Happy New Year!

HAPPY NUEVO AÑooooo:) from the land down under :) cause were down under Utah, it counts :) this week was great. spent Christmas with the mission, had a salad and ham!!!!!!!!!! so great! it wasn't chicken!! :) there is an article of our mission on lds.org called the church in Peru. :) we are the most productive mission in all of nor sur america :) mi nuevo companero es buenasos. he is really great. he funny a little rude, were working on that, and he doesn't like to follow the rules. but when we hit the pavement we get down and dirty (while remaining clean :) and we work. and that's what i love. our area really took a hit for Christmas but we managed to get a baptism :) after a 8 hr bus ride, Christmas Adam day, to baranca and the ham and all that, we came back Christmas eve and visited some Peruvian ruins, called chavin. really cool. than Christmas well was a normal day, played basketball with the zone, called my family, didn't cry ;) and that was great. than we came back and slept till 11 o clock went down ate turkey with my Peruvian family ( the insist all call him my Peruvian dad, they are the greatest people ever) and than watched the fireworks wow what a a party. the next day we couldn't enter one house cause everyone and there dog.. yes they give beer to there dogs. was drunk. :) but we managed to visit members and got a lot of paneton, enough to last me for 6 semanas. we reactivated a lately that's been away for 16 years through her home teachers. about 3 families home teach here, its really low, but for those that do, miracles. were now working to baptize her daughter the letters kinda short this week i know but ill end with this experience. my hip has been giving me problems this week, o i faithfully exercise and put my trust in god ( a prayer to increase my faith would be nice) but we visited a kid. who has problems with his leg and eventually the doctors told him, we cant do anything only god, he prayed while walking ant it popped,.. and now its healed. the miracles of god our miraculous, but i shared the same fear as him and we really connected, than i felt impressed, i looked him in the eyes and said what is your biggest fear. without hesitation he said, losing my mom. there was a long pause and i pulled out my book of mormon and look him in his tear filled eyes and with a choke in my own throat said, if you want to live with your mom forever, all you have to do is read this book and ask god. He will be baptized in 2 weeks god puts you in peoples path for a rerason, if there is one thing ive learned about the plan of god, its centered in jesus christ, and every other part of the plan is family and people. you make a difference and thi new years look and pray to make that difference have the faith to share your testimony, and look for the miracles and blessings of god. and do your home teaching


elder grow

December 9th Letter

December 9, 2013

There’s nothing in this world I like more than reading your letters! I can’t wait to get the packages just hope they get sent to the mission office, it’s a little tricky business here. so great to hear about our ward can’t wait to come back and have some fun in it. thank you for the thoughts i won’t be spending rally any money for a while my companion doesn’t want to go out, yeah so give me two weeks just in time for Christmas and I’ll get a taco :) i love an miss you guys so much, it’s so hard sometimes, and yet others i feel like your right there. but this week went great.

first off fixing my pants went good unpicked the back of the brown and fixed the waistband just got to sew it back up, I’m having heart burn or gag reflux problems not sure which ha-ha think it’s all the rice, I’m going to look for some tums. Utah sounds great i loved our Christmas tree and the one outside. Love you guys i miss you so much.

But chip chip and cheerio the letter for this week, so Monday sent you all Christmas cards! And working on the package still got to go to Lima to send it or it’s about 50 bucks here, not sure which I’m going to do yet will see.

Letter

well the week started off with a great work visit with our district leader, he’s been out for 2 years and has no idea what Facebook is ha-ha i gave him the 411 on dating using Facebook and twitter it blew his mind, and when i told him i missed my family and friends he said don’t worry 6 months and they forget about you.. Don’t ever forget about me :) k :) great! Anyway Wednesday it rained for the 9th day in a row, i fixed my ingrown toenail, it’s surprising how much we walk every day but my shoes are holding up after 5 months. We found a family cartmen, she’s a smaing and her husband a little hard but has potential. We visited them it was raining so hard on their tin roof i couldn’t hear a word they were saying she cried a lot and i shared my testimony but that was about it. We really are going to have to work with this family. we left and went up to Lomas, we were walking along and i was relating to my companion the plot line of WHITE CHRISMTAS and i just got to singing a dog came bolting out of house straight for me and jumped mouth wide, it all went so slow i panicked and then 1inch from my stomach he was yanked back by his tail, by something or someone, but when looked at by nothing, nothing was there i can’t explain only grateful for it. Then we ran into a pack of Lomas dogs, they roam in packs here and we know every territory pretty well but 2ell the started harassing us hit a couple with my umbrella, its the most amazing umbrella ever, and well we pretty much got chased out of town ha-ha. the point Spanish dogs don’t like Christmas show tunes, or Bing Crosby, anyway Thursday i taught a family in our ward how to make French toast, which they refer to as rench roast (pronunciation of American stuff is hilarious) anyway the family professed it was the best breakfast they had ever had:) Friday we clean our house and Saturday was pretty uneventful, we crossed path with one of our investigators thee exact time she lost her dog and was sad and crying, interesting how god puts us in peoples paths. Anyway Sunday we only had 1 person come to church, I got some more letters! And i gave a blessing to an alcoholic. I put my hands on his head and the spirit just poured out over him the promises uttered by the spirit through his faith and the gift of tongues was amazing. 

