Well I am going to write this a little fast. It will be kind of easy because there isn't a ton to update on.
First and foremost, the rain came back. It has been pretty dry for the "winter" season. Since November it hasn't really been raining all that much. But this past week it decided to change that. It has rained like crazy the past week every single day! It is weird because when it rains here it just makes everything wet. Like it takes humid to a whole new level. It is so humid that everything is my house is just wet. All papers are wet, my bed and clothes are wet. Like literally everything in the entire house is wet and it is all inside! It is crazy how it works and it all kind of just makes the world sad. But not me :)))
Other than that as far as the work goes we have a family who is scheduled to get baptized this next weekend! There are so many amazing people here but they all just have one small thing keeping them from getting baptized but we are working so hard with this family! I will tell yall more about them next week! Other than that we have 9 other baptismal dates for may so we will keep working like crazy!
I am SOOOO excited that Mothers Day is coming up!!! I am trying to coordinate everything right now! Hopefully by the next email I will have it all ready. My church starts at 9 and ends at 12 so we will have a good little chunk of time and I will try to plan it in that gap. I will probably have to email at the church because I am in a realllllly poor part of the DR and no one has wifi but we will make the most out of it all!
I love yall so much! I gotta run just so I can send something! I will update yall with a ton more things next week! I love yall!!!!!!
Love,
Elder Robertson
Monday, April 24, 2017
Monday, April 17, 2017
Week 42 - Hoppy Easter
First off I am just going to throw out that I still don't understand why the classic American mascot of Easter is a Bunny who hides eggs. But it's whatever!
My easter was interesting! Partly because I got SUUUPER sick! It has happened to me a couple times on the mission where I just get really sick for one day and then the next day I feel better! I still don't feel 100% but I am still going strong!
Other than that this week was pretty slow. It is kind of like Spring Break here this past week so everyone was gone visitng people. Like it was scary how few people were here in town. Because of that we didn't have a ton of success but it was still a pretty good week! We have this family that we are working with that we put a baptismal date with so that was good!
One thing that is a big deal here is something that they only make during one week of the year. It is called habichuelas con dulces and for everyone who doesn't live here that means sweet beans. Like they take regular old beans and do a whole binch of weird stuff to them and they all love it. And because they only make it one week out of the year, they really like to gift it to the missionaries. I can't even count how many times I ate it this week and if I'm being honest, it really isn't even that good haha. I actually think that is what made me sick is one of them that they prepared with bad water. But it's all good because now I wont eat it again for another year!
Nashville sounds so fun!!! I am so jealous that yall got to see Brad Paisley!! He is definitely one of my favorites ever! I love his music! I really want to go there some time. Easter sounded fun also! I really miss Austin this time of year because it is so pretty with all of the wild flowers and everything. But I am glad you guys had such a good time!
We went to the airport today to eat because it is really close to the house and they have all of the flags of all of the countries in the Americas so I took a couple pictures with the best one!
Yeah that is about all that happened this week! I love yall a lot and miss yall so much! I hope everyone has an amazing week!!!
Elder Robertson
My easter was interesting! Partly because I got SUUUPER sick! It has happened to me a couple times on the mission where I just get really sick for one day and then the next day I feel better! I still don't feel 100% but I am still going strong!
Other than that this week was pretty slow. It is kind of like Spring Break here this past week so everyone was gone visitng people. Like it was scary how few people were here in town. Because of that we didn't have a ton of success but it was still a pretty good week! We have this family that we are working with that we put a baptismal date with so that was good!
One thing that is a big deal here is something that they only make during one week of the year. It is called habichuelas con dulces and for everyone who doesn't live here that means sweet beans. Like they take regular old beans and do a whole binch of weird stuff to them and they all love it. And because they only make it one week out of the year, they really like to gift it to the missionaries. I can't even count how many times I ate it this week and if I'm being honest, it really isn't even that good haha. I actually think that is what made me sick is one of them that they prepared with bad water. But it's all good because now I wont eat it again for another year!
