Dear Family,
Wow, a pretty crazy week this week - well at least for somebody from Arizona! It rained for 7 days STRAIGHT this past week and today is the first time I have seen the sun since then - and of course, I got sunburned . . .! I finally really understand what rainy season means now. Here, there are things called Baguadas, which are somewhere in between a rainstorm and a hurricane and we had TWO this week, which both lasted for a couple of days. If you all remember, I have said before, that Valiente doesn't have paved roads which has turned out to be a little bit of a problem now . . . all of the streets have flooded, and we have been proselyting in SHIN DEEP water for the past little while. But, that isn't necessarily the worst part. We always leave, even if it is storming, but we don't like to use umbrellas because here, that either means that you are gay - or that you are Jehovah's Witness - the both of which I am not :). So, we just kind of weather the weather like men and slop through the mud like REAL men, haha! We even have to wrap our scriptures in like 5 plastic bags so they don't get wet.
One of the funny things about Dominicans is that they are all afraid of the rain. They all think it brings diseases or something - that if it touches your head, you will get sick. So, normally they don't leave the house if it is raining. But, if they have to, they wrap plastic bags around their heads - just in case - and if they get wet, well then they have to change their clothes asap and take a shower to rinse off. Funny thing is that the water for their showers is . . . rain water!!! When it rains a lot here, the government shuts off all of the water all together and makes the people catch it in buckets and things. Luckily, the house of the zone leaders where we are living, there is something called a Sisterna, which is pretty much just a big hole in the ground - so . . . we don't have to worry too much about rain gathering.
So on to the missionary work part! We had another baptism this week! His name is Ayendi, he is 12, and the son of one of the strongest members in the branch, named Brito. Ayendi was living in the North part of the island, but his mom moved to Spain - so he came to live with his dad. While living with his dad, he came to know the church and now the rest is history. If all goes according to plan, I should be able to go to the temple sealing of Brito and his family in a year - and also Diana, the Haitian woman that was baptized last week! That is kind of the ultimate goal here for the missionaries: to be able to meet someone that they baptized in the temple. I hope I can do it - it would be so awesome. My odds are looking good recently because we are working with 4 families. One of which are trying to get their birth certificates for marriage, and the other - after telling us that she would never marry her husband, went to church a few times, prayed to see what she should do, and saw the difference in her husband from the gospel. She decided yesterday that she wants to get married and baptized too, so we will see how they go.
So on to the worldly part. What is going on with the World Cup? My companion is from Mexico, so we always talk about soccer together and we have both been dying to watch a few games lately. Who is looking good? Who is likely to win? How was the United States this year? Also, word on the street is that it is really heating up over in Arizona lately. I CRAVE that so bad lately. Last summer, sometimes I would just go outside, stand there and soak in the heat, then go inside right before the point of sweating - but this 100% humidity 24/7 is killing me! It is sooooo sweaty here. For example, sweat is dripping down my nose right this very second while I am typing out this letter. Everyone kind of stopped going out in the sun about a month ago, so we are kind of alone on the street now (no thanks to the water as well). But, it's all in good fun! What would a mission be without this kind of stuff? I honestly don't know - it's all part of the experience I guess! Well, have a good one!
Love, Elder McBride
Monday, June 28, 2010
Tuesday, June 22, 2010
Fonts & Buckets
Dear Family
So to start out, this e-mail might be a little business like. I was blessed from the Lord with a bounty of e-mails to respond to - so I will keep it all to the basics.
We received the transfer call this morning and it looks like I am staying here in Valiente for another transfer - which is really kind of what I expected because Elder Valdez is new to the area. He is an awesome companion, and I can tell my Spanish is improving a lot with him. The Dominican spanish is really unrefined and very uneducated, so my Dominican accent has been going away a little bit. But, it's for the better, because I want to be understood when I get home as well.
