15 December 2009

Hey everyone,

Thanks for all the letters. They really help. Thanks for the prayers too. So the new news this week is that transfers came and went. Of the 4 elders that live in our house we are all staying.

So this past week I realized I have been out here for 6 months already. The time has really flown. I’m nervous because everyone says the second year goes by even faster. But I’m realizing why that is, and I’ll kindly explain it to “all a yallz.” When the average American is younger than 18 years old, time is divided into 2 categories – school and summer. School goes by super slow and summer goes by fast. The mission passes like summer. I’m enjoying 2 years of straight summer.

And for the phone call, I understand that they have this phone through the internet and they have done this before; I’ll ask them about it. I think the other 2 American elders in my area will do the same, but we’ll keep in touch about it. I’m excited to hear that everyone will be there. Write down questions so we have something to talk about. And President says we have an hour. I’m excited to obey that. I realize that a lot of missionaries might not obey that. It might be one of the best gifts to Jesus Christ we can give him.

Thanks for everything. Good luck Dad. I love you guys.

Elder Whitaker

30 November 2009

Well, thanks for all the emails. It’s good to hear the family is doing well. And I’m glad everyone is pre-occupied about having a good newsletter this year. I’m excited to read it. I was thinking a bit about what I would write, at least on my behalf. You can tell the world that I spent the last 5 days in South America dead broke. It’s kinda funny to think that. I didn’t have one penny or peso to my name, but the Lord always provides and I lived.

Thanks for the email Dad. It does help to know that so many people are praying for me. It’s just some things in the mission you never expect to happen and thus can’t be prepared for them. But I will tell you one thing, everything that is happening to me is making me a better person. And every time I have a problem President da Silva is there to help me. That man is the most amazingly spiritual person I have ever had the privilege to know. It’s hard to explain, but my interviews with him make me feel like I’m talking to God. And I mean that in the most respectful way possible. He is God’s representative in Uruguay and I have the privilege of serving under him. I was reading, in the conference issue Ensign, a talk about enduring difficulties in the first session. Trials come from 3 sources: natural events, other people, and your own wrong choices. It’s some interesting doctrine.

Mom likes to hear my favorite scriptures every now and then. Here’s what I’ve been studying recently – Alma 13:12 and D&C 50:29. It’s an interesting journey to get to the point where you hate sin. That’s a problem I see in missionaries here. We tolerate breaking rules. Once we become completely and consistently pure, anything we ask God will grant, and, even better, God will let us know through the Spirit what to ask for. That’s how you accomplish goals with God’s help.

Oh, and I have a question for you guys, but more for Mom because she’s the smartest. I was reading under “prophets” in the Bible Dictionary. Could someone explain to me the difference between a forthteller and a foreteller? English dictionaries don’t exist over here, and who really knows what a forthteller is anyway.

And FYI to everyone, Michelle is dominating in her letter writing efforts. She’s the best. But don’t worry, I’m not mad. I just like updates.

What else do I have to say? Happy Birthday Dave, enjoy Tucanoes with whomever.

The baptism we had this week went very well. I felt the Spirit a ton. It was kinda funny because we didn’t start the water early enough so we spent like an hour running buckets of water from the kitchen to the font, never did that before. Lucky it was a hot day because the water was not warm.

Stay beautiful Michelle and enjoy your jacket.

I love you all.

Elder Whitaker

23 November 2009

So, Elder Bednar visited this week. That was awesome. We did a question/answer session. It was really interesting. One thing he wanted to teach us is that the Holy Ghost is the real teacher. Elder Bednar can’t always be with us, but the Holy Ghost can. That’s the biggest thing I learned.

So for P-day this morning we went to the beach as a zone. There was this famous eagle head slash house. Dad will be crying for joy because I read the explanatory sign in the front of it all. (I’m so mature now.) This eagle head gismo was a famous writer’s house. We also played football on the beach. My district leader played college football last season at a junior college. He’s a big guy. But I two-hand-touched him down.

We’ll have a baptism this week. Leandro is 15. It’s kind of hard to explain his situation. I think he’s a foster child that lives with members because he had a tough life living with his parents. The gospel will bless his life.

So, I’m getting better at the guitar. And I’m going to try to send photos right now. Pray for me.

But thanks for everything. It’s truly a blessing to be serving the Lord full time.

I love you all.

Elder Whitaker
Your prayers worked! He was able to send a few photos. Admittedly they don't look very "missionary-ish" but it was preparation day, and he is wearing his name tag on his t-shirt. We can always imagine him cycling through town in his white shirt and tie.

16 November 2009

So Mom, I took money out of my account because I bought a bike this week. Our area takes 20 minutes to walk to from our house, and longer to get to our appointments. Maybe I can send a picture some day. The tuko turned out very well. I’m learning a lot about cooking. And yes I shared with all the elders. With 200 pesos we can all eat very well when you actually cook something. It’s like 10 dollars.

And Mom asked if I am developing my piano skills. Kinda. Every now and then I’ll have some extra time in the chapel to practice, but I’m still not good enough to accompany anyone. But it just so happens that this week I started learning the guitar. It’s really not that hard. I was practicing with chords and I know like 4 or 5. I learned the hymn “Testimony” and although Dad won’t approve I practiced on some country songs that Elder Jones has. We’ll see if I can develop this talent, although I don’t really have much time to do so.

So my companion is from Honduras, Elder Ferman. He has a bit less than a year in the mission. And the other 2 elders are the zone leaders, Elder Brown and Elder Jones - from Utah and Missouri respectively. I love Elder Brown and Elder Jones. Elder Jones reminds me a ton of Brad and it just shows me how much the Lord knows me and what I need and when I need it. Elder Jones is the one who has a guitar and is teaching me. He says he will give it to me too when he goes home. Cool.

Brad I got the letter from you last Monday. Thanks a ton. It’s what I needed to hear.

