Happy New Year!

  

 I hope everyone had a good Christmas!  It was really nice to be able to talk with you guys.  Definitely didn(t feel like an hour - that's for sure.  Sorry if this e-mail is kind of lame.  I just got home from hiking and coconut finding/drinking and I(m pretty tired . . . anyways - so Dominicans kind of have Christmas pretty mixed up here.  It(s like they saw an American New Years, and they thought that was what they were supposed to do for Christmas.  But it(s not . . . (sorry, the apostrophe key is giving me the wrong sign). The Dominicans Christmas dinner is spaghetti, empanadas, chicken and potato salad (weird combo right) - and then after dinner, they go drink until they are just destroyed.  The kids run around the streets like yahoos and light off fireworks.  Oh! and music from the club next door was playing until 6:45 that morning.  But it was a good time.  That morning, all of the Elders in the District came over and we made pancakes and eggnog and watched the First Presidency Christmas Conference and then we all got to call home.  I think that day I ate 6 or 7 epanadas.  People just love to feed us.  They kind of see it as an honor to feed such high and mighty people in their home ha ha.  I know it sounds ridiculous, but that's kind of how they view us.  Kind of humbling trying to live up to the perfect standard they have set up in their minds for us.  To them we're not humans.  We're angels or some kind of higher being . . . don't worry, it's not getting to my head.  If anything - the opposite.  Then that night, our neibors brought us some spaghetti and chicken.  Good staff that Christmas.

  
So Wednesday, we had the baptisms of Madelin and her four kids Berkiz, Rymen, Mayalin, and Cassandra.  I got to baptize them because President says baptize your first investigators, then have the members do it for the rest of your mission.  It was pretty awesome!  All of the key branch members came and we had a good talk and it went really smoothly.

  
So I'm going to keep it short so I can try to send some pictures, but have a Happy New Years!

Love, Elder McBride

Elder McBride's 1st Baptism

Madelin and Family

Some branch members children that we taught on a log

We went on a hike for P-Day for the first time

Found a cool rock to climb while hiking

Best Day Ever!

     Taylor's Mom here!  Christmas Day was the best!  It was really hard because it was the first time having someone gone for Christmas - but we got to talk to him for an hour!  It was so great.  He is doing so well.  He is in such a primitive place - but he has the best attitude.  I am really proud of him.
     Some of the things he told us:
1.  He had his first baptism!
2.  They don't eat at member's homes.  It is a new rule.  They eat one meal a day at a little cafe type place.
3.  They are one of only a few that have running water.  There PVC pipe that is their shower is only cold water.
4.  He has lots of horrible bites on his legs.
5.  He loves what an adventure his mission is!
      I got a Christmas letter from his Mission President with a some of pictures that I wanted to post.  They are when he left the MTC and checked into the Mission Home.  Tomorrow is the day he usually writes so I will post that too when I get it.

Taylor with his Mission President and wife (look how much taller Taylor is)

Same pic but with new companion too

All the new missionaries on November 23, 2009

All the new missionaries with their trainer companions

At a zone conference

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas Everyone!
    
I hope you all are enjoying the cold weather!  My neighbors told me that there was a huge cold front in the US and that there was snow everywhere.  But then again, they think that New York is the whole US . . .I guess just because that's where all of their family goes.  Anyways, I hope you all enjoyed the pictures!  It gets kind of hard to remember to bring the camera, let alone use it out here - but I'm trying for you Mama!
    
So this week we were supposed to have the baptisms of Madeline and her 4 kids, but it had to be delayed because of ummm . . . womenly problems - ya, that's right.  We didn't feel very comfortable suggesting anything or trying to push her, so it is supposed to be this Wednesday!  Cross your fingers for us.  Also, we have another investigator named Sonia who is doing really well and we are going to set a baptismal date today.  There are also two different families where the mothers were baptized, but their kids weren't - even though they are just as active as the mothers - so we will probably baptize them by the end of transfer too.  We could have 12 baptisms this transfer, which would be awesome!  The mission's lofty goal is for each companionship to have 6 baptisms a transfer, se we might double that.  There is also a guy named Jorge Luiz who is 19 and has been a member of the church for about a year.  He is preparing for his mission and is back from school for a month and has pretty much been our third companion recently.  He puts on his church clothes, grabs his backpack and works all day when he can.  He is an awesome teacher already, and gives us references out the wazoo.  It's nice to have someone with us that everyone likes.  The kids don't throw rocks at me as much.
    
