June 10 , 2013

Gwada!

Elder Santos

Les Palétuviers

Apt 17 Bat A

Moudong Sud

97112 Baie-Mahault

Guadeloupe

Good, well now that's out of the way. For those who have been wondering, anything that shows up for me in Martinique from now on will probably just be held onto until the next Zone Conference. Hopefully they'll remember to bring it.

But anyway! Yes, I am in Guadeloupe! I don't have my camera with me, but now that I know how p-day works here I should have it next time. In general, it's very similar to Martinique, except for the fact that there are less buildings where I am now than there were in Fort-de-France. Just to remind you, I am in Abymes, working with Elder Sosa.

MAIN CHARACHTERS:

Elder Sosa: I think I've already said that he is from Canada-I learned this week that he is also from a family from Honduras. He is the youngest of four children(but the third only beat him by 5 minutes), 22 years old, and has exactly one year more of mission time than me. He is a quiet person, but still enjoys cracking jokes and having fun. So far I've been loving working with him.

Elder Pratt: He came into the field one transfer after me-I actually just recently learned that he knew Elder Millett in the MTC! He was looking through my photos, stopped on a picture of him and I, and was like "hey, the Tahitian Missionary! He was great!" Crazy stuff. He's from Oklahoma (big Thunder fan), a hard worker who's doing his best and is making lots of progress in French. He is in the same branch as me, but one area over.

Elder Heiata: is his companion, who just started his last transfer. He is from Tahiti, and, true to form, loves laughing, people, and food.

The good news is that I've been speaking exclusively in French with Elder Sosa, which I haven't really gotten to do before now. The bad news is that our area is on bikes.

THE BIG THINGS: I'm still alive.

Because really, I wasn't sure about that the entire time. For those of you who don't know, I learned to ride a bike when I was about 9 (by my memory). Then, shortly thereafter my bike broke. So we put it in the shed, where old outdoor toys go to die. Since then, I haven't put foot on a bike. Until Wednesday, when we rode between rendez-vous on the side of a highway, a few feet away from cars going car speeds. So. Yeah. I've been praying a LOT, because this has, without a doubt, been the most mentally, physically, and emotionally exhausting experience of my mission. Prayers are, as always, what is keeping me alive. Thanks for that!

SPIRITUAL THOUGHT (kinda):

One great thing about this area is that we meet in the only church-owned building in Guadeloupe and Martinique combined. I know that the people in the building are the most important part, but believe me when I say that being in a place where the church is really established is more of a blessing than I ever could have appreciated at home. For those of you at home reading this, I say that the building you meet in, the stake to which you belong, the church auxilaries available to you, and all those other things around you really are greater blessings than you can imagine. God loves you so much! I hope one day to be able to see these faithful members here enjoying those very same blessings.

So did I mention that we're in a paid computer place now? I'm under 60 seconds left. I love you all though! Until next time, my prayers stay with you!

-Elder Santos