And David, I love your story. I had almost the same thing happen this week. Except I was pondering what I should do to solve this problem I have. I was looking in the scriptures for answers, but I didn’t find a solid answer, so I went to my room to pray. As I knelt the church music was playing and the words were ´´I know he’s smiling down on me¨´. God knows what we need. When I do my best I have total confidence that God is smiling down on me. Everyone can have this confidence.

So I’m really excited for this Friday. We’re having a conference with both Uruguayan missions with Elder Bednar.

But thanks for all the prayers. Thanks for raising me in a home where obedience was expected. Not every missionary had that blessing.

I love you all, Elder Whitaker

9 November 2009

Thanks for the pictures, Mom, today was the first time I actually saw them. I don’t know if I was stupid and I’m getting smarter, or maybe this computer is better. Maybe I’m getting smarter, that would fulfil something in my patriarchal blessing.

This morning was very interesting, but first the update. Elder Gonzalez is from La Serena, Chile. He’s a good guy. I have one transfer more than him. Unfortunately, this morning we got a phone call and he’s going to a different area and I’ll be getting a new companion. I’ll be junior companion again – so much for being a leader . . . but I don’t care. I’m still excited to work here. Oh, and my area is called San Jose de Carasco. It’s like 30 minutes outside of Montevideo. It’s very different from my past area. The people are way more affluent and as a result they work which makes them generally more busy. But this ward has an awesome ward mission plan and I’m excited to be here working.

Brad sent some questions so here are the answers:

How’s your Spanish coming along? Amazing. I can say whatever I want and I understand a ton. I need to study grammar more, because so far I haven’t studied barely at all and I want to speak better. I’m working on my accent and I’m trying to learn more words. The hard thing is knowing which words to learn, because I don’t know them yet. But it helps having 4 consecutive Latin companions.

Are you in a 2-man apartment or a 4-man apartment? 4 man, with 3 Americans. The other companionship is the zone leaders. One of the zone leaders was in this are last transfer, 3 new missionaries, and they split the area.

Is your companion’s old companion still in the area/apartment? No, we both came new.

Are you in a ward or a branch, and about how many people went to church last week? Ward, between 80 and 100 I think. It’s a strong ward, and lucky for us most of the members live on our side of the division

When you arrived, were there already a lot of investigators? We have a couple that look promising.

If not, what are you doing to find more? Contacts at first, but the ward’s mission program is starting up and we’re going to start working with the members a lot and getting to know them.

What city is your companion from? I had 2 companions from Santiago (Garcia, Osorio). Already answered that one.

And I’m out of time. Dad wants me to send some pictures, but it takes work and I don’t have a USB cord. I’ll try to send some eventually. But thanks for everything. I’m doing great. But now I’m going to go home and cook fideo con tuko, or pasta with a meat sauce. I hope it turns out well.

Love you all, Elder Whitaker

3 November 2009

Thanks for all the emails, like always. First off, David, you didn’t fail because this week p-day is Tuesday because of transfers. Brad congratulations on your spider web game, Mom Steven and Michelle and you mentioned it. To answer Mom from last week they do celebrate Halloween here, but it’s wimpy. They don’t really have a huge selection of candy, no decorations, and a costume consists of a mask, but it was fun to see some of the youth and kids of the ward dressed up.

So, I think Mom told me last week that the truck had a flat tire that needs replacing. I had the same problem on the bike I’ve been using for a transfer and a half. Lucky for me 200 pesos fixed the problem and got me a new tire, like 10 dollars.

In my studies this week I learned something interesting. In the Bible Dictionary we learn "angels do not have wings" There’s doctrine for you. I love the scriptures.

This week my companion told me I was talking in my sleep, singing actually. Some patriotic America song. I’m way confused though, because I don’t know the song.

And just to verify something crazy I heard this week, some one told me that Catholic priests can marry now. Is this true, just wondering? I love Rruguay!

And the big news of the week are transfers. I’ll be leaving Sarandi del Yi, my only area. My companion will be training. 2 new missionaries back to back. I’m really nervous because I’m going to an area that’s being split into 2, with Elder Gonzalez from Chile. This will be his 3rd transfer and my 4th. Wow, I’m nervous, senior companion in my second area. I’m excited to see the hand of the Lord work miracles through our efforts.

Oh, and we had some bad news and our 2 baptisms didn’t happen this week. We had a whole transfer without a baptism, but we were obedient and my last night there I felt very content with my efforts there. I feel like I accomplished what I was sent there to do. Well, time’s up and I gotta go. Thanks for everything, and I’ll write again next week, Monday.

Love Elder Whitaker

26 October 2009

Today is pday again, but this week the keyboard has all the letters. Yes!

I’m glad the talk from Cleon Skousen was interesting and helped the family have the best FHE ever. That makes me happy. Would you be able to mail me a copy of that talk? I would also like a copy of the talk about the decade of decisions. That would be nice and give me a change in my studies when they arrive. Thanks. Oh, yeah, and could you ask Sister Bernhisel the power phrases we used to use in seminary. I was thinking about them recently, but I don’t remember all of them. I would like to use them with members to let them teach us. It’s really a blessing when someone I’ve been teaching can read a scripture and teach me something. The power phrases will help I think.

Mom asked if they celebrate Halloween in Uruguay. It is a holiday here, but I have no idea to what extent it’s celebrated, or if it’s any different or what. I’ll let you know next week. Wow, I can’t believe that next Sunday will be November. The time is really flying.

Yeah Dave, thanks for the updates. Dave told me BYU would play this week and Dad gave me the results. That was nice. Too bad they lost. Good thing I don’t care. Or, at least, I’m glad this knowledge won’t affect me really at all right now. What a blessing. Oh, and pday is always Monday, David, unless it’s a transfer week, then it’s Wednesday. Transfers are next week. We’ll see if I stay a fourth transfer or leave to somewhere else.