We had a baptism on Saturday like I was saying before - but it ended up being a little bit more of a challenge than what we were expecting. Really, the responsibility to fill up the baptismal fonts should always be the members. But, seeing as how they don't do it, the missionaries always end up doing it. So . . . some Elders went to fill up the font that Saturday morning, but something happened and the pump broke! My companion, the zone leaders and I all ran over and we had to fill it up with empty trash cans and carry them in from outside - all in the middle of a huge storm! It was pretty crazy - not gonna lie :) After that, we ran over to the area to teach a few more lessons, then we made the return to the chapel to see Diana happy and ready to be baptized! We waited for a while for the Branch President, but he didn't show up. We called him and he ended up bailing on us which was a huge problem, because you can't have a baptism without a member of the bishopric. Luckily, about 30 minutes later, we were able to get the 2nd counselor and we had the baptism. Diana was a trooper throughout the whole thing, which was cool - but I am pretty sure that she wouldn't have left without getting baptized!
Right now we have some pretty good investigators who include Ayendi, a son of a recent convert, who just moved to live with his Dad again and has a baptismal date this Saturday. We also have a whole family! The family is that of a man named Frank, who has been coming to church for a little while now, but we finally got to his wife Louisa now, and they all went to church and want to get married and baptized which was pretty sweet! We also have a whole bunch of people, but I won't really talk about them too much until their progression is a little more sure.
I am glad to hear that all went well for Fathers Day! Yes, I am way jealous that you all got to eat Mom's tacos, but my companion and I made Bistec (some Mexican beef recipe he has) and it was pretty delicious too! It is good to hear that Summer has been a pretty good time so far. Are you guys going to visit the beach this Summer?
Anyways, I need to write a few more e-mails, but I will get those pics sent soon!
Love, Elder McBride
So to start out, this e-mail might be a little business like. I was blessed from the Lord with a bounty of e-mails to respond to - so I will keep it all to the basics.
We received the transfer call this morning and it looks like I am staying here in Valiente for another transfer - which is really kind of what I expected because Elder Valdez is new to the area. He is an awesome companion, and I can tell my Spanish is improving a lot with him. The Dominican spanish is really unrefined and very uneducated, so my Dominican accent has been going away a little bit. But, it's for the better, because I want to be understood when I get home as well.
We had a baptism on Saturday like I was saying before - but it ended up being a little bit more of a challenge than what we were expecting. Really, the responsibility to fill up the baptismal fonts should always be the members. But, seeing as how they don't do it, the missionaries always end up doing it. So . . . some Elders went to fill up the font that Saturday morning, but something happened and the pump broke! My companion, the zone leaders and I all ran over and we had to fill it up with empty trash cans and carry them in from outside - all in the middle of a huge storm! It was pretty crazy - not gonna lie :) After that, we ran over to the area to teach a few more lessons, then we made the return to the chapel to see Diana happy and ready to be baptized! We waited for a while for the Branch President, but he didn't show up. We called him and he ended up bailing on us which was a huge problem, because you can't have a baptism without a member of the bishopric. Luckily, about 30 minutes later, we were able to get the 2nd counselor and we had the baptism. Diana was a trooper throughout the whole thing, which was cool - but I am pretty sure that she wouldn't have left without getting baptized!
Right now we have some pretty good investigators who include Ayendi, a son of a recent convert, who just moved to live with his Dad again and has a baptismal date this Saturday. We also have a whole family! The family is that of a man named Frank, who has been coming to church for a little while now, but we finally got to his wife Louisa now, and they all went to church and want to get married and baptized which was pretty sweet! We also have a whole bunch of people, but I won't really talk about them too much until their progression is a little more sure.
I am glad to hear that all went well for Fathers Day! Yes, I am way jealous that you all got to eat Mom's tacos, but my companion and I made Bistec (some Mexican beef recipe he has) and it was pretty delicious too! It is good to hear that Summer has been a pretty good time so far. Are you guys going to visit the beach this Summer?
Anyways, I need to write a few more e-mails, but I will get those pics sent soon!
Love, Elder McBride
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
Scandal?
Sorry this is so late . . . I have been having computer troubles - Chrissie
This week has been pretty good. Pretty crazy, but good. The change was out of nowhere because some bad missionaries were doing bad stuff in the Capitol, so the President had to change everything around to try to get everything running right again.
