Me and a monkey!!!!! It's a cool monkey but it only likes me. It spits at my companion and won't let him touch him but me, he will come down and touch me and is really cool cuz he likes me ha. 1-22-11

 

Me and my companion's agendas or planners1-22-11

Baptismal of Carlos Camacho,  Me, Elder Jaime (my companion), and Elder Caldera (who was serving with me and my comp for the day), and Carlos's friend, who was able to baptize him. 1-23-11

Letter Home 1-24-11

Hola Familia!

 This week was really great! Carlos Camacho was able to be baptized and that was really great! I sent the picture.  Baptismals (baptisms) are always a really amazing experience. I don't have much time today because like you know, today is cambios again! I got another big surprise when I got my changes this week. I found out that I will be getting an hijo (son)! or a new missionary straight from the MTC and I will be his trainer or papa, haha. My companions name is Elder Plata. It is a lot more responsibility but when I talked to the pres., he said he had confidence that I would do a good job so I am hoping I can live up to that. I will still be a district leader as well, so it will be a little bit of a challenge this change with a lot of responsibility but I'm sure that it will go good. I know that the Lord wouldn't have called me to do it if he didn't think I could. Although, I was relieved when the pres. told me it was going to be a Mexican because I wouldn't want to be training an American because then I have to help him with his Spanish, as well as teaching, haha. But I know that what the Lord has called me to do I can do with His help! I love you all so much and thank you so much for all your prayers and letters! I have the best family I could ever ask for! This week I had a meeting with all the district leaders and the pres. and the presidents son was there and talked to us. It was really awesome. He gave a great talk. Then we watched a video that was Elder Eyring y Elder Holland and it was on the atonement and why do we think that a mission would be something easy when the perfect missionary Jesus Christ never had it easy, not even for one moment. It was an amazing video and was so true and strengthened my testimony of the atonement and helped me to understand my purpose here a little better and to understand how to become better as a missionary! Well, I have to go but I love you all! Thanks for all you do! and know you're in my prayers. Know that I'm safe and doing great! Love Ya!

Love,

Elder Despain

Baptism of Susana 1-16-11

Baptism of Yeny 1-16-11

After the Baptism of Yeny 1-16-11

Jan 17, 2011

Hola Familia!
I hope everything is going good for all of you back at home! I'm doing very good and don't worry Mom, I'm not sick any more so everything's good ha. This week was really good. We weren't having much success so we fasted to start the week. We really saw the blessings that came from fasting and were able to have a really great week. We had two baptisms yesterday, Sunday! We were able to baptize Yeny and Susana! It was really great and always so awesome to see the happiness this gospel brings into their lives. That was the highlight of my week, to get to see them take this important step in their lives and be baptized. I'm so grateful that I have this gospel in my life and that I am able to share it will all the people here! It is pretty crazy, today I completed 10 months in the mission. I don't feel like it has been that long but it has. The time is really flying by. We have combios this next Monday but I think I will be staying in this area again. Then the next combio I will complete a year its crazy. I still don't understand where the time has gone. It just has flown by so fast. We have another person that is ready for baptism and has a date for next Sunday. His name is Carlos Camacho and he is super awesome. He was a reference from the visitor center. We taught him two times but then he left for vacation so we gave him all the pamphlets. When he came back this last week from his trip, we taught him again. He had read all the pamphlets and already started changing the things in his life that he needed to change. It was just so awesome. He also came to church yesteday and liked it alot. Also Yeny who we baptised, they knew each other from school so that was really cool. He came to her baptism and I think that helped him to get excited and it was just really awesome. We have another investigator named Lesli and her mom is Susana. She was suposed to be baptised yesterday along with her mom but she is 9 months pregnant and so she felt sick and couldn't come to church so couldnt be baptised. She is super awesome and we are hoping and praying that she won't have her baby by next Sunday and can come to church. Then she can be baptised, but we will see. I'm just so grateful to get to be here and serve the Lord! I am so grateful for the help that the Lord gives each and every one of us through the spirit of the Holy Ghost. Daily I can feel the Lord leading me where to go and what to say through the Holy Ghost. Also, there have been so many times where we are about to go somewhere and then my comp and I just feel really strongly we shouldn't go so we don't. I don't know what would of happened in everyone of these experiences if we would have gone anyway but I'm just grateful that we are able to stay safe and have the help of the Lord to guide and keep us out of trouble. But, like you all know if I'm on my own, I always find trouble ha! The Lord is always watching out for us and keeping us safe! I know promptings of the Spirit are real and that they are a true blessing as we follow the promptings we recieve. Well, I love you all and I hope that you are all staying safe and that all is well at home. Thanks for all you do for me! I love you all! Love, Elder Despain

