Bautismo!

Family!

 

It´s always interesting to hear the crazy things that are going on in your lives.  I thank you for the continuous updates.

 

I found a real treat on my birthday, this last week.  Top Ramen.  Oh Yeah.  You have no idea the excitment that I felt.  The little, teenage girl squeal just didn´t do it justice..  I also bought 5 Liters of ice cream for only $40 pesos(you´ll never find a deal like that, I can promise you).  The only problem is that our freezer is just a little too small to hold the ice cream container.. so what did we do?  We cut off an inch of the top layer of the container of course!  A little ghetto, and we had to eat a lot of ice cream(okay, so I ate it all, just about) but it worked.  My birthday night was topped off with me and my companion eating 35 empanadas.  I dare you to beat 35.

 

Exciting news of the week: We had three baptisms!  It was one of the most amazing and edifying experiences that I have had in the entire mission thus far.  I´m very excited for the future of Eva, Adriana, and Miguel.  I have learned a lot from each one of them.  I´ve watched them make sacrifices ranging from not going fishing to quitting smoking.  They are on off on a new and exciting adventure.  They will find new and scary things at every turn.  The fun part about a baptism is that it really provides a good opportunity to reflect on life...your baptism...your future.(all of the above) We think of the ¨why,¨ quite a bit.

 

The weather has been rather bearable, lately.  It´s raining every week, which is a nice change.  Rain is the only tool we have that can cool things off a bit.  I can´t tell you how many times I´ve said, ¨Ojalá que llueva.¨...if you catch my drift..

 

Conference Weekend.  Need I say more?  Go to Conference with a question in mind.  Invite everyone.  Prepare to be spiritually feed.

 

I love you all,

 

Elder McMurray

 

7:12am EST

Family,

Well, it happened.  I can no longer say that I´m a teenager.  I´m officially old.  My back hurts just thinking about it..  Thank you for all of the birthday wishes!  You guys are awesome.  So I´ve gotten a few notices lately of people that aren´t sure about the mail.  Yes, I´ve gotten everything.  Yes, it´s slow.  Yes, you can still write me. :)

This week was definitely an exciting one.  The excitement started on Wednesday.  We received a call from President Heyman, informing us that Elder Massey was needed in the office.  He will be replacing an elder that is about to finish his time as an Office Elder.  Our time together was entirely too short. (Though he did leave the blender. :) )  So.... after two days of living with the other elders (Zone Leaders), I received my new companion, Elder Jake Snelson.  He makes companion number five for me during my time in Goya, alone.  He is 6´3¨, weighs like 8 pounds more than me, and best of all --- he´s left-handed.  That is left-handed companion number 5 for me.  The left-handers are still winning, 5 to 3.  At the rate I´m going through companions, I legitimately might have every left-hander in the mission as a companion.  He´s been in Argentina for just over 3 months.

Exciting news of the week:  We are set for another baptism this weekend!  We could see as high as three baptisms this Saturday.  We´re extremely excited.  I´ll have to send pictures next week!

This week, we have begun our push for General Conference.  We are inviting everyone.  When you think about it, we are so lucky to have Conference.  We have a living prophet that will speak to us.  We read in the Bible of the prophets.  If God guided his people with a prophet in ancient times, why would he change today?  He love us and wants what´s best for us.  He helps us by giving us prophets.  Mark the calendar: March 31, and April 1.

I love you all,

Elder McMurray

pss Did you know that my Mission has a blog?  I didn´t know that until President Heyman showed us something from the blog.  I´m pretty sure it´s accessible to anyone.

Roscas

Thank you for the BYU b-ball updates.  Keep me posted with March Madness-bound results (fingers crossed).  This week is selection week right?  

