Hey Family:
Alright, well, it's P-day again here in Peru. Today we went to the Lima Temple. A lot of the Latino elders went for the first time actually...my companion being one of them. It was pretty exciting. He was very excited...I think. Sometimes its hard to get him to show emotion. But it was a really interesting day. It was all in Spanish first of all and...wow. So I spent the whole time trying to keep up with that and ... helping my companion along. It was great. Oh, but having to speak in the temple exclusively in Spanish was really difficult, because they all mumble so bad. Most don't even open their mouths to speak. So, it's fun trying to get used to all that.
I received a couple letters from you guys this week...and that was cool - some "Dear Elder" letters and one actual letter. I'm pretty sure it took the letter four days to get to Lima from Las Vegas...and another three or four days to get from Lima to the MTC here. hmmmm. It's all good though. It's nice getting mail. We're still trying to figure out if people just completely forgot about us once we left for Peru...or if the postal service here really is just that terrible...because most of us got quite a bit of mail in Provo. haha. Sooooo. That's life sometimes.
We went out proselyting for the first time on Saturday! That was pretty crazy. Everything I expected, really. Most of the people we met were very poor...lived on dirt floors or cement...and some of the houses were even just a few bricks with some sheet metal thrown on top...with either a piece of plywood or a blanket kinda thing for the front door. Loved it. Man, it was sweet. It's been my dream forever to teach in that kinda situation. So we went around with a couple of members from the ward and my companion and I taught some less active members of the Church. We also taught one lady who is Catholic. We gave her the first discussion and invited her to be baptized...not gonna lie...I have no idea how she responded. So the Spanish is coming along great. haha. Actually, it is coming along pretty well - not enough to understand everything...but I can usually get an idea of what's going on. We walked around all day...up and down the hills along the mountain...huge staircases...and almost got hit by about 17 cars. (Just kidding Mom.) But really, the traffic here is insane. The last lady we visited was an active member who was really sick and very depressed. At the end of the lesson...one of the teachers that was with us suggested that we give her a blessing. I leaned over and told my companion and he said..."si. tu puedes" which is like ... "yeah, you do it." Soooo, I kinda froze for a second when he said that and said a super quick prayer. It was pretty intense. I've given a few blessings before...but never before in Spanish. That's a whole different ball game. After I said her name and started giving the blessing...the spirit was so strong. Not gonna lie...I was crying pretty good. I thought I might experience some miracle where I would speak Spanish fluently just for the blessing...haha. Didn't happen. But I was able to get the blessing out and have it make sense...even with my broken Spanish. That was a big enough miracle for me! It was a very cool experience and we were all very tired by the end of the day. I'm sure it will be a lot like that for the next 22-23 months. haha. I am really looking forward to it.
My companion is doing find, I think. Most of the time he is really upbeat - funny and happy, but sometimes he acts all depressed - usually at night. He turns on music and buries his head on the desk. Not sure about it all yet. Maybe it's just his way of relaxing at the end of the day. I stopped worrying about it because he doesn't talk when he does that. I just hope he will be okay. You asked about the weather. We go outside everyday. It's winter here - pretty much always overcast, and not humid or rainy but with a mist in the air - really great temperature for me, but the Latinos think it's freezing. I think it's pretty cool. I'm doing fine with all that food and staying healthy stuff. Not sure if I'm losing weight or getting fatter, but either way I'm losing all that muscle I worked so hard for this year. :( But, on the bright side, I should be a pretty good soccer goalie in two years. I love the colored pencil thingy you sent me. I have broken some of the led things already, and doubt I'll find any replacements here. Sorry. If you send me more, I promise to be more careful.
So, I'm still enjoying the CCM (MTC) down here. It gets tough sometimes and the Americans do get annoyed with the Latinos on occasion sometimes because it seems they simply have no concept of being on time. We are all about being on time to everything...and they don't seem to get too worried about punctuality. (I'm sure the Norte Americanos do things to bother them too, like . . . wanting to be on time.) But, it's all good. I knew I'd have to get used to how others deal with life and get over it. As for the Americans in my room, they still snore, and that bothers me mucho. But that's easily remedied by throwing shoes. (haha). But, the Church is still true. Now I need to go do my laundry and play soccer. ;)
Elder David Royal
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