Email noventa y dos: Mississippi bound

May 21, 2018 

Well I’ll start off with the biggest news since I’ve got a lot to do today.

K got baptized on Sunday! We were able to finish teaching him the lessons this week, and his interview was on Friday since he was out of town on Saturday. He had been living in Ola with his sister for the last month, but this last Tuesday he moved into his own trailer.

The service went really well. President Hall gave a talk on baptism. He said that any good stool needs at least three legs to be sturdy. Baptism is the same way. It’s three legs are 1) it must be done by complete immersion in water 2) it must be done at an age when the person is accountable for their sins and 3) it must be done by someone with Priesthood authority. I thought that was cool.

K asked me to baptize him. When I put him done, I was so occupied in making sure he went all the way under, that I nearly went with him. I started to fall, but I recovered and was able to get him back up. We had a good laugh about it after the service. I love the sweet spirit there is after a baptism. I felt it after K’s just like I felt it after J’s. I’m so blessed to have taught both of them the Gospel and helped both of them make it back to Heavenly Father.


On Saturday President called me and assigned me to be a Zone Leader. I was surprised, since
President had said that he was going to call younger Zone Leaders so he wouldn’t have to release a ton of us when 30 missionaries go home this Summer. But he said the Spirit was very adamant that this was where I was needed.

Saturday night we got the transfer list and I found out I will be going to Southaven Mississippi! I will be serving with Elder Cepeda! He is from Matamoros Mexico, just across the border from Brownsville Texas! I am way excited to serve with him because I was worried that going Zone Leader would make me lose my ability to speak Spanish fluently that I’ve picked up over the last year and a half, but with him I’ll make sure we speak only Spanish since he already speaks fluent English. The cool thing about Elder Cepeda is He came out to the field a few transfers before me. I actually stayed the night in his apartment in Little Rock my first night in Arkansas when I left the MTC. When I was 6 months out, Elder Cepeda tore his ACL playing basketball, so he went home for 6 months. So I actually go home 3 months before him. He also served in Dardanelle when I was in Russellville, so we know each other pretty well and go way back. There are also a lot of Hispanics in Southaven, so we will be able to work in both languages.

Yesterday morning before planning, Elder Alonzo and I drove out to the Arkansas river. There is sand along the shore right by the bridge that goes to Russellville, who’d a thought I’d get to go to the beach on my mission in Arkansas? Anyways it’s a really pretty, peaceful place, especially on a Sunday morning. I sat on the sand with my feet in the water and just thought about the last 21 months, and about the next 3 months, and the last 4 months specifically. I’m forever grateful to have served in this beautiful place. This area in particular has taught me so much about who I am and who I want to become. It’s changed my life forever. I’m especially grateful to have served with Elder Alonzo. He’s such a good kid. I’ve made a friend for life in him. I was called to be his trainer, but let’s be honest, he trained me. He’s gonna do awesome things on his mission.

I’m nervous and excited, and definitely feel the added responsibility on my shoulders, I’m determined to lead by a good example and finish up my mission on fire. If any of you have noticed, ever since I got started, I have made very few references to how long I’ve been out and how long I have left, mainly because I don’t want to think about it, and if I do think about it, I don’t want other people to know I’m thinking about it haha. So I’ve kind of avoided it my whole mission. But this last week I really came to terms with the fact that I don’t have very much time left. Less than 3 months now. It’s really scary. I never understood why people said coming home is scary. But it’s not that actually going back to your house you lived in before the mission and seeing your family again is scary, in fact that’s the only thing that isn’t scary about it. That’s the one thing I’m looking forward to. What’s scary is schooling and choosing a career. What’s scary is having to be a normal person again, living in an extremely wicked world, with temptations and bad influences at every corner.

However, what’s comforting to know is I am firmly rooted in the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Only His true Gospel can bring us peace. As the song says: “When there’s no peace on earth, there is peace in Christ.”

Now I have to pack! Wish me luck! Love y’all!