Change 8 Week 6

Hey! This week was a lot better then pretty much every other week thus far this change. Me and my companion are working well together but not at well as I would like because we still don't talk when we're in the street and or when we're in the house. It's not really that we aren't great friends it's just that we're different people, he likes to be alone and do his things and I do my things and we are just usually doing our things in different parts of our house. Although we have been improving, we have found a few new common grounds to talk about that we have in common. I feel bad because my companion hasn't yet had a single baptism and his time here in Pasaje and his time with me hasn't been any different because we haven't had any baptisms. Although we have been working super hard and pretty much had to drop and replace all of the people that didn't progress enough. I was sad because I really thought that certain people were going to make it to baptism but some didn't want to get married and others didn't want to stop drinking. Every soul is precious in the sight of God but sometimes it's just not there time and maybe somewhere down the road missionaries will visit and baptize some of the people that I found and taught. We were able to find some new investigators and we finished with 2 baptism dates set for February. I am super excited because February should be a great month for my sector and the attendance overall in the branch is improving. I have been working super hard with a couple families so that they can change and come back to be active in the church and we're starting slowly to see some progress. When we started the new year in January we never got above 35 members at church on Sunday but this Sunday we hit easily 60 so we're definitely seeing progress. Nothing all that exciting happened this week, last week was kinda the highlight of January for me and I hope that with this weekend things get better because we have changes. I will be entering my 9th change next week out of 16 and so I'm definitely moving right along. I did get some mail this week in the district meeting. I got a package from Luke, Aunt Becky, and my Grandpa Maurice sent me a calender that I really was in need of! I hope that everything is alright with the family and everyone is doing well in work and school!! Love and miss you tons!! ELDER WILSON

Change 8 Week 5

Hey! So this week was pretty good, me and my companion are still working and trying to work better as a companionship. Our zone leaders are pretty concerned about how well we're going to work together when we hardly talk when we're in the street or at home, but there's nothing that they can really do because we're just 2 different people that's all. We get along well, we're just not great friends like I was with Elder Herrera, although me and Elder Tlatelpa have worked a little bit better since he has gotten here and we are starting slowly to improve the branch because the numbers are super low. I don't know exactly what we're going to do to get some people reactivated, but we are working hard and hopefully we'll start to see some results. I want to help this branch, but I know that if and when I do then changes are going to be here and I'm going to have to leave all that I have done behind and go to a different part. It doesn't really matter all that much to me because that's how it's been my entire mission, and I have enjoyed my time here even though it's been a long ride.
Anyway this week some interesting things happened and I wanted to share a couple stories and pics to go along with them so you can see whats been going on and a little more about the traditions of Ecuador. So before I left I knew that it was going to be hot and I have told you all many times that it gets hot here and actually we're in the hottest time of the year and one morning I was studying and I realized that the sun was super strong and I wanted to know just how hot it was outside. So I took my alarm clock because it's got a thermometer and I put it in the window seal where the sun hit just right. I left it there for about 45 minutes and I was amazed at what I saw when I went back to check things out. It was 125 degrees outside and I almost fell over! I was soo shocked that I had to take a picture because I felt the heat but I didn't know that it was that hot here in Ecuador. When the clouds come out it stays right around 107 and when the suns out you can see what it's like. I thought that was cool.
Also I'm sure you know that here in Ecuador there's a delicacy, which is Guinea pig. Well I got a chance to eat this delicacy this Thursday, my branch president has a little mini farm in the back of his house and he decided that it was time and so we ate Guinea pig. I took a video of the entire process basically. From when they killed them, cleaned them, and prepared them to be lunch. It was awesome and I actually thought it came out pretty good. I was impressed at how much I like it. I don't want to gross anyone out so I only included the final result, I thought it was very interesting and I had a good experience with my branch president and his family.
As for mail, we haven't received mail here in my entire zone this month, the last mail that I got was after Christmas and before new years. I don't know why the office isn't sending mail but there's nothing that I can do and honestly my leaders don't even care to ask for mail because it always is just for me. We should be getting mail any day now like for sure tomorrow but I don't know and I will be sure to let you all know how it goes when I get mail. I love and miss you tons!! ELDER KYLER WILSON

 Guinea pig



 

