The Time is Far Spent... There will be even less for e-mails every week!

So, this week came with sad news. now and on-wards I have only 45 mins. to write all my emails! this means that you can expect the weekly email to come a good deal slimmer since it does take a bit of time to read all the emails that come every week... which I enjoy a lot so please don't send less emails in order obtain a longer weekly update...

Well, we had an asado today.

Me...

Elder Backstrom with the Asado meat

My Companion Elder Enriquez is from Trujio, Peru. From the same ward (and a good friend of) elder Fernandez, Another Elder I was companions with. My third Peruvian companion in a row. He was a semi-semi-professional football player (Basically, he can kick your but, but he'll never get paid to do it at home), however he injured a foot in the mission and still can't play.

He has been out on his mission for 16 months. He's a little crazy, like everyone. He likes asado. everyone likes asado.

Elder Enriquez with the Asado meat

Also attached are a few pictures of a plaza here.

The Plaza

Elder Backstrom in the Plaza

Well, this week, we washed cars at a stop light. we washed their windshields, to be precise. but then the people were startled because they thought that we were going to charge them or rob them so we just started giving away pass along cards and pamphlets at the stoplight instead. it was really fun. the sister missionaries went with us and took some photos, I will try and obtain them.

This week, I started reading through preach my gospel again in addition to my study of the doctrine and covenants, and when I read the chapter 2 it reminded me of many things I could do to make my study more worthwhile, especially the usage of my study journal which I have but I've sort of stopped using regularly. It is good to remind oneself how to study once in a while!

Well have a good week,

El. Backstrom

How Ikea can be an analogy for the commandments of God, who knew!

Well it has been a very interesting week for me.

First, we had to purchase and construct from flat packs several pieces of furniture for the new apartment we are in.

Okay. I just want to say something, to get it out there: be grateful for IKEA. Yeah. seriously. You have no idea how much you'll miss those wordless cartoony instructions that never make any sense to the natural man but somehow guide you to a complete piece of furniture if you follow them with faith- you have no idea- until they're gone. and your left with a piece of imitation Ikea furniture with instructions that leave it looking like this when it's finished:

because you accidentally used the wooden plugs in holes that turned out to be for screws because the instructions told you to put in the wrong number of plugs and left you without the supplies to finish the drawers. and also probably arthritis in your wrist from putting in and taking out again so many screws because the instructions couldn't quite figure out what they wanted you to put in first.

What we can learn from this? well, I saw in it a metaphor for the commandments of God. sometimes, just like the Ikea instructions, they don't make sense to us. we question why we're putting on the doors first and going to church every Sunday and not drinking coffee. but if we follow precisely the commandments, everything falls together in the end, because even though we can't, God can see the end from the beginning. sort of like the Ikea people. especially with those Akurum cabinets. But no the other hand, if we take wrong instructions in our spiritual construction, whether it be from our own disobedience or looking to the wrong source for our guidance, we end up having to take steps backwards and get extra parts and sometimes even replace damaged pieces. Luckily, all of that is possible through the Atonement of Jesus Christ (or the returns and exchanges desk, depending on which metaphor you're working with.)

Well in other things we did this week, we have had several of the people we were working with disappear, so we ended up "touching some doors", which was actually really fun. When I started my mission it was something that I really didn't like doing, and tried to avoid. but I've developed my language and confidence skills a little more, and now when I knock on people's doors I enjoy it a lot, because I have a technique called "Bombard with cheerfulness" and it makes for interesting reactions, and sometimes equally cheerful replies.

Well, have good weeks. everyone.

El. Backstrom out.

also photos.

How to cook a pig (literally)

After a whole two weeks of writing, we're back again with another weekly update from Argentina.

To explain; I did not write last week due to a very occupied day involving roast pig.

Pictures attached.

I have a new companion as of Thursday; Elder Enriquez. Elder Inca went to San Juan (poor thing) and we will be staying in amppya.

Speaking of which, we changed apartments this week and are now living in a very much smaller location that... doesn't quite have the glamour of the house we were in before. To explain: the property has two apartments, a house and then a small attached apartment. A member was living in the apartment and changed us for the house. the little apartment has two rooms and a bathroom. there is an electric hot water heater. its sort of goofy and small, but way livable, so whatever.

This week I finished the bible in my reading, passed the entire pearl of great price, and got a few sections into the doctrine and covenants. Reading the book of Moses I was able to appreciate more the symbolic metaphor that the earth plays representing our lives and progress as taught by Enoch. 

Alright, so I have to go eat lunch now. later.

Short e-mail from a few weeks ago

Hi all -- so this is Dallin's mom. Dallin sent this e-mail a couple of weeks ago along with a couple of pictures that didn't work. I had asked him to resend the pics and was waiting to post this until he did... I have now given up and will post his two sentence e-mail without pictures!

This week we had interviews with the mission president. I also got a little sick early in the week (luckily didn't last long) so there was relatively little time that I spent in my area (also I was in exchanges in another area on Friday.)

Not much to tell this week I guess! I hope that all of you are doing well. I sort of have to go now, so have a good, safe, premeditated, enjoyable, balanced, spiritual, healthy, action-packed week-

Elder Backstrom