April 9, 2012

Well I got through the first week in my new area.  I’m in Ciudad Del Este in the city of Hernandarias.  Its all red dirt and the area is huge.  We have some city parts and then we also have the campo of the campo in our area.  It’s like I’m out in the middle of the end of the earth.  It rained the second day here and when it rains here you grow like 4 inches.  There is so much mud everywhere and its red clay mud so it sticks to everything and it doesn’t come off.  My new companion is Elder Keller from Box Elder Utah. He is cool, and pretty funny.  So that’s a good thing, it was a 6 hour bus ride Wednesday and then a 45 min taxi ride...and this is the nicest place I have seen to live, above all other houses of the mission this is by far the nicest, we have a door on the shower, everyone else just has a hole in the ground and that’s it, with the shower head, but this is a sweet place.  And its huge, like 3 or 4 times maybe bigger than Puerto Pabla.  We always have something to do also, but there are about 35 members who attend church so that’s a big difference coming from like 120.  I saw sister Hubbard on Wednesday, she went to my area when Elder Perez and I left.  she said that Fernando is getting ready for the mission, that he really wants to go now....I guess he sold a bunch of his stuff so that he could start to save money for the mission, and they said he sent me a letter but we didn’t get mail today because all of Paraguay shuts down for the Holy Week so I didn’t get my mail from him today.  

Sounds like all of the family had a good time at the Easter party,,,,too bad I wasn’t there!  And I can’t wait to see the videos of Spencer while he was all drugged up.  But in everything else the family sounds good. Elder Norton is a trainer now . . . and we have 3 elders who are in the mission that are from Paraguay. Kind of lame....it would be like serving in Pocatello!

Some more stuff from my area, all the roads look like the fields at the farm right after all of the compost has been harvested, and it smells the same also, like cow poop.  There are areas that are just shocking to see.  I knew Paraguay was dirt poor but some of the houses are standing by magic.  I’ll get some pics this week maybe.  On Sunday, we walked a solid 3 miles at missionary pace to get this guy to come to church so that he could get confirmed, he was working...so we walked the 3 miles back to the church with no investigators......but it’s ok....we always find new people to teach and we have big numbers.

This computer is really slow so I can’t type much...trying to load pics for you mom.

Love You

~Taylor

 Elder Salinas at the temple

 At the shrine of the Virgin

 Great meal from Pancholos!

 Elder Salinas & Elder Norton

April 2, 2012

Hi mom how was the week.  Sounds like the family is good.  This week was better.  We didn’t find one single new investigator.  We have 3 that are doing well.  Emilio and Margarita are still getting baptized and married the 14th and Osvaldo is getting baptized the 21st.  All 3 of them came to general conference yesterday and Osvaldo came Saturday also.  Saturday we went to downtown Asuncion to watch conference, and then between sessions we walked around down town with Jorge and he showed us all the cool things...if I would have taken money I would have bought some really cool stuff...but when you end your mission you get to go to that place and buy stuff.  Also we went to the Plaze de Héoes...something of heroes from Paraguay.  They are buried there, well it’s above ground in just a coffin or ashes.  I got some good pics there, and right behind it all, is a giant statue of the Virgin, and a tiny  tiny statue of Jesus  I saw Elder Perez at Conference.  He hasn’t heard anything from Fernando.  Me either, we have both written letters to him but we don’t know how he is doing.  Conference was good, for once it was enjoyable...all the other times its like oh great conference again, and you try hard to listen when the prophet talks but you still can’t focus.  Not anymore, I loved listening to all of it.  I took some notes, not too many cuz I’m going get the Ensign in a month or two.  But yesterday and today after all of the sessions, I was looking over my notes and my mind was opened up with the spirit and I wrote my own chapter of Alma 5....I made a list of questions that we need to ask ourselves...the questions that I wrote were these, ask them to yourselves....