So this week we’ll have 2 baptisms. We’re really excited. Paola and Daniel. Paola is in her 30’s with a 3 year old son. She was a reference from the bishop and wants the best for her son. This is the best for her son. She worries that he doesn’t behave, but I have several stories of when I misbehaved and it helps her. I love Dad’s story of when I smacked my head on the pew in front of me in an attempt to punish Dad for moving me, and the time I said, “Ahhhh” after enjoying my sacrament water. It was unusually delicious that day.

Oh, and Michelle, I’d love to write a family newsletter, but I really don’t know what’s going on in everyone’s life. How can I make fun of things that I haven’t been around for? We’ll see what happens. Maybe I’ll write a paragraph for myself. I should pray about it.

But thanks for everything. I love being a missionary. I love learning about the gospel, about doctrine. I love the Book of Mormon that has all the answers. I love Joseph Smith and I know he was called of God as a prophet. He didn’t give his life for a lie.

Remember to look for missionary experiences every day.

Love you all, Elder Whitaker

19 October 2009

Well, first off, this keyboard has all the keys, but some of the keys are blank. I wish I could type without looking at the keyboard. Maybe the Holy Ghost will bring all things to my remembrance.

Thanks a ton for all the letters; they really raise my spirits. Where should I start?

Brad, it’s good to hear from you. I have the restoration DVD, but I’m looking forward to the other stuff you’ll send. You’re a stud. Thanks for your example. And one thing I was thinking. What was the first thing Brad did when he got home? Weston tried to teach us the first lesson and David drank 2 percent milk. What did Brad do? [He ate top ramen with Tabasco sauce.]

Mom told me it would be okay to send a scripture of the week every once in a while. This week I’ve been reading the Pearl of Great Price. I got to the picture of the priest trying to kill Abraham. Being the toddler I am, I spent some study time coloring the picture in my Libro de Mormon. I learned stuff too. The wicked people or objects I colored in dark and the righteous stuff I put in bright colors. I can’t wait to color the other 2 pictures and study the meanings.

Last week we cut our hair. A member offered to cut our hair and we let her. Please don’t offer to do stuff unless you have talents and abilities in the thing you offer to do. It’ll grow back. I think it’s funny. And ironically we had zone conference and a stake conference with Pres. Da Silva this week. He didn’t say anything though.

So the other day I read a very interesting talk called The Atonement by Cleon Skousen. It talked about intelligences and other very deep doctrine. Steven, if you get tired of the "Primary" doctrine you might be learning in Sunday School you should study this talk. I hope that doesn’t sound rude or mean, that’s just how I felt growing up. Maybe Steven is more spiritual and doesn’t feel that way.

I was thinking about all the prayers you all offer for me. Thanks. I realize that at least twice a day some one says, “Please bless Jeff in Uruguay and help him to find people that are ready to receive the gospel.” I realize that to answer that prayer I have to do everything in my power to do so. That motivates me and we’re working hard.

Well, I’m out of time. Love you all lots and Michelle, stay beautiful.

Jeffhead

12 October 2009

Hey everybody,

I learned a new word today in English, palatable. It means “doesn’t taste gross anymore.”

To answer Mom’s question - “how did I get from Buenos Aires to Montevideo?” – we flew. It was about a 45 minutes flight. We got off the plane basically in the runway, took a bus/trolley 150 yards to the door of the airport, and got our luggage like 5 minutes later. I don’t know how they do it so fast. David’s theory of decoy luggage doesn’t apply in Uruguay I guess.

And mom’s other question. I have the Liahonas for the past 2 conferences in Spanish. I don’t really know how I got them or where they came from, so maybe eventually I’ll get the magazine for this conference. But I am excited to read the articules and compare them to the notes I took watching it.

So this Sunday rained all morning. It was kind of sad, because we were hoping for 6 investigators to come. But I can’t blame them for not coming while it was raining, because there were lots of members that didn’t come either. That makes me sad. Commandments are commandments whether it’s raining or not. But I’m not the judge.

So I really love being a missionary. And I love that the members love the missionaries. And I love that the members show their love by giving us food. I love the food here. This week my companion and I are going to cook tuko and ravioli. I’m sure you can find out what tuko is on the internet or from Brad. It’s like a meat sauce with finely chopped vegetables. Muy rico.

And the work is progressing. I’m developing my patience. The mission goal is a baptism each week. We’re working as hard as we can, but we don’t have a baptism each week. After we do all we can, the Lord will do the rest. I’m excited for the email that will tell you about when the Lord does the rest.

Oh, and here’s some math for Steven. The last conference Ensign has all the numbers you need. Imagine if every missionary companionship had a baptism every week in the year. Tell me how many new members we’d have in one year, and the percent of growth we’d have in one year. It’s amazing.

But thanks for everything. And I love you all.

Elder Jeffrey Bryan Whitaker Beckstrand

5 October 2009

Hey Everybody,

Thanks for all the emails. I don't know where to start. Mom posed some questions. Yes, we did have investigators at conference. One friend of a member who watched 3 or 4 of the sessions and is in Mosiah in the Book of Mormon. I'd seen him before, but we started talking to him yesterday. We taught him the first discussion in between the 2 Sunday sessions. And a sister who is waiting for her husband to divorce and then marry her was there with the family.

I'm exercising well in the morning and I'm getting 8 hours of sleep. My body is getting used to the schedule. Today I woke up like 20 seconds before the alarm rang. Oh, and Dad, my Spanish is progressing faster than I'd ever thought it would. I feel like I can say whatever I want to. I watched all the conference sessions in Spanish and I probably understood close to 90 percent. It's amazing.

Speaking of conference, I loved it. For the first time in my life I didn't fall asleep. WOW. That's big. I enjoyed the priesthood session talk about fathers and sons. I enjoyed the prophet's talk about service, and I loved Elder Holland's testimony of the Book of Mormon. I would like to study that one more and try to have a testimony as strong as his. I also like Elder Nielson's talk about missionary work. His son was in my floor at BYU and I'm pretty sure I've met his other son that he shared the story about. Small world. And now that I think about it, I've met Elder Nielson too. Cool

In between the Saturday morning session and the noon session the satellite was showing Mormon Messages. There was a really good one; I don't know if you've seen it. Something like the story of a stone worker – the story of John Rowe Moyle. Look it up. [I did it for you! Click HERE.] It's very powerful about sacrifice.

