Week 11

Hi Everybody!

So to answer all the questions: My area is actually in Hawthorne California, our ward is in Inglewood. The apartment is really good, there is HOT WATER!! A lot of the times its really hot and humid in the apartment though, cause its LA. Found out that it rains 2 times a year, like 2 days out of the year. No need for the trench coat hahaha. I don't think I have forgotten anything, just probably wanted more candies throughout scripture study this week, but hey todo esta bien.

Mother's Day we can skype! I don't know all the details... but I think I can call from our phone and we can figure it out GET THAT SKYPE UP!!

The food here is taking some getting use to, I am just not use to eating as much as they are giving me, but the food is great. There is this type of Latino food called Mole, basically its a bunch of stuff made into a soup with chili’s and chocolate, yummmy!. Other than that it has been chicken and rice... no comment. We feed ourselves for breakfast and for lunch so I've been having cereal and tortilla wraps. Ya, who knew that I would willingly put mayo on a tortilla with lettuce and meat and that, was my lunch? who knew.

Elder W is really helpful, he doesn't talk much so I think that I annoy him, but he's a really good missionary and he's the district leader. We had a lot of spiritual experiences with setting baptismal dates (fechas) and with the fechas, one fell through cause she didn't come to church, the other told us that she didn't want anything to do with us, and another family slammed the door in our face when they saw that it was us. UGH! but hey that's the mish. We contact a lot in the streets 20 a day keeps el diablo away. So we each have to do 10. Elder W ends up doing about 15-20 a day but I'm getting better. I just need to remember that I have a little part of Dad in me;) I like the area because I can talk to people in both Spanish and English, but that just makes it harder to learn the language. I have a good studying plan for Spanish, but who knows if it will work.

Elder W went to OU for wrestling so he is getting me in shape, like every morning at 6:15 I am running with him and doing who knows what, he's a beast. He said his mom is a health fanatic and makes brussel sprout  stuff... hehehe.

We had intercambios this week and I was with Elder P, he's from an African Island by Madagascar. We rode bikes, anyways the intercambio with Elder P, there is an investigador who was a self reference. He told the missionaries that he needed their help to get over his drinking problem. So I was able to teach a lesson to him with Elder P. Wow, muy poderoso. He is golden. Then we ate dinner with this family that I thought were members, and they were asking questions like "what is the church's stance on marrying someone from another religion?" and I thought they were testing me (idk I was off) so I simply told them that I think its recommended to get married in the temple, you know, sealed for time and all eternity stuff, and they were so shocked. Then they kept asking about BYU (I know should've known they weren't members) but I just thought they were ignorant Cali people.

There is a lot of drunk and poor people here (barrachos y pobres) and wow you can smell the pot. We have some as our neighbors so at night its pretty funny. There was this guy on the street by his car and asked us (so we thought) "do you want some weed?" we said no but he kept asking, he then clarified that he said "Do you want sandwich?" and so we got an amazing meal and a contact out of him, it was hilarious.

Apparently there are mini teremotors in LA, but my comp (who has been out about 8-9 months) only felt his first one this last week, apparently I slept through it. I HATE DRIVING! We have to parallel park everyday and it is a struggle. Neither of us knows the area, because this is his 4th week and my first, but hey we are learning. The ward is pretty nice. The 1st counselor prank called me: he acted like an angry Latino who caught me cheating on his wife, he said the I was the white one out of the white and black dudes in white (this was on the intercambio) so I was freaking out. He was saying that he was gonna get me and that he wasn't scared of going back to jail. I told him in my lawyer voice that he needed to think clearly, that he was accusing me based on the color of my skin and that he accused a messenger of God. That he may as well kill me cause there was no way I wouldn't get him good back (I don't know how to work the phones so I didn't know how to call 911) any-who, they told me who it was and we all laughed SO FUNNY. I think that's pretty much it this week, I mean, besides a "normal" mission everything is normal.

Nothing bad, stomach hurt a bit but I'm fine now, the pillow is nice. I go to bed sweating and wake up freezing, yes I have a blanket and everything, I guess its just cold. I am slowly figuring out the budget that I have, nothing a little math wont' fix. I am also tutoring some kids on math and then we teach the parents about the gospel, looks like algebra and geometry do come in handy, on the mish of course. I think that’s it. 

Emily, how do I convert Catholics? Everyone says "Soy Catolica" and then doesn't want to talk anymore, so frustrating. 

I think that's it for this week, if I forgot anything, let me know!!

Tenga un semana

Love, Elder Roberts 

P.S.  Just so you know, I don't know when I will call, I just know that I am. We have to coordinate with members to use their skype and such so IDK. It is only going to be 40 minutes long. Our testimony meeting was different, because I didn't understand what was going on and I guess it was a bunch of old people talking about their weird dreams and such. (I'm writing what I forgot in case you guessed already) A lady that we stopped on her bike told us that we are deceived by the devil. Elder W is whitty like us so he asked 'how?' she said that we don't "believe" in god. We told her our purpose as missionaries and if she wanted to learn more. She said that she knew catholicism was true because God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit appeared to her. When we asked in what form or how he appeared to her she said he told her that she was doing good. We told her that that's amazing. We asked how she was able to have that dream and she told us that she has just lived her life the way God would want, we told her that she should've shook his hand, and then we walked off hahaha. 

Love, Elder Roberts