1. Am I focused on my covenants?
2. Do I have a desire to learn?
3. Am I happy with what I Have?
4. Have I ´´Stepped Up´´ to fulfill my duties?. . .it’s getting late!
5. Do I give the Holy Ghost room in my heart?
6. Have I ´´Come Home´´ to my Father in Heaven?
7. How Resilient am I?
8. How can I have the Spirit more in my life?
9. Have I banished all things that keep me from fulfilling my missions(s)?
10.What king of an example am I setting?
11.Am I being positive and of good cheer?
12.Do I speak in a way that the Holy Ghost would be present?
13.What am I doing to Sanctify myself?
14.Am I acting, or being acted upon?
15.How am I keeping my priesthood covenant?
16.What can I do to strengthen the Power of my testimony?
17.Do I accept my call as a missionary, or any other callings that come my way?
18.Am I doing what matters most?
19.What, and how much am I willing to Sacrifice?
20.What things am I doing now to prepare me for Eternal Marriage? Family Life? Godhood?
21.How can I increase the love I have for my Heavenly Father and for Jesus Christ?
22.Can I respond to everything like Nephi?  ( 1 Nephi 3:7 ) 
23.Am I doing the best for the Lord?
24.Can I look at God and say ´´I did my best´´?
25.Do I forgive myself of the sins or wrong doings in my life?
26.Am I supporting all of my burdens?
27.What treasures am I making in heaven?
28.What are my priorities?
29.My Spiritual GPS . . . where am I?
30.What does Christ think of me?

This is a lot of the stuff that I got out of general conference....just more things to help me be a better person, missionary, dad, husband, priesthood holder.  Also while I was sitting there listing to the talk by Jeffery R. Holland, the thought came to my head ´´It’s an honor or a privilege to be a missionary right now´´ that’s what I was thinking during his talk about the Lord and His vineyard.  That I might have started at 6 in the morning or at 7 at night, but I am a servant in the Lord’s vineyard and that I will get the same ´´pay´´ as all of the other workers who worked more, who have more baptisms, who are district leaders and who are whatever it is.  And how Elder Holland says not to be mad because things good or bad happen to other people and not you.  Also at Priesthood when Pres. Eyring spoke about loving your wives, and how we need to put their happiness, interests and everything above ours. . . and while I was reading that this morning I realized that it’s the same with Heavenly Father, put his glory and happiness and everything above ours and that is how we will be more happy.  I have a lot more stuff written down but this is all that I’ll write today.  

So Spencer is done with everything and just needs to hit send on the computer.  Pretty sweet, lame that his engine blew up.  I guess spring break paid to fix that one!!!  Take him and buy him some new scriptures mom, get him the genuine leather ones so that they won’t get all ruined.  And as a family read every day, and help him to understand the doctrine of Christ.  I wasn’t ready to go to the MTC, I had no clue why I was there, what I was doing, maybe I went for the wrong reason, but I stayed for the right ones.  Help him to GO with the right reasons.  Tell him to get a preach my gospel in English and read it....mainly the 5 lessons that he will be teaching.  We know what we need to know now, so now Spencer doesn’t have to go in to the MTC half blind!!!

Grant better be able to play all my favorite songs by the time I get home, tell him to learn Spanish songs, and I’ll bring him home a mariachi suit so he can play for dads family at the parties and Spencer can do the Mexican yell.

My back is the same...it will hurt, then it won’t.  I probably shouldn’t pop or crack my back but it’s the only thing that makes it fell better.  And idk what to do, we aren’t ´´allowed´´ to buy medicine unless sister Callan says we can.  

 But this is about all, I’ll send you some pics in a diff email

I love you mom

ELDER CHARLES TAYLOR SALINAS
PARAGUAY ASUNCION MISSION
2011-2013

 This is the Manta Ray Jorge caught down at the river, and it was delicious!!!

 This is where some famous people from paraguay are burried or should I say "stored".

Here is a giant shrine of the virgin.  there is a tiny statue for Jesus.

March 26, 2012

Hey all so another week gone.  This week was alright. . . today is yucky because it’s raining really hard and we are soaking wet and it’s just not fun.  I’m gonna go home and make some hot chocolate.  Some stuff that happened this week. . . 

1. Went on divisions with elder Gonzales from Honduras.

2. I went to the temple just over a year ago.

3. Eelder Norton and I are still looking for a house. . . on Saturday we were looking and found a giant creek where the water runs into and it’s got these huge cement steps that are like 4 feet tall each...so we went down it to check it out and then we heard something that sounded like water coming from behind, it was, it was green and smelled horrible, so the only option was to jump.  We didn’t get wet but almost got covered in green slime.

