Sorry I wasn't able to email last week I was really busy and they didn't let us write home. I have good news now in that I have finally arrived in Florida!!! It's wonderful here! It isn't as hot as Vegas, but the humidity does give you a run for your money at times. All the same, it feels pretty good. We have a lot of animals roaming around out here. Frogs, lizards, snakes, and turtles seem to love to thrive in this environment. And no, sadly I haven't seen any big lizards yet, but I'll let you know when we do! With all of the good stuff though, there has to be opposition. We now have Brown Widows and all the bugs we normally have in Vegas have increased to twice their regular size! Brown Widows are actually very interesting they are a mix of Brown Recluses and Black Widows combined, and since the weather never gets to freezing, they are everywhere. Also they're not afraid of people so it's a nightmare walking around in the dark. A rule of thumb here is to never put your hand into a dark doorway (makes tracting fun). On the bright side they all hate the rain and it's wonderful when it pours!!! Speaking of which, we taught a man by the name of Billy yesterday when it started to rain. It's 20 feet to the car and we were completely dry under the eve. By the time we reached the car I was able to ring out my clothes because I was so wet. If any of you plan on sending me ties in the future, please make sure they are water proof (polyester) LOL!
My first day here was an interesting one. Alex I truly wish that I had biked as long as you had. Because on my first day here I had to bike three miles to my appointment (small amount I know, but try it steep uphill with no water) I can testify that the Lord is our savior and died so we could return again unto him and that the Holy Ghost can speak to us. Never before did these thoughts mean so much to me in my entire life! Because I thought I was going to pass on! It was so bad I could almost hear the Holy Ghost testify to me that I was about to be resurrected! I tried so hard to keep up with my companion, but he had been biking so regularly that by the time I realized he reminded me of Elder Proksch, he was already two blocks ahead of me. I prayed 3 times that he would notice I was gone and about 5 minutes after the last prayer he stopped and looked back.
By the time he came back to me I was heaving on the side of the road, unable to stand. He finally told me the trick to the bike. He said that the bike was being borrowed from a member and that the brakes were rubbing, the bearings were bad, and the thing was rusting from the inside out due to the humidity. It was so funny to me that by the time I was done laughing a lady came out of nowhere, holding a huge jug of water. She said that I looked pretty bad as she drove by, so she figured that I needed water and bought me the jug. We offered to give her a lesson, but she casually declined and drove off.
TAKE NOTES THIS IS IMPORTANT
Now, for some advice for future missionaries: When out in the mission field buy these items...
Save empty containers- They help you out, and (for the reason below) it's a good money saver when it comes to buying drinks, just be sure to purify the water before use.
Powdered Gatorade-it helps keep your electrolytes going and anytime you put it in water it turns to gatorade. And it lasts a looooong time.
Pasta-Great cheap and most of all, filling.
Tuna- VERY cheap and good.
Ramen-Cheap and you get a lot of it, but it'll only last a couple hours as oppossed to the 5 you need.
Garnola bars-Great for snacking.
Vienna Sausage/Spam- Parents, teach your kids how to prepare these, they are very useful for the field. (Can be eaten out of the can)
Bread, Cheese- Needed for a variety of foods or just a snack.
CapriSuns- Great for popsicles and drinks, plus they're cheap.
Personality traits:
Before coming out on your mission make sure you make yourself the best person you can be. If there is anything you think you need to work on, do it, NOW! I am so greatful that I worked on these traits when I did because I know if I hadn't before I came out here there would be more trouble with people than there is now. I generally get along with everyone, but a companion and the world is different. People outside of Vegas understand things so differently than others. People can get very easily offended, by what we see as jokes or lines from a movie comedy. Make sure you use choice words, because the people you will be speaking and interacting with come from a whole different world than you. And view things from a VERY different perspective.
A good way to talk and get to know people is to ask questions. I invite everyone to also study up on things that you think are boring or that you don't understand. The main principle in a mission is talking to people. You can't be shy here, you have to learn to be outgoing. A good way to talk to people is ask them a question about something they like and do it sincerely. If you can state a fun fact that you learned along the way, it'll help propel the conversation! =D I find that people have six categories they like to talk about: Families, School, Vehicles, Work, Difficulties, and Hobbies. Talk to your parents about how to interact with people I'm sure they'll show you! :) You can also pick up a CD on how to best interact with others.
I'm out of time so I'll have to cut it short today. Thank you all for your packages and letters! Love you all!
Elder,
Ian Nessen
P.S. I'm not allowed to go to websites :P
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