Have a Hap-Hap-Happy New Year!

December 31, 2018

I don't think it's ever been so hard for me to write an email. My mind is literally trying to do everything but write. I'm not entirely sure what's up with that but I'll try to power through it.

Happy Holidays! Every year I always forget just how many festivities are crammed together in just a few short days. It's the most wonderful (and hectic) time of the year! This week was pretty good. Rather festive.

Christmas Eve: Preparation Day was moved to Wednesday. It was not a good day to try to work with people. However, it was a great day to dress up as a king and help a member family do a live nativity and end the day with some soup, biscuits, and a portion of this year's Tabernacle Choir Christmas concert at the Hetzels'. 

Christmas Day: To not be cold and lonely in the streets, we visited a member family for a bit before they headed out to a pueblo with family. We also walked to the bus station for something...probably bus-related. The whole day we wore Santa hats because it's Christmas and we deserve it. 

We were invited to eat lunch with Johanna, Jennifer, and Alexander, a family from El Salvador that we're friends with. We had a good chat and a filling meal; that was really nice of them. 

Rescon de Reyes--We ate this traditional Christmas treat.

From there, we walked to the chapel to have our Skype calls home! It's kind of weird to know that that was going to be the last time I see my family's faces before I get to see them up close and personal. We had a good talk. We laughed, we cried--actually didn't cry this time, had a couple bouts of awkward pauses in the conversation because that's what families do, I loved every second of it! And I'm a little more than ready to talk to them without a time limit next time. After our calls we visited an older member named Cipriano and a younger member named Juan Carlos (they live in the same apartment). After that nice little visit, we had a nice evening in the Hetzel House.

Wednesday: We woke up bright and early to bus on over to Vitoria for a zone activity! In the morning we did some indexing, then went caroling at a nursing home! The nice thing about our Church is this: if you grab a random group of young adults and tell them to start singing different Christmas hymns out of the hymnbook, a solid 90% of them will sing them beautifully and in four-part harmony. I love music. I also love music when it's done well. We didn't even need to practice. The residents were very appreciative. We had a little meet-and-greet with them afterwards as they were getting carted back to their rooms and various activities. It was fun calling a couple old ladies "guapa" and "corazón" as we said goodbye. 

After that, we went to that one rec center we went to for our zone activity last transfer and did the same stuff: Basketball and soccer. From there, we came back to the chapel to write, play games, and eat some baked potatoes and chili. 'Twas a fun day overall.

Thursday: District Meeting in the morning followed by an impossible situation with our tickets that made us not able to board our bus when we wanted to, and caused us to have to wait until 5:30pm to get on the road to Burgos. We arrived earlier than we expected and the Hetzels invited us over for some chili and discussing plans for the branch's plan in regards to missionary work for the coming year. Elder Burr and I had no plans, so we gladly accepted their offer.

Friday: Weekly planning in the morning, member family visit, the daily grind (making calls, stopping by people's homes, attempting conversations in the streets). 

Saturday: Played some soccer in the morning with some members while the sun was shining in a clear, blue sky. Because the sky should totally be like that at the end of December. That was sarcasm. In the afternoon we visited Johanna and Alexander (Jennifer wasn't home) and were able to talk a little bit about the Book of Mormon, and read 3 Nephi 27 as a way to establish some of the Savior's teachings. The evening was filled with more grinding.

Sunday: Last day of three-hour long church services. Honestly, I'm a little sad to see that schedule go, but I'm excited for the new system set up. It will help me be a little more on top of things, especially when I get home. Our branch mission leader/1st counselor in the branch presidency/branch secretary, Fabian invited us over to eat lunch with him and his wife. They are normally busy and almost never home together, so it was a good time to get to know them a little better. In the afternoon we had another meeting to solidify the branch mission plan, and then met with a 25 year-old woman named Joselyn. 

We had run into her a couple weeks ago and kind of lost contact until Saturday when we passed by to see if we could set something up. She was home and said we could pass by Sunday evening, so we did. We knocked on the door, she showed up with a coat, and our visit turned into a walk because her house was full of her grandma's friends. It was a long stroll that was full of quality questions, explanations, and discussions. We talked about missionary work, the Church, the mission in general, our own personal testimonies, our beliefs, family, etc. It was a very open and sincere conversation. (It also reminded me how nice it is to just go on a walk with someone and talk, but that's besides the point!) In the end we introduced her to the Book of Mormon and invited her to read it and consider it's message. She is someone with a lot of potential, she just needs to do her part with real intent. She told us that she will read, but that her beliefs won't just magically change just for reading. We agreed that it didn't necessarily work like that, and now we will be in touch. Our evening ended with updating the Area Book and making some calls.

I did not write a Christmas message last week. I should probably write a Christmas message.

Being a missionary during the Christmas season really changes your outlook on a few things. When you spend most of your time talking about the importance of remembering Christ in the midst of the holiday chaos, you begin to take it to heart each time that message is shared. When you have no presents to open Christmas morning, your focus shifts. Once you recognize that the greatest possible gift that all mankind could ever receive is one life, you become a little more appreciative. You try to seek out this one life. You try to know who this man is that was born over 2000 years ago. As you do, you begin to discover just exactly what is possible through Him. I am very grateful for the Gift that we have been given. Jesus is the Christ, the Holy Son of God. He can and will help us get through this life that we have, all we need to do is reach out to Him. Because of Him my life will never be the same and I am eternally grateful for that.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Elder Jensen :)