Paranda

October 17, 2010


Hi Family.

This last week was another long week, though we did have a lot of cool stuff happen. On Saturday there was a Tri-Mission Conference. Where all three of the Texas Houston Missions got together and someone comes to speak to us. Elder Costa, the Brazilian guy who spoke in conference last week, came and spoke to us. We all got to shake hands with him and meet him and stuff, he's incredibly funny, I really liked his talk that he gave us. He mostly spoke about how we should focus on people, or as he put it "Don't teach lessons, teach people." It was really good I feel like I learned quite a bit.

Something cool happened this week. We were in the one Trailer Park we have in our area and we were just biking around and talking to people and we come across two mexican boys, probably around 13-15 years old. Standing on opposite sides of the narrow street and taking turns throwing a soccer ball into these trashcans they had. We stopped, started talking to them and taking our turns throwing the soccer ball in the trashcan as well. We chilled with them a little bit just talking about stuff, then I got them to teach me how to do some of those soccer tricks that all hispanics instinctively know how to do. Then we started kicking the ball around, and this little 10 year old kid joined us, and the four us were just kicking this ball around talking (Elder Lamoure was standing off to the side with our bikes checking his watch over and over again, he was just being his usual lame stick in the mud self.) The two older kids said we should play a game, so we did, we used our helmets and the trashcans as makeshift goal posts and we started playing soccer right there in the street, it was me and the 10 year old verses these two 15 year olds. Now here's the funny part, after 15 minutes or so the score was 8-0, the 8 belonging to us. It was way funny, the two teenagers were starting to get pissed, a gringo wearing a tie and dress shoes and a 10 year old were beating them badly. Now this was in the evening when all the people in the trailer park are out walking around. As people walked by I'd ask them if they wanted to play with us, and they did. We weren't far from this little playground and this guy was pushing a stroller with a toddler in it with his wife who was leading another small child by the hand. I asked the guy if he wanted to play with us, well I didn't really ask him I was like "Hey dude! Come play with us!" He stopped, cocked his head to one side, thought about it for a second and handed the stroller to his wife "Here dear, take the kids." And he ran towards us and started playing. (You gotta love Mexicans). So we had this good game going in the street and there were lots of spectators no doubt it was rather weird that some dressed up gringo was out there laughing, shouting in spanish, and screaming GOOOOOAAAALLLLLL every time a goal was made. It was fun I was having a great time, Elder Lamoure wouldn't come play, he just kept standing off in the shadows and complaining about all the bug bites he was getting and that we should go because it was getting dark. Now the teams were un-even and we needed another man so I beckoned Elder Lamoure to come play with us and he still refused, saying he couldn't play because he doesn't like sports. I got everyone to start chanting "Si, se puede!" meaning "Yes you can" and finally he couldn't take everyone yelling at him and reluctantly came into the street and played with us. We played for a little longer until it got so dark that I could barely see the ball (It was 8:00). The score was 18-12, the other team was catching up now. I declared to everyone that last goal wins all. It was a final and furious round all the spectators yelling and cheering, and then the 10 year old scored the last goal and we won. I quickly grabbed Elder Lamoure, handed him a stack of pass-a-long cards, gave him some rapid instructions, and as everyone was starting to disperse we separated and started talking them all as they were leaving and giving everyone cards, inviting them to learn more about our message. We got like 20 people all in 10 minutes, it was great. Unfortunately we haven't seen any of them since then, nor have we taught any of them. But it was a fun, a good experience.

Other than that not much cool has happened, our two investigators with baptismal goals finally made it to church this sunday, so that was good. Elder Lamoure and I finally had it out one night during our nightly planning session. He was complaining about how we had to go down to the Tri-Mission Conference with the english elders, the zone leaders that we live with, which aren't our zone leaders but are zone leaders none-the-less, and Elder Lamoure hates them. So he was complaining about that and I was finally sick of all of his complaining and told him that there's nothing we can do about it and complaining won't help so shut up. Then he got mad and threw his planner at the blinds and we finally had it out. I told him straight up that he was a useless dead weight and that he didn't have the spirit with him. I asked what he thought he was doing here, I asked him if he even wanted to be a missionary, if he even cared... He didn't say anything, he just sat there fuming, he knew I was right, he couldn't argue, then I told him that I loved him and that I want to help him do what he's supposed to be doing out here, and to stop being a useless sack and then I told him to pick up his freaking planner and we will continue planning for the next day. He didn't say anything still, he just got up, went into our bedroom, screamed into his pillow for 30 seconds, came back in, picked up his planner and remained in a state of murderous silence the rest of the night. Later he told me that he was sorry, that I was right, and that he was going to start being better. The sad thing is that I didn't believe him, he's done these 180 degree flips many times before, and I honestly don't think he meant any of it. And since that night he's been the same as he's always been. I don't know what else I can do. Luckily it's the end of the transfer and hopefully he'll be transferred somewhere else and someone else can baby-sit him. It's so exhausting just putting up with him 24/7, I'm about to lose it. Well we have interviews with President this week so hopefully he can do something about him.

Well I'm done for today, oh and I did get that book mom, It's actually quite lame but it had a few good ideas, thanks for that. Last P-Day I did my own looking around and I can't seem to find a good one so perhaps there isn't a good gospel object lesson book. Though everyone could send me ideas every now and then, that'd be cool. Okay I'm done, I love you all and hope y'all have a good week. Peace out.

-- Elder Rice