As for the food and housing questions.  Commonly, everywomen over the age of 30 is over weight, even with the worms and parasites and stuff.  They just don't eat nutritious food really.  They buy the cheap stuff, which is generally not quite as good for you - am I right?  The food is good though.  Elder Currie and I eat beans and rice with a choice between chicken and beef everyday.  It is really good, but everyone here likes to soak their food in oil which was kind of gross at first, but I'm used to it.  Then for breakfast or dinner it kind of just depends.  We don't have a break for dinner, so sometimes I'll just have a roll or something when I get home.  We also buy some cheap cornflakes.  But most of the time, I just kind of eat lunch and forget about all the other meals.  I kind of get too caught up worrying about other things - which probably isn't that healthy, so I'll try harder.  I'm probably a few pounds lighter right now, but not by much I don't think.  Oh, but the fruit is amazing!  It is so fresh and flavorful.  Oh, (you're not gonna believe this - Taylor has hated bananas since he was tiny) and I REALLY like bananas now!  It took me a while to get used to them, but after eating pig intestine - they just didn't seem so bad anymore :)  I kind of crave them now.
    
The house really isn't that bad, I promise.  I'll send some inside pictures next week.  We have a legit roof, and since we are on the second floor, (an old couple lives beneath us) we don't have the rat problems other people do.  The kitchen is really small, runs on our own propane,and our shower is just a PVC pipe out of the wall - but it's all good!
    
So this week we had an open house of a new chapel in our District, so we went over to help with that.  I was chosen to help greet the people out front, get their information, and prep them for the tour which proved to be really hard.  Dominicans don't really like to listen to directions . . . but it really pushed me and my Spanish which was good for me.  All in all it has been a great week!  We have a District Christmas party on Christmas morning, when we watch the First Presidency message and we are gonna make gallons of eggnog in the blender I bought.  It's awesome for making juice!  Shout out to my letter writers this week.  Thanks Ashley and Andrew!  Good luck in the field buddy!  You have letters on the way.  Have a great Christmas everyone and I'll call you soon family!

Love, Elder Taylor

Here are some more pictures from the Senior Missionary couple - the Berkleys!

I promised Taylor he would wish he had taken the piano more seriously :)

Elder Currie and Elder McBride with one of the blind men they are teaching

Taylor and Elder Currie posing on the motorcycle (they can't really ride them!)

Running Out of Good Titles . . .

The view from my bedroom window

Hey Everyone!  Life is good here in the DR.  Where to start . . . so glad to hear about Travis and Joey's mission calls!  I'm extremely stoked for them.  Especially Joey - going to teach where his family came from.  Pretty nuts. Oh! and Travis to Argentina!  Which one though?  There's like a million!  And about Brother Christianson - that's terrible.  I hope Scott's all right out there in Florida.  That would be so tough to have your dad die.

So we got to go into the city again for our Christmas Zone Conference!  That was really cool!  Some good musical numbers - but the best part was when President pulled out the power point about mission stats.  It's amazing to see how many baptisms some areas of the mission get.  Last transfer the AP's had 23!  So the Monte Plata area is usually the last area for baptisms, but we are doing sooo well right now.  We have 2 already and a family of 5 for this Saturday!  The Pres. turned to us during the conference and said "Monte Plata, estan trabajando milagros" (you're working miracles) - so that was pretty cool!  Later we got to sit on Santa's lap and they fed us a Christmas dinner, so it was a good time.
So, the Espanol.  It's going pretty good I'd say.  If I'm concentrating hard, I can catch about 90%, but every once in a while someone will ask me a question and I have no idea what they said and feel like an idiot . . . but those are getting further apart which is nice.  So the whole both MTC's thing was nice, because I started to get an ear for it early - but they taught no Spanish in the DR MTC because the teachers couldn't speak any English - so I'm having to teach myself everything which is pretty tough, but probably good for me anyways.  You know how in the US, black people use a lot of really different kinds of names??  LaFonda, Shaniqua, Shaquille, Amare, Beyonce?  Ya, same thing here.  It's pretty hard to catch people's names because a lot of the time they are not even Spanish.  Por Ejemplo Berkiz, Rymin, Suhaiti, and stuff like that.  My companion of 20 months still has trouble with those though.
So, we're teaching two blind men men currently.  Edgar and El Pato (everyone has nicknames here, and a lot don't even respond to their real name) and it made me think that what you do with your life is totally up to you.  Edgar is happily married, has two kids, a nice house and is the President for a blind person association and everyone in the town knows and loves him.  El Pato on the other hand, lives in a dirty, nasty wood shack by himself because his wife was tired of dealing with his alcoholism and wasting money on women.  He's mean to everyone, so everyone is mean back - especially the little kids.  And, he has no money.  Both of these men were put in tough situations by God, but they handled them differently and look what happened.  You always have a say in how your life turns out.  Especially in hard situations.

