Elote Eating Champion to Special Changes!

Well, we can start out by saying, this week was CRAZY.  But I am alive here in Mexico so I suppose that is what is most important right?  I will start first by saying just yesterday I received a phone call yesterday from President Mann, and got some pretty startling news.  I had special changes today, so I had to say bye to everyone, pack up all my stuff and get here to the mission offices in all less that 24 hours.  It was sad because there are still a few people I didn´t get to say goodbye to including the Cortes family up on the hill, but I guess the important thing is that we have already built an eternal bond together.  I love that ward so much, and I didn´t realize just how much I would miss them or how much they would miss me either until I had to say goodbye.  Although it was a huge surprise and a little heartbreaking because I thought I would have one more week to visit everyone, I am grateful for the opportunity I had to serve here in Atlicpac.  It was really cool because the bishop, his counselors, the relief society President, and more all told me thank you so much for what I did in their ward.  They said that I helped animate and reactivate them.  I brought success to their ward, and that now everyone is excited and willing to help in the missionary work.  Some of them told me I was the best missionary they have had in their ward for years.  But I know none of that was really me, just the Spirit and the Lord bringing to pass His work among His children, but honestly I feel like maybe the biggest impact was made on me.  I really have never grown to love a ward so much.  Every single one of them almost brought tears to my eyes as I had to say goodbye, and it is amazing how in just the short 6 months I served in this ward, how much it changed my life, how much it changed their ward, and how many eternal friendships I have made.  I don´t know if there is such thing as "areasick" instead of being homesick, but if there is I have it haha.  I never would´ve imagined that leaving them would be almost just as hard as leaving my family.  But I love them.  And I know they love me.  I guess the lyrics to the famous song prove true. "You never know to love [them] til you let [them] go".  So many people were super sad that I was leaving and it was tough to do it all in one day, but I just hope and pray they can keep working hard together with the missionaries and the work will move on!  I know that if the missionaries keep working out there, there will be endless success and they will grow to love the ward too just as I did.  Yesterday, Elder Matsen shared something with me really cool, that the ward Atlicpac is the 3rd or 4th best ward in the whole mission in baptisms for this year, after not having too much success last year.  I am so SO grateful for these last 6 months I have had to work here and to be blessed with so much success.  I thank my parents, my mission President, and my Heavenly Father for that opportunity.  But the work goes on! And now I have been called in a new ward where I have been called as Zone Leader!  I know too, that it will be a wonderful, new, and maybe challenging experience also.  It will help me learn and grow, and I know we will be blessed with success here also.  Sometimes I feel super young or inexperienced in the mission to be a Zone Leader but if it is where Heavenly Father wants me be, "I will go where He wants me to go, and do what He wants me to do".  I guess I should really be excited more that anything about this new, wonderful opportunity. 

Well, now onto this week a little bit.  So yes, this week, Elder Cruz caught me sleep talking and it was super funny.  It was about 1 o´clock in the morning and I guess Elder Cruz got up to go to the bathroom.  As he came back he said he heard me talking and got a little scared.  When he approached my, I had my hand up to my ear like I was talking to someone on the phone.  I was asking questions like "how many" and "what are their names" like I was reporting with my district haha.  His first reaction was "Who is he talking to so late at night?!" But he soon realized, I didn´t have a phone in my hand, and the fact was that I was fast asleep haha.  He gave me a little shake to wake me up and I just faintly remember looking into his bewildered and confused face, he was even a little freaked out haha.  I just said, "what?" And he just started busting up laughing.  I was still only half-conscious, so I didn´t remember the whole situation super clearly in the morning, but we had a really good laugh about it in the morning.  I was also pretty proud too because everything I was saying in my sleep, was is Spanish! I guess I am pretty fluent in the language now.  So that was pretty funny, only downside is that I didn´t have any lucid dreams... Another, (more scary) story this week was when I had a near death experience (kind of).  We were walking in the street and I guess there was an open telephone cable that was fallen down from the power lines.  I really didn´t notice it and just that it was a normal pole or something so naturally as we approached it was I going to grab it with my hand.  As Elder Cruz saw me getting closer he yelled at me and I immediately stopped.  I was just about 2 feet away when I realized the sparks coming down from the bottom of it and burning the concrete! I was pretty freaked out and really couldn´t believe that there was literally a live and open dangerous cable just in a common sidewalk for any little kid to grab! I sure hope it wasn´t the cause of any danger to anyone later on that day. Also, we had a pretty fun Family Home Evening with Ramiro and his family on Thursday night.  We had a good message, played a little game, and afterwards, they made us Elotes!  For those of you who don´t know what Elotes are (actually probably all of you), they are the corn on the cobs that are covered in mayonase, cheese, chili powder, really whatever you want to put on it.  And even though maybe they don´t sound like it, they are pretty good.  So I had a brilliant idea to see who is the Elote Eaiting Champion, and who could eat an elote the fastest.  Elder Cruz, Abigail (Ramiro´s daughter), and I entered into the competition, and began gnawing away at the elotes as fast as we could, we kind of looked like beavers.  Finally, Elder Cruz and Abigail finished at almost the exact same time, even with slow motion replay, it was a photo finish, so we went to the judge, brother Jacinto.  Even though I am not super fast at eating elotes, brother Jacinto made the final decision, and crowned ME the ELOTE EATING CHAMPION! So I am pretty proud of that. Lastly, the rain has kind of stopped lately, but now has started the dreaded MOSQUITO SEASON!  Yeah I am getting a lot of mosquito bites but so far haven´t caught any contagious disease so we are all good there.

