Week 33: Pressing Forward

This week was so different! It rained everyday...  So actually it wasn't really different.

So we've been trying to think of new ways to teach the restoration. I'm sure this has been done before, but I thought of teaching with a Rubik's cube. A solved Rubik's represents the church that Christ established. Perfect in every way. But after his crucifixion am the death of his apostles, things were changed. Their authority was no
longer on the earth. The doctrine was changed. When explaining this part, we start to mix the Rubik's cube. A mixed cube represents how, because of the changes, there are so many different churches. But no side is perfected. No church had the fullness of the gospel. And then we talk about how the church was restored through the prophet Joseph Smith and then I solve the cube like lightning speed, like faster than your mom can eat a chick fil a waffle fry, and then boom. Christ's church restored. The same church He established. The same doctrine. It's genius right? We put it to the test and tried using this in the street contacting. And with the very first person we tried it with, it worked. She was so engaged and thought it was so cool! We got her phone number and taught her again this week. So yeah the Rubik's cube got us a new investigator! We've been using the technique so much this week and we're seeing so much success! It's a really cool visual and it's fun!

I had an exchange with Elder Holt in Vigo this week and we had a good time! We taught one of their investigators with the Rubik's cube and it went really well! Beforehand though, the scariest thing ever happened. We were outside sitting on a bench planning how we were gonna teach, when this huge sumo wrestler approached us. He just stared at me, like he was expecting me to move so he could sit down. He didn't say anything. Just blocked my view of the sun. So I got up, and he sat down. I said hello, and he just looked at me, and I kid you not, he growled like a bear. And holy heck I was scared to death haha. He spit in my face and just kept growling. So we said have a nice a day and walked away... And thus it is.

The weather this week has been the craziest I've seen yet. Saturday was soooooo insane. It was pouring rain with like 61937mph wind. I've come to the conclusion that umbrellas don't help. They really just make life harder. It's fun. And lucky for us, all of our appointments that day just happened to fail. But the weather didn't stop us from going to work! We spent all day outside passing by homes trying to find people to teach! And in the whole day, ONE guy let us in. And this guy is gold. The guy we were looking for actually didn't live there anymore, but this new guy let us in and we talked for a while! And he's interested in learning more! We had a short lesson about the plan of salvation and it went really well! It's so amazing how the Lord will bless when we put in the effort. The weather can be really annoying, but a positive attitude and some faith makes such a difference. I LOVE missionary work. I LOVE feeling drained of energy from walking against insane wind while totally drenched, all day. I go to bed exhausted every day, but the opportunity I have to be here is so rewarding. Elder Trassierra and I find ways to make it fun. Like when we're walking outside and the weather is so bad that we can't even hear each other talk, we act out slow motion fight scenes while we walk. Haha it's the best. Especially when the wind is so crazy that you can lean forward without falling down.

Easter in Santiago... To be totally honest, I didn't even realize it was Easter until I checked my email this morning haha. Easter Holiday isn't really a thing here. Hermana Bake, one of the senior missionaries, got all of us little bags of American candy which was super nice!! And that's about all that happened this Easter. But hey I
hope all of you had an awesome holiday and dyed eggs and ate candy and stuff!

I leave you with my testimony of the Savior. I KNOW that he lives!! For that, I am here serving in Spain. Sharing this message of the redeemer of the world is the BEST. Serving a mission was a sacrifice that I'm so grateful I've made. If leaving family and friends means being drenched and cold all the time, I can't complain, because I get to do the greatest thing ever at the same time. I love my Savior. And I know that he loves me. And you. And everyone in the whole world.

I love you all! Have an awesome week!

It's still raining.

Elder Hendrix

Week 32: Don't take the cheese block

The sun is shining, the tank is clean, and we are getting out of here!  *dramatic gasp* The sun is shining. THE SUN IS SHINING IN SANTIAGO.

Another awesome week full of teaching and weird food!

