asi, empieza

Thus, it starts, transfer 2! The anticipation continued to build through the week, but at last transfers came. And the results ... I stayed. My trainer has been transferred to another area. It was time, considering he had been in our Ward seven-and-a-half months already.

My new companion, Elder Robinaugh (rob-in-aw), came from the other companionship in our ward, so I already know him very well. I am excited for this time coming up, because we have a lot of work to do, but it will be so pleasant to do it with Elder Robinaugh.

Christmas approaches and our plans are looking favorable. We will be spending some time with the English speaking members Elders Wood and Rutt live with, but much of the day will be with a family from our Ward, the Baldwins. All four missionaries will be together, so it will be a party. I just wonder if there is such thing as too much fun in missionary work.

This is the last email I'll get to send before Christmas. I testify of the sacred purpose of that Babe born in Bethlehem. I know that God has purpose in all things, that there is a plan for us as all of His children and individually. I know that we cannot grow without suffering. We cannot grasp joy without going through the fire of affliction, and everything is for our good. I am thankful for the plan of my challenges, and the plan that was set forth to make up the difference for the times when I don't do what I should. We must come unto Christ, especially in this special season. I pray that you are all safe and well and enduring well the things God has been planning for you.

-Elder Sam Bostwick

one week to transfers and counting ...

There is an anticipation leading up to transfers that I find very interesting. Apparently with a fairly new Mission President, nobody really knows what to expect when transfers come around. Some are excited, others afraid, I just want it to come.

In the last week I have discovered a lot about my situation in the mission. Apparently, my district for the last few months has been known for being the most "apostate." There are a lot of negative feelings amongst the missionaries and it really hinders the work. Everybody is trying to make predictions for what will go down next Wednesday at our transfer meeting, but like I said, nobody has any real educated guesses.

A section of our mission became part of the Phoenix Mission on Sunday. This meant a lot of companionships became threesomes for a short time until our transfers when they will be dispersed into the rest of the mission. This adds more tension to the upcoming transfer.

One of my companions from the MTC, Elder Rutt is now in my same ward with the other Spanish companionship. It's strange to see him again. The MTC feels like a very long time ago, but the last 5 weeks have moved very quickly. We've both grown a lot.

I don't know who says that it never rains in Arizona ... it has been raining for 2 weeks almost every day. And everybody else is bundling up for colder weather. This morning we left our house in a dense fog. All this bad weather has been bad news for missionaries who are accustomed to working in perfect weather. But still Elder Bull and I worked hard this week. And it paid off I suppose.

I don't know if I mentioned it, but we are teaching a blind lady. Her brother and sister-in-law are great to testify powerfully about the church every time we are there. She quit drinking coffee and is on track to be baptized, all we need is a date.

Another family is gaining more knowledge about the nature and purpose of God. As they learn, they have more faith to do things like quit drinking alcohol, a big accomplishment for their family.

Another investigator, Steve, is something we call an "eternigator" because he mostly just likes us to come over and visit, but he never makes progress. This week, he told us that he is actually going to come to church, a huge step. Steve is funny though, he's been paying his "tithing" for months. As we leave, he goes to grab $20 that he smoothly slips to us as he shakes our hands. We turn it in every Sunday as his tithing, and told him we would bring him some tithing envelopes next time we stopped by.

Norma and Carlos have been studying with Jehovah's Witnesses for a while. We had a powerful lesson with them and they were excited to read the Book of Mormon and ask their preacher why the J. W. Bible has omitted certain scriptures.

Jorge and Marta basically know the church is true, they just need to learn more, and it's wonderful to teach them.

Of course, not everything is good. These successes come after a lot of rejection, but the field is white in Queen Creek for Spanish missionaries. I continue to work at Spanish, and it becomes a great way to make friends with the people we meet. Sharing stories about learning a language is good common ground. I have made many good friends of investigators and members of our ward. It's hard to think, in one week I could be leaving. Perhaps even more scary, Elder Bull might leave, and I will need to show a new companion everything about the work we are doing, which seems daunting right now.

This is God's work. He wants all His children to know of the Gospel and to give them the true opportunity to make a clear and educated decision. This church is so true, and it is so obvious to one who asks in faith. I am grateful to be a missionary, even though I don't get to be at home with all of you. Always do good things, I pray for you all, just think of me during the season.

