Plantains Ahead

Hello Family,

And still the move goes on.  I hope you are all hanging in there.  At least no one has had heat stroke this time.

Today a sister in the ward showed us how to make some Ecuadorian recipes.  We learned how to make colada, a drink with oatmeal, carrots, tomato, and Maracuyá. Delicious. We also learned how to make  menestra de lentejas. That’s something we eat almost every day and is a personal favorite of Elder Brooks.  She asked us what we wanted to learn, so I asked for these because I thought we could get the ingredients state side.  (I hope you are ready to eat a lot of plantains in the coming months)

Diego's Family.  We were surprised to see his inactive
father and mother, Angelica, at the baptism.

Here is a picture of Diego’s baptism.  He has been ready for a while, but we have waited because the zone leaders were worried about people supporting him because his entire family is inactive.  Here in the photo, they all came to support him at his baptism.  He has been going to seminary all by himself for almost two months now.

Diego was baptized by his cousin, Stalin Velastegui

We did pretty well this last week.  We got the family with the inactive dad to church and I think it was a really good experience.  His wife didn’t make it, but he brought one of his kids.  Gary and his son also made it (by himself) to church.  He is a cousin of some members and recently had an industrial accident.  Some ward members knew him from an out-of-church setting and were really happy to see him attending.  It was just proof that all the members are just loaded with references that they don’t want to give us.  Just kidding.  The missionaries need to find better ways of asking.

Love, Elder Ludlam

Divine Help

Happy Moving Day!

I hope these moving people don’t try and back the moving truck into the front of the house.  Or roll it into a ditch.  I hope you get some good sleep after all your journeys.

I like having p-day at four-day intervals.  I think I’ll have to write and tell the president we should change.  The other day he was asking if we’d like working a whole transfer without p days and then having a week of p days.  We used to have lunch every Monday, but it took up too much time, so we canceled and just ate in the house.  We weren’t sure how to make rice, so we asked a neighbor for help.  She got a kick out of it.

This past week we found an inactive guy.  He’s been a member most of his life until he started living with a nonmember.  She got him going to her church, so he hasn’t come for a while.  He was pretty happy to see us.  We taught her the restoration and it went pretty well.  Hopefully, our lesson today goes well.  We are still trying to find some good people.  We’ve been trying to improve the quality of our contacts by talking to the people awhile first before starting to teach doctrine because then we can know them better and say stuff that will be more meaningful for them.  So far it has felt like it has been working.  We had a couple good conversations at least. 

President has talked a lot recently about just enjoying yourself.  It is a privilege to be able to go out everyday and just look for good persons.  I have been trying to do that.  There have been times in the mission when I just enjoyed contacting and then other times it just feels like a chore.  I like listening to people.  It is true that really everyone has problems that they don’t know how to deal with and they need the perspective and hope that only the eternal gospel can give.  If I’ve learned anything on the mission, it is how to be a little more spiritually self-sufficient.  I hardly have all the answers, but at least I know where to look for them.

I have been trying to figure out why Elder Velasquez and I were able to have so much success together.  I have realized that there is no way I could ever have converted any of these people if I didn’t have divine help.  I guess this is really His Work and His Glory.  Sometimes we need to just take ourselves out of the picture.  So I guess now if I want to finish having helped some more people, the only way to do it is doing it His way.

Well, I was hoping to get some good pictures of the reunion and the move, but I can wait until next week.  Does this mean you’re not going to send any more DearElders?  I’d be careful sending any more letters because I’m not sure how long it’ll take to get here.  I don’t think the mission will forward mail.  Do we have a new phone number?  I need to tell Elder Johnson about my new address.

Love, the boy with lots of boxes of junk you just shipped across the continental U.S.

President gave us a new rule we can't post any pictures without permission on a blog.

Temple Trip!

Dear Family,

At the temple with Elder Brooks

When you’re on the road, will you get to check your mail?  How are all them Burnetts?  I am writing Thursday because we just had a special session in the temple today-- they changed preparation day.  It’s been since October or November since I last went.  We had a capacitacion with Presidente (training with the President) and we talked about teaching people, not lessons.  We practiced asking inspired questions to find people’s problems and then tailoring the lessons to fit their needs.

How is everybody all feeling?  I am guessing you are all pretty tired out.  I suppose you’ll get this when you get to NJ.  It will be two p days stacked up.

Disappearing Ink

Well, this past week, the Zone Leaders came and did a special study session with us about asking good questions and finding desafios (challenges) and not just jumping into a lesson, being more patient and relying more on the spirit to tell you what to do.  It got me really excited.  I guess that has just always been something I’ve wanted to learn to do real well so I want to make these last few weeks really count.  I feel like there is so much I want to learn.  It is 100% true what they say about the last part of your mission going by at light speed.  I remember going to bed one night thinking I had a little over a year and the waking up to find I only had six months left.  If you asked me, I couldn’t even tell you what I did in June.

