I Love my Packages from Home!

I finally got the package after a whole mess.  I cant remember if I told you but I was supposed to have had it like two weeks ago, but Elder Powell got it from here in Fuengirola in the office.  He took it up to La Mancha to give it to me and then forgot it.  Then Elder Peroni and he were supposed to give it to me when I left, but they ran out of gas before they got to the train station so I had to leave without it.  Even worse was that Elder Peroni missed his train and that is a fifty euro ticket.  Then Elder Powell and Elder Gonzalez were supposed to bring it to me at zone meeting and that didn´t happen either.  So they gave it to President the next day and he finally got it to me in church on Sunday.  I love it !!!!!! thanks a ton.

So, it is just me and Elder Adams in piso and we are the only Elders that work in Fuengirola.  The office Elders (Buckway and Dansie) work in another pueblo.  Fuen is huge, so we barely see the Hermanas (Folsom (from my group) and Hurtado (just got to the mission) and plus the Capilla is firmly in their area so we only go there on Sundays or for activities.  Then the Marbella Elders (Scheible, Oliver, and Vera) are 45 minutes out, so we only see them on Fridays at district meeting and correlation and then on Sundays at church.

Hey, will you do me a favor?  Being here in Fuengirola there are a lot of cars and it is possible that I will be asked to drive one at some point.  I would love it if you could figure out how to get my international drivers licence.  I still have the record that i got from the DMV, but you have to do other things to get it. You need pictures and a signature.  Plus they are valid for a year and i have less that that on the mission, if you can´t figure it out don´t worry about it.

Well, I´m glad that i don´t have to watch the news at all, it is just depressing hearing about all that stuff we actually had to invite a converso reciente in Valdepeñas to stop watching the TV because he was going crazy. I have to admit I don´t think I will watch the news every day when I get back.  There are more productive things to do.

I love you all tons

Braden

First week in Fuengirola

Hi,

Well I´m doing just great! in fact I´m doing more than great, so don´t worry about me. Anyway, if anything happens here, I´m in the mission Presidents Ward so don´t worry.

This week was tough for someone else though, President Deere´s brother died this week and I have no idea how, but if you wouldn´t mind keeping him and his family in your prayers that would be awesome.

I swear every weeks just gets shorter and shorter and the members love to throw it in my face. We´ve been visiting them all this week and they were all like "Oh wow, you´re super old in the mission basically dead then huh?"  I have to keep reminding them that 9 and a half months is a long time and I will hopefully be here for six of those.

Interesting fact, my area was actually going to be Sevilla, but an Elder that was here before I came got a snake (girls that go after missionaries) and so the day of transfers he called President and was like "What do I do? this girl is after me".  Apparently she had told him that she was seriously in love with him. in fact, She is in Sevilla right now looking for him. (creepy stalker girl if you ask me).   So, anyway my card has Sevilla 2 written on it in the office and rather than Elder Adams my next companion was supposed to be Elder Church.  Not that I´m complaining at all, it is really cool that I´m here in Fuen and we are going to do great things here.  As of when I got here have 12 futures and 19 references, kinda cool!

So, today for p day we are going to go to an indoor gocart track and Elder Sheible and I are going to have an all out battle to see who is the fastest.  We are the speed demons of the missions and this is the perfect way to figure who is the best.  The only problem is they are 20 euros for ten minutes grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr so we´ll see if we actually go.

I love it here and things are great!  Elder Adams is great!

The trip was pretty boring, I was on the train with Elder Phipps and it was only interesting because Elder Peroni who was supposed to be on our train showed up late and missed the train.  When I got here I got hear all about how it from Elder Dansie (mission secratary) 

Not much else, thanks for your letters and I love you tons 

Braden.  

Companionship Exchanges

This week was way fun, we went to Malaga.  We being me, Elder Ordoñez and Elder Phipps.  Poor Elder Tenoreo had to be with a member for a couple of hours.

OK,  let me esplain.   Monday at seven was when Elder Ordoñez left for Malaga for his residency renewal and then slept the over night in Malaga/Fuengirola.   I on the other hand was making the rounds with Elders Phipps and Tenoreo in Ciudad Real because I can´t be alone here in Valdepeñas.  We had a really great night and tons of lessons. I love companionship exchanges, it brings tons of miracles and we even had a nice old catholic lady stop us and tell us that we were super Majo and Guapos and that everyone should do what we do as missionaries. She told us that we were very confused and that if we would really get to know the catholic church were would become enamorados (yes i realize you have to look up these words, it´s just faster to type) with their beliefs...ummm I already know way too much thanks. Oh, people and their ignorance.  The cool thing though is that she was very cool about it just a nice old lady who was worried about our salvation, not many people are like that. 

So, anyway after we met her we went back to the piso of the Ciudad Real Elders and grabbed our stuff and we took a taxi to the train station.  The district leader training with President was really really cool.  I learned a ton of things there with them and I´m really grateful that I had the opportunity to go. 

