I LOVED conference! We watched it in English, all the missionaries together. I felt like every talk was directed towards me, and was specifically given to help me now. Incredible feeling. If I had to give a favorite then it would probably be James Martino. I really connected to what he was saying. It was perfect.
The trip into the city last week was sooooo awesome! We went through a Catholic chapel and through this huge underground market--hanging meat, flour, beans, souvenirs, art, ties, statues, rings, everything! It was cramped and dirty, just picture it. So cool. I loved it! I bought a tie from an old lady and as we were walking out, my companion stopped me and said he felt we needed to give her a Book of Mormon. The Spanish was choppy but she took it! Incredible! My companion bought a tie and a little painting. It was sweet!
Then we went to a huge plaza and walked around talking to people. I saw this cute family--mom, dad, and one little boy. I felt the impression to talk to them, so away we go! We talk to them, everything's great, and I hand him the Book of Mormon and ask him to read a certain chapter. He smiles and says No, he doesn't want to. Then the family walks away. Elder Holliday and I are just standing there, when a lady sitting nearby says she heard what we said and wanted more. We taught her and gave her a Book of Mormon and got her name and address. We passed that on to our teachers so hopefully the missionaries will help her out!
We got to go to Wendy's and it was great! I got the Baconator, but by night it was sitting pretty heavy in my stomach. All in all, our trip went perfectly.
The rest of the week flew by....again. We are just sooo excited to get out and preach. I'm wondering how hard the Spanish will be but after a month tops, I will have it figured out.
My companion is going to Guatemala Coban, which means he is learning Kekchi. It is a native Mayan language , just spoken locally and it looks like the hardest language in the world. The Book of Mormon is Lix Hu Laj Mormon. It sounds like a crazy language. A few clicks and a ton of z x q and t's. The x makes a sh sound. Try to look it up. It sounds like something out of a movie. I tried speaking it because I have a Latino friend here who knows a little. It's really tough. My companion knows about 4 words. He will figure it out when he gets there I'm sure. He's going to the mountains, where snakes are everywhere and it's a 2 hr hike to church every week. Someone said a girl there had to call the LDS doctor guy because she got a disease and couldn't feel her legs!
Answers to questions we asked him:
Did you get our mail?
I did get your mail. Loved it!!!!! Thanks!
Did you find the pillowcase? (I had made a surprise Star Wars pillowcase for him that matches one I made for Caleb.)
I did find it! I loved it too much! I thought of you and Booj and how happy you make me. Thank you sooooo much. I feel like I'm sleeping at home while I'm out.
What costs $80 at the Guatemala Temple? Do they charge admission there? Or do they have a sweet buffet?
No. The money was for Spanish scriptures and Preach My Gospel. The charges say the temple but it's really the ATM at the CCM. Just buying scriptures and such!
Were you affected by the mudslide? (There was a really terrible mudslide in Guatemala City last week near the CCM. Over 600 people were reportedly missing--many dead. It was pretty scary and tragic news for us at home.)
About the mudslide, we never even heard about it. So yeah, not much to say.
Do you know your travel plans for leaving the CCM next week?
Do you know your travel plans for leaving the CCM next week?
I don't know a ton about my trip to Honduras. I wake up at like 3:00 or 4:00 and they bus us to the airport and we fly there. I don't know how long it is. We land and meet the Presidente. Not sure past that. I leave on Tuesday. I'm sooooooooooooooo excited to go out. Any doubts or worries were washed out by devotionals, conference, and my presidente. Honestly I feel perfectly capable now, but I still have a lot of Spanish to learn.
I know it's weird but I rarely think about how I'm feeling. I get swept up in the Spirit and the work, and all I feel is the love of the Savior and excitement to go share that love. When I'm not super busy, I think more about my feelings, and I'm fine. If you think about the most comforted you've ever been by the gospel and the Spirit, that's about where I am. I'm nervous sometimes about the city or the language but it never lasts long. I am going to miss these guys though. The bond after 5 weeks feels like a two year one. I think I'll remember them for the rest of my life and it's not even my mission area yet.
Tell everyone I love them! And tell Booj that Flat Boojie is helping me out a ton. He is loving it here and so am I!
Elder Ben Gozart
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