Week five in the Field -- Chickungunya, First Baptsims, and a New Comp

Hey guys, this week we baptized Cristino and José! It was a great experience, especially because it was my first time in the font!

Unfortunately this week my companion had Chikungunya, the crazy mosquito borne illness that´s going around here. He was in bed for 7 days!

Fortunately I was able to leave with a member, Brother Guales. Brother Guales is a great member with a powerful testimony but because he can´t read he knows very little about the gospel. Essentially I had to go out by myself to teach lessons but with the Lord´s help everything worked out and we had some great lessons and I never struggled with finding an answer or knowing what to say, the Lord always filled my mouth with words to say.

Yesterday I got a new companion, Elder Rojas from Peru. He seems pretty cool but he knows basically 0 English. Elder Rivera knew quite a bit but Elder Rojas is exclusively Spanish. It will be a little bit of a struggle but I´ll get through it.

People sometimes complain about wealth inequality in the United States but here in Guatemala it is quite extreme. We have investigators who live in a house that is literally just a bed with a roof on it and we have investigators who live in 7000 sq ft houses with water fountains in their house and drink out of gold rimmed glasses. No joke. There´s basically no middle class here.

Remember how safe we are in the United States, Elder Rivera got word just before he left that his cousin and friend had been killed in a gunfight in Honduras. We are blessed to live in a country where gun and drug violence are pretty limited.

Love you all, hope you have a great week!

Elder Dawson, Christino, Jose

(Email to Mom)

I recieved my Halloween and Christmas packages this week! I haven´t opened the stockings yet in the Christmas one nor have I opened the Twas the Night Before Christmas book (Im gonna wait until Christmas day for those) but I got out the BFJ book and the music and recipe book and stuff.

My investigators loved the candy corn especially. Hermano Guales is especially fond of it and is upset it is only available in the United States.

Thank you so much for everything! I really appreciate it and it always means a lot to get something from home. Love you so much!

Elder Dawson

(Email to Mom and Dad)

I wanted to let you know that I withdrew 50 dollars or so this week becuase our church cards weren´t working and I needed to pay for my companion to go to the Hospital and get some medicine from the pharmacy. Things are cheap here so $50 covered it. I will be recieving a refund for that money that I spent shortly. Thanks!

Answers to Mom's Questions

Tell us how it works with Elder Rivera leaving? Do you get a new companion the day he leaves? I'm assuming you are staying there - right?

I will stay with the Zone Leaders on Tuesday in Teculutan which is an hour and a half away by bus. I will wait for my new companion in Teculutan, he will arrive by bus in the evening. I do not know who my companion is yet.

Are the members feeding you at all? Have you gotten sick from anything you've eaten yet?

Yes, we had a lot of food this week because people had us over to say goodbye to Elder Rivera. We´ve had fish, tamales, chicken, rice and vegetables, stuff like that. We also went to a wedding this week and got fed their. Haven't gotten sick yet!

Have you been able to bake anymore cookies or anything else fun? You have a stove to cook on right? (Try Rice Krispie Treats or "Erik's Black Cookies" - you don't need an oven for those)

I made peanut butter popcorn and Erik's black cookies this week. Couldn't find cocoa powder or vanilla though so i substituted stuff. They both actually turned out really well. We served the black cookies at our baptism but I think some of the Latinos didn't like them. Oh well haha, my district liked them.

Are you having a Christmas get together with your Zone or anything coming up?

Don't think so.

How are you liking President Crapo?

He´s really cool. Haven't really had one on one time with him but he's a great speaker and he's really nice.

Are there any other books or church DVD's/CD you can listen to or watch on your personal device that we can send you?

From what I understand, we can watch anything thats available at the distribution center. We watch doctrine and covenant videos or the Testaments, movies like that. We have most of the DVDs I think.

Can I send you some more bug spray or is that something you can easily get there?

I can get it.

Do you need any toiletries from home? Stuff you can't get or don't like there - toothpaste, deodorant, sunscreen, etc?

No its all available here.

Were you able to do anything else when you went to Guatemala City for your immigration paperwork? Could you go out to eat or anything?

Yeah theres a mall where the buses are to take you throughout Guatemala. The mall is pretty much just like a mall at home in terms of quality and size, with different stores but some of the same restuarants. We ate some Chinese food there.

