Rico Chavez-February 27, 2012

Hey mom and everyone

the weeks keep going by fast i cant even remeber what happen haha. but on tuesday we had my 1st zone conference. so that was more money to come back into choluteca to be stuck in a building for almost 5 hours. but it was a lot of fun everyone is saying it was the best zone conference that they had had. there were like 12 missionaries that gave their final testimonies for the next 2 changes and thats just in the 4 zones in the south. but hna hernadez did a little something for everyone who completed years for jan and feb. so thats was a lot of fun cuz i got to go up. and they did all the traditional spanish bday songs.

so we have a lot of things that we can reemburse for the mission. so the last 2 weeks i have have to go to tegus pay the light bill and a whole bunch of othere stuff not including the divorce. so this last reembusle was for almost 900 limps. like 40 bucks. i was have been down to 40 limps for the last 4 days and i have been saving it to use the computer today. so i dont think i have had but like 3 good meals in the last 3 days. and on top of that one of our recent converts gave me pila water 2 days ago. so i have had the runs since 4 this morning. i almost pooed myself playing basketball today. it was aweful. i HATE pila water. you just can look into the cup and see all the little floaties in it. it was so bad. but im doing great because i found 11 dollars yesterday i forgot about that saved me so much today i was so hungery this morning.

so the same member that gave me the pila water they found a turtle and let me have it the other day. so while we were contacting we stoped at this new burger place in monjaras and the guy ended up knowing english so i got talking to him and he knows a guy that can turn th eturtle shell into a souviner for me so im probably going to talk with him tomorrow. we named him rico chavez he is way cool and exercises in our pila hahaha and eats the bad stuff in it haha. its kinda of against the rules to have pets but he really technecly isnt a pet. oh and remember that iguana thing i caught a few weeks ago the elder i was with got him made in to a wallet its way cool.

but ya its been a good week we had another baptism this week her name is maria the is like 65 years old cant remember a thing esspecially our names hahaha. but she is an awesome little old lady and everything to her is about faith. its really funny.

elder cater is doing good he is a little bagy cuz he leaves at the end of next change. he has been big time giping with the recent convert of the other elders in monjaras its pettery funny . giping is flirting in mission terms. i cant gip (geep) because io dont understand a whole lot.

cizmas had mini changes last week he is in one of the most coveted zones in the mission. its called dahn li. its chilly there. its just the upper class part of our mission. he is having a great time there i talk to him like once a week or so haha.

we are still working with dani and lanny. we are just waiting on the go ahead from the lawyer but i dont think it wil be too much longer i just hope im still there for their baptism because a few people in the zone think im out this change but i asked president if i could stay in monjaras for atleaste one more change. and he said ok so i can only pray right now.

but it was a good week. we baptized. so that always makes it a good week. keep up with the missionary work. a really good book that helped me on the mssion was our search for happines by m. russell ballard in the missionary library. hey and did you happen to send that stuff i asked for cause i should be finishing the book of mormon if you sent it already.

les amo a todos

Elder Spencer Olsen

Left Elder Wilkinson ZL, middle me, right Elder Mungia DL. We had our bdays is the 2 months

This is Elder Adams my ZL with the new gyrobo wallet

Remember the Gyrobo they caught and had it tied to his table in their house, well it's now a wallet

This is Rico Chavez

For some reason, my computer won't send the picture of the baptism at the beach or of Hermona Maria's baptism. I will try and get it sent next time.

Find a Way

So after we received last week's email, we prayed about what we should do about helping out this young couple that Spencer is working with. We decided that we needed to and so we made sure that there was enough money in his account. It's amazing how the Lord provides away for those who seek and ask. Read on....

