders that live in our apartment to give me a blessing. It was pretty miraculous, because that same night, (Saturday) I felt well enough again that I could go out and proselyte again. The priesthood is the best, right?

 

 

I've included two pictures of the other Elders that live in our apartment. The Elder at my side is my companion.

So, give my congratulations to Nate Hopkins! It's so exciting to hear that his call is coming this week! Be sure to let me know where he's going, and give him all of the encouragement that you can!

That's all for now folks, I gotta be running along now. 

Until next week,

-Elder Dañel Jacob Esmitho

Mi Quinta Torta!

Hello all of the bodies!

It's Monday! P-day! The best day of the week!

So first, I want to explain a little about something I mentioned in my past email. In our zone conference, I got thrown onto a table. But Elder Smith, why, and how did you get thrown onto a table?  So what happened was this. They were doing a little unity exercise. So I was seated in a chair, and four other elders were around me. The objective was that these four elders could pick me up using one finger each, and throw me onto a table. I was the one being thrown because I'm the biggest guy in the zone. I was actually surprised that it worked so well when I found myself flying through the air. So, that was pretty fun. 

 

 

So, there are definitely transfers this week, but I still don't have any information. I'll be able to tell you everything that happens... but next week. Sorry.

So, I feel like I need to explain the title of this email. In English, it's My Fifth Cake. Yes, there was cake. And why was it my fifth? Because I finally got around to making my birthday cake that came in my birthday package! We went and actually cooked the cake in our pension, but I made the frosting and filled the cake in our apartment. It's two layers of Pillsbury Funfetti cake, with a caramel filling and cream frosting with sprinkles. It's not very pretty, but it was pretty delicious. Happy belated birthday, Elder Smith!

 

 

So, another question that I didn't get to answer is about the place where a lot of people get robbed. It's a huge outdoor shopping center called Gamarra. And yes, we went there this past Monday because my companion wanted to buy a new soccer jersey. (He has like, fifteen now.)  I bought a couple of long-sleeve shirts because It's actually staring to cool down down here. (Finally!)

 

Gamarra Outdoor Shopping Center

So this week I had a little bit of a food filled adventure. I ate so freaking much this week, I'm sure that I've gained like, three kilos. On Wednesday, our district wanted to go and buy a chicken to eat, so I thought I'd participate. I ordered an extra side of fries too, which I thought would be small. It was about a pound and a half of french fries, and I ate all of it. I felt super fat. There were also occasions this week where I had to eat lunch and dinner twice. When I get home in a year, they're going to have to roll me out of the airplane.

Sad to say, there really wasn't a whole lot that happened this week, and I don't have time either, but I'll be sure to send more info about transfers next week. 

I love all of you!

-Elder Dañel Jacob Esmitho

Con El Presidente Tambien? Que Chevere!

Hello and again, I am writing an email. I am missionary.

Sorry about that, my companion was practicing his English, and I didn't want to erase it.

Hey Everybody! So this week has been one of the best weeks ever. With calling home yesterday with Skype, and everything else that happened, I'm feeling pretty good this morning. Sorry for how short last week's email was, I was a little short on time. :P Don't worry, for this week's email I'll try to make a little bit longer.

So, let's get started with some of the major events of this week, yeah?

On Monday, it was P-day, so we went on a little adventure to a place called Polvos Azules. What Polvos Azules is, is it's a giant shopping complex for shoes, clothes, suitcases, and lots of other things that are "brand name," super cheap, and look and feel and seem authentic, but may or may not actually be authentic. I got a futbol jersey of the united states for the world cup in Brazil. (Ye-yeah)

After that, I went to do a pre-call to my family before actually using Skype on Sunday. Other than that, not much happened on Monday.

On Tuesday, My companion had to send a package, so we had to go to a SERPOST, (The mail system here in Peru) to send the package. The thing is, the closest SERPOST is in the center of Lima, so we had a little adventure doing that too. But that's really the only thing that happened on Tuesday that was really worth mentioning.

Wednesday, we had the opportunity to go to the temple again. It was awesome! I've sent some pictures of that trip. The biggest surprise for me, is when we finished the session, the President was there waiting for us in the Celestial room. After the temple, we went and had some activities with the president that were really fun. So, that was a really good day.

Holiness to the Lord

My District at the Temple

Me in front of the Lima Peru Temple

My Mission President and His Wife

The entrance to the South America, South West Area Office

On Thursday, not much happened, other than the Zone conference, where I was thrown onto a table, (I'll explain later if I have time) and we played a card game afterwards. Also, Thursday was one of the most productive days this week. We had 5 lessons, and the day passed really quickly. 

On Friday, I had to go on splits with the companion of our District Leader.  We had a good deal of success. I also had 5 lessons that day.

On Saturday, we went and had lunch with one of the members in our ward, The Perez family. They're both about 75 years old, and they like to talk A LOT.  I swear, we were in their house for at least two hours just listening to Brother Perez talking. It's okay, The food was good, and the family is actually really nice. It was an... experience.

And finally, on Sunday, We had our sacrament meeting like normal, but the thing is, the Elders in the ward were putting together a meal for all of the mothers (and others) in the ward. Our ward ends at 11, and when all the sisters were gathered to eat, the food wasn't even there yet. We had to wait for almost an hour to be able to leave (that's why I was a little late Skyping) (Oh, and yes, that rice and chicken was the food that they had prepared). So, after that, I got to Skype! That was the other highlight of the week.
 

So, we had a pretty busy week, right? I think that next week we're going to be having transfers again, so I'll let you guys know when it happens.

I love you all, but I'm out of time. See you all (figuratively speaking) next week!

-Elder Dañel Jacob Smitho

Woo, Vamos a Hablar Por Skype!!

So, a brief run-through of this week seems in order.

What's been happening recently is about the opposite of at home. It's started getting colder (finally) and it's been like this: One day the sun is bright, and it's hot. The next day, it's completely cloudy, and it's pretty cool. I've been enjoying the cool days. I'm done with summer. I've had a year of summer. I need no more summer.

So, to explain the photo, I'm gonna use one caption. "Yeah, I can shop like an adult!?"

This week has been pretty busy, in that we've been having almost non-stop lessons. I feel so worn out, but it's okay because I feel really content with our work.  I need a break.  Luckily, this week on Wednesday, we're going to the temple! It's already been three moths since the last time, so I'm really looking forward to it.

 

So, I've found out that one of my areas would be perfect for a map in Call of Duty. I should submit the idea.

Actually, other that that, this week's been pretty boring. Just a whole lot of work (ugh). 

I don't have much time left either, so I'm going to leave it here. I love you all!

-Elder Dañel Jacob Smith