The work was really good this last week too... mostly.  Just with a couple of major dissapointments.  It was really cool because we went up to see Alicia and the whole Cortes family a few days after her baptism.  They were all so happy as always and Alicia just told us that she felt so good.  What was even cooler though is that afterwards we went and she presented us to her friend, Leticia.  We started talking a little bit with the, both,of them and it was really cool, the Grandma Alicia talked about how the Gospel has changed her life so much- she argues less with her husband, she is happier and feels better about herself, and she said that as she thought of these changes that the Gospel has brought her in her life, she started to think of her friend Leticia, and how much that it could help her too!  It is so true, when we really experience the Gospel and Atonement of Jesus Christ in our lives, there is just such a desire to share that with everyone.  For example when I find some really good street tacos I just want to tell everyone about them so they can all come and enjoy them too.  I guess the Gospel is the same and it makes me really happy that Alicia has felt that and has that desire to share that with her friends.  We had a great lesson with her friend, Leticia, afterwards and were able to put a baptismal date with her.  She really like a scripture with her Matthew 11:28-29, and how the Gospel could really life her burdens and after all of these years she could be clean and have a new start.  We were super excited and happy to see both her, and Alicia´s husband, Jesus (The Grandpa of the Cortes Family) at church on Sunday with us!! We also had another experience this week that was really disappointing.  On Wednesday, we went with Dana, a 15 year old girl who we have been teaching, that has been going to church and was SUPER excited for her baptism that was going to be this week!  Even though she hasn´t had much family support, she knew that is what she wanted and she knew she was doing the right thing.  She had already talked to her mom about it too and her mom told her she could, so everything seemed like it was going in the right path.  Then, on Saturday, we went back with Dana, and I could tell something was wrong from the start.  Eventually, she just started bursting out in tears and told us her mom changed her mind and wouldn´t let her get baptized.  I felt so bad for her... through her tears, it told me that she really did want to get baptized and it was really frustrating because she already talked to her mom about it beforehand.  Also, her mom is a member too so I really don´t understand it.  I guess all we can do right now is fast and pray for her, and keep on having faith.  And that is what we did, I know she will get baptized one day, so just got to keep on having that hope.  It was even harder because I couldn´t make myself a chocolate malt to cheer me up because it was fast Sunday! That is okay though, we were still blessed with lots of more success and blessings this week.

So that about wraps it about up.  We did have some pretty fun days this week too.  One day I did divisions with Elder Rodas and we got to play a little bit of Ping-Pong, it was super fun and I really miss a good ol competitive game of Ping-Pong, especially with my dad or uncles.  (I´m coming for you Jon!!!)  Also, the sister missionaries from my district in the MTC reminded us this week that they are already at their half way mark!  Wow does time sure go by fast.  Finally, I saw a horrible abomiantion this week walking in the street, people were literally eating and BUYING MORONGA street tacos... I guess some people really like that stuff down here, it wasn´t just a harsh prank from that sister that gave it to us a couple weeks ago.  Well my new companion is named Elder Torres, he is from Tamaulipas, Mexico, and he is pretty cool so far.  Also I have AMAZING news, because I was really sad leaving my last house and the washing machine behind, but I was blessed with a tender mercy because this house has a washing machine too!!! Wow how blessed am I.  I am serving in an area called Villada, in the Zone, La Perla 1.  It is actually really close to my last area, where I started out the mission so I wonder if a lot of things will be similar.  One thing that I hope is definitely NOT similar is getting robbed 3 times.  I definitely enjoyed a safer environment (or just luck) for my 6 months in Atlicpac.  Well I am really just trying to stay positive right now, stay excited, and get ready to work hard with my new responsibility as zone leader!! Thank you guys so much for all of your support, emails, love and prayers.  I think about and pray for you guys everyday too.  I have the best family and friends in the world.  Have a great week and I will talk to you guys again next Monday!!!  

Con mucho amor,

Your favorite missionary, Elote Eating Champion, and future Family Ping-Pong Champion,

Elder Clark