January 10, 2011

Hola Familia!
Well this week was okay. It kinda stunk from Sunday until Thursday. I had a temperature and was sick to my stomach. I think it's because I ate some tacos de cabeza on Sunday. They were really good but ya they made me sick haha. But I'm good now so it's all good. Also we had an investigator named Alajandro and he was going to get baptised on Sunday. He was just really excited and everything but then on Thursday night his mom called from Veracruz. She said that she had problems on their ranch back at home and he had to come home so he left that same day to go back there and couldnt be baptized. It was sad because when he was telling us he couldn't be here for his baptisam he was like almost crying. It was super sad and ya but I am hoping we can get his address there and send the missionaries there. That was really sad. Then for some reason none of our investigators came to church. Even those that had members that were going to pass for them, those members didn't come. I don't know, but it stunk. We still have one for this Sunday named Lesli and she is really awesome. We are just hoping she doesn't have her baby before her baptism haha. I think the Lord will help her baby wait! We are working hard and I am hoping now that we are out of the holidays that we will be able to have a little more success because more people are back from vacations. I know that the Lord always prepares a way for us to do his work. We just have to do our part first. I see so many miracles daily, it is amazing. One of the days that I was sick we had to leave the house late at night with permision from the assistants of the mission, to go get some meds. We had an investigator that had just got back from vacation but was going to leave again and didn't have time to be taught between when he came back and when he was leaving again. We were worried that he would get cold or like forget some of the stuff and not be excited about his baptism. When we left late that night at a time we would never leave our house, we went to a pharmacia and we ran into him. He was about to leave on his other trip but had to get some things from this store. We were able to talk to him and get him excited again about his baptism and reading the things that we had given him. That was just a small miracle that happened through me being sick and when it seemed impossible for us to get to talk to him the Lord provided a way like always! I know that God loves every one of his children and is always working through other people to bring them the truth of his gospel and bring them true happiness in this life! I know that if we always try to do the will of the Lord that we will be instruments in the hands of the Lord to bless the lives of others. I love you all and I miss you! Stay strong and always do your best to be doing what the Lord wants you to be doing and I promise you will be a blessing in someone's life! I love you all! Love, Elder Despain

Then a picture of the bikes they take water around on.  This one is like empty but they get a lot of water on those bikes! 12-27-10

That's a picture of some meat, but I'm pretty sure that is the body of a dog.  I'm not positive but I don't know, it looked like a dog to me, ha. 12-29-10

That is a table full of goat heads, pretty cool!  12-29-10

That's a monkey, haha.  It was in this guys house when we went to teach him!  12-31-10

Letter Home 1-3-11

Hey family!
So, last week I used some money off my card at Costco. I bought my comp some socks because he only had like 3 or 4 pairs so I bought him some socks. I hope that was okay! O ya, and on two of the ties you sent me, it has Elder Despain written on the back, but like it was written a while ago. Were they two ties from Dad's mission or do you know? O ya mom, I was talking to Elder Wagstaff, who is in my zone, and we got to talking about how you and his mom talk all the time on mission mom thing, haha. So I just thought that was funny because now we are in the same zone. So I'm glad to hear that Uncle Jeff taught the principles class and a little surprised that he would teach the Relief Society lesson, hahahahaha. I'm sure that wasn't what you meant in the letter, but when I read it, it made it sound like he taught both, haha. So tell him I'm glad he is going over and beyond his callings. Ha, tell Cortney and Grandma thank you for the package and the cookies and their letters! Tell Cortney it better be a good guy she is dating and he better get baptized, haha. No but, tell them thank you. The package was really great! On Saturday, the first, we had a zone activity and the president let us watch two movies, Toy Story 3 and some movie about a villain that adopts 3 little girls. I don't remember the name but it was a funny movie. (Despicable Me)and we ate hamburgers! That activity was fun. After the activity we worked, but it was a hard day because there was no one out, haha. We had a baptism fall through yesterday. When we went by her house to get her to go to church and for her baptism, she just wasn't home so that was sad. But we found a kid named Alejandro and a lady named Consuelo. They are really cool and I am hoping we can get them ready for baptism by next Sunday, but will see. I love this work and I'm really grateful I have the opportunity to be here serving the Lord! This truly is His work and as we focus and do it with all our might and diligence, we receive muchos blessings. I love you all! Thanks for all you do for me! You're the greatest family I could ever ask for! I will get back to you next week with the bank address. I still haven't gotten it, but I will try to this week! I love you all! Thanks for your prayers and know that you're in my prayers daily!
Love,
Elder Despain