Dear mom and everyone

so 1st thing about the money... it doesnt make a diffence right now. because last week after i was done emailing i went and got a little money out of my account. it was one of the atms that takes you card untill the transaction is over... so i was putting my money in my wallet and left my card in the slot and while i was doing this the atm ate my card and we have no idea who to call there are like 6 banks tha tuse this atm. so i currently dont have have my gringo card. so if you could be so kind as to send me a new one with that stuff i asked for last week that would be AWESOME.

but anyway... no i didnt get robbed last week. the chaple we play at has 3 rooms with the folding wall. the actual chaple the cultural hall then a 3rd split for the stage. so alot of missionaries had put their stuff in the 3rd spot of the stage and there were these 2 kids that werent missionaries that we think stole 1600 limp from cizmas and another missionary in my district. but im all good on this end.

but cizmas had mini changes on wednesday so i dont live with him anymore. and the other 2 elders that live with us have to find a new house. just stupid drama like always in my life. but its whatever i dont have to pack my stuff in the middle of the change.

we lost a big part of the week because we had to go into the city for a meeting for the trainers and the trainees. so we last like a day and a half. but we are still going to be baptizing this staturday. she is a really old lady that cant read bearly see and every answer she gives us is how faith is goign to save us and she just rambles on this stories that make no sence she is a funny little lady. her husband told us the other day that he had already been baptized in another church and didnt need to get baptized again. so we are going to work with him a little harder to see if we can change his mind about his other church he never goes to haha.

now about the car. i could care less haha. its not m main objective out her is to worry about the car that i already knew i wasnt going to come home to. that just sucks for connor not having a car and having to possible have to but a new one haha. but its all good.

so aobut that little family its all good with them it isnt going to cost as much as we thought so we have it taken care of. this last week the mission opened a fund to help the missionaries with wedding and stuff so the Lord is finding us a way to get this done for them. i feel really strongly aobut this. in all honestly i know with out a doubt that this is what the Lord wants me to do to tent my faith at this point in my missions. as soon as we started this whole proccess he had president open up this fund to help us get this done.

so while i was in the city we got to see picachu ( the coca-cola cristo) and that sign. it was from far way but we still saw it. it was way cool i got a few pics of it. i cant wait to actually wait to go visit it.

oh and on sunday i had to teach the investagator class all in spanish all by myself. it was pretty good. i just couldnt flow the words the way i wanted so that made the lesson really choppy but other than that everyone said i had a great lesson. i worked on it so hard. it was way intense.

but ya jsut another good old week in monjaras. its alot of fun but its really hard sometimes but im making it through. well i hope everything truns around on connor cuz that sucks. but its way awesome that everyone is doing good.

Les Amo

Elder Sencer Olsen

ps i really do want/need the book and pens so ya and what other books you guys here might are good. if you could send them too me that would be awesome. and forget about the hat it was a dumb idea.

Just after Spencer received his call, we went to Barnes and Noble to find a book about Honduras. In the book, it talks about the Christo Statue on the mountain in Tegucigalpa just like in Brazil. The funny thing about it is that right next to the statue is a Coca-Cola sign just like the Hollywood sign in California so they call the statue the Coca-Cola Christo. We laughed and laughed about it.

-this is the coca cola cristo

this is the coca cola sign

-the 2 elders on either side of me came to the mission with me. jensen on the left and henandez on the right. i dont know the other guy

i made surgar cookies at dirtrict meeting

this is danni and lanny and their 8 month old baby.

Happy Valentine's Day

Dear Mom and Everone,

it was kind of a slow week this week. we didnt so a whole lot of work in the sence of tracking but. but we did a bunch of work trying to get a divorce started so we can get another family baptized.

There names are dani and lanny. They are a very young coulpe. they are both 20 like 5 months older then i am its crazy. they have an 8 month old child. they are probably the strongest members of our branch. they are the coolest people i have met.

so im guessing when lanny was about 17 she got married for the first time which is way cool to here someone actually got married on their own power down her. you dont see that much. people will call each other husband and wife but are not lawfully wedded.

so this litte family has been woking with me and my comp right now are the 4th set of missionaries to be visiting with them. and the first 3 just took the advice of all the other missionaries and not do any thing about it. because it takes too long too much money and just not worth it. like 8 weeks and 8000 limps to get the divorce. so like 400 dallors.