Love,
-Elder Sam Bostwick

one month

Tomorrow is my one-month anniversary in the mission field. As another missionary pointed out, that means I only have 21 months left. I'm not very anxious to start counting down to the end. So far, it is true that time picks up. It doesn't feel like a month has gone by. Before I know it, I will be home and wondering what happened, and perhaps even wishing to come back to my mission.

The wedding and baptism for the Yeomans this weekend went great. The wedding ceremony was simple and performed by the Bishop, followed by food, music, and dancing. Latinos know how to party. The following day, at the baptism, the Spirit was so strong with the support of almost the entire Ward in attendance. We even had other investigators come. The part that was most nerve-wracking was the announcement that Elder Robinaugh, Elder Wood (the other companionship in our Ward) and I would take some time to talk. Apparently this meant we were to teach the first lesson. For the first time, I taught the Restoration of the Gospel through Joseph Smith. It was also my first opportunity to bear open and straightforward testimony to our ward. With the help of the sympathetic Holy Ghost, I did it, and did it well. Not that I am fluent at all, but the improvements in my Spanish are hopeful and truly miraculous.

All the Spanish missionaries in the mission meet the first Saturday morning of every month to have Spanish Class. It was the first time I had seen my MTC companions since we all left the first transfer meeting with our trainers. Once again, I had a sudden jolt of realization that this is actually my mission. Sharing stories of the past month got me thinking about how I will be telling mission stories for the rest of my life.

And as for Christmas time ... With Christmas lights on our house, and a borrowed Christmas tree in our living room, the holiday cheer is sneaking up. I was on an exchange with another missionary one night this week, and as we were walking around, I started to look at the stars. The stars in our end of the Phoenix area are fairly vivid, moreso than Salt Lake in any case. Walking through the desert with the stars, I imagined a star brighter than the others in the wide expanse of sky, pointing to the new-born Christ. How silly to be wishing for snow, there certainly wasn't snow the day Jesus was actually born in a manger. What does snow mean to Christmas, really? So Dad, I accept your challenge to make "White Christmas" mean something more than winter time. But even more than the goal to see investigators dressed in white, I want to become more "white" inside myself. I want to sacrifice more, I want to give more, to become pure through service to others with. Christmas is a time to become more like Christ, by loving others, by being happy and focusing on family and God.

Merry Christmas everyone, I love you. Take care and enjoy the winter in Utah.

-Elder Sam Bostwick

holidays

Thanksgiving was pleasant. We ate dinner with a large group of 4 or 5 families from our ward, including the Bishop, and then ate dessert with a few different families from the ward. Almost all the food was completely American, with the exception of a Peruvian dish of raw tilapia marinated in lime juice. It would not have been bad, except they dowsed it with cilantro, my least favorite. An American Thanksgiving gave me mixed feelings, and being on exchanges with English missionaries (my companion has been training other Elders in our District), it's hit me really hard that I am only in Arizona.

As if to contradict the feelings that I am so close to home, Christmas has swept our area in a comical way. Christmas has always been equated with cold and snow and such. The contrast of the Arizona Christmas flavor is large. The Christmas palm trees are lit up and the winter grass is getting greener every day. Many families have the over-sized inflatable Snow Globes in their yards to bring a bit of winter to the desert. I don't think I'll get used to this.

Exciting news is that the second and third Baptisms of my mission are scheduled for this Sunday directly after the Christmas Broadcast. The Yeomans are getting married on Saturday and baptized on Sunday to end their five-year investigation of the Church. This is another situation where I didn't have much involvement, but am just lucky.

On the other side, a family we started teaching last week seemed to be at conflict about how they feel about the Church. I got so distressed during our last lesson wishing I knew how to say what I felt. That not all churches are created equal. This is the only true church, with all the same truths as the church that existed in the Bible and during the time of Christ. That everybody has the flat-out right to know for themselves if it is true and they will know for sure, if they only ask. My testimony got stuck inside me because my mouth didn't know how to work and it was the most painfully frustrating feeling ever.

So to all the friends and family that read this, know that this church is undeniably the only church on the earth that has the power of God through a prophet who receives revelation. There is no doubt that Joseph Smith restored the exact same church that Christ himself established during His time on earth. As nice as other churches are, they are not true, because Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever, and there is one Lord, one Faith, one Baptism. I can't say the smallest part of what I feel, like Ammon, but I know this to be true.

