Another Baptism!

Hola! Mi Familia, April 12, 2010

Well here we go, look at that another week down and another transfer coming up! How time flies but it really does, I couldn't believe that it was already another Monday this morning! But I guess when you just put your hand to the plow and don't look back the work just flies by hahahahahaha!

Well this has been quite a week for me! We had another baptism on Sunday moring and then he was confirmed at church the same day. This time we didn't baptize we had a member do it, one that has been working with us a lot and getting ready to serve a mission, it was an awsome experience! The one that got baptized name is Louis, he has 13 years and he's just an awesome little kid. He had been going to church for a month before we started teaching him, I had seen him but I just thought he was one of the members kids! But we had been only teaching him for a week and he wanted to get baptized. Also on Friday the other elders had a wedding for their investigators who were getting ready to get baptized and weren't married (side note people here don't normally get married they just live together and have kids it's actually super hard to get married here, you have to pay a lot and have to have all these papers from where you were born which sometimes people are from the boonies in some other mission, so ya it's just super hard to get people married here and it's a normal part of missionary work here, marrying people), we had it in the church and guess who was in charge of the decorating..... the elders hahahaha it was horrible it looked like a super crappy prom with balloons and ribbons and ya that's about it..... four couples got married and one of the couples when they went to kiss just started making out tongue and all!!!! It was quite awkward. Then the one this Saturday after we had their baptisms, the two couples of our areas were baptized by their dad that was baptized the week before, but there is a small problem, he has a sickness that can been transferred through blood and if it got in the water it could be transferred to someone else. So before we had to wash the font with bleach and then put a whole bottle of bleach in the water for there baptism and so after their baptism the other missionaries had a surprise baptism so we had to drain the font by hand because it drains super slow and it was late so for 2 hours we drained all the waters out of the font with buckets and dumping them into the toilets! Ya that was fun, my back killed after!!! Also this week I cooked again for that family they wanted me to cooked fried rice, which I have never done before..... and I failed!!!!! It was horrible and I felt so bad after because they had bought the rice and I just wasted it and ooooo...... it was just bad!!!! It has also been rainning like no other, there has been rivers in the streets, our house gets flooded!! so ya that's whats happened this week... fun huh? =)

Don't worry mom I'm planning on coming back to SLCC after and finishing up what I can there then going somewhere, I'm super stoked that dad has been getting involved as he has! I'm looking forward to coming back there and helping out the team! Well I don't know what else I got, I told you guys everything that happened this week. I'm still workin hard and going strong and my health is fine. I love being here. I have had some cool experiences! This week I have really felt the hand of the Lord in our work, I'm always so tired at night when we get home and for those last couple of lessons we have and I just barely have the energy to finish them and get home. Sometimes when we say that last prayer I feel all that energy leave and feel that now I can rest. I know the Lord is there holding me up!!! I love you guys and thanks for everything you do and your support, you all are always in my prayers!

Love elder Paulson

Letter from March 29th, PLEASE WRITE TO ME!

Bueno! March 29, 2010

Alright a little bumbed out this week I only got an email from you mom this week, and a super short one from Elder Williams and that's it, I know you guys all have your busy lives but I only have this one day a week for one hour to hear about whats happening in your lives. I don't want to sound like a jerk, and I'm sorry if I do but plz write me something, I'm sorry if I don't always write back I try I honestly do but I only have an hour and half of that is spent writing the letter to my missoin president, but I promise I will try to write back to you!

So for this week, we had tons of success. We found 18 new investigators and taught tons of lessons and have 3 baptismal dates for the 24th! We had investigators come to church with us for the first time in forever! I know I sounded frustrated last week and I'm sorry but I put my faith in the Lord this week and we did tons better! We also are working with the family of our baptism we had a couple of weeks ago and they are super positive!

So this 27th Elder Paulson completed 7 months, my my how time flys! It really feels like I just got here still! So I got a letter from Kesni this week, he sent me his first place Rocky Mountain Rumble medal and he's going to high school nationals in Virgina, there was a lot of mixed feeling about this, but in the end I am super proud! He has also signed with BYU for football! I'm stoked for him. I have attached pictures for you mom of our house and also there is another one of me and Elder Torres when we were on changes after we climbed this ¡¡¡¡HUGE!!!! hill in his area! But I think I have got in a lot better shape because Honduras is just one big moutain all over the place, we have to walk to lessons up hill both ways in the heat of the day! hahahaha but really I feel I'm in a lot better shape than before, if I could just start eating better, but Hondurans fry everything they eat, they even cook there rice in oil and that's not a lie! They deep fry their eggs! So I cooked that coconut shrimp pasta and made a couple of changes to it and it was delicous! and they loved it. I made a ton of it too! I have been keeping a little book of recipes I think of and also ones that I learn here. I know that it's far away but when I'm not thinking about my work here I think of what I'm going to do with my life after, and I have kinda got it figured out, but I don't know how I'm going to do it, I just know what I want to do. But I guess I will just put my faith in the Lord. I know that he has a plan for me! Well that's all for now I guess I don't have much more. Well like I said at first I would like to hear from you guys, and mom thanks for always writing, I really do appreciate it. All week I think about reading your letter cause I know it well be there for me to read!

