¡Oh Que Rico!

Hey Family,

Everything is still good here. No problems since we last talked. It was way good to talk to you guys. I`m glad you all had a good Christmas Break and Christmas. Well I guess it's still Christmas break there I guess. It's still hot here believe it or not.

Well this week my highlight was......... Receiving your package!!!!! Ha yeah I got it the day after Christmas. It was waayyy awesome. Literally it was everything I needed haha. 

The scriptures are perfect. I'm glad it's a quad so that`s good. I'm probably going to send my old scriptures home because I don't want to lug them both around and I'm using my old case for my new ones. It's not too expensive so whatever. Just put them away with all my stuff. 

Everything was really awesome too. My comp loved his stocking and I kept hearing from the other room ¡Oh Que Rico (Oh, how delicious)! The dog thing is funny (we sent him an ultrasonic whistle that emits a sound to keep dogs away) and actually works pretty well. Yeah so thanks for everything. I also got a bunch of letters so thanks to everyone for those!! Yeah so Mom you can calm down the package was all there with the Drugs...oh I mean Hot Chocolate and everything. (Okay, an explanation about the drug reference. Eric didn't get his package in time for Christmas. Brenda was discouraged about it and wondered if she shouldn't have sent the homemade hot chocolate mix - a powder - as part of the package. She was concerned that authorities could have mistaken it for some kind of drugs initially.)

Other than that this week was kinda slow. Oh well it`s still really good here and we just got a bunch of new investigators from references from members. So we definitively have our work cut out for us. One though I'm not sure is interested cause we came by and he said sorry I don`t have time I'm listening to music haha. So we'll see. 

We also had my baptism! I had to say it twice though. It wan`t my fault though!! I asked his name and he told me. When I used what he told my and finished the whole thing the Bishop stopped me. Apparently on the paper his name was different. So I ended up having to use the name on the paper which was weird...not the name he said was his so whatever. 

Afterwards I got baptized too!! The plug was broken so I had to get in and fix it haha. Oh and I realized we're really spoiled in the states. We have nice warm water in the fonts but here it`s freezing!! Oh well that's not important I guess. Other than that nothing really happened that I can remember. I basically told you everything on the phone.

Thanks again for the awesome package and all the candy. The ties are awesome. I was really excited for that third tie until I opened it and realized it was just service gloves....psh. Ha oh well I'll probably use them and they're really nice. I could have used them awhile ago when we dug fence posts and I got a blister on everyone of my fingers. And who knows I'll probably use them mostly for goalie gloves when we play soccer. Alright thanks everyone.

HAPPY NEW YEAR TODOS!!

Merry Christmas!

It kinda stinks that I didn't get your package but oh well. I got the one from Aunt Angie so thank you soooo much! It`s really weird it`s Christmas Eve already. Tomorrow besides talking to you guys I`m not doing anything. Today though apparently my comp scheduled 4 dinner appointments and so we`re going to try and do that....But yeah it should be fun. I really want that snow!! It`s really hot right now and snow looks way nice. I've never missed snow and cold before but Curtis enjoy it while you can. I also miss all the Christmas food. Here it`s just the same eggs beans and tortillas. But hey we can call them Tortillas de Navidad. 

Well as this week goes it was alright. It was a lot of the same stuff. Just teaching people and contacting. That`s always good though. The other Elder`s had their Christmas Dinner in the ward and they invited us. We found out the only reason they invited us though is so we could sing with them in front of everyone. I've just kinda got used to that now though. We have to sing like everywhere. 

Oh yeah also the kid with a baptismal date had his interview this week and is going to be baptized this Saturday!! And he told our District Leader he wants me to do it!! So it will be my first baptism ever. I'm really excited. Mostly because that means I probably won`t have to confirm him. It's going to be awesome. 

We also got a fecha with a girl who we've been teaching for awhile. She`s going to be baptized the 13th of January and she came to Church this week. She has a friend who is already a member but inactive. I'm thinking we might get them both to come to church but I guess we`ll see. 

I forgot to mention this Sunday an older man came to church with one of our members. He has been reading the Book of Mormon and wants to get baptized! Ha yeah so that`s really cool too. We haven't taught him yet but I'm thinking he`ll be pretty open to the Gospel. I swear we need to contact more to replace all these investigators we're baptizing. Haha ok just kidding but talking about contacting I got dad's letter today about his advice and yeah that's a good idea. We`ll have to try that more. 

Also tell Grandma that I'm getting her letters. Well I think. If dad is still writing me every week I don`t know because I only got one today. I guess the Guatemalan mail system is just really bad. Oh well I'm sure I'll get them eventually. Well that`s pretty much my week. nothing insane happened...Oh well that I can tell you guys hahaha.

Ok well I just want to say thanks to everyone who has sent me a letter and say MERRY CHRISTMAS!! Have fun in the states where Christmas means so much more than just Fireworks at 12 tonight. It actually means something of significance. 

Ok well that's everything. I can`t wait to talk to you guys tomorrow! I hope you like your new area Briana and tell Herrmana. Longoria I say hi from Guatemala. That really is weird she is your companion. (Eric was with Briana's companion while he was in the MTC.) Oh also have fun in Disneyland. Bye everyone and enjoy the holiday`s without me!! :)

The Good Life in Zacapa, Guatemala

Gorgeous night view of Zacapa from Eric's apartment balcony

Hello family. It has been good here in Zacapa. It's a weird feeling it being December and all but still using short sleeves and sweating every day. I definitely kinda miss snow but hey only two winters here so not too bad. It`s weird my first change is already over. I was only a five week one though but still it was fast.

Well this week was a good one I would say. We did divisions (companion exchanges), and me and Elder Tuckfield and survived!! We taught a couple of good lessons to new investigators and they seemed to go really good. We were able to answer all their questions and everything so I`m happy with it. The one thing is I definitely like my area much better than his. It`s far away and even hotter cause there`s no shade anywhere. Oh and none of the streets are paved. Oh well. 