Thanks for the letters, it's always nice to hear from you all. I try to write back as fast as I can, but handwriting letters is time consuming for me. I'm hoping to get hold of a type-writer to make responses faster. I think about you all as often as appropriate, and love you and miss you. Don't party too much this Holiday Season, and if you do, at least think about me once while you do it.

Love,

-Elder Sam Bostwick

P.S. As far as Christmas music is concerned, it is all approved, as long as the lyrics are not romantic. And of course, what good is Christmas music after Christmas....

adjusting

We had my first baptism this week. My heavens it was amazing. Alicia Hernandez was already taught when I arrived and had a baptismal date, but missed it suddenly to visit family in Mexico. When she got back, Elder Bull especially was relieved to see she was enthusiastic as ever about joining the church. She was so kind to me and was honored that her's was the first baptism of my mission. While I did not perform the baptism or the confirmation, I feel like it was very much part of me. Other missionaries might strive to be very much a part of the baptisms, but I was elated to have it the other way around. Even later when I do get the opportunity to participate more, I hope each baptism takes an active participation in my life. In any case, it was a marker and an exciting one.

And now, days later, we have a family who is starting from the beginning and I'm praying for them. It's fun to get a chance to work on my Spanish to teach the Gospel, especially with this family. They are so eager to learn. And I'm glad to have Elder Bull there when they ask about the existence of other worlds and other such extreme questions. They really want to know!

Today we had the chance to attend the Mesa Temple, an occasion we get to enjoy every 6 weeks. A well respected Temple Scholar was in the session with us and so we grabbed the opportunity to ask "deep" questions before we left. I was excited to hear my curiosities become dispelled as the answers were delivered with a ring of truth that couldn't be denied. That must be what it is like to hear about the Gospel for the first time for the firm seeker of Truth. Things just make so much sense in the Gospel. For the amount that people believe our beliefs to be mysterious and confusing, we really have such a clear understanding of much of the purposes of God. True, we don't know everything, but many people just discount their lack of any knowledge to the fact that we aren't able to comprehend God.

I am still meeting more wonderful members every day. They still help me with my Spanish as though it were a fun game. You can be sure to hold up a solid dinner conversation about why a particular country is better than all others at every single home. For example, one sister was telling us we were eating Celestial food because it was Peruvian. That is just one case. Everybody speaks better Spanish than everybody else for different reasons and you'll hear about it from each of them. I love it. And no, I have not yet met any Chileans, although, I would worry about keeping up with them. It is funny to hear different accents and try and decipher them. One family is completely incomprehensible to me. I can't even understand 3 words. And for some reason, Elder Bull speaks like the Argentines, which everybody comments on. I just keep laughing. Jackie, you'll have to let me know how I can keep my Spanish honorable amidst such a sea of confusion.

I'm not sure how it happened, but I think I am the new pianist for our Ward. I played in Sacrament meeting, in Primary and at the Baptism for Alicia. I fear I am rusty without practice and it is just a sign of how desperate they are to have me play. Others might not enjoy it, but I very much enjoy any opportunity to be at a piano. I miss music so much.

So everybody, I hope the Spirit of Gratitude has become aroused from within you as we take the opportunity to reflect at the Thanksgiving Season. It is in itself a blessing to think about how we have been blessed. I hope that you are finding more to be thankful for, as you contemplate, for truly, we can never say, "thank you" enough.

I love you, take care until next week.

-Elder Sam Bostwick

queen creek

The Spanish Ward for the Queen Creek East Stake is wonderful. The members here are missionaries. They are hardworking and goodnatured. They are good to help others. And Dad, you are right, they are humble, humble people. I have never felt so comfortable with my weaknesses as with these people. We all have things to improve, and we work at them.

This knowledge has been important for me. It seems as though I hadn't learned anything in life before my mission. Why did I not seek out the answers to doctrinal questions? Did I even care enough to have questions? I take comfort in the powerful influence of the Atonement. Beyond repentance for sin, we, especially I, have the ability to repent for my apathy. I have met people who don't accept missionaries into their homes, although they accept that what we say might be true, simply because they don't care enough. I wish I could persuade them to care.

