My family! Hello! Another week here in Passo Fundo. In three days I’ll have been in the field for a month! The CTM, my pré-mission life, is already becoming more and more like a dream. Weird.
So today I opened up my inbox expecting a bunch of e-mails, but there were none. Usually President Pavan and the Assistants send us mail every week, and there were none from them either. So I’m pretty sure my inbox was full and all of your e-mails were returned. I’m sure that was fairly frustrating for you! I’m sorry about that. I’ve emptied my mail and that shouldn’t happen again.
However, for some reason I’m thinking it’s a good thing I didn’t get anything from you guys this week. I’ll tell ya why. I can’t really start a summary about this week without mentioning... wow, it’s probably been my hardest week out here yet. If I let myself think about it I could have probably reasoned how it’s been the hardest week of my life, but I’m still holding on to enough hope to not let myself drift that far out.
Why was it the hardest week?
I’m really not that sure. You could say it was because a majority of our appointments and investigators have fallen through, leaving us to start from scratch. You could say it was because of the constant rain, wind, and overcast sky. You could bring up our lunch appointment on Friday with Jean and Tina, who showed us vídeos and pictures of their brother, Igor, returning from his mission, smiling from ear to ear and crying and hugging his whole family, and then they got on Google Earth to look at my home from sattelite, 9000 miles away, and then they got on YouTube to look at my Missionary Call vídeo on YouTube, complete with vídeo of my family. And after showing us all this, they sent us back into the rain.
It wasn’t quite any of those things that made it the worst. I’m pretty sure it’s just the natural reaction of a missionary only three weeks into the field. I’m right on the timetable of having the realization that my family is so far away, and will remain that way for a very long time yet. I didn’t really think it could happen to me. But it hás.
I only mention these things because
1. it’s somewhat cathartic
2. mom, I’m pretty sure you told me to tell you the truth about what I’ve been going through. If any homesickness rubs off on you guys, sorry about that. I know the natural reaction to the letter might be to send a bunch of reassurance, and that might be nice, but I actually think it’s good that I’m going through this, and maybe this should be a moment where I break out of the cocoon by myself. Difficulty is just nature’s way of making us stronger. ;)
I’m fairly sure that as soon as I get over this, I’ll finally start to feel like I real missionary. I’m still feeling a bit blue, but I’m loving the idea that I’ll be able to overcome this, and be stronger because of it. Some things happened this week and there’s probably a lot of details I should be telling you, but I feel like I’d be doing them more justice by waiting until next week. I hope that’s okay?
He can sew!
Grandma Imogene: Thank you so much for the letter! I got it! I loved it. It really helped me. It was all raining and blowing as I returned to my house, and I checked the mailbox and something was actually there! Wow! I love you so much Grandma, and I’m very lonesome for you tôo. Thank you for the counsel. You stay healthy and take care of my family okay? They need you.
Dad: Hey! How are you? What stage of work are you on now? Still developing ideas, still programming, testing, marketing, trying to sell? I really loved the idea and I want to know how it’s going. Liking your office? The view? Staying cooped up in the house still? Gotten out to do anything fun? I miss ya man. Just want to let you know that I pretty much talk about you every day. There’s been a couple of families that I know have been really touched by our example of how we were able to come together by coming closer to the word of God. I love you man. Be strong.