I love how as a missionary we have the answer to every question that there is. It's called the Book of Mormon. It's truly a blessing to be the Lord's mouthpiece in helping others to solve concerns and problems.

And speaking of problems, Steven the Spirit has guided me to a solution to all your worldly problems. I know that Mom buys unsugared cornflakes, and she won't buy other cereal until they're finished. I know some mornings oatmeal is for breakfast. Make oatmeal on the liquid side, put in lots of sugar, and add cornflakes. I've been eating this ever since the Spirit told me about it. It's easy to make, makes oatmeal taste good, and gets rid of the cornflakes. You're welcome.

Well, thanks for everything. Mom and Dad, I love you. Michelle, I love you. Everyone else, I love you. And brethren, yes, you too.

Elder Whitaker

28 September 2009

I don't think I have much to write about this week. But I'll try to muster up something.

Oh, first things first. I was studying Preach My Gospel with my new companion. We learned about nirvana, and I think I'm close to reaching it, is that right. Nirvana is a state of tranquility to the things of the world and such. I would recommend a dose of nirvana to Steven. And I'm gonna leave this topic before I become too apostate.

My companion's birthday is next week. FYI, my comp is Elder Vargas from Honduras. He's awesome. I love working with him. He has 8 months in the mission and we're working hard to accomplish the goals we have set for ourselves. We are doing all we can and the Lord will do the rest.

I have a story about the Lord doing the rest. This week we've been really focused on doing the mission goal of 20 contacts daily. And we usually give a pamphlet to people when we contact them. Usually the restoration pamphlet. But we were running low on the restoration. Saturday we left the house with one restoration pamphlet, saving it until we found someone that would actually read it. We did 26 contacts without giving it away. At 7:20 our appointment person was busy and we had nothing to do until 8:00 when we would have a correlation with the bishop. At 7:25 we knocked a door and a woman let us in. My companion took out the plan of salvation pamphlet first, but then switched it to the restoration In a few minutes the dad came home and we started teaching them. During the discussion there were 3 interruptions, that tells us something. The dad asked us how we can know which church is really the true one – the best question there is because that's the question we answer. I'm excited to see what happens with this young family of 4.

I hope that story makes sense. Good luck with everything everyone. Oh yeah, Steven, you're okay. Michelle, stay beautiful. Dad I hope your diet is still good. Mom, I love cookies. Wegan, nothing. David, go BYU. Brad, enjoy a swim for me.

Love, Jeff

23 September 2009

Hey everybody,

Thanks for the emails. I'm glad you liked last week's email. I was feeling good that week. I hope I'm feeling good this week too.

David, thanks for the advice. I'll try to look my best more. And I'm sorry BYU lost. How's your tailgating going?

So my old companion goes home today. He missed seeing Brad and the parents by one week. I would have loved to send Brad a video on his camera, but such is life.

So we had a baptism last Saturday. Laura. It was awesome. Elder Calarco's last baptism in the mission. The spirit was very strong. I hope that I'll be able to go to the temple with her in 1 year. At the end of the baptism we had a musical number. Number 118 in the Spanish hymn book. Brad can tell you which one that is. Good memories practicing. I hate choir practice, but it was fun and the spirit was there as we sang. The choir was Elder Calarco, myself, and the Barreto family – dad, mom, 4 daughters and the other daughter playing the keyboard.

I got a letter from Grandma where she asked about how we get investigators to stop smoking. I only have one instance where we did that. We taught the Word of Wisdom and the next day he stopped smoking. I can't explain it any better than anyone else.

I was studying Jesus the Christ again. I have like 150 pages left still, but I learned something interesting. Jesus said 7 things while he was on the cross suffering. We can study each thing he said and learn a different lesson. I think it would be a very interesting sacrament talk to analyze those things he said and what he taught us in the last moments of his mortal life.

So my new companion is Elder Vargas from Honduras. I met him, but haven't really talked to him much. I'm excited to be able to serve with a new companion. I know that God chooses my companions and I'm excited to learn why Elder Vargas will be my companion for these next 6 weeks.

Thanks for all the letters. Thanks for the photos, Mom. Good luck adjusting to real life again, Brad. And Steven, practice counting; it'll help the calculus. When in doubt, count and pout.

All my loves, Elder Whitaker

14 September 2009

Thanks for all the emails.

I feel like I have a lot to write about this week. I don't know where to start. We have a baptism this week, Laura. We found her a while back and now she'll be baptized. She's about 40 years old, she's married and has a 15 year old daughter. She prayers for her family that one day they'll want to be baptized. We pray the same.

MICHELLE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Wow, 15, if you were here you'd be having a huge expensive party and Dad would be grouchy until Thanksgiving! Have fun driving and enjoy your new shoes and CDs and clothes. Good luck in your play too.

So I have some randomly sad news. I think I'm going bald. Prayers please. It's not too bad yet and I think we can fix it with faith. I think the hairline is receding, but only on the left side, it's kind of weird. I wish I knew how to send photos to show you all.

Speaking of photos, my camera's memory is full almost and I need either the USB cord or another memory card or both. Alright, I don't need it, I'd like it and I'd be grateful if I could get it eventually. Thanks.

The winter seems to be close to over. It's not bitter cold in the night or morning any more. I'm kind of worried for summer though. I think it will be very hot here.

So I completed 3 months this week. Wow. Joseph F. Smith became fluent in Hawaiian in 3 months. Prophets aren't the only ones that see miracles like that in their lives. I don't understand everything, but I can say what I want to. It's amazing. This Sunday a brother spoke in sacrament meeting – Hermano Barreto. He also spoke my first Sunday in the field. He only has teeth on his lower jaw, and is tough to understand. I didn't understand anything the first week, but yesterday I understood a lot. He spoke about service.

