Well, here I am typing another e-mail. It is a great day here in Mezapa. It was EXTREMELY hot yesterday and the day before yesterday. I believe that you all will no longer recognize me when I come back because I will be a Catracho dark skinned latino. I am now sitting in an internet place in air conditioning so life is good. It's like a dollar an hour for internet here. Way cheap. I hope that you are all doing good and getting pumped for the wedding and enjoying yourselves in USA.
Anyways, let me start out by saying thanks to all your birthday wishes. Thank you. I figure that a birthday is just simpy another day now. It really doesn't feel any different to me at all. But in 3 days, I shall be wiser and older I suppose.
I am sending you a picture of me with cake on my face. I hope that you enjoy it. Allow me to explain how the frosting got off the cake and onto my face. Well, I was kindly invited to a birthday party of a member and me and Elder Rivas went to it. It all started out all happy and fun, we sang, we laughed, we had a good time. And then they busted out the cake and people started attacking me with handfuls of frosting. Haha. Hondurans really like to do that when they have cake. Throw it on innocent bystanders. Haha. But I was the victim that time. It was fun.
So guess what else happened this week? My sandals and running shoes were stolen. How nice huh? I left them outside and there's a huge gate around our house but someone must've climbed over it and thought, "Oh how nice, someone left me their sandals here. Whats this? They even left me some running shoes! How kind. SOLD! I'll take them. And literally ran away with them." But that's ok, I still have those basketball shoes. Those sandals were really good though because of my deformed feet. They were really wide. I bought some cheap ones but they're really narrow. It's ok, life goes on.
We had our interview with President last week and it went really well. He asked me how is it just living in your house without worrying about having the chapel as well. I told him it's ok and everything is fine and now we can live there a lot more worry-free. I told him that there use to be rats that took the food we left out. He looked at me all funny and I said that the rats had 13 or 14 years old and then president realized I was talking about the youth and just started laughing. He said that he has a lot of trust with me. It made my day. I was pretty happy about that.
I know I always include my breakfasts when I have the interviews but I do that because it was so deluctible and delicious. McDonalds is seriously a tender mercy from the Lord. I had 2 sausage mcMuffins and 3 pancakes. A salivating breakfast.
One of the elders from our zone went home this week. He got an eye infection and it turned really bad. He couldn't even see out of one eye and just had to go home. It's too bad. He had been here for about a year when he left. Pretty sad.
We talked with a guy this last week who works at a butcher shop. He was really cool. We told him which church we represented and found out he doesn't go to any church and invited him to church this Sunday. He said no because he has to work. So I told him that I had a great idea. I told him he just needs to leave the door open to his meat shop and put a sign in there that says, "take what you need and then leave me the money on my desk." Haha, it was awesome. He thought it was pretty funny too. But I just testified to him that sometimes we need to make sacrifices and stretch ourselves to be able to obey the commandments and if we do, we will receive so many blessings and have peace and happiness.
We have a 16 year old investigator right now who wants to get baptized. The thing is, his dad won't let him. He says he is already baptized. We had a lovely chat with his dad this last week. We read a few really clear, loving scriptures about baptism and about how Jesus Christ's church is established and about how we should be baptized and I testified to him. After all that, I asked if he would be able to sign the paper. He looks at me and says, "No, because he is already baptized." Well, that was frustrating, but it's ok. He is still coming to church and is reading so I know it will work out ok.
We also have another investigator. She is good to go. She is golden. She was actually just a contact. But we went to her house last night and we were about to start the lesson and I asked her if she had any questions. She's like, "No, but I would like to learn more about baptism. I would like you to give me a discussion on baptism." I was like, GREAT IDEA! Sure, we can help you with that. We shared a few scriptures, testified, and talked about the blessings of baptism. She ended up saying she'd like to be baptized and I was like, "Well, we sure can help you with that. How about the 8th of May?" She's like, OK sounds good. It was awesome.
Mezapa is definitely a "different area." A LOT different than my other areas. It is definitely very hard, draining, reptitive, and CAN BE discouraging if you let it. No doubt, I'm still working way hard and moving forward and giving it all I have, but man this can be hard and difficult. This mission is definitely the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life. Mission work alone is tough cookies, but doing it in a whole different language is a different story. People say no to us, tell us they don't have time, lie to us, etc. It's frustrating too because I know that the message we can bring into their homes will help them and give them incomprehensible blessings. This is definitely no walk in the park.