This week was our Christmas devotional too. The President came and we watched a slide show and stuff. It was pretty cool. This week we had our first baptism! It was really good....Well OK, no one showed up for an hour and she forgot extra clothes to change into so she had to run back home, and by run I mean walk really slow cause her leg isn't the best apparently. But it ended up being really good I think. People showed up and it was good. 

Eric's response to mom - she asked why his bed wasn't made in another pic

Later that night was the ward Christmas dinner. The food didn't show up for a really long time and so me, my comp, and two other missionaries had to try to fill the time just by talking about Christmas experiences and stuff. It was interesting but ended up being pretty good. The food finally showed up and we had two new investigators there who seem pretty interested. One that night how he could become a missionary! Pretty cool. 

Alright Sunday was the worst. OK it wasn't terrible but it was interesting. We went up to confirm her and I was told that the Bishop was probably going to do it. But when he asked her who she wanted to do it she looked right at me and said "Èl" (Him). I kinda freaked out but luckily I had kinda practiced the first part before. But it was really hard when I did the blessing part because I've never even done one in English. Now I had to do one in Spanish in front of the entire ward. 

Well all I can say is it was kinda short and wasn't the best probably but all that matters is I did the first part right. That day we had a lesson with one of our other investigators and got another Baptismal date! It`s for the 29th this month and I definitely think he`ll be ready. I`m excited but I`m just hoping I don`t have to confirm again.

The Elders ran into Santa and this off-limits elf

That night me and my comp got a picture with a street Santa which was funny. I`ll send the picture. He wasn't expecting the elf to put her arm around him so his face is kinda funny.

Oh yeah I completely skipped a part. Sunday after church we went to a funeral for someone who had died in another ward. The service was good but after was weird. Everyone went outside and then we all slowly walked down the street behind the car with the casket all the way to the cemetery  I guess that`s normal here cause no one seemed too mad when we completely backed up traffic for really far. I don`t think we could get away with that in the States. The graveyards here are different too. No one is buried but they have all these house looking things that they`re put in. It`s kinda cool but literally looks like a neighborhood that is really really religious. Well that was pretty much my week.

I haven`t gone to the city or anything and no one has brought packages. So I have no idea if it has gotten here. I should get it this week though but we`ll see. I was told we got them at the Christmas devotional but no one got anything cause no one brought them. The easiest way to call is I`ll probably call Christmas eve real quick just to get a time. On Christmas I`ll call again just to let you know I can but then you need to call me back on that number cause it`s really expensive here. Hope that works. Why didn't you do cool gingerbread things when I was at home?!?! psh whatever just save all the fun for Curtis haha. 

Christmas here is definitely different. A lot of people do decorate their houses though which is cool. Even our building has a bunch of lights on it. I haven`t seen a nativity really but I think they`re probably normal. The different thing is a lot of people think Christmas is the 24th because they stay up all night that night and then at midnight they do a ton of fireworks. The fireworks are super cheap her and super big so there`s a lot. Every night we get a show haha. Well that`s about it. I`ll give you some pictures which are pretty cool.    

At the Chapel

Holy cow since when does our ward do missionary work?! OK just kidding but that's crazy there was seven confirmations in one Sunday (plus another one earlier in the week).

Elderes Alvarado y Layton

Oh and that's insane Katie is going on a mission! I never would have thought but that's awesome. And Brazil too. Well seems like a lot is going on in our ward which is cool.

Just in case you forgot what they looked like from this angle

So Zacapa was about 4 hours away by bus. Not too bad but definitely not a trip we can make every P-day. I think we get to go back to the cap this week or maybe next. I really want to but oh well we'll see.

Not sure, but this may be the chapel and font in Zacapa

Tomorrow through Wednesday I'm going on my first divisions (companion exchanges - the word is "divisiones" in Spanish). It`s with another North American who is being trained Elder Tuckfield. And it's in his area so I'm going to be completely lost. Oh well should be fun. 

Nothing super special happened this week. We had a lot of meetings for some reason every day so we didn't  have a lot of time to do stuff. We had interviews with the President here and that was good. We were at the chapel all day waiting to have them but we didn't really have a choice. That day we really didn't t do anything. Hmmm well really nothing else that sticks out. We had a dinner in Chiquimula last week for a thanksgiving Christmas combination thing but we have another Christmas one coming up which will be fun. 

 Well I can't think of anything else really. I`ll be on for another half hour if anyone is out there. Tell Sean good luck for me if you talk to him (Sean's going into the Air Force tomorrow) and tell Curtis to get out of my bed.

Also I was going to use Skype for Christmas but apparently if I do we only get 40 minutes to talk cause there's only one computer with a camera. So I`ll probably call. Well bye family and have a good week.

First Baptism

Elder Layton with 2 companions in the Guatemala CCM

All right this week was kinda insane. Hmmm where to start. Well how about here. I got my first baptismal date! And like Briana it's on the 15th of December. 

Her name is Hermana Consuelo and her husband was a member before he died. We have been teaching and she always comes to church. We taught her about the temple and eternal families and after that she really wanted to be baptized. 

I'm not actually doing it but my comp. I also think we'll have maybe three more this month but I guess we'll see. I'm way excited for it. 

We contacted a lot this week and didn't have any success. Most everyone here is either Catholic or Evangelico. Basically everyone believes in God but we don't get in to teach a lot of lessons. We do have a good amount of investigators so we still teach a lot of lessons to them. 

We're not sure if this was taken in Guatemala City or in Zacapa

OK what else this week. Oh yeah don't freak out mom or anything but I got pretty sick haha. It was kinda fun. OK well not at the time. I kinda threw up in the streets of Zacapa. It was actually pretty funny. I think a bunch of people thought I was drunk...Oh well we can find them later and teach them the Word of Wisdom. Well that was Saturday and I'm almost better now. I still don´t have an appetite but oh well I'm fine. 

