It's Parraldice

with Elder Gonzalez at the entrance monument to Yierba Buenas

What can I say?  It has been another terrific week. Parral is simply a blessed area, and I am doubly blessed to be working here.

Yierbas Buenas
Mid-week, we had an intercambio (exchanges) with the zone leaders.  I paired with Elder Gonzalez and worked in Linares.  He's a really cool dude from Santiago, and as a Chilean, he was able to teach me a lot about how to teach even better.  We meandered into the campo for lunch (noodles with a mackerel and kelp salad), then headed into the farming town of Yierbas Buenas (Good Herb) [-insert favorite joke here-].  The town is newly open to missionary work so everyone seemed more receptive to our message.

Fiesta Patrias - El Dieciocho (the 18th)
It is Chilean Independence, folks, so nothing is open. From Saturday until Wednesday, the nation is in lock-down celebration in honor of Chile becoming its own nation.  So we celebrated with our ward.

The picture doesn't show it, but there were a lot of people there, and 13 of our investigators came!  There was great amounts of food, and games like dodge ball, cup pong, and tug-of-war. Performances of Cuaiga Paillas, a type of Chilean limerick poetry, rounded out the evening.  Kind of like these:

CHILE

by Bennie6 Haiku Poem

Chile ha sido

llamado la "Tierra de

Lagos y Ríos."

(Chile has been called the "Land of Lakes and Rivers")

Si tú estás en

Chile, y hace fresco,

¡prueba el chile!

(If you are in Chile, and it's chilly, try the chili!)

CROONER BRUNER

by Rajat Kanti Chakrabarty

Crooner Bruner loved his schooner 'Billie'

 He took a short holiday in Chile

 He went to Torres del Paine

Crooned across the terrain

And came back home with a robust chili 

It's More Chilean than Beans
I had quite the Chilean lunch: meat kebab, empenada, and mote' con huesillo (a beverage made from wheat and peaches). As they say out here, "It's more Chilean than the beans!"

Let's See Where the Spirit Takes Us
One evening when our appointments began to fall, my comp says, "Let's see where the Spirit takes us."  We started heading out, and think at-the-same-time MIRIELA.  Miriela was an investigator we dropped a while back.  So, we stop by her house and she invited us in. She admitted that whenever she felt bad, she would see us around town (hint, hint, girl, God is trying to get your attention).

We ended up having a great lesson with her. She felt the Spirit, though she has doubts about a living prophet and apostles. Let's hope that upcoming General Conference helps resolve those doubts.


Seba's Baptism
Seba was baptized on Sunday with his whole family present. All are inactive or non-members. He's a great example.

Elder Sharp, Seba, Roberto Espinosa (Young Men's President), me 

Dynamic District

Elder Sharp, Hermanas Vidal, Wendel (back), Rios, Contreras, me

At redimiento de cuentas, I learned that my district is the strongest one in the zone - probably the whole mission.  Doesn't surprise me.  These sister missionaries are dynamic.  Parral is a special area - a privilege to serve here with a district of hard working missionaries.

It's Parraldice!

Love to Everyone,
Elder Connor Nef