Nashville sounds so fun!!! I am so jealous that yall got to see Brad Paisley!! He is definitely one of my favorites ever! I love his music! I really want to go there some time. Easter sounded fun also! I really miss Austin this time of year because it is so pretty with all of the wild flowers and everything. But I am glad you guys had such a good time!
We went to the airport today to eat because it is really close to the house and they have all of the flags of all of the countries in the Americas so I took a couple pictures with the best one!
Yeah that is about all that happened this week! I love yall a lot and miss yall so much! I hope everyone has an amazing week!!!
Elder Robertson
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| A sign near the airport. The sign says "The United States" |
Monday, April 10, 2017
Week 41 - Happy 187th Birthday to th eChurch of Jesus Christ being restored
First of all Happy 187th Birthday to The Church of Jesus Christ being restored! Yay!
Well it looks like I am going to be here until August. I actually don't know that for sure but it is very likely. But for this transfer at least I am staying here in Valiente with Elder Morales. He is getting closer and closer to going home and he has told me that although he doesn't like it he is thinking more and more about going home. So this transfer I think we are going to sit down and make a few goals and try to find ways to always stay busy because there is sooo much potential here! This branch is so close to turning into a ward and I want to be here when it happens! No matter what happens with my companion I won't let it effect me and I will keep working even harder. I already have a ton of plans in mind that are going to help us so much! I am PUMPED for this transfer!!
As for everything else in life it is all normal. My branch president today invited us to play basketball which was super fun! I mean normally when you play here it isn't super fun just because almost nobody actually plays just because either I am with a companion who only plays soccer or we are in the DR with people who only play baseball. But today it was super fun because there were a few people from the ward who actually played a lot and so we got to play a ton and it was super fun!
Other than that this week was pretty basic! We were supposed to have a baptism this past weekend of an awesome 20 year old kid who we were on the point of dropping but then randomly showed up to church and so we kept working with him. But his mom is a pastor for another church so she doesn't approve of it and because he still lived in her house and he respects her so much he said that he is going to have to wait, but we are going to keep working with him and I can't wait until he can get baptized! He is super awesome! The area here literally has so much potential! We are working with like 4 different families and always finding more. I am still trying to figure out how to be the best missionary I can be and learn how to be led by the spirit more but I think little by little I am figuring it out.
I am studying charity a lot. I think that if you could sum up all of General Conference into one sentence it would be that we all need to have more charity. I felt like it was the topic of the whole conference so I am really trying to study a lot about it. It is interesting because charity, although it is something we need to work on in our own lives to develop more of it, it is also a gift that we can ask for, just the same as faith. Actually faith and charity can be compared a lot. As Moroni teaches us we need to pray to the Father with all the energy of our heart to be filled with charity, therefore it is a gift that can be given to us, the same as faith. But something interesting is that charity, the same as faith, will grow even more when we put it into practice. Once we have what we ask for we need to do our part to keep it or else we will lose it. It has really helped me a lot in my work here. I keep trying to see everyone I meet as our Father in Heaven sees them and I find that I am being more and more concerned with helping them just because they are children of God. Charity is awesome and everyone should study it and then send me what they find out!
Also I finally made the Chili here and it turned out amazing! Not as amazing as mom's obviously but still super good! I made it in the house of my branch president because his wife saw it on pinterest and wanted to try it. When she asked what it was I told her it was like my version of a certain type of dish they make here called sancocho. But the problem is that they literally eat rice with everything, like EVERYTHING. So she decided that this would go well with rice.... Oh dominicans... But it was still awesome!
I will try to keep yall more updated on all of the people and investigators that I have here! They are all super awesome! I love my mission, I love being here in the DR, I love Spanish, I love this gospel and I love all of yall! Have an amazing week!!!
Love,
Elder Robertson
Well it looks like I am going to be here until August. I actually don't know that for sure but it is very likely. But for this transfer at least I am staying here in Valiente with Elder Morales. He is getting closer and closer to going home and he has told me that although he doesn't like it he is thinking more and more about going home. So this transfer I think we are going to sit down and make a few goals and try to find ways to always stay busy because there is sooo much potential here! This branch is so close to turning into a ward and I want to be here when it happens! No matter what happens with my companion I won't let it effect me and I will keep working even harder. I already have a ton of plans in mind that are going to help us so much! I am PUMPED for this transfer!!