But while I was thinking about all of the challenges, difficulties, appointments falling through, investigators not doing commitments, etc, I have found a lot of encouragement and beams of hope just from thinking about the lives of people like Joseph Smith, the early saints, the prophets both in the BOM and Bible, the apostles, and Jesus Christ. They were persecuted, mocked, spit upon, laughed at, ignored, put in jail with very little food away from their families, tarred and feathered, killed, scourged, stoned, crucified. It just got me thinking that if they went through all that for this Gospel, I can and should be happy and keep on keeping on even though there is opposition or dark times.
I read an article in the Liahona that I really liked this last week that I could really relate with. It was about a runner. She said that she would go on runs and exercise and knew that if she could just grit her teeth and "endure" the temporary pain, the victory, the rest, the massage at the end would be worth it. She ended up living by that motto and got married and had a job of her choice and was still running. She felt like she was on top of the world.
She later went on to explain that Autism isn't a disease that you can just "grit your teeth" and get through. It takes a lot of patience. She said that from her life's experience, she has learned that it isn't just about "gritting our teeth and enduring the pain" but about learning to be happy when there is pain and opposition, because it's always there. We can put a smile on.
I still remember Little Jon in XC. He would always be running with a smile on his face. Sure, his body was hurting at times. I'm more than sure of that. But he still had a smile on.
I have learned so many life lessons from running that have shaped me into who I am today. I have learned that consistency and dedication are very important. That you have to be willing to go the extra mile and put in the extra work in order to be your best self. That if you want to be a mediochre runner, it's possible, you just have to take short-cuts and follow the trend. To be your best self, you have to be willing to lead and take risks at times and be bold. That sometimes things are hard, but it seems like we can always reach inside ourselves and pull out a little bit more and stretch our potential even more.
When I ran the marathon, my body had had enough at mile 20. I knew that if I just kept putting one foot in front of the other and took it slowly but surely, I could make it. I had to not focus on my pain, but on the end goal of finishing. We can't be focusing on our pain or difficulties in this life. It's too short. We must have the goal in prespective of Eternal Life and be focused on it.
I can't remember who said it, but he said it best: "Life was meant to be enjoyed, not just endured."
I am going to try and find time to write my converts today. I haven't written them for a while but I am really shocked and feel very blessed to already have 29 baptisms in my mission. I care about them and hope they are still founded firmly in the faith.
Well, I am going to eat, but I will return to finish my e-mail to those who I haven't written to yet.
Love you.
Elder Goodwin
Anyways, let me start out by saying thanks to all your birthday wishes. Thank you. I figure that a birthday is just simpy another day now. It really doesn't feel any different to me at all. But in 3 days, I shall be wiser and older I suppose.
I am sending you a picture of me with cake on my face. I hope that you enjoy it. Allow me to explain how the frosting got off the cake and onto my face. Well, I was kindly invited to a birthday party of a member and me and Elder Rivas went to it. It all started out all happy and fun, we sang, we laughed, we had a good time. And then they busted out the cake and people started attacking me with handfuls of frosting. Haha. Hondurans really like to do that when they have cake. Throw it on innocent bystanders. Haha. But I was the victim that time. It was fun.
So guess what else happened this week? My sandals and running shoes were stolen. How nice huh? I left them outside and there's a huge gate around our house but someone must've climbed over it and thought, "Oh how nice, someone left me their sandals here. Whats this? They even left me some running shoes! How kind. SOLD! I'll take them. And literally ran away with them." But that's ok, I still have those basketball shoes. Those sandals were really good though because of my deformed feet. They were really wide. I bought some cheap ones but they're really narrow. It's ok, life goes on.
We had our interview with President last week and it went really well. He asked me how is it just living in your house without worrying about having the chapel as well. I told him it's ok and everything is fine and now we can live there a lot more worry-free. I told him that there use to be rats that took the food we left out. He looked at me all funny and I said that the rats had 13 or 14 years old and then president realized I was talking about the youth and just started laughing. He said that he has a lot of trust with me. It made my day. I was pretty happy about that.
I know I always include my breakfasts when I have the interviews but I do that because it was so deluctible and delicious. McDonalds is seriously a tender mercy from the Lord. I had 2 sausage mcMuffins and 3 pancakes. A salivating breakfast.
One of the elders from our zone went home this week. He got an eye infection and it turned really bad. He couldn't even see out of one eye and just had to go home. It's too bad. He had been here for about a year when he left. Pretty sad.