siempre orar para usteds y quiro la mejor para usteds!!

Love Elder paulson

¡¡¡¡HOLA!!!! April 5, 2010

Alright so another week down, I didn't even realize it was Easter till Saturday and one of the other gringo elders told me about it, here they celebrate the whole last week of Christ's life its called Semana Santa ( Holy Week ) and it's pretty much lets just be lazy week and go to the beach week........ on the first day they sell palm braches in rememberance of when Christ entered in to Jerusalem and all the people followed him holding palm branches, and here ever one ties them to their car and on the bus, then after that they don't really do anything else, except cook this horrible fish soup made from old sundried fish...... =b and then on thursday ever one goes to the beach. They called in the army to patrol around and make sure no one is going crazy and they have all these road blocks, and no one can enter the capital after 8 o'clock at night, so its pretty crazy, I did get to watch confrence in ENGLISH!!!!! There are white people in my stake and so they rigged us up a t.v. in our one little room so we could watch it inEnglish! I have never been so excited for conference as I have been this time! I took 10 pages of notes and watched all 4 sessions and priesthood session too!!!! I loved Pres. Packers talk, and I loved them all, it seems the focas was on the family this conference, did dad go the priesthood alone?

So right now we have 6 baptismal dates 1 for this week and 5 others in 2 more weeks, I am really excited, one of them is the sister of the girl that I first baptized when I first got here. So there is this way awesome family here that feeds us on Wednesdays but I have been feeding them more, they love me to cook for them and they always ask me to cook for them and what am I going to cook next and etc...... and I love it. I feel so good when I cook!Ii have been talking to Kaelen and we have been talking about the restaurant business, we are super excited to start that when we gat back! But i really want to play rugby when I get back too, mom if you can look for schools that have culinary programs and rugby teams that would help a lot, I really want to go to Cal Berkley..... I dont know I have so many things going on in my head about this stuff! But dont worry I am wholy and heartfully commited to my work here, that's one of the things I love about here is I know exactly what I'm supossed to be doing and how to do it !I have felt a surge of the spirit helping me this week and I love it.Well that's all I have, I love you all and thanks for the emails I received, Thanks for everything mom! I feel like one of the stripling warriors when they talked about there mothers. I love you all!

love elder spencer f. paulson

Hola mi familia March 22, 2010

Alright so once again it was just another one of those weeks, the work in Reynel has been going kinda slow! People heer are just so !!!!APOSTATE¡¡¡¡It drives me crazy how ingnorant they are! and how spiritualy handicapped they can be!!! I have spent a lot of time this week in prayer asking for patience and to open the hearts of this people to our message! We have like two people that are progressing I guess you can say! One hasnt come to church yet but I know she has felt the spirit she told me she has, and the other has come to church but we haven't been able to teacher her a lesion! and doggonit if we can find a family to teach her! we found a new person to teach yesterday who hasn't been corupted by the blasphamy they teach her and she was very postive in our lesson with her and she wanted us to come back and teach her! So that was one of the uppers for the week and also one of the families here that are members are supper chill and we have dinnner with them on Wednesdays and I'm going to cook for them this week, that's something I have been looking forward to! I miss cooking so much we don't ever have time, we get home always at 9:00 then we have to plan and then after that I have to wash clothes for tomorrow and after that there is no time to do anything! So I have been taking any chance I have to cook! I'm going to cook that coconut shimp pasta for them. Alright mom I talked to our nurse and she said that it would be fine that it won't do any harm to me, I think it left anyways, we fasted for a whole day last week and I think it didn't like that. and as for the pictures of our house I'll get some to you next week i keep forgetting to take pictures of it. I don't carry my camera around here that much, this is kinda of a sketchy place. but I'll get some to you next week of the house. Yes i have been talking with Chance and Kaelen and they are doing good! Kaelen gets to email all day on his p-day that's kinda gay and Chance is doing good! I have included some pictures of Elder Bourne ( our district leader) cleaning the font, and others of us making tortillas at a members house. That's awesome Troys going to Brazil! Tell him congrats for me and to do work. Right now i have started to read the New Testament I'm almost done with Mark, I love the New Testament, I hope you guys started reading Jesus the Christ. Hows Max's basketball doing or what ever he's doing now, tell him to always work hard in school and remember to be spartan always. How's the new job for Kel going? Well I guess thats all this week, all is well here in good old Honduras! I'm loving life and the awesome experiences I have had! Well I love you all and thanks for every thing and your support!