I swear mom if you write the First Presidency or something about this just cause I told you you won't ever hear good stuff again. 

OK well Sunday was good too. It was testimony meeting and I think our investigators really liked it. Oh yeah and I had to lead the music. It really wouldn't t have been that bad but there isn't a piano or anything so I had to sing the first part of the song by myself to the whole congregation!! Well by whole congregation I mean like 50 people but still. Ugh it was worse then the throwing up... OK maybe not. Well I survived believe it or not. Did I ever tell you our Bishop is only about 25 years old_ Yeah it's weird but he's a really cool guy. He's about as tall as dad and knows a little English. Yep fun fun...what else.

Eric's Fish Dinner with Rice, Tomatoes/Cucumbers and Lime

Oh the food here is actually pretty good. Nothing is too weird and actually it's not way different. The weirdest thing was the fish which there is a picture of. I was actually really really good but still had everything on it. Other then that we just eat chicken beans rice and eggs. Oh yeah and the only thing I hate is the cheese here, blech. (I think he's talking about a hard, dry white cheese called cotija. If that's what it is, he'll learn to love it. MMMMMM!) 

Also Dad I eat Pan Dulce all the time. It's great. That and Pan Galleta. Yummy. But really the food isn't as different as I thought it was going to be. And here's the lame thing. The only time I tried to eat something American I think that´s what made me sick. I had cereal and milk and I think the milk was bad or something which is weird cause it was the first time I had opened it. Maybe cause they never refrigerate it something happened. Well I don´t know, I'm kinda scared to eat more of it cause I have a ton...

That's awesome Curtis was in the Christmas parade. I laughed really hard at his picture in the uniform though. No offense to you Curtis I just remember how much I hated those uniforms. Glad to hear the store is going well and Dad's doing good too. OK well I got nothing else...Thanks for the letters everyone.

First Report From Zacapa

All right just a warning right now. This e-mail isn`t going to be very long because I have my pictures coming. There are a good amount so it might take a few e-mails. But hey usually it won`t have this many to send all at once.

View from Zacapa Apartment

OK this week was good. We taught a lot of lessons and contacted into a couple of people. It`s kinda hard here actually to commit people to things. Most people work on Sundays or live really far away so it`s hard. Well we`re still trying. This week the other Elders had a baptism so we got to go to that. It was really good. They had their wedding right before it too. We still don`t have any baptismal date or anything but we might get one in the next couple weeks. Our investigators are good but we don`t have one man. It`s kind of weird but we just have single women and their families. I hope we get some more this week. We definitely walk a ton. Probably 10 miles a day. I don`t know though. My shoes are 100% fine. Well besides the fact they are pretty dirty. I shine them and then the next day they`re filthy again. Oh well if I ever go to the city it`s not like that there. Hmmm what else. I haven`t got sick here. There have been a couple times where my stomach kinda hurt but not really. Apparently I`m definitely going to get sick at some point but I hope to break the tradition.

The Plaza

 This year I kinda forgot Thanksgiving. Yeah it wasn`t until someone asked me what black Friday was (because they saw it in the newspaper) that I realized the day before was Thanksgiving. Oops. They don`t do anything special for it here but I was expecting that. Christmas is going to be a party though. I can`t wait to get my package and eat all the candy. Oh yeah and thanks for sending another (copy of his patriarchal) blessing. It`s kinda a pain that I left it but oh well I`ll survive  It`s weird I`ve been out for 2 weeks already.

Elders Layton y Alvarado

OK for more details. We have familia _________ but the Mom can`t come to church cause she works and this is the family where the kids only come cause the 14 year old is in love with my comp. They like having the lessons I think but they`re not really progressing. Not exactly sure what we`re going to do but we`ll figure it out.

At the Guatemalan CCM

Lilian _______ lives really far from church and so doesn`t come. She likes the lessons a ton though and I think we might be able to get her to come. We haven`t been teaching her very long and I think she`s pretty receptive.

First Area of Zacapa

Hermana ________ is basically doing everything she needs to. Well she can barely read and so it`s hard for her to read the Book of Mormon. It takes her almost 3 minutes to read a verse but she tries. It`s good. She has come to church too and has a ton of questions so we just need to keep teaching.

District in the Provo MTC

Those are probably our three main ones. It`s fun here. Oh yeah I should probably mention, because we are 4 hours from the capital I only get mail every 6 weeks. So I won`t be able to respond to anything really. This month I might get it sooner cause in 2 weeks we go to the capital so all the newbies can have another interview with the President. OK well I have to go and start sending pictures. These pictures are kind of mixed up so sorry I can`t tell you exactly what each one is. Some are in Provo with my District and some friends in our zone, some are in the CCM, some are the view from our house, and others are a veiw of our entire area. The ones that are kinda a desert looking thing, that`s in Pueblo Modelo, 5 miles out of Zacapa where we walk to all the time....Alright bye, And Briana HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

If You Followed His Finger to the Left & Slightly Up, You'd End Up Close to My First Area in Acapulco, Mexico

What Is a Big Wet White Guy Doing at My Doorstep?

Well hello family,

How goes it? As you can see by this e-mail I will now be e-mailing on Mondays. So yeah same as Briana...I think. 

Well this week has been kinda crazy. We went to the chapel in Guatemala City right after we left the CCM for changes. I was told that all new people are trained in the City and so I was kinda relieved because I have heard all these horror stories about a place called Zacapa because it`s so incredibly hot. So I was feeling good that day until the slide for Zona Zacapa came up. So here I am in the hottest part of Guatemala for my first area (The only newbie outside of the Capital). Don't worry it`s the coldest part of the year right now so it only gets to about 95....with about 90 percent humidity.

