Week 2

Only been out here 2 weeks and already being told what I believe. We went tracting in these run down apartments, and at one of the final doors we knocked on, we were having a fantastic discussion with this guy, until his wife showed up. She started talking about how they are Evangelist and don´t want Mormonism because their family is Christian. So my comp told her that we are too. Then she started going off on how we don´t believe in the Bible, and just carry it around to trick people (or something I didn´t understand much) and how we believe different things about Jesus. Not sure where she learned more about my church than me, but we thanked them for their time and left. The husband seemed really dissapointed when his wife told us off. Hopefully we planted a good seed in him.

Anyways, missionaries are like crazy people magnents. So many drunk people talk to us. One lady on a moped, just stopped by us on the street and started warning us about how it is bad to eat the dogs because they drink bad water and go to the bathroom wherever they want. Then I think she related dogs to the devil. Not too sure though. I just remember hearing "diablo" at that part. Also, a lot of people like to talk politics with missionaries. I´m not sure how a nametag that says "JESUCRISTO" translates in peoples minds to "GOVERNMENT", but it somehow does.

Spanish is coming along. I´m finally starting to understand what people are saying. The Argentine accent is pretty weird, it´s like a lisp almost, so it´ll be a while before I really understand that, but it´s coming. But, everytime I think I am getting a handle on the language, I get pooped on. For example, every Friday the President of the Basic Unit (smallest unit possible in the church, smaller than a Branch and a Ward) has the missionaries over for lunch, us Elders and the Sisters. President talks super freaking fast and has a really thick Argentine accent, ie, he lisps a lot, so it´s to understand. Anyway, we were eating and talking about Hermana Bushman (a sister missionary in Casilda from Pennsylvania) and I teaching an English class. Then President said something really fast I didn´t understand. All I understood was "Tercer Domingo", "Third Sunday" and "Lo hará Élder", "Will you do it Elder". Of course, I said yes. I thought he was asking if we would teach a class the third sunday. So to make sure I understood, I asked Hermana Bushman what I signed us up to do. She said, "Oh, you´re giving a talk on Sunday on missionary work." When I asked how long "About 10-15 minutes." Haha I felt pretty dumb. I doesn´t stop there though. Saturday night, we got home and found out our lunch appointment for the next day was cancelled, and we had no food for lunch. So we went to buy some food (our mission president already approved going out after 9 to get food if we have none and are back by 9:30, don´t worry Bishop). We passed some lady in the street. So, out of habit, I greeted her and said "Hola! Buen día!" My companion died laughing, and said to me "Buen día?" For those who don´t know, that is used for "Good morning". I had told someone "Good morning" at 9:15 at night haha.

It goes on though. A lady showed up to the church building last week, saying she wants to learn more but only can on Sunday, and gave us her address. So, we went looking for her house yesterday. The address she gave us is in the ghetto part of town, and just about 0 out of 10 houses there have numbers on them. And almost no one knows their address number. So it´s just a guessing game. We never found her, but, we did a less active lady who hadn´t been to pretty much since she had been baptized at 8. She didn´t even know the churches full name, just as "Mormon´s" nor that we have missionaries in the church. She was really happy to see us though. And she seems really excited to meet again on Friday. This kind of thing happens quite a bit in that area of town. We´ll go look for someone, won´t find them, but will find a less active member who dropped of the church radar years ago is excited to see us and eargerly accepts the invitation to meet with the missionaries again. God definitely does not forget any of his sheep, no matter how astray they have gone. He remembers them all and wants them all back in his fold. I know that because I feel that desire to find the "ONE" who is lost, even when there are "ninety and nine" sheep in the fold still. We definitely are all loved and wanted by our father in heaven.

Something really strange here I forgot to mention last week, nobody knocks on doors. You just clap. Everyone has a gate a few feet out from there door, and instead of going in and knocking, you clap and someone comes out. Also, traffic laws are nonexistent. Obviously, there are laws, but no one follows them. For example, on my first day, we were driving to the mission home, and for whatever reason, traffic was way backed up. When we got there, there were cars heading towards us. Then our driver turned around and drove back into oncoming traffic, and up the on-ramp, just to get around the traffic. It was awesome and bizarre.

Apparently our pension is unfit for missionaries, so we have to look for a new one. It´s interesting. I didn´t think it was that bad, but I guess it is.

Love and miss you all.

Élder Brown

Ether 1:15