Took down another week here, and it was easily one of the best weeks I've had in my mission so far. The highlight was having Marlon's Baptism and Confirmation. We did his baptism early Saturday morning, and his confirmation during sacrament meeting on Sunday. It was just an incredible spiritual experience. After Marlon's baptism, he got up to bear his testimony in front of everyone (which must have been pretty scary, being a 15 year old kid who just barely got baptized minutes before) about the church, the Book of Mormon, his baptism, and just a ton of stuff. I couldn't help it, I started crying. It was amazing to see the changes in his life, his desire to improve as a person, and the miracle of baptism and repentance.
I had another really spiritual experience that same Saturday. In the afternoon, there was a baptism of one of the 8 year olds in our ward. His dad asked Elder Avalos and I to be the witnesses for his baptism. Watching his baptism and his confirmation was extremely, extremely spiritual. Being a witness for the baptism was something I had never done before, and it increased my testimony so much. The work that we are doing here is amazing and sacred. People are really changing their lives, and to be a part of that is a huge privilege.
Apart from the baptism, this week was very normal. We are entering the last week of this cycle. On February 28th, we have transfers. Poor Elder Avalos has spent all six months of his mission here in this area. He's gone through four different companions. Our assistants told us that he was for sure going to have transfers, so it looks like I'll be getting a new comp in a week. It's good for Elder Avalos, and should be exciting for me. The trick is just not focusing on that, and just putting my nose down this week and working hard.
Well, that's all for this week. Stuff here is really good. I'm now completely fluent in Spanish. I can talk without a problem, understand without a problem, etc. I'm learning new stuff every day, but with the foundation of Spanish that I have now, I'm learning extremely rapidly. Its really incredible, and to be honest, pretty sweet going up to somebody and just having a complete conversation with them in a totally different language.
I miss you all, and I hope you guys are doing alright. I love receiving your emails. I read each and every one. Thank you all for everything.
Love,
Elder William Jacob Long
PS sorry I dont have a ton of photos, but hey, I had a baptism! Oh, I found this sick fox hat, and it only cost about 100 pesos (five bucks). It just goes to show that mountain biking still has a place in my heart hahaha
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