Zacapa, Guatemala

Oh yeah and I should also point out we have one of the biggest areas in the mission. And we don't take buses anywhere cause there aren't any like in the Capital. Oh well it has been fun. We have a big chunk of the city and then also a little Pueblo called Pueblo Modelo. It`s about 5 miles out and everyone there is pretty poor. It`s a lot easier to get in houses there though. It's going to be really hard for anyone there to go to church because it's really far away and church is early. 

Pueblo Modelo

Zacapa is actually pretty cool. There`s about 3 motorcycles for every car and usually you will see 3, 4, or even sometimes 5 people on one moped. It's cool! That`s what I want to do with my family after my mission. Ok maybe not. I have a feeling back in the states that wouldn't be something they would let us do. Oh well.

My first week we did a lot of contacting. We don`t really have that many investigators and none are ready for baptism yet. We've taught a lot of lessons in Pueblo Modelo but not a ton in the actual city. We have one family here that takes the lessons but the Mom can never come to church because she works. I think really the only reason two of the kids came this week is because the 14 year old girl is basically in love with my trainer. It`s pretty funny. 

Oh yeah I should mention that my Trainer`s name is Elder Alvarado from Hondurus. He's pretty great. So I will be with him for at least 12 weeks in this area maybe longer. He doesn't really speak much English but a little I guess. He`s been out for 10 months now.

We have a comedor where we go and eat. It's just at a members house and it's actually really good food. I haven't eaten like anything I don`t like. We eat two meals a day with her usually breakfast and lunch. We're on our own for dinner but lunch here is huge so I'm never really hungry or anything. She also washes all our clothes so it's super nice. I really don`t have to do anything besides walk around everywhere sweating. That`s probably why people don`t let us in a ton. Their first thought has got to be, "What is a big wet white guy doing on my doorstep?" 

Oh if you haven't noticed there aren't any pictures on this e-mail...yeah that`s cause I kinda forgot my camera in the apartment. Oops sorry. The blog will have to be boring for one more week. Unless I forget it next week too then it will be boring for two more weeks!! Hahaha ok I won't do that. I have some good pictures I think. You will see. The easiest way to send will just be using my cord. If I can find it. I think I will be able to. Well I hope. But even if I couldn't I could send some next week. 

Hmm what else, oh my apartment is pretty nice actually. It`s really small with only two rooms. One is with the "kitchen" and our desks. The other is for our beds. We also have a balcony cause we`re on the third floor. It`s awesome cause every night we just kinda chill out there and watch all the drunk people come out of one of the three close bars. The temperature is always perfect at night so we just kinda sit out there and listen to the nice Mariachi music. I`m definitely in a Central American country. It`s fun. 

Hmmm what else in our apartment. Oh yeah we have a shower that`s freezing cold. You might think that here in Zacapa that`s not too bad because it's hot but not in the mornings! Showers here are terrible. I want to die every time I take one haha. Oh well I'll get used to it maybe. Apparently in the Capital some showers have hot water and some are even colder so we'll see what I get if I ever go there. 

Well I miss you guys kinda I guess...oh and I miss my bed a ton! Ha just kidding I probably miss you guys a little more than my bed but I'm not quite sure about that yet. The beds here aren't too bad. Better then that time when you made me sleep on that trundle bed for what seemed like forever. They're just twins obviously but pretty comfortable. 

OK well I don't really got anymore to say and I'm about out of time. Oh yeah last thing. I may or may not have left my nice little laminated patriarchal blessing in the CCM...So yeah if you could get me another one that would be cool. Definitely don't want to go my whole mission without it. I think I have a copy at home so you should be able to. OK Well have a good week and don't be too sad without me. I know it has got to be pretty hard haha. OK bye.   

Last Letter From the MTC

This week was pretty awesome. It was my last full week and I leave on tuesday ! I can´t wait. Well we went proselyting again and it was pretty good. We were in a little richer part so everyone had homes indoors and everything. We didn't really have that much success cause we mostly talked to less active members which was annoying. We did get into one house and we were really excited to teach until we looked up on the wall and saw tons of the classic Mormon pictures. It was funny. She was a really strong member of the church and before we could say anything she left us in her house and went and bought us juice. Then she kept insisting she fed us but we had to let her know we weren't "real" missionaries and had to get back to the CCM soon. It was fun though. She showed us all these pictures of her baptism and stuff. Hmmm what else? 

Oh yeah so you guys heard about the earthquake. Yeah it was insane buildings were falling down and stuff!! Alright not really I just said that to bug my teacher. We did definitely feel it though. We were on the top floor of the building and suddenly everything started shaking pretty good. Apparently it was a 7.4 near the coast of Mexico. It´s sad though cause apparently 14 or 15 people died (actually the news this morning reported that at least 52 people have died). Yeah nothing actually scary happened here just a little shaking.

Other than those two things this week has pretty much been normal. Yesterday we were in field workshops all day and they were extremely boring. Oh well only a couple days to go. Mom 

I wanted to give you the address apparently you need to send letters and packages because I´m not quite sure if the one you have is right. [A.P. 340-A Guatemala C.A. Guatemala 01001] Yeah so just make sure that´s right on the blog and bulletin  

Well I´m glad Curtis is doing well in school. Just so you guys know I´m going to be browner than him when I get back. It is going to be hot here...unless I´m in the city which I might be. Just a couple more days and I´m free! Well not really but I´ll be in the field ha ha. Alright good luck with everything at home (and in California) I´ll see you guys in 22 months, unless I decide to stay here cause all of America is on fire...

I'm Mitt Romney and I Approve This Message

Yeah I´m not counting down or anything but I have only ten days left in the MTC until I find out my first area and companion! I can't wait but I do really like it here still. It´s weird cause yesterday we got our ninth week schedule and there is all of our field workshop's on it.

I can't wait to leave and actually start teaching real people! We get to go contacting again on tuesday but this time with no Latino companions. I will just be with my normal companion the whole time and we´ll just have to try to stumble our way through messages. 