I have been practicing being more assertive with my companion.  The only problem is that our entire program has tanked.  I don’t want to fizzle out at the end.  If I am going to end with any last baptisms, we need to find someone this week.  We have been trying hard to find someone.  Sometimes I feel like I’m that person who doesn’t know how to swim so when they fall in the water they start kicking and flailing and waste all their energy and then start thinking, "swimming is really hard."  Then they get a cramp. 

Hidden Message

I think another Elder may be sending you some photos.  I gave him Mom's email.  I´m not sure what he's going to send.  If you could forward them when you get them.

Now to answer my fan mail:

Hope you like these pictures of Fletcher's secret message.  I mailed him a letter once with "I heart Ecuador" written in invisible yogurt ink.  This is his response.

Love, Elder Grant

Seven weeks to goal

Elder Ludlam and Elder Brooks

Dear Family,

Way to go Lia.  You got the speech.

Well, I guess this is the last Bellevue letter.  I am still waiting for my dear elders to come in so I don’t know anything about your exodus preparations.  How are you going to write during the reunion?  Is Dad going to be able to go?

Well, Elder Brooks and I are still fighting to put a program together, but we haven’t gotten anything yet.  We’ve got a bunch of references, so hopefully there will be somebody good in there. 

I have 7 weeks left.  I gave myself the goal of ending with 40 baptisms but I still have 8 to go.  I think I’m going to have to pick things up.  Did they talk to you on your mission a lot about ending with no regrets?  That is what I am thinking about, a lot.  For my birthday, I found a book of piano sheet music so we went to the chapel on p-day and played for a while.  I am not sure it was such a good idea because I kept thinking about all the songs afterwards.  I had to go through piano withdrawals.

Well, I hope everything goes well with the move.  I imagine you're all going through a lot.  Hope to hear from you all soon.

 

Love,
Nanly

Maybe it's about time...

Legal Drinking Age: An important moment in every young man´s life (Grant's wrote this as his title for the week)

Dear Family,

How are you all doing?  When is your talk, Mom?  I’m sorry I haven’t sent anything.  My favorite obedience line is from la manual misional (the Missionary Manual) p. 4. “Si hace esto, el Señor le bendecirá y usted se convertirá en un mensajero de la verdad...Al obedecer con un corazón bien dispuesto, le demostrará al Señor su amor por Él, se ganará la confianza de los que son miembros y los que no lo son y tendrá derecho a la compañía del Espíritu Santo.”  (If you do this, the Lord will bless you and you will become a messenger of truth.  Obeying with a willing heart, you will demonstrate your love for the Lord, you will gain the confidence of those who are members and those who aren’t, and you will have a right to the companionship of the Holy Ghost). The last one is my favorite.  I hope you like it.  It’s pretty missionary oriented, but it’s still good anyway.

View from our apartment

Things have been going well with Elder Brooks. We had a first good week.  Our ateo (atheist) came to church again and had another really good experience. After church was over, the whole Elder’s Quorum stayed behind for like 45 minutes to keep answering his questions about doctrine, how they gained a testimony, and how the gospel has changed their lives.  It was a good experience for him.  His mom said that he was really impressed the first time, too, even if he didn’t want to let it on.  A pesar de todo ésto, he still has his doubts.  The other day he said, "Me cuesta creer en un zombi-judío con quien puedo comunicarme telepaticamente para expiar los pecados de una mujer-costilla que comió de un árbol mágico.  (It’s a little hard for me to believe in a zombie-Jew with whom I can communicate telepathically who can atone for the sins of a woman-rib? that ate from a magic tree).  I thought it was cute-- in a sacrilegious kind of way.

We’ve been working hard on practicing Spanish with Elder Brooks.  I think Elder Velasquez and I have been talking too much in English.  Hopefully things will get back under control.

My favorite bread store on the corner

We found a good family the other day contacting. When we knocked on the door, we talked with the guy for a few minutes through the window. After, he decided to let us in, we invited them to church.  He looked at his wife and said, "Maybe it’s about time."  (I choose to translate that like all those Mormon ads)  Anyways, after finishing lesson one, his wife went to get us some drinks and he leaned closer to us and said, "Look, hermanos, I don’t know why you’re in my house. I am the kind of guy to just tell you to go away because I’m busy.  For some reason, when you asked to come in, I just decided to let you in."  His wife already has a testimony of the Book of Mormon.  She had listened to the missionaries a while ago, but never had really read the Book of Mormon, but knows she is interested and wants to keep listening.  They both want to turn their lives around, but they’ve got a couple desafíos (challenges).  We’ll keep working with them.