Mom: Hello! What have you been doing recently? Do you mow the lawn? If so, I suggest you trying listening to some podcasts while you do so. When I looked at Google Earth the other day I saw mainly our lawn, and that’s what I thought about: you mowing the whole thing. Wish we could do that for you. How’s your calling going? Are the plans for the holidays still to visit family? That will be awesome. We have to organize some party for when I call home for Christmas. Should it be a big thing, or a small thing? I’ll only have an hour so it might be better if there’s no other distractions. Just talking to my fam. I am so very excitied to talk to you guys. I love you so much, Mom. I couldn’t be out here without all that you’ve done for me. We’re out here preaching about how our families can be happier and more united through the gospel, and you have been that example of how much of a difference a good parent can make in the world. For my world, it’s been everything. Oh yeah, and I’m serious mom, we are visiting Passo Fundo. Even if it’s for a train ride and a short stop to see some friends with you guys. You would absolutely fall in love with the countryside, I know it. I always think of you when I see any pretty sunset or view. :)
"Bonita" "Destiny is in the Air"
P.S. Please please send my letters to Brendon and vice versa. There’s absolutely no possible reason I’d want otherwise. I need to hear from my brother! Thanks mom. And P.S.S. baptism photo. P.S.S. and more photos o four family, vídeos, music. Just put it in a .zip file it should be fine. P.S.S.S. pictures from brendon in his mission would be cool tôo.
Lynsey: Hi! My sister! I thought your Halloween costume was hilarious. Thank you again for your letter a couple days back. I went to read it again this week and really enjoyed it. Doing anything new? I know you’re usually busy but I’m so glad that you have been there in the family. You are a very important glue in our family. I know school and life during high school can sometimes feel just like monotony, but I hope you can realize the excitement and adventures and opportunity just waiting in every day for you. Be impulsive, live life, keep an eternal perspective, and love everything that comes no matter what! I love you sis.
Kaitlin: Hey my little Kate! How are you? Doing anything different? Any cool new movies you’ve seen? Doing anything cool with the family? How is school? Any projects or interesting things? Still learning a language? You need to do it every day so that when we get back we can go travel the world together! Again, your Halloween costume was so great! I know you would totally love a lot of the other girls here in our ward in Boquierao! They are all really funny and cute, with cute little Portuguese voices. After I come back we can visit here together and you can meet some of them! Cool huh? I love you a lot Kate! I’m actually here, 9000 miles away! You have a brother! I can’t wait to see you my sweet sis! It will be so fun! I love you! Keep reading your scriptures!
Brendon: Hey man! Wow, I’ve wanted to talk to you so bad for the last couple of days. It was really funny when we looked up your área on Google Earth here. Haha! You’re in a desert! It’s completely different from my área. I’m sorry man. Fortunately, everyone here says that Jauzeiro is the only place there that is that much of a wastleland, and that the rest is actually fairly nice. I think about you a lot and how your coping with everything. It’s been pretty hard for me recently, but it’s been nice to know that I’m not alone in this. I haven’t received any letters from you except for your first week, so remind mom to pass on your letters! I hope you get this letter. On my companion’s iPod he hás the song, “Return to Innocence” and I always think of you when I listen to that song. Especially the words “believe in destiny”. Still believing? It’s been getting somewhat harder recently to keep that vision, but I have hope. One of these days it’ll come back into focus. Probably when I get my first baptism. That’d be cool. This week I did something pretty cool, pretty Biblical, and it reminded me what a mission was. We saw this guy sitting in his house and I decided to talk to him, even though we usually just talk to people walking on the street. He was very excited to see us and asked us if we could give him a blessing for his legs, because he had been in a car accident recently and never went to the doctor and was pretty much trying to heal his broken legs by himself. So we gave him a blessing. Then we gave him a lesson where I was totally feeling the Spirit, and he was talking about how he was depressed and was so glad that we had showed up, and when we left he walked out the door with us and said that his legs were already getting better! Wow! I felt like I had stepped into the scriptures for a couple seconds. It’s funny because all the missionary stories in the scriptures just talk about all of their successes, while all their day-to-day activities and rejections I think were just not gone into detail as much. It’s cool to know that cool stuff like that is possible. I’m very grateful for that experience which was given to me. Anyway buddy, I’m there with ya. Anyway, fique forte! Be the wizard, Brendon. Love ya!
All others: Love you! Talk to you next week. Again, a reminder that excessive reassurance is not necessary. I need to get through this by myself. And I’ll be fine! I’ve got the Lord.
Love love love!
Elder Con
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