I´m not sure what area we'll go to this time. Apparently there´s places here a lot poorer than the last one so maybe we'll go there. 

That´s cool you guys had a good halloween. Here we went pretty much as crazy as you could go as missionaries. I wore a orange tie and Elder Steed wore a black tie. Yeah I know nuts right? 

This week nothing really special happened besides being the AP. The president is really cool. He is from the States and oh yeah haha this is funny he lived in Bend for a long time and knows some people like Max Williams, the Larsons and some others I can't remember. Every interview with him I find out someone new. It´s pretty funny. 

Hmmm what else. I´m glad Briana is doing good. That´s too bad that guy hasn't come to church. I bet that´s pretty hard. But that´s also cool about the lady who stopped you. I can't wait to be in the field and do stuff like that. Also I'm glad Romney is still doing good. 

I heard about the hurricane. That crazy. It hit New York right? I wonder if I'll ever be in a hurricane here. That would be awesome but at the same time terrible. 

But I can't stop thinking about the election! It´s this week! My next letter the first thing better be the winner. Unless it´s Obama then just forget it cause our lives are over anyway. 

Ok I seriously don't have very much to write about because this week was basically all classes. On letters I've started putting the address for my mission home cause they say it takes about 12 days to get here so any sent from this point on should go there. Crazy right? 

(,,,in response to Brenda's letter...) Hmmm for Christmas what do I want? I thought about asking you to send me some new English Scriptures. I really should've got new ones before cause they're pretty old but I don't think so. I doubt you would be able to anyways and hopefully I'll get to the point when I'm mostly reading Spanish anyway. But I just definitely need candy. Hmmm what else, yeah I don't really need anything so it´s hard to think of stuff. Well I guess surprise me because I can't think. That´s weird you have to send it so early. People have gotten packages here in like two weeks or less. 

I'll have a lot to say in my next email probably. I hope your jobs are going well. Is Curtis enjoying High School and Band? He better be. That´s weird he didn't go trick or treating. Oh well as long as he had fun. Oh I just realized what I want for Christmas!! My cell phone! Don't worry I won't tell anyone. Ha ok just kidding but I got to be honest I kinda miss it.

Ok well I got to go. Give Romney my best wishes and all the luck I have haha. He better win or I might stay here after my mission. I actually bet that would help us get in some doors. Hmmmm actually maybe not here people might not know about him. Alright bye

Earthquakes and Gunshots???

Elder Layton and his companion, Elder Steed

¡Hola familia! I hope everything is going ok up in Oregon. Everything here is pretty much the same. All the people here when we got here though left and we got a ton of new people. For two days there were only 18 of us in the entire CCM.

So that´s why we got to go to the market. It was so much fun! We got to barter and everything and there was sooo much stuff there. I got a bunch of stuff that will help tracting for super cheap. 

Oh yeah also I guess I should tell you last week on Saturday night I got called to be the AP here for the whole CCM haha. I´m the only one for now but soon probably today or tomorrow he will call a Latino one as well. It´s been fun this week. 

I have to wake up early and open up the building just by turning on all the lights and unlocking all the doors. Then at night I turn them all off and lock all the doors. Oh yeah and re do the daily schedule board. I do other stuff too but so far those are the main things. It´s weird to think that as of Tuesday I only have two more weeks here. The time has gone crazy fast. But then again looking back on it, it seems like I've been gone for a really long time. 

I guess I should be missing you guys by now...hmmmm well I might get there eventually. There is one thing I miss! Politics!! I´m deprived aqui cause we still can´t talk about it. Oh well at least Romney did awesome in all the debates. 

Hmmmm what else happened this week... I taught a bunch more lessons that went really good. I don´t have a Spanish accent or anything psh I haven't been gone that long. But at this rate of learning I´m hoping to be able to speak most Spanish by Christmas when I call you. It´s crazy how fast I´m learning. It´s really fun to talk to all the Latinos every night when I´m here to close down the building. I'm starting to be able to understand them better and it´s fun cause they always ask me how to say things in English. 

I think on Monday through Wednesday I´m going to have a English fast. Basically where I can´t speak any English the whole day for three days. We will see if I do it. I´ve done it before and it helps a ton but it´s sooooo frustrating. I just can't wait to get out in the field though. 

Apparently I'm in the hottest mission and it gets to like 120 in some places. Great. If I´m in the city though the temperature is perfect. 

Oh here is my address for my mission home. They say it takes about 12 days to get letters here so it´s about time to start sending them to the mission home. And seriously I haven't got one handwritten letter since I've been here, come on everyone! Nah just kidding I don't care.[A.P. 340-A Guatemala C.A. Guatemala] I guess that´s the whole thing...That´s all it says here but double check it. 

I love the Dear Elders every week from Dad and Grandma. I wish I had time to answer more of their questions but well, I don´t. Oh yeah and the letters are in my room so I don't remember the questions, sorry. Well I hope everyone is doing OK. 

I'm sorry to hear about Brother Medeiros. That´s really sad. At least he had time to say goodbye and it wasn't immediate but still that´s sad.

I hope your work is going good, sounds like it is. Briana's work too. Glad you're teaching a lot of people. I can't wait to be a "real" missionary haha and have real investigators. Well no more time so I got to go. 

Oh yeah one last thing. I was in my first earthquake. And then my second. Apparently they are really common here but the sad thing was I didn't feel either even though somehow they were big. Also the gas station next to us got robbed and we heard gunshots :D Don't freak out though it was cool. OK bye.

A Home With No Chairs, No Walls and No Roof

MTC district

OK where do I start. I'm not really sure cause there´s a lot to talk about. I got to get it out of the way though. I'm so happy the debates are going well! That´s annoying about Biden. I never liked him but hey as a missionary I guess I have to say he´s an OK guy. Oh gosh I can't do it...I take that back. Also I'm glad to hear Romney is winning in the polls. I just got my ballot and voted for...yeah you guessed it Romney! I'll send it in on Monday.

