The Elder Backstrom Update 18th of May

I really dislike it when I get a keyboard that has sticky keys. It just makes writing so much slower and less comfortable.

Well, we had an exciting week! The Cordoba Argentina Temple was dedicated on Sunday, and we had the opportunity to participate in the dedication via satellite transmission. Elder Uchtdorf dedicated the temple; it was a very beautiful experience.

This week We ended up knocking some doors in what is one of the richer neighbourhoods in the city, a place we had never really gone before. We actually met a young man who is about 20 years old and studying to be a mechanical engineer named Samir who accepted the challenge to read the Book of Mormon to know if God really exists. Goes to show that God is preparing the hearts of people in all sorts of circumstances.

I'm not quite sure what else to tell. No pictures this week, maybe next week. have a good one... elder backstrom

Mother's Day 2015

Here is a GIF of our chat with El. Backstrom last Sunday, doesn't he look great?!! (A little fuzzy, but great)

Middle of May E-mail

Everyone ready for Elder Backstrom's exciting exciting exciting weekly email?

Good. the most exciting is that I have finally sent photos. Hooray! and in good quality, as well.

Well, this has been a mostly normal work week here in la Favorita. We had a far greater turnout at church this week since the municipal elections have finished. We are having a bit of trouble tracking some people down... they seem to never be home... but we also have some great investigators who we are teaching right now. Luis Gutierez is one of them- the ex-husband of a church member, He recently approached the missionaries in the city center and told them that he wanted to be baptized now that he was no longer working on Sundays and could go to the regular church meetings. We still need to help him gain a testimony and understand the doctrine, but he must be one of the people with the most desire to learn the gospel that I have ever had the opportunity of teaching in my entire mission.

On another front, we are helping a member (also our ward mission leader) to renovate his house. he is running new electrical cables, repainting, and re tiling his bathroom- quite the project, considering that he also has a cyber-café in the front of his house that he attends to all day. Sometimes in the dead time of the siesta we head over there and help him move forward with that.

This next Sunday is the dedication of the Cordoba temple! And here we have the opportunity to attend the dedication via broadcast. that means that the stake centers will be extensions of the holy temple for that Sunday- and we will have the marvelous chance to participate in the spiritual outpouring that accompanies the dedication of one of these most holy houses of God.

Well, have a good week everyone!

Elder Backstrom

Elder Nelson and I in San Luis with the flying duck of my companion Elder Saavedra gracing the background

 

My new companion Elder Paz and I 

Inside the pension

A room with a view (from the window in photo 3)

A picture of the street we live on from the bus stop. You can't quite see the monoblock we live in , its hidden behind the trees in the roundabout.

Way exciting weekly email first week of may!

This is not actually going to be as exciting as the subject line would indicate because even though we came to a different cyber-cafe today I didn't bring my camera so there will once again be no pictures.

So, in Argentina, 1st of may is a biggggg holiday. Who knew? It's the "day of the worker". Aw well, we ended up working anyways. I suppose we'll have to wait for "the day of the ecclesiastical minister". Honestly, it wouldn't surprise me if they had a day for that- fun fact, there are more than 270 national holidays in the calender year in the republic of Argentina. Wow! (Lots fall on the same day or are not celebrated by stopping work in any way- otherwise they would spend more days in festivals than working- and that's not about to happen)

Well, we have started to work in "la Favorita" for real. We've got a pretty good grasp of the area and have met a few old and new investigators. Sadly, we have a change of companions tomorrow and I'll be out of the area- which is lame, because we have a fixed lesson with a whole family of investigators. We actually spend the whole day in the area, from morning till night, without returning ever to the apartment, because we live so far away-40 minutes by bus. that means that we normally have to find some sort of service or something to do for members during the dead three hours after lunch (la siesta) when almost everyone is sleeping. It's really exhausting to be on your feet for that long. I don't think I've ever gotten to sleep faster in the mission.

Well, I hope that all of you can have a good week.

Elder Backstrom