Hey Family!
Awesome to hear from you all again. I love Mondays, I always leave the internet cafe with so many mixed feelings of joy, love, a little homesickness, and the prospect of how the next week is going to turn out. I know that Mom is probably counting the days, or at least the weeks, already so I thought you should know that I miss you all so much that I`m counting too. I have exactly 68 weeks left in my mission and I finally feel like I`m not so new anymore. Crossing the 8 month mark was big for me this week. It means that I`ve served a third part of my mission, that I still have a while to go, but it`s not at long as I always thought it was. I used to think that Sister Missionaries have it so easy...18 months, who CAN'T do 18 months?! haha And now I only have 16 left. It`s a weird feeling that inspires a lot of satisfaction and a little bit of fear in me. I realize that I need to be working hard for the Lord, that I should be having success no matter where I am, and how much trust I need to put in the Lord that He will put His chosen ones in my path if I live my mission right. I don't have a lot of baptisms under my belt, and who knows, I might not leave with many, but I know that I have enough time to change a few more lives before I have to give up my plaque and step off the plane. haha Can you tell that it`s Christmas time and it`s making me a tiny bit baggy? =P I`m not allowing myself to be sad or homesick because although I`m not at home, there are people here who love me and will make me a part of their home this Christmas season. The sister that we baptized in October, Carol Paz, has invited my companion and I to celebrate Christmas Eve with her family. She is planning a big dinner, even though her family is not huge, but is doing so to make us comfortable and to help us feel at home away from home. Mom, don`t worry, the Paz family is going to take good care of us. =)
A couple of things that happened this week, and a few that DIDN'T happen. One, I got my Missionary Mall package! I love my new shoes! The pants fit better, but their still too big! The bag is funky, cool, and I`m not sure yet how I`m going to use it because I bought myself a nice backpack about 2 months ago. Maybe I`ll use the new bag to proselyte and my backapck for divisionals and district meetings...I dont know yet. =) I love the candy that you sent! My family knows me well...redvines and peanut butter M&M´s...ooooooh yeah baby! =D Also, I`m very grateful that you got my debit card to me. Go ahead and activate it. I got a good tip from another missionary about my expired card: If I ever get robbed on the street, I`ll have it with me so that I can give it up willingly and avoid a conflict. I don't believe that I`ll ever get robbed during my mission, but it`s a great suggestion. Everyone loves plastic! haha President Cook`s promise in my setting apart has held true throughout my entire mission up until now: He promised that I would always be safe in my travels in my mission. I have never had one problem of safety, even though I have not always found myself in the safest of circumstances...actually almost never am I in the safest of circumstances, but know that you dont have to worry! =) Here`s a couple of things that HAVENT happened this week. I haven`t gotten your hand-written letter yet Dad, and I`m excited to see what it says and what I`ll learn about my dear old Dad! Also this week, our Zone Leaders cut a part of our area off to give to the sruggling other half of my original area. Elder Wernli and Elder Flores have really been struggling to find investigators and teach lessons, so they need the new part of the area badly, but it also cut the work of my campanion and I in half. We also had to purge the Area Book of all the registers and records that now belong to Sonora 2, which has left our Area Book skinny and very light weight. I`m actually kinda excited about that though, because that means that we can now fill it with all originial Elder Tucker and Elder Alvarez work. Should be a great opportunity. This week we will be extremely focused on finding a ton of new investigators to fill our tanks with fuel and our agendas with appointments. I feel more and more that Dad`s new work and mine in the mission field are extremely similar and will reflect the dedication that we have to find success on ours and the Lord`s terms. Overall, it was a very slow and disappointing week in the work, but it`s now up to us to make it better. =) Now our area is small, the members are in need of strength, and their neighbors are in need of the gospel. Should be fun! ;P
Thank you Mom, for the recipe, it sounds delicious. I`m going to put my diligence to work and find all the ingredients so that we can really celebrate Paula Tucker style! =) I dont know if I`ve ever told you, but I`m in love with your food Mom. I miss it, and I want it back, so be prepared to ¨hit me with your best shot¨ when I`m back home! Fire awaaaaay Momma!...Did ya get the pop culture-slash-Tucker Family taste-in-music reference? Hope so...alright moving on. =) Dont worry Family, I`m not going to be selffish this Christmas just because I`m in a foreign country. I`m sending home a Guatemalan Christmas! I`ve met a new friend here in my Zone named Elder Hamblin who came from, surprise surprise, 4000 West in Syracuse, UT! =) I`ve bought everyone little Christmas gifts and I will be sending the package home with Elder Hamblin. He goes home on the 28th of December and will be dropping by (a little late, but you understand) bringing my family a little bit of Guatemala for the Holidays. Also, I`m sending home a game that should help Dad study his Spanish along with the whole family. The instructions and the game board are all in Spanish, but dont worry, I think you`ll get how to play pretty easily when you see it. =P There will also be something that you all can use to have Gautemala in our home next Christmas too. =) Mom, Dad, Hope...be excited! =D
Time`s up for today. I love you all to the Moon and back a bagillion times. Los extreño bastante, pero estoy en la obra de aquel que es el ùnico poderoso para salvar. Èl me pretege, èl me guia, entonces solo manden sus oraciònes, y todo nos saldrà bien!
Los Amo para Siempre,
-Elder Preston William Tucker
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