Week Four in the Field: I don't really need anything but my investigators like sour candy and beef jerky.

Hey guys, hope everyone is doing wonderfully. Here´s what happened this week to me:

We had three baptisms planned for Saturday but José got a mosquito virus called Chikungunya and was very ill and unable to make it to the baptismal service. His father Cristino stayed to take care of him and he missed the service as well. Fortunately we still baptized Yoly and Cristino and José are getting baptized on Wednesday.

This week I had to travel twice. On Tuesday I traveled to Guatemala City to do immigration paperwork and on Wednesday I traveled to Zacapa to get an influenza immunization. Due to these two visits, we didn´t get as much work done as we wanted to but we´re still making progress.

This week we also had a talent show as a missionary activity and that went really well. 

Gotta go, love you all!

(Questions answered from Grandma Jane:)

Thanks for the email! I don´t have a ton of time but I will answer your questions:

Is it the only branch in Gualan?

Yes. Gualan is a town of 50,000 or so I think and we have about 80 active members.

How many missionaries are there or in close-by towns?

We have four missionaries here in Gualan. The closest missionaries to our companionship besides the other companionship are about 40 minutes away by bus.

How often are your regional meetings and do you have to travel to Guatemala City?

We have Zone meetings in Teculutan every week which is a little over an hour away. I had to travel to Guatemala City this week for immigration stuff but usually that`s abnormal to travel there for meetings. It takes anywhere from 2 to 5 hours to get to the capital depending on how fast your bus driver is willing to drive haha.

How much longer before you get a new companion?

One week and I get a new companion.

It`s cooling down here and the weather is pretty nice. I don`t really need anything but my investigators like sour candy and beef jerky haha.

Week Three in the Field: Blessings come when you don´t fight and always treat people with love.

Hell´s foundations quiver at the shout of praise
Brothers, lift your voices, Loud your anthems raise
Like a mighty army moves the Church of God
Brothers, we are treading where the saints have trod.

Another great week here in Gualan, Guatemala. We have three baptisms
for this upcoming Saturday, Cristino and Jose Garcia and Yoly Ramos.
Our branch is small and we have our challenges but the Lord is helping
us work through the challenges.

We had a neat experience this week with a man named Fransisco. When we
first met him we were beginning our lesson and were about to pray when
a wild Jehovahs Witness appeared and started bashing us. He couldn´t
get very far before the Lord sent us some rain so we had an excuse to
leave. We had nothing but kind words for him but we felt bad for
Fransisco who really seemed interested in our message.

We met Fransisco in the street again and he apologized for the
Jehovahs Witness and said that by the way we carried ourselves he knew
that we were true disciples of Jesus Christ. He told us that his door
is always open for us and that he´s excited to hear more about our
message. Blessings come when you don´t fight and always treat people
with love.

This week Ive been thinking a lot about the role of Jesus Christ as
our Intercessor between mankind and the Father. I wrote a poem and
thought I´d share it with you guys:

Lord and Savior, Intercessor
With the Father my Heavnly Friend
He who trod through the winepress for
Glory and Joy to have no end

At the trial he bears witness
That I, his servant, had no shame
And, although I was not sinless
I took upon myself his name

He is the way, he is the light
The Father´s justice none can flee
But with the Christ we need not fight
Just trust in his endless mercy

Contrite heart and broken spirit,
Lord I am knocking at thy door
At the veil, thy voice I hear it
I´ll take thy hand, please show me more

We have an investigator family whose last name is Lopez Guerra. The
mother and her 5 children are currently having discussions with us.
The oldest son, Amilcar, is like 22 years old. He came to church this
Sunday and we had the Children´s program. One of the scriptures that
was shared was about how Jesus Christ is the the only way back to the
Father. He had heard that scripture a lot but never knew what it meant
and we were able to answer his questions. Their whole family is
reading the Book of Mormon. They are learning a lot and will likely be
baptized soon.

Love you guys! Stay safe, the Church is true!

Answers from Mom's email:

Do you want me to send anything to help teach your English class?

No, we have resources here to teach English. We´re gonna start making copies and distributing them to class members.

What "American" ingredients can I send you?

We were able to find everything for cookies last week so I don´t think I need anything.  

Do you have an oven, microwave and refrigerator?