4.  This one family who is way less active, called us from the street to come visit them and wanted to know why we never visit them.  I told her I’ve never seen you her church, she said yea, we don’t go much, but you need to visit my husband cuz he isn’t a member.  He does is complained alot about his family how they all drink and howthey don’t like him.  We told him he wasn’t doing anything to help his family....they just want it fixed without doing anything, so we went back one day just to see if he may be read the book of Mormon.  He didn’t, and when we were there, his wife came out wearing who knows what.  It was ridiculous, she said she had some urgent work to do! She was dressed up so bad, and then the son, he starts lighting matches and getting the end of a piece of metal red hot and then was burning his wrists with it,,,,i don’t think we are going to go back there!

5.  I realized yesterday that i still have something from you mom. . . my last week at the MTC, you sent me a box of green stuff...I still use that green shower scrubby that you sent me the little octopus on it.  I should probably get a new one. (I sent him one!)

6.This is the last week of the change, probably my last week in Puerto Pabla.  I only have 2 areas in my mission and a year already.  Crazy, that’s gonna be here fast, this weekend is Conference and then the next is when I will have a year.

7. Are you gonna open up the sno cone shack this year?  It is almost April?  Or are you just going to sell it?  Let them have fun with it?

8.  Emilio and Margarita are still doing good, they are gonna get baptized and married the 14th of april and I won’t be here so that stinks. I’ll still write them down as people I baptized when its official.  But other than them, we don’t have investigators, we will teach people and find them, but after the first lesson, good luck getting back in with a lot of them.

That cool that Dalton and Krystal are getting married....you should send me the picture of the wedding invitation.  And that Tony is going on a mission.  Also has Spencer gone out to ride his bike or did he sell it already?  And Kenton only has 8 months left, what about Tyler he has a year already right, well he was at the mtc with me so yeah he does.  Yeah TJ has a nice mom.  TJ used to come to church when we first moved to this ward. 

I’m excited to get my package in the mail!  Thanks for it.  That’s about all that there is for the week. . . 

Love you all

ELDER CHARLES TAYLOR SALINAS
PARAGUAY ASUNCION MISSION
2011-2013

March 19, 2012

Well this week was a fast one luckily.  Cool that Stephanie Mansfield is going on a mission...what about Maren....she get married yet?

So we found a place to move but the office hasn’t said anything yet and it not even a house, its just a big room like smaller than our garage.  But it doesn’t have bat poop all over the house and it won’t fall onto my pillow or bed so that is a plus.

The lessons were alright, we had more than last week and more ´´new investigators´´....a new investigator is new because you have taught them more than 2 principles in a lesson.  Not sure how many of them are going to turn into anything big.  But we thought that we were going to lose Emilio and Maragarita though. . . they want to get married and be baptized but they just had a baby and they don’t have any money so that’s what was stopping them from doing it.  But we told them how the church will help and how we will pay for the rest of it.  So we still have them.  We have baptism date for the 2nd weekend in April and I doubt I will be here in Puerto Pabla.  But it’s ok...I’ll still write them down as people who I baptized...I found them and have taught them most of the stuff they know.  A girl from my last area got baptized and about time too, her mom was really not a help but the sister missionaries got it done.

Right now I’m in zone 2 district 2.  There are only 2 districts in this zone, but we see the elders from the other zone every week when we buy food.  I have been in Puerto pabla for almost 6 months, if, well when, I leave in 2 weeks, I will be short like maybe a week of completing 6 months here.  I only have 2 areas mom and I have a year in the mission.

As a family here is what you guys can do:  You can do FHE, read the scriptures, I’ll send you a list that you should read if you want.  You could baptize grandma haha :)

Yeah it sounds like the fun stuff in the family has really died down....you should do a yard sale or something that would be funnnnnn.  Then the summer is gona be here in like real soon and then family reunion and that the last one that I have to miss.....I can’t wait for next years.

Ok so for the little package for hump day and Easter.. .. .. I would like what you have planned, also jerky...and seeds would be great also, um you should send me some envelopes that are bigger than the ones I have.  Also some bubble mailers if you can, I can send stuff to yall (did you get the package yet).  Oh and a rubix cube....an original one, so that it works, that would be great....just that stuff.

And for mother’s day, they skyped last year why not this year.  And, Christmas was on Sunday last year so we´ll just have to do it the day before or the day after.  I’m gonna try and Skype if it’s available in my new area.  Hope it is.


