Hola
mi amigos!!!!
Wow,
this first week has gone by really fast. It is crazy to be finally in the field.
So much has happened so far.
First,
My companion. My companion is such a stud! He is from Malta Idaho and speaks
perfect Spanish. It is such a blessing to be paired with a gringo companion. I
have been able to get along teaching lessons in Spanish, but if someone asks me
a question in the streets I have no idea what's going on. But it has been an
awesome, busy week.
So Fusagasugá... If you don't know how to pronounce it, don't worry, I have no idea as
well. Fusagasuga is in the bottom part of Bogotá and it is awesome. It is
right in between what the natives call the 'hot land' and 'cold land', so it
is about the perfect temperature--75 degrees all the time. It has been so sweet
to talk to everybody. I would liken it unto a 'Little Italy'; there is always old Spanish country music in the streets, a ton of food shops, and the people are
way nice, for the most part. It is pretty busy, and where we live it is
basically on the side of a mountain, so a lot of walking. But it has been
great!
Some
interesting Spanish culture things...
The
doors and ceilings are really small. I know this comes as no surprise to most
of you, but for me it was a shock. The first day when I was in the bathroom I broke a light bulb! That was really embarrassing. I am learning to duck my head
at everything.
Everyone
here rides a motorcycle, it is awesome. They are always doing tricks and
speeding past you. I kinda feel like I am in the movie Fast and Furious.
Everything
you buy here is in bags; the milk and juice are in bags so it is super hard to
drink--but it is really cool. Also, the bread here is delicious! They put sugar
on the top of the bread and fill it with arequippe, which is this really good
caramel sauce. It is awesome! but really bad for me.
If
you get invited into a home, they are really kind and offer you something to
drink. However, because soda is safer to drink than water, they always offer you
soda. It is a good thing I am walking all the time or else I would be gaining a
ton of weight. Right now I have only gained a little.
Besides
the language, Spanish here has a lot of interesting hand gestures. It has been
difficult for me to pick up on both languages, but it is really funny to try
and figure these out.
Anyway,
Fusa has been awesome. I love it so much. The members are awesome, always
inviting us in and helping us. I am so grateful to be here.
I
would just like to share one experience with you guys. During one of our lessons, we
had the opportunity to teach a member family during family home evening.
They had two adorable little girls and the parents were trying to teach them
that they were children of God. The father had just gotten off work, way late
at night, and was also going to school as well. He was probably exhausted, but
he was trying his best to teach his little girls who their real father is. It
was so incredible to see the love in his eyes as he was helping his children
learn this. The Spirit bore witness to me that the Lord loves us and that he
wants us to return to Him. He loves us so much and wants to help us in all
things. If I have gained a testimony of anything, it is the love our Heavenly
Father has for each of us.
Anyway
that is all for this week. Thank you for all your prayers and emails. I wish I had time to answer all of them. Until next week.
Elder
Parson
Tienen
fe
esperanza
charidad
y
todos las cosas saldrán por su bien
