April 23rd-30th, 2012

Dear fam,

 

It's great to here from you all. I'll keep this short because the assistantes are coming to pick me up and I'll call tonight from the airport. It's weird being able to call so much right?? Anyways that's so funny that Steve and Amy and fam got to meet Elder Harris! I love that guy, i'm glad to hear that he got his visa too. He loved to make fun of me and how pudgy I was, I won't get to see him cause he is going to Oaxaca but that's still way funny. He'll be a great missionary.

 

We had a pretty good week here. The other elders in our ward had a baptism last night that we got tohelp out with. It was really good. It was really spiritual and a great experience. The members here are really great in Casa Linda. On saturday night the ward mission leader through a pechanga for us haha. It's like a party, but it was a surprise. They told us that they had invited over a family for dinner that they wanted us to meet and teach. So saturday night rolls around and we went over there ready to teach the restauration and we walk in and all of the missionaries and ward missionaries are there to yell surprise and we got to eat dinner with them all and stuff. It was really great. I hope the ward mission leader in Mexico is as good as the one here.

 

Well there's tons of stuff that I wanna tell you but I'll just do it tonight. I'm leaving any minute, today is going to be a lot of sitting around at the mission office. Boring i know. But they are trying to do transfers for this mission so I am just gonna hang around with em tell it's time to go to the airport. There is a lot of people I'm going miss here but I'm ready to get to Mexico. All the hispanics here keep telling me how good the food is and stuff. speak of the devil, i gotta go use an american toilet for the last time hahaha. peace out, I love you all and am glad for all of the support that you give me. Thanks so much for the package mom, we LB'd it in like five mins haha.

 

-Love Elder Broadhead

April 16th-23rd, 2012

Hey Family,

What's up guys?? Thanks for all the letters, I love hearing from everyone and about what you've been up to. It sounds like there are a lot of good things going on in your lives, and a few downs (mostly pain related). Tell Grandma and Grandpa that I love them and think about and pray about them often. Sorry I forgot to tell you my flight information, I depart at 7:30 pm and so yeah I think I'll probably call you from the airport so be expecting that. I might even send an e-mail home that day too because the flight is so late. We'll just have to see. It's a straight shot to Veracruz and i get there at like 9:45. Then I have to go through all this other paperwork and stuff that will last about an hour or more at the airport. So it'll be a long night by the time I get to wherever I'll be staying haha. I'm soooo excited!! Feels like I've been trying to get there forever, which I have haha. And yeah I think we can skype for Mothers day, if they have computers in my area, so that'll be cool.

 

In answer to your questions mom, They give me some money every two weeks to buy food, they put it in the card of my district leader and then we go and get it out of the ATM. I'll get my own card in mexico so I don't have to do that. I do "cook" breakfast and lunch, but I don't do much cooking. I usually just try and eat really quick so I can spend the rest of the time studying spanish. So I don't do much cooking cause it takes too long. My apartment is not very new, and you can go to the temple every six months here in the Texas Dalls mission. My clothes and shoes are holding up fine, don't worry mom. Oh that reminds me I had a pretty gnarly bike crash this week but I lived to tell the tale. We usually ride on the street during the day, much to the dismay of the citizens here, but on the way home at night when it's dark we ride on the sidewalk cause our beater bikes don't have any lights or reflectors. Well for some reason in texas the telephone poles are right in the middle of the sidewalk, so I crashed trying to maneuver around one of those a little too quickly. I do like the bikes though, they help us do a lot more, a lot quicker.

 

Well it was a good week here in Texas. This week on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday we rented a booth at the Bazaar (which is like a mexican farmers market/mall) and that was interesting. We got to talk to a lot of people and hand out a ton of tarjetas and folletos. We also got a few good referrals from it. We have eight missionaries in the Casa Linda ward, so we just rotated shifts working at the booth. Elder Petersen and I did a three hour shift everyday. Saturday was the best cause it's the busiest.