Change 8 Week 4

Hey! So this week has been different, that's the best word that I would use to describe what's been going on. I'm not that big on change and I really enjoyed working and getting to know Elder Herrera and now things are different. I didn't know how things were going to work out but I'm starting to realize that all my companions aren't going to be the same and I have to learn to adapt and work the same. My new comp is a good missionary and I know that we're going to learn a lot working together but there's just some things that I'm going to have to get used to. Last week we spent a lot of time with the members so my comp could get to know some of them and we actually even pulled out a couple references which was awesome. In all of my time here we hadn't gotten a single reference and then when Elder Herrera left we got 2 in the same week. Sometimes I get confused as for why things happen. We did alright, we had a better week, but I know that my companion is coming from a work horse comp and so he was expecting to have super high numbers and that's not how things have been turning out here in Pasaje. I know that I need to improve my weekly numbers, but I know that numbers aren't everything and that I just need to do everything that I can to help as many people as I can while I'm here. In my whole zone we haven't gotten mail in 3 weeks, but I know that the zone leaders went to a training in Guayaquil today and I hope that they bring mail for us tomorrow at district meeting. We just got a new missionary that's in charged of the mail and so things have been a little behind in the office. I don't know when my packages will be getting here, but I hope that they make it soon. Ii hope that everyone has been able to see the pictures and receive the letters that I sent, I'm sorry that it took so long, but I do the best I can. I love and miss you all very much!! ELDER WILSON
Shauna received a package from Kyler on Saturday and will be distributing everything he sent today. I will update the blog with the new pictures as soon as I get them:)

Change 8 Week 3

Hey! So this week was a little rough for us here in Pasaje for me and Elder Herrera, because our program is low and we haven't had a lot of new people to teach and so it's been really hard to fill every day. We have been doing a lot of contacting and we found out super fast that it doesn't work all that well because everyone and I don't know why but everyone when we knock on their door are always busy cleaning or cooking or just don't have time to listen. When the members don't give us references and contacting doesn't give us many results it made it a really hard week and so I don't even really know what I'm going to do with the program and to make things a little different we got a call last night and elder Herrera got changed this morning. I'm not in my sector I'm waiting for my companion here in Santa Rosa and I don't know who it will be or when he will be getting here but we all came to the computers and I wanted to send out my general letter so you can all read about my week and then I will get on later and be able to chat if you are going to be online in the afternoon. I am doing good, I just got a couple letters in the mail but as for packages nothing thus far. We are supposed to get mail this week and so I don't know if anything will have gotten here yet but I will wait and find out. I hope that everyone had a great vacation, I'm doing good here excited to receive my companion for the first time, I feel weird because I was always the one that had to pack up and leave and so it was interesting to see my do it all last night. I will miss Elder Herrera because he was a great missionary and an awesome friend and I know that the members and converts will be sad to hear that he had gone. He got changed to Guayaquil but I don't know where. I love and miss you tons!! ELDER WILSON

Kyler sent me an email a little bit later yesterday with some other info.

I was really starting to like working with Elder Herrera but he had been here in this sector for almost 7 months and that's much more than I would like to be in any sector so I don't blame him for getting changed. Although he wrote me from his new sector and he says he's good but misses me so it was good to know that I have another good friend here in the mission. My new companion is Elder Tlatelpa and he is from Mexico, he is a good kid from what I have seen and we have had a little time to talk and it should be interesting working with a new comp. I hope that I get changed out of this sector in 4 weeks when we have changes because there's not much left to do here in Pasaje, but I'm going to work hard and hopefully we can start to have some success.

Change 8 Week 2

Hey! This week was pretty good, we were working hard to teach as many lessons as possible and visit all the people that we needed to before we ended up in the house for 2 days doing nothing, it was an alright week. I found out real fast that being at home resting is good and was needed but after 2 weekends of pure sitting and playing monopoly and doing nothing I am kinda glad to be able to start this week knowing that we are going to have time to work every day and actually get some things done, and our leaders have made it clear that we need to better our numbers. The mission president is going to be changing my companion soon but as of right now we're still companions. Last week we had to travel to have interviews with our mission president and I was happy because it's been about 5 or 6 months since my last interview and I like talking with president and I also needed to ask to cut my mission short 3 weeks. Me and president had a good conversation and it was good to be able to tell him how the work has been going and he told me that he will be changing Elder Herrera because he's not got more then 6 months here in this sector. I told him that he's a good companion and I asked when he's going to be making changes but he didn't know at that moment. At the end of my interview I explained to president that I need to go home a little early and I told him the reasons and that I needed to be home in December. He told me that he couldn't give me an answer in that moment but that he will talk with the mission secretary and let me know. I have to keep working and try not to bug the office missionaries too much but as soon as I know anything I will let you know. Had a good weekend in the house with my comp and I am doing good, and I got mail last week. I got 6 packages, 2 boxes and 4 envelopes. The boxes were from my dad and Nat, and Grandma Connie!! The envelopes were from Mom and Mark and LaNae!! Thanks soo much for the ties and the candy and for making my xmas and new years all that much more special!! I have about enough jerky to feed a family of 10 for a week but I think that I will be eating most of it because I love it and the majority of the people that I have given it too don't like it. Anyway thanks for everyone that wrote me letters and sent me awesome packages for xmas my bday and new years. I love and miss you tons!!! ELDER WILSON