October 30, 2010

Dear Family,
This week was pretty fun. On Tuesday and Wednesday we were in Esmeraldas and Santo Domingo again. The trainings that we had went really well. It didn´t feel as hot as last time we were there. I actually enjoyed the weather. It was funny because my comp was dying in the heat and he´s from Guayaquil which is a lot hotter. He´s going to die when he goes home in December. On Thursday we had divisions with the Secretaries. Elder Vomocil and I stayed in the offices doing stuff while our companions went and taught lessons. We left a little bit earlier and one of Elder Vomocil´s investigators gave us rice, potatoes, beets, fried beef, and an egg. It was sooo good. They are from the coast and the people from the coast know how to cook better :) Yesterday and this morning we were in Otavalo. It was the last Specialized training of the month and I think it was the best one too!! In this one we did something a little bit different. We always have practices in all of our trainings so the missionaries can know how to apply it in their sectors, but this time my companion and I decided to do a demonstration and then we had all of them practice instead of just 1 companionship. It turned out to be really good. The missionaries were able to see that we´re not perfect and that we need help too and it gave them more confidence in the practices that we did afterwards. We´ve decided to do a demonstration in every training that we have in the future. Last night we were supposed to have another training with all of the ward and stake leaders from Otavalo but no one showed up. We waited for like half an hour until the Stake President finally showed up and we scheduled it for a different day. The training wasn´t well announced (it wasn´t announced at all) so President Sloan wasn´t too happy. Afterwards he felt bad for all of the missionaries that had waited for nothing. He bought the whole zone and us hamburger combos for dinner. It was way sweet.
It´s interesting to see how I´m progressing now. Before I could see it a lot easier and I was progressing in things that we do everyday. As I´ve been here in the offices I feel like I´ve progressed more as a leader. I feel like I understand the Gospel more now and it´s actually part of me and my life not just like a job. I´m learning a lot about how to have good judgment too because we have to make a lot of decisions as assistants. I´m more grateful for my calling now and I don´t feel useless anymore ha ha :) Thank you for all that you have done for me, all of you.




Love,
Élder Hakes