Microwave and refrigerator yes. Oven, no. But the church has an oven and some of our members have ovens.

Do any of the homes have carpets?

Not that I've ever seen. 

Is Jose able to go to school?

No. He has to work every day. We are going to teach him how to read at his home in the night I think.

Does your companion have a leave date yet?

Yes he is leaving on the 24 of November so two more weeks.

Are you sleeping OK?

Yeah my bed is comfortable and by the end of the day I´m tired enough that I fall asleep in about 10 seconds and don´t wake up until we have to at 6:30.

How are your Dr. Marten's? Comfortable enough?

Yeah they´re good! And if they ever wear out or I want a new pair then church shoes here are literally 5 dollars for a pair. I also bought a backpack for like 10 dollars here.

Love you!

Week Two in the Field: What a joy it is to labor in the Lord´s Vineyard!

We´ll go to the poor, like our captain of old

And visit the weary, the hungry, and cold

We´ll cheer up their hearts with the news that he bore

And point them to Zion and life evermore. 

What a joy it is to labor in the Lord´s Vineyard! This week we observed a miracle from the Lord. One of our investigators, Hermana Yoly, recently had her mother and son baptized into the church. She however,was not convinced of our message. She basically said it would take a miracle for her to be baptized.

Then we recieved a text message from her. She got the answer she needed from the Lord. 

She´s getting baptized.

Things are also going well with our investigator Cristino Garcia. He is the one who lives in very poor conditions in a papaya orchard. The other day we visited him and his 12 year old son José at 6PM and the sun had already set. They have no lights in their home and were eating what meager food they had in complete darkness. We brought a flashlight and were able to have a visit with them. At the end of our visit we asked little José if he would follow the example of Jesus Christ and enter the water of baptism. He said yes and we asked him who his example was in that decision. He replied that he was following in the footsteps of his father.

Cristino is a man without a job. His son works everyday to provide for the family. And yet, José still considers his dad to be his greatest example. 

Cristino began to cry and shared with us how much his son meant to him. This Sunday we went to pick them up to come to church and they weren´t home. We were so worried but felt overwhelming joy when we realized they were at their neighbors house, inviting them to come to church too.

I bear my witness that the church is true and the blessings of the Gospel extend to everyone. Whatever injustice we see in the world is made right through the Atonement of Jesus Christ. God answers prayers. The heavens are open and God speaks to man. Our Savior has unlocked the gates of Heaven and let us in. These things I have come to know for myself. You too can learn of these things through faithful prayer. God loves you and wants the best for you!

Love,

Elder Dawson

(Questions from Mom's email)

Has your district started the English classes in your chapel?

Yes. We had 12 people come the first week! We taught the alphabet and greetings.

Will you have to teach every Saturday?  

Yes, from 10 AM to 12 AM

Was the Office game left in your house or did you buy it?

My companion bought it before I came here. He thought it was just like a board game so I had to explain to him what the office was.

Are your shirts staying pretty white or do you need some more?

The lady who cleans them gets them super white so Im good.

Do you want me to send you a backpack or is your shoulder bag OK?

I am going to buy a backpack here I think. They're cheap.

I'll send you some beef jerky.  What else would you like?  I'm getting things together to send you for Christmas.  Do you need more music, t-shirts, ties, books?

Maybe a recipe book? No one here has ever had things like chocolate chip cookies and its always appreciated if you bring something from America to someones Family Home Evening.

Are you tired of the rain or are you use to it?

Hasn't been raining too much and I always carry my umbrella with me so it turns out okay.

I neglected to thank you last week for the Greenie package. Thank you so much! I have a lot to do during my emailing time and so sometimes I forget. That was great though. Thank you for thinking of me and spending time to put things together. I shared a lot of the stuff with my investigators, people think its so funny that we literally eat meat as a snack in the US and stuff. I cant speak as fluently as I would like but its nice to show love with a little gift.

Thanks for your love and support!

(Questions/comments from Dad's email)

We want to make chocolate chip cookies today for P day but we do not have a recipe. If you could send us one that would be great. Thank you!

My favorite meal is probably fried chicken. People here eat an obscene amount of fried chicken, its great haha. We also had tamales at an investigators house the other day and those were good.

This is at a River in our area, I think its called Rio Lobos.