As I become adjusted, I am getting more bearings and more of an awareness of the kind of missionary I want to be. It is exciting to me that there are thousands of missionaries in the world, and their differences are what makes them powerful. I hope to find my differences in this work and strengthen them.

The members are kind to be patient with my Spanish. The trick is that many of them, even most of them, speak English at least as well as I speak Spanish. They are kind to play games with their children to not speak English at all for the new Elder. Their help is helping and I have already seen an improvement in my ability to communicate. But even still, there are interesting things to being a Spanish missionary in the states, at least where I am. Chances are good that I will not be speaking Spanish regularly in at least 1 area where I serve. If I ever serve as a Zone Leader, my Spanish status is dismissed. We'll see how things actually turn out.

-Elder Sam Bostwick

arizona: the beginning

I don't think there is any way to adequately prepare or get an idea of what the first few days of your mission will be like. It is an unknown in the extreme and no amount of thinking about it will brace you for what is coming. But in Arizona, they seemed to be aware of this and they did everything to soften the blow.

I expected to arrive in Arizona, be taken to the Mission Home for a quick interview, be assigned my companion immediately and get to work. This is not what happened.

14 missionaries traveled to Arizona together on Tuesday, 4 Spanish Speaking. We were welcomed by the President's Assistants and the entire Mission Presidency at the airport and they took us to a chapel next to the Mission Home where some ladies had prepared a brunch for us. We took time for introductions and then went to the Mission Home and spent some time for interviews with the President. There were many people to get through, so our interviews were short, but not bad. I am excited to keep my President for my whole mission. President Craig clearly loves us and gives lots of hugs.

After our interviews, there was a down hour where 13 Elders waited at the Mission Home by ourselves. They took Hermana Murray somewhere else to be away from all of us "boys" unaccompanied. I spent the hour taking advantage of the piano, but I'm afraid I was a bother to some without realizing it until after. Oh well, there's nothing wrong with hymns.

Then we went to the Mesa Visitor's Center and learned how we can use that as a resource for our proselyting. And we went to dinner at a member's beautiful house. It was a nice event for us newbies and I sat next to one of the Counselors in the Mission Presidency and his wife. We then went back to the Mission Home where more members met with us to take us to their homes for the night. We were split up in two's, and I was finally apart from my MTC Companions, although not technically with a new companion yet. I and the other Elder with me talked with Brother Lee for about an hour before we retired to our bedrooms (each of us had our own room...) and we called it an early night. It was a long day.

Then next morning we were back in the Mission Home at 7:30 for some orientation. When was I going to get my companion? Most of the morning passed with orientation with the office staff. Then we finally went back over to the Chapel where there had gathered well over a hundred missionaries. I had no idea each mission had so many missionaries. We at last received our companions and heard about everybody else's companion and area transfers. Most of the Mission moved around, which I understand was pretty significant.

My trainer is Elder Bull. He has been out 18 months and is also our District Leader. And he speaks good Spanish. I'm excited to be working with him and hope I learn tons. He tells me that my Spanish is better than his was when we first arrived in the field. I hope I learn fast. Elder Bull's old area was split into 2, and he is now responsible for opening one of the new halves. This means a lot of organization and paperwork. We spent some time getting all we needed from the Mission Home and then swapped around luggage from his old apartment to his new one and then much of the day was over. We went to Walmart for some grocery shopping and then went to a dinner appointment.

Dinner was good with the members we were with. They spoke some English, and I spoke some Spanish. Even Elder Bull spoke mostly English during regular conversation. Their kids were great and the whole family was excited for my first day in the Mission and to help me with my Spanish. The evening did turn out to be a bit of a downer because the investigator who was supposed to have dinner with us and take a lesson didn't show and we don't know why. But the members, the Chy Family, did give us another referral closeby and we visited and made an appointment to come back.

I can do this. The most frustrating feeling is not knowing what is going on. But the thing about a missionaries schedule is that it is full, but not stressful. Things are busy, but not hectic. You never plan more than you can do, and there are many good and worthwhile activities to spend your time on. I hope I adjust fast and learn everything soon. Although I have not had any spiritual manifestations that this is where I am supposed to be, I know I am in the right place. I feel peace of mind being a missionary and am confident that I can quickly understand what I am to do and how I can be successful.

I love you all. I will write again next Wednesday. Take care and write, please.

-Elder Sam Bostwick