I'm going to end a little early because I am going to try to send some pictures, but have a good week and enjoy the Christmas season!

Love, Elder McBride

P.S.  Family - I'm sending a bunch of letters for Christmas right now and I hope they get there in time. The package that got broken into was candy canes, trail mix and lemonade powder . . . sorry, I ate them already :)  It wasn't a surprise anymore, so what's the point in waiting right? I know you just sent a Christmas package, so don't feel like you need to send this stuff right away, but this is what I am in need of:  A small day pack - face wash (it's liquid gold here) a plastic watch (not leather - it is so hot that they start to smell).  There are no shoe fixer upper's here in Monte Plata, so I was only wearing my other pair, but those rip my sock in a certain place by my heel when I wear them, so I've been wearing the bad toe ones and I think I might just glue them.  Brother Dickerson - ever since I got your letter talking about licorice nibs, I have been craving them even more than a greasy cheeseburger!  And, thanks for asking!  I love you all and have a good Christmas season and give Murphy an extra pet for me!

Here is my Christmas table :)

Me on the path to the Doce

We had a service project preparing branches with machetes for a hut!

Jungle Sunset

Junior and Richard.  Jose Manwell is the big one on the left that baptized them

The water we baptized them in.  It just kind of comes out of the pipes like that . . .

Letter from a Senior Sister Missionary (my own personal angel)!

Dear Family of Elder McBride.

My husband and I are senior missionaries serving in the same branch as your son.  We thought you would enjoy seeing him at a branch activity we had.

Your son is doing a great job.  We see him on Sundays (we are working in Santo Domingo but are assigned to the Monte Plate branch)  I was very impressed with him on his first Sunday in the field.  He is friendly with the people and not afraid to speak Spanish.  He seems to be doing well and adjusting to the hot humid weather.  I know that if he were my son, I would be very proud of the work he is doing..  He and Elder Currie have a lot of work to do.  It is hard because there are people who want to be baptized but can’t because they have to get married first.  This is a problem throughout the country.  My husband and I have been here since the middle of Oct. and it has been a life changing experience for me to see how much poverty there is.  The people seem to be happy though. 

If you are able to get the attached photos without too much difficulty and would like more, I would be happy to keep you posted (as long as your son is in this area).  Again, he is doing a great job.  I can tell he misses his family, especially at this holiday time but they are busy and doing great.  

Sincerely, Sister Berkley

Working on a picture frame

Taylor's companion - Elder Currie

People at the activity

Buenas from La Republica Dominicana!

Hey Everyone - it's been awhile!  Before I start, I just want to say I have a terrible version of Aladdin's "A Whole New World" in Spanish playing in the  background.  Sorry if this letter is a little disoriented.  I have so much to say and so little time to say it.  For those of you who don't know, I missed a P-Day, so it had been 2 weeks since I had written home and then last week while I was getting everything out on e-mail, the power gave out and all was erased.  Yes, my hour-long masterpiece . . . but I'm over that now - no worries!


So, about the power going out. Actually, that is extremely common.  The same with water.  That goes for the whole country.  I got sent out to the boondocks for my first area!  The beautiful town of Monte Plata.  It  really is beautiful!  Well . . . outside the town is beautiful - thick jungle and the works.  There is garbage all over  the streets (a few are paved), but I'm already kind of used to it now.  We are the only missionaries for about 25 miles in any direction.  The people here mostly live in wood huts with dirt floors and tin roofs.  Almost all have pay-as-you-go cell phones though.  That was kind of weird to see.  Some have TV's, but the big thing is to have a huge bumpin' stereo system.  The kids usually run around naked with the stray dogs and it's definitely the Caribbean here -  soooo laid back.  People usually work for just a few hours a day.  Then they just kinda chill at home or at the homes of others.  All drive around on motorcycles.  No one has the money for a car, so between all this, you could say it's louder than a Harley rally on the 4th of July!  My ears are kind of used to it now and it is kinda weird to hear silence.