I don't have any huge stories this time, so this is just a little update on how things are going here in Santiago!

We're working a lot with members now! This awesome for us because the members haven't always trusted the missionaries. I guess something happened a while ago with some elders offending someone, idk, but things are changing! We visited just about every member this week. I feel like they trust us and are excited to work with us! It's awesome!

The Bujan family invited us over for food this week... I love that family, but chicken feet and rice pudding don't really work in the same meal. It was interesting... I'm glad I got to experience chicken feet, but if I never had it again, that would be ok. Everyone in Spain makes rice pudding for dessert. I don't understand why. It's not
dessert. It's literally rice and milk. Dessert doesn't really exist here... Like the other day we went had lunch with a member named Belenda, and the postre was a block of cheese. A block of straight cheese. And Spaniards love that stuff. Like Belenda destroyed that thing like it was a Texas Roadhouse roll. I don't get it.

We met with Pedro, an investigator, twice this week. He's doing really well! He's always asking questions and really enjoys the lessons. Were just trying to get him to wake up on Sunday to go to church! He has a 13-year-old sister named Cielo that the Hermanas are teaching. They live with their mom in a piso. The mom is super nice and is really supportive. She tells us she loves when we come over cause it gets Pedro out of his room haha. She doesn't usually join us for the lessons, but we're trying! We want to have a noche de hogar with all 3
of them this week. We'll see!

We have English classes every Wednesday.  I LOVE teaching English! We have two classes, a beginner and more advanced. I teach the advanced one, so we do more practice with conversations. It's so much fun! We
were talking about our favorite music and this one girl said her favorite singer is Michael Buble, and I told her that I saw him in concert one time, and she started bawling. She was seriously crying. I thought she was laughing at first... But she walked out and didn't come back... I have no idea what I did.

We have a noche de hogar with these 2 guys from Ecuador every Monday night. Jose and Jonathon. They're 21 and 13 and they're brothers. They always invite a lot of their friends and the turn out keeps getting better! First it was just them 2 and one cousin. And then Jose invited 2 friends that always come. And now Jonathan brings his girlfriend. And tonight, Jose says he has another friend coming! We're so excited! Lessons in that house are soooo much fun! We sing a song, have a short lesson, and play a game and eat food. We have a good time! Hopefully, we will be able to start teaching some of these people soon! There's some solid potential!

We had an activity with branch this weekend. A tortilla de patata competition! Everyone made a tortilla and we all tasted them and voted on the best one. The winner was this less active girl named Sheila. I'm so glad she won because she seemed so happy! She came to church on Sunday and everyone was talking about how they want her recipe! Tyler and Summer got destroyed. They got last place haha.

A tortilla-making contest at church.  Tyler Haws is the
tallest one, and his wife Summer is in red.

Tyler is awesome. He's the coolest mission leader ever. He's super encouraging and always has awesome ideas. And every time we go to his house for correlation, he has American candy. And sometimes Summer
makes pancakes. It's the beeessst.

The branch threw a surprise party for a girl named Ana Clara. She turned 15 this week. Elder Trassierra and I decided to invite ourselves and we had an awesome time! We really are building great relationships with the members! Which is why we went. Kinda. I mean there was free empanadas, but the members are cool too. :)

Ok here's the crazy story of the week. A few days ago, Elder Trassierra and I were in a papelería getting some stuff laminated, when all of a sudden this random guy comes out of no where and shoves me into the wall and gets up in my face and starts yelling at me. I had noooooo idea what was going on! I couldn't understand a thing he was saying and didn't know who the heck he was or what he wanted! I've never seen this guy in my life! Some of the employees in the store came over to try to get him to come down and then he just growls "You got a problem with me? I saw you staring me down in the conference (we had stake conference last week). You can't just talk to me face to face?? If you got an issue with me you better tell me." I was scared haha I have never seen this dude in my life and had no idea what he was saying. I didn't see him at the conference. I didn't even talk to many people at the conference cause I was playing piano! But basically, I told him it must be a misunderstanding and that I have nothing against him. I guess he's actually a member, but he's been inactive for years... I'm still confused about the whole thing. But I'm pretty sure we're on ok terms now. Weird stuff. So
random. I didn't do anything I swear!

