Senior Companion

Hey dad,

Wow this week was rough at the start but it got soo much better! My comp and I are working things out a lot better I feel. We had Elder Ah You, the guy that's sending the stuff to you guys!( you're all gonna love what I got for you all!  I'm struggling to find a couple more things but it's gonna be awesome-- you're all going to love it!)

Last transfer I forgot to say ya I'm a senior companion so I could train. I have people in my same group from 3 months ago that have been training new missionaries or are district leaders. I'm thinking one of those 2 options is going to happen this next weekend on Sunday night when we find out transfers.

Thanks for the advice about fun in the mission. I won't lie---today I actually had fun with a lot of missionaries! We cooked a big asado at our pench with some Hermanas too and had music, drinks, and everything. It was super chill.

But yes, I would say the fun moments of actual service are almost always after doing it. I mean, ya you feel good while doing it but where you really feel it is when you're walking away and you know that nobody will know or more than that see how you helped that family or person. Seeing how much the Chaparro family has changed in these past 3 months lets me know that ONLY in this church is where you can all become more united in worshipping God. It's another testimony that this Church is true.

Yes, I have considered doing piano lessons or english classes. A lot of missionaries do the english classes and do well with that. We just need to get the permission and actually do it. Plus it'll depend on what my comp would think if we were going to do it too.

I love you soo much Pops! Thank you sooo much for always helping me with these quotes and letters! That's true about prayer! I just still always feel like that's my special time to talk with him. Like I would talk to you. Many times and this is personal but I'll receive an "inspirational voice" talking to me. Sometimes I wonder if its just me or if it's really Him. But I've always felt the Spirit while this has happened So I would want to say that it's Him. I had a very powerful experience with prayer and had felt something I haven't quite felt before this week too which is another reason why this week was also rough, and yet so, so peaceful for me. It'll be something I'd want to talk to you more when I come home because I feel it'd be better to do it that way and because it's really special to me.

Anyway I love and miss ya tonz Popz!! Have a great week with the overtaking Chandler Orthodontic practices!! Ahaha !!!   Talk to ya next week!

PS. We were at the stake center and I didn't bring my camera there so I don't have it here in the ciber...Sooo Next week I will remember and send a lot of pics!!

Love your son,

Elder Kohler Chamberlain

Conference in the Gringo Room

Hey Ma,

You guys sure enjoyed the pageant haha. That's soo cool to see how much you guys all grew from that. That's super cool how they taught you how to work with and approach people to help the missionaries!  The church is so smart. I'm super happy that Steven came too! He's a stud and I hope he's doing well. That makes me proud of Spencer to say that! I feel the same way while reading Jesus the Christ! James Talmage just talks about a lot of things that I think the normal person wouldn't think about and he tells a lot of other little stories and things that would've had to have happened from events that happened in the Bible. 

How are you on that btw? I'm on page 200. I haven't been super consistent but some days I'll read more than 2 pages so I feel I might be good or at least close to where you are haha.

YES I HAVE 2 OF THE 5 PACKAGES!! One was from the Strattons and they gave me swedish fish and sour patch kids with a nice red tie and letter!! Oh my gosh that candy was soo good ahaha! I'm going to make it last though!!

Mom I got 4 awesome books you sent me with pictures of my family or me on them during the break of conference!! Elder Ah you is our zone leader and he gave them to me but I wanted to wait after the first session of the Sunday morning conference and then I opened them and was soo happy! It was soo weird seeing those faces and seeing those names or like thinking of my cousins and stuff haha! I have pictures and I was going to send them today but I forgot my camera cord so I'm going to do it next week for sure!! Everybody was looking at them/ all the gringo missionaries and people were commenting about you guys haha! Everybody still thinks Kelsey is super gorgeous which is always funny. I would've started crying if I wasn't with like 15 other missionaries in the gringo room. Haha we have a GRINGO ROOM with a tv set up with the conference in English so that's nice. The last one in October we watched it on a youtube channel on a tablet that went in and out!

Conference was sooo good!  We watched all the sessions both days and we had our recent converts/the Chaparro family come!!  Also Gisella and her husband Juan who were working with to get married, or either separate. We're trying for the other but we'll see. They all loved it! They all learned soo much!  They definitely received a testimony that the people that spoke are men and women of God. They didn't stay for all sessions but The Chaparro family did almost! Rosa was at all of them who I baptized and then the whole family besides Hugo their dad came to the Sunday sessions. They all looked soo happy and all of the many members in the stake center was good for them to see too that there are many who have gone down the same path as they have. Elder Zeballos of the seventy who spoke Spanish is coming to our mission in May so I thought that was kinda cool too.

I loved Elder Holland's talk about the 2 brothers and the one who knew what he was going to try to jump and how he put that into the atonement. Jesus Christ is our Savior and he will not let go...but we do have to jump for him. I took some good notes so I can read them later.

MOM Spencer is getting sooo huge I can't believe it ahaha!

I've been thinking about all of you too a lot lately. I try not to allow myself to do that or I literally start to not feel good cuz some days it's sad haha.