I've been kind of sick of knocking doors, so we started going to the little Mexican supermarkets and contacting people that are coming into the store. It's been a lot more effective cause we don't waste any time walking in between houses and we don't waste time talking to white people hahah. So that has been good to change things up a little bit. The best way to do missionary work is through the members, so we try to build trust with the members by doing service for them and giving them lessons and then asking for refferals. I've realized that dropping investigators is difficult for me because it means that they are no longer going to be coming closer to christ like they should be. But if they aren't keeping commitments we can't continue to teach them. It's a heart breaker. Oh yeah, I got my first mission sunburn this week, it's starting to heat up here in Texas.

Well my last week in texas has a baptism this weekend! We're going to one of the baptisms in our district this next sunday night, that's going to be really cool. We have a lot of good investigators to teach this week that we're looking forward to as well. Should be a good final week.

 

I love you guys soo much and am thankful to have you in my life! thanks for everything that you do, keep it up!!

-Love Elder Broadhead

April 9th-16th, 2012

Querido familia,

 

Hey guys thanks for all of the updates! Sounds like you all are plugging along without too many problems. Well it's been kind of a crazy week because I got my visa!!! I leave for Mexico on the 30th of April!! I got a call from the mission office last tuesday, right after we left the Dallas temple, informing me that I had recieved my visa and needed to meet with the consulate. So the assistantes to the president came and picked me up and I spent the night at their apartment. Then wedensday morning I met with the consulate. I felt bad because I had got my visa before my companion who has been here forever, but then the next day he got his as well. It was a relief cause then I could celebrate in front of him without guilt. I spent wednesday night at the assistantes apartment as well because thursday morning I had to go back to the consulate to finalize some things, and now I have my travel plans as well. I'm really excited! I don't leave until the 30th because that's when transfers are in Mexico and it will make things easier for the president down there.

 

Well it was a rough week with our investigators because we either had to drop, or got dropped by everyone that we were teaching except one guy! So we are doing a lot of finding and we taught a lesson last night to a family with a lot of potential that I'm excited for. I'm still having trouble understanding people, I think it's the Lord telling me that I need to listen more and talk less. So I'm going to try and listen better this week. We didn't have any investigators at church yesterday, it was a huge bummer. Cause we work all week to try and get people to come to church and the people that said they would come didn't show. It was a terrible feeling. I'm looking forward to this week and finding some more peoplte to teach. We have been getting the help of members to come out and knock with us cause we still can't understand to well. They don't really like it though so it is really frustrating trying to work with what we've been given. One of the funniest problems we have is calling people on the phone because it's even harder to understand them. My companion Elder Petersen hates it because he always gets nervous, freezes up and speaks non-sensical spanish, it's sooo hillarious. So then I have to like whisper things to say in his ear cause he can't think. My heavens its funny. When he leaves messages on the phone it's even more classic. They don't make any sense hahah. We try our best though. The Lord blesses us sooo much.

 

Well I would write more but i'm fixin to try and figure out how to send pictures so yall stop whining! So let me know if they come through.

 

I love you guys!! Hope you have a good week!

 

-Love Elder Broadhead

April 2nd-9th, 2012

Hey Fam,

Thanks for the e-mails and yes, mom I got the package of candy, thanks so much! Needless to say it didn't last 24 hrs. I was undergoing some heavy detox from the unlimited food at the MTC to no junk food at all. My companion was like, "wow I thought your easter candy would last until easter!" Obviously he's still trying to get to know me haha. I hope you get some good info from the MRI dad, hopefully we can find a lasting solution for the pain. I'm glad grandpa got at least a little bit of relief as well. Also yeah dad my mission president here played basketball at BYU and he is very tall. He played in Europe for a little bit as well.