I´m glad that David´s farewell went well and Brazil is going to be fun for him right now. they just lost the world cup (soccer) so it´ll be interesting for him down there you´ll have to let me know which mission he is going to because Elder Ordoñez has a brother that is in Porto Alegre Norte.  Keep in mind there are 32 missions in Brazil alone, not like Spain where there are only three.

Well, that is all for this week, I hope you have a great week.

Love, Braden

Well, I am really glad that every thing was so fun at home this week. high adventure, firing people and every thing else.

We have spent absolutely no time in our area this week and some how we still had 11 lessons, it was really great and the fact that we had 3 less actives in church not all the same ones but pretty close. So, short story made long, we spent Tuesday in Manzanares contacting and getting to know the members there, this is the first time in 8 weeks that we´ve gone there.  We also spent the day with a less active member (who is progressing a ton in a very short time) helping him look for a house there in Manzanares, he is going to move there pretty soon. 

Wednesday we spent the morning doing weekly planning since we weren´t going to be there on Thursday. At 2:30 we got on the bus to Ciudad Real, we got there an hour later and then killed another 2 hours waiting for Medio Dia to end. Then we did splits with the Elders in Ciudad Real.  Elder Phipps and I went to their investigator who is going to get baptized and Elder Tenorio and Elder Ordoñez went to someone else for an hour. We got back to the Capilla around 6:30 and then we went to the train station where we waited for another hour.  Lots of hurry up and wait as Uncle Kenny calls it. Of course, just to add to the tension the Zone Leaders who had the tickets didn´t get there till like 15 minutes before the train was supposed to leave.  The rest of the day was pretty boring.  We took the AVE (bullet train) for 2 and a half hours to Malaga and we went and slept and got eaten alive by mosquitoes.  That is definitely one thing I hate about Malaga is the mosquitoes.

Thursday we woke up, I slept awfully.  I didn´t have a blanket or anything and I´ve never been able to sleep when I´m being eaten by mosquitoes.  We showered and went to the Capilla which is a bajo (base level of a building) and we were taught by President and I got your packages!!!!!!! At five we got on the train again with an hour lay over in Cordoba. I bought a two euro and sixty five cent slushie (thats what i get for being thisrty in a train station).  Elder Ordoñez went to the bathroom and came back out without going. and he was like i just can´t handle the smell. Apparently someones but had exploded all over the bathroom stall and yes i went in later to see how bad it was it was awful!  We then got on the train to Ciudad Real and every one went to the bathroom there and the rest was pretty boring.  When we got to Ciudad Real we went with the ZL´s to Alcazar de San Juan and we slept on their patio under the stars.

Friday; So sleeping under the stars was almost as challenging as the mosquitoes because at three more or less in the morning someone decided to have a concert... just imagine my excitement and my smiling face so after an hour of listening to it by myself trying to sleep everyone else finally woke up and we decided to move the beds back inside.  After that I slept well until seven o clock because my phone was in the other room in my pants and Elder Powell had dropped his phone the day before and then Elder Peroni had left his phone in the kitchen.  We all got up got ready and tried to have some semblance of study time.  Then we left and had some lessons and I went and did a baptismal interview for them.  When we finally got back to our area it was Medio Dia and then we went and worked.

Saturday we had an activity in Puertollano "the city of two lies" (it is no where near a port and it is anything but flat) we spent the morning preparing for the activity which was a talent show and then we helped clean a members work van so that he could take us to the activity.  They were super nice and fed us after we finished cleaning and after the talent show too. 

Sunday was just church and work. 

Today,  Monday we´ve had p-day here so far but we only have a couple more hours left before we have to go to Ciudad Real again.  Elder Ordoñez has to go take care of his residency and his train to Malaga leaves at 7:45 tonight. We´re going to take the bus at 2:30 again to Ciudad Real and then my train will leave tomorrow at 1:26 to Malaga again for District Leader training.

That is my week in a nutshell that took a really long time to write so this is the only email. 

PS I LOVE MY SALT LAKE REAL SHIRT AND YES I AM WEARING IT!!!!  I´m going to take Elder Fisher's pez dispenser to his District Leader and if you haven´t already sent the package please send something for Elder Ordoñez. 

love BRADEN

My Shoes are Worn Out!!!!

Today is the day I am going to by shoes, both pairs that I have right now are slowly falling apart from the back forward as we´ve been walking around this week we´ve been looking in store windows to see where the best place to buy shoes would be.  So, we are going to go and get them hopefully before medio dia when every thing closes and doesn´t open until later in the evening.

Like I told Kenzie, we have a ton of travel that we have to do these next two weeks and it is going to be fun because we get to see President and all the other missionaries.  This week is Zone Conference with the Zone Leaders in Ciudad Real on the 4th and then 9th we go to Malagá for Tri-Zone Conference with President.  We are going to take the AVE (bullet train) there and back and then on the 15th I have to go back to malaga for District Leader training.  So, it is going to be fun lots of travel but lots of fun.

Elder Ordoñez and I have been working really hard this week!  I´ve only been in the area for about six weeks and still don´t know everything as well as I should, but things are going good.  We had to drop a couple investigators because they weren´t progressing, but all in good time.   Come to find out Elder Ordoñez is from Colombia and he was visa waiting there for six months before coming to Spain. He is in his second to last transfer.  Although he doesn´t think that I will "kill" him and send him home.  I have no idea what is going to happen, but whether I´m here for another six weeks or another 4 and a half months, it is cool that he is my companion right now.

