Times

Nov 9, 2009

Dear Family,
I had a sudden realization not too long ago: I have been on my mission for almost 5 months now. I know it doenst really seem like a long time, but it means that I have been in the service of the Lord for almost half a year. I dont really know whether to think that time has flown by or crawled. It probably will depend on what day you ask me. As for this moment looking back, it feels that I have only just said goodbye to all my friends and family from the MTC. Im sure it will feel even stranger when I am in Elder Robinson´s position and getting ready to go home. By the way, Elder Robinson (Ty). DONT GET TRUNKIE!!! I have an elder that is living in my pension that is basically dead. He listens to whatever music he wants (I have heard pretty much everything by now), sleeps in till 12 in the afternoon, and then goes to the internet for hours, watching South Park and the Simpsons before coming back home and ordering pizza. I hope that I never die like that. I dont know what I would do, honestly. Anyway, other than that, things are going very well. We have been teaching a lot and it seems like the weather is warming up finally. Yeah, things in Chile are a bit different. haha, Its been working out well with my new haircut that my companion gave me this past week. Yeah, its really short now and I dont think Im going to change it for the duration of my mission. All I have to do to fix my hair in the morning is get out of bed. Its fantastic! Also, I am proud to announce that I have gotten my first dog bite. My companion told me that everyone gets a dog bite at least once on their mission. I was lucky enough to be present when my comp got his first one as well. But mine was a bit different from his. (He only got bitten by a little dog). We were walking down the street one night, and a curious Rotweiler came up to us, sniffing our pants, as dogs usually do here. We didnt mind it, and just keep on walking to our appointment. Then, all of the sudden, I felt a VERY strong pressure on my ankle. "Ow" I thought in my mind. I looked back to see the dog running away, barking like crazy. I looked down at my leg. The dumb mutt had ripped a hole in my pants! Not a very large one, but I really liked those pants... It wasnt until I got home that I noticed the blood. I now have three nice bite marks around my ankle that I will be able to show off as battle scars! Mom, dont worry, Im not foaming at the mouth or anything.
The last thing I wanted to mention was about the language. I have discovered a few things about Spanish so far: you cannot directly translate things directly! You will be driven totally nuts! The other thing is that there are ome words in Spanish that are so awesome! They aren´t in english, but they should be. At times I have to search for the word in English so I can say what I want to. I just know that when I give my homecoming talk, Im going to say expiacion, como, and de repente like a million times.
Alright, thats all for me for now! Thank you for everything that you guys have been doing. Mom, just send the ipod with the connector and a charger. That would honestly be the best Christmas present I could get. Other than that, I have been craving American food. I dont know how you can send that, but thats what I really want. haha, Im so picky!
Love you guys!
Elder Westover