So... this week has been a different one, for a few reasons.  I got legitimately sick for the first time in the mission. (Write that one in the Baby Book..)  I was rockin´a 102.5 on Thursday.  (No, that´s not the local FM station...)  Intense diarrhea followed suit.  Headaches, of course.  But, I feel 100% better now!  So no worries.  I credit it to the temperature change on Wednesday night.  I woke up at 2 in the morning with the chills.  But Sister Heyman had me go to get some medication and then to a lab for a few tests.  I didn´t realize for quite some time that this was a parasite test.  Um... alrighty.  One thing you should know about Argentine health facilities is that they are a lot less private then that of their counter parts in the States.  Have you ever carried a stool sample (in a cup) through an entire waiting room before?  Just throw privacy right out that window...

Saddest part of the week (maybe my life):  Amelia, the 80 year old lady, had a tragedy this week.  Her boxer died.  Alfredo (the dog) has been in bad shape for some time.  I´ve never seen somebody soo sad in my entire life.  She had more love for Alfredo than most people have in their entire life.  She told us there is no comfort for what she feels.  I credit it to her fan that blows right in my face (thus causing my tear ducts to act up, of course) but I´ve found myself crying a tiny bit when we´ve met with her on such occasions.  If you can find a scripture that can top Alma 28:12, for this situation, holla´ at me, por favor.

After living in the Province of Corrientes for almost six months, I´ve got just the strongest desire to own at least one horse before I die... They really do wander through the streets like dogs.

So this week we are helping a woman, Adriana, with her quest to quit smoking.  I realized something really cool about desires, this week.  If you truly have desires to achieve something, it´s possible.  Anything is possible.  Just make sure you thank the Person that gave you the chance...if you catch my drift.

You guys are awesome, last thing I´m gonna say,

Elder McMurray

Transferred.

Being in a Ciber with kids that think they know English is pretty enjoyable, especially when they start to sing to songs.  If you´ve never experienced it before, try it sometime.

So.... transfers came.  And went.  Surprise, surprise, I stayed.  My new companion is Elder M, from Yucaipa, California.  He´s pretty ´narly´.  He´s been in Argentina for 3 months...he´s still fresh.  He´s got a lot of energy and I like his attitude.  I´m pretty sure we are going to be able to do some damage this transfer.  Better yet, he brought a blender...mmhmm milkshakes.  We have plans for no-bake cookies (we´ve got peanut butter!), chocolate chip cookies, and brownies this week.  I´m excited.

Dog attack.  Elder Massey got bitten on his second day in his new area.  Can I hear a, ¨Welcome to Goya!¨?  It was so bizarre, too.  Out of the blue, and without a bark it just took a taste test of his lower calf.

Schools started today.  It´s been kind of entertaining hearing kids going and doing their ¨back to school¨ shopping.  It´s a worldwide thing, I guess.  I´m kind of glad they are back in school.  Parents tend to be more responsible when their kids are in school.

Exciting find at Chango Más (Walmart) this week:  Grilled cheese maker, just like the one that David and Dawn have that I used so many times.  I think my companion and I might go for it..what do you think?

So...remember the 80-year-old who got baptized?  So we found an 83-year-old guy this last week.  He came to church!  He´s pretty hip.  We´ve met with him several times when he was in his wife-beater.  He still gets around on his bike and mo-ped.  It´s pretty legit.

Alma 28:12 is a great ¨pick-me-up¨ scripture when you are down and don´t think life is fair.  Just have patience. And joy.

I love you all,

Elder McMurray

ps Sister Cooper, you don´t stand a chance in a BOM race.

Wearing a member's Carnival costume:

Dressed as a gaucho:

Another week bites the dust.

9 months.  

 

Hey mom, you should tell the Primary kids that I hit page 167 this morning. You can do the trash talking for me.  Tell them I´m probably another 20 or 30 pages further when you tell them this week.  Question:  How come nobody told me that Jake Heaps transferred??

 

So... yes we did have the baptism this week!  I´m a definite fan of makeshift fonts.  There´s just something fun about them.  Especially when you have to spend 5 or 6 hours filling it up with a tiny little hose.  Like the other baptisms that we´ve had, I had the pleasure of providing the music.  Who knew that piano music in a branch all depended on the elders that come and go.  Talk about suffering when you don´t have an elder who can play the piano for several months.  It´s kind of funny, but kind of sad at the same time.  Thanks mom, for those ¨many¨ hours of practicing that I did.  Your suffering all those years made it possible that a tiny little branch on the south side of Goya Corrientes, Argentina, doesn´t have to suffer.

