Wahoo! Week 2!

Another week has gone by. I feel like if I blink I'll be in Monterrey. Also, this week was less exciting than last week only because I didn't move to another country, but some exciting stuff still happened. I'll see if I can remember:

 

The weather here has been awesome! Basically every day the temperature stays between 60 and 75 degrees. It did get cold a couple of days, so I had to wear a sweater over my short-sleeved shirt, so winter is definitely on it's way. Overall, though, it's awesome!

My first class Tuesday (last week, not today) I got a paper from my teacher that had a giant warning symbol on it that had poorly translated words on it that said I had to report to the Migration Office the next Friday. No one else got one, so I immediately thought, "Oh no! Is there some paperwork I forgot or that didn't arrive? Did I not go through customs properly? Am I going to get sent home? Am I going to get arrested!?!" Turns out, they just had to confirm the fact that I would be staying in Mexico for two years and that I had actually arrived. No one else in my district got one because all of them are going back to the States, and you don't need a visa if you are staying less than 180 days. So I got to temporarily rejoin the trio I was in Day 1 and their district and two other districts who were staying in Mexico, while Elder Stark went on splits with the district leader. Everything I said last week about Mexican traffic being insanity incarnate is still true. I think that Mexicans think that their signal lights are more for decoration and Christmas lights than communicating. Some of them just had them on for the fun of it and no one used them to turn. Mexicans also know exactly how big their cars are to the MILLIMETER because they would find the smallest of spots to squeeze their cars into, and everyone in the bus we were crammed in watch intently to see if someone would hit something. They never did, much to our disappointment.

So after playing Tetris with Cars for an hour, we arrived at the Oficina del Secretario del Gobierno to wait in a big line forever. If any of you have seen Zootopia (specifically the scene at the DMV), you know what happens next. There were about 7 billion people in that building (plus or minus 5 billion; it was hard to say for sure), so it was a little crowded. I would have taken pictures to pass the time (we had a lot to kill), but we aren't allowed to take pictures except on P-day and we also aren't allowed to take pictures inside federal buildings. All in all, we left the CCM at about 8 am and got back around 4 pm. It was a long day. But hey, I'm all legal now!!

The other thing going on this week is that December is Fiesta Month in Mexico. Virgin of Guadalupe Day was on the 12th, and we had been hearing fireworks (which are basically just extremely loud missiles) and music for about the last week leading up to that day. When we first started hearing them and we didn't know about Virgin of Guadalupe Day, we thought they were gunshots going on through the night. I guess fireworks are better. :) Also, Christmas and New Year's (from what my teachers have been telling me) are also really big holidays here, and I'll be here for all of them, so that's exciting. I'm excited to see how they do Christmas here. It hasn't felt very much like Christmas because of the lack of snow, but we have been singing a lot of Christmas hymns and they have set up a lot of Christmas trees in the buildings. They have also wrapped the palm trees near the main entrance up in lights, which is really cool to see. I'll see if I can get some pictures of that tonight to send out.

The only other major happening is that we have been able to watch a lot of devotionals this week. On Sunday, we got to see one by Elder Bednar, who spoke at the Provo MTC the last time Christmas fell on a Sunday, which was super cool. I think that year was 2011. Look it up on YouTube or something and see if you can watch it. He talked about the fact that, as missionaries, since we represent Jesus Christ, we must develop His character. In essence, His character is to turn away from Himself and serve others, even when He is going through sore trials. Even though He knew He was going to die shortly, Christ still wished peace upon His disciples. Even immediately after suffering in Gethsemane, He healed the ear of a servant who assisted in His betrayal. Even while He was dying on the cross, He still made plans for His mother to be taken care of. He could have easily said, "I'll take care of that once I'm finished suffering the pains, afflictions, and temptations of all mankind," but it isn't in His character. Elder Bednar went on to say that the best cure for self-pity and selfishness, which is what the natural man wants, is to turn away from oneself and to be concerned with the welfare of others.

About an hour after, we got to watch one by Elder Holland (also a few years back), who talked about how Preach My Gospel is not to help convert investigators, but to help ensure that missionaries are converted and to give them the tools they need to address each investigators' individual needs. He made the distinction that missionaries are not as much messengers or spewers of information, no matter how important the message is, but that we are doctors and tutors who teach people how to turn to Christ. Each son and daughter of God has his/her own individual needs, and we are to assess and address those needs.

On Tuesday night we got to watch a live devotional, also by Elder Holland, in which he emphasized the usage of the Book of Mormon. He turned to a random chapter (it happened to be Alma 26, one of the greatest missionary chapters in the Book) and he talked about the passages where it said that Alma and his companions were instruments in the hands of God. A surgeon, no matter how skilled, must have the proper tools and instruments if he is to perform a successful surgery. Similarly, we as missionaries (and members, too) must be clean, sharp, and obedient to God's will if we are to see miracles wrought by Him through us. His power to teach through the Spirit is limited by our obedience to the commandments and to the promptings of the Spirit. It was very perspective-changing.

So I'm almost out of time this week, but that is basically the summary of this week. I love and miss all of you, but I am glad to be here and participate in the Lord's work. I know that He watches out for His missionaries, and I know for a fact that the gift on tongues is real. Despite all of our weaknesses, we can be a great force for good if we turn to God and submit ourselves to Him and let Him work the miracles. I love this Church!

Lots of love from la Ciudad de Mexico!

 

Here is a view of the city from the tallest building on campus.

P.S. Here are some palm trees. I thought everyone back home would enjoy them. You're welcome. :)