The other day we had an FHE with a couple families. We learned about testimonies and went in a circle and everyone bore their testimony. I love doing this because the Spirit is always present and powerful. I would recommend inviting a family over and trying it at our home. And, of course, have cookies and cake and milk afterward.

Next week is transfers, so Pday is Wednesday. FYI I didn't die. [I think that means he's not being transferred.]

Oh, and Mom and Dad, thanks for all the things you taught me. Thanks for “there is no excuse”. I've been thinking about that lately. Thanks for the prayers. Every now and then I'll feel comfort that comes from those prayers. Send Kyle my love and luck. Brad, good job going 6 minutes [referring to lasting a full wrestling match without getting pinned]. One of these days I'll send some letters I have stacked up, but no rush, you're not going anywhere soon.

Love, Elder Jeffrey B. Awesome

7 September 2009

Hey everybody,

First things first. I LOVE FOOTBALL. But I didn't realize that football season already started. The state of Oklahoma will hate the state of Utah for a long time. Wow. I'm excited to hear that.

To answer your question, Mom, yes, I've gotten better at washing my clothes. I'm a pro by now.

The mutual activity sounds like a lot of fun. I'm glad that every youth knows how to teach the first lesson. That's one thing they told us in the MTC. Our message is of the restoration of the gospel. It's an amazing message. We often watch the Church's movie of the First Vision with new investigators. It's a blessing to know that I've personally been in the same places where Joseph Smith lived and served the Lord.

What else do I want to say? Oh, one thing that we like to do here is have family night with the new members. I love family night and it reminds me of the many family nights we've had as a family.

We had interviews with President da Silva this week. I learned a lot. It's amazing to see that he really is called of God. I can feel the authority that he has been given. It's kinda scary to think that I can appear the same to the people I meet.

I hope this letter wasn't boring. I wasn't really prepared with a story to share or anything. But there's always next week.

And sorry for not emailing at 10 AM like usual. I know Steven's been waiting at the computer all day. Sorry. Oh yeah, Steven, that math mistake meant nothing to me. But I still kinda like you.

Send my love to Kyle. What day does he report again? I'll always have a best friend to serve with; that makes me happy. When Brad gets home, Kyle will be out.

And Brad, remember Coach Peek. Go hard or go home. But I know you're sprinting right now. So no worries.

I'm happy. I love you all.

Elder Jeff

24 August 2009

Thanks for all the emails. I love them. Keep them coming.

Steven, I'm impressed. I can't believe you'll be driving to school without braces. I probably won't recognize your buff self when I get back.

And Dave, good luck in Panama and with your new calling. I probably have no idea how you feel, but it makes me think of yesterday at church. I taught Sunday School about the Sabbath day. I learned I would be teaching when I entered the room, but it turned out well.

Oh, I was thinking the other day, if you ever send another photo I think I would like one of my baptism. I think that would be neat. I got some pictures from Aunt Julie in a letter today. Thanks Julie, I miss eating with you guys.

Oh yeah, I have another story where I felt unqualified this week. We needed to do an intercambio on Friday so Antonio could get a baptism interview. I was sent to a city called Trinidad and my companion was Elder Wally. One week out of the MTC. We flew to Argentina together. Needless to say, we're not the strongest speakers there are. But wow, the day went perfectly. We were lost for a bit, but used our map and we learned a lot. I was able to share some of the tricks I've learned with Elder Wally.

We also went to Paso de los Torros for a baptismal interview for the sisters and I met Sister Wirthlin's friend, but I'm sure she told you that before I did. Oh, and I was wearing my glasses because we were traveling. I sleep well on the buses and don't wear the contacts. On regular days I wear contacts and they work well.

So the trial of the week was we didn't have power from Monday until Friday. There was a miscommunication with the offices in paying the bill. No micro wave, no fridge, no hot water and no lights. We managed. Our neighbors are a member missionary couple. They wired us a light and we showered at their house, but it got worse before it got better. Then I got sick with a cold because it rained all day Wednesday, but thanks to my Nyquil I survived and I'm feeling better. We got our lights back and we had a baptism. I'm happy again. Antionio is 18 and his story is cool. He's one of those people who stopped smoking in one day. Then 2 days before the baptism he was having doubts, but we resolved that through the help of the Spirit and he's doing well.

So Brad met the sister of my companion this week. That's awesome. (And to Brad, yeah, my comp dies [goes home] this change [transfer]. So I don't know if you'll meet him. You'll be leaving when he gets there.)
Good luck with school Steven and Michelle and Mom. I recognized a lot of the teachers you'll have. I set a really high standard for you guys to follow ... yeah right.

Thanks for your prayers. Thanks for everything. I hope this letter was a little more interesting than last week. Love ya lots.

Elder Jeffrey Bryan Whitaker

17 August 2009

Thanks for all the emails. This reply will have more errors than usual because the “y” key doesn't work well, so I'm boycotting it. [But Mom is fixing all the errors.]

This week went well. I'm still in Sarandi del Yi with Elder Calarco. We had a baptism on Saturday. Romina is 8. Her grandma is a member, but her mom isn't. We're working with her mom a bit.

So I gave my talk yesterday. It went well. I was a bit nervous because the topic was members and missionary work, but it went well. I found a quote from President Hinckley that when you save one little girl you save generations. I then told then about all the missionaries we've had in our family as a result of our first ancestors that joined the church. I counted 13 missionaries, but I know I was missing some. You can never know the effects of missionary work. We are all members as a result of some missionary we've never met. That's something to think about.

Well, sorry, I don't really have anything entertaining, or a good story to tell this week. I'll try to do better next week.

Oh, and Dave, congratulations. I'll be looking for that gold trim next time. That sounds awesome.

Oh, yeah. When people ask how I'm doing you have permission to say I'm doing well. I remember people would always ask about Brad and my thought would be, “How should I know? I haven't seen him in 2 Years.”

But okay, we gotta run. We're in Montevideo for a dentist visit and our bus leaves soon.

Thanks for everything. The church is true. I love the people and I love that everyone loves the missionaries.

