Monday, June 22, 2009

Today we’re at an internet place that doesn’t like my camera too much, so no pictures this week, lo siento!

The question was asked about food I normally eat here. Apparently in this area I’m in right now there isn’t as much meat as there usually is, so I have a ton of noodles in a spaghetti type sauce and always with bread. They love their bread, that’s for sure. I once had this stuff that had the consistency of applesauce and looked like it too, but tasted like, well I don’t really know, but it had nothing to do with apples. It was kind of like grits, but I enjoyed it. Also they love to boil vegetables. They are really good and really filling.

They always have soda and I mean always. They don’t drink anything but soda and mate. Mate is this drink that is hot and they put this ground down plant and sugar in this cup with a straw type thing. I can’t remember what it’s called right now but it filters the pant so it is just the water, but they drink it all of the time. They drink it in the morning, for lunch, for dinner and in between for when people are over and even when they aren’t. If there was anything that is or could be identified with Argentinians, it would be mate.

There is this other sweet stuff too that is called dulse de leche or directly translated sweet of milk or sweet milk. It is amazing! It is on anything and everything bad for you hahaha. Sometimes I’ll take some crackers and put some dulse de leche on it. It is kind of like caramel but thinner and tastes way better (I am a bit biased in that I don’t like caramel very much). Well that just about covers the food question.

I was also asked about the laundry. I was told before I went out that I might need to do my laundry in a bucket. Well, happily it is very convenient here. We just show up, give it to them, and someone who does it for a living will do it all really nice, I might add, and really inexpensively. Just 20 pesos (a little over $5) for two weeks of laundry.

I heard that the youth worked hard selling asparagus this weekend to raise funds for their summer activities. I’m glad it was successful and especially for the learning the principles of hard work and gratitude. There’s nothing like hard work to make you appreciate more what you have. Here in Argentina, some missionaries will get to serve in an area called Mar Del early in their mission and they will get tons of baptisms. Then after that, they begin to think that they don’t have to work too hard in the Lord’s other vineyards. But you always need to work hard.

I really feel for Shane not being able to go on the trek. I believe of all the stake youth activities I participated in, that it was probably my favorite. I made me again appreciate so many things.

Not too much else is going on right now. My companion didn’t really want to work this week. So whenever I actually got him out of the house he just would go to member’s homes and talk for a long time. So I get a lot of study time because of him and I’ve been reading Jesus the Christ which is the most amazing book. I love hearing about the Savior especially in that detail because now as I read the New Testament, it makes so much more sense! My testimony has been strengthened because of that book!

My dad shared an experience he recently had that again demonstrated the power that the Spirit can have. I also would say that the spirit is incredible, no doubt. Whenever I have the spirit, I can speak Spanish good enough to get my ideas across, which is nice. I just need to work on getting it strong enough to do that all of the time.

Love You All!

Elder Sands