HEY Mommm sooo I spent about a 1000 pesos today and I'm going to spend a little more on Wednesday           ( almost 100$ ) these are things for you guys and other cousins etc. I don't want to say anything but I'm trying to do the best I can with what  have. You all should like it tho;)

Hey so I'm here with Elder Ah You.   Here's his mom's email address!

Jennifer@manaohana.org

and the number for her is 208-595-0131

Can you let Suzy know about that too? Thanks Ma!

It's funny you ask that about the President. We don't usually see him but tomorrow I'm going to have an interview with him because every 3 months we have interviews with the President. My comp has not been doing the best things and its been hard with him a lot lately so I'm hoping this will be good.

Nahh haha they don't even know what Easter is here I think. They just all get ready for the usual yearly passover and go to church Sunday then go home and have an asado or get drunk. I really don't know ha. But ya there's none of that Easter tradition here.

This last week besides conference I learned a lot more about things I thought I already knew. God did bless me a lot this last week and it's helped me a lot with certain problems I've had  for a little while.

I love you tons ma!!  THANK YOU SOOOO MUCH FOR THE BOOKS!!!!

I'll send the pictures next Monday I promise!!

Love your son,

Elder Kohler Chamberlain

First Baptism!

Chaparro Family

Hey Mi Familia -
The baptism was super good! Ezekiel made his decision to be baptized the day he was baptized! He also decided as he was going into the baptismal font who was going to baptize him! I had just baptized his older sister so he chose my comp. We baptized 4 people and the bishop baptized the Mom. My comp got to baptize the little girl Leila too btw. But it was cool-- I have never actually gone into the water yet to baptize! We confirmed each one of them and had the bishop and other members confirm them members in front of the whole ward! I also got to give a 15 minute talk on Joseph Smith and got to talk about my experience of going to the sacred grove which was super cool. The spirit was super strong in that meeting!

Baptism Day! The dad is in the blue obviously. Sorry about the shadow in some of them mom! I baptized the oldest girl and my comp baptized the other two and the bishop on the end baptized the mom! They were all confirmed yesterday in front of the whole ward and we all participated! But we let the members do it to make better friendships with them!

Here are some photos of families from my last area (finally!)

Leon Family from last area.

German Chavez and his family from my last area!  Love this family!

The Martinez Family!!

 Me at the Dike/ Dam By Chimbas

Hey sorry I have to hurry ma cuz we have to go to the hospital to help out the sisters-- apparently something isn't good! I love you sooo and everyone sooo much!! Happy anniversary and valentines day to all!! THANKS FOR THE PICS AS ALWAYS!!

Love,
Elder Kohler Chamberlain

Baptism This Thursday!!

Mom-- just to start, there are 3 packages waiting for me in Mendoza and I'm sooo excited!  My good friend Elder Ruiz Diaz (the guy from Buenos Aires) is the new penscionista and he gets stuff like that. President gets mad when we get packages or send them but letters are fine. But we're super tight so he should get me my packages and perhaps send some letters! I just have to give them to the zone leaders every time they go up there for stuff for the zone meetings. The next mtg is tomorrow but they won't have it so I'll have to wait till the beginning of March to get them.

This week was rougher than usual so thank you for those prayers ma:) That's funny how you had that feeling. 

I've had cereal almost every breakfast and lunch haha.(we don't eat at night but sometimes we'll get a hotdog but its usually like 10:30 or 11 when we come back from walking so far)

We are trying to get Ezequiel (the boy in the Chaparro family) to get baptized with the rest of his fam too! So we are going to be teaching them everyday this week and they will literally all have the baptismal interview just hours before they're going to be baptized haha so were going to see how this will go!  We're trying to work with 2 other investigator families and about half the time they're just never home and it's a long way there. We got a less active family to church again this Sunday too! Estefenia, Nacho, and Sol. A little girl and a boy and a divorced mom. Her husband has been cheating on her and doesn't give her anything and they're pretty poor. I felt bad tho cuz we came over yesterday to get them for church and the mom was telling Nacho to drink his chocolate milk (breakfast) so we could go to church. So I was like "Nachito drink your milk!"( my comp and I call him Nachito-- it's just more funny haha) But he was saying "NO- I don't want to and was hitting me with this little bracelet thing. So of course I tried taking it and he pulled his arm back and my arm hit his milk all over him...He was NOT in his church clothes so that was good. But he started crying then literally just started laughing! ..it was kinda weird. The mom wasn't mad at us but then I started to clean it all up.   I took the cup to the sink and I'm washing it off. It slips out of my hand and falls in the sink and I'm like wow, that could've broke...but then I looked down and there was another glass broken!!...I didn't know what was happening but I felt sooooo bad!! So I went and told her(After the kids had done that for me LOL)  I told her I would pay for it but she refused of course. Anyway I just felt bad like were waking up these people to come to church and here I spill hot chocolate all over her 5 year old son and break one of her cups while trying to clean it. I was waiting for something else to happen but I just told myself that nothing more was gonna happen and thankfully nothing else did! 