As for everything else in life it is all normal. My branch president today invited us to play basketball which was super fun! I mean normally when you play here it isn't super fun just because almost nobody actually plays just because either I am with a companion who only plays soccer or we are in the DR with people who only play baseball. But today it was super fun because there were a few people from the ward who actually played a lot and so we got to play a ton and it was super fun!
Other than that this week was pretty basic! We were supposed to have a baptism this past weekend of an awesome 20 year old kid who we were on the point of dropping but then randomly showed up to church and so we kept working with him. But his mom is a pastor for another church so she doesn't approve of it and because he still lived in her house and he respects her so much he said that he is going to have to wait, but we are going to keep working with him and I can't wait until he can get baptized! He is super awesome! The area here literally has so much potential! We are working with like 4 different families and always finding more. I am still trying to figure out how to be the best missionary I can be and learn how to be led by the spirit more but I think little by little I am figuring it out.
I am studying charity a lot. I think that if you could sum up all of General Conference into one sentence it would be that we all need to have more charity. I felt like it was the topic of the whole conference so I am really trying to study a lot about it. It is interesting because charity, although it is something we need to work on in our own lives to develop more of it, it is also a gift that we can ask for, just the same as faith. Actually faith and charity can be compared a lot. As Moroni teaches us we need to pray to the Father with all the energy of our heart to be filled with charity, therefore it is a gift that can be given to us, the same as faith. But something interesting is that charity, the same as faith, will grow even more when we put it into practice. Once we have what we ask for we need to do our part to keep it or else we will lose it. It has really helped me a lot in my work here. I keep trying to see everyone I meet as our Father in Heaven sees them and I find that I am being more and more concerned with helping them just because they are children of God. Charity is awesome and everyone should study it and then send me what they find out!
Also I finally made the Chili here and it turned out amazing! Not as amazing as mom's obviously but still super good! I made it in the house of my branch president because his wife saw it on pinterest and wanted to try it. When she asked what it was I told her it was like my version of a certain type of dish they make here called sancocho. But the problem is that they literally eat rice with everything, like EVERYTHING. So she decided that this would go well with rice.... Oh dominicans... But it was still awesome!
I will try to keep yall more updated on all of the people and investigators that I have here! They are all super awesome! I love my mission, I love being here in the DR, I love Spanish, I love this gospel and I love all of yall! Have an amazing week!!!
Love,
Elder Robertson
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| I finally made the Chili here that my Mom sent the ingredients. |
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| My companion enjoying my Mom's chili recipe. |
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| No more chili. But still plenty of rice, of course. |
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| This is a little friend we had outside our house this past week. |
Monday, April 3, 2017
Week 40 - General Conference
Hellloooooo!! Man this week just absolutely flew by!
First things first, Conference. I love General Conference. Like I really do. I really regret not paying more attention to it before my mission because it is super awesome. I have so many favorite talks and I could spend forever talking about all of them but two that I really loved were Elder Hales at the beginning of Saturday Evening about being a true disciple and what it means. We really cannot be part time disciple in this day and age. We have to be all in. The second was Elder Eyring in the Priesthood session about walking hand in hand with the Lord and seeing people how he sees them. It's kind of funny because at the end of conference I feel like I want to change my entire life! Also! Like whaaaat Elder Palmer?? That was so cool! Our computer lagged when they were announcing it so I didn't hear that he was going to speak but then when he got up there I was like WHOA I KNOW THAT GUY! Like I actually said that out loud raja. That was super awesome.
Conference this time kind of snook up on me. Last conference I was waiting for it for a long time and I knew that conference was almost here but it kind of just came out of nowhere. I definitely have to download them and listen to all the talks again because we really can get so many answers to our prayers and learn so many amazing things. I am pretty sure I gave this invitation last time but I will give it again, Elder Holland has a talk that he gave at the end of the last April conference (or two years ago I don't remember exactly) but everyone should go an read it and apply it to their lives! Also shout out to Elder Sabin, Dad why did we never do that, that seems like a way better way to watch BYU sports haha. :)
Other than that this week has been pretty normal! My birthday was good! I got a little sick but it was still a good day!
