Illness & Travels but Never Combined

So this week was a struggle. As you read, you will find that we were both sick at different times. And that we had to do a lot of traveling. We are both doing better now!

Monday: We had a nice Pday and we were able to get haircuts. We then played volleyball. Later, we had a great dinner with a member. We had to drive across town to get to our next appointment with a member family. Only, we got the cancelation text right when we arrived. We went back home because Elder Elton had been feeling sick all day.

Tuesday: We did more painting at the Healing House, the women's shelter. Elder Elton was feeling really sick so he took a nap. We then drove out to a ranch to contact a referral we received from a member from Elton's last area. We came home and finished our studies. The members that signed up for dinner could not feed us so they gave us some money. With our share we got some pizza from Dominoes... Oh boy... This was the beginning of a long chain of events. Then, we went on splits with a member to visit some less active families. They went really well! We also had Andrew with us and afterword we got paletas together. Paletas are Mexican fruit/ice cream/popsicle bar things. As we were going to sleep I had a ton of pain in my stomach and a major headache. I had a hard time sleeping and was constantly getting up to go to the bathroom. It did not really help.

Wednesday: So I woke up with only a couple hours of sleep but plenty of pain under my belt. I struggled with energy in the morning and during studies. We had a conference call with some missionaries in our zone then we went to district meeting. I was super cold the whole time! I was shivering! It was a really good meeting though. We talked about finding. We also talked about what we need to do to become better disciples of Jesus Christ. Instead of eating lunch I took a nap. After the much needed rest, we helped a member move a dresser and we helped a potential investigator family move out of their apartment. It was painful for me and I was so out of it I kept bumping into everything. We did have a good lesson with the Ramos family and they are making good progress on returning to church. We had dinner with a member and I only ate half of it. I had no appetite plus with no lunch and a meager breakfast of 3 Ritz crackers and a banana, I was not about to push myself to eat it all. After dinner we came back home and I rested and sat in minor pain. I asked to other elders to come over to help with a blessing. I am so grateful we have the priesthood restored to the earth again! I know that blessings are dependent on our faith.

Thursday: I slept great and woke up feeling amazing! I am so grateful for Priesthood blessings! We helped the other Elders clean up the old Elder's apartment then we had an appointment. After that we packed and headed out to Tucson. Part of our journey included stopping in a small farming community called Animas to get the truck of the Lordsburg Elders, it was going to be sold in Tucson and we would drive a different one back for them. We let them use our truck. REMEMBER THIS PART IT IS VERY IMPORTANT FOR LATER IN THE WEEK. We then drove to Tucson and got there safely. We had dinner with the Sardina family! A favorite family from my first area. We stayed with the South Zone Leaders, the fully Spanish zone.

Friday: We had a great meeting! MLC was really powerful with all the trainings. We had dinner then planned for our zone meeting.

Saturday: We were almost attacked/charged by a Javelina this morning! It was crazy and scary but also funny! We started our drive back to Deming. We drove up to the Gila Valley to go to the Temple. Andrew leaves for his mission soon and he invited us to come too. The Temple is a very special place. We all wear white. As missionaries, we do not wear our name tags. As we were waiting for the session, a coordinator woman approached us and asked if we were the missionaries that walked in, we said yes. She said that there would be an elderly gentleman with a walker and very limited mobility. As the session started we saw that we were the only young men, besides Andrew but it was his first time. Throughout the session we would go help the older gentleman with his things then we would go back to our spot to do the things we needed to do. It was a very special reminder of my calling as a missionary, to serve. It was also interesting to see that the Temple is still available for those whose bodies are failing them. Their spirits are still strong but the body may not be so. We also heard thunder during the session and remembered that my luggage bag was in the bed of the truck... We then had lunch with a member in the Valley that we both knew and that Elder Elton served around. Then we drove back. We wanted to switch trucks back with the Lordsburg Elders but they were too far away and busy. We returned to Deming and had a lesson with a man named Reyes. He knows so much! We almost think he is a less active member that is just punking us. We visited Oscar for a bit then got to our apartment at 9pm. We then realized that WE DID NOT HAVE OUR KEY! So we drove the hour out to Lordsburg, put all the missionary supply stuff (commissary) from the car we drove into our truck, then drove the hour back home. We got home at 11:15pm.

Sunday: My back, eyes, and head hurt a ton from driving. Church was good though and we had a good time in the lessons. After church we quickly visited with Daniel and Maneli before dinner. After dinner we did some planning then we visited with Alfredo and talked about family responsibilities.

This week was full of ups and down! Hope you are all doing well! Just get back up and rely on our Savior Jesus Christ.

A Javelina just frolicking through the apartment complex. No big deal. This was in Tucson. He charged at the missionaries we were staying with so we ran inside.