im pretty sure that when i see those elders in judgment i will laugh at them because they did nothing for them and they are probably going to get married in the temple.

so we heard of a member lawyer in choleteca that could do a divorce in 3 weeks for 3000 limps. so roughly 150 bucks. so we got talking to this lawyer and he said that he could do it. but before he could start the prosses he need the birth certificate of lanny, her mom´s because she was the one who signed the paper for her to get married, and a marrige certificate. so we gave her 500limps to go to where she was born because thats where she was married and thats where the birth certificates where at. so she wnet on friday and came back on satruday. she got everythign we needed.

it has been pretty smooth for the 1st part of it. everyone says this is really going to try my patients. im still not like christ on that one. dont have a whole lot of it but we are trying. so we talked to the lawyer today. and he said that he just need to meet with her. she needs to meet with the judge on wednesday and he can start the procces then.

so now comes the hard part on your end. the lawyer wants the money upfront. and we are poor missionaries. we still need to work out a few things with the money but ya so i need to put up half for that. just 75 dallors. no to you guys are home that doesnt seem like a whole lot of money. but that is like amonths worth of work down here so if you read this on my blog please help. if you help me with this you will be helping someone into the warters of baptism. and eventually to the temple. in d&c 18:15-16 it say And if it so be that you should labor all your days in crying repentance unto this people, and bring, save it be one ^asoul unto me, how great shall be your joy with him in the kingdom of my Father! And now, if your joy will be great with one soul that you have brought unto me into the ^akingdom of my Father, how great will be your ^bjoy if you should bring many^csouls unto me!. and that is exactly what you would be doing. this family deserves this. they want to so bad. and a few people in the branch that they live with have driven it into their heads that they are fornicating. which they are but they dont need to feel that from people they work with and see everyday. because the devil got in the way just 4 years ago. so please ill have a picture for my mom next week to put on the blog. they are way cool and deseve to enter into the kingdom of god.

but that has been my main focus this week. i also started and finished our seardh for happiness in 3 days. its not hugly doctonily profound. but its plain and preshis truths that i think every meber need to read. and if someone has been offended by the church and really want to know what the church is like this is the book to read.

so i need a few things... not money (even though that would be great) i realy need a set of like 5 to 7 differnt color of those fine tip creative memory pens. thats the 1st one. another is th Jesus the Christ that pres. crutis gave me before i left. it was the dumbest this to leave that. if you have to open the boxes to find it thats totally cool but only that. and the last thing is a few books everyone he talks about dorctine of salvation compiled by bruce r maconcy but the 1st 2 are neccecary.

well thats all for today hope everyone is doing great and tell connor to read to the bom before he leave and chapter 3. tell mitchell to do the same and to look for those 3 things. it helps you focus more on what you are reading.

We had to take a jallone to an amt to get money to started the divorce and we got picked up by a pepsi truck

1st official picture with my new comp Elder Carter

There is a fair in town and while we were going to a cita we crased a parade

1st Family Baptism - February 6, 2012

February 6, 2012

So every week I keep my phone by me until I hear the little jingle letting me know that I have received my email from my Missionary. Some weeks he writes in the morning, but lately, Spencer hasn't been writing until the afternoon. He has to go into Choluteca for pday and he uses the computer there at an internet cafe. Well, this week the day drug on forever. Garrett had a writing assignment for school and he was suppose to send an email to someone so of course he wrote to his brother. When he got home from school on Monday, Garrett announce that he got a letter back from Spencer. He was so excited. I was excited for him, too, but I was frustrated that I hadn't received my letter yet. Just a few minutes late, the jingle came, and I could finally relax and enjoy finding out what kind of a week Spencer has had. So enjoy reading the letter between Garrett and Spencer and the letter he sent to the family. It has been fun because he is writing more details and he has sent a bunch of pictures. I wish he had time to journal about the pictures, but I guess I just need to be happy that he is sending pictures at all. We are so proud of him, and it seems like he is settling right into his life and enjoying everything he can from this great experience.

