This week was a pretty good week. It was very frustrating though. So we start off with transfers and I was obviously transferred, but sadly I'm still in the Port, so I'm still in the city. I'm like five minutes away from the Temple so that's pretty cool. We have permission to take people to Temple and do tours if they want to. On top of that, we have an extremely small area and it only takes like 20-30 minutes to walk from one end to the other So that is a huge change for me. My other areas was at least 1 hour 45 minutes to 3 hours to walk from one end to the other. I was also put as the District Leader here, so that's been pretty fun. I was put in charge of companionships that  the Senor Companions have like 2-3 months left on their missions so they are a little dead with the work. Hahaha   So I guess I'm being put in charge of reviving them before it is too late.   Haha

My new companion is pretty different to say the least. He is the first white companion that I have had here in the field and I think I'll prefer my other companions that were native. hahaha  It is really, really hard to connect with him, but I am trying the hardest I can. 

Story one:

So my companion just got done with his training, and he knows a little Spanish but it isn't to the point where I can say good or sufficient. So anyways, his trainer also didn't tell him how to teach or contact, or to follow the rules. So I'll start with the rules. So I come on Tuesday and I ask Oiga,  'Do we got any food in the house?'  He then tells me, 'No, but its all good.  We can just go to the store and buy more food.' My response, 'Uh no we can't.  Its 9:45 in the night.  We can't leave the house.'   'No its all good.  We always leave the house past like ten with my companion.  He told me its all good if its for food.' I laughed so hard and told him,  'Yeah, you're trainer was a sinner you can't leave the house for any reason after 9:30 in the night.'  The next morning he wasn't getting ready at all and didn't start studying all morning, so I finally asked him,  'Hey, what are you doing? You gonna study?'   He said, 'Well, we don't have to be ready until 8:30.   Then we can study if we want.'  I then said, 'No, that's not true at all.  You need to be ready and studying at 8.' There has been a bunch of stories already like that and every single time he tries to tell me how I'm wrong and I just tell him,  'Stop talking.  I know the rules of the mission before the change and after the change.   I know them cuz I live them.' 

So anyways I'm telling him, 'Hey, we are gonna practice are contacting today during our time in companionship study.' He was all for it and he starts to try and contact me and it was just really bad, so I said, 'We are gonna pause for a second.' And I started to explain how you have to just talk to the person, build a relationship, gain their confidence.  So just talk like friends to start out. So he just didn't understand, and as I've explained with my other companions that didn't understand, I gave an example and said, 'How do you try to talk to a girl if you want her number?'  My Companion: 'I've never gotten a girls number.'   'Okaaaaay. Umm--if you wanna take her on a date?'  MC: 'I've never been on a date in my life.'  'Ahhh--okay.  'Well..hmmmm..How would you talk to one of your crushes?'   MC: 'I have never liked a girl in my whole entire life.'   So now I'm just trying to think of anything, and my last ditch effort: 'How did you talk to your friends?' MC: 'Well, to be honest, I don't like people, so I usually just stayed in my house and played WOW or League of Legends all day.'  So I was out of options and am still trying to help him understand how to gain a person's confidence in a contact. 

So I started helping him with the lessons.  Like, 'Hey if their need is the Family and we are teaching L1, we can do it. All we have to do is show how this aspect or topic will help them.'  He told me he knows,  and 'lets just practice'. So he starts off really well, but very quickly he forgets what the need is and just goes off on the usual routine. I stop him after like 7 minutes and say, 'Hey, the first part was amazing.  You did great. Just don't forget to keep the need in the lesson'. He just gets ticked at me and is just close to yelling  at me in the church building, cuz "you don't know what you're talking about".  I just patiently listen, then say, 'Hey, I'm just trying to help.  You can accept or deny the help'. 

The thing is I know what I'm doing.  So whatevs haha. The thing is I'm never, ever going to tell or say in my whole mission to someone "I know what I'm talking about because I have more experience." I won't do it.  I want to but i wont. So I'm just handling it with patience and trying to find away to get to him. If I don't, well Ni Modo. I'll try to make this the best six weeks of his mission. Cuz he also said, 'The only reason he is here is because God gave this commandment, and its not because I want to.'  Haha sooo yeah. 

But hey--its all good.   We all get good companions and we all get companions that could be better, but it doesn't matter cuz we are together for a reason. Even if it is for like six weeks. So we can either have a bad attitude about it and look at the bad, or we can have a good attitude and look for the good in the situation. That means that I will look at the good in the situation. I get the opportunity to learn from this time, and deal with a different type of person. And I also get the opportunity to teach another person the ways of 'the force'. And I guess I'm gonna be having to pull out my geeky Star Wars (even though he tells me he doesn't like the last four movies--which is pretty offensive to me cuz those were and all high quality movies that helped expand the Universe and bring joy back into the movie world) and video game side to get along with him. So yeah I'm gonna grow in the next six weeks. 

Lastly, the purpose of this life is to progress and to better ourselves. So if we never take the times that are difficult and look for the chance to grow, we really are not doing much with life. The only reason why times are "dark" is because we aren't looking for the light. If we look for the light we will find it. 

Just remember "church is true go be awesome"-Anne Bagley