And that's about it! Things are going great here! I'm having an awesome time and I've loved every second of my mission. I'm so grateful for this opportunity I have to share the gospel in Spain. Being a missionary is the best ever. Definitely the best decision I've made. I love teaching others about this knowledge that we have. This
church is true!

I hope you all have an awesome week!

TELL MY MOM HAPPY BIRTHDAY ON FRIDAY! SHES TURNING 29.

Elder Hendrix

Week 31: Spiritual Gut Punch pt 2

Elder Hendrix at a park in Santiago.

Elders Hendrix and Trassierra at a park in Santiago.

Elder Trassierra and I are a powerhouse! We're getting so much work done! We had an amazing start to this transfer.

Elder Trassierra is from Murcia in southern Spain. Being companions with a native is really different. The culture is so different. It can frustrating and annoying at times, but I'm getting used to it. I'm just really grateful to have been raised in the greatest country in the world haha. But I really do love Elder Trassierra! He's a machine! He's motivated, he works hard, and he has a strong testimony and desire to be here. This past week has been quite an experience. My Spanish is coming along so much faster. Elder Trassierra's English is crap, so I can't really speak it much... I'm teaching him to pray in English though. He's doing good! Besides that, he knows two phrases that he says probably 50 times a day. "I own this place" and "That is just rubbish." Haha he's a funny dude. OH AND HES A PIANO WIZARD. He's sooooo good at piano. He's been playing for 10 years. He's going to study piano performance after his mission at a big music school in Málaga. We're most definitely gonna do some musical numbers together soon. He's a great missionary and I'm excited to work with him!

Anyway, this week... Not sure where to begin. It's been crazy.

We found a teaching registro in our carpeta for a guy named Gonzalo. He was taught a few years ago by some elders. We gave him a call, told him that we're the missionaries, and he actually asked us if we could meet him asap. This never happens haha so Elder Trassierra and I were so pumped. Gonzalo is from Paraguay, has lived in Santiago for 5 years, and is 21 years old. We met with him  on Thursday, and hoooooly heck it was a miracle we've been waiting for. To start, we asked him about his experience with the missionaries in the past. He said he loved meeting with them. He had great spiritual experiences learning the gospel. He went to France to study for 2 semester though, and apparently the missionaries didn't take note of it. So he was forgotten about and wasn't in contact with the missionaries when he came back. Well, last week (about 2 years later), he found his Book of Mormon in his room and felt prompted to open it up and read a little bit. Well, he didn't stop. He read the entire book in a week. And literally the very next day, he got a call from the missionaries. We were talking about his experience with this, and he explained to us that he KNOWS it is true. He said he doesn't understand it very well, but he has no doubt that it is a book full of precious truth. He said after he finished the last chapter of Moroni, he knelt down in prayer, like the missionaries taught him to do years ago, and he prayed. And he said he felt so much peace and comfort. He has received a testimony of the truthfulness and power of the Book of Mormon. And he said when we called him the next day, it was just another confirmation that God loves him and that this was no coincidence. And I can testify that is true! This was no coincidence! I know there was a reason why we called Gonzalo at that particular time. The Lord has prepared him. He will be baptized next month. We're so excited to see him progress and make that covenant with God. I don't even know him that well, but I have so much love for him! Hearing his testimony was so powerful. He's ready. Ah! I'll keep you updated!

Next... Pedro. Another guy we found in our carpeta. There wasn't a phone number on his registro, so we passed by his house this week. He was home and he let us in! He last heard from missionaries about 5 years ago. We taught him the Restoration of the Gospel and he was so engaged! He was asking so many questions and had so much interest! I see some solid potential in this guy. He's from Paraguay as well, and is 18 years old.

