August 9th Weekly Letter

Hello Everyone. I have a lot to tell you. I have had quite the week here. It is great to hear from everyone. Your emails and fotos keep me going out here. It reminds me i still have a loving family and that im not forgetton. Thank you for that. I cant wait to see you all. But for now i will keep working and learning and growing :)

I forgot to mention that i got to train the new group of missionaries that came in. We gave some presentations and what not on how the mission works. It was fun. The new group is solid. But we ate lunch with president and it was a great time.

Ok. well this week. ummm. we ahve been working more in the area. We have found a new investigator. She is 23 and has 3 kids but she is super cool. She listens and knows its good but has trouble with her commitments to go to church and read. She is praying which is good. But also we have been to the hospital for my comps leg still. I think we are done going now.....i hope. 

Ok. well lets see. where do i begin this crazy week. monday and tuesday we prepared everything for the consejo de lideres that we have every month for the zone leaders and hermana training leaders. But so we gave a presentation in that meeting about the new re integros form and what not but you wont understand. Then we had lunch with them and thats the picture im in. After the consejo, we went to a late lunch because we forgot we had a lunch that day as we are just starting to eat with members again. but we ate again and i almost puked i was so full but they were mad we were so late at the beginning. By the end of our message we shared they asked us to come saturday today for another lunch. We already had other plans so next week better. By this time after the meeting and lunch, the rest of the leaders of the zones and sister leaders got out of the meeting and all starting booking it to the office i got about 20 calls in 5 minutes. We got back to the office and a tornado had hit with missionaries. Everyone was inside asking me question after questions and it was NUTS. But by the end i helped everyone with what they need and got them out of there. But it was wrecked after they left, the bolsa room.

After that at about 6 pm, we went to pay the sister who made the lucnhes for the meeting. Apparently she came to the office while we were at lunch and got offended and went home crying or balling as they said. So we went to visit her and see what happened. We payed her and turns out she was stressed and that someone told her we had no money so....ya but its ok now. 

After paying the hermana, we waited at the casa grande for the assistants to come back with the truck. We waited about an hour and finally they showed up. At 7 pm we loaded up the rest of the bunk beds from the casa grande because we are getting out of it and moving, and had to take bunk beds to the hermanas pension. So us 4 went and unloaded the beds at the sisters place. It was a little strange seeing an hermanas apartment....and being in there while they weree.....but it was good and we put 3 bunkbeds in the pension. We had to put them through the windows as there was no other way to do it. I will send picturees. Then we went home and that was the day. 

The next morning, Thursday we just started working in the office at 9 like normal when elder furlanich called me. He was out doing tramites at the migrations office with 6 hermanas. He called me and said the banks are all on paro. or on strike kind of. So none are open. He said we had to go right now to picke them up and go to plottier to pay the tramite. Plottier was the only place that you can pay during the paros. SO. we took the corolla and went to migrations and went to plottier. On the way, about 3/4 of the 20 minute drive, we see police in the street and a pile of tires burning and a bunch of crazy people running around......A company in plottier was on strike and they cut the highway off.....So we couldnt enter plottier by car. We drove right up to the line of guys and said hey come on just let us in we just need to pay tramites, and they said VAYAN! So we thought of a plan to get in. I dropped Furlanich and Castillo off to go into plottier walking and they did. They just walñked right past and through the line of crazy guys. i was a little nervous for them.....but hey went in anyways. We then went to wait for them to return. About 5 minutes in, we decided to go find a way in and we did. We found a dirt road that went to the middle of nowhere but eventually we got into plottier. Then we found the 2 elders who paid the tramite and returned on the same dirt road. I will also send pictures of the adventure. 

We get back and i had tons to do in the office. I got to see some of my best friends in the mission. From the MTC, bariloche, etc. They had to wait in the office until 6 pm to go on their bus back to their areas. you can only do tramites here in the capital. But they all helped me do the bolsas and stuff. It was great. After, we went to our pension and visited a few people. Then traveled back to stay at the casa grande. We got some pizza and then played monopoly until 11 30 becasue i had to take the assistants to the bus terminal at midnight to go on exchanges in Zapala. So we did that. Got homwe and went to bed at 1. Then woke up at 5 to take elder rodriguez to the termianl back to his area. Then we got up and made it to the bank at 8 pm. waited in 2 hours of fila, or the line, and the check we prepared was rejected because it was written bad or something....but then we went back to the office, then back to  the bank and payed it. Then we went o pick up some office supplies we desperately needed for president. Then we poicked up our lunch. Then i got back to the office and prepared all the bolsas to be shipped out. We had lunch with president and it was Elder Arnaudins Birthday. He is the old matrimonio missionaries. He and his wife. They are from Buenos aires, But then after lunchi sent the bolsas out and at 3 pm. we had out zone training meeting. It was good. from 3 to 6. Then we rushed after looking for a taxi for an hour to get to a noche de hogar that we had with a family. 

SIDE STORY: the bus system is also on strike here becasue something with the banks....but so everyone was using taxis this is why it was hard to get a taxi. I waved one down in the street and we got in and rushed to our appointment. 

We then arrived wt the family home evening to find 3 new investigators. Only one of them really listened but it turned out great. We shared how we cant follow satan and Jesus at the same time. And how eventually we have to choose. It hit her pretty hard and she is coming to our activity today at 4. Were going to play games and make Tacos. But that was the night. 

Now im here on p day and we actually have no p day probably. I want to get a haircut but we have no way to do it today. Im sorry if some thigns made no sense im taking very fast.

A little of what i have learned this week is that if we want to have success and be happy we have to be willing ot make sacrifices. For every goal there is always a sacrifice. Its a lot easier to do things when we think of our perfect example in Jesus Christ and how he gave the ultimate sacrifice to us so that we can have eternal life. We are always in debt. We need to always repent. And if we can just do our best we should have nothing to worry about.

Love you all i will send pictures now!!! ;o 

Elder Westensee