We are hoping to go to the Malecón next to our house to take some pictures.  Maybe I can send some later.

Love, Mr. Bubbly

Happy Birthday...a week early!

Grant got his birthday package!  This means he got his new camera! The shades didn't break!

Elder Ludlam's district in Solana, Guayaquil

Grant and Elder Silva (on his way to Chile)

Elder Ludlam, Elder Garcia, Elder Velasquez (Grant's last companion), Elder Silva

 Grant's new companion, Elder Brooks, Mesa AZ

Dear Family,

Well, it looks like I may be ending my days here in Solana.  Maybe they’ll transfer me for my last three weeks.  Elder Velasquez got moved to the ward right next to Solana with an Argentine companion.  He’s been wanting a Latino companion badly.  Elder Silva left for Chile.  My new companion’s name is Elder Brooks from Mesa,  AZ.  He has about 7 months in the mission.  He has a brother that just got back from his mission in Rascaguas, Chile, también.  I got the birthday stuff and have tried to take as many pictures as possible.  I hope you’re impressed.

I talked with Elder Johnson and he confirmed that my homecoming date is Aug 7.  I think almost everyone from my group is going home early to study so they just sent me home with them.  So much for trying to extend.  I guess I am coming home early anyway.

I am going to miss Elder Velasquez.  I think he was losing patience with me, but it was nice to have someone who was always willing to work.  We found a young man named Miguel Angel.  He is really interested in the church, but has read some a lot of atheist stuff, so he’s all confused.  He has been researching a lot of different religions and beliefs to try and find answers.  He had already started reading the beginning of the Book of Mormon online before we found him.  We gave him a real copy and he’s already in 2 Nephi 2.  He’s been having doubts with Adam and Eve.  He had a great time at church.  He seemed affected by the brotherhood exhibited by the young men.  Hopefully he will keep coming. 

The problem is that he has wanted to come closer to Christ for a few months now, and has many positive spiritual experiences.  He has told us he continues to feel these things when he reads the Book of Mormon, but has convinced himself these feelings are psychologically induced and does not want to accept them.  We have been stressing the fact that if we know the Book of Mormon is true, then we can know that Christ really was the Son of God and that he was able to complete a perfect atonement for all mankind.  He has lots of questions, but we’ve told him that we can continue answering his questions and concerns, but without a growing testimony of the Book of Mormon, we will never get anywhere because we have nothing to build on.  There will always be doubt.  We’ll see if he can pick it up this week.

Wilson story (for a gift our family was making at home):  One time in one of my lessons with Anna, I could not keep a steady rhythm so she took out the metronome, but it did not make any difference in my playing . She then took out two drum sticks and began cracking them together a few inches from my ear to help me keep the beat.  When this did not result in any change in my performance, she began hitting them together harder and harder.  I opined that if she kept doing so, something was going to get broken.  She said that we were going to continue doing this until I could stay on beat.  A few moments later, one of the sticks snapped clean in half.  It was one of the greatest "I told you so" moments of my life.

Hope you like it.  There was another time when my brakes stopped working on my bike on a scout trip and I crashed into Isaac.

Well, much love,
Sha-Nanner-gins

Deep Toy Story Wisdom ☺

Dear Family,

No one has said anything about changing my homecoming date to me.  What did the email say?  Thanks for all the parts of talks that you sent me.  They helped.

This past week we’ve been using a list of inactive members that our bishop gave us to find part member families to teach.  So far it has been working pretty well.  Hopefully we can get some of them to church in the next few weeks.   

I’ve been thinking about Toy Story recently.  I guess if the scriptures ever stop being a source of revelation, I still have Pixar.  Buzz and Woody both have problems with pride and self worth.  Woody has small person pride because he wants to tear Buzz down.  He had everything how he wanted it as the ruler of his own little world until Buzz comes along.  Buzz has big person pride.  His self worth is connected to his ability to do impossibly difficult things.  As they both come to the realization they are actually inconsequential in the world, it literally puts Woody in a cage and it straps Buzz to a bomb (which I guess both could hold symbolic meaning).  The only way they can find a way out is when they actually start communicating and they help to free each other.  

What would you give me on the AP Lit exam for that, Lia?  That’s my little analysis.  Every once in a while I think to myself, "You are a toy.  You are a child’s plaything."

Well, we have changes this next week.  I think I will miss Elder Velasquez.  I won’t say I’m not really tired of the ward, but at least I had a good companion. 

I love you all.  I am excited that I will be able to see Lia.  I was looking at all the sister pictures you sent me for Christmas and thought to myself, "Skype is just not going to cut it."  What day do you head off to school, Lia? When did you say the moving date is?  It’s coming up isn’t it?

Love Nanners