Oh next. I KNEW I LEARNED HOW TO RIDE A UNICYCLE FOR SOME REASON. We were walking around the center of Santiago doing some street contacting, when we saw this dude riding a unicycle in the plaza. And so I thought, hmm, I can ride a unicycle. So I looked at Elder Trassierra and said "Hey I'll bet you've never seen an approach this original." Haha I walked up to this 20ish year old college kid and asked him how long he's been unicycling and such and where he bought his unicycle and I told him I could ride one. He didn't believe it, so he asked me to try. And I did. I rode that thing. I may still be a bit of a greenie in the mission, but unicycling is engraved in my soul. I haven't lost it at all. Haha so there was an instant connection made. He said he's never met anyone in his life that can ride a unicycle. He started teaching me some tricks and stuff. And then I was somehow able to transition our conversation into a gospel topic and it was just perfect. Best contact ever. I always knew that all the work I put into learning to ride a unicycle wasn't for nothing haha.

Elder Hendrix riding a unicycle in Santiago.

So as I've mentioned, Tyler Haws (former BYU basketball player) is our mission leader. We had an idea of seeing if we could take investigators or less actives to see one of his games. We were almost sure that President Pack would say no, but we figured we might as well try. So I gave him a call last week and asked, and he's like "Tyler Haws? You talking Haws?! Get 6 extra tickets and we'll call it good." Hahaha so we got to see Tyler play on Saturday with my mission president and his family!! We brought 2 less actives, Jose and Jonathon. And wooooooooaaahhhh that game was amazing!!! The game ended 77 to 77. And so they went into overtime. And that ended 88 to 88. So they went overtime again! And then like halfway through that, Tyler's coach just started flipping out and threw his clipboard on the ground and walked out. It was soooooooooo intense! We're supposed to be in piso by 10:00, and at this point is was like 10:20, so I looked at President Pack and asked him if we need to head out, and he just stands up and shouts "Nobody is going anywhere until we figure out where the coach is!!!" Haha it was hilarious! I'm not a huge basketball fan, but I don't think I've ever been more into a game. It was awesome! Unfortunately, they lost 99 to 100. It was soooooo dang close!!!! And Tyler played so well! That was so cool we got to go! AND the mission president and his family came! Our less actives we brought loved it too! Ah such an awesome night!!! I got to see a basketball game on my mission hehehe.

Elder Hendrix with other missionaries and two members at
Tyler Haws' basketball game.

President and Sister Pack, their son, the missionaries and
two members at Tyler Haws' basketball game.

Anyway, this week has been such a success. Elder Trassierra and I are working in unity and getting work done! We found new investigators, less actives, and everything is just going great! We are having success up here in the north! Things are changing!

The north may not have a lot of members, and it may seem really hard to find people to teach, but it's not impossible. The start of this transfer has been amazing and I'm so grateful to be up here with Elder Trassierra. I have a testimony of the importance of exercising faith in the work. As Nephi promises us, if we press forward with faith, with a steadfastness in Christ and a brightness of hope, He will bless us. I know that He knows the challenges we face. He loves us. He wants us to succeed. He wants us to understand that our trials are only benefiting us and making us stronger. If we put our trust in Him, and faithfully go forth doing His will, he will perform miracles in front of us. I KNOW this is TRUE!

I love you all and I hope you have an amazing week!

Santiago should have won.