But overall we had a really good time in church and we saw the Chaparro family there with all 3 of her kids which made us really happy! The 15 year old daughter Rosa wants me to baptize her so I'm super excited! The mom is going to have the bishop baptize her and maybe I can baptize the other kids? We'll see. Please pray for the Chaparro family to endure till this Thursday! And then forever after!

Anyway that's a story I had this week. Everything else is good really and the mission is just being the mission and I'm grateful for all of it. I will pray for Sister Schmidt and for her to recover. That's really sad. I know if she has faith that she'll come out. Something I've heard from a missionary is that people in those types of situations can really come closer to God. But what was more interesting( And kinda different) Is that he said they should pray to see if it's their time to leave this life and if there's anything that Heavenly Father would like for them to do before they leave. It's kinda a scary thought but if we know it's God's will I guess it's better? I don't know-- I wouldn't want to receive an answer if I was going to die but that's something I heard and I thought it was interesting. Tell her she's awesome and that she can do it! She has a missionary in Mendoza Argentina praying for her!:)

Hailey looks sooo good! I'm soo proud of that little girl! She's too funny ahaha. Spencer is just a giant and I don't know what he's going to look like when I get back. I wouldn't doubt if he's that much better at piano now to be honest.

I love you mom!! I hope all is well with you, your book, calling and everything!

Hey we're coming back later today to finish our emails so I'll write dad and them!

PS: Hey can you tell Brother Mask that I want to write him?? He never answered me-- I want to tell him about certain things going on here! I know he can relate to since he served in Argentina. I would REALLY appreciate that. I look up to him soo much and he's helped me with a lot of things in my life. Anyway thanks ma love ya!

7 months and Going Strong!

Hey Everyone -

I know 7 months-- it's crazy! Really it's my 5th transfer so it's 7 and a half because there each 6 weeks long yaa!

Everything is super good up here it's just always soo hot. I literally take a shower then shower in my garments and go to bed like that with nothing cuz it's so hot. Which by the way, that temperature you saw is in Mendoza where it's nicer. I'm in the hottest zone in the whole mission during the hottest time of the year called San Juan. It's pretty poor with just a bunch of dirt streets and at nights there's always a million people out just toping on their mate (pronounced mah-tay) tea...They say they are busy when we try to talk to them so it's super annoying but it's whatever.

I'm actually in Mendoza right now and I spent the night with all the elders and the APs in the office pench (apartment). It's super nice and they have AIR CONDITIONING!! Wow that was the first time since the mtc I felt AC. Ya that was super nice to have!  (didn't realize that LOL) But my comp is having an interview with President for something he feels like he needs to clear up. Sooo to be honest I'm a little nervous for him and don't know what to expect. He's actually talking with him right now and I'm in the secretarios office writing:)

Hey, in that picture you sent, Spencer standing next to dad is sooooo huge!! Is he taller than Kelsey?? If so he's probably taller than me which is toooo weird! Hailey looks bigger too! I don't understand it! That needs to happen more at the end of my mission cuz now they're going to grow even more!! It's just too weird for me!

That's super cool that dad and the priests got to go up there and ski! That sounds like a lot of fun right now.

Hailey is a boss at the piano ma--- and she always was so I wouldn't doubt it that she could do that! She's always been able to play super good songs and play them for people when she was like 4 or 5 years old!

I hope Grandpa is doing better. I have been praying for him to recover. I hope everything with Grandma is doing good too. Hey how is Grandma Chamberlain doing with her calling too? I always pray for you and her in your callings because you guys are in positions to really help and change a lot of people for the better.

The Chaparro family came again! It's soo far to go to church also from their house! We didn't get back to the pench until after midnight the other night and had to wake up at 6 to go get them again!( Just for the discipline) We were at their house doing a family night this last Saturday and we always play this game I learned from my other comp. We take our ties off and one tie is the dog and the other a raton/rat. Every person has to tie the rat tie twice around their neck and the dog tie all just one time. The point is when the dog tie catches the rat tie that person is out. They had the whole family there with a cousin that also went to church so were going to try and teach that family too! We will get that whole family baptized and the dad too. It's going to happen. The mom, Karina, was talking with the bishop and us.  She was crying saying I've never seen my kids this happy and me as well. They have so many good friends here and they're always soo excited when the missionaries come over. This was super cool for me cuz this one kid I always thought he thought he was too cool for us but he's really starting to open up now and be more accepting even tho he's just 13 years old. He's a solid kid.

That's our main family. Other than that we visit and bring other less actives and other investigators and we spend a lot of time just talking in the streets.

Everything is good here and I can't believe in just 3 more transfers I'll be at a year...I'll still feel somewhat new. When you look back it was fast but when you look forward it's harder. Just look back and see how much you've done and feel good about it rather than look ahead and think-- oh wow look at all I have to do. That's really helped me.

Well, love ya ma!  I hope all is good with you dad and the fam!!

LOVE,

Elder Kohler Chamberlain