The wife of our branch president is trying to get us four elders (we have four elders in our branch) to do a special musical number where we sing four different verses in different languages. She got that idea because there is one native Spanish speaker and one native dutch speaking missionary. But the problem is there are two native English speakers but she wanted four languages. So I am currently learning how to sing I Know That My Redeemer Lives in French so that has been kind of awesome! If we are ever practicing I will try and record it for yall because I think it is going to be awesome!
We are one week away from another transfer! This transfer has gone by pretty fast. I have thought everything out and I am either going to get transferred again, or stay in this area until August. Because my companion is going home in nine weeks, the same time as President, and because President doesn't want to make the new President worry about transfers right away he is having one transfer of three weeks and another transfer of 9 weeks after that. So really he only has one transfer and a half left here. And I don't think there are going to be hardly any changes in that three week transfer. I also don't think my companion is going to leave this area until he goes home. So that means that I am going to leave Valiente next week so someone else can learn the area before Elder Morales goes home, or I will be here until the end of the 9 week transfer which is in August. That was all pretty confusing but yeah I am really anxious to see what is going to happen.
I love yall so much!! Thank yall for everything and have an amazing week!!!!
Love,
Elder Robertson
First things first, Conference. I love General Conference. Like I really do. I really regret not paying more attention to it before my mission because it is super awesome. I have so many favorite talks and I could spend forever talking about all of them but two that I really loved were Elder Hales at the beginning of Saturday Evening about being a true disciple and what it means. We really cannot be part time disciple in this day and age. We have to be all in. The second was Elder Eyring in the Priesthood session about walking hand in hand with the Lord and seeing people how he sees them. It's kind of funny because at the end of conference I feel like I want to change my entire life! Also! Like whaaaat Elder Palmer?? That was so cool! Our computer lagged when they were announcing it so I didn't hear that he was going to speak but then when he got up there I was like WHOA I KNOW THAT GUY! Like I actually said that out loud raja. That was super awesome.
Conference this time kind of snook up on me. Last conference I was waiting for it for a long time and I knew that conference was almost here but it kind of just came out of nowhere. I definitely have to download them and listen to all the talks again because we really can get so many answers to our prayers and learn so many amazing things. I am pretty sure I gave this invitation last time but I will give it again, Elder Holland has a talk that he gave at the end of the last April conference (or two years ago I don't remember exactly) but everyone should go an read it and apply it to their lives! Also shout out to Elder Sabin, Dad why did we never do that, that seems like a way better way to watch BYU sports haha. :)
Other than that this week has been pretty normal! My birthday was good! I got a little sick but it was still a good day!
The wife of our branch president is trying to get us four elders (we have four elders in our branch) to do a special musical number where we sing four different verses in different languages. She got that idea because there is one native Spanish speaker and one native dutch speaking missionary. But the problem is there are two native English speakers but she wanted four languages. So I am currently learning how to sing I Know That My Redeemer Lives in French so that has been kind of awesome! If we are ever practicing I will try and record it for yall because I think it is going to be awesome!
We are one week away from another transfer! This transfer has gone by pretty fast. I have thought everything out and I am either going to get transferred again, or stay in this area until August. Because my companion is going home in nine weeks, the same time as President, and because President doesn't want to make the new President worry about transfers right away he is having one transfer of three weeks and another transfer of 9 weeks after that. So really he only has one transfer and a half left here. And I don't think there are going to be hardly any changes in that three week transfer. I also don't think my companion is going to leave this area until he goes home. So that means that I am going to leave Valiente next week so someone else can learn the area before Elder Morales goes home, or I will be here until the end of the 9 week transfer which is in August. That was all pretty confusing but yeah I am really anxious to see what is going to happen.
I love yall so much!! Thank yall for everything and have an amazing week!!!!
Love,
Elder Robertson
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| I turned 20 this week and my family sent a birthday care package. This was my birthday cake. |
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