Elder Hendrix

Week 30: La Carrera

So as I've mentioned in previous emails, the work here in Santiago is slower and a bit discouraging sometimes. We haven't had many teaching opportunities. The relationship between the members and the missionaries is not great. We really don't have any of their support for some reason. I think there was a companionship a long time ago that might have offended them or something, so it has been really difficult to work with them. We really want to change that because, with their help and support, Santiago could have some serious potential. So our district got together one day this week and we started brainstorming. What is an activity we can plan to do with the branch that will provide them an opportunity to bond? I went on a split with another Elder in my zone, and he was telling me that they are having a ton of success with finding people because they plan fun activities for their branch to invite friends to. Literally all of their investigators are references from members. And that's what we need in Santiago! We need member support! And so I explained this to my district. Guys, we need to have an amazing activity with the branch that will be fun and exciting and successful. We have tried an FHE type of thing several times, but it hasn't worked out. What is something that will catch everyone's attention? What is something that they would want to invite their friends to? And then the most brilliant thing ever popped into my head. Pinewood Derby. Hahahaha what if we had a little pinewood derby in Santiago? It was just a fun idea. But then we started looking at it more seriously. We made a car out of a block of styrofoam and made wheels out of thick poster board, and it works! And then we made a track. And it worked! So we decided what the heck. Let's do this. So we went and bought a ton of styrofoam blocks and stuff for wheels. And we made little flyer things to give to members. And they are SO pumped!!! Everybody wants to do it! They're all talking about how cool their cars are gonna be and how excited they are! We've never had an activity where more than like 5 people come, so this is so exciting!!! It's gonna work!!!!! We are officially holding the first annual carrera de la Rama de Santiago on April 9. This activity is gonna be a success! Members are starting to trust us! I'll keep you all updated! Great things are happening up here!

Elder Hendrix built a pinewood (styrofoam) derby for the ward.

We had stake conference on Sunday. My companion and I had to go a few hours early because we had usher, so while we were waiting for people to start coming, I was playing some piano. And then the 70 that was presiding came up to me and asked if I would play some prelude. They never told me when to stop... So I played piano for almost 2 straight hours.. Haha it was great!

Transfers are today! I'm staying in Santiago, but Elder Wither is going to Madrid. It was a short 5 weeks with him, but it was a great experience. I love that guy! My new companion is Elder Trassierra. ANOTHER native! He's from southern Spain. His train doesn't get here until tonight, but he sounds like a cool guy! I haven't met him, but I'm excited to! This is gonna be a fun transfer!

While I wait for my new companion, I get to hang out with the Bake's all day. They took me and Hermana Bingham (who is also waiting for her new comp) to the beach again today! We went to this really famous sightseeing place called Finnesterre (end of the world). It's like a big cliff that goes over the ocean. It was sooooooo ridiculously windy. There's this tunnel place thing in the rocks where you can stand and lean forward and the wind holds you up. It's so cool! Pictures to come...

Elder Hendrix at Finnesterre (the end of the world)

This weekend has been really difficult. I received news that a very dear friend of mine has passed away. Any of you that knew Keli know that she was an amazing young woman. I am so grateful to have had such an awesome friend like her. Times like these are when I'm especially grateful to be teaching others about the plan that God has for us. I know that He knows each of us personally and knows the challenges we face. He loves us. I know that the Plan of Salvation is designed for us to be able to experience eternal joy and happiness. Keli and her family will most definitely be in my prayers.

I love you all and I'm so grateful for all of your support! Have an awesome week!

Elder Hendrix

Week 29: Snow in Santiago!!

Elder Hendrix at a college in Santiago.

Some interesting statues in Santiago.

This week has been different for sure! Saturday morning, we woke up to see the entire cuidad totally covered with snow!! Soooooo much nicer than rain! It has been getting sooooo cold here though. We had to take a 2 hour bus ride to Lugo, which means we drove through the mountains, and I could not believe the amount of snow that had come down in one night. It was crazy! And it continued snowing the entire day! It was so awesome! The weather this week has been so weird. A few days ago, we could barely even walk in the street cause it was hailing so hard.

Snow in Santiago.

Here's some stories from this week!

