Elder Stoney Harward

Wednesday, September 14, 2016

CCM Week #3 - DIGGING DEEP & LOVING IT!

Hi Everyone,

Things are going so good!!! Yes, the language is getting better but I wouldn´t say I´m a natural. It is so much harder than I thought it was going to be. But it is coming!!!

The homesickness has gotten so much better over the last 2 weeks, and that makes doing and learning the work so much easier, I still miss you all but it´s different and I don´t really know how to explain it!

Today we got to go to the City Plaza and hand out copies of the Book of Mormon, and it was so crazy!!!! Me and my companion talked to a guy who said that he didn´t know how to read or write, and he wouldn´t take the book. Another guy already was taking lessons, but my companion didn´t understand that, so he kept talking to him for like 5 minutes and the guy ended up walking away. HA! HA! HA! It was so funny because I knew why he wouldn´t take the book, but my companion just kept talking!!! The last guy we talked to said that he thinks it is such an inspiration that we leave our lives for 2 years for our church. He took the book, and promised that he was going to read it because he could tell how important it was to us and wanted to feel that same way. It was so cool!!! We then went into a Catholic Cathedral, and that place gave me the weirdest feeling. I know we are really close in some of our beliefs, but just being in that building didn´t feel right. I don´t really know how to describe it, it just makes me that much more appreciative of our Gospel!!!! Then as we were walking up the street, an older lady came up to me asking what church we were a part of, and we said that we were a part of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and she freaked out and started yelling at us how Guatemala is a Catholic Church country and that we shouldn´t be here, and we just smiled and walked away as she kept telling us to get out of her country, it was so funny.

Today was such an amazing day!!! It was full of amazing adventures!!!! I loved it, it makes me so much more excited to get out into the field!!!!  Guatemala is so pretty.  It is so green and lush, everywhere.  I am definitely getting used to being here and really do love it here now!  The food here is amazing, but I never thought I would miss American food so much, ha, ha.

That sucks to hear about Cassie, but it´s good that she is ok!! The Lord definitely blesses families when you are doing His work!!!! I love it here, and am looking forward to these next 2 years!!! I can´t believe that I´ve already almost been out a month!!! It seems like a week ago when I left!!! But I´m learning to love the work and losing myself in it. The only thing I really need to learn now is better study habits, because I can try to memorize things, but you know, I´ve never been one to study. I just need to figure out what works best for me and stick with that!!!

The rest of this week was really uneventful. Just classes, and that´s about it.  The sports are so fun! We get them for an hour every night and then for about 2 and a half hours on P Day, and sadly, no, we can´t play soccer. They get worried that we will break ankles! But we can play volleyball, football, and basketball. It is so fun!!! It really is awesome here!!! 

The weather is like Utah where it will be sunny one minute and then out of nowhere it will rain, but not just rains, it downpours, and will go for about 2 and a half hours and then it goes back to being sunny!! It isn´t too humid until it rains. Then it gets so sticky and wet in the air that it gets hard to breathe. I love it, it feels so cool!! The time here just keeps getting faster and faster!!! It seems like before I know it, I´ll be on a plane home, it´s crazy!!!!

I wish I could be playing football with the young men!!! It sounds so fun!!!! But I love being here!!! For our activities, we go to the temple, which is gorgeous!  It is small, but it is so pretty.  It is definitely a great way to start out the day.  We also play sports, have personal study and language study time, and then a devotional.  They are all a nice way to unwind after a week of learning.  I am having a blast!  It´s gotten a lot easier than I thought it would have. Being honest, the first week, I was almost positive that I was going to go home. I am so glad I dug deep!

I love you so much!!! Can´t wait to hear from you next week!!!


Love Elder Harward

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