No worries. My companion wasn't caught up in any of it. He is a really good missionary, and he has been an awesome companion so far. His name is Elder Valdez and he is from Mexico City. He has 6 weeks more than me in the mission, but he came to my area in the middle of the transfer, so I am in charge here. I guess it is kind of cool getting to run the area how I want - but it is a little bit of an extra stress load - but no worries. Anyways, he is from Mexico as I said, and he makes it sound just like paradise there! They have running water they can drink. They have power all the time. He used to go bowling, to the movies, and not to mention . . . eat Mexican food all day! I'm telling you - a mission in Mexico would be a breeze. The members are strong. They have all the nice commodities like a washer and screens on all of the windows. I have been washing my clothes by hand for the past while. Oh, and did I mention electricity?!!! Count your many blessings! The weirdest part about my companion though, is that he reminds me soooooooo much of Devin Barnes! I know that is out of nowhere, but it is so true. His laugh, his smile, and just the way he is . . . someone should tell Devin that he has a short, Mexican version of himself running around in the Dominican Republic on a mission! I know it may sound crazy, but I guess you would just have to meet him.
We have been working really hard lately, and we have a baptism planned for this Saturday which is pretty exciting! I will make sure to send some pictures of that. Sorry I haven't been sending very many lately, but there really hasn't been a whole lot to send. Nothing too big has gone down as of late. As I said, my companion is from Mexico - which automatically means he is a hard worker. This way, I get a native speaker, but he also wanst to work hard and has been teaching me some Mexican lingo that I can use at home. Turns out that I have a lot of bad words in my vocabulary in the eyes of the Mexicans - when they aren't bad at all here! Speaking all Spanish wasn't really hard . . . if that was a question. I can't remember. I am already fluent, so it didn't really seem to be a big deal - although sometimes I do still take a step back and think it is crazy that I am speaking another language without even thinking about it.
I have to go a little early today because I have to write Emily and Danny too. Tell the DeSpains I am super excited to have Jeff come out! Like really pumped! He is coming to the best mission in the world, so he should get pumped and we will rock this place. Have a good week and I love you!
Dear Family,
This week has been pretty good. Pretty crazy, but good. The change was out of nowhere because some bad missionaries were doing bad stuff in the Capitol, so the President had to change everything around to try to get everything running right again.
No worries. My companion wasn't caught up in any of it. He is a really good missionary, and he has been an awesome companion so far. His name is Elder Valdez and he is from Mexico City. He has 6 weeks more than me in the mission, but he came to my area in the middle of the transfer, so I am in charge here. I guess it is kind of cool getting to run the area how I want - but it is a little bit of an extra stress load - but no worries. Anyways, he is from Mexico as I said, and he makes it sound just like paradise there! They have running water they can drink. They have power all the time. He used to go bowling, to the movies, and not to mention . . . eat Mexican food all day! I'm telling you - a mission in Mexico would be a breeze. The members are strong. They have all the nice commodities like a washer and screens on all of the windows. I have been washing my clothes by hand for the past while. Oh, and did I mention electricity?!!! Count your many blessings! The weirdest part about my companion though, is that he reminds me soooooooo much of Devin Barnes! I know that is out of nowhere, but it is so true. His laugh, his smile, and just the way he is . . . someone should tell Devin that he has a short, Mexican version of himself running around in the Dominican Republic on a mission! I know it may sound crazy, but I guess you would just have to meet him.
We have been working really hard lately, and we have a baptism planned for this Saturday which is pretty exciting! I will make sure to send some pictures of that. Sorry I haven't been sending very many lately, but there really hasn't been a whole lot to send. Nothing too big has gone down as of late. As I said, my companion is from Mexico - which automatically means he is a hard worker. This way, I get a native speaker, but he also wanst to work hard and has been teaching me some Mexican lingo that I can use at home. Turns out that I have a lot of bad words in my vocabulary in the eyes of the Mexicans - when they aren't bad at all here! Speaking all Spanish wasn't really hard . . . if that was a question. I can't remember. I am already fluent, so it didn't really seem to be a big deal - although sometimes I do still take a step back and think it is crazy that I am speaking another language without even thinking about it.