1. We spent one morning this week making cookies for some members cause it was hailing bowling balls outside. So that night, we stopped by literally every member family's piso (all 6 of them) and nobody was
home. It was quite the disappointment. We didn't want all of these plates of cookies to go to waste, so we decided to go contacting in the streets in attempt to give them away and possibly find someone that would listen to our message and be ready to receive he gospel. I know it's weird.. I wouldn't take cookies from a stranger either, but we figured we would just give it a try and see how it goes. Contacting is all about trying new things anyway haha. Well, after a while, we found this woman named Rosalía. She was literally the only person we found in the street after like 2 hours cause it's freezing and wet outside and nobody in this town wants to leave their piso. We talked to her about the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and how because of Him, we
can progress and become like Him through His gospel. We talked about the atonement being the greatest gift to mankind. We told her we wanted to show our love and appreciation for Him by sharing gifts with others (present plate of chocolate chip cookies and smile). And she just smiled and said thank you so much and  even shed some tears. She told us it made her whole week. She was so grateful! We did not receive her phone number or address, but it just made me really happy to see how this small act of kindness effected her. It was a greater reminder of the importance of working hard all the time and pressing forward with faith, because that one person makes it worth it. Anyway, my invitation to all of you this week is to make someone cookies. And thus it is.
2. It's still raining.
3. As I mentioned, we took a bus to Lugo this week. The hermanas over there are having a baptism soon, and since my companion is district leader, he had to go do the baptismal interview. After the hour long walk to the bus station from our piso, we realized we left our phone at home. We really needed the phone cause we had no idea where we were supposed to go when we got to Lugo, so we looked for a pay phone to call the senior couple (the Bake's) in Santiago to see if they could drive by our piso and pick it up and bring it to us before we miss the bus. We found a pay phone after a while, and I was about to drop a coin in it, but then I felt the impression not to do it. I told my companion that I don't know why, but we need to just walk home ourselves and get it and just take the next bus. So we did so, and on our way back, this dude comes up to us and asks us who we are. He said he's been looking for someone to tell him what he can do to change his life. He's homeless and lives in the bus station and doesn't understand what he's supposed to be doing with his life. He asked us if we could come teach him one day about God and who He is and what His plan is for us. It was soooooo awesome! We are gonna meet him this week to teach him, so I'll definitely report back next week! But it's just so cool how the spirit works. I knew we needed to go back for some reason!!! And we were actually right by a random pay phone when this happened, so after he left, we called the Bake's and they brought our phone to us and we didn't even miss the first bus. Haha oh man this church is true.
4. It's still raining.
5. First of all, if you don't know what a tortilla de patata is, look it up, make one, and then your life will be complete. Elder Wither and I had to make 12 of those things Saturday night for our branch. Every 4th Sunday, the whole branch stays after church and we have a big potluck lunch thing. Unfortunately however, there was only 17 people at church yesterday, and only 13 stayed afterwards, and 6 of those were missionaries... But we had a TON of tortillas left. But it's cool cause I got lunch every day this week.
6. It's raining.

Today for P day the Bake's took us to the beach! I got tons of pictures! My mom will have them posted on my blog today. It's soooo weird how Santiago is freezing and snowy and super overcast and raining every single day, but at the beach (only 45 minutes away) it's sunny and warmer and there's no clouds. So strange. But the beach was so much fun!!! I could easily spend an entire day just walking on the sand. I got so many awesome shells! And we caught a bunch of little sand crabs.

Also, I learned how to solve a 4x4 Rubik's cube, and I still have no friends.

Anyway, have an awesome week! Make someone cookies.

Elder Hendrix

Week 28: Nephi 3:7

It's still raining. Ok.

Elder Hendrix on a tractor outside Santaigo.

