January 16, 2017

Sounds like some good advice from President Hiatt :)  ((Our stake president here in Mesa invited us all to read the Book of Mormon for 20 minutes each day.)  It really does change the way you see things in the world. I love the studies. Even though we couldn't do them today... We had to come to Mendoza at 7:30 to do 4-5 hours of tramites to take out a packet of like 8.8 lbs.... 4 different places to pay and do different paperwork... I was dying.... I hate sitting... and now we have an hour and a half bus ride back to Tupungato. 

I am staying another traslado!! It's possible that the next traslado I go and train a new missionary but we'll see what happens :) I am just happy because we have lots of work and baptism planned for February and now I will be here to see them!!! Lots of work :) We have been full with our agendas. No time to spare. But it's way better that way because it means that I don't have to knock as many doors. I just walk on in the other doors :) I am going to be a witness to a wedding jajaja. fun stuff :) 

I completed 18 months in the mission yesterday... I don't feel like I have that time... I feel like I am a new missionary.. But what are ya going to do... time keeps passing and sometimes I don't know where it runs off too... I don't know what to talk about. 

This last week we found a new investigator for service that we did. Good old shovel and wheelbarrow :) Some of my best friends :) We moved a lot of dirt. I almost passed by but then we decided to stop and help. Ee didn't want help, but I grabbed the shovel anyway and started filling the wheelbarrow. He ended up leaving me be and letting me do my specialty with my best friends :) jajaja. He ended up giving us a gift... a bottle of wine...... we told him that we don't drink it and that it was okay. He didn't need to give us anything but they were going to get offended so we took it with us. So now we have a full bottle of wine in the pench... I think I am going to bring it home as a souvenir now jajaja. But it's been fun. Now we are teaching them and they have lots of questions and dudas(doubts) of the plan of Salvation so we are helping them out with that. It's been great. I think Sandra added me on facebook. You can add her. But it's been a fun week. Lots of work and lots of heat jajaja. 

Hope everyone is having a great week!! I am glad to hear from mom and her experience that she had in the missionary work. I would love to hear from the others too in how they are going with their missionary work!!! Keep safe!!!

Con amor,

Elder Hakes

January 9, 2017

WHAT???  Jennie and Joe are cold in Wyoming???  Hey!! that sounds terrible -62 degrees.... how do you even work with that... jaja. 

It's been pretty hot here. But that's okay. It's strong the sun but we are working hard anyways :) 

I was thinking it would be awesome to do a family trip to the church history sites :) Maybe family reunión?? ;) 

It's been a good week here!! Well, tough but good. We had tons of lessons planned but almost all of them fell through this week so lots of knocking doors... but we had 2 people show up to church out of nowhere. They were there in the entry and we went to go and talk to them to see if they were the Sister missionaries investigators. Nope. They live in our area and wanted to go to church. So we brought them in treating them like new investigators. They went to all the classes and then asked if they could have a meeting with the Bishop.. I was like, how does he know there is a bishop here...? So they had a meeting with the Branch President and we got their direction to pass by another day for their house. Turns out one of them is inactive member jajaja. The other is an  investigator!! Jaja. They told us that they had gone to La Favorita. They told me where they lived and I remembered exactly where they were talking about. It was very interesting :) God sends us blessing after we show our willingness to follow him. I understood that a little better yesterday :)  Way cool experience. We also had entrevistas with the president last week. That went well. 

And now time for a hard week of work before traslados!! Not sure what will happen with me... I guess we'll see this week. 

Hope all is going well with you guys. 

I haven't heard of any missionary experiences these past 2 weeks..... Maybe I'll have to start something of I don't respond if you guys don't send me an experience you had every week :) 

Con amor,

Elder Hakes

January 2, 2017

Hows everything going?? Good I hope!! It was awesome to be there and talk to the family. It was way weird. It was the first time that I did skype and I felt like I was at home with all of you guys. Jace is so big.... Macey too.... it is so crazy.... I can't believe that they grow so much... in so little time!!

Well this last week has been super crazy. We were in mendoza for leadership council Monday until Tuesday in the afternoon. We worked all Wednesday. Thursday we had weekly planning an then we had to go to Tunuyan. My comp also was super sick that day. We went to lunch. he ate 3 little potatoes like way way little. and a fork of noodles and a cup of juice. We left and at one block he had thrown up 3 times...We then got to the pench and he slept until we went to Tunuyan to do a baptismal interview. Friday in the morning Zone meeting. Then that afternoon the baptism. Saturday we only worked until 6 in the afternoon for safety reasons. (everyone drinks A TON) Flia. Leguiza gave us a pollo to cook and 2 dozen empanadas to eat... jajjaa. Way good food!! Never cooked a pollo but it turned out good!! We did it in the oven. :) We went to bed before New Years. It wasnt something way important for us.. And Sunday was normal work jajaj. so that was the whole semana basically. :)

The week before we did white elephant exchange. Finished the radio. and off to work this week!! Interviews and exchanges with the assistants this week!! Should be fun!! 

Hope everyone is going good!! Love you guys a ton. 

Also, I would love to hear what missionary work you have done this week?? :) See ya next week!!

Con amor,

Elder Hakes