Newbies in La Tinta

Clean dishes

Date:  April 21, 2014

Area:  La Tinta, Guatemala

Companion:  Elder Cummings from Idaho

Week 18

Not necessarily newbies in La Tinta, but new to the area, out of the four Elders that are stationed in La Tinta, three were moved out and replaced, not me. I get to endure the rest of the summer here. Bring it on, but Elder Bobadilla is a great guy and we`re working well.

So, here`s the dirt, I guess, for my new companion Elder Cummings, he`s a great guy and knows Spanish a little bit better than I do and so we teach in Spanish well. Kekchi on the other hand he doesn`t know at all and I don`t actually know enough to teach a full lesson, so I`m really finding out how much I know of Kekchi and striving to learn more as fast as possible so that we can open more doors for us and for people who only speak Kekchi.

Elder Cummings

My new companion is also pretty quiet. I`m a quiet guy and such, but he`s even quieter than I. Elder Cummings is from Boise Idaho and he likes singing, he has three sisters and one of them is on a mission in Chile. He is in the same group as Elder Glover so about seven months in total on his mission.

So, I`ve taken upon myself most of the responsibility now because I know the area and such and have needed to take more of the responsibility as consequence to the change. It`s been a little bit stressful, but I`m doing well and learning how to take charge more, all in all it should help me become a better missionary.

On Thursday we did a lot of tracting I guess.... Tracting in my mind is knocking on doors, so we do more or less the equivalent here, but we found people who seem interested in learning more and we`ll see how much more they want to continue learning this coming week as we teach them past one visit.

It`s been raining a little more recently and so it`s been slightly cooler, still hot though, but the end of summer is approaching and I`m not sure what to expect in the coming rain other than rain.

We don`t have any baptismal dates and the people I felt like we could ask to baptism we tried to visit but they weren`t home, so that kind of sucked, but through it we did find some of our new people, by following little kids and by following spiritual promptings.

Friday we hiked up Palomar, it`s an area up in the mountains that is about a 45 minute hike to do some service, we were told that we were going to build a house, once we got up there we didn`t really have anyone who know how to fully do it, but we did help with cutting some bamboo sticks and cutting them into the same size and carrying them to the house area to eventually be used as walls. I even tried some cocoa, they say it is the cocoa they make chocolate out of, but it was yellow and had slimy white seeds inside, it tasted fruity and pretty good.

Helping build a bamboo house

I`m pretty excited for this coming week as we are going to start teaching new people and that brings hopes of asking people to be baptized and helping them come closer to Christ. As our goal isn`t baptism, it is more eternal, we help people come unto Christ, it just so happens that a good way to do that is baptism.

No mail this week, but I should be receiving it fairly soon, if not this coming week, the next week. Always love receiving letters.

A little about the other two Elders in La Tinta.  Elder Bobadilla and Elder Lopez are in the other part of La Tinta, Elder Bobadilla is our district leader and he pretty cool, he`s from Peru, and his companion is new in the mission and is from Mexico.

Elder Bobadilla

Elder Hill will continue to be one of my zone leaders.  I`d be very excited to have Elder Hill as my companion, I love that guy, he`s tall and hard working.

 Although I want to leave La Tinta to go to the mountains, it`s great here and I do look forward to being here for six more weeks. My Kekchi is being tested a lot more because I`m the one who has to do all the speaking in Kekchi untill Elder Cummings learns some.

Really with semana santa, it was celebrated, but we didn`t have too much of a part in anything that happened around here, really it just felt to me that shops closed down for a couple of days, we continued to have a good amount of appointments.

We did enjoy some Easter sweet tarts.

About that package, the poptarts made it perfectly, the chocolates were melted, but I have a fridge for that so no worries.

Keep it cool,

Elder Norte.