Letter Home 12-27-10

Hey Family!
Well, don't have much to write because I just talked to everyone but it was really great to get to talk! I loved hearing from all of you! I love you all very much! Thank you for all the stuff in my Christmas package. It was great! Well, I love you all and I will send you an email next week! I don't have much time this week because our p-day is shorter today because we had Christmas as p-day. But thank you for all you do for me and taking your time on Christmas to talk to me! I love you all! Know that I am safe and that the Lord is blessing me a ton. We have a baptism planned for this Sunday and others close. I'm excited to get to work very hard this week and get our investigators ready for their baptisms so that they can start of this new year in the way their Heavenly Father wants them to, by making a covenant with him! I love this gospel so much and I know it is true! Thanks for being such a great family. I couldn't ask for a better one. You are all so, so amazing! Thanks for all you do! Love Ya!
Love,
Elder Despain

One More Letter Home! Christmas Just a Few Days Away! 12-20-10

Hey Family!
So I'm super excited to get to talk to you all in a few days. It will be really cool! So ya, I will be calling on Christmas, the 25th, at, I think, about 5 or 6 at night. But I'm not sure on the time. I am still trying to find a computer that I can use to Skype, but I don't know if I will find one, but I will call you and let you know. I will just call the house or your phone mom and I hope you answer one of them. So this week has been really great! I don't know if I told you in my letter last week, but I am now in the barrio or ward Tlalli! Then the zone Lomas Verdes! and my companion is Elder Jaime! It's really great! My companion is awesome! It's so, so, so, awesome to have a comp that wants to work hard! We are just tearin' it up, like working harder than I ever have in my mission and loving it more then I ever have. The more I put my self into the work the more happiness I get and the more frutos (fruits) I receive! With other companions, it was hard because I was always pushing them to be able to get more done. But with Elder Jaime, he has the same desire to work and so we can really get out there and do the Lord's work how He wants and in the way He wants it to be done! I am now district leader and it's not much different, but some things are a little different. Although, I got put in a district that is really easy. It's just me and my comp and 2 hermanas! This makes it easy because the hermanas always work hard and I don't have to worry about them not working and all I have to do is help them by teaching them how to teach a little better. And so that makes the district meetings really easy because I don't have to say anything about working hard or being diligent because they are great at that. Although, last night they didn't answer the phone when I called for their numbers for like 2 hours and I was worrying that something happened to them because it was like 10 at night and they still hadn't answered. So me and my comp had to leave the house and go find them. But thankfully, when we were about half way to their area, they finally answered. But ya, that made me worry a little just for their safety, haha, but its all good. Other then that it's all going good, haha. The only other thing different is that now I do baptism interviews, but ya, it's not too bad! Well, I love you all very much and I will talk to you on Christmas! love ya!
Elder Despain

Special E-mail - Please Get Back To Me By Monday 12-17-10

Hey, I just wanted to ask you a quick question. Will you ask Kimi if she can send me her Skype name and password so if I can find an internet with Skype I can call you with that on Christmas! I don't know if I will be able to find an internet with Skype, but I will try but I need the name and password. If I don't find one then I also have a card I bought that I can call you with. I will let you know more about when I will call on Monday but I need that information from Kimi first, because if I waited to ask you this Monday I couldn't get the answer till after Christmas and that wouldn't work very well, ha. I love you all! Thanks for everything and please get that information to me by Monday, thanks. Mom, I might buy a Costco card because there are lots of Costcos here and it's a lot cheaper to buy food. It is 400 pesos. Is that alright if I buy one? Well, i love you. Thanks for everything, love you!

Love your son,
Elder Despain