Monday, September 28, 2015

Rain and Mud

Hey everybody!
  
Things here are going pretty good.  It's been raining a lot.  And because all the streets here are dirt, there is mud everywhere and sometimes little rivers in the road.  Some times you start to feel a little taller right before you realize it's the little mud cakes under your feet.  It's a good thing I like the rain.
  
The house is looking amazing!   Though I don't miss that tile machine you guys have out there.  It looks like you are all getting pretty close to finishing it.
    
This Sunday was pretty cool.  We had branch council.  From what I've heard they haven't had it here in a long time.  I'm also really excited for conference next week.  We live far away from the stake center here, so I think we are probably going to be there all day Saturday and Sunday.
 
I don't have much time to write today, but I'm going to answer some of your questions: 

-It's just my companion and I in our house. 

-I think I mentioned that I bought a pair of shoes already. 
The black ones died, but my brown shoes are still alive (though a hole is starting to form.) 

-We usually teach a few times a day- sometimes I just don't feel like says and Friday we taught this family the restauracion, and Tuesdays ... and just listing things off.  We don't teach a ton but we have stuff to do.  (I think his mind was jumping between English and Spanish)

-I sleep good but now that I have to call everybody I don't sleep as much.

-I'm pretty good with money and they do give us enough.

Thanks for all the pictures.  Sorry it was a short letter this time.  I love you guys.
Bye!
-Elder Jarvie

P.S.  Remington looks really creepy.


(This is what Donavaghn is referring 
to in case you are curious.) 

Monday, September 21, 2015

Haz Lo Justo

Our zone or in other words our district with the zone leaders.

Hey everybody!
Things here are going good.  I'm almost used to having to call a bunch of missionaries every night.
Right now we have a district of nine missionaries.  So this morning we had to find an internet cafe that would fit us all.
 
The house looks amazing.  Sometimes I miss doing all that.  And sometimes I wonder why is everyone's hair so crazy? (Referring to a picture I sent of Spencer Pratt helping us do stucco.)  Here I thought everybody had crazy hair because Guatemalans are locos, but I guess it's just the style everywhere.  Speaking of crazy hair, Remington's beard is looking pretty good.
 
It's cool to see the five generation picture you took. That's crazy.  That would be cool to live to have a great great grand kid.  There is almost a hundred year age difference.  The other picture that was cool was of  Rick, Gavin, Jared, Moroni, and I (some times Spanglish slips out.  Like right now I almost wrote Moroni and yo.)  (The picture (included at the bottom of this letter in case you're interested)  I sent was taken a couple of years ago at a blood drive one of our young men did for his Eagle Scout project.  The reason I sent it to Donavaghn was because one week from today every one of those young men will be out serving a mission. Pretty amazing!  On a fun note, out ward holds the record right now in our stake for having 11 missionaries out. Technically two leave next week and there are two senior couples.)
 
Let's see what else - I did buy a CTR ring but it's in Spanish so it's really a HLJ ring.  Which means "haz lo justo."  That really means do what is right, but it's almost the same thing. I haven't been doing perfect in journal writing, but I've been doing pretty good.  In fact, I'm nearing in on finishing the one I've been writing in.  Right now I don't have much time to write because after we finish planning at 9:30 I'm on the phone until 10:15 , but i usually get a little more than half a page in.  Really the whole district leader thing only changes what I do at night, and a little of what I do Monday and Thursday. But it's still real;y different.
 
You also mentioned that I haven't had a companion that speaks English.  Who knows if I'll ever have one.  Most people do though.  I've had a companion that speaks Portuguese, and one that speaks Quiche (a native language in Guatemala) but nobody that speaks English.  In the zone there are 11 missionaries and 3 of us are "gringos."  Also one of the Latinos speaks pretty good English.
 
Thanks for all the pictures. I love them a ton.  Make sure you have Skype working good on a laptop, (referring to our Christmas call) because I want to see more of the house.
 
Well that's what I've got to say.  Love you guys.  Talk to you next week.
 
-Elder Jarvie
 
 L to R - Donavaghn, Lisa Mapel, Gavin Mapel (Philappines), Moroni Beal (Spain), 
Rick Pedersen (New Mexico), Jared Dabel (Guatemala) and Kelli Holcombe.

Monday, September 14, 2015

District/Zone Leader



So between last night and this morning I've been told a lot of things. First off, the whole Carter thing, that is super exiting.  Y'all really surprised me a few weeks back with the whole "Guess what?? Your sister's having a baby!"

The other thing is that they told us about changes yesterday which came with two things I wasn't expecting.  First off, I will be staying with Elder Barrera a 3rd change, that's like 4 and a half months with the same companion.  The other thing is that in this group that is going home a lot of the people were in leadership positions.  Our district leader has had a few problems, so there was a chance that they would have me be the new one.  But when they called me that I was going to be the 3rd Zone Leader I was really confused.  But they explained that for right now I'm going to the district leader, but over the whole zone.  There is only going to be one district, so that's weird. 
 
My companion got Chikungunya so he is kind of a zombie right now.  But for having it he is doing really well.  He can walk and talk and didn't die on the bus, so what more can you ask for?
 
All in all things here are going pretty good.  There wasn't a whole lot to say this week... but the few things were pretty big things.  Well, I love you guys, say "hi" to the turtle for me. (I told him sometimes Michaela calls Carter her little turtle, because he kind of looks like one.)
 
Bye!

Tuesday, September 8, 2015

President gets the boot

My companion and I with Erick

The house is looking great.  In your letter you said something about a longboard on his head and I was thinking why does he have a longboard on his head?  Then I realized you were taking about a board that is long, and I was thinking about a skateboard longboard.  It makes more sense with the picture.  Speaking of the boat, it looks like Remington has his beard already to go on the boat.
     
The rock stacking looks like it was good fun. (Youth fireside we had)  I'm like 99% sure I've seen that video before. (A man that stacks rocks in ways that should defy gravity.)  Sounds like I'm missing out on a lot of fun, but you guys are too.  They just gave the president here the boot.  Apparently he was a dirty rotten no good criminal scumbag..... or something like that.  So they always call to ask if there are riots or anything in our area.  But we live in a little village on a mountain, nothing like that happens here. (That's what a mom likes to hear!)
     
Dad's machine looks cool too (car rotisserie).  That first picture is fantastic.  Pretty soon now you are going to see a bunch of cars that have a little symbol that says Jarvie or something like that.  The garage looks great too.  A lot changes in a year.  Which reminds me I've officially been outside the states for more than a year.  That's crazy.
     
You mentioned ward council.  Here they haven't done ward council in a while, but we have been talking with our ward mission leader, and we have plans to start the other week, so that is pretty cool.
     
That's cool to hear that Em is going to be studying the Old Testament.  A few months ago I felt bad because I have never read the Bible all the way through.  I finished the New Testament a little while back.  Right now I'm reading the old one (Old Testament) and it's really interesting to hear some of the stories again, and in order.  I'm in Judges right now.  I just finished the story of Samson, which is a weird one.  Up there with Balaam or whatever his name is.  The guy that talks to his donkey.
     
Thanks for the pictures! oh and by the way the one I sent is my companion and I with Erick, he and most of his family got baptized like six months ago.
 
Anyway love you guys.  Bye!
Elder Jarvie