Dear Elder Spencer,

How are you doing? My teacher gave us some he work to write to someone in your family and tell them what you are doing in science, so I choose you. We have to check the moon every night then recorded it. Just the other day we made water clocks. What you had to do was to take a tub fill it with water then take a funnel and put a little yellow thing on it with a hole at the bottom. Then you count how long it take to hit the bottom of the tub. It's really fun
Love you little bro,
Garrett

Dear garrett
you craqck me up kid! hope everything is going great. make sure you are staying focused in school work hard. i pray for you guys everyday
te amo
elder spencer olsenQue tal, como estan,

Dear Mom and everyone,

Ok so my new comp is name Elder Carter he is from utah the city that snow college is in. he goes home at the end of next change. so i will probaly kill him in monjaras (you kill someone when you are their last comp before they go home) but ya he is a way cool kid i get along with him really well. he really doesnt care what people think of him which kinda scares me a little bit because he already isnt liked by one of the families that cooks for us on friday nights lol. that family tells every missionary about it hopefully they learn thats just his attitude. but i have no issuse with him.

so my baptism last week i thought wasnt that great. i though that he was doing it just to apease him family. but every time i see him around town instead of being with his old stoner buddies his with the guys from young mens and after i told him he couldnt wear his cross anymore he stoped wearing it. im so pumped about it.

so we finally had the baptisms for that family last night. it was way crazy. because the 2 oldest jorge and luis are always working yesterday they worked from 1am to 3 pm it is unreal what they make the kids do out here for work. but we went over to their house like 3 different times to try to get the interviews done and they would always say oh they on thier way just a few more minutes. but we finally got them to the chruch, they passed their interviews. so my dl didnt ask them who they wanted to baptize them so while my dl was finishing up we had his comp ask the 3 others who they wanted to baptize them and when he went to the youngest named emerson the kid asked my dls comp to do it. it was pretty funny. but it was no big deal i got to do the other 3 it was so freaking awesome they have been so blessed ever since they have been coming to church, they have been the last 2 sundays in a row. and i also got to confirm the mom her name is hna maria. it was crazy to do that in spanish let alone if it were in english.

so this week was a really fun week i got to go on division with one of my zls Elder Adams. he goes home at the end of this change (transfer) so he is a little bit baggy (truncky) so we had a good time. so a few weeks ago we were headed into choluteca for pday and there where these 8 black kids we call them the negritos. but they asked us if we were christians and stuff and cizmas and i taught them the 1st lesson. and they wanted to know more. so me and elder adams went looking for them. they live on the other side of my area that i dont really know that well because its so far for the capilla (chaple) that almost all the members on that side are almost all inactive haha. so while we were looking for them we ran into a gyrobo that iguana type thing i told you i had eaten. so elder adams is standing like 3 feet from it and bashes it with a rock trying to kill it because he know a guy that can make a wallet out of it. he hit directly in the head but it didnt die it ran at him with its mouth wide open. so we chased it into this yard and the family help us catch it it was way funny and cool so i have had a pet gyrobo in my house for the last like 3 days and finally gave it to the guy that is going to do all the stuff with it. elder adams is getting a bunch of stuff from this guy so when he leaves he is going to give me his number and im going to get a set of crocodile scripture covers. and a gyrobo wallet i saw some of the stuff the guy had and it was way cool.

so ya i thought i sent you like 9 fotos last week so ill try to sent more this week im trying to store all my fotos on my ipod so incase i do get robbed im all good lol so i dont lose them all. at times i feel like i have like no time till i go home but others i feel like have have an eternity left. can you belevie this is the week a year ago we satrted hcg that freaking crazy how fast that crap went hahaha. well im doing great. saw the highlights of the superbowl this afternoon at the pizzahut in choluteca. so im not in a huge bubble all the time haha. well hope everything is going great at home and if new girls move into the ward that i dont know let them know they can write me any time. and tell dad im sorry i havent written him just all the time i dont have time it weird to only hear from you not that that is a bad thing lol. love you guys im doing great.

con amor
Elder Spencer Olsen

So every night they go to member's home for dinner. It looks like it's pizza night!

