Sorry, I have to be quick about this. There is just always so much to do on P-days. 

This week we had a fun time painting the chapel. I was supposed to be a ward activity but it turned out to be a missionary thing with the stake. I´m not really complaining because we got to chill with all of my old companions and eat hamburgers from the bishop. 

I had divisions which was really fun. My district leader is from El Salvador. He always tells me that but I don´t really see the big deal because I´m from the savior too. The best part was when in the middle of the night he bumped the wall and the white board on the other side fell down and gave me a heart attack. 

We had a future missionary in the ward who got her call. I was rooting for SA but she´s staying stateside and going to the DF to party with the Chilangos. 

None of our investigators made it to church which was annoying. so after church we walked around the city roasting all of our investigators for not coming. The worst part was that they were all there so they have no excuse. We got a less active to come.

Well Folks that´s all the time I have. I hope you have a good week.

Have a great week.

Elder Nelson

 Early Morning Packing

 Washing Laundry

Drying Laundry

Spencer didn’t’ send his regular email last week. I asked what happened and he replied: I wrote one - I think - But I think it got stopped and detained by border patrol or something...Sorry I had a three hour P'day last time so I was a little rushed. I thought I sent one but it must have died in a black hole or something.

Ha I found it. Sorry it´s a little late but I guess I didn´t click the send button.

So this week was a little different than the rest. I don`t think that you`ll understand the how it truly felt but I´ll try my best.

So this day we had a wonderful lunch of steak and potatoes. But it was a little hot this day and we were walking up in the mountains almost all day. So when we got to the house and I put my head on the pillow I just passed out. I was so tired and the bed felt so nice. So close your eyes and pretend that your sleeping like sleeping beauty. It was super comfortable like wearing wool slippers on a winter night. Ok now you can open your eyes but just a little bit because you’re still tired. At this point I saw my companion talking on the phone which is normal because I fall asleep before he reports. Then I hear the dreaded word cambios especiales (special changes). You can start crying right now because that word in Spanish is a cuss and bye bye word. My companion comes in and looks at me and says cambios especiales. I look at my watch and it`s 12:00 at night and we have to be at the offices a 0700 in the morning. I was like “so what did he say?” My companion said “I`m going to Mariano Escobelo and you are staying here as Mayor (senior).”. So my companion starts packing for Mariano and I go back to bed. But I can`t because there is no way to go back to the comfy slippers again. So I stay up to help my companion pack. This is what we looked like (first picture).

So we blast some MoTAB (Mormon Tabernacle Choir) and get to work. The police came by, I turned the MoTAB down a bit and we kept working. We packed and went back to bed.

I have to go because we have a zone meeting.

Love you lots,

Elder Nelson 

Sorry about the last letter. Last week was a bit crazy. We ended up with just three hours to wash, shop and write which is a little hectic. I´m not sure what p'day means in America but here it means pathetic, panic, phrustrating (yes that´s spelt with a ph) and poco tiempo (little time). But it was cool that we had the zone meeting because I got to see all of my old companions that I´ve had. 

So sometimes I walk in Mexico and something happens and I realize that I´m not in Texas any more. For example, the day it rained (Monday or Tuesday or something like that) it stopped and it was all good smelling. So it´s about 6 or 7 and we’re walking and we hear drum beats. My companion is like oh that must be the rain dancers. The what? Matachinas. What´s a Matachina? So we keep walking up the hill and we find a group of kids and adults dressed. No Joke. Like the Indians, beating drums and dancing around San Judas. Well that´s a little weird if you ask me. That´s almost as weird as the time when we asked for referencias from a contacto. We asked: "Is there someone here you know that had a baby recently or a death in the family" and he says "yes there is a death up there" and we walk to the house with a recent death and a funeral procession is lined up coming down the road. Maybe tomorrow. 

There is another funny experience we had this week where we were teaching a sister in the ward. We didn´t have anything to do and we passed by to see how she was doing. So were teaching this less active and then someone knocks on the door. (Now at this point yáll are like did the police bust in and deport you or a drug deal gone wrong, No) So she says: Quiénes son? and the people answer Los Misioneros (Now yáll are saying oh the JWs busted in. No, just wait for me to finish) So they say los misioneros and the Elders from the other area walk in. Hold up. I know I'm new and all but what's going on we’re teaching the lesson here. It cracks me up to this day the scene of them and us standing there like "what on earth?" Silly Eldercitos

One last story. So we go to contact a lady and she comes out but she´s like I´m too busy. I have too much English home work. Ok we´ll help you with it. So we are helping her but it´s hard. No word bank no spaces just missing letters who knows how many and really bad pictures. So there´s one with a lady on the phone and it is ( P    o    i       g) The answer´s phoning. When is the last time I've said: “Sorry Mom I´m too busy. I´m phoning right now." or what´s your favorite activity? Phoning! So after that worksheet I feel like I am both illiterate in English and Spanish. 

Well I have to let you go but I hope you guys have a fun week.

Elder Nelson

 This is the mountain we live by. It has the face of Benito Juárez on it (blessed Juárez)

 Spencer's birthday celebration.

How was conference for you guys. I was super happy that we got to watch it here. It was probably; no, it was the highlight of my week.

So the beginning of the week was really cool. We went to an investigator’s house to have a lesson with him. We knocked the door and we heard like a bunch of scrambling and stuff like ¨what do I do? ¨ and the wife telling him ¨well open the door¨. I was really confused but the door opened and he told us that he was about to leave. Normally we are like ‘OK when can we come back?’ but this guy lives on the side of the mountain a good 3 mile hike up Mt. Everest to get to his neighborhood. So I gathered my Generals in my war room and made a plan. So it was kind of hot and my mouth was parched so I was like ¨can I get a glass of water? ¨ and he was like yeah come in. Pulled a quick one over him. We taught a short lesson and then hiked back down the mountain. To be honest I didn´t think it would work but it did which was cool.

I finally got my packages which was really cool. Tell Grampa and Grandma, thanks for their letter. When I opened it up and we saw the 5 dollar bill my companion was like:

Is that a $5?

Yeah.

Can I see that?

Yeah.

 So we stared at it for a good 5 minutes just admiring the good old Lincoln.

I have to tell you guys about the ward here. It cracks me up the characters we have. So when I showed up they told me the bishop didn´t have ward counsel but I didn´t think he was inactive. He’s super funny because we will be sitting in church 15 after the hour waiting to start and the bishop will show up. We´ve had a lot of big brass in our ward recently (I´m not sure why) but one time the stake president talked to us about doing an activity. Afterwards the bishop called us over in a huddle like we were going to talk about the activity but he was just like “es todo, I´m done” and walked away. 

There is another lady in the ward who cracks me up too, she is a super nice grandma but whenever we go over to eat with them, I feel like I´m eating with the queen of England. She calls us Eldercitos, little elders and always uses phrases like como no, how could I say no. The best part is when I first showed up she told Elder Guerra(war), bienvenidos al barrio, but he´s been here for 6 months. 

I liked conference a lot. It was really funny when Holland spoke because he dropped a lot of American jokes. Even the poster of the T-rex and kids, nobody got. Me and my companion were really having a good time yet the ward was a little confused. It´s funny because when we sing they don´t translate the songs so if you didn´t bring a hymn book you´re on your own. So we were singing in English which was a little weird because I don´t think anyone else was singing. 

I think I have to wrap up. I hope that you guys have a fun week. Are you back in school last week or this week?

Elder Nelson