Disappointment

 Hi Everyone!  
    
Wow, Mom & Dad - it sounds like you had a pretty crazy week!  Sedona, Girls Camp, St. Johns, and a rodeo!  That sounds super fun though.  I would die to go to a rodeo and eat Mexican food - it sounds amazing!  I'm glad you enjoyed it.  Why didn't Alex go?  By the way - that photo that you sent me of him and Fonze in the ocean, he look EXACTLY like me.  When I carry around pics of the family without me in them, everyone thinks that I am him in the photo.  If I showed them the ocean photo, there is NO way I could convince them that it's not me in it.
    
Thanks for looking for boots!  To tell you the truth - yes, the ones you found and sent a picture of don't really fit the missionary standards - sorry - they need to be a little more classy...but you should check Pomeroys!  I saw some cool ones when I went, and I would trust them that they would fit with the missionary standards as well.
    
Mom, it was really cool to hear about your class reunion!  I am glad that you decided to go!  How many people were in your graduating class?
    
So this week has been all right, but disappointing.  The family that we were counting on for this transfer kind of fell.  Luchi and Duarte had a date to get married and everything - but the dad decided that he wanted to get out of debt first before he will get married.  Yes, it is a good intention, but it should be a few months before he can raise the money - and by then,  from my experience as a missionary, they will have lost all of the excitement and desire to get baptized.  They have to get baptized while they are still fresh, or else it doesn't happen.  Not to mention that they are procrastinating the day of their repentance.  He has to take a step back and look about the bigger sin he is committing here, but he is set on it, just doesn't really understand.  Hopefully they will stay strong coming to church and things.  I am praying for them...but it isn't looking too good.
    
Besides them, all is going pretty smoothly.  We are still working hard and all of that good stuff.  It rained super hard one day, but the storm that they talked about didn't seem to come - which was nice.  Well, I gotta go, but take care everyone!

Love, Elder McBride

Happy Family Birthday!!!

Dear Family,
  
 Happy Anniversary!  Woohoo!  Next year will be 25 - which is a special one right?  Silver or something?  So, I am going to start out by trying to answer a few of your questions:  (I have been waiting for some of these answers for weeks!)
     - What families have you gotten closest to living in Valiente?  The family that I have gotten closest to is Brito and Raquel Encarnation - whose son I baptized this transfer.
     - Did the power ever come back on and have you had more troubles with it?  Yes, the power finally came back on.
     - Are you still living with the zone leaders since you got kicked out and will they keep you there?  President Antivillo might close down the zone leader area next transfer - so yes - we are staying in this house forever.
     - You said that Elder Whiting is one of your best friends there.  How did you get to know him?  Elder Whiting is from Texas and was in my district in the MTC and we became friends there and just stayed friends here.  Sometimes we call each other and e-mail as well.
     - Are you and Elder Valdez getting along well?  Elder Valdez and I are still getting along great!  We are good friends and working hard.
     - Do you ever see Mandy Andre's friend Elder Clayton?  Didn't you get to know him in the MTC?  Elder Clayton works in the mission office, so yes, I do get to see him every time that I go to the capitol for a meeting or something of the sort.
     - Are you dealing okay with the heat and humidity?  Yes - I am dealing well with the heat.  Sorry I complain about it on my e-mail time.  It's just that sometimes I feel like I need to get it out or something . . .
     - What friends do you still keep in touch with and hear from?  I haven't been in touch with Jordan or Joey because I don't know how - and I don't really have a way to find out . . . Yes I still talk to Ashley, Greg, Matt and Chelsea.  Chelsea actually wrote me a huge letter and told me that she is sending a package which would be pretty cool! :)
    
I think I answered most of the questions.  So this week has been a pretty normal week.  Nothing really out of the ordinary besides interviews with the president which is always fun!  Sometimes in interviews, President Antivillo gives hints as to where the missionaries might go - so everyone starts to guess what is gonna happen next transfer and the rumors get spread around and stuff.  Kinda cracks me up because this transfer, the islands of Aruba, Bonaire, and Corazao open up - and everyone in the zone is guessing that I will get sent out there . . . but I think they are all reading into nothing.  That is cool that you wrote to Jake McGlothin.  Just tell me if he has any questions that you don't know the answer to.
    
Well, I can't think of anything else to say, not to mention it kind of took a lot of time to answer all of those questions!:)  So, I am going to wrap it up - but don't worry!  Next week should be full of exciting things like baptisms and a marriage!  I love you all and take care.

Love, Elder McBride

Package & Bandits

Hey Family!
  
Sorry, I have to keep this a little shorter than usual because we had to wait a while to use the internet and P-Day ends in about 20 minutes.  So, I have to make it kind of snappy.
  