Well, I forgot to tell you that I do have to go to a watch store and get more batteries put in my touch watch. It ran out like to weeks ago and I just keep fearing what it is going to cost me to put more batteries in it.

I´m really excited that the packages are there in Malaga, I can´t wait to open them.  I haven´t the slightest idea what I want in a package, I´m just happy that I get them.

Cool news, apparently in Sevilla they built a Costco with every thing American.   I´m sure that they also have Spanish stuff, but it was super weird to hear that home was that much closer.

I remember last year in the MTC on the fourth of July that we were having a party, this year we will be in Zone Conf for the fourth

have a fun week!!

BRADEN

P-day Fun

OH WHERE OH WHERE DID MY EMAIL GO?

I only got two emails?

Well this week was super great!  Elder Fisher and I had been praying for a week like this.  We have been walking more as of late and more people had been failing us on lessons so for the past two Sundays we have been ayunando (fasting) so that we can find some investigators that will progress and be able to be baptized.  We were also having lower numbers because of the people that were failing us.  We had a total of ten lessons the week before this one and this week we basically doubled that, which is where we should be if we are working hard as missionaries.  It really isn´t the numbers that count that much, it is more that we have people that let us in and allow us to teach. Not only were we fasting for that, the Zone Leaders asked us to do intercambios (comp exchanges) with them and I´m sure you well know the benefits of doing intercambios.  One big one is that you see miracles and boy did they find miracles.  The biggest one was that some Bulgarians that had been taught by Elder Lish and Elder Fisher, but they hadn´t been taught in over a transfer (six weeks) just walked up to Elder Powell and Elder Fisher and were like HEY what the heck?  When are you going to pass by again?  They are progressing really nicely in fact we have a fecha (date) for the Father's baptism, it hopefully will be the 29th of this month just right after transfers. 

OH yeah, that is the other weird thing that is going down.  We are beginning week six of the transfer!!!  I can´t believe that it has all gone so quickly.  I´ve been here a month basically and I made it to my year point this week. Elder Fisher and I have been having and count down this week.  He made it to his five month mark and I made it to a year (i feel ooooold as a missionary) and it has gone all too quickly. 

well, you can be sure that I will totally keep you from being on that board.  That is why I have managed to never go with you.  I dislike meetings like that anyway and I hate it even more when people argue.  It is just a waste of time and you only end up with worse understanding of each other rather than actually fixing the problem.

Last weeks p-day we were pretty boring,  we just stayed in piso.

This week for p-day we went to the "Bombed Angel" and the Zone Leaders drove us out there and it was also kinda cool because we had a combined district meeting with Ciudad Real and the Hermanas from Puertollano.  So Elder Phipps and i ended up giving taller (talk) together, it was really really good and way cool.  I unfortunately don´t have pictures because the camera is dead but I will have Elder Fisher send me some pictures and I will forward them to you.  It was actually really kinda sketchy because what you had to do was climb up a tube with rebarb rungs and then there were no safety rails at the top of the towers.  I didn´t climb up this time, but I will next time I have my camera. Plus,  I took some pictures on intercambios i will send those.

We ate at Mcdonalds this week (it wasn´t my choice) i really dislike Mcdonalds here because it is so expensive for me.  You change it over and it is like 10 dollars for a Big Mac that is double the price.   It really kinda sucks, fortunately I didn´t end up paying and the members that invited us to go knew how to work the euro menu.

Oh, hey I want to see my plaque so send me a picture. 

That is all for this week,  love you all and i will be praying for you.

Braden

Cool Sunset in Valdepeñas

La Mancha Zone Meeting (UNO)

I´m very glad that the girls are also blonds and are really stupid "YOU, YOU MOVED THE DOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOR!!!" 

A six hour meeting, it feels as if I had one of those recently. Well not quite, we had our zone meeting and interviews with President.  We had to travel to Ciudad Real twice once on Thursday and once on Friday. All in all, we spent 20 hours in travel meetings or just plain waiting around for another bus to come around and take us back to Valdepeñas.  That was fun and our numbers really sucked this week, we only ended up getting ten lessons in all. It was kinda of a bummer on our part, but the lessons aren´t the things that matter it is who we teach and how they accept the gospel. It is just difficult when you do a lot of walking. 

You know what, that is way cool that you got that award.  It is really nice to be recognized for your work though and that they are paying attention.

The weather here in answer to your question is only like thirty degrees Celsius, I don´t remember how it is in Fahrenheit, but it is something like eighty degrees.  So, yeah it is getting warmer, I am definitely drinking a ton more water than before and I should be drinking more even when we are fasting.  Hermana Castillo, the mission nurse, told us we should be drinking three liters of water a day, that is a lot of water!   

And yes, I´ve been getting the missionary gram photos.  Thank you for those, they are really funny and cool to see the cabin too.

Sorry, outta time.  Love you all and have a great week

Braden

The Front Room of our Piso