August 29, 2011

My new area, Santa Monica

Family,

You know I was just thinking. How weird is it that I have been gone for more than a year and half, just talking to you  by email.. what the heck! hahaha  It's just weird  thinking about it.  So ya! Here I am in Santa Monica alive and well... I got my kid last tuesday and he is awesome!  (Sadly this computer doesn't want to load my pics so I don't have pics today!  Sorry!) We are really excited and love how we this get this great oportunity to learn how to work and I am sure learning a lot! Yes, it is quite different but the good thing is that when you get a new missionary, he is ALWAYS excited to work even when everyone rejects us and we are contacting alll day!   Elder Pacheco is my new companion and he is a great kid.  He is from Merida, Yucatan. (where Cancun is basically) He really is a great guy and I am super happy to be with him. I was excited to get a Mexican comp again because I need to be improving my Spanish and he is really a funny kid and we get along great.  I realize how much I need to humble myself.   I thought I was doing better and becoming more humble (of course we can always be more humble!) but I thought I was doing good, but then I realized how much I need to listen and learn from my companion.  Really, I know I am teaching him how to work but I think he is teaching me more than anything.  I love it!

Man this area really is tougher!! But I love it still! I know we will have success. Sadly, we weren't able to bring anyone to church this week so we also are not going to be able to baptize.  I love it still!! We need to work better with the bishop and ward mission leader.  This area reminds me of California.  With tempatures that are not too hot and just seeing nice houses and cars, plus it has a huge mall here...it's just weird.  haha  We are working in more "humbled" areas so they will at least open their door to us.  I really am excited, dont get me wrong! I have COMPLETE confidence that the Lord will bless us and help us so we can have success.  I really love this work!  It's Great!

The zone here is really beautiful. It's called Lomas Verdes,  which means Grean Hills!  And it's really green after all of this rain! Everything is green and hilly! It's a really nice place.  I just love all of it!  there is even a mall on top of a hill that lets you see everything all around, so i think we will go there next Monday.

Mom mentioned that peaches are in season.....boy do I miss those haha. Mexico does have peaches but they are SOOOOO SMALL!  I don't even bother eating them sometimes because they're just not the same haha.  But mexico has a lot of fruit that isn't there in Utah! So that's cool!

That's basically it.  Hopefully we will be able find some people to teach, but  whatever....we will continue to work hard. Oh ya. Just so you know I will be here this change and the next  change with my new comp because I am training him.  That means if I train again, I will go to one more area and that will be it! WOW!  Wierd...I  cant believe it! I love you all and apreciate all the letters and prayers! THANKS!

Love,

Elder $ean Larson

Elder Pacheo (my kid), me, Elder Taylor and Elder Hawker

August 22, 2011

Street sign in Santa Cecilia..."Lake Poo"  What?!

FAM!

Well, like I said we had transfers, and yup I got changed! As I said last week, the President wanted to get us back to training so now I am in a new area, I will get a new "kid" to train and I am back to being a district leader again. I am super excited! I know I am not the best missionary l and I still don't speak Spanish perfectly, but I am going to love this experience. I am in a new zone called Lomas Verdes, in a new area called Santa Monica. Basically my area is a really rich place, which means it will be a lot harder work. ( They even have a really sweet mall in my area haha) I am getting my "kid" tomorrow so I don't know if he will be a Mexican or an American. 7 Americans are coming in and 1 Mexican so I will probably get a "gringo." I am super excited. I left Wagstaff in Tacuba and he is now the zone leader! WE ARE BOTH GOING TO WORK HARD! I will work my kid out!

We thought we were going to baptize last sunday but we didn't. We had 3 people lined up but they all fell through.... sad face. I am hoping that next week Wagstaff will get them in the water;o) Right now it looks like there are no possibilities in my new area...but I'll sure be working to find the chosen ones. Plus I need to learn this area because I am opening it up with a new comp so that will be interesting. I am really excited.

I am also excited for the new bishopric in the Heights ward. Man, all of those guys are super cool! They really do choose great and inspired men...just like dad! :D I know this new bishopric will help the ward so much.