I can't believe there was that Marijuana thing on it! Oregon is dumb sometimes but whatever it better not pass.

Alright as for my week it was awesome. As I told you guys on Tuesday we went proselyting. I went on splits with my Latino roommate Elder Olguin. He is the funniest guy ever and speaks pretty good English. We tracted in a big area and had like four hours.

The whole day I didn´t talk much but I could basically understand everything that could be said. If I didn´t know something I would just ask him. My Spanish has been coming along soooo much faster here than in Provo. We even had an English fast the next day and couldn´t talk any English at all the entire day! It was crazy hard but at the same time great.

Alright back to Tuesday. The highlight by far was a man we met holding a bunch of fruit and a machete. I can't remember his name because it was something super Guatemalan. We met him in this little alley thing and started talking. We would have been happy to just give a few pamphlets and maybe a Book of Mormon but he insisted that we come to his house. At the end of the alley there was a piece of plywood that he pushed aside into his house.

There were no walls or a roof. It was just outside. The floor was dirt and about five feet back there was just a drop off into the jungle. He didn't even have chairs for us to sit on so he turned over some buckets for us and put a rag on them so our pants wouldn't get dirty. Elder Olguin taught him an amazing lesson about the Restoration and the Book of Mormon. He really seemed to feel the Spirit and definitely wanted to learn more. We gave him a Book of Mormon even though it was kinda hard for him to read. He said he would definitely read it and we are going to have the "real" missionaries come by and talk to him.

As far as his house goes, I knew I was going to see poverty like that but it doesn't really sink in until you're in a house. It definitely was a humbling experience. Well that was definitely the highlight of my week but for the most part the week was just awesome. I'm not exactly sure where it went though because it seems like I was writing you guys two days ago.

The food here is good. I doubt it is anything like I´ll have in the field though. There´s a huge variety of stuff so it's hard to give you an idea of what I eat. Sometimes we eat Mexican type food and sometimes it's more American. It´s weird though because Every meal I have been here they but some type of sauce over it whether it´s eggs, steak, or burritos.There is a lot of meat every day which I'm happy with. More than I´ll probably eat when I'm out.

Oh and yeah I know Elder Campbell! He's cool. He lives pretty close to my and I already found out he´s from Bend. For some reason people here like Bend a lot because people keep asking what it´s like and stuff. OK well I'm glad Curtis is liking school. He must be going crazy to actually like High School but hey whatever. It's definitely a good idea to take health online. They're just a waste of time in school. Although health two was my favorite class. It was super easy and my three best friends were in it so we just kinda messed around. Hey I still got an A because it's pretty much impossible to not get one. And Briana I'm happy you're doing well! Good luck with the Spanish!

I can't wait till I can actually just teach. Well I'm out of time. This next Tuesday we get to go on a big tour of the City. After they take us to the Market which is three stories tall and is going to be awesome. Everything is super cheap here. The most I've spent is 100q...10 dollars and got a ton of stuff.

OK well I miss you guys and have fun watching the last debate without me. Just know my vote is on the way to tip the balance of the vote in Romney's favor.

Our Modern Day J Golden Kimball

A lifted picture from another mishy blog of the Guatemalan MTC

So here´s the the thing. Our Pdays are today so I´m usually going to write Saturdays. I guess they just let us email on Monday last week cause we didn´t have a pday thanks to General Conference. So yeah thanks for writing me! Nah just kidding, esta bien.

This past week was crazy fast. I´ve almost been here for two weeks. Crazy right?! This next Tuesday they let us out of the MTC to go out into the city. I will go on splits with a Latino and we have to place Book of Mormons! It is going to be awesome. We get to go tracting and stuff too for like four hours I think. Definitely couldn´t do that in Provo. It´s going to be hard but at least I´ll have a Latino with me to help out. Without one I think I would die. Next time we go it will just be me and Elder Steed though. That should be interesting. 

Well what happened this week?...Hmmm oh yeah I accidentally cussed in a lesson yesterday! It was a really good lesson and I tried to say something but I left off the first two letters and apparently in Guatemala it´s a really bad word. Ha oops guess I won´t make that mistake again. You should´ve seen my teachers face. I was sooo confused why she looked so surprised but afterwards she told us haha. Other then that nothing special happened since Monday. At least nothing I can remember. 

Desayuno Chapin

We taught a bunch of lessons and ate a bunch of weird food and that´s about it. Oh yeah one thing I do have to say. Good thing I´m here cause  Mom you might be tempted to come find, and kill me. I can´t send pictures from here. I have no idea why. They took all of our cameras and we´re not even allowed to have them except the day before we leave. Yeah kinda weird but I guess it´s for safety so they don´t get stolen by the people that work here. At least that´s what they said. So sorry Mom but I´ll definitely send some as soon as I get out...in 4 and a half weeks. 

I hope everything is going ok at home. Yesterday I got both of dads letters cause even Dear Elders take awhile to get here. So thanks for that they were awesome. I can´t believe you took Curtis to a Oregon game though!!!!!!! Not only that you skipped General Conference to do it! I am disappointed in you. (We ended up staying home, watching conference and we still got to watch the game that night. Eric can stop being disappointed.) Mostly because I wasn´t there to go...but for the conference thing too. I hope it was a good game cause Conference was awesome. I guess you saw it anyways though. A lot of people in my zone now have sisters who are going to go on a mission.

It´s so cool! Some people in my zone by the time they leave will have three people out from their family at the same time! Crazy Utah people and all their kids I guess. Oh yeah there was another thing I wanted to say before I ran out of time. I haven´t had time to write them back but Grandma and Grandpa wrote me awesome letter and just wanted to thank them. I re read them yesterday and I have the most awesome grandparents ever haha. Ok well without a letter to respond to I don´t really know anything else to say. 