Then they announced the Christmas devotional we invited our investigators and when we went my companion was like well let’s leave before it started, turned out he uninvited them and made a dinner appointment with a member instead, just cause he didn’t want to go. i was mad needless to stay, and on our way we met the stake president’s wife, i showed her pictures of my family and friends and he begun, well I’ll leave the specifics out but the insults flew. i was furious,  our stake president’s wife had a cake in our hand she was taking to the trash, i asked her if i could have it, she said it was no good but sure, i picked it up and shoved my companions face in it! Ha-ha it was so funny it was a great moment. anyway transfers our in a week, if you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all, it just sufficed me to say his favorite words our feo (your ugly) and cochinoo (quechwa for sow or a girl pig) ha-ha yeah anyway. The Christmas spirit is strong with me, love you all and going to be missing you. I’ll have a white Christmas, only if it’s the fact ill bee eating rice :)

Chow with love Elder Grow

Dad,

yeah dad, I’ve learned a lot my companion well he’s a jerk and I’ve learned just to deal with him and love him, transfers are this week, and I’d be lying if i didn’t say i wasn’t looking forward to it. It’s been really tough the work this week no baptisms and little success, but were working on it. He’s kind of trunky considering he’s going to leave. what i wouldn’t give for the snow its rained here for 9 days no stopping morning and night ha-ha anyway love you dad read a lot about families here and how to help them, thank you for always honoring your priesthood and raising me right, two years can’t come fast enough, and yet at the same time it’s going by pretty fast now. Love you dad

Your son

Elder Grow

December 16th Letter

Dear mom :) first your questions, haven’t had to reapply that spray because well here there are no bugs, the mosquito spray thought stuff you got me is buenaso, it’s amazing if I have ticks fleas or problems put some of that stuff on and problems solved. But no you can’t find either here. second mom if I don’t get to talk to you today you need to be online Christmas eve at anywhere from 9-11 o’clock, cause that’s when I’m going to be on and we need to coordinate a time Christmas I can call you with, all of our Skype information etc. :)

So first off, I’m doing great it’s a little hard and yeah still miss home, but I’m really happy. This week was tough and facing a lot of problems, but got through them ok :) glad you got my package haven’t received anything yet but I might this next week. We haven’t got the call from lima yet so as of yet I might still be ... have the privilege, of being with Elder Zavala for 6 more weeks. Anyway Utah sounds great with snow and everything. Running behind… so but yeah missing home. 

The North American horse

So week started out amazing. Had a p-day with our stake president in the morning she feed us pancakes so amazing!! then I talked to them and there planning a trip in Utah in 2 years, and I said they could use my bed :) they{re stoked, and going to cook us Peruvian food :) after we went to the chapel to play baseball and my secret Santa of the zone gave me brownies and French toast, obviously it was one of the sister missionaries but it was amazing. afterwards we went proselyting and ( a common theme for this week) were met by many pastors, Catholics and priests who yelled and bashed us, told us of their  miracles and healings. when we got back home my companion wouldn’t talk something was bugging him, turns out in his other church he witnessed a lot of these (healings) and well his faith was a little down cause he hadn’t seen any in our church. I thought a lot that night and prayed and these week have really looked for miracles and the god of miracles lives, I testify of that.

First off the family mom and baby we blessed in the hospital returned to their house this week, second we found a new place to live with a new lady to cook for us, and then we found a family!!

The next day I found my companion talking to a girl in our ward on the phone in the bathroom, with the door shut. we had a companionship inventory in the night lasted for 2 hrs., and well I feel almost like this 12 weeks have been in vain, he’s still filled with the same hatred. But I definitely have grown a lot in love and understanding. After this well he didn’t talk to me the next day but a family called us up for service we went and killed 2 pigs, pictures included, skinned with a razor blade... FOREVER, and gutted it (we ate the intestines the next day: P but the meat was amazing) that night went to a members house and feed us tocush and egg whites whipped up with sugar (really good) 

tocush I’m going to devote a little extra special attention

tocush is a potato or corn they have dug a hole in the ground next to the cold river and place it in the mud and water rotting and well sitting for months, when they pull it out, they use rubber gloves cause the smell is so potent it will stick for weeks they prepare and eat it outdoors, it’s for medicinal purposes, and well she heard I had a cold and gave it to me, I hold the record as the first white missionary in Huarez to ever stomach tocush :) :) and earned the nick name el Norte Americano cabello, cause they claim I’ll eat just about anything including alfalfa :) 

Anyway then another miracle: walking in the street a door opened ELDERS; ELDERS; ANGELS OF GOD; huh? Not our usual reception, his name was Louis, abandoned as a child in the jungle he’s has cerebral palsy and has lived his life begging because people think he was deviled. He eventually made it here where a woman took compassion and more hiding than caring put him in this house. He apparently has been baptized by missionaries of Trujkllo and prays to god every second but the town shunned him. He’d been praying that day and god said, Louis open the door, I’m knocking. He stood up and struggled to the door and there we were.... sometimes gods hand can be plainly displayed in our lives

Than we gave one of our investigators a fecha, scared to death to lose her but she accepted! The next morning was spent blowing up balloons for a girl’s party, the elders help wherever they can :) than Sunday we had a family we found Thursday and invited to church come, but with not much faith. But then they came! We were stoked they really enjoyed it and were going to invite them to be baptized this week. To end my letter Merry Christmas, also dropped my alarm clock (hit it) and now it’s stuck on RED RIVER VALLEY and HAPPY BIRTHDAY, who knew it had different tones! Oh and then yesterday I was appalled to see my companion reaching into the toilet taking out my used! Toilet paper! he flipped (needless to say I did the same) and well turns out they don’t flush toilet paper here... they put it in the trash can.... merry Christmas, peace on earth and a can of air freshener ;)

Elder Grow

The Plan ( A Poem Elder Grow wrote)

Some picture it like an enclosed cage; others a hope a brand new day

Others a grand and lonely field

Others a mountain that refuses to yield

What ‘er your situation background or belief

We’re all here on this path headed for the same tree

The fruit we want the joy the love

The comfort of a father above

But darkness fear and the mocking of those

Who laugh and drink and turn up their nose

Some wander lost filled with shame

Others give up due to sickness and pain

Where ‘er we are whatever are case

God has a plan and we a place

Pray for strength truth and light

Pray to quench your fear of this night

Pray with faith someone will hear

Pray to him that you may draw near

To that savior Jesus son of god

Are friend our brother

Our iron rod.  :)

