Monday, November 20, 2017

Week 17 - Cotacachi - CaraACara y Primeras Cosas

Hello everyone!
This week wasn't quite as eventful so there isn't that much this week, but we continue in la Obra Misiònal. I hope that all of you were, or are, able to hear the FaceToFace event. If you heard it live, I hope you listened to it in Spanish, because I know I did. Our mission President gave us permission to watch, but we were a little late so we missed quite a bit. I also tried to understand but will definitely go back and listen in English.
I got robbed my first time. It was actually kind of funny. We ride buses a lot because our sector is very large. We were riding a bus to Imantag, a community just thirty minutes away from Cotacachi, and we decided to sleep, because what else is there to do. I have/had a filtered water bottle on my wrist as we were travelling. I was woken up by someone tapping my leg, figured it was my companion, and we left. My companion went to go and buy a water bottle, and that is when I realized I did not have mine. So we ran to the bus, looked at where we were sitting, and could not find it. As we began contacting, I had to ask my companion if he touched my leg when we arrived. He said no. I told him I got robbed. As I thought about it, I realized it was my own arm hitting my leg that had woken me up. Someone had slid off the water bottle and just let my arm drop into my lap. When I did wake up, the first person I saw was this guy looking back at me. I thought it was odd at the time, but now know that it was because he wanted to make sure I didn't realized it was him or that I was robbed. And now, I drink water from the tap.
Not really. My companion and I just buy 6 litres of water, per person, and just reuse the plastic water bottles we have. Fun experience. I thought of the advice my teacher gave me in the CCM. He said "Whenever I was robbed in the mission, I just thought, I'm sure that they need it more than I do". It was great advice and that was actually my first thought when I realized I was robbed.
Imantag is actually a really interesting place. It is so high up in the mountains that it rains just about every time we go up there. With rain, comes lightning sometimes. Ecuador is no different. We have had some pretty cool and frighting experiences. One in Imantag is we were out contacting. We had just knocked on the door when we heard a click of the lightning bolt making connection accompanied with a bright white flash. Soon after was a shaking thunder. The dogs that were just outside, that were friendly, turned hostile really quick. We figured it was a way of telling us, don't contact that house. Another was during companion exchanges this last week. Elder Torres (our latino Zone Leader) and I were conversing with the mother of an investigator we hadn't seen in a while. All of the sudden there was this white flash and crack of thunder. We just stood looking at each other, and then continued our conversation. Not sure why we have cool experiences, but they are frighting in the moment.
I just finished my hard-core studies of Jacob 5. There are so many cool things that we can learn from in that amazing chapter. One of my new favorite scriptures is from this chapter. It is Jacob 5: 61-62. This is the first time in this allegory the Lord of the Vineyard uses the word, we. He works with us. The lesson we can learn is that we are to work diligently, always. My other new favorite scripture is found in D&C 75:1. I like this scripture because it is about love and chastisement. I find it funny just how often God says, I love you. He does love us. And those he loves, he chastens. But he does it with love. I feel that is a lesson for all of us. When we need to correct someone, do it with love.
I love you all and hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving! Elder Alvarado will be celebrating it with hamburgers, real hamburgers, that I am making for him, since it is also our last week together. Eat a lot of food for me and be thankful for all of your blessings!
--Elder Ogden--

We ate at a place called Sports food. So good.


Part of Imantag

When in Ecuador

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