February 27th, 2012

Looks like Geoffrey's letter this week is answering my (mom's) questions....

To answer your questions:

 

Dont worry about not having sent a bunch of packages. You have sent more to me than all of my companions have received, and I am truly grateful for all of the things you send me. I LOVED the little water dissolving healthy tablet flavored water things (nuun I think is the brand). And both my companion and I loove the fruit rope things. Also, the lemonade is delicious. Other random things like pictures of Christ, or post-its or pens are also great. If you feel a desire to send white short sleeved shirts, (Van Heuson is my favorite) they would be well received...just like 2-- one for me and one for my companion.

And as far as shoes, I have had to repair the doc martins 3 times. I am wearing some from the army that I bought from an hermano for 250 pesos. Shoes I can buy here.

 As far as money goes, I am good right now, they have to reimbolse us a lot, so that is why I am taking out a lot of money (for rent and pasajes, etc.).

My companion is amazing, but he comes from humble circumstances in comparison to the united states, but i think good circumstances for Mexico.  If you can send the talk THE FOURTH MISSIONARY in Spanish for him (maybe even by email) that would be awesome! Also, he loooves cooking, so if you have some recipes he would like it. What is the recipe for Texas caviar???

 

I just threw out a bunch of ideas, don´t feel obligated to fulfill all of them.

 

Here are a few more questions....

How is your stress level?             ...in Xochimilco I focused on developing patience, and that helped me a lot.

How is your Spanish?  Do you still work hard on the accent and learning new words?   

                            I could always improve more, but I am doing well...a mexican companion makes a world

                          of a difference...it is sooo weird for me to talk in english. I am focusing on trying to help

                          Elder Rios learn English, because he knows very little. he has a year in the mission, and Im

                           his first gringo.
 

 I am interested to hear if you decided to move or not.       We decided to move within the neighborhood we

                                   are in right now, because it is like the crossroads of all the little towns we visit for 

                                  another month. we reserved the house in Concordia for, in a month, if they authorize

                                   services in Concordia or something we could move there to a house really nice with

                                   room for the church services in the patio out back.

Can you just leave an apartment easily and go to another or do they have contracts?    

                      Sometimes we make contracts, but it is pretty easy to change whenever.

Any idea what an apartment costs?                        The normal rent is about 1,500 pesos (116 dolars)...for a

                                                                               pretty nice house (relatively to the area).
 

 What do you eat for breakfast and lunch..do you eat much with members or not so much in your new area?              Honestly, we don´t eat as much in this area...it is a very humble area. But almost always it is 

                       beans, tortilla, rice, and generally chicken. And in this area a bunch of fried fish.

Have you been sick any more like you we're at the beginning, or do you feel pretty healthy?         

            ( This answer is censored-for mom only)

Have you gained or lost weight?              I am about the same...just a little "softer" haha.

What do you do for exercise?              We play basketball...sometimes a little competitively, but it is way fun.

 I am feeling the need for more day to day details can you tell?         Ya, I can tell.

I am sending photos of the new house we are moving into...I am really happy too because there is a mango tree full of huge mangoes in the patio. But it is rather small...two rooms...and the bathroom out back. 

 

And that iguana I'm holding...ya. we ate that.

Mom, also, you can just copy some of what I wrote for the blog, because I ran out of time.

Love you like a Mexican loves tortillas,

ELDER PALMER

                                                     The iguana that we ate for dinner.

                              The apartment we are looking at renting.

                                                                 I (mom) am assuming this is the bathroom

                                                

February 20th, 2012

I have about five minutes...so this will be short...

Independencia is going well. Church yesterday was pretty good as a family of 7 came (from a nearby town--Benito Juarez) that we have been teaching. Also, an investigator from Concordia (another nearby town) came. The family of 7 is of Areli and relatives...Areli is preparing well for baptism, and there family has been listening to the missionaries for a few weeks now. Eneida, the investigator from Concordia, is a young lady that has left behind many unhealthy habits, and is humbly desirous to get baptized. She will have surgery on her gall bladder tomorrow, and so we hope that she recovers well and can continue progressing.

A week or so ago, we contacted a lady that had been drinking a bit too much Alcohol. She told us that she wanted our help. That is kind of a normal occurrence; however, as we visited her the next day we could see that the lord had prepared her. She has a brother that is an ex-missionary in Monterrey. Also, her daughter and son-in-law are very prepared and they all accepted a baptismal date for the 10th of March.