It was hard to leave Tacuba because it is such a great area and we had so much success there, but I know I will love this area too. A lot of elders here say that this area is hard because it's a richer area so it might be harder to teach, but that doesn't matter. I know the Lord blesses us when we are obedient working diligently and hard! I will do that with my kid! It will be fun. it wasn't quite as hard to say goodbye to Tacuba because I wasn't there very long and so didn't get quite as attached, but I loved it there, it was super cool. I also love changes and learning from every comp. I loved working with Wagstaff and I will miss him. He taught me SOOO MUCH! I just love to work and have fun while doing it. Plus I am now in the same zone as Bylund and he is the zone leader! (You know...my comp from the MTC and from Santa Cecilia) Cool huh?!

Thanks for everything! I love you guys soooooooooo much! Thanks for the Brad updates too. Of course, I continue to pray for him! He is such a great example to me (and everyone)! I LOVE YOU ALL! I will get you all updated next week! thanks!

Love

Elder $ean Larson

My new Hymn book cover...I got them for my scriptures too!

Maria Luisa's baptism

Alejandra and her new Book of  Mormon

Fancy bank in Mexico City

August 15, 2011

Top of the Latino Americano Tower

Larson Family,

Wow. I can't believe a week just went by like that in a week. So this week was cool! We had another baptism. We baptized the grandma of Joseph (who was baptized about 3 weeks ago). Sadly, he is not as excited to go to church anymore, so hopefully his grandma can help him and get him going again. We will pass by his house this week too. We are super happy for this family and for all their faith. We still have a chance to baptize other members in the family, so we will continue to work with them, but I am soooo grateful for all the success the Lord brings us. He is always there to help us. We just have to give it our all!!

The Mission President here is really happy for us. Mainly for our generation of missionaries or in other words, the missionaries who have been out the same time as me. He loves us and almost all of us are zone leaders now that have around 6 months left. I think he will start putting people back to training because his goal is to have a "baby Elder Larson" and "baby Elder Wagstaff" ! haha He wants us to leave a great legacy and train some good missionaries. So I am thinking soon we will be seeing some other changes coming up, but who knows. All I know is that I will finish the mission training which is really exciting.!! (When he interviewed me he said "I want you to leave your legacy here and a year after your mission... when you are MARRIED and have a KID...and this could be prophecy, I want you to hear about your legacy here in your mission." hahah I loved how he said it could be prophecy. It was just funny and I wanted to tell you all that.) Don't panic mom! haha!

So we went to the Mexico City center again (Zocalo) It was super cool and this time we got to go up the tall Latino Americano Tower and see alll of Mexico City from above. It was really cool to see our mission and really see how big this mission and city is. SO MANY PEOPLE! It's really awesome. We got to see some cool things! Also, I went to a mass at the Catholic church because we were visiting the Cathedral there and the mass started. So we watched for a while, but we left because we felt a little uncomfortable. But that was cool, fun experience. If we go as a family there, we will have to visit there.

Ok, funny story. Jesus, Dolores and Karla are such amazing people! They went to church again on their own and have accepted a baptismal date. The thing is, Jesus is sooooo set on getting baptized on September 21st because it's the change of seasons. I don't know why and we tried explaining to him that he could do it sooner but.... he is really set on that date. So he and his family will get baptized that day. It's good though! We just wish we could do it sooner so we could be here. We are really happy for them because they love the gospel and love the church....oh ya! The funny part.... So we got to know Karlas daughter, Pricila. She came home one night when we were teaching them and well...she was a little underdressed. Anyway...she is really nice!! And after the lesson they invited us to eat with them and my comp asked Pricila where she works... and she said....(with a Mexican accent..) "Hooters!" haha! I tried so hard not to laugh and I didn't! It was just funny cuz we're missionaries!  Later, when we left to go home, they gave us food to take and she gave us our food in a Hooters bag! haha Man! It was so funny! We were just laughing at 2 missionaries coming home with a Hooters bag! (Not a good look for a missionary!) But it was funny... and yes we discarded the bag and repented! haha.

Leftover food sent with the missionaries...inappropriate bag! ha ha!

I am sooo happy for you guys! I really hadn't heard much about Bre complications with Charles. But I am sooo glad everything is alright! I know how strong the power of prayer and fasting are!! I am sooooo excieted for Bre, Bry and everyone! Please keep me up to date! Thanks for everything! I love you all sooooo much! Talk to you soon!

Love,

                    Elder $. Larson

Bellas Artes in Mexico City

Latino Americano Tower

Sean with the Mexican police