I've been doing a bunch of things to make myself more happy, things so that the mission is easier.  And really, I never think of home, like I miss it and you all but I never catch myself thinking of home, or missing you all so much.  I just don't like to have low numbers.  Yeah a mission isn't about numbers but it kind of is.  I like to see some of the progress.


I forgot to tell you, we ate electric eel last week....here is the picture.  And I have a back problem mom...I dont know what but it always hurts and some days, I can't even bend down to tie my shoe.  But I don't want to say anything to Sister Callan and then I go get it checked and there is nothing wrong.  But it has hurt since I got here in the mission.
Have a good day


Love you
 Elder C. Taylor Salinas
Paraguay Asunción Misión

Electric Eel

March 13, 2012

This week was kind of hard...we didn’t have very good ´´numbers´´....but it’s all good.  We went to talk to Emilio and Margarita and he said that we could come by on a Tuesday...but then he said we did decide what we are going to do and it sounded bad....so we walked by last night to see if we could come over today and talk about the decision....and I asked him if there was anything specific that they wanted to talk about..and it was about marriage and how they can’t pay for that right now...well we assured him that that isn’t a problem, and that the church and the missionaries will take care of that so we’ll see how it goes tonight.  

When President and Sister Callan came over it was so lame....we cleaned the house so good for them to tell us we have to move...I thought they were going to talk to us for a min and see how we are doing but they didn’t.  And we are looking for a house but there is nothing here in Puerto Pabla to rent. 

Today we got up at like 5:45 and got on a bus to take us to another but to take us to the temple.....well the bus driver said that we would pass right in front of the temple, well we didn’t, and so we asked a lady if we were close and she said that we were way far away...and we needed to be at the temple by 8 and it was like 8:25 already.  So we started to try and hitch hike then got on some other horrible bus to take us in the general direction of the temple.  Then we got off and took a taxi like 10 blocks to the temple and made it just in time for the session.  Then we went to the distribution center and I bought 4 pairs of new garments.....they cost 6.000 Guarani´s a pair...so in dollars that would be like $1.50.  And there is no limit on how many you can buy...if you’re a missionary.  Also I bought like 5 DVD´s and that cost me about 2 bucks if that.....then we got on another bus to take us to a place where I bought a new watch....and then another bus to get to the grocery store and then another bus to get to the house.  

The temple was nice, they played the video that I like haha and we just sat in the celestial room until they told us we had to leave. 

So what kind of a car did Grandma Nette get....tell her thanks for the 50 bucks...I bought 2 watches with it today....a Nike one and a Ferrari one....25 bucks for both of them.

Well its tough here but I know it’s worth it, I didn’t really know why I came on a mission or what you do as a missionary....but I told President Callan last week that I don’t care what happens in the rest of my mission...as long as I leave a different person....with more knowledge of the Gospel so I can teach my family some day. 

Love you mom

Taylor

March 5, 2012

Yeah so i bet you only saw the nice parts of Asuncion....haha you didn’t get to see the real parts of Paraguay with all the homeless people, garbage in the roads, well if you consider them roads.  HAHA!!!

So this week was better.  My comp just had to get used to me and me to him.  He is good, we are having a little too much fun.  With our jokes and stuff, comments about people.  This week we went by the Jehovah Witnesses and he was going off about how the Book of Mormon isn’t real and that it’s a fake.  He said he read all of it and that he isn’t convinced.  I asked him something he learned from reading, he couldn’t tell me anything.  The man said that he couldn’t change because he is the third generation of Jehovah Witness.

 
Then another lady got upset because we clapped her house....she said no no I don’t accept the Mormons.  I’ve read all the Mormon books.  All of them since the church was formed!

So that was some funny stuff this week.  We didn’t have very good numbers, but I felt good about the work we did. 

So on Thursday I got bit by a dog.  It came up behind all quiet and then bam, bit my calf.  I turned around to kick it in the face, and it was like 3 blocks down the road already.  I was so ticked, I wanted to kick that thing so hard. I didn’t bleed or anything, but it made a scab now.

I got a call last week from the office, they were just sending your package, so now you can start to look for it. 

So next month i have a year in the mission, looking forward to that!!!! And next week i have 11 months.  

That’s about it for this week,

Love you mom

Taylor