In answer to your questions I am using an old beat up bike, so I didn't have to buy one. It gets me where I need to go though. And yes I am living out of my suitcase.Yes, it is kind of hot here, it's Texas, but it's good prep for Mex. It's been bearable though. But yeah, the tornadoes were a little bit riveting. It touched down about two streets over from us. I had never seen a tornado before so that was a cool experience. There were a few scary moments but the Lord took care of us. All the missionaries were ok. It was hailing like golf balls and we couldn't go outside. But when the tornado was at it's closest, all the rain and hail stopped and it went completely quiet except for the tornado. That was really an eerie feeling. We were with the ward mission leader hiding under the canopy of a gas station, cause he's really pudgy and we were waiting on a pizza for lunch hahaha! But yeah people act really crazy when they're in danger, it was interesting to see. All the people of Dallas were going crazy, just scared out of their minds. So yeah now I can say I have experienced a tornado! Check that off the mission to-do list haha.

But the more important news is that we got 3 investigators to come to church yesterday! It was awesome. It's been so cool to see, since my companion and I are struggling with the spanish part, the Lord puts people in our path to teach that speak both. There's tons of hispanics here that don't speak any english, but the Lord gives us the ones that can help us when we don't understand them. It's really been quite a miracle. We are teaching this really solid kid named christian, he has such an open heart and he's willing to allow the spirit to work on him. He has so many questions, it's awesome to see. He came to church yesterday and loved it. Another thing I've learned since being here is that hispanics are so much more nice than white people. White people hardly ever let us in, but hispanics almost always let us in just cause they're nice.

Well there is a ton more that has happened but we have to leave for a training in a few minutes. It sounds like everything is well with ya'll (texas term that I can now proudly say) and I hope everyone has a good week and stays safe and happy! I love you all and think about you oft!

Love, Elder Broadhead

March 25th - April 2nd, 2012

Hey guys!!

So yeah sorry I wasn't able to e-mail last week I was on the plane! Well this first week has been pretty hectic. I guess first off I should say what a conference right?? I think the Lord left me in the states so I could hear that in english. loved it. Also Mom, before I forget, I wanted to ask you on what date did we submit my visa papers? and also did we submit everything that they asked for? was the visa picture ok? Maybe you could call the conselate and see if they have my papers or ask what is going on? I'm just really kind of stressing out about this dang visa situation. I just am anxious to get to my mission in Mexico.

 

 

But on that note, texas is pretty great. I'm not gonna lie, it's a lot harder than I expected it would be haha. I thought we would be teaching a few more lessons and knocking doors a little less, but it is the other way around haha. So my companion/"trainer" is a fellow visa waiter and he has only been here for six weeks aaaah! Also his spanish isn't very good but he tries really hard. Actually my spanish is a little bit farther along than his so I am doing most of the teaching and contacting. It's been tough cause I can only understand about 50% of what people say haha. Also we are on bikes so I'm trying to make that adjustment as well. My bum is sooo sore. Since we're both so new we're struggling a little bit but we definitely try our best.

We live in an apt. with another companionship. Obviously the apt is only meant for two people so it's a little cramped. I sleep on a mattress on the floor. Oh yeah my area is called Casa Linda, it's in the city of Garland. It's pretty sweet here and all the hispanic people are mostly from Mexico and they're really nice. I haven't really met a lot of the ward yet cause we haven't had church but they seem great. We're teaching la familia Calixto and I really think that they will be baptized. They're so awesome. They have 2 little kids as well. The only problem is that he has to work a lot on sundays so getting to church is tough. Quick funny story, yesterday we got an invitation from this older hispanic lady in our ward for her "birthday party with water games" haha it was hillarious. She invited all of the missionaries that are in the spanish ward (8) but obviously we can't go. So last night we were tracting in her neighborhood and she drove by and was talking to us for a bit, and apparently, unbeknownst to me, we accidentally confirmed that we were going to go to her party haha. So now we have to make that akward phone call haha.

Other than that everything is going great I'm trying to learn the area and learn how to be an effective missionary. It's easier said than done, I'm glad I have the lord on my side. It sounds like things are going well at home. I hope our grandparents get feeling better. I love you guys and pray for you everyday, remember what's important in life then do what you have to do. Doing what the Lord asks should trump just about anything. Keep up the good work!

 

 

-Love Elder Broadhead

p.s. my address is 4640 Saturn Road Apt # 1605 Garland, Texas 75041

but since I could be leaving anyday I don't know if I would send anything. E-mail works fine.