We talked with a guy this last week who works at a butcher shop. He was really cool. We told him which church we represented and found out he doesn't go to any church and invited him to church this Sunday. He said no because he has to work. So I told him that I had a great idea. I told him he just needs to leave the door open to his meat shop and put a sign in there that says, "take what you need and then leave me the money on my desk." Haha, it was awesome. He thought it was pretty funny too. But I just testified to him that sometimes we need to make sacrifices and stretch ourselves to be able to obey the commandments and if we do, we will receive so many blessings and have peace and happiness.
We have a 16 year old investigator right now who wants to get baptized. The thing is, his dad won't let him. He says he is already baptized. We had a lovely chat with his dad this last week. We read a few really clear, loving scriptures about baptism and about how Jesus Christ's church is established and about how we should be baptized and I testified to him. After all that, I asked if he would be able to sign the paper. He looks at me and says, "No, because he is already baptized." Well, that was frustrating, but it's ok. He is still coming to church and is reading so I know it will work out ok.
We also have another investigator. She is good to go. She is golden. She was actually just a contact. But we went to her house last night and we were about to start the lesson and I asked her if she had any questions. She's like, "No, but I would like to learn more about baptism. I would like you to give me a discussion on baptism." I was like, GREAT IDEA! Sure, we can help you with that. We shared a few scriptures, testified, and talked about the blessings of baptism. She ended up saying she'd like to be baptized and I was like, "Well, we sure can help you with that. How about the 8th of May?" She's like, OK sounds good. It was awesome.
Mezapa is definitely a "different area." A LOT different than my other areas. It is definitely very hard, draining, reptitive, and CAN BE discouraging if you let it. No doubt, I'm still working way hard and moving forward and giving it all I have, but man this can be hard and difficult. This mission is definitely the most difficult thing I have ever done in my life. Mission work alone is tough cookies, but doing it in a whole different language is a different story. People say no to us, tell us they don't have time, lie to us, etc. It's frustrating too because I know that the message we can bring into their homes will help them and give them incomprehensible blessings. This is definitely no walk in the park.
But while I was thinking about all of the challenges, difficulties, appointments falling through, investigators not doing commitments, etc, I have found a lot of encouragement and beams of hope just from thinking about the lives of people like Joseph Smith, the early saints, the prophets both in the BOM and Bible, the apostles, and Jesus Christ. They were persecuted, mocked, spit upon, laughed at, ignored, put in jail with very little food away from their families, tarred and feathered, killed, scourged, stoned, crucified. It just got me thinking that if they went through all that for this Gospel, I can and should be happy and keep on keeping on even though there is opposition or dark times.
I read an article in the Liahona that I really liked this last week that I could really relate with. It was about a runner. She said that she would go on runs and exercise and knew that if she could just grit her teeth and "endure" the temporary pain, the victory, the rest, the massage at the end would be worth it. She ended up living by that motto and got married and had a job of her choice and was still running. She felt like she was on top of the world.
She later went on to explain that Autism isn't a disease that you can just "grit your teeth" and get through. It takes a lot of patience. She said that from her life's experience, she has learned that it isn't just about "gritting our teeth and enduring the pain" but about learning to be happy when there is pain and opposition, because it's always there. We can put a smile on.
I still remember Little Jon in XC. He would always be running with a smile on his face. Sure, his body was hurting at times. I'm more than sure of that. But he still had a smile on.
I have learned so many life lessons from running that have shaped me into who I am today. I have learned that consistency and dedication are very important. That you have to be willing to go the extra mile and put in the extra work in order to be your best self. That if you want to be a mediochre runner, it's possible, you just have to take short-cuts and follow the trend. To be your best self, you have to be willing to lead and take risks at times and be bold. That sometimes things are hard, but it seems like we can always reach inside ourselves and pull out a little bit more and stretch our potential even more.
When I ran the marathon, my body had had enough at mile 20. I knew that if I just kept putting one foot in front of the other and took it slowly but surely, I could make it. I had to not focus on my pain, but on the end goal of finishing. We can't be focusing on our pain or difficulties in this life. It's too short. We must have the goal in prespective of Eternal Life and be focused on it.
I can't remember who said it, but he said it best: "Life was meant to be enjoyed, not just endured."
I am going to try and find time to write my converts today. I haven't written them for a while but I am really shocked and feel very blessed to already have 29 baptisms in my mission. I care about them and hope they are still founded firmly in the faith.
Well, I am going to eat, but I will return to finish my e-mail to those who I haven't written to yet.
Love you.
Elder Goodwin
Thanks for the news! Happy Birthday Elder Goodwin...we sure miss your sweet spirit:) Love-The Roy Family
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