I have to go a little early today because I have to write Emily and Danny too. Tell the DeSpains I am super excited to have Jeff come out! Like really pumped! He is coming to the best mission in the world, so he should get pumped and we will rock this place. Have a good week and I love you!
Elder McBride
Monday, June 7, 2010
Surprising News
Dear Family & Friends,
Hey, I have to make this a little quick and I will explain in a second. A week of really hard work went down here in Valiente. We taught the most lessons with the most members present in the whole zone and maybe the whole mission - which is cool. Elder Campbell and I have really gotten in the groove, but all good things have their ending. We still have 2.5 weeks til transfer time, but President Antivillo just called us and told us that we have a "special" transfer. So, Elder Campbell is leaving me here in Valiente and I am receiving some Mexican companion here, so that will be crazy. They are coming in 2 hours to pick us up, so we have to go back so that Elder Campbell can pack ASAP. We are kind of freaking out right now. I guess I am the senior companion and in charge now . . . so we'll see how the area goes.
Besides that, it has been a pretty cool week. I got Emily's package which was awesome! She packed it full of goodies which was great! And, we got to have our interviews with the President Antivillo which is always good.
Today, we got the whole zone together to play baseball (the DR's favorite sport) and that was super fun - but it made me realize that I am still way too competitive when it comes to playing sports and that is probably something I need to work on while I am out here. I already feel like I have changed a lot so far, so it was a little weird to see that old part of me pop out again. I wonder if you guys would see a big difference in me. A lot of guys talk tons about what they're gonna do when they get home - and well - just kind of all the sins that they want to fall into again. But I am out here to change myself and I think that if I don't come back different, then I wasn't doing all that I should have been doing.
So about being sick. It was a blessing in disguise. It made me completely put my trust in the Holy Ghost and my faith grew so much as a result. The power of the priesthood seems a lot more real to me now. I'm glad you felt that all the way over there Mom. One of the tender mercies of the Lord, I assume.
So Ryan got glasses and there is a new Shrek movie? Those are two pretty big surprises! Wanna send me a picture of him with them on? Does Danny still always wear contacts or does he still wear the glasses sometimes? I was wearing my glasses a lot, but I got to this area, and it is way too hot here and the glasses get really uncomfortable - so I kind of stopped using them very much.
So that is way cool that Trevor got his call! The four horsemen all got their calls to foreign mission which is cool. You have to tell him "fellicidades" for me! There is a Nicaraguan here. He has a super cool accent and he is way good at soccer - so Trevor should practice up. I'm pretty sure they don't play volleyball! Also, Jake DeGracies call was a big change. Looks like I will have a lot of friends to practice Spanish with when I get back - so that is cool!
Well, I have to go so I can help my companion pack, but I love you all!
Love, Elder McBride
Hey, I have to make this a little quick and I will explain in a second. A week of really hard work went down here in Valiente. We taught the most lessons with the most members present in the whole zone and maybe the whole mission - which is cool. Elder Campbell and I have really gotten in the groove, but all good things have their ending. We still have 2.5 weeks til transfer time, but President Antivillo just called us and told us that we have a "special" transfer. So, Elder Campbell is leaving me here in Valiente and I am receiving some Mexican companion here, so that will be crazy. They are coming in 2 hours to pick us up, so we have to go back so that Elder Campbell can pack ASAP. We are kind of freaking out right now. I guess I am the senior companion and in charge now . . . so we'll see how the area goes.
Besides that, it has been a pretty cool week. I got Emily's package which was awesome! She packed it full of goodies which was great! And, we got to have our interviews with the President Antivillo which is always good.
