(Week 1 in Uruguay)
This week has been crazy! I finally got to Uruguay and it's amazing here! It's way different from home! My trainer is Elder Ward from Utah and he's only been here three months! So both of us are having a good time learning Spanish together, but he's way better than me too! He's really cool and is helping me learn a lot!
The people here are great and they feed us real well! But I have no idea what anyone is saying 90% of the time haha! They talk really fast and way out of my vocabulary range, but it's good, I get a little better at understanding them everyday! For the most part, I can make out a few words and then it sounds like they're gargling or something.
I had to get up and introduce myself in our ward yesterday in Sacrament Meeting... I think it was understandable, but I don't know for sure... There's been times that I've had to teach people solo when my companion has had to make a phone call and it was terrifying, I'm not gonna lie, but I can testify of the gift of tongues now. There's been times I've had no idea what is going on or what to say and then I start speaking and suddenly I understand what I need to say!
We visited one lady who said she wasn't interested in the church, but she had a question about resurrection. So we taught her the basics of the Plan of Salvation. During the lesson we found out she has a daughter who passed away. It was great to be able to explain to someone that we can be with our families forever! That when we die we are just separated for a little while, but that through the Gospel of Jesus Christ we can see each other again and live forever with God as a family! I'm so glad for the opportunity I have to share this message with all the people of Uruguay!
It'll be a while before I get good at Spanish; but until then, I'm happy to be here, bear my testimony and to share the greatest blessing in my life with other people!
We get fed lunch by the members almost everyday, and for the most part I've really liked the food...but I haven't had anything weird yet so we'll see. We never eat dinner and hardly anything for breakfast, but that's ok I'm getting used to it and I just really love it here in Uruguay!
We visited Montevideo today because my companion had some legal stuff to do, so I got to tour Montevideo with other missionaries. It was really cool cause I'm in a place called Las Piedras and we are outside the city so we just walk around little neighborhoods... people are kinda poor here... none of the homes are well built and are always just as cold inside as outside and they never have doors so we have to clap instead of knock, but at least they haven't slammed doors in my face! HAha! Love y'all
Happy Halloween!
- Elder Cole
(Week 2)
This week was good! I got to try Uruguayan BBQ for the first time and ate kidney! It actually wasn't bad haha!
I ran into Elder Jones from Moses Lake, he's in the area next to ours and is in our zone.
It's starting to get real hot here and humid... I'm not used to the humidity and so its kinda rough! We just sweat a ton even though its only like 80 degrees here!
This week we had our first investigator shut us out. We taught this elderly lady a little about the church and when we came back for our next visit, she just cracked the door and said she didn't want to talk to us anymore and slammed it... I was kinda taken back... we knocked again and asked why and she just said that she didn't want to talk to us and that was it. It was kinda hard to take cause I'm learning to love the people here and all of the sudden she just shuts us out. I understand that not everyone will want to hear our message and I can accept that, but it just kinda takes the wind out of your sails cause you can't help but wonder what you could have done better. A while later, me and my companion talked about it as we walked to our next appointment and we were both kinda confused about it. Then a motorcycle passed us and killed its engine right in front of us in the middle of the street. When we walked passed the man called us over and asked if we had a bible we could give him. My companion explained we didn't, but as he spoke I started to gesture towards the Book of Mormon in my hand and offer it to him. Before I even spoke he stopped me and said he knew what it was and that he was a member of the church, but that he was inactive cause he had just moved here a few years ago. He said he would love to meet with us sometime and we gave him the Book of Mormon! I couldn't believe it! Just when me and my companion had needed a pick me up, this completely inactive member came and found us! I have no doubt that it was the Lord just reconfirming to us that He is with us and that he will help me everyday! It was a great experience! We also had 2 baptisms this week and it was cool to take part in my first baptisms as a missionary!
Love y'all! I'll pray for ya! Enjoy the cold weather at home!
Love,
- Elder Cole
(Week Three - CURRENT EMAIL)
This week was interesting... First off EVERYONE here likes to talk about Donald Trump! Haha! They can´t believe he won and they are all kinda scared!
Also Uruguay beat Ecuador this week in international futból! We didn't watch it but we heard all about it. Also no one wants to talk to missionaries when Uruguay plays, so we don´t have much to do haha!
We´ve been doing a lot of looking for more people to teach cause after the two baptisms, we don't have anyone who is really progressing. So this week was a lot of walking. But we found a handful of people who seem interested. So I´m hopeful that we can start teaching a lot more again.
This week was kinda rough... I´ve been feeling better about my Spanish cause I´m starting to be able to understand people, but now I´ve realized that people can´t understand me... Which is worse. If I can´t understand them, at least I can teach a little and my companion can answer questions, but if they can´t understand me then I can´t teach! It was really heavy on my mind for about a day, but I prayed about it that night and I got my answer. I just need to teach and say what I can, and the Lord will make up for my inabilities. I guess I needed to be a little humbled and learn to trust in the Lord more. I´ve started to just teach and hope that what I say can be brought to their hearts through the Spirit. Since I´ve started doing this, I have enjoyed my mission so much more, just in the last three days! I just feel so much more comfortable with people and I´m starting to come to love them more too!
I´ve learned a lot this week, and I´m glad I´ve had this experience early in my mission and not later! Hope all is well at home! Thinking of ya! I hope when I get home "America is Great Again!" ;) I always pray for y´all! Love ya.
Love,
Elder Cole
Parts of the family email:
We google earthed his area and sent Trace a picture of his church (see picture below):
That's my stake center! we live across the big street to the left. My address is 353 Santa Lucia I think.
That's crazy that Trump won haha! I thought Hilary had it! We heard about it the day after the election because the people here are super excited to talk to two Americans about it haha! But they are also terrified cause "Trump hates immigrants."
I have flossed more in the last 2 weeks than I have the entire rest of my life haha!
I went on an exchange this week with an elder from Brazil. He's pretty cool and always positive! It was fun, but I also realized that our area is the poor area of Las Piedras. The people in the other two areas are way better off. Its kinda humbling to see people live like they do. Not everyone is poor, but lots of people are more poor than anything in Warden.
One of our investigators is also really sick with tuberculosis and cant leave the hospital for at least 6 months! So I will probably never get the chance to teach him again. He lost 30 pounds and he was skinny already! He cant leave his bed but he says hes been reading the Book of Mormon and praying everyday, he wasn't doing that before so maybe this experience will convert him.
Anyways love ya Ma! I really am enjoying my mission!
- LOve Elder Cole
Love ya Pa!
We eat plenty, most missionaries in this mission gain weight actually. There's a missionary in our district who gained so much weight in his first nine months that he is having knee problems cause they can't take the added weight. I don't want to come back fat! Haha! I've been cooking the spuds and hot dogs you used to cook us and so I'm sure I can survive even if we don't eat dinner.
- Love Elder Cole
Chad found Trace's church building on Google Earth
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