The 10th and 11th of March, we have to go to Tuxtla for a stake conference. The Stake President put the goal of 15 investigators from every branch or ward, so we will try to fulfill that. Also, we will probably have the opportunity to baptize a few of the investigators while we are there.

That´s all folks...time up

Much love,

ELDER GEOFFREY PALMER

Wow. A lot has changed. So, when they told me i was going to independencia in the Tuxtla Gutierrez Zone I was thinking that I would be in the city...I was way wrong. In autubus, I am four hours from Tuxtla Gutierrez...four hours from the other elders in our district. So, the area is very different...it has more of a rugged beauty with a few mountains and less of the jungly feeling. We have various cities and towns that we cover...including Independencia, Ambar, Concordia, Benito Juarez, Revolución, Jaltenango, etc. They are all rather spread apart. 

 

Right now we live in Independencia, where the building where we meet for church (a rented house--but the Sacrament meeting is in the open air). However, we are going to change houses to Concordia (about 30 minutes away) because we feel like we should go there, and there is a possibility of opening up a Family Group there and having Church services there as well in a near future.

 

As I passed through the Mission Office, President Cardenas took time to interview me. He started off telling me that my new assignment would be in an area where many have lost their excitement  and that has had a lot of difficulties progressing, and then told me that I shouldn´t worry because I am not being sent their as a punishment. He shared how it has 20 years being a little Branch. I thought that that was kind of an interesting way to tell me about the area, and it would have seemed negative if he hadn´t have continued on with what he said. He then told me to stay very excited about the work, told me about the potential there and the possibility of a future Family Group in Concordia, etc. I was way excited. I also am now getting to know the President more, and he is truly an exemplary man full of faith and excitement for missionary work.

 

So we are back to bucket showers, bucket flushed toilets, dirt roads, and a lot of traveling, etc. And the funny thing is...I love all of those things and kind of missed them in Tapachula. Also, I am way happy to be back in a little branch. In some ways I feel like I am in an area similar to Yajalón. Truly...I am very happy to be here. Also, my companion--Elder Ríos--is one of the finest missionaries I have been with. He is from Chihuahua (Ciudad Juarez) and has been in the mission field almost a year. He is one of those people that I would have chosen as a good friend even if we weren´t forced to be together (haha).

 

Church was good yesterday (43 in attendance), and one of the young men got his mission call to Puebla! Also, it was funny, because without giving notice I was asked to give a talk in sacrament meeting, teach sunday school for the adults, and to teach the third hour to all of the members combined (the third hour I was together with Elder Ríos). So, that was a good way to get to know the majority of the members.

 

There are two couples that are not members of the church that are attending, and just need to get married in order to be baptized (we are working on that...its a little difficult when some people were never registered as babies...so the government knows nothing of them). Also, a young 12 year old, Joel, is a relative of them and we found him on Sunday, he came to church, and will be preparing for Baptism. 

 

But ya, that is about it. Hmmm, anything else? oh, there is a Zone Conference this week that is coming...and it is now the season of Mangos here so I am eating a lot of Mangos and Watermelon.

 

Much Love,

 

     ELDER GEOFFREY PALMER

1 Nefi 3:7--"iré y haré..."

February 6th, 2012

What a surprise...TRANSFERS! I was 99.9999 % sure that I was not going to be transferred, however God had other plans. I am going to a place called Independencia, close to Tuxtla Gutierrez, with an Elder Rios. I am very sad to leave, but very excited for a new place to begin to work and get to know.

We just were saying goodbye to people, as I leave in a couple of hours. It was so sweet to see the elderly couple Giron Garcia (they should get baptized next week) get emotional and say goodbye. They have been through so much. I realized that I truly love the members and investigators here a lot. I am certain the Elder Sanchez and his new companion will have much success this coming transfer.

I have learned so much from this area and this time here. The importance of loving people and loving the work. The importance of being yourself, not imitating others. The importance of being happy. What a blessing this time has been.

Well, I am kind of really excited so I dont have much to write. However, I ate iguana and iguana eggs the other day!

Ánimo,
ELDER PALMER

                                                              My seat broke while studying.

                                                 I tried to teach Elder Sanchez to juggle eggs

One of the kids in our ward.