Today, we got the whole zone together to play baseball (the DR's favorite sport) and that was super fun - but it made me realize that I am still way too competitive when it comes to playing sports and that is probably something I need to work on while I am out here. I already feel like I have changed a lot so far, so it was a little weird to see that old part of me pop out again. I wonder if you guys would see a big difference in me. A lot of guys talk tons about what they're gonna do when they get home - and well - just kind of all the sins that they want to fall into again. But I am out here to change myself and I think that if I don't come back different, then I wasn't doing all that I should have been doing.
So about being sick. It was a blessing in disguise. It made me completely put my trust in the Holy Ghost and my faith grew so much as a result. The power of the priesthood seems a lot more real to me now. I'm glad you felt that all the way over there Mom. One of the tender mercies of the Lord, I assume.
So Ryan got glasses and there is a new Shrek movie? Those are two pretty big surprises! Wanna send me a picture of him with them on? Does Danny still always wear contacts or does he still wear the glasses sometimes? I was wearing my glasses a lot, but I got to this area, and it is way too hot here and the glasses get really uncomfortable - so I kind of stopped using them very much.
So that is way cool that Trevor got his call! The four horsemen all got their calls to foreign mission which is cool. You have to tell him "fellicidades" for me! There is a Nicaraguan here. He has a super cool accent and he is way good at soccer - so Trevor should practice up. I'm pretty sure they don't play volleyball! Also, Jake DeGracies call was a big change. Looks like I will have a lot of friends to practice Spanish with when I get back - so that is cool!
Well, I have to go so I can help my companion pack, but I love you all!
Love, Elder McBride
Tuesday, June 1, 2010
A Strange Eventful Week
Dear Family,
So this week ended up being a lot more eventful than the last week. I't's a lot to write, so I will just jump right in. Tuesday morning we woke up and go on with normal routine of things. I worked out, showered, ate, started studying and then we left. After one or two appointments, I started to feel a little funny - but we kept working until 1 pm like a normal day. While we were walking to the house for lunch, I started sweating a lot and I couldn't walk as fast as normal, so I knew something was wrong. We got into the house and I started to take off my tie when the zone leaders came over and told us that we were getting kicked out of the house that day. Crazy right? Well, we knew we had to move soon, and we had been looking for a new place to stay with no luck - but we also were not aware of the urgency of the situation. The boss of the house didn't like that the checks were American, because he had to go to downtown Santo Domingo to get them cashed. So, we had to get out of there ASAP - something that we were unaware of the whole time.
So with that, we started to pack up the house a little bit, but I started feeling even sicker. My intestines were thrashed, so I decided to take my temperature and I had a fever of 101. With that, I took some Tylenol and went to bed, hoping that I would be cured for the zone conference the following morning. I woke up a while later and felt even worse and I had a fever of 103.5! I was somewhat delirious I guess because I was drifting in and out of consciousness sitting in my chair. I took some Ibuprofen and was going to call Sister Antivilo, but she was out of town for a family death. So then I tried to call the area doctor but he wouldn't answer. So . . . I had to resort to bothering President Antivilo to see what I should do. He told me to take a shower with cold water to try to cool myself off, but I didn't have cold water so I took a normal one. Then he told me to call the doctor - who never answered . . . so I took a few more pills. It was about 8:00 by then, so I got a blessing from my companion and a member neighbor and went to bed . . . and I was healed!!! The next day I woke up and the fever was completely gone. I even got to go into the capitol that morning to go to zone conference, which was really good by the way. Meetings in the capitol are the best.
So all seemed to be fine and dandy, but we still had yet to move. We got home from zone conference and started to carry all of our belongings the 15 minute walk over to the house of the zone leader with whom we share this branch of Valiente. That took alllll day. It took forever. Hauling it all over by hand was no small task - especially when you are not feeling 100% But, we did it, and now we are holed up at the house of the zone leaders, which is quite small, but we are in good company.
Well, those were definitely the main highlights of the week. The work was a little slow because we weren't able to concentrate on it the first part of the week and it was kind of hard to get back into the groove of things in the new environment - but it is all going well again and I am completely healthy now - just a little tired.
