This week is Changes...

 Hey Mom and Dad, (and everyone else)

This week was a great week. Not much has happened for us. We did talk to all the more positive investigators but I won't tell you everything that has happened with them, just a few notes about them:

We went to Jimmy's house to visit him at 8 pm and Elder Cruz and I were so devastated by all the drinking, smoking, and PDA in the streets from teenagers my age and younger, that he could tell something was up. So we told him that it was really hard for us to see so many drugs. We told him it's hard to help someone that doesn't want help. Then my companion asked to use the bathroom and while he was in the bathroom, I asked Jimmy, "How did you overcome all the temptation to give in to drugs while you were a teen?" and he started to tell me his whole story about having an addiction to smoking and he talked about friends being a weakness. I remembered one phrase that Elder De Jesus told Hno Moncada in El Sitio to help him leave the world and his old friends, "Hermano, they aren't your friend if they want to hurt you or invite you to do bad things. Friends only help. They never want to hurt." Jimmy told us that he wasn't planning on telling us about his addiction until after he had overcome it. He has been trying to overcome it ever since we started visiting him but he's said it's been so hard. But now we can help him :D

Ana and her sister (Elizabeth) were going to come to church this week but Elizabeth is having birthing pains (I don't know what those are called) and is about to give birth to her baby. So Ana insisted on going still, and her dad (he's a really hard man to teach the gospel to), decided he couldn't leave Ana to walk alone to church and back, so he came with us. AND HE LOVED IT! So doors are opening to get the whole family to come to church, little by little. The dad also said to a few members, "Go visit my wife. She's the one taking the discussions and she's the only one who hasn't come yet to church." So he recognizes the blessing the church is in his life and he has seen how the atmosphere of his home has been changing for the better.

Well, we've got changes this week and there will be a lot of changes because a few missionaries need to leave because they're whining too much, and other missionaries are finishing and other missionaries have safety issues with a few locos in their branch. So there will be some changes.

Happy Fourth! And Happy birthdays Aunt Julie & Uncle Scott!!! :D I'm half way through the journey ;D jajaja

Mom, I got the package but the bag you sent that was see through, someone robbed from the time we boarded the bus to the time when we got off. And here the bus drivers don't care so we got off and the driver drove off. But I got the box you sent. Thanks for the ties and skittles. I was getting bored of the same ties over and over.

Dad, we do divisions frequently here because there are missionaries who get discouraged quickly and stop being efficient and so we have to help them be better. We also have a former AP in our zone that thinks he's hot stuff and won't listen to us. Go figure! He doesn't have much success in his area because he won't listen to our advice. We did nothing for the 4th. Just ate Skittles :D But I wore Red, white and blue!

I'll talk to President about the money issue but we'll see if anything changes. Recently there have been missionaries being disobedient and wasting the money on personal items like speakers and guitars, etc. So right now might not be a good time to talk to him about giving us even MORE money... :D

I'll try to get you a picture of my shoes. We'll see if Hna Bowler can take a picture at Changes.

Love,
Elder Tuft
Hurrah por Israel!