October 18, 2010

Thanks for all the letters and love for my birthday. This week was really interesting. I made the banana bread with the cream cheese frosting for the whole zone, for my birthday, and then we had divisions on Tuesday and Wednesday. I had Elder Dority with me, while my comp was with Elder McKell. It was kind of interesting. We practically dropped all our investigators, or better put, they dropped us. It was interesting though. I learned a lot from Elder Dority. We finished that, and then the rest of the week, my comp and I have just been doing service, like always. We´ve just kind of accepted the fact that we can´t really focus on finding and baptizing. Yesterday, we spent the afternoon helping one of the nicest members we have, understand a sheet on keeping record of what you´ve read in the Book of Mormon, and explaining Lehi´s vision. It was really cool. At this time, I feel very calm about the work. I get the chance to help so many of the members, in so many ways, and I can kind of see the branch growing a little closer to each other. There has been a lot of correcting to do, so that people can stop offending one another, and it´s been interesting to see it all play out. I kind of want to stay for the end of the year, and see how things end up going here, but I doubt that will happen.

Thanks for everything. I´m attaching a picture of my notes that I took for Lehi´s vision. I love you all and will write you next week. I look forward to hearing how the Book of Mormon weekend went.

Love,

-Elder Crapo





After receiving my letter asking for more details....I got this!


I´m sorry I don´t give too many details. The truth is, I´m just REALLY slow with everything. I think a lot, and my typing isn´t very fast compared to everyone elses. Yes, this place it kind of like home in the mountains, but you find things like banana trees and the biggest variety of bugs you´ll ever see. That, and then corn fields everywhere. That´s what they live on here. It´s sad because some people say that their corn didn´t grow too well, and that they don´t know exactly how they´re going to do, during the dry season. I think I already said this but, we do live in the chapel. Our shower is dumping a bucket of cold water on your head, outside in the open, from a cement box. There are a ton of hills and mountains and there are waterfalls and streams all over the place. Our every day is usually spent helping people make tortillas or desgranando or degraining corn. Occasionally we chop wood or work in the field. My companion really wants to just teach lessons, but there aren´t investigators to teach that much. Every day is just like going on a hiking trip. We get home at 6 because there are no lights out here, and it´s dangerous. Most of that extra time is spent studying or sleeping because we're so tired from the walk. The hikes are worth it though. The place is very beautiful and I never get tired of helping people in any way I can. It´s when I feel like I´m not helping anyone, when I have problems living with myself. Every Monday and Tuesday morning, we get up at 4:30 to go to Momostenango. We ride in the back of a pickup truck with a cage to hold us in. This morning there were almost 20 people on the truck. They ride like 60 mph on dirt road. It´s freezing cold in the morning and that wind is almost too hard to bear sometimes. When we get there, we have to pry our hands off the bars and try to thaw them.

There have been a couple of times when we do our language study in the sun on some rocks near the stream. It´s very peaceful and quiet, I love it. I´ve lived off eggs and oatmeal for the past month now, with an occasional banana bread when I need it.

I´ve been changing a lot lately. In the mission, I can´t be my white (referring to personality color) little self and distance myself from any problem that comes up. I have to be actively in peoples lives and progress. I have to put my views out there and hope that I don´t cause a conflict. I have to do more than be the quiet servant in the corner, like I´m used to being. People rely on me to be outgoing, and so I´ve been doing my best to change, to be able to do that. It´s difficult though. I hope some day I can be someone who is firm, strong, uplifting, active, loving, all those things that you expect from a missionary.




Quite the bug collection....he was told NOT to bring any of these home!!!






Pictures!!!! I love pictures!!!







Branch President and Family




Little girl who wanted to play.