November 25th Letter

Wow I loved your letter thank you. Alright well to start out I bought you all Christmas presents!! I’ll send um sometime in December or alter. Anyway and then I bought me a small Christmas tree and nativity. :) I couldn’t help it. To answer your questions: yeah maintaining my weight. I’m pretty healthy beside the food. To be honest mom this week was really really hard. I kind of yeah forgetting yourself isn’t hard, but the family and home is. Christmas is looming and that’s rough but the people here are really nice. My companion well he’s so racists it’s actually border line funny. :) the food hard I’m hungry a lot and not used to that, I went of 7 dollars on my breakfast budget for this month , I have to take that out today but I’ll be more careful this next month, and I’m working on someone in the take and feed me dinner miracles pancakes, so my own little thanksgiving.  So here’s the letter

Esau in the bible sold his birthright for a bowl of porridge... at this point I’d sell anything for a bowl of anything BUT rice :)

This week has been a really rough one, started out good bought for Christmas and President Archibald, who I love, chastised my companion for his racisms in his letters... which didn’t help things. But anyway so Monday was great. Tuesday we had splits and a lady taught a lesson you don’t need priesthood power to give blessings she raised her dog from the dead when she laid her hands on him... Yeah we deal with lot of that stuff here. But anyway our zone for this month is 46 baptisms the most in any zone ever... our previous record was 17 ha-ha were crazy, but I love it. Anyway Wednesday I ate crap... and when I say that it was literally crap :) I had a cows colon in soup and well the stuff that oozed out when I asked my pinchanisita what it was well a gladly returned it to the right full place it belongs in my toilet after dinner. ha-ha but yeah than we taught English classes that night when the Hermanas didn’t show up, my companion hated it so much stood up and walked out bishop called after him, and by than he’d left the church I had the class couldn’t leave so bishop dragged him back in. ha-ha people here are either really nice or they hate me. I’ve surprisingly dealt with a lot of racism but people are really nice here too. We had a 1hr long companionship inventory the next day and well it didn’t help much. But we made the best companionship in the zone! And the 2nd in the mission! We’re holding out for number 1 but didn’t get a baptism this week so I don’t know. I played the piano Sunday two beautiful songs out of the hymn book, than oh come all ye faithful for closing out of my simplified and well a small sheep heard it on the other side of the Andes had a hemorrhage it was so bad. Ha-ha but this people don’t know how to read music so sacrament hymns are always interesting anyway I love it. Anyway it’s been really hard with no baptisms this week or success and my companion and Christmas and a lot of stuff. But I read a lot about the pioneers and their tails and I feel really blessed and grateful. We visited a cow farm the other day, no one’s gone to before cause of the smell, but I love it! It was just like the farm we taught the family and gave all 5 a date for baptism, only problem they just aren’t married, so I called the mariachi band and we have a date scheduled (that isn’t a joke ha-ha we literally plan weddings) anyway keep on trucking I guess. :) had a really good friend in the CCM come to our area and ask what’s wrong, he said you were so happy in the CCM what happened... First hated that but second I thought I was happy now, but made a new goal to make a special effort to be happier despite my circumstances. :) Oh and were going caroling with the consjejo de barrio this December! :) can’t wait.... I’m the only bass singer in the entire stake choir ha-ha anyway fantastico and cheerio Elder Grow

November 18th Letter

Mom I got your pictures LOVE them thank you it’s really difficult to send but working on that :) life sounds great. Sounds like your super busy. Ahhhh! photos won’t send!! Anyway question: my brown pants one side waist band won’t work do I unpick the back and fix it or what do you suggest.

Packages:

So packages either come or don’t ha-ha they go to the offices in Lima and we have to pick them up ourselves or they send them back or they go to the mission and send um to us. Ha-ha its messes up, one girl got a Frisbee jerky and gum and the other companion package got sent back so it’s kind of like Russian roulette I guess

So this week’s been really good and ah really bad :) like life i guess. Answer your questions i can’t, so if you send stuff nothing valuable, and include lots of pictures and Christmas cards :) gain any wait cause of how often i frequent the bathroom ha-ha Sundays are the worst or at least the hardest away from home :) but yeah

PICTURESSS i got the pictures of you guys and aint no shame in the fact this grown man shed a few tears :) miss you guys a lot. Souvenir I’m buying now (all cloth mostly) to pack because i don’t know if I’ll be here past Christmas and from now till February unlike the states they jack up prices. Don’t worry being frugal.

THESEEEE PICTURES WON’T SEND BLAAHHH

Anyway…

At this point i would take manna

So the week went a little something like this. First off the past p day we bought togs! Which are actually POGS? Can you believe it! And trompos, I have a new wood project for Dennis funniest thing in the entire world. We had kind of a slow p day but than for the noche de hogar a member put on the RM soundtrack for the music ha-ha i love it