I think this is his DL's companion.

They are not given much money for the week so a lot of time they hitch hike rides with people in town. They all do it, but I don't think they are suppose to. Leave it to Spencer. Boy doesn't he look happy, and tan, too!

Most of the people in Monjaras work at the Sugar Cane Factory.

Cane fields outside of town in Monjaras.

Shrimp Fry. I'm so happy and jealous all in the same breath.

His pet Gyboro.

He's a pretty looking animal. I guess he will make a nice wallet.

Spencer has always loved animals. Now he really gets to play with them.

Here piggy, piggy, piggy!

Young Men in Monjaras.

Young Women in Monjaras.

His first Family Baptism.

(I tried everything to get it to rotate)

I think the boy on the right is the young man that he baptized last week.

Week 7 - 1st Transfers

January 30, 2012

Hey mom and everyone,
so changes where last week. And my comp got changed out. i was having issues with him our zls were having issues with him so they talked to the aps and now he is in the city in one of the hardest areas in the mission oops. my new comp is a gringo. his name is elder cater. he is a little doofy but i like him he has a great plan for teaching and baptizing people.

so speaking of baptizing people i had my1st baptism on saturday. it was freaking awesome. he had me baptize him and he was confermed by his uncle yesterday it was awesome. there was like 3 people at the baptism. the bvaptimal services are alot different around here. like how you think its weird to have a family married one hour than baptized the next. that is the only way families cant get baptized untill they get married because they dont have the money to get married so they just say they are untill we asked them if they had been married thats just really funny to me that you think thats weird.

But now that elder guitz isntmy comp anymore we are going to baptize that little family but they have been to church once more but they are so ready im so excited for them. things work alot differently here than in the states. our goal for batisms every month from the president for our zone is 5 baptisms per companionship every month. its the highest in the mission so there is a little more pressure on us to get baptisms.

but other than that i reall like my new comp he is a little weird but nothing that wasnt like that i worked with back home haha.

so with the whole detail things in the photos im trying to get them we are literally in the middle of nowhere. like people live in mud huts. there is only one paved road in all of monjaras. no one has cars. some people have motorcycles but everyone either rides a bike or hitch hikes. we hitch hike haha. is spanish its called a jallon but the j makes the h sound. they are so much fun driving like 55mph in the back of some random persons car. as missionaries we are really not suppoed to take them but when you dont have money you kinda have to take them haha. there is a big factory outside monjaras called la gresia. its just about where everyine works in about a 30 mile radius. its where they take all the sugar cane and make it in to sugar. its like where everyone get dropped off or picked up for jollones its wild haha ill try to take some pics of it for you next week.

but ya just been a normal week out here in honduras haha. the language gets easier every day. its fun to communicate with people in a different language. tell everyone back home who has sent me stuff thank you so much especially sis lions she sent me 20 dollars right when everyone in th ehouse asked me to pay the light bill that was like 25 bucks 500 limps. but i love you guys. and mom in all honesty the only thing connor needes to do to get ready for his mission is read the 1st 3 lessons in preach my gosple and pick a few main sciptures that helps describe what those things are and to read the book of mormon. asked the elders in your ward for a book of mormon and have him read that and circle when every there is a reference to the lord or god, mission work and his favorite scriptures. it helps you fucos on what you are reading all he needs to do is read those 2 things the mission has changed alot since alot of those guys that teach that class. but nothing on them but the feild is so much different thten what anyone makes it out to be. but it does help alot to do those 2 things i promise.

but i love you guys hope everything is well even make that a family goal. to read the bom and circle all that stuff it helps alot

con amor
ELDER Spencer Olsen

District Beach Party

Beautiful sunset

Piggy Back Ride

So he does get to ride a bike once in a while

Monjaras Racoon?

Sad about something......

Hitching a ride

First Baptism with new companion Elder Carter

Gimmie Baptism

Having fun with mud. New companion Elder Carter

Poopy House