Monday - February 22nd 2010

So my week definitely has had a change for the good. The last week wasn’t too hot for me because I was stuck in a rough place as a district leader and a companion. I had to make some decisions, and I didn’t like at all how the last week went. So Monday night I pulled everybody in my house (which is 3 other missionaries) one by one up on the roof and we all had a special interview. lol. But it went really well. If there was one thing that I think I have learned from arguing with my little brother Ben, it was how to get people to believe in everything I was doing, and that it was really best for everyone. lol. Even if I really had no clue what I was doing. lol.

The week was way good after I had those interviews, because the house really changed afterwards. Everybody is now working together to bring the Spirit together. And, as long as everyone is working to uplift each other, we can’t fall right. Tuesday was a pretty normal day, except that it was transfer day. But nobody in the house changed, but we already knew that from Sunday night. Even though everybody Sunday night was hoping that they would be able to leave their companion. lol. We are horrible.

Then Wednesday we had a zone meeting. It was good. I got to meet up with my old trainee elder who had moved to the office. He is awesome because I have been looking for a tape player to tape my mission life right. But the one I was going to get for Christmas got stolen in transit. So, he found one in the streets for like 5 bucks, and bought it for me. He is awesome. But then he also told me about how he got in trouble the Monday before last, because there was a missionary going home that was living in his house. And the members threw a party for him so he ended up getting home late and the President got angry. He told me that he might be leaving the office because the President said he couldn't have bad missionaries in the office. And that’s what ended up happening. But he isn’t like that, he is just not a very strong person in the mission yet. I told the President that he took him away too early. But hey, the pres knows best right. But then the funny thing is that he is now in the zone of Boni (lol) - and Boni is basically my "family meeting spot". Everybody I have served with spends time in Boni. And at this moment I have two elders I trained in Boni. Even my trainer in the mission is there.

But Thursday - well the APs showed up and decided to do a surprise intercombio [mission companion splits] with us to check up on our teaching and everything. They have been doing that. But of course I was stupid. Or let’s just say I wasn’t acting very wisely, because we taught one lesson with one of the APs (the other AP went with the other missionaries in my house) and afterwards I told him that he was teaching bad. Which was true, but I guess I probably shouldn't of said that (lol) but the thing was that there are rules when you go on intercombios. They are written in the “Preach My Gospel” manual. The manual says that if you go on an intercombio into somebody else’s area you are not there to teach but to testify. So I asked the AP if he was there to teach us how to teach and he said no he was just there on a regular intercombio. So I told him that if he could only testify then it would be better because he doesn’t know my investigators or anything. Well something happened that I didn’t expect at all. The AP almost started crying. So then the whole day was just awkward - if you know what I mean. So yea. It was kind of ridiculous. But I fixed it all by the time the day ended with him (or so I thought). Then the next morning the APs called and said that they wanted to do another quick intercombio with us Friday. So we went to the church a little before three to be there when they got there, and their truck came rolling up. But the crazy thing was that they were not in their truck. Pres. Almonte was in the truck. ahhhhhhh. lol. So he told us to jump in and we went to our first lesson - and it was a way good lesson. The president definitely knows his stuff. The lady we went to teach had a question about the Tower of Babel and the President just gave her the sweetest explanation of the Tower of Babel I have ever heard in my life. lol. Afterwards he looked at my companion and I and said that he felt a great spirit with us both. o-yea. lol. So, yea that was my week.

Oh - also Saturday I had another baptism. So that was way good too. However, the lady decided to take a deep breath when she was under the water though, so that wasn’t very good but hey…. And then our first counselor in our Ward had a baby Friday and that was announced Sunday, so we went and visited him Sunday after church and gave his family the sacrament. So that was cool. But yea, that was my week.

Keep Smiling,
Elder Woestman

Monday - February 8th 2010

What a crazy week!! This week started out like any other normal week. Monday we did the sweetest Family Home Evening night in the world. We went over to Basilia's house (not like you know who she is) - but she and her family are investigating. And she rocks. She is the one that has a daughter that we just found out has TB. Which I don't know much about but I hear it kills - which is no good. But she is getting treatments and is supposedly getting better. So please pray that that keeps up. The night was the best; we watched the movie "Together Forever" - which I feel is a really good movie. Even if it is not meant for people that live in a third world country, because everything in that movie looks so nice. Plus they eat like Thanksgiving every dinner that they showed in that movie. I kept thinking in my head that that is not really what its like in America - but it really is. But she and her family loved it. And we also made sweet brownies. So that was great fun.

Tuesday we had interviews with the president. And then that's when the week just went all down hill. In that interview the president told me that my companion and I had to go to the office the next day. Then Wednesday the president stuck my companion in the office and now I am with another companion. And I'm kind of really upset because my companion was the best companion that I have had in my whole mission. And I didn't just get any other companion. The president pulled me into his office and sat me down - and basically my companion almost got sent home and now I am re-training a different missionary that goes home in 6 months - who has been a total "bucket" and I am suppose to teach him how to be a man. So this is basically the most important thing I can do on my mission, the president said. Because this will affect my companion's life forever. What a responsibility!

But yea that was my week. So, now I have been waking up way early to make my companion pancakes so he will wake up on time, and a bunch of other things, but hey....
Love You,
Elder Woestman.

Monday - February 1, 2010

So first thing is first. We have this old guy in my ward down here that is probably one of the funniest old people in this world. And it's all because he talks with this shaky groggy voice - lol - and he totally acts like the basic old guy. But we were teaching him and his daughter, and right before we left he gave us candy. lol. But my companion kind of looked at it, and because the old guy thinks my companion doesn't know Spanish he said (while using huge hand signals) "that's something that you eat." It was so funny. But maybe I'm just out of it because it doesn't really sound that funny on paper. But trust me, it was funny.

Now to something more interesting. So I was living in the same house as Elder "E" who I trained and Elder "H" who I am training right now. But Elder E. left us and went to Ocoa. Which is basically the best place in the whole mission to live. It is the only place in the mission that actually gets below 60 degrees and they have a hot water heater! How sweet is that. So yea, we were just a big happy family living together and now one of my "kids" has gone to rich-vill. lol. What else.... so also we had 7 investigators go to church Sunday. That was awesome. This one lady we are teaching is probably one of the coolest lady's ever. I don't think I have ever seen her frown and she definitely has a reason to. She has a daughter that has some sort of lung disease. But yet she still looks on the bright side of everything. Sunday she asked me what she had to do to be a member. So hopefully that will all go well. I'm really excited for her.

And this week we have also been teaching a lot of Haitians. So I have been trying to work on my Creole; which is not an easy language at all. It's a mix of French and different African languages - and it's not coming very easily. But I kind of just want to learn how to read it is all. So I'm working on that.

Last event of the week: Well one of the guys in my house called up the president and wanted to go home. So Saturday night I talked to him for like 2 hours on the top of our neighbors house. It was great fun - but not really. It was a great experience though. But yea, that was my week.

Elder Woestman