It was good to hear that the Summer started over there, because it definitely has started over here as well! Holy cow, it is usually about 90 degrees with 100% humidity - perfect conditions for sweating. But we have seen a little bit of rain which has been cool. The rain brings a ton of mosquitos though, and I think I got super sick that day because a mosquito gave me a mini version of Dengue Fever. I had all the right symptoms, but it only lasted for the one day. The mosquito net has saved my life as well.
Thank you so much for the stamps. I sent the letter to you for the DeSpains, but I wasn't able to completely finish it because I had the nasty fever come on right when I needed to sent it out - so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. I haven't gotten Emily's package yet, but we will see if it comes this week! I love you all.
Elder McBride
So this week ended up being a lot more eventful than the last week. I't's a lot to write, so I will just jump right in. Tuesday morning we woke up and go on with normal routine of things. I worked out, showered, ate, started studying and then we left. After one or two appointments, I started to feel a little funny - but we kept working until 1 pm like a normal day. While we were walking to the house for lunch, I started sweating a lot and I couldn't walk as fast as normal, so I knew something was wrong. We got into the house and I started to take off my tie when the zone leaders came over and told us that we were getting kicked out of the house that day. Crazy right? Well, we knew we had to move soon, and we had been looking for a new place to stay with no luck - but we also were not aware of the urgency of the situation. The boss of the house didn't like that the checks were American, because he had to go to downtown Santo Domingo to get them cashed. So, we had to get out of there ASAP - something that we were unaware of the whole time.
So with that, we started to pack up the house a little bit, but I started feeling even sicker. My intestines were thrashed, so I decided to take my temperature and I had a fever of 101. With that, I took some Tylenol and went to bed, hoping that I would be cured for the zone conference the following morning. I woke up a while later and felt even worse and I had a fever of 103.5! I was somewhat delirious I guess because I was drifting in and out of consciousness sitting in my chair. I took some Ibuprofen and was going to call Sister Antivilo, but she was out of town for a family death. So then I tried to call the area doctor but he wouldn't answer. So . . . I had to resort to bothering President Antivilo to see what I should do. He told me to take a shower with cold water to try to cool myself off, but I didn't have cold water so I took a normal one. Then he told me to call the doctor - who never answered . . . so I took a few more pills. It was about 8:00 by then, so I got a blessing from my companion and a member neighbor and went to bed . . . and I was healed!!! The next day I woke up and the fever was completely gone. I even got to go into the capitol that morning to go to zone conference, which was really good by the way. Meetings in the capitol are the best.
So all seemed to be fine and dandy, but we still had yet to move. We got home from zone conference and started to carry all of our belongings the 15 minute walk over to the house of the zone leader with whom we share this branch of Valiente. That took alllll day. It took forever. Hauling it all over by hand was no small task - especially when you are not feeling 100% But, we did it, and now we are holed up at the house of the zone leaders, which is quite small, but we are in good company.
Well, those were definitely the main highlights of the week. The work was a little slow because we weren't able to concentrate on it the first part of the week and it was kind of hard to get back into the groove of things in the new environment - but it is all going well again and I am completely healthy now - just a little tired.
It was good to hear that the Summer started over there, because it definitely has started over here as well! Holy cow, it is usually about 90 degrees with 100% humidity - perfect conditions for sweating. But we have seen a little bit of rain which has been cool. The rain brings a ton of mosquitos though, and I think I got super sick that day because a mosquito gave me a mini version of Dengue Fever. I had all the right symptoms, but it only lasted for the one day. The mosquito net has saved my life as well.
Thank you so much for the stamps. I sent the letter to you for the DeSpains, but I wasn't able to completely finish it because I had the nasty fever come on right when I needed to sent it out - so if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. I haven't gotten Emily's package yet, but we will see if it comes this week! I love you all.
Elder McBride
This pic was taken by Brother Dickerson when he was in the DR. Taylor and his companion ran down to street to meet them in their flipflops!
Elder Campbell, Elder McBride and Micah Mangum (Micah did splits with them for a day!
All 3 young men with Savannah Dickerson (Taylor taught her in Primary before he left!)
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