 

Well, this week I have to say bye to my Mini.  It´s definitely been an experience living, sleeping, eating, and talking like/with an Argentinean for this past month and a half.  I know Elder Sanchez will be a great future missionary.  The weird thing is knowing that I have a new companion coming.  The question is from where...

 

This week I´ve had my daily dose of General Conference talks.  Not only am I reading the past General Conference edition of the Liahona, but I also read the first part of Mosiah.  King Benjamin tells it like it is.

 

I love you all.

 

Elder McMurray

 

San Valentino

Thank you, thank you, for those of you that congratulated us on our baptism this week (that we did not have, but will be this following week, the 18th.)  But feel free to send the Congrats next week, too, if you´d like. ;)  With the Leadership Broadcast, the schedule was just a little too complicated to have the baptism.  The week started off extremely hot, but has taken a turn for the better, at weeks end.  I think we´re in the 80s now.  It´s been nice.  One can only hope that it doesn´t go up again.

 

The highlight of the week has got to go to Zone Conference, this Friday.  It´s always great to learn and be edified by leaders of the mission.  It´s proof that Mission Presidents are inspired of God.  We had a big part of the Conference devoted to, ¨The Rescue.¨  And what did they teach about in the Broadcast? --  The Rescue.  One of the things that I liked most that was said by President Heyman was this:  (Background info first:  We´ve been stressing more lessons that are shorter, but efficient.)  Who always speaks last in the last session of General Conference?  The prophet.  How long does he usually speak for?  20 or 25 minutes.  What could be the very last time that he could bear his testimony or tell the world one last bit of advice -- and he does it in 20 or 25 minutes.  Don´t you think that we could teach an entire lesson in about the same length of time?  Food for thought.  You guys can apply that in another way...  Do you really think that you need to tell you friend or family member everything about the Church for them to know that it is true?  A simple testimony can go a long ways.

 

Well, I hope everyone has a great Valentine's Day.  If you want to make it an even better, more loveable, day, do something for someone else.

 

Elder McMurray

Diluvio

BYU is 20-6, and a ¨Bubble-Team¨? How??  It´s cool to hear that they are still doing well after Jimmermania.  Sad news for the week:  River lost to Boca for the second time in two weeks.  It´s even harder to bare when you live in a city of mainly Boca fans...  But life goes on.

This week was fairly calm.  The work continues on.  I ate tongue this week.  I think it was of cow.  It wasn´t half bad, actually.  Exciting news for the week: Another baptism this coming Saturday!  We´re really excited for Olga.  The elders found her a few months ago, but due to a few issues, she didn´t get baptized then.  We had the luck (blessing) of finding her a few weeks ago, again.  Things are looking very promising for Saturday.

If you ever have the chance to help in the conversion process of an 80 year-old...DO IT.  You see things so differently.  Amelia Peralta has changed a little bit of my outlook on life.  She´s been going through some rough times, financially.  She heard about Priesthood Blessings.  She asked us if we could do it.  After giving the blessing, before we had time to say anything, she was like, ¨What are you guys feeling?¨  To be honest I felt pretty good.  She then said, ¨Do you guys feel that?  I feel really good.¨  80 year-olds are so honest.  She recognized that this was something special; she felt the Spirit.

I know I´ve commented about Chango Más a bazillion times, but that place is just so amazing.  I always find something that tastes of home.  This week's find.  Frosted Flakes.  Can you say ¨excited to eat breakfast??¨ Peanut butter is a rarity in the mission.  Yep, Chango Más has got that too.  You gotta love Walmart partnerships...

Jacob 5?  Been there. Done that.

Well, I love you all.  Manden saludos a todo.  Un abrazo.

Elder McMurray

 

Chango Más...the pride and joy of this area.

 Elder Sanchez(mini), Amelia, Luis Borda(baptizer), Me.

 With the Vargas Family (the Branch President´s family)