But here is this places address in case you didn´t find it already. [Bulevar Vista Hermosa 23-71] [Vista Hermosa 1, Zona 15] [01015 Guatemala City] [Guatemala, C.A.] They say letters take about twelve days to get here so yeah....Ok out of time.

Hope you are all doing well and the house hasn´t fallen apart without me. Good luck Briana and I hope you are enjoying it there. Look for an Elder Brooks and Hermana Longoria. They were in my Provo zone and they left a couple weeks ago for your mission. Ok Got to go bye!

Los Nortes in the Guatemalan MTC

Ok well first off down here in Guatemala is crazy. The whole CCM is only Spanish so I don't understand a thing. Even the keyboards here are different so it´s hard to type. 

This week has been awesome. I feel like I'm learning a lot faster now and think I will be much better off than if I stayed in Provo. This week we actually get to go out street contacting on our own! It should be interesting. 

Yeah Mom the CCM is right in the city and it´s actually in my mission! Today we saw Elders walking past the gates that are in my mission. This city is huge. I can't wait to actually go out into it and place Book of Mormons. 

My favorite part of every day is the soccer here. It´s tons of fun playing with the Latinos. I actually score all the time haha. Everyone calls us Nortes it´s funny. The food is really good but definitely takes some getting used to. There is some mexican type stuff and then also some American food. With some of the things I have to force it down but I guess I better get used to it. Overall the food is really good. 

The schedule here is way more relaxed than Provo too! We have a lot more study time and in a couple weeks they are going to take us to a huge three story market and then to Wendys! I can´t wait haha. 

Hmm I can´t figure out how to start a new paragraph so I´ll just keep typing I guess (we edited his letter and added paragraphs before posting). Conference was crazy good! I got to watch it in English because over half the people here are Nortes. It´s soooo crazy about the age thing now. I never thought that would happen. I bet by the end of my mission there are a lot more than 2 Hermanas in my zone. 

I really liked all the talks. We watched every single one so it was really good. I also liked Elder Holland´s but I would have to say that one of the seventies was my favorite. 

I can´t remember his name. I'm so happy to hear about Romney! That´s hilarious!  Obama's best thing last time were the debates and looks like Romney has a good shot maybe. We don't really talk politics in the CCM and so I'm a little deprived and definitely like the updates so thanks. 

The weather here is awesome. Every day it´s a perfect temperature and it really hasn't rained that much. Yesterday we got our first big rain but even that only lasted about fifteen minutes. I kinda wished it lasted longer cause I didn't get to go in it. 

The one thing that is kinda lame here are the rooms. There are six people per room and only two closets. There aren't any desks and every person just gets one small drawer. So I pretty much just live out of my suitcase. We have a shower in our room but it´s tiny and we always have to hurry cause it´s only one shower per six people. We can´t drink tap water so it´s a pain to brush my teeth cause we have to go get other water. Hmmm oh yeah and we can never touch the floor with our bare feet or we'll get a weird fungus thing! It´s fun! Don't get me wrong I still really like it here and in three weeks we might be able to move to better rooms.

When we got here they completely reassigned companions and I got...the same one. Whatever though he´s cool and we'll have a fun last five weeks. Yeah only five more weeks here! Well that´s kinda a lot but it´s going by fast. I can't wait to get out and actually have my own apartment and start teaching real people. Well just about out of time.

Hope my email made sense even though I can barely type. I'll see you guys in two years! Well hey actually less.

Ya Se Va a Guatemala

Activity at the "Fuego" volcano just outside Guatemala City is increasing.

Ok so this week was pretty good. A lot happened and again it's hard to remember cause every day kinda seems the same. We had to teach a bunch of lessons all in Spanish of course. It's crazy hard but I'm kinda getting the hang of it I guess. Oh and I found out that Briana was in my zone before and all my teachers were hers. Brother Ridge went crazy when he realized we are related haha. All of our classes are really good but kinda long.

I love it here and everything but I'm definitely ready for a change of scenery. I leave tomorrow at 4:30. We get to LA around 9 so I'm not sure if I'll have time to call you from Salt Lake but I might. So if I don't call around 5:30 don't freak out. We have to fly all night too Mom! It's going to be rough in classes the next day but we'll get over it.

Yesterday we went to a departure devotional that was awesome. He said everyone going to Guatemala stand up and there was only like eight of us. It should be fun going to the CCM down there The devotional was all about what type of missionary we want to be and it was given by the MTC president, President Brown. We also had a fireside right after that was crazy good. It was on how people are converted to the Gospel and what they need to feel. It was by some guy whose name I don't remember so sorry...

Well I'm glad Curtis got a phone! That's pretty cool. Don't spend too much time on it little bro! It will rot your brain! Talking about phones that's kinda cool Brother xxxx got some of my talk on camera (check the video of his Sacrament Meeting talk, now located on the sidebar). That talk seems like it was forever ago! It seriously seems like you dropped me off at the airport like a year ago. But hey still only two years to go...

I can't believe Michael got called to Ecuador! That's awesome. I know a kid here going there and he's super excited. who knows maybe they will be companions. I also know a kid going to the Eugene Oregon mission so if our ward ever gets Elders again he might be in it. But who knows if he'll actually be in Bend. The Guatemala Guatemala City South Mission though I must say is the second best in the world, right after the Mexico City South Mission. (OK, I edited that part.) It's crazy I'm going to be there tomorrow late at night! This last week has flown by and tomorrow I'll be flown out of here.

Yeah Mom I got the package so thank you! I hope you actually didn't want me to save that candy for the plane cause, well I didn't. Oops. It will be too late to eat candy anyways so I ate it after the Hasta Ver (farewell) last night. It was pretty much a party, if you can imagine a bunch of Elders partying on Sunday. So it was really just eating food. Well I have to go but I hope you guys are all doing well. Later today I will send pictures but I can't on these computers so don't worry you should get some today. Not one by the map but I'll get that before I leave here. I miss you guys and hope Bend is alright without me. Buh Bye.    