PLEASE WRITE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Please do not use nick names on letters or packages. They have to go to the mission home and then be forwarded on. If you have a nick name on the letter it may never make it to him. THANKS

Send mail to:

Elder Jered North
Guatemala Cobán Mission
Apartado Postal #34
3ra Calle 2-02, Zona 3 Cobán AV 16001
Guatemala, Central America

It costs $1.15 to mail a letter to him. You can use regular envelops and stamps just make sure they equal $1.15. If it weights more than a regular letter you should take it to the post office to have it weighed.

OR

Use Dear Elder (www.dearelder.com) its Free to my mission. Just got todearelder.com, create an accountand it will track the letters you sendso you can go back and view them.On the drop down menu just put inGuatemala Cobán Mission and thenaddress it to Elder Jered North.They get mailed out once a week.This will be the best way to contact me since I don't have that much time on e-mail each week.

The end of change number 2 in the field

Package from home

Date:  April 14, 2014

Area:  La Tinta, Guatemala

Companion:  Elder Aguero from Peru

Week: 17

I am not being moved to another place, yet, I`m going to be staying in La Tinta for another change but Elder Aguero is going to Panzos to train a new guy again. My new companion is named Elder Cummings and from what I here from others he`s going to be fairly interesting, he is from Idaho so he will be my first ... er.... Gringo companion.

Elder Aguero

There were quite a few changes this time, and I`m now in a new zone although I haven`t moved because they split the Zone of Polochic, I am now in Zone Tucuru, good news for me though is that Elder Hill is going to remain my Zone leader, I love that guy, he`s cool.

No letters this week because there wasn`t a zone meeting or something where we receive letters, but I have the feeling that there are letters for me in the offices or on their way. Thank you all.

About the week... Well, we worked a normal week really, although we did find this new family, the Yat family, they`re great and are progressing well, but again we run into the problem of them not being married. Honestly I`m a little irked at this problem. All our investigators that are `spouses` are not married and it`s been a little bit of a stumbling block in thier progession, but it`s part of the culture here, people live together and have children and are pretty much considered married by the community, but they`re not married. I`m still actually learning how to deal with this problem, it`s all a work in progress.

Honestly.... That`s all I really have this week, we went around yesterday to all the member`s houses to let Elder Aguero say his farewells to them and take pictures with them. I didn`t even take that many pictures this week, but I shall give my two cents in about my trainer Elder Aguero, or as we know him in Kekchi, Aj Mama` , which means Abuelo, meaning grandpa. Why does he have this name? Well you see if you pronounce Aguero without a hard g sound as it should be in Spanish then it sounds very similiar to Abuelo.

Last Supper with Elder Aguero at the house of the Pana Family

Anyway, Elder Aguero taught me what I needed to know about being a missionary out in the field, as was his job as my trainer, but through these twelve weeks he has taught me more Spanish and Kekchi and how to teach more simply, because I have found out that I really have trouble explaining things simply sometimes. He teaches really well and really simply, using the scriptures often and with knowledge, he`s forced me into somewhat uncomfortable positions where I needed to speak, but that was all to help me get used to this life and learn how to do things. So, I`ll miss the guy although I don`t believe our relationship will go beyond this, because all in all we never had problems and got along, but our companionship for the most part felt like we were only companions and nothing more, so he falls in to the category of missionaries that will be my friend, but not a friendship that will last beyond the mission.

As always I thank you all for your support for us out here in the field, but don`t just say words, go out and do things to serve, don`t show us your love, show God your love, and how do you do that? By serving and loving one another.

With love,

Saqi Noq`

Elder Norte

PS...I gave my laundry lady the gift that I received to give her from my package, she seemed pretty excited and happy about it, but it`s sometimes hard to tell with these people, they don`t really know how to show that kind of emotion... At least, the adults don`t, they also seem to have trouble smiling for pictures, but that`s not a problem for me, it adds to the culture.
Don't forget to write Elder North he would love to hear from you.  It is very simple if you use Dearelder.com it is free and you can just type and hit send and they will do the rest.  If you would like to mail it on your own it costs $1.15.  Please take the time to write him.