Me

12 August 2009

Hey everybody, thanks for the emails. And just so you all know, I haven't figured out how to receive or send pictures. Maybe one day I'll figure it out and be able to see them. I have some good photos on my camera, maybe one day you'll be able to see them.

I'm glad the missionaries are exciting the ward about the work. I'm speaking in sacrament meeting next week about missionary work. I'm excited for this.
The temple last week was awesome. I loved it. I thought they would give me headphones but they never came, oh well. We went to the distribution center. I bought their last little hymn book for Laura; she'll be baptized this transfer. We also bought a picture New Testament for Jose's family. I baptized Jose; his dad needs to get divorced and married still. We'll have another baptism this week. Romina is 8 and her grandma is a member; her mom has some things she needs to work on still.

Transfers are today, but Elder Calarco and I are staying. I'm happy for this. At zone conference President da Silva said the new mission goal is a baptism every week. That's what were working for. I really don't know how many lessons we teach a week. Yesterday we had like 8, including converts, less actives, and new members.

It's interesting to me the little things that the Lord blesses us with, the things that don't really matter. For example Elder Calarco got a new suit because his old one was getting too small. I offered to buy it from him and it fits very well. Impeccable. I always wanted a pin striped suit and now I have one. Another thing is we now have bikes. They were donated to us by the Bonefon family. There are so many little things that always fortify my testimony on the mission.

Oh, yeah. Michelle I'm happy for your purple shirt. I bought 1 purple tie this week. It made me think of Aunt Holly. I love my purple ties.
So my group from the MTC arrived today. Wow. I'm so glad I took Spanish all those years.

Well, thanks for everything. Thanks for the prayers. Thanks for the gospel.

Elder Whitaker

3 August 2009

Hey everybody. Thanks for all the emails.

Unfortunately, we don't have much time this week and I don't have time to read any of them. Tomorrow were traveling to Montevideo as a zone to go to the temple. I'm really excited about that.

But the work is progressing. This week we'll baptize Jose de Brum. He's 8 years old. He comes from a humble family. I love visiting them. This Wed we're going to have family night with them. I'm excited.

I finally saw fruits of the ministering angels I've been promised for years. A mad drunk uncle threw what was basically an iron pencil at me the other day and missed. So good.

I'm keeping busy in the work and I don't miss you at all. I'm happy. I see blessings in my life every day.

But I gotta go because we have a discussion in 13 minutes. Love you all. Stay beautiful Michelle.

jef

27 July 2009

Hey everybody. Thanks for the emails. It's nice to have several people writing me.

To answer mom's questions about the health and flus, I'm feeling healthier than I've ever felt in my life. Apparently the water here is okay to drink, because I've been drinking out of the tap water since I got here. I'm trying to eat fruit every morning. All is well. Speaking of food and all, I found the 14th article of faith today in my studies. I found it in Jesus the Christ. I quote, "We believe in enjoying good food." I think I can say I've lived that one all my life. Thanks Mom.

This past saturday was a big day. I got to baptize Cristina. I was very nervous. And the water was COLD. I almost died, and it was worse for Cristina because the font wasn't very full and I had to do it 3 times. Oh well.

We also gave some blessings of healing and helped give the sacrament to a family with sick people. The spirit was very strong watching a newly baptized dad and son give the sacrament to their mom and sister. It reminded me of the times in my life when we did the same thing while camping or during hurricanes.

I had my first interview with President da Silva last week. He was visiting every apartment with his wife. I hope we would pass one of Brad's checks; we cleaned for 3 hours. But I love President da Silva. He's the type of person who always whispers. He told me to thank Mom for raising me the way she did. Thanks.

Before I left a lot of people gave me advice. I don't remember what everyone's advice was. But I remember Sister Tolman's advice. Whenever it's cold and windy I always think of the song "Master the Tempest is Raging." Could you tell here I've done that and I'll continue doing so. It gets pretty cold over here. I even had my first rainy day, and the good news is my rain coat is impeccable' it works great.

So, I'm running out of money from the church account, so there might be activity on my personal debit card this week, just a heads up. Thanks.

Michelle, stay beautiful. Steven....yeah. Wegan, write when you find time, Kyle, love your freaking guts. Davage, stay beautiful, Brad, you owe me pizza, and Steven, keep working out.

Yeah, I´m enjoying myself. The Spanish is coming along. I´m learing a lot. I learned how to appostraphicate words.

Oh yeah, we get to go to the temple on the 4th as a zone. I'm excited about that. Sorry for the long letters. I hope it´s entertaining and not a chore to read them.

jephi

20 July 2009

Family,

It’s so good to hear from you all. Thanks so much. That’s interesting that Dad gave a talk on holy temples and holy homes. This morning I think I read that conference talk – Sunday PM session by someone that isn’t a member of the 12 or First Presidency. I wanted to read it because today we’re going to clean the house really good because President da Silva and his wife want to visit all the houses. They will come tomorrow. I read it in Spanish in an effort to increase my language abilities. It helps a lot. I really started enjoying my personal study time. I learn more than I ever did back home. I wish it hadn’t been that way. I finished Our Heritage and there is some stuff in it that I love. I wish I had it in Spanish so I could share it with the members. I also love reading My Missionary Commission by Bruce R. McConkie. So good. I want that in Spanish too. I also learned that one of the prophets (don’t remember who) became fluent in Hawaiian in 3 months. That’s what I hope to accomplish. It’s possible and I have 2 months left.

Zone conference was awesome. I learned so much. I re-learned the 3 reasons for obedience: fear of punishment, desire for reward, and love of God. The first week in the mission the president asked every one why they were serving a mission. I was serving because I wanted blessings in my life, but I’m working on changing that. I’m here because I love my Savior. I can feel the power in this change.