Tuesday... not taco Tuesday... seriously though i don’t see how the Israelites could complain so much they had manna it’s not like it was RICE everyday ;) what i wouldn’t give for a taco Tuesday. but well looking at the positive they make a really good fried chicken here, i love paneton, and they have like a cancha popcorn snack which is really good I’ll teach you how to make when i come back. We made pauts de excellencia! Were on our way to becoming the best companionship in the mission... which is really weird because my companion is kind of a bigot and hates my guts, but I love him and hey if it isn’t broken don’t fix it. Anyway that night in another noche de hogar I prayed for god to give me a mundo mejor, only said mujer, asking god to give me a world full of women for me. yeah ha-ha anyway my companion got sick the next day and I studied and ate paneton all day, then well people here have weird dreams sometimes our lessons are just interpreting people’s dreams ha-ha for example my companion had a dream a lady in the mountains was a witch and he won’t go visit her now thinking she’s going to eat him ha-ha anyway than we taught a lesson to a girl that had found the mormon.org website and new the law of tithing in Spanish better than me, we baptized her this week, amazing how god prepares some people. the tender mercies of the lord are really great, some days well most days if were honest ha-ha i end up thinking wish i was home, and god sends a blessing our too and i love it. For example LETTERS i love them LOVE LOVE LOVE them. Love looking at you guys now helps a lot. We did service the next day wayyyyy up in the Andes in the plains of Peru... except looked more like Ireland to me ha-ha we dug in the dirt all day and farmed for this guy I WAS SO FANTASTICO I was in seventh heaven what a blast just some good old hard labor. Talked a lot to our district leader he loves westerns, musicals, and chick flicks ha-ha we had a lot to talk about. the next day was cambios and i went with Elder Leiva had a great day and in the morning woke up to A GIRL IM FIGHTINTG FOR form Mulan ha-ha he’s got a Disney cd anyway than he re iterated thee entire outline to white house down in Spanish ha-ha sounds really awesome.... i think :) than we took our investigator a stake dance didn’t stay to long obviously ha-ha but, they are the same no matter where you are  :) than i have  a lot of fleas but that good mosquito stuff you gave me, PROTECTS FLEAS so i put it on before bed helps a lot plus the 37% deet smells like I’m camping :) anyway it’s been a great long fast slow short week :) crazy think i have 3 months love you all keep writing

Hola!

Hola!! 

Way happy to write you ha-ha finally another p-day!!! It took me a good 30min to read your email alone ha-ha joking it was really nice to hear from you!

I love you so much let me just start out with that. Then I’ll do a quick summary of this week some funny stories, then try and email the girls, time is really iffy! Ok this week has been absolutely fantastic and absolutely hard at the same time :)   To start off, the week was great! Tuesday we had Elder C. Scott Grow, who is now the supervising 70 over the Peru area come! I talked to him for a while! He knew who I was, by relation to dad and grandpa. Great talk! I struggle a bit. Mornings are rough cause of the food and the long line for the shower (ha-ha) plus I’ve never been much of a morning person you know that!! :) 

But Wednesday and Thursday just got really long; a lot of Spanish, still no sun and the food had finally gotten to me, the whole being away from home I guess, but to be expected. The excitement from being away from home had quickly gone away :) However, I prayed and read my scriptures, since I’ve got here. The past 7 days I’ve been reading the Book of Mormon and I’m already to Alma 40. It’s pretty crazy, that is in English ha-ha. And well everything turned out ok. Thank you for your long letter. It was hard to read, but I look forward to it all week. P day is great! Anyway Friday went by fast and great… teaching new things… picking up on stuff. At times I get really frustrated, but then I realized I’ve only been learning Spanish for 10 days, and wow I’ve come a long way. I hope you appreciate the extra effort I’ve put into the spelling on this email :) So Saturday was great. Sunday was great, I fasted that day for some help... ironically enough the best meal we've had here. Don't get me wrong, the food is great, but rice, chicken, rice and chicken, rice and chicken, rice and chicken, than greasy eggs and stale rolls for breakfast :) let’s just say I miss your waffles :) Anyway, Sunday Elder Cook, from the quorum of the Twelve Apostles, came and talked to us. He and Elder Grow talked for like 10mins, than asked if anyone had any questions. I stood up, not on my own accord I assure you, and the words came out of my mouth I know not where from. I said "Elder Cook I've read the Book of Mormon many time since I was young, I have a firm testimony in this gospel and I know this church is true, I know god loves me and have a testimony of it but I've never read and received a burning in my bosom or Moroni’s promise, I don’t know if I can promise my investigators that something. He kind of got quiet for a while and then answered my question, I honestly don't know what he said I don't know, but then I sat down; he moved on, and he then proceeded to bless us. He blessed us that everything would be taken care of, that our hearts may be filled with peace, and well it hit me like a brick… the spirit did. I know this church is true still haven't got an answer to Moroni’s promise, but I don't think I need to cause I already know the answer, its yes. Also he said think of those you love. This is the greatest act of love… our faith and the best thing you could ever do for them. Kodi came to my mind hopefully with me being apart we can grow closer together. Anyway the next day was kind of a little rough too. Our roommates all left for Bolivia and we’re getting new Latinos today, but as I prayed for help that day a kid walked into my room, from nowhere named Elder Perez. Hadn't talked to him that much, but he just started talking to me about his family. Sometimes down here you just need someone to talk to. Anyway it’s what I needed. Lord works in mysterious ways. My companion and I are perfect. He’s kind of lazy, but amazing kid and we get along really well. I just have to pull him sometimes. it’s tough work but I’m loving it especially enough physical activity and soccer with the Latinos! it’s a blast :):) Today… temple trip was great a little kid of 3 years old was standing in the street and came and ran up as to me as fast as he could ELDERS ELDERS he said!! It was so great I talked to him in Spanish. Hah! He loved us! He was the highlight of my day, besides emailing you. Then we got on the bus. The busses here are crazy! They turn and jump and crash! The bus we were on today… I was hanging in the door with one foot and leg and the rest of my body was out! ha-ha Here’s a cool experience. I realized how much you did a good job raising me. Some elders were talking about the temple session afterwards, and I realized even as missionaries we all have different standards and some things mean more to us than others. I wanted to thank you for raising me right, with the importance of the gospel in my life! I love you so much mom I would spend 2 hrs. telling you all about it! But this hour will have to do! :) love you! Your son is doing amazing and learning and growing so much!! :) He misses you but knows you’re ok and being blessed! :) love you!

con amor

Elder Grow

I read that last letter back to myself to verify spelling it sounded a little more solemn :) haha mother. I'm loving life here. I had a rough week but I honestly am so happy down here, taking care of myself and loving life! They gave me a water filter bottle and so water is taken care of for next 2 years. I can't have any strawberries or berries other than that, we’re good :) I’m so happy and hope when you read this you know how good I'm doing :) love you!! _ con amor Elder Grow :)

Please also explain to the girls the whole time thing…I t’s really hard for me, but I’m writing them all really long letters and as soon as I get out of the CCM they'll get the time they deserve :) love ya!