Elder Jered North
Guatemala Cobán Mission
Apartado Postal #34
3ra Calle 2-02, Zona 3
Cobán AV 16001
Guatemala, Central America 

Conference Week

Waiting for conference to start.

Date:  April 7, 2014

Area:  La Tinta, Guatemala

Companion:  Elder Aguero from Peru

Week: 16

After reading Amber`s email home I kind of feel like I could write about every day of my week, but then think that that`s a little too much for me so I`m good on how much I write, but this week maybe....

So Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty normal days, I don`t really have much to report on them, we visited members, investigators and actually didn`t get too much done sadly, but on Wednesday we had a lesson with the very smart Stephanie and all in all she ended up teaching me a lesson instead of the other way around, at the end Elder Aguero and I kind of were thinking, why isn`t she baptized? So we invited her again to, as my good friend Elder Strong puts it, get dunked. AND GUESS WHAT! She still didn`t say yes.... She`s conflicted with something and she knows that it`s her own self stopping herself, but she doesn`t quite know why. We will continue visiting her and we know that once she makes the decision then she will get baptized.

Thursday was a bit more exciting, we had Zone meeting and I got two letters, one from Grandma Mary and one from Mom that was sent with Dear Elder, it got here first, but barely. All the other Elders were so excited because Elder North finally didn`t get five plus letters. Oh the torture, hehe.

So I went on divisions with Elder Ancco this day and we got some work done and contacted a family, the family of Juan, who actually his father is a missionary for another church, that`ll be interesting. We also got some cool pictures with a dead pig.

Today I recieved nine letters and a package, so I totally still win in getting the most letters, thank you all! Totally didn`t expect that one.
Letters are from,

Mom, plus package from her

All the Holdens

Jesse Salas

Sister Rowan Barnson
Grandma (2)

Now conference, I could spend a while talking about it I think, and it went by so quickly. I`ve read some things about what other people were impressed on and I did see these themes while I took notes, but the big theme that has lead me to serious reflection is that of our divine potential.

We all have a divine potential in this life and I put it into missionary context, I have a divine potential as a missionary. A lot of the other themes in the conference also point to this topic, for me. 

For example, agency, we have the power to choose, we can either be agents as we are meant to be and act or we can be objects to be acted upon, but many people said that we have to make the choice.

Another, Standing up for the faith, when we stand up for what`s right, we`re making the decision to stand up for what`s right because it`s right and all this requires obedience. Obedience to what? Well, we have Christ as our example and we must follow it.

Watching conference in a little room at the church

Another that builds on this divine potential that was talked about. God cares about us and we are his children. I know that he cares for everyone of us, I have a strong testimony in this and I know that he puts us in situations that if we make the right decision will help us achieve our divine potential that he knows we can be.

All this gives me a strong desire to be more obedient, be more Christ like and in order to reach my greatest potential on this earth and be able to ensure that I will achieve my divine potential after this life.

And remember, share the gospel with people, and I suggest to all the women out there that they listen to the first talk of Priesthood session because he talked about what the priesthood is, not only for men, but also for women.

I love you all and please keep supporting the missionaries, we appreciate everything.

With great love,
Elder North

Elder Barker

Elder Felix and Elder Griffins

Elder Hill

Elder North with a dead pig.

Elder Ancco and the pig

 The pig was shot by members to eat.  About 23 pounds of meat for the family.  We just happened to be going by when they had just shot it so we stopped for a photo shoot.

The following pictures were tagged as, "Having fun with camera effects."  

Thank you for your love and support of Jered.  I know with some missionaries lots of mail makes them homesick but with Jered it helps him.  It helps him to be ok with being away from everything familar and devoting his life to service.  So keep up the good work of supporting him he very much appreciates it.  Remember it costs $1.15 to mail a letter go Guatemala or you can use dearelder.com and it will be sent free.  He seems to get both pretty reliably right now.

Elder Jered North
Guatemala Cobán Mission
Apartado Postal #34
3ra Calle 2-02, Zona 3
Cobán AV 16001
Guatemala, Central America