So I’ve got a story from last Pday. I was going to cut my hair. I rigged up the mirrors, got the clippers and the converter, and started. In America the clippers make a nice buzz. With the converter there was barely any sound. This wouldn’t cut my hair. Foolishly, I removed the power converter and tried it. It sounded better, like home. I started and got my right sideburn and around my ear. Pow and smoke! Oh, tomatoe! I put on my beanie and went to the barber, explaining what happened and that I’m really not a stupid American. So good – the first time I ever went to a barber. Good stuff. During the whole ordeal I thought, “venga lo que venga, disfrutalo. (Elder Wirthlin’s Come what may and enjoy [love] it.) It makes for a good story.

And lastly, this is for Brad. When you’re about to leave, any thing that was way nice during the mission that you won’t need when you’re not a missionary, you can send to me. If there is any thing, I don’t know. It was just a thought. And mom, send a sweat shirt if you want to. I’ll live either way. But if you do send something, I made a list of things that would be nice to have that I don’t have – nothing urgent, just if you send something – cherry chapstick, a black sharpie, a big GermX, a tougher brush for getting dirt off shoes that won’t scratch the shoe, a lint roller, and a shoe horn. That’s right, I would like one of Dad’s million shoe horns. Never thought we’d see the day.

Well, love you guys. Thanks for the prayers. Oh, and if all goes right, we should have 4 baptisms in 4 Saturdays. The new mission goal is a baptism a week. That’s what we’re praying for.

Elder J. Whitaker

13 July 2009

Thanks for all the emails. I didn’t think I was going to be getting any because of the vacation, but thanks.

Mom, I was reading the scriptures last week and found one that I would like to be on my plaque. Alma 29:9, where it says this is my glory. I really like it and I found it last week right after you asked what the scripture was.

I like Brad’s advice on washing clothes. I’ll try that. And I liked how he doesn’t think he changed much, because in one month I see plenty of changes I never saw coming. I’ll explain. Every morning I eat a huge bowl of oatmeal. I hate oatmeal!!!! But I load it with sugar and a banana and dulce de leche and it tastes good. In one month I’ve doubled my life-long oatmeal consumption.

The other change is my hair is super long. I can part it Dad!!!! I look like an idiot. The problem with cutting it is we don’t really have mirrors to use. I brought my own little mirror and doubled the apartments mirrorocity. The van has more mirrors than we do. But I’m going to try cutting it later today because we have zone conference tomorrow. I’ll try to take a picture of the part before I chop it all off.

Oh yeah, I don’t have a picture of my family. It doesn’t bother me at all; that’s why I didn’t bring one. But to all the people here it’s an abomination and they can’t believe it. So, if you send one, the people here will be happy.

So we walk everywhere we go, but this week some members lent us bikes for 3 days. And I was like yay, I hate walking. But now I hate biking. My legs get tired and my rear hurts. But I guess after a week of walking again I’ll hate walking. But it’s okay. Everything is all good.

Send hellos to all the people at home, tell Steven he’s a booger, I like Michelle, and I love everyone in the family. Whatever.

We’re teaching a lot of people and we have the spirit with us. It’s truly amazing to be on the Lord’s errand.

Until next time, keep doing what you do, and I will too.

Elder J Whitaker

6 July 2009

Hey everybody.

Thanks for the letters. This is the second Monday in a row that it’s rained. No wonder Pday is Monday.

So this past week a lot happened. We were teaching Paola and Elder Calarco gave me the signal to ask her to be baptized. That was scary. She doesn’t think she’s ready. We’ll see what happens with her. We also have 2 others with baptismal dates – Cristina, whose younger brother got baptized recently and Pablo, who’s getting married soon so he can be baptized. We also got introduced to Carlos out of the blue after church this week. We’ll see what happens.

This Thursday we traveled to Montevideo for a mission conference to meet President da Silva. Honestly, I was way tired and didn’t learn as much as I should have. We had to wake up at 3 to get from Durazno to Montevideo, but it’s okay because I’m sure I’ll be seeing him a lot more while I’m here.

So my listening skills are getting better. I still have a lot to learn though. I’m getting used to listening to certain people and that helps more than I ever thought it would. My feet hurt less than they did. Everyone said the first week was the worst. I believe them.

So I learned this week I’m officially a spoiled rich North American because I had never in my life washed clothes by hand. But I washed some clothes by hand and hung them out to dry. It’ll take some practice before I get any good at it.

Well, it sounds like your vacation is going well. It sounded like fun going to the temple with everyone like that. I think we’ll get to go to the temple again some time this transfer. I love the temple.

I hope this isn’t too long, but thanks for the prayers. I’m here to serve the Lord and it’s worth it.

Jeff

29 June 2009

Hey, it’s Pday again. This is a long message. I know sometimes I wouldn’t read letters that were long because I didn’t feel like reading a lot. I hope you don’t have that problem, sorry.

A ton of stuff has happened already and I’ve only been here for 4 days. Elder Calarco baptized a family the week before I got here and on Sunday the father and son got the priesthood. The father asked me to ordain him, which was still a surprise when the time came to do it because I wasn’t sure that was what he was trying to tell me. The bishop helped me with the important words, but I was able to give the blessing by myself.

The people here are amazing. It’s truly humbling to hear them pray for those less fortunate than themselves. At least this area is way better off than the one area I tracted in in Buenos Aires.

In sacrament meeting yesterday the bishop had me bear my testimony. That was fun. I Just shared D&C 76, the scripture mastery. I like it a lot.

The members always feed us lunch and so far they have been very good. We were at one member’s house and the kids were playing Uno. My whole life has been a lie, because when they play they say Una. Sad day.

Oh, yeah, this area that I’m in is called Sarandi del Yi. Now you can find it on the map. It’s like a 3 hour bus ride from Montevideo.

It’s been pretty cold here. I’m glad for my coat. I just wish I would’ve brought a hoodie for the apartment. It gets cold at night. I can see my breath inside. That’s different. Elder Calarco is my comp. He’s a good guy from where Brad’s serving. We seem to be having a lot of success. It’s normal for me but I’ve only been here 3 days. We knock doors and they let us in. We’ll see what happens later this week. We have a list of 6 people to visit and teach and like a list of 5 recent converts and less-actives.