This week was a bit slower unfortunately. My companion decided to become deathly ill, so I spent a ton of time cleaning up this mess of a piso. I'm not even sure if you can call it a piso. I could clean for weeks and it would still need work. But I've made some serious progress! I really wish I would have taken pictures when I first got
here. Past missionaries have destroyed this place. And we have no chairs right now... I sat down for studies one morning and my chair just collapsed underneath me and broke. I mean, yes, I've gained some weight, but these chairs were crap to begin with anyway lol. The kitchen walls have grease caked all over them... It's nice. But I'm so proud of the work I've out into cleaning this place up. There's some serious potential here guys. By the time I leave this place, it'll look brand new.

We actually got a few minutes of sunshine one day this week. It was the craziest thing I've seen yet. It's still freezing here and I'm pretty sure it's getting colder. Our piso doesn't have heating or hot water. It makes me think about how great America is. We really got it good over there. Little things like that make me so grateful for what I have. But I'm staying warm. Fried quesadillas make great hand warmers.

Elder Hendrix making cookies in his piso. 

We're continuing to contact people from those teaching records we found a while ago. Pretty much everyone that answered didn't want to have anything to do with us, so we didn't find much success there. But we're staying strong! We still have plenty of numbers to call and plenty addresses to pass by. The work up here in Santiago has really been teaching me patience. People aren't just gonna show up one day. We're the ones that have to bring the gospel to them. People in the north never let us in. But I know that sharing a simple testimony can go a long way. People will feel something. I have faith that seeds are being planted!

Along with that, I want to share something I learned in a zone training we had this week. An elder in my zone, Elder Holt, gave an insight about having a positive attitude. He talked about the word 'difficult' and how we use it too much. He compared Nephi with his brothers Laman and Lemuel. When Lehi told Nephi that he needed to go
back to Jerusalem with his brothers to obtain the brass plates, he responds "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded, for I know that the Lord giveth no commandments unto the children of men, save he shall prepare a way for them that they may accomplish the thing which he commandeth them." Nephi is such a grate example of someone with a positive attitude. He knows that what he has been commanded to do won't be easy, but he has faith that it is what he needs to do. And with the help of the Lord, it will be done. Laman and
Lemuel on the other hand, "And now, behold thy brothers murmur, saying it is a [difficult] thing which I have required of them; but behold I have not required it of them, but it is a commandment of the Lord." They had an attitude of 'this is impossible, it's never gonna happen.' But where is their faith? If it is something that the Lord has commanded them to do, they will do it. Elder Holt said that we may sometimes be a little like Laman and Lemuel. "It's difficult to find people in the north. Contacting is hard. It's too hard to work in the rain. I miss Madrid where the work was better." We won't have success with these attitudes! If we say it's difficult, it's gonna be
difficult. He invited us to eliminate that word out of our vocabularies completely. His insight was so powerful. It really made me think about what I need to change. I feel like a lot of people think "oh I'm in a hard part of the mission. Nobody baptizes in the north." We can find success up here! It may require more patience, but with faith, obedience, and optimism, we will teach!

I got to do two musical numbers this week!! In that same meeting, I sang a duet of El Espíritu de Dios (The spirit of God) with Elder Pulotu from Hawaii. I wrote the piano arrangement and recorded it on the electric piano and we just sang to it. It went really well! I did another musical number in sacrament meeting yesterday. I sang Más Cerca Dios de Ti (Nearer my God to thee). I love doing musical numbers so much!!! I'm so grateful that I've been able to do so many already! My companion Elder Wither is awesome. We get along really well and I'm
really happy to be serving with him! He has been really helpful with Spanish since he's from Peru. Being with a native speaker is a blessing!

I hit my 6 month mark last week. A quarter of my mission is already gone. It's the weirdest thing ever. It's going way too fast. But looking back, I've learned so much in such a short amount of time. Serving a mission has been the greatest decision I've ever made. I'm so happy to be here sharing the gospel. I love the mission field
sooooo much. I know that this calling came from the Lord and this is where he needs me.

I love you all! Send me selfies.

Stay inside. My sister got her license.

Elder Hendrix

An interesting old building outside Santiago.

Elder Hendrix making pancakes at Elder and Sister Bake's piso.