Tuesday, October 28, 2014

He literally changed my life

Hola Familia!
Gah! Can you believe it??? This is the only October 27th that i will be a missionary! What! That is so weird to me. hmm let me think what happened this week...and last week haha sorry about that it´s not my fault it´s the zone leaders fault but oh well. 

Things have been going a lot better here! We are finding new investigators (I would like to be finding MORE, but we´ll keep working on that) and seeing progress. So this transfer our new zone leader is Elder Mejia and he is AMAZING! This is him on the bike. It made me laugh because he´s a little Elder - on a little bike. It was just funny. He was here in Casa Blanca and trained Elder Hesterman, then went to Ensenada. When Elder Morgan went to Ensenada they were companions and now he is here, in the ward again! SMALL WORLD! He literally changed my life in one exchange with him. He is so great.


These past few weeks we have really worked hard with an investigadora that´s 15 years old. Her parents can´t get baptized in this moment but they are working on it. She has been super back and forth. I really thought that we were making good progress with her when she didn´t come to church yesterday. Right now things aren´t looking too good. Not really progressing very well but that´s okay. I can´t make people use their agency. gah!

Other than that we have been super blessed, even if i did get sick again this week. But I deserve it for making fun of Elder Morgan´s horrible immune system all the time. BY THE WAY I´m super mad at Elder Morgan. He never would go running with me. Every day I begged him and he refused but Elder Mejia said that they went running in the morning. that´s all. Other than that I´m really happy right now but my memory is failing so I can´t remember what else has happened. oh well.

LOVE YOU ALL
Elder Smalley

p.s. big shoutout to ERINN for being the only one to write me last week! that was a great surprise. as for the rest of my siblings I´m doubting if they are still alive or not. That´s okay, I deserve it cause I like never wrote Mckay. 

p.s.s haha okay so I had to take a picture of what I saw in the calafia [taxi bus] the other day. interesting eh...

Monday, October 27, 2014

Mom & Dad, don't freak out

Oct 13, 2014
Hey guys!

Guess what? I'm staying in Casa Blanca with Elder Aleman! Maybe I'm not as horrible of a trainer as I thought! haha anyway there werten't very many changes. But Hermana Price went to San Luis Rio Colorado, and Hermana Meledez is going to train!!! That will mean 4 of the 5 companionships in our district are going to be training. wow.Anyway, this week has been a whole lot better. Still not where I want it to be, but the Lord has blessed us so much. General Conference has given me the strength that I needed to keep going forward. Especialmente President Uchtdorf's talk from priesthood session. Sometimes I get so caught up in thinking about how all the other circumstances could change, that i forget about the only thing that I can actually change-myself. That is such a true concept. I love it! Just trying to remember to siempre ask the question "Senor, soy yo? That has really made all the difference. We actually found new investigadors this week. So it's been a huge blessing.This week is gonna be a short one because I need to go. Sorry I hope that that can just be okay and that Mom and Dad won't freak out about it. I'm fine :)I LOVE YOU GUYS SO MUCH.
Elder Smalley

Sunday, October 12, 2014

"When my body begs for rest"

September 29, 2014
Hey There!
I am just so glad this week is over! I´m sorry I know that is a very hard way to start off, but it has been tough. Haha I´m still loving this and everything, so don´t worry.

First of all. I am sick. It all started friday morning. For 10 months, I have prided myself on my immunity to what is known the ¨Tijuana Experience¨. Well let´s just say I spent a lot of time in the bathroom Friday morning. It was the worst day possible to do that because that morning we had to be at a meeting with the president for all the trainers and trainies at 9. We showed up late. Starting at about 11, my whole body just felt weak. Everything hurt. 

All I could think of was a quote from President Eyring that goes ¨...and when my body begs for rest...¨ yeah my body begged for rest. I called the Mission nurses. They told me to drink lots of suero. I have no idea what it is or how you say it in english but it tastes really weird [best translation I can find is saline solution]. So saltines and crackers were all that i ate. 

We walked around the whole day, without finding anyone to teach. Then at 7 we went to a baptism for the sisters. It was GOING to be a double baptism for us too but yeah that didn't happen. I´m not sure how to even explain it and I don´t even know the whole reason. Our investigadora made it passed the interview and everything. Well I decided I really don't want to give you guys the whole story, she just needs more time, which will turn out to be a blessing.

We stopped by Frida on Saturday. She anxiously asked me where I was in the LDM and I said Mosiah 17 and she was way too excited to let me know that she was now in Alma 5. ¿¿¿¿HOW DID THAT HAPPEN???? Well when we got there she and here mom were making sopes [traditional Mexican dish] so we helped them. It was a good time to get to talk with her mom a little bit more. We taught a quick lesson and the left. 

That night we had a noche de hogar [Family Home Evening] with the JAS [Young Single Adults] and Frida told me that her mom wanted to invite us over to eat the sopes. I was very excited for the chance to help her mom be more interested in our message. Well we showed up and my body decides to be sick again. I felt so bad. I could barely force down the sopes, and I made 3 urgent trips to the bathroom in the process. I was mortified. I hope I didn't ruin everything.

Well I just need to put this week behind me and keep on trying. The work has been kinda slow recently. I hope I can figure out what the Lord wants me to change, and SOON. I love you all so much. have a great week!
Elder Smalley

To my complete astonishment

October 6, 2014
Hey there!
Wow can you believe it? Exactly two years ago today the prophet announced the change of age of eligibility for missionaries! Also today I have 11 months. This is ridiculous. I feel like my time is being taken away from me and I can't do anything about it. I need more time!

Well I am just really super happy after general conference. IT WAS PERFECT. Exactly what I needed. I was just so happy all weekend. I wish I could tell you my favorite part but literally every single talk was the greatest so I won't. But I do have to say, President Uchtdorf's priesthood session talk was PERFECT! Absolutely amazing. A life changer. I feel like he was talking exactly to Elder Smalley on that one. So good. Also it was such a special moment for everyone when Elder Gavarret started speaking in SPANISH over the pulpit. I will NEVER forget that moment.

Maybe the conference really hit me because these past two weeks have just been especially hard. I don't know with everything that has been going on, all this new added stress and just the trials I've been given (blessed with) have just really left me asking "why me?". "What have I done wrong?" I have even been so mistaken as to ask "why is the Lord doing this to me?" 

I love this work, I love being here, but it's just been hard. At one point my zone leader told me to go read Alma 38:3-5. Alma 38 is one of my favorite chapters!!!! I use it all the time with my investigadores! I feel like I can relate a lot to Shiblon (as we say in Spanish). Ya know, we are both like the forgotten middle child of our families haha. How could I have forgotten something so basic??? The Lord gives trials to even the righteous. It doesn't mean He isn't proud of us, or that he doesn't love us. He lets us show our faith and patience 

I received even more insight in conference. From the minute it started Saturday morning I just felt the strongest peace. It was probably one of the most powerful experiences of my life! It just felt so good to finally have the spirit back! I had been missing it. And of course, from that moment on, I literally could NOT control my emotions. That was super embarrassing.

I had written down 3 specific questions that I wanted to find the answer to and to my complete astonishment, not only did I feel the answers through promptings, but they were bluntly answered in the words of the talks. All of them! Sorry guys, this was a conference for Elder Smalley. So cool. 

I would really just love to tell you that we are having tons of success and all that but this is all I got for right now. gimme one more week :)
Love you all so much!
Elder Smalley!

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