I got your package! Thank you so much!  It was filled with awesome food, but the favorite is probably the new white shirts.  They are so white!!!  I also received a package form Sister Pond and her Primary class which included Ryan!  I will start on a thank you letter pretty soon for her.  Oh, ps for the next package . . . when we wash our clothes, we have to hang them up outside to dry.  It seems that we have some robbers, because everyone's garment tops have gone missing.  I lost 4 before we realized what was happening.  We strung line all around the bedroom when we clued in - but now I have to wash a lot.  So, if you could put some in with the next package that would be cool.
    
So this past week went pretty well.  I kind of figured out the weather cycle here which goes a little something like this:  First the days get hotter and hotter until it is almost unbearable - then we get about 2 or 3 days of rain and it cools off again - then another 3 or 4 days of extreme heat and it goes a little like that.  We are currently in a rain phase which is always nice.  Yes, boots would be pretty awesome here.  Not huge or anything, but up the ankle line.  My companion has some and I am way jealous.  I looked for some in a market, but they don't sell shoes my size in this country . . .
    
So I know Elder Hunter!  One of my best friends on the mission named Elder Whiting was with him for 2 transfers.  I just talked about Arizona with Elder Hunter like 4 days ago!  I am going to have to tell him that we have a connection of people in the ward as well.  (He is Nick Hunter's brother right?)  Speaking of Arizona - it looks like we are going to take over this mission!  There are 2 here from Red Mountain High School, one from Val Vista Stake, one from Peoria and 2 more I think.  Plus, Elder DeSpain is coming as well as Elder McGlothin (NOBODY will be able to say that name!  Maybe we will have 2 Elder Macs in the mission)!  But ya, that all makes me proud.
    
Today we went downtown to play games with President Antivillo for P-Day which was way cool - but the best part, was that we got the papers for one of our families!!!!!  Woohooooo!  Luchi and Duarte.  He just recently found a job, so they should have the money to get married pretty soon and also, the branch president said that he was willing to help them out with it as well.  So, they should get married this upcoming week and then baptized the week after - if all goes according to plan.  Just to keep in mind, this is all the family of Christian.  Remember the boy we baptized about 3 months ago?  Thanks to his faithfulness, his family is coming around too!
    
Hey, that is all for this week, but have a good one and we'll talk soon :)

Love, Elder McBride

From Wet to Hot . . .

Dear Family & Friends,
  
I am glad to hear that the vacation to California is good!  I am really missing that right about now - but it's alright.  The other american in my house and I celebrated the 4th of July by drinking a big coca cola and eating Lay's potato chips.  We didn't really have the time or the means to do anything better, but hey, those are both American products right?!
  
So some of you might remember my letter last week about the ridiculous amounts of water that fell - and we only saw the sun one or two times during that whole week.  Well, this week has been the complete opposite!  The sun has been ridiculously hot and is drying up everything that is wet, making the humidity skyrocket.  The sun doesn't really bother me too much because I am kind of used to that being from Arizona and all.  But, the worst part is that they took power away from the town for the last THREE days, which has just been too much . . . the house that we live in is concrete blocks with paint on it, so it heats up like an oven in the sun.  And then when night comes it gets completely impossible to sleep.  When there is a fan, we can use that to cool down, but when they take away the power, it really isn't an option.  So it has been about 3 days now with only about an hour of sleep each night. :(  We just kind of lay there in our sweat until we can't take it anymore - and then we talk.  I had no idea that a night could EVER be so miserable.  The rumor around town that we have been hearing is that the electricity should come back after three days of being gone - so I hope this problem can resolve itself soon.
  
Well, other than that, the missionary work has been going pretty decent.  We have kind of been wandering the streets like zombies lately, but in church yesterday, we had two separate families in church, which is almost unheard of - so that was pretty sweet.  One family was Louisa and Frank, who I believe I have mentioned before.  There was also Luchi and Duarte, the parents of Christian (one of my baptisms my first transfer in Valiente.  We have sent their ID's to the mission office to find their birth certificates.  When we get those, we should have a few marriages soon!
  
That is way cool that Jake McGlothin is coming to this mission!  He should be way pumped to come here - does he know that I am here?  Emily told me that a girl named Marci Wright from Highland is coming too for a few months - so that will make 4 of us just from Highland!  Has Jeff reported yet and did you give him all the info?
  
I am going to keep this e-mail a little short so I can send some pictures, but have a good week!


Love, Elder McBride

standing by a sign that says "don't throw garbage"!

Ayendi and Brito and Ayendi's baptism (also me and Elder Valdez)

Diana (the Haitian) at her baptism

Me outside soaked to the bone in about a foot of water

A typical street here in Valiente