Well, a couple of people mentioned that they heard about our 6.5 earthquake that happened this week and, yes, the epicenter was in Mapastepec (I think...thats what some people said) which is quite close to here. We were just walking in the street when we felt the shaking a bit. To us it didn´t seem like much, I suppose because we must have had a little bounce in our step and we were outdoors. However, everyone left their houses and were looking around a little nervously and scared, and afterwards we heard from people that were indoors that it did cause a good little shaking on the houses etc. So that was kind of cool for me...I think that was my first earthquake. But, no, there isn´t any damage that I saw.

Well, it has been a good week. Last week, we were all stoked to talk to everyone this week, and we were able to talk to more than a 100 contacts in week...so that was good to set a goal and get pretty close to it. Also, we found a lot of blessings from talking to people, because this week we have found many people that want to progress, attend church, and make a promise with God through Baptism.

The Díaz Gómez family: Last Sunday, we visited a family that we had contacted while walking in the street. They are two parents, five kids, and a bunch of relatives that live nearby. We arrived to the lesson we had set with them, and it was great to see them with two extra seats pulled out ready to listen to us. We visited them a couple times this week, and they are progressing well. Also, yesterday, the mom, 5 kids, and a cousin came to church (the dad--named Gamaliel--couldn´t come for his work, but he is excited to come later). They live in one of the neighborhoods a good bit far away, but we are excited for them. They said that if they receive an answer to their prayers that they will be baptized on February 18th. 

The García Girón couple: We found a couple who have had kids that are active in the church, ex-missionaries, they have attended church, but never been baptized. They are really special people, and want to get legally married in the upcoming weeks and be baptized once they do that. 

We are teaching a number of other people, and truly I am so grateful that we have that opportunity. There are always times with few people or a ton of people progressing. But I am finally learning how these people that we get to teach, or these families that want to progress are children of God that He has entrusted with us to help them grow. I am learning how these blessings are not because we are such amazing people or things like that, simply that we tried a little harder and God, in turn, blessed us with the opportunity to help others. That might not have made any sense...but I tried, and if I had time I would revise it better. Haha. 

Elder Sánchez is really a good guy, and we are both expecting (and good with the idea) a third transfer together. Its interesting, because we are sooooo different, but we get along well. His birthday is this thursday...but, shh don´t tell anyone! 

A lot of times drunk people tell me how much they hate Americans and how racist they think I am...and I love surprising them by telling them that I love Chiapanecos! The people here are naturally just very good people.

Hasta luego familia y amigos,

ELDER PALMER

January 15th, 2012

 

 
What a week! I remember in the Christmas call to the house Jasmine told me to look for the ways God works in our life every day, and seriously there have been so many little blessings from this week that I am grateful for!

First off, Isai got baptized and confirmed a member of the church! It was way special, and the baptismal service was short, sweet, and certainly what he needed. Even with his broken leg, he was able to get baptized standing up. President Jimenez, of the Stake Presidency here, was able to baptize him, and Mauricio Soliz Mendez, 1st counselor of the ward and the person that gave him as a reference, was able to confirm him. Now, we will try to work with our Ward Missionaries (2 young men preparing for the mission) to review all of the principles and lessons.

Also, during the Baptismal service, my companion got a call...from Presidente Cardenas (our Mission President). He stepped outside and came back in to tell me that President, with the Assistants were on their way to our church building. So that was a surprise, as the mission office is more than 6 hours than here. However, unfortunately, they didn´t arrive until 20 minutes after the baptism, and we were the only people left. We had interviews and talked with the assistants. They were very short, but brought a lot of excitement. They have a desire that we work hard and deserve to baptize people that are truly converted every week, so that we can use our time the most effectively in the salvation of souls. They shared many suggestions in ways to work with the ward and everything, but--as they were leaving--they said, "Now even if the results don´t show what you want, don´t let it affect your excitement for the work!". How true that principle should be for whatever facet of life.

The Mission President says that unless our Ward is functioning perfectly with the Mission Plan and Mission Leader, etc...then we should be contacting 140 people in the week. 20 people every day, apart from our planned lessons. Elder Sánchez and I hope to be talking with everyone in this weeks that come. We get along really well...like every companionship inventory we talk about everything, but we are always so surprised because we still haven´t had any argument or anything in 9 weeks.