My companion is Elder Currie from Alberta, Canada.  He is a good guy, a hard worker, funny and has some awesome Spanish.  My last two companions and I got along just fine, but didn't share many common interests.  But I feel like I kind of lucked out this time.  Oh, and he's the District Leader too.


So, my first church experience here was kind of an eye opener.  Here it goes.  We have an investigator who had an extremely abusive husband and ___________ helped her get out of there a little.  Well, __________ wife kind of flipped out.  She would wait outside the church and yell the most terrible things.  Things are a little better now, and the investigator and her three kids have a baptism date for this Saturday and it's looking good!!!   We had two baptisms last week.  Two 14 year old boys named Richard and Junior.  It went really well, but I felt like I didn't really get to know them that well.  But they're awesome boys - they'll do great in the church!  Our branch here has about 300 hundred members but only about 40 less active and 15 active.  It's really kind of sad.  A lot of them just don't get it. They don't see the full perspective of our purpose here.  So a lot of people over 30 or so don't know how to read, and all are extremely lazy so this is supposed to be one of the hardest areas in the mission. It is the most walking area in the mission.  But, we're kind of tearing it up right now cuz Elder Currie's the man!


So there is this little village about 15 miles out of town called the "doce" that we have two investigating families in - so we get to go out there quite a bit.  It's so cool.  We usually hop in the bed of a passing truck over there, then hike this jungle path to the houses.  Oh, and last night an extremely poor family kind of pushed food in front of our faces and were getting all offended when we said no.  So, we had big bowls of soup.  Not sure what kind and definitely don't know what was in it.  I don't really want to know to be honest with you.  I think I saw a carrot! . . . anyways, I love going out there because it's the adventure of a mission that I had always dreamed of as a little kid!  We have to be careful at night tho, because apparently at one of the crossings a few miles away, there is a group of Haitian's with machetes and it can get kind of dangerous.  But don't worry mother dearest, we are being careful!


Lots of bugs here - you better believe it!  My companion has some sweet bug stories and both our ankles are kind of attacked every night because we don't have mosquito nets, but they are some sweet battle scars!  There is tons of fruit everywhere - all ridiculously huge.  The people don't have much but they always have food because to be honest, they have no excuse to be hungry.  The ground is so fertile they could grow rocks.


I LOVE it out here.  I hope this didn't sound pessimistic or anything - just telling it like it is! I love my family so much and have been missing all of you.  I know I am doing the right thing and I am doing so well.  Keep me in your prayers!  I got the Christmas package!  Thank you so much.  One of the presents was opened at one point I think, but everything seems to be there.  I have letters on the way for you for Christmas.   Have a good week everyone!


Love,
Elder McBride


p.s.  I hope you had a good Thanksgiving!  I didn't do much - but I did give a paralyzed man a bucket shower because he told us he smelled bad.  He is a member named Carlos.  It really made me grateful, that's for sure.

If Anyone's Wondering? . . .

Hi, this is Taylor's Mom.  It has been 2 weeks tomorrow since Taylor has written.  He left the Dominican MTC on November 23rd.  I have tried to patiently wait to hear from him - but it has gotten harder and harder.  It has really been a trial for me.  Well, this afternoon, I heard my e-mail ding and saw it was from Taylor and was soooo excited!  Then I read it and it made me sad.  Here's what it said:

Hey, the mission's going good.  I just wrote an entire hour-long letter and the computer failed.  I've never been so  frustrated in my life.  I might just shoot someone.   I am so sorry I can't write more - but I'm trying to be obedient.  I'll talk to you as soon as I can.  I am sooooo sorry.


I am so glad to hear that he is okay, but I feel so bad for him, and I was so looking forward to hearing about what has happened since he left the MTC and what he did for Thanksgiving.  Well, I guess we'll just have to wait a little longer!