Perspective. The spiritual experience for this week.

Perspective. The spiritual experience for this week.

We got a reference from the relief society presidency to visit a family who didn’t show up to church. She was pregnant with their first child and he was a grocery bagger. We visited them and no one was home or came to the gate, so i.... jimmied...and prayed with the gate and we passed through to their neighbors and the actual house. We knocked and someone answered said, she was in the hospital in dire condition near death and it didn’t look good. We were shocked we called the president reported it and left for home, it being 9:20. The next day we got the full run down; she had had the baby 2 months early and only weighed 1 kilo. The mother had a seizure mid child birth and was given a 50% to live the baby less. We rushed to the hospital with the bishop and found the young husband sitting there. We talked he told us everything, his wife in USI was unable to be visited until 2 o’clock approx. 4 hours. So i sat down, put my arm around him and prayed for my mouth to be filled. And it wasn’t. I didn’t say a word. I just sat there with my arm around him. And then it hit me. We didn’t teach a lesson we didn’t call anyone to repentance, we just "comforted those who stood in need of comfort" i dint use my Spanish didn’t have to. Later that day we came and visited him and with special permission passed and gave a blessing, as we exited the hospital looked back and saw him holding his unconscious wife’s hand next to his heart. later that day we talked to the bishop in a council, we all said a prayer and called the young father, the baby needed to be transported out of area via ambulance and the father had no money. The ward covered it. He was extremely grateful. Know the baby is in route and the wife, by a miracle and the power of the priesthood has woken up, exited USI and is recovering and getting better. I found the gospel of Jesus Christ this week, not in a lesson not in our 3 baptisms, but in a young father in a very humble hospital waiting room, who kept refreshing his phone lock screen just to see the picture of his wife and baby. Found it in a ward that pulled together who in humble circumstances themselves saved this man. I remembered my mom holding my dad’s hand in the hospital, i remembered there love. i realized when we lose are life we don’t actually lose it instead we give it away. i went back home and had my usual bowl of rice, did i like it, no i hated it still, but well i had a little more perspective and it tasted just a little better.

I have often dreamed of a far of place} where a hero’s welcome will be waiting at the gates where the crowd will cheer when they see my face, and a voice will say this is where I’m meant to be I will find my way I will go the distance ill bee there some day if i can be strong. I know every mile will be worth my while i will go almost anywhere to find where i belong.

Love you all

November 11th Letter

MOM! I love you so much!! I’ll try and answer all your questions and be super informative this week :) I love you so much and miss you guys. First your questions...

i bought the cheapest camera they have only cost 100 dollars but there was a 2 year broken or stolen Peru guarantee so i paid 30 extra knowing your son I’ll include lots of pictures for you.

The camera is like my old one pretty much a little skinnier and black and it takes pictures ;) anyway haven’t got all those letters but i might be here soon. Christmas I think I’m going to buy a llama poncho :) some souvenirs for the girls and you guys. I’ll think about the 2 gifts for the 12 days and write you next week. Also I might buy a box of American cereal... Rumor has it there’s one on the other side of town, I don’t believe it. 

The letter

C is for conceptions Chinese food, Canadians, and Cool Runnings

First off - my area. I live in apartment with a bunk bed and two desks we live solo it has to bathrooms and a floor and a roof made of tin, i love it, include pictures next week, we live in pretty good circumstances. My pinchanista is a house over cooks over a fire and we eat on a dirt floor most days. i have someone who does my laundry. I wake up every morning exercise solo :) ha-ha sing songs and enjoy it, jump in a freezing shower, pull my companion out of bed, eat bread and jam and some juice. Put on my sweater and study Jesus the Christ. Than 8 i study personally and 9 companion. Then we leave we usually come back around 1ish and eat lunch its warm by then and we eat for an hour grab our rain stuff and leave. We get back 8 or 9 eat quickly and then run up stairs and try to get in bed before 1030 but this is really tough. First off this week started off with me eating Chinese food and getting really really sick. The food his is really bad for me been sick since i got here, and well getting sick of rice. But positively speaking they make a good fried chicken. anyway we went to a noche de hogar that night which when we walked in i hear MY HEARTS ON FIRE FOR ELVIRAAAA BOW WOW WOW ha-ha I laughed so hard this guy loves 80s country music. We talked a lot. Anyway than we went way up into Lomas. where we found a really nice man, blessed his hose that the spirits would leave and when i got off his church his daughter screamed, i had sat on their baby kitten which was not moving... ha-ha she shook it.. I said a little prayer... And well it revived :) all’s well in Zion. Anyway my companion suffers from depression and problems at home. His dad has threatened to come and pick him up. But anyway he quit, just quit and i couldn’t help him. So i said a little prayer and thought of Cool Runnings :) so i grabbed the cell phone, our only reflective surface ha-ha and pulled him up and said "quien ver" who do you see, anyway than proceed to say I see power, i see authority, i see a man called of god who knows he’s a missionary, and made him repeat it. He’s doing better :) ha-ha pretty funny. But thank the next day we visited the hospital, story to come, and had a noche de missional where we watched Shrek, we didn’t watch it but put it on in the church and stood outside and played with trompos, it was difficult. Anyway than the next day had service wayyyyy up in the mountains digging dirt, and clearing rocks for a person’s house, i was so burnt after working for 5 hours it was pretty bad, worse than a fried strip of bacon :)... bacon :) anyway than my zone leaders from Canada he’s touched the Jamaican bob sled and well were planning a trip to Calgary, my district leader is from Orem and is a dramatic reader, I’m teaching him to tell stories and he’s teaching me too, when i get back I’ll be a regular folk singer with my banjo ;) than Saturday we had 3 baptisms, my companion is well he hates me ha-ha but we have a lot of success and our on our way to the best companionship in all the mission for this month.