Yesterday, we also had a spiritual experience, we prayed to know where to contact...and afterwards Elder Sanchez and I said ok after 3 we will say the street we are thinking...1...2...3...and we both said "chicharras". A street nearby. Then, Elder Sánchez prayed that we would find a family prepared to listen to the gospel and accept the ordinances. The first house we knocked ran us out, but the second house we went to we found a special family that didn´t even live there, but were visiting. We could see that God had put them in our way as they shared that they are legally married, don´t attend any church, etc...What a blessing...if we ask God specifically, He will answer specifically.

Also, yesterday in Church, the secretary of our Ward brought one of his students (he teaches in the university to become a veterinarian) to church. Her name is Alicia, and she is so prepared for the Gospel. She already can feel that the church is true. She said that she doesn´t really understand the Bible yet, but that the Book of Mormon has come alive for her. We are excited to teach her this week, and help her move (she will be moving from another city to our area).

I am super grateful to be a missionary. And I am grateful that God is strengthening us to overcome the difficulties.

I am completely convinced of the message and doctrine that we share...because I know for myself that it is true and has brought me closer to God.

Sincerely,
ELDER PALMER

P.S. It is hotter than ever down here. I met a guy that lived in Houston, Texas here and he was saying how cold he was when he lived there. Ha!

January 9th, 2012

                                         I just sent this cause I know mom would want to see it

                                      A Family Home Evening with Isaí and his son and a few members

                                                           Some of the zone eating Roscas!                   

          Elder Sanchez gave me a Book of Mormon in Tzotzil---awesome! I would love to learn Tzotzil

Roscas...I am sending a photo of some missionaries in our zone with a roscas. For January 6, everyone buys one of these cake things to part (translation by mom=share) it. Inside, there are little plastic men, and if you end up with one of the little plastic men it is imperative that you buy tamales for everyone else. Of course, for beginner´s luck (bad luck) I ended up with two plastic boys! So I´ll be buying tamales for one of the families in our ward.

Well, the mission president has been sending trainings and instructions through the leaders in the mission of the grand importance of working well with the leaders in our Wards. It was inspiring...and very helpful. If I remember right, in Alma 16 (somewhere around verse 15 and 16...I don´t remember perfectly) it refers to Alma and Amulek and there missionary labors. I love how it mentions that they, with the ordained people (or in other words leaders) of the church worked together in faith and unity. And I love the scripture in Hebrews 11:3...God created the world and US with a vision of faith. As we see with the eye of faith what we could create and do...surely we can pierce the barriers of unbelief and work miracles.

Isaí has been through so much in his life...really hard things. We hope that all goes well, and that he can fulfill his goal to get baptized this saturday. President Jimenez (of the Stake Presidency) will baptize him if all goes well. We really are grateful for the chance to teach him, and hope that the spirit will continue working in him. The wonderful thing about Isaí is he wants to learn soo much. Even though he doesn´t have much education, he loves to read and so he is learning a lot.

My companion, Elder Sanchez, is a good guy. We are really working on building unity, and I hope that God can use us for good in the Ward. Also, our Bishop has been bishop for 8 years now...but he is excited, and we went on divisions with him this week.

Yesterday night everything had fallen...our plans were worn out. So we began knocking doors. The first door we knocked we found a woman moving from a house to another down the street with her little kid. We helped her carry the last belongings, and began to talk to her. She has had soo many difficulties this year, and said that she has always wanted a place to just go and learn about Jesus Christ. It was pretty cool to explain to her that that is what we do in Church...we just go and learn about Jesus Christ and God; we learn about how we can follow them. Also, I am certain that God prepared her for us to find, whether or not she decides to get baptized.

I testify that God answers our prayers. This week, I have asked many things that I have felt important...that could seem insignificant, and he has helped me, our companionship, and our area. Also, in Church yesterday, I felt the spirit fill me with just a simple desire to be better. That is what the Gospel does...it makes us better people. With more love. More obedience. More happiness.

I know Christ lives...it just makes sense! He made the way to fill the gap between what we can do and what we can´t do. Also, as we learn about Him, we can just feel that it is true.

Love,
Elder Palmer

                                                              Need to use the restroom?

                                    Everyone here has parrots as their pets. It is pretty awesome...
                                  But I always have bad luck as they let their waste go on my finger

                                                                         YUM!