This week we have mission conference and we’ll meet the new president. I’m looking forward to that. It’s exciting to be engaged in the work of the Lord. I love the people, and I’m happy.
Oh, and you don’t need to send this part off to everyone, but I found a miracle while reading my patriarchal blessing. It says I’ll be able to communicate well with the people. It blows my mind because I can do that already. I can say enough and they can understand it. It’s truly amazing.

Love, Elder Whitaker

26 June 2009

Family,

Well, I arrived. I sent another email but the computer ate it and I’m tired of typing. Good news is my companion is from Resistencia. He’s gonna get me working hard. The Lord knows me and I’m glad to be on his errand. In the MTC you can only see blessings in your own life. I can’t wait to bring blessings to others. Oh, Elder Calarco is his name. Hey, maybe with 2 of us out we could set a goal to have baptisms every week...wouldn’t that be something?

Lots of love, Jeff

25 June 2009

Just so you know, I haven’t gotten any letters yet at the MTC and I don’t expect a single one, because I’m leaving tomorrow. 15 days. We leave tomorrow at 4:30 in the morning. My Spanish is progressing well. Everyone can understand me, and when I read PMG or the scriptures I can understand it. The hardest part is listening because natives don’t pronounce every letter in every word, kind of tough. But zone conference yesterday was way nice. It was a quick English lesson, probably the only lesson with English since the first day.

Oh, yeah, you guys might not know this yet. On Saturday we went tracting. Every missionary in the MTC (60 probably) left in busses and tracted for 7 hours. It was quite an experience. It amazes me how it all went down. The first people we talked to we basically taught the whole first lesson and gave them a Book of Mormon. There was a grandpa, 2 sisters and grand children. Elder Fuentes leaves on Tuesday so he'll be able to visit them again hopefully this Saturday.

My time hasn’t run out, so maybe I’ll say a bit about the MTC here. Every day is practically the same. Wake up, breakfast and study time. They give us pages to study that correspond with the day’s lessons. After companionship study we have district with our morning teacher. Class before lunch and after lunch. Then we have physical activities: basketball, or soccer, or volleyball. I’ve been lucky enough to never hurt anyone in volleyball yet - miracles. When we come back in and shower we have what we call PAC. I still don’t know what it stands for, but it’s just free time to study. Then we have district with our other teacher, dinner, more district and then we plan the next day (which takes 5 minutes because we’re told what to do). Then we teach 2 practice lessons with the other elders and then get ready for bed. I never really enjoy the practice lessons because you can't teach and listen to 4 whole lessons in 30 minutes, but we do our best.

So I ran into Brad’s old companion who started working here. That was cool.

So I hope this letter gets to all the people that care, I need to finish packing and go to the temple during the rest of the day. Last week the temple was amazing. I was with all the Latinos in my zone so I had to wear the translators. Thanks Wetzel! Have fun doing whatever you guys are doing, and tell Steven I want an update on his pushups.

Love, Jeff

18 June 2009

It`s pday finally.

Yeah, like I said briefly last week, it looks like ill only be here for 3 weeks. It was a tough choice to make, because right now I’m completely overwhelmed with learning Spanish, to the point where I literally can’t understand a thing past 10. But I’m glad I’m in this situation because it’s better than being completely bored for 9 weeks.

I’m in a zone with 10 elders and one sister. There are 2 Americans and 1 Italian, the rest are South Americans. Elder Godoy is the district leader and he’s going to Brad's mission. He’s a good guy. Elder Godoy has a brother in Montevideo right now. Weird huh? My companion is from Los Angeles, Chile. It’s tough having a companion I can't understand all the time. Yeah, the first day was the longest in my life it seemed. I barely caught a thing, but my Spanish is coming faster than I ever expected, but I need to remember to be patient with it.

On Sunday we got to watch the huge stake conference Brad noted in his letter. I was given the choice to watch it in English or Spanish and I understood a ton of it in Spanish. The food here is okay, but I feel like I’m always hungry. Kind of depressing, but I'll get over it. For exercise we can play soccer or basketball on the worst hoops ever. I also do pushups to keep myself busy.

Oh, yeah. As for the classes, we have 2 teachers, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. We just learn the gospel and how to teach and stuff. We haven’t gone over one grammar principle, which is kind of hard, but I have a study book. The problem is I never have time to study the book because they keep us so busy. If Brad brings his home I would recommend having Steven look at it. It’s planned better than all the ones I’ve seen in a school.

In about 45 minutes we get to go to the temple. I’m looking forward to that. It’s just across the street.

Oh, if Kyle comes over looking for dad’s lifting gloves he'll have a problem, because one of them was stuck to the inside of my shorts. So I'll have one lifting glove for a while.

Jeff

11 June 2009

I`m here and well. I was interviewed by the president and it looks like I will be on the 3 week track of training. Pray for me. There were 8 elders and 2 sisters that all met up in Dallas and we made it here okay.

Love Jeff

Elder Whitaker

Elder Whitaker's on his way to the MTC in Argentina.

Because he'll be gone, he turned over administration of his blog to Mom and Michelle for the next two years. As he sends us emails and photos, we'll keep you updated with his activities and growth. However, before he left, he specifically requested that we post this wonderful picture for all his relatives, friends and fans!

He's still our marvelous Jeff! Good-bye - see you in two years!

300

So I finally completed my goal without rounding up. I benched 300 pounds one time Monday February 16th. All my buddies knew about this goal of mine and would frequently ask if I had done it. After I did a buddy of mine, DJ, wanted to make me a poster because, as you can see, he's really good at making posters. So one day, in the middle of my ritualistic self-hair-cutting I decided to find DJ so we could do some glamor shots. This explains the mo-hawk. Ya gotta have a mo-hawk...

So I wanted to upload a picture, but when I went to do it I couldn't see which picture was which, so I randomly picked one. That's the one I randomly choose. I was trying out my friend's hat that day and the aviators.