Love Elder Spencer F. Paulson

"The HULK"

On No! I think I have a tape Worm!!!

JAJAJAJA MI Familia March 15, 2010

Alright so this week has been just one of those weeks, nothing really great or new just keep working and having faith in the Lord. I have been on both ends of the spectrum this week, extreme joy and extreme sadness, and a lot of prayer! But I am fine, I have learnd that if I just work that all that goes away! We don't really have any people progressing right now, but we did find 10 new people to teach this week, and our baptism that we had two weeks ago is still going strong, so they are splitting up our ward and where I'm at is now becoming a branch that's gonna be fun! I'll let you know how that gos when it happens.

I don't know why everyone is worrying about my food situation right now, I'm fine. We are fed always by the members and we have money to buy food, all is well in that area, but I do think I have a tape worm. I'm always hungry even after I eat a ton and have these weird stomach pains. I have named him Willard. So i have been getting emails form Kaelen and Chance and they are doing good. The Spanish is coming along like always slowly but surely. I have started reading the Book of Mormon in Spanish cover to cover, and i just finished Jesus the Christ and would like to challenge you guys to read it before I have a year, that's 6 months, I did it in 3, Me and my comp are doing well, we get along great and work hard together, I'm getting use to the smell. I don't know if that's good or not hahahaha. I have seen somethings for the new avatar movie and it makes me supper baggy. Well I didn't have a lot of time today. Give all my love. Hope all is well. I love you all and thanks for everything!

love Elder Spencer F. Paulson

Working Hard!

HOY SI PAPA!!! March 8, 2010

Como esta mi familia, alright so this week has been a really up and down week. I have had some spiritual difficulties, feeling like I'm working alone and then I have felt a huge burst of the spirit! This week we have had to go to the extremes of our area to find people willing to listen to the gospel. One family we found lives on top of this mountain next to our area and another lives in this river valley on the other side of our area that takes about 20 minutes to hike down to, but I love it every time! We also are teaching the sister of the girl we just baptized last week and she is being super receptive of the teaching, she always has a lot of questions, which is a way good sign of progressing! We had to drop our baptismal dates for this week, they weren’t progressing at all, they aren’t ready and come to find out they kinda believe in apostate gospel! So ya that’s my run down on the work in EL Reynel Funez. Ya, Mom that’s the area, I know exactly where that picture is, but that’s not where I took the photo its closer to the little Fútbol field in the middle of the area and the road that leads in to the area that area that looks like a fancied up community is were we live or maybe they haven’t updated the pictures and its just a dirt field? O and the name of the girl that got baptaized is Mendy Asucena Piñeda Sauceda and shes 17 years old.

So my new comp Elder Lainez, well he is from Puerto Cortez here in Honduras, he is much bigger then most Hondurans but still smaller than me, but he is an awesome comp we get along really well. He is a way good teacher and knows a lot about the scriptures, we have been contacting a lot because the old investigators that the other elders had were quite apostate! And not progressing at all we have had to do a lot of make up work! Tell Max congrats on his basketball and to keep on working!

So in my new zone one of the sister missioners played rugby before her mission haha I never thought I would meet some one that played rugby here let alone a girl haha! I have included a picture of a typical plate of Honduran food, fried plantains, refried beans eggs, with a toping of mantaqia (cream) the only thing its missing is rice but I'm sick of rice and by the way I cooked it too hahaha. Also is a picture of the wildlife that lives in our house with us hahaha that thing was huge, longer then my hand, in the picture you can't really tell, and the other is a picture of me infront of the chapel in Catcamas I don’t know If I sent you one before or not but ya. Well my familia that’s all I got for right now I'm always here working hard and thinking about you guys. The work goes well in Honduras, I love you all, ustedes serca a mi Corazon siempre!!! Gracias para todos!!

Love Elder Spencer F. Paulon