Anyway hope this is what you want. More next week :) all’s well in Zion.

November 4th Letter

Mom!!! I don’t know what it was but wow i needed your letter this week in an awful way!! :) Oh i love Mondays!! And to enjoy the guinea pig they eat it there too :) oh what i wouldn’t give to see snow! A job!! Oh you’ll do great mom! kids love humor just be funny :) my complexion well i tried 1 pills couldn’t do it zits where my glasses were but now I’m back on 2 and doing great.  oh I pray for my friends i think I’ll cut my letter a little short and try and email some of them. This week was really rough on my, but your son pulled through :) I’m buying a camera today and then i found out the best place to buy souvenirs is here. What i wouldn’t give to see snow.

Ok so first you didn’t answer my questions ;) silly goose :;)

Anyway first

I GOT LETTERS! still waiting guess the mail is just funky. Anyway so I’m sending a response to her and to you... even though you didn’t write me ;) ha-ha

So the letter :)

Neil Diamond, Jennifer Lopez, guy, and feels like hell. :) :) :) I’m so creative

So the week started off with Monday after i emailed you i was walking down the street singing were coming to America by Neil Diamond... it was a sign it was going to be that kind of week :) yeah I missed home a lot this week it was really hard but well were smiling :) so after this my companion made a milkshake,... strawberries the fruit I’m forbidden to eat. So yeah i watched him drink it... companionship inventory ;) anyway after we played soccer in the rain at the church what a blast, than we had PANCAKES... sort of a pinchanista of one of the elders cooked them and i ate 23 :) never been so full in my life. Anyway the next day we were hiking in the mountains when we heard some screams and little kids running in doors screaming graniosos, my companion quickly picked up the pace and we made it to the investigators house. What we witnessed next was soooo cool, a wall of ice whipped down the mountains, hail, - a huge fast wall of hail. It’s really dangerous here, killed two people, anyway but so i stuck my hand out the window, and well it hurt... like hell ha-ha I’ve waited all week to say that :) anyway than we ate paneton, their version of a fruit cake, it’s a big bread with raisins and fruit but not fruit cake, anyway so it’s cold here, but not cold for snow :) in the morning its freezing, and in about 11 it gets really hot than starts to rain and rains and rains and then gets really cold. It’s rained for 21 days straight now :) am i happy for my snow/rain boots and umbrella. Anyway than we hiked way up to a house and asked a lady for her signature so her daughter can be baptized next week, she told us she didn’t know how so we taught her how to sing her name. than that night at 12 we got a call a woman crying, one of our converts, we, mostly my companion, i unhappily followed, grabbed our coats and left, when we got to the house the man was drunk, and my companion tried to move him but couldn’t. anyway i was mad and tired, and with strength born from both, and the spirit of the word of wisdom ;), picked him up on my back carried him up the stairs, with my companion in tow and..... gently... set him in his bed, where he bounced once and hit the floor... we gave him a short message there and left and consoled the family. Anyway after this the next day was the party. Here they have no activity committee it’s the elders so we planned a sort of Halloween party for the kids it was great, I’m also a wedding planner, like Jennifer Lopez, only better ;) anyway yeah i have to call the band today to verify for December, but people here aren’t married, they just live together and so when they want to get baptized well first they have to get married, and we plan it, you can see the pictures of the one:)  we just planned, and the following baptism:) anyway this week’s been really tough but hey i ate guinea pig! or guy :) it tastes like a very spice chicken, and the skin is like potato chips its really good :) anyway that’s been my week really rough lots of rain, but hey we baptized a family and married them, they’re preparing for time and all eternity, and it pays off :) love you all and missed you lots this week! Glad to hear everyone is so great :)

Elder Grow :)

October 28th Letter

Wow mom it’s great to hear from everything! I’m serious! To answer questions, first, Halloween- well that will come in my letter. Things are better with my companion and yes. So first did Jacie look up vocation for me? How about that family history? How about the elks lodge scholarship? How’s Kodi? Tell Jacie good job on the math (snicker ;) is she cutting the comics? love hearing about our ward sounds great!

First off, this week i got robbed, don’t worry no big deal they only took my camera. so i had to buy another one. But i feel really bad especially with you guys financially supporting me, so the instructions are only put money on my card from that 500 dollars in my account. that way the money i spent on this camera, and souvenirs is mine and not your hard work.

Second you asked about Christmas and i figured I’d clear that up in this letter. When i made a Christmas list this is what i have:

tacos}cinnamon rolls pancakes waffles mac and cheese banana bread pigs in the blanket, cereal peach pie crepes scones ham tetrazzini Christmas candy homemade cookies oatmeal a big salad scalloped or cream corn pie goulash frosty animal fries milkshakes and MILK

Ha-ha so as you can see i don’t need much for Christmas ;)

No this list is

Legos :) of course Mo- tab cd}

just some jeans a plaid shirts for post mission, Shaun white gum, a banana chair, 50 cent piece toothpicks roller skates, a white plog, pet fish, harmonica hockey stick toaster oven and waffles iron money for piano and banjo lessons, I’m serious about those when I get back, and
oh and a tandem bike for dates ;) no but as you can see i don{t really need much for Christmas, all i want is maybe 20 dollars for some souvenir for you guys, and yeah set the rest aside for post mission (speaking post mission i want Twinkies ;). or spend it on yourself and have a great Christmas. all i want is maybe a package with lots and lots of Christmas cards and letters, from all the family friends etc. lots of pictures yeah :) cause food like ginger snap cookies or stuff will get stolen so just put some money [(small) and send me cards. and after the mission I’ll go on a long walk or golf trip with dad;), bake cookies and piano lesson with mom, and movie date with Kodi, double date Kelsee, and basketball game Jacie, oh and work in grandmas yard ;) that’s all, oh and save the toys are r us big toy book with the comics too ;) enjoy Christmas packages and mail works here it gets here pretty fast, and you pick it up in lima. but since were in Huarez we get mail once a month, probably why haven’t gotten stuff yet. so first little bit won’t get stuff.

Now the letter}

This week’s been like trying to tell a joke in sacrament meeting in a Latino ward, it really stinks and it’s just bad... but in the end you’re still the only one laughing ;) and that’s all that matters ;)

First off right after writing you last week i got robbed... by a girl... of 11 years of age yeah picked up my bag and she reached above my computer grabbed my camera and took off..... Yeah sucks I know, but it’s all good, we all have trials, I’ll just have to get a new one. no worries:) can{t keep a good man down, and cant wipe the smile off Elder Grow’s face:) after this we went to yungay oh I wish i could show you pictures. santo campo yungay look it up online. but it’s a city north of here. The story is 2 elders of the church were killed and drug around the town, a member of the 70 came and took off his shoes, 1 day later and enormous earthquake buried the whole town, killing everyone instantly. The entire place is a giant graveyard over the city, very eerie and quite... so a Latino brought a soccer ball and we played on the outskirts :) after this, well, Elder Zavala wouldn’t talk to me, wouldn’t eat and yeah we were having major problems, something was wrong, so i called for cambios. i switched with the district leader, and dad remember the story how you ran to every appointment my cambio companion had the same idea.. never been more tired in my life. but i got to eat with their pinchanista, and wow she’s amazing they had omelets and pork and fruit juice.. we just get rice. so the bad news food is (machu pichu) and i hate it, good news it will get  better :) after this we went to the capilla to wait for an investigator she didn’t show and we were about to move on when we thought we should wait for 5 min, exactly 5min later a man came crying begging for our help to change his life, we taught him and he’s getting baptized this Saturday :) after that i taught ingles classes in the capilla every miercoles for 2 hours i love it. But it was interrupted by a long trip to the bathroom. the leche here is disgusting and comes in a can, i tried some and well yeah i miss my milk. After this the next day my companion was fine! he was wonderful! great! fantastic! whatever they had a talk about and his family problems well they are so much better now! :) We went way up in the mountains this day. Our area is about from Kaysville to Clinton and encompasses the city of Huarez and Lomas way up in the Andes; we trekked up there and visited an old lady and here child. no one goes there cause she’s crazy, she started off talking about how she had stabbed herself in the hand with a crochet needle and Christ came down and removed it from her and said now you know how i feel, well when we showed up and gave her the restoration pamphlet she flipped she keeps having this dream that Jesus visits her and gave her this book in a black bag like mine, interesting, we taught her and her daughter and when we got to the picture of Christ baptism the girl flips, shed had a dream 3 times the night before some guy in white was trying to drown her in a river, we explained the man she dreamed of was Jesus, the one in the photo, and she and her sister our getting baptized  god works in mysterious ways. After works walking down they warned me of the big white dog, i told them its ok I’m big and white too,

this had a huge almuerzo and well Saturdays our exhausting cause the next day the Hermana’s cooked us French toast which was great and i lifted rocks all day and threw them in a river :) anyway than taught a lessons sitting POW wow with a woman that only spoke quechwa, trying to learn that it’s hard. Look it up. But yeah Sundays are the worst; the hardest thing about us is getting people to just come to church. And well plus this Sunday i gave a talk. It went really great and i was blest with the gift of tongues, just not jokes ;) ha-ha but good news i have found my true laugh, its loud long and low and jolly :) ha-ha anyway than went to a members house for lunch they served us what... well looked like brownies,.. I’ve really learned the meaning of please bless this food... anyway that we sat for an hour looking at their wedding photos yeah that a consejo de barrior for 3 hours and accomplished nothing ha-ha those are always long, than went way up into Lomas where we past a bunch of drunks blasting Hotel California :) anyway we have 3 fechas for this Saturday and 4 for next weeks! :) I love it and the work is progressing. we have a really good investigator tonight who we got all the young single adult ward to come with us to the lesson, 6 people ;) anyway this week I’ve taken hit after hit, door after door, and trial after trail but still smiling and loving the work :) oh and Spanish doesn’t have the palabra shuck as in to shuck corn or shucks it doesn’t exist :) love you all

Elder Grow

Love you all send me more photos of you smiling having a good time more photos! :)

October 21st Letter

ok I’m settled in, my house is above a boutique and we cleaned it this week, story to come, money is fine haven’t used anything on my card, only the money i get my cards stayed cleaned (which is also a problem i think I’ve forgotten my pin) as far as sending stuff, just send it and pray it gets here :) ha-ha i honestly don{t know but i haven’t even got your letters yet so were waiting on those. But yeah don’t worry too much about that.  the little car treated me well :) i think you just have to know how to drive it ;) ha-ha we did get a picture but as the whole mission not individually thought i sent it to you but re sending just in case. i have been sick since i got here, nothing major just stomach and well bano problems :) and by problems it’s in reference to nacho libre Easter quote (Jacie can fill you in ;) rice every day and walking well keeps the work going smooth ;) anyway my companion is the only member in his family.

Think that’s al the questions now my turn}

How’s America :)

How’s dad’s heart great to hear about lawn mowing}

Heaven help us all Kelsee coaching basketball :) HAHAHAHAHAHHAHHAH i think that made my entire week: D

What’s the name of the royal baby ;) you know that’s what I’m worried about

And wasn’t baby Mike Mazowski the cutest thing ever!!

and well I’ve been really touched by the spirit of Elijah especially helping these people get to the temple, taught about family history and yeah i know grandpa had a lot of photos and stuff make sure they don{t go missing I’d like to work some when i come back :)

Ok now for the letter :)

Ups downs BLT’s and fleas :)

this week started off really great after my legs regained the blood flow our district decided to have BLT’s (photos included) it was really delicious it was so good I almost died (by the way hearing about all the American food almost put me into a comma ;) hah no but so my companion wasn’t to happy about it, but we ate like kings and went back home, he complained the rest of the night he’d eaten garbage. this week our relationship and me have been tested, I’ve realized I’m an extremely friendly and nice person, but living with someone is entirely different}

This would be so much easier if he was a girl ;)

anyway we had the worst family home evening ever we went to this part members house they fed us “food” i prayed the fact it was still moving wouldn’t prevent me from walking home ;) anyway but the baby was crying dog was jumping on us and the joseph smith movie was skipping and then well the lady took of her shirt and began feeding the baby ha-ha the culture is a little different hear, anyway so that night walking home in the rain was a little tough. Its rained here consecutively for 5 days and then rained off and on the next 2... and for some reason i just can{t stop thinking about goulash:) we than had companion exchanges the next day, i was with elder Rau our district leader and it was glorious, we challenged 3 people to baptism and they all accepted i loved working with him, than when we got put back together my companion well just seemed a little off, he really doesn’t like north Americans and loved being with a Latino, so the next day (also found out he’s having some family problems back at home) the next day walking in the rain he well didn’t say anything and when i say this I mean anything :) so I talked to myself :) all dayyyy in Spanish you know to practice and finally near the end of the day I lost my patience and slugged him in the arm, i told him we needed to work this out and get the spirit, he walked on :) so you love him and move on :) this week has been up and down with him, but were getting along. he likes the food and Spanish music and movies and well not a really rule kind of guy, he loves just talking with the members and being friends, not always working, and a little flirtatious, but the good which we always look for in a person is he’s amazingly friendly and genuinely cares about everyone. speaking of which we got a call from our investigator baptism for this week and she said she didn’t want to be baptized and not to come back... ok kind of rough that one, that night we had companion exchanges again cause we were teaching an investigator who her and her husband had issues the district leader needed to be in, anyway so than that night i taught a lady with elder Leiva the other Latino elder and bore my testimony, the next day we got a call, the lady had passed her interview and requested a one elder grow baptism her, she had been touched by his spirit. it was really exciting and touching experience. also i had to res start the baptism 5 times cause of her name ;) the next day we went to Lomas, in the Andes 523 cement steps later we arrived at our investigators house, and you better believe i sang (and i would walk 500 steps and i would walk 500 more) all the way up :) anyway than we cleaned our apartment, the toilet was having issues flushing cause of the mold buildup.. i have not included pictures :) ha-ha but its clean now, than i prepared to teach a class Sunday.. gospel principles.. in Spanish.. and NAILED IT :) chapter 42 and well the gift of tongues is real :) than we had a capacitation on la obra de salvacion should be implemented in your wards too! at one point a guy in the back row stood up and said

I’ve been reading in the teachings of Lorenzo snow and it says this about missionary work..... i turned around.... IT WAS OUR INVESTIGATOR!!! We contacted in the street and invited to church!! he got a priesthood manual and read the whole thing!! HE HASNT EVEN HAD THE FIRST DISCUSSION!! He’s amazing ... we’re going to baptism him this week or next...after we give him a book of Mormon ;) :)

Missionaries here don’t teach the 2nd lesson, mostly because it’s really hard for these people to comprehend without the Holy Ghost world of spirits and all, but i love it because my testimony lies in the fact god is real and has a plan for me, so i slip it into the other lessons. last story yesterday knocked on a door of a man with the biggest house in our area, about the size of ours:) maybe smaller but he answered the door, very educated in all religions and well bashed us pretty good, i held my own and bore my testimony, and well we have another visit, but then we visited another man up the street a carpenter, we asked him if he would like to be baptized like Jesus Christ he said ... si can my wife be too, I’m free this Saturday.... that day i learned a lesson on humility and to be learned is wise only if we follow the council of god. This week’s been a little tough, i got fleas but there no big deal :) so ups mostly downs, but i love it, Wednesday in noted my cheeks hurt from smiling so much. Christmas down here has already started, at least the food, they have this fruit cake thing its actually really good, i think Christmas is going to be really hard. But i love the work and its moving fast we have 9 people with baptism dates :) love you all and hope everything is going good. Thanks for keeping me in your prayers i pray for each of you every day :)

also more about the culture, cars are crazy been clipped by a mirror or a car twice, dogs are everywhere- hundreds, it’s really sad and gross they skinny eat everything each other and well yeah kind of makes you not want to have a dog, people here shake hands really soft and weird, and if they dirty you shake their wrist or elbow, but everyone hugs and I like that. the funny story was walking by the college in our town the girls cat call you and whistle and you just turn around AND I LOVE YOU RANDOM CITEZEN... cause well they don’t understand English ;).. Ok no not really but I’ve thought about it a couple times when it happens :)

Con Amor

Elder grow