Awesome Firesides and Cafeteria Food

I'm not exactly sure where to start. This week has been so long but at the same time it has been really good. All of the days kind of blend together because I'm just in class the whole time. 

We taught lessons this week and they seemed to go ok. Spanish is hard but I'm hoping it will come better in Guatemala. I only have a week left here! It's crazy! I got my travel plans a while ago and we fly to LA and then down to Guatemala. I can't wait. 

We had some awesome classes and some really awesome firesides. The one we had last night was amazing. He taught us all about our purpose and what the point of being here is. I'm so happy I'm here!

Today we went to the temple again and it was really good. I realized a few things I had never before. Even though it was kind of hard to stay awake I managed. The sleep schedule here isn't as nice as the one I had at home but hey after I write this I get to go take a nap! 

P-days are great. Usually I just read and this morning I finished the book Our Search for Happiness. It is an amazing book! I couldn't stop reading haha. I might read it again but I might just read Jesus the Christ instead. It's long so I guess I better get started. Our Search for Happiness is one I wish I would've known about before my mission. I could've used some of the stuff in it to explain to my friends what we believe. 

Tomorrow we have a devotional by another General Authority. Last week was a man from the seventy...I can't remember his name but he was incredible. Rumors are going around that we are due to have an apostle or one of the "Big 3" soon. I'm not so sure but I would love that.

Ok I'm just having a hard time remembering everything this week cause it all seems like one day. The food is well...Lets just say I'll be happy to get to Guatemala where they say it's amazing. 

In the cafeteria I ran into Jared George a couple times! I haven't seen him in forever. I also keep seeing him around campus so that's pretty cool. I love the yard signs you put out! I bet they all win just cause of them. 

Is Curtis liking band? He better be playing first trumpet in Winds by this point! It has already been a week. Also thanks Briana for the package! I liked the watermelon candy haha.

Well I guess that's all I have time for. I can't think of anything else. All my days seem kinda the same except P-days and Sundays. I hope all you guys are doing well and just by the way I kinda keep forgetting to take pictures. I never have my camera with me so sorry. I'll try to get some before I leave next to the map and stuff. 

Well I love you guys and miss you! I know the Church is true and the Book of Mormon was restored by Joesph Smith. I'm so happy to be here and can't wait to go out into the field and get working. This might be my last e-mail from here cause next Monday I might have an orientation thing before I leave but I'll call from the airport if you're lucky! Ha just kidding I will...Probably. Alright bye. 

Report From the Provo MTC

Well hey family!

The MTC so far has been crazy! My head hurts but They say once you make it past your first Sunday it gets easier. The past few days have been non-stop with language and devotionals. On Friday I had to teach my first lesson all in Spanish!! Luckily my companion (Elder Steed from Canada) kinda knew what he was doing. We taught him the first lesson but it turned out pretty bad. Oh well the next time we saw him was much better. We actually got him to promise to be baptized! Well I think...I couldn't really understand anything. Oh yeah and the first day here I met Gordon B. Hinkley's son. The problem was I didn't know it was him till later. He just came into our class to talk to our teacher and once he left Brother Snyder told us who it was. That was kinda lame but still cool.

Mom the food here is good but I can see how it would get old after awhile. It's basically just cafeteria food. Nothing special. I'm so happy Curtis went to Pep Band! That's hilarious. So he met Gonzo (Taylor) and Jane. They were pretty good friends but apparently they're blind if they think Curtis looks like me! I hope he likes it. He should just cause band is awesome. As for the BYU game I heard. That's soooo lame! Most people in my District were pretty happy cause I'm the only one who goes to BYU. They go to Utah State and Utah. Other then that though my District is awesome. 

I'm already getting Spanish and English mixed up sometimes just because all I do it seems is study it. Sometimes I'll be saying my prayers and slip into Spanish without realizing it just cause I've practiced the Spanish prayer so many times. I really don't know much but I'm getting better. Oh and yes I got your package. Oops (he forgot his alarm clock).

Dad that's crazy about the volcano! Elder Steed saw the picture too and we freaked out! That's so close to where we'll be going. Too bad we didn't start in the Guatemalan MTC cause we would've seen it maybe. 

Nothing like that has happened here but we have had some amazing devotionals. Last night was awesome! We had a fireside by Brother W. Tracy Watson. He talked about the Book of Mormon and how it applies to us. It was awesome! After that we watched a talk by Elder Bednar called the Character of Christ. It probably is now my favorite talk I have ever heard. It was a talk he gave in the MTC last Christmas about how we become converted. Being in the MTC is crazy but it's really amazing.

I'm so happy I'm here and know I did the right thing by coming. I can't wait to get out into the field and start teaching but I still love it here. They have a saying that the days feel like weeks and the weeks feel like days. It's so true! I've already been here almost a week. Whoa. Only two more to go!

Well time's almost up so I better go. I miss you guys and hope you're doing well! Tell Curtis to practice trumpet.

Love,

Elder Layton     

Elder Layton is Off to the MTC

Elder Layton was set apart as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints on September 11, 2012. Here he is with a surprisingly tall President Rau.

Curtis is next

This is Elder Layton, only minutes after being set apart by President Rau...back in the Layton home. The name tag was mine, from my mission to Mexico some 30 years earlier.

Early on 9-4-2012, Brenda, Elder Layton and I set off for the Redmond airport. Here Brenda and Elder Layton spend a last few minutes together before his departure at 6:20 AM. 

We rarely get a normal pose out of Eric

Yes, mom was crying. Eric was not.